I have already resided over the fact the Xbox Series X will likely be my last Xbox, which is a shame considering I own every Xbox console/variant.
The physical shelf that holds Xbox games here has dwindled down to nothing. (Poor console sales likely has a role to play in that as well.)

I am 5 years into the console Lifecycle and I own about 40 Xbox Series Games... Verses around 150~ on Xbox One at around the same time.

Playstation 5 is also reducing, but to a much lesser degree, they haven't gone all-in on stuff like Gamepass, helped by decent hardware sales to make the physical market more viable.

See how the cards fall next generation but if there is no Physical, then there is no purchase, it's as simple as that, don't care what brand it is.

If I have to go digital, I'm sticking to PC.

Game development costs being high is a choice on the developers... The developers who chase those high budgets, chase high production values... And in turn constantly break sales records.
ITS A CHOICE.

Many developers have much smaller budgets and do just fine. See: Larian with Baldurs Gate 3.

Live within your means.

We need to stop using the silly excuse of "high development costs". - They literally choose to have those budgets.

Internal storage has always been faster than optical. Always.
Original Xbox? HDD > DVD.
Playstation 3? HDD > Blu-Ray.
Xbox 360? HDD > DVD.
Playstation 4? HDD > Blu-Ray.
Xbox One? HDD > Blu-Ray.
Playstation 5? SSD > Blu-Ray.
Xbox Series X? SSD > Blu-Ray.
Wii? EMMC SSD > Wii Optical Disk.
WiiU? EMMC SSD > WiiU Optical Disk.

I am not asking developers to stream data from optical, I am okay with installs.

But I want the entire game on disk/cart, playable on launch day without any downloads.


I am also okay with higher physical prices if I get to stay physical. - Except what usually happens is the digital price is the SAME as the physical, which means the digital copy is a worse deal for the consumer.

Actually we do know what happens.

Access to your games is still allowed, provided it's off-line only content.

While the content servers are still online, you can redownload your digital copies even once the store-front has closed. I.E. I can still redownload Xbox 360 and Wii, WiiU, DS and 3DS games just fine.

But once those servers go offline you will NOT be able to redownload that software.

Secondly... Because the Authentication servers are offline, you cannot transfer your digital library and account to another console if your console fails, unlike physical which is disconnected from that.

The advantage of PC is that it's so easy to "crack" your legitimate copies it's an irrelevant issue.

Abandoning Physical means you lose customers as there are customers like myself who are Physical only, ergo, less revenue and profits.

Clearly with the Switch offering Physical AND digital is the optimal path forwards to accrue volume sales in hardware AND software.

Baldur's Gate 3 has an estimated budget of $100 million dollars (on the low end of estimates), lol. If that's what passes as "smaller budget" these days well that just says it all. A mid to high budget game used to cost like $4-5 mill to like $15 mill on the top end. Zelda: Ocarina of Time cost $12 million back in 1998, even with inflation that's only $21.5 million today, GoldenEye 007, which was a huge blockbuster hit and GOTY winner, was made on a $2 million budget (lmao). GTA3 on the PS2 had a 5 million dollar budget, GTA6 has a 2 billion (with a b) dollar budget, lol. 

The gap between SSD and disc read speed is 1000x+ now (5500MB/sec vs 50MB/sec) though, in the past the gap was at least respectable to the point where it made some sense to run a game off a disc ... the disc drive today is basically useless, it's just there to essentially dump the game onto the SSD and given how game development is today it almost certainly won't have the "complete game" on the disc either because future firmware updates have to be downloaded from the internet. So even the idea of "well I have the full game on the disc so I can surely just load it up in 15 years if I want" ... like I wouldn't count on that all. The publisher can lock you out if you don't have the latest firmware. Disc formats are basically useless for running games and this will get even worse on the PS6/Next Box which will probably have an even faster SSD, but alas PS6/Next Box most likely won't even bother with the disc drive at all. 

Some group of people will stop gaming if they can't get physical games, I just don't think there's much evidence that's it's a huge part of the gaming demographic. People will move to digital only, they have done it with movies and music, even if you offer people physical movies and music, the overwhelming majority don't want physical media, particularly the younger kids of today aren't going to care and hardware manufacturers will be happy cutting out the retailer and keeping that cut for themselves. 

Just for the record I don't mind physical media, I like it, but I don't have a huge hang up over it. Physical Switch games and physical disc games aren't nearly as endearing as NES or SNES or Genesis or even Game Boy cartridges like back in the day, these little tiny postage stamp sized games with basically no art but the logo of the game on them doesn't really do much for me though. I'm more sad honestly that GameStop and places like that are likely to go out of business. Say what you want about those places, but they still employ a lot of people who need those jobs to put food on their table. But it is what it is at this point. 

Nah they will make PS6 ports and people will buy them just like so many are buying now remasters/collections/ports.

Especially with an potential handheld version of Ps6 how will you put your discs in? 

$100 million is on the "smaller side" for a AAA release.

