Even without GamePass, digital are overtaking physical anyway. it was in 2019 or 2020, can't remember which, that Sony confirmed that digital sales had reached 50% and was continuing to grow.
The cheaper 400$ PS5 all-digital will likely outsell the 500$ regular PS5 by the end of the gen. The casuals will flock to the digital. Right now, the hardcore are preferring the disc one, but by the end of the gen, it will be the opposite. I will not be surprised at all, if Sony reports physical game sales to be around 20% or less.
Retail sales aren't the #1 metric that is used anymore. It's all about the active number of users/subscribers. In the US, Marvel's Avengers was the best-selling game in September 2020, and 11th overall in 2020. Yet today, just a few months into 2021, it is a ghost town and considered a massive financial flop for Square Enix. Outriders being in GamePass ensures that there will always be steady stream of new users to flock into the game, and a healthy playerbase, which is what matters. I see more people talking about Outriders than Marvel's Avengers at launch, despite one being a new IP and the other one of the biggest IP in entertainment right now, and I think GamePass is definitively helping.
Last edited by hiccupthehuman - on 06 April 2021
