Home Gaming FFD: Physical or digital?

FFD: Physical or digital?

1 min read
222

PHYSICAL

It’s funny, the physical delay for Dying Light – and its subsequent, additional week-long delay. Quite a number of people I know are still waiting for the game to hit store shelves, so they can pick up a physical copy. They could have, if they really wanted to, played the game over a month ago – but there’s something about physical copies of games that still appeals, despite the convenience of digital delivery.

As we learned yesterday, digital game sales are raking in a great big heap of cash, and it’s becoming obvious that more and more people are jumping on the digital distribution bandwagon – especially those on the new consoles who’re now more readily able to download full games.

DIGITAL

Of course, PC gamers are old hats at digital distribution; with Steam, there’s very little need to even look at a physical copy of a game – especially seeing as you can’t trade them in, which is one of the principal reasons console users still love their physical media; using their old games to help fund their new ones.

I’m not the sort who tends to trade games in, and I love the convenience of not fussing with discs, so I’m all aboard the digital train. What of you though? Are you embracing digital or are you still hung up on the physical?

Last Updated: February 27, 2015

222 Comments

  1. Jaded_Reprobate

    February 27, 2015 at 10:32

    Physical… i can always trade the game in once i’m done and get something else at a discounted rate… it also helps the wallet to buy games that have been traded in…

    Reply

  2. Umar

    February 27, 2015 at 10:33

    I like digital but also physical as well….Yeah, trade-in and selling value. F it guys, games are too expensive and I personally need the rolling cash to buy the next game.

    Reply

    • Geoffrey Tim

      February 27, 2015 at 10:35

      And this is something many publishers fail to realise, with all their attempts to curb the second hand market. Those second hand sales FUND new game sales.

      Reply

      • Hammersteyn

        February 27, 2015 at 10:38

        Let them take that away. We’ll all sit and wait for specials like the Steamers do.

        Reply

        • Blood Emperor Trevor

          February 27, 2015 at 10:45

          Let’s not forget MS tried during their AMAZING reveal. Worked out really well for them.

          Reply

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 10:46

            Most beloved reveal of the decade if I recall. 😀

          • Hammersteyn

            February 27, 2015 at 10:46

            All the lulz

      • Umar

        February 27, 2015 at 10:41

        It’s the reality these days, and extensive DRM will just end up hurting them even more. The second-hand market is not killing the industry like they’ll have us believe, it’s actually good for the industry and consumers and allows for flexible purchases. Now, if they would like to introduce tiered payment options then hey, that can be an alternative, but it’s either all or nothing at all. To me, and the way I see it, publishers would be on cloud-9 if games were to become services.

        Reply

    • Matewis Jubilai

      February 27, 2015 at 11:04

      Retrogaming all the way! Dungeon Keeper 1, Disciples 2, Little Big Adventure, Theme Hospital, and many more, are as good or better than anything that gets released these days.

      Reply

      • Nelius Blignaut

        February 28, 2015 at 09:53

        Hipster

        Reply

    • DrKiller

      February 27, 2015 at 15:53

      Just dont be the first guy to get games as they are released… Bought Watchdogs from Xbox Live for R250 last week and I’m super happy about it!

      Reply

  3. Admiral Chief

    February 27, 2015 at 10:34

    My heart says physical, my wallet says digital

    Reply

    • DrKiller

      February 27, 2015 at 15:54

      And your internet? What’s its opinion? 😛

      Reply

      • ShoNuff

        February 28, 2015 at 08:23

        my internet doesn’t care.

        Reply

      • Admiral Chief

        March 2, 2015 at 12:46

        Too busy being run in the red to form opinion XD

        Reply

    • ultraviolet

      February 28, 2015 at 13:08

      i find digital copies to be more expensive on consoles

      Reply

      • Admiral Chief

        March 2, 2015 at 12:46

        Oh, I NEVER pick up day1 (or even month 6) digitals

        Reply

        • ultraviolet

          March 4, 2015 at 10:06

          ive just brought Halo 4 on physical copy [new] and it was over double if i brought it digitally

          Reply

  4. Geoffrey Tim

    February 27, 2015 at 10:37

    Also, the 80’s ruled.

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      February 27, 2015 at 10:37

      Best decade ever!

      Reply

      • Matewis Jubilai

        February 27, 2015 at 10:46

        Best decade: 1987-1997 🙂

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          February 27, 2015 at 10:47

          That’s pretty specific. Why so?

          Reply

          • Ottokie

            February 27, 2015 at 10:49

            The Nintendo N64 came out end 1997 so then it got AWESOME!

          • Matewis Jubilai

            February 27, 2015 at 10:52

            I’m looking at animated series specifically 🙂 In fact I think I should change it to 1985-1995 since Gummi Bears first appeared in 1985. Other series I considered: Ducktales, Bravestarr, Talespin, Gooftroop

          • Hammersteyn

            February 27, 2015 at 10:53

            They are gonna make a new Ducktales series 😀

          • Matewis Jubilai

            February 27, 2015 at 10:57

            I heard!

          • Dutch Matrix

            February 27, 2015 at 10:58

            “If it’s got wings, I can crash it!” Launchpad McQuack

          • Matewis Jubilai

            February 27, 2015 at 11:05

            I’m getting horrible flashbacks from the flying bits in the old Ductales DOS game. Goddamn clouds!

      • Ottokie

        February 27, 2015 at 10:47

        Refresh for pic!

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          February 27, 2015 at 10:52

          Looooooool

          Reply

        • WitWolfy

          February 27, 2015 at 10:52

          LOL thats when my wife was born.

          Reply

        • Matthew Holliday

          February 27, 2015 at 11:38

          ’89 babies unite.

          Reply

        • Captain JJ the crafter

          February 27, 2015 at 11:41

          Haha. Shame man.
          Don’t worry, we only judge you here based on the games you play 😉

          Reply

          • Ottokie

            February 27, 2015 at 11:42

            That’s a dangerