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"There is less risk releasing a new game digitally. At retail, if you don’t have a 90 Metacritic score and millions of fans, it’s very risky to launch a new game."
Oh yeah! I forgot Metacritshit was a reference!
"Look at From Dust, we sold half a million units on XBLA and PSN."
And then companies like Steam offered a refund to it customers because the game was rendered unplayable by the DRM.
Oh yeah! I forgot Metacritshit was a reference!
"Look at From Dust, we sold half a million units on XBLA and PSN."
And then companies like Steam offered a refund to it customers because the game was rendered unplayable by the DRM.
I'd like to punch UbiSoft in the face. They're right in this case though. They just have to be less dickheadish in a general sense.
"I wonder how long it will be until people look at me with wide eyed amazement when I regale them with tales of leaving my home, jumping on a bus, going into town, walking into an actual building and handing over physical money to a human being just so I can play a videogame."
I'd say that's still quite far off. Something I think there is a large disconnect between industry insiders and the general public. My theory is that industry insiders tend to be the very first to adopt new technologies, and since they are surrounded by other insiders, they conclude that "everyone" is using said new technology and start professing the death of the old one.
For example, a few months back IGN reported that The Witcher 2 had sold 980k copies and that only 20% of those were digital sales. That's quite a low percentage considering retail PC games has been written off as "dead" by many. Just as surprising is that, according to Microsoft, 2/3 of live subscriptions in Europe are done at retail.
So it seems that while some are already professing that cloud gaming is the future, a considerable majority of the market hasn't even gone digital yet.
I'd say that's still quite far off. Something I think there is a large disconnect between industry insiders and the general public. My theory is that industry insiders tend to be the very first to adopt new technologies, and since they are surrounded by other insiders, they conclude that "everyone" is using said new technology and start professing the death of the old one.
For example, a few months back IGN reported that The Witcher 2 had sold 980k copies and that only 20% of those were digital sales. That's quite a low percentage considering retail PC games has been written off as "dead" by many. Just as surprising is that, according to Microsoft, 2/3 of live subscriptions in Europe are done at retail.
So it seems that while some are already professing that cloud gaming is the future, a considerable majority of the market hasn't even gone digital yet.
most PC games i buy in retail cause they're cheaper than on digital distribution.
Anno 2070 - 50euros on Steam or 45euros for collectors edition in retail, or 25 for standard version in retail.
Serious Sam HD Gold that includes both HD remakes and originals - 40euros on Steam and 9euros in retail.
Anno 2070 - 50euros on Steam or 45euros for collectors edition in retail, or 25 for standard version in retail.
Serious Sam HD Gold that includes both HD remakes and originals - 40euros on Steam and 9euros in retail.
@CaimDark,
retail will never die - only in US and UK prices of digital and retail versions are the same. in central and eastern europe one would have to be a retard to buy their games digitally EVEN DURING Steam Sales - we have giant PC community here and new games cost up to 30euros at launch compared to 50-60euros on Steam. then add the fact that many retail games come with some sort of bonus like soundtracks, artbooks, poster even in standard versions(especially with re-releases) and you know why people would rather buy their games in traditional stores or online stores rather than sites like Steam or Impulse.
hell MS points and Gold subscriptions cost here about 30-40% less than on XBL.
1 year Gold subscription and 4200 MS points - 20-26euros in retail in my country depending on the store.
retail will never die - only in US and UK prices of digital and retail versions are the same. in central and eastern europe one would have to be a retard to buy their games digitally EVEN DURING Steam Sales - we have giant PC community here and new games cost up to 30euros at launch compared to 50-60euros on Steam. then add the fact that many retail games come with some sort of bonus like soundtracks, artbooks, poster even in standard versions(especially with re-releases) and you know why people would rather buy their games in traditional stores or online stores rather than sites like Steam or Impulse.
hell MS points and Gold subscriptions cost here about 30-40% less than on XBL.
1 year Gold subscription and 4200 MS points - 20-26euros in retail in my country depending on the store.
@Max-,
sucks for you guys, dunno why other european branches of most of the publishers won't make some deals to cut the prices down. here, even publishers like EA and Ubisoft are selling their PC games for less than their retail prices suppose to be.
sucks for you guys, dunno why other european branches of most of the publishers won't make some deals to cut the prices down. here, even publishers like EA and Ubisoft are selling their PC games for less than their retail prices suppose to be.
I am over having physical copies. XBL and PSN didn't do it to me though...Netflix and iTunes did. They made their services easy to get to and usable with multiple devices. Easy and simple
Then there's retail movie and games. The cases take up a lot of space, discs get scratched, or get lost/stolen/permanently borrowed. In the latter two cases, you'd have to buy the game again.
I'd rather just download and play at my leisure. If I get a new console or device, then I can download it to that without paying again. Screw retail discs.
Even though they probably don't save money at the end of the day by not printing media (servers, datastorage, bandwidth), it still feels like the games should be cheaper when downloaded. Especially when phone and tablet apps are so much cheaper (regardless of quality and devtime...consumers don't care about that stuff). Even $5 off would nudge me...but that needs to be $5 whatever the current retail price is.