$900+ Million. - Genshin Impact.
$850+ Million. - Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War.
$670+ Million. - StarCitizen.
$500+ Million. - Cyberpunk 2077.
$400+ Million. - Spider Man 3.

I'll keep it to just 5, otherwise I would be here all week.

But you are missing the point, I never claimed that Baldurs Gate was a "small budget game". - I asserted it was a "smaller budget game"- Which is factual.
But of course... Like you have done this entire thread, you have misconstrued my statements incorrectly.

That's on you.

Again, the point I am trying to convey which you have missed with your tangent is... Budgets are a choice.
I'll repeat again. - Budgets are a choice.

If you chase a high budget, then you take the risks associated with that, we as consumers shouldn't feel sorry for them if it flops.

Again, this is completely and utterly irrelevant.
No one in this history of this entire thread has suggested that games should run directly from optical disks.

However there are advantages to physical media... When those servers get shut down, I can still install my game on another console.

Xbox you can download a firmware update for an offline install via USB, I assume Sony has a similar ability... And Nintendo you can throw the update on the MicroSD card.
Meaning... Your firmware argument is also completely and utterly irrelevant as the console doesn't need to be internet connected.

Or people will move to mobile and PC.
Both markets are MASSIVE and growing.

Console market has remained fairly static, maybe even shrunk over the years.

You lose nothing by having both Physical and Digital games support.

But you do lose customers if you are digital only.

Some games I own are worth thousands.

StarCraft 64 I have boxed and could sell for over $3,000 AUD.

You just don't get that with digital copies.

Thankfully EB Games is doing fine in Australia for the most part, they have started to branch out and start retro game sales... But also diversified into selling various video game related paraphernalia, they aren't in the same financial shit-hole as Gamestop.

However the anti-consumer sentiment should probably stop with people on this forum, we are consumers, not Nintendo employees, we need to put our own interests above multi-billion dollar companies... As the sad reality is... If you were to die tomorrow, they wouldn't even know or care, so put consumer interests first.

We need Physical. We need a Switch TV.

I don't think there are any last gen remasters that have sold especially well. The vast majority of people will definitely be pissed but BC is never a necessity as you can always just keep your old device. With a portable PS6, I think that smaller number of users will accept that no physical BC is the cost of having a portable form factor. Not giving home console owners an option however isn't really excusable and will cause backlash.

I wouldn't be surprised though if Sony and MS are planning the end to physical media with PS6/Next Xbox, maybe a DRM solution where you have to register your physical game to an account and thus you have a digital transfer route in later generations. 

Most third party games are dependant on patches and thus internet connection anyway and for people who want tangible goods I think a game key fufils the keepsake function, the only concern remaining is long term license access. For that guaranteed preservation I think cheap cartridge option for developers (high storage, low speed) would have been the best and most consumer friendly route. Game fully on the card but requires an install to internal storage to play and no backlash. Hopefully they consider this going forward as a replacement for  game keys.

I do think the Game Key cards installing without internet like how things started with consoles on PS4 and Xbox One would've been a much better idea. It is better for preservation and requires no internet data and connection. 

Was thinking about this earlier today, and the missing 1GB to 32GB cards could be intentional as those would be covered by the Switch 1 cartridges.
It could push developers to continue releasing Switch 1 games and offer upgrades for the Switch 2. Win-Win in this transitional period.

And for bigger current gen games that can only run on Switch 2, then those will most likely be above 32GB as seen here: https://gamrconnect.vgchartz.com/thread/249161/nintendo-switch-2-physical-game-list/

Tbh I kind of agree with Soundwave as a decade ago people were using the same arguments as they do today but fast forward today 50% an counting sales are digital, those arguing the physical format side of things aren't factoring one thing that contributed to that, the newer generation of gamers, for the younger gamers now digital is a normal thing this is the NES and Atari era for them so the ratio of digital to physical sales will increase in the former's favour as they get older and have their own income.

Soundwave you compared video games to movies, and tv shows going digital to streaming. This works well because they are universal containers that the information sits in and can be played on any device. Games on the other hand are built for the hardware, so you need to be able to maintain that relationship and replayability on said hardware.

On another note, streaming has become so annoying with so many services, licensing exclusive issues, or expiring licenses and shows disappearing from one platform going to another, making you buy like 5 subscriptions to have access to everything now is actually making people say this is too hard and annoying and go back to piracy, so it has a negative effect.

Digital games via steam made a lot of sense, but even now some publishers are getting greedy for profits that they went out and made their own digital platforms, or if still on steam requiring to have, Ubisoft, EA, or Rockstar accounts on top of that etcs, again segregating consumers having to install more bloatware on their computers or sign up to more shit then they really need too, this also leads to piracy as people want to simply play and waste time. When it was all on steam and less bloated, it actually benefited them all as it was convenient and central. Me personally since they made it so hard and overcomplicated I simply moved on and all my money is focused on retro games or trading cards, that way at least I decide how I want to collect.