Next gen: Will it go all digital?

[superchunk]

TheKoreanGuy said:

superchunk said:

TheKoreanGuy said:
The world isn't ready for digital only. The retailers will also make sure that doesn't happen.

Retailers will go digital too. They already are.

Many big retails sell PC games via digital download now.

I just saw an article here where Gamestop is selling 3DS digital games.

Basically, you buy a code to put into the consoles store to download the game. This way store fronts can still offer the games, make bigger profit with less space taken up.

Digital delivery is really where everyone (non consumer) wants to go as it drastically cuts down on the expenses of putting out software, thus increasing the margin at the same price.

Additionally, since the costs are down so low, Steam and others have proven that they can offer more frequent and far cheaper sales. In the long run, it should be a win-win scenario for all of us. Only downsides are not being able to share hard copy of the game with others as in parties and such. But, non-consumers want to end that as well, so for them its a benefit.

While I'd personally have to give up used game market (NOOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooooo..............), I am a patient person and always wait for sales. So, I'd be content waiting for a digital sale for the same price area I generally buy used $20-$25. My only real fear is the loss of all competition with stores like EAs Origin where the publisher/developer only allows one store to sell the item. That is a monopoly and will make sales harder to come by. But, I'd like to think that this wouldn't be allowed due to anti-competitive regulations.

But retailers are still selling physical copies and that's not going to change anytime soon. Do you think the future is Gamestop or Best Buy with racks of paper slips with codes on them and nothing else? The only way this would work is if MS, Sony, and Nintendo kill their sales through retailers and opt to sell everything through the consoles themselves. But like I said, retailers won't like that and will make sure this doesn't happen.

Yeah, I understand that digital only would benefit both us and the company. But we're not there yet. Realistically, people won't go out to stores so they can buy things digital only. There would also be the problem of returning your games back as all sales would be final. That's why I think retailers will continue to fight for the option of physical copies. And again, the only viable solution for digial only would be through your actual console like Steam does with PC or the App store, which retailers would be fully against.

No, I see large retailers like Walmart having areas where sales of digital codes can be purchased etc and game centric places like Gamestop sellign the same thing plus accessories and consoles themselves. All the while other revenue for game sales is shifted to their already existing online models.

Granted, over time Gamestop and others will have to shrink their retail store footprint as game sales move to digital. In the end they will survive, with slightly a different format.

Look what's happened to music. Music stores still exist as does music in retailers. However, the biggest sale of music now is clearly digital and all retailers offer a digital options for download.

It didn't destroy the industry and retailers are still viable. Now with larger and cheaper storage, this will move to the complete loss of CDs as well as the migration of video to primarily digital delivery, same as music. Of course the next to follow will be games.

Again, I don't think it will happen 100% this next gen, but it will be dramatically increased and it will probably be the last gen with any cart/disc format option once these digital deliver systems are prefected over the next 5 years.