It's dumb when a full DD game costs $29.99 on XBL but you can go buy it for $19.99 in the store.
Then there's retail movie and games. The cases take up a lot of space, discs get scratched, or get lost/stolen/permanently borrowed. In the latter two cases, you'd have to buy the game again.
I'd rather just download and play at my leisure. If I get a new console or device, then I can download it to that without paying again. Screw retail discs.
Even though they probably don't save money at the end of the day by not printing media (servers, datastorage, bandwidth), it still feels like the games should be cheaper when downloaded. Especially when phone and tablet apps are so much cheaper (regardless of quality and devtime...consumers don't care about that stuff). Even $5 off would nudge me...but that needs to be $5 whatever the current retail price is.
It's dumb when a full DD game costs $29.99 on XBL but you can go buy it for $19.99 in the store.
@SuicideNinja,
personally i prefer physical copies over downloadable versions. i always know who i borrowed which games so i never had problem with missing games.
as for durability of physical copies - if you store them well they will never brake. as long as the disc wasn't corrupted when i got it(which happened once and i got replacement for free), it works. i still have PC games i bought 10+years ago like Baldur's Gate or Test Drive 6 - still work.
then again i'm more of a collector and i love the fact that when i buy new game i have to open the box, read the manual etc. it's more than just staring at blank screen showing how much space new downloaded title takes. not to mention that i'm more determined to finish and complete the game and i have more fun with it than with downloadable games - simillar to piracy.
i pirated many PC games like 10+years ago simply because at that time prices in my country were ridiculously high and most games would never be published here, but i never felt satisfied when i finished game i pirated unlike retail copy i bought. i have same thing nowadays with digital distribution - when i'll buy physical copy i know i will play it to death and still have fun, unlike games i bought on Steam.
personally i prefer physical copies over downloadable versions. i always know who i borrowed which games so i never had problem with missing games.
as for durability of physical copies - if you store them well they will never brake. as long as the disc wasn't corrupted when i got it(which happened once and i got replacement for free), it works. i still have PC games i bought 10+years ago like Baldur's Gate or Test Drive 6 - still work.
then again i'm more of a collector and i love the fact that when i buy new game i have to open the box, read the manual etc. it's more than just staring at blank screen showing how much space new downloaded title takes. not to mention that i'm more determined to finish and complete the game and i have more fun with it than with downloadable games - simillar to piracy.
i pirated many PC games like 10+years ago simply because at that time prices in my country were ridiculously high and most games would never be published here, but i never felt satisfied when i finished game i pirated unlike retail copy i bought. i have same thing nowadays with digital distribution - when i'll buy physical copy i know i will play it to death and still have fun, unlike games i bought on Steam.
HAHAHA. That story tells everything about how blind people at Ubi are. They're excited about selling 500K of From Dust, yet instead of trying to double that amount on Steam and PC in general, they decided to release a port so crappy that they had to offer refunds. And now Ubisoft moans about piracy.
@sofik88
Don't know what country you're from but in Poland it's not really how you describe it. I've got dozens of games I bought in the UK because it was cheaper, so it's not as expensive as you say. Yeah, newly released games are usually much cheaper especially compared to €50 Steam games. Still, Steam isn't the only digital distribution service around. Recently I had Deus Ex and Dead Island pre-ordered at GMG as it was cheaper than retail here even though DI is a Polish game FFS. Times of retail editions rich with addons are also long gone as most games include just black&white manual-like brochure filled with warnings, credits and copyright crap inside a dvd case. Finally, Steam sales rock! Even if recent releases have laughable prices there's so many older or indie titles (most of which never reach retail).
@sofik88
Don't know what country you're from but in Poland it's not really how you describe it. I've got dozens of games I bought in the UK because it was cheaper, so it's not as expensive as you say. Yeah, newly released games are usually much cheaper especially compared to €50 Steam games. Still, Steam isn't the only digital distribution service around. Recently I had Deus Ex and Dead Island pre-ordered at GMG as it was cheaper than retail here even though DI is a Polish game FFS. Times of retail editions rich with addons are also long gone as most games include just black&white manual-like brochure filled with warnings, credits and copyright crap inside a dvd case. Finally, Steam sales rock! Even if recent releases have laughable prices there's so many older or indie titles (most of which never reach retail).
@sofik88: I still have my "curse of monkey island" CDs and they work peachy keen. While I understand the convenience of having digital (don't occupy any space outside your PC/console) I also prefer physical copies.
I'm still on the side of preferring the physical copies than digital. While I see the convenience of re-downloading when you want, I've had more issues with digital than the retail end. Things like corrupted downloads, internet problems limiting download speeds, or needing to purchase a service that allows for re-download (e.g. THQ) turn me off. Don't get me wrong, I still buy digital on PC due to the insane price (mainly steam) but for consoles there is a sort of safe feeling that comes from having the physical copy in your hands rather than leaving it up to PSN or Xbox Live.
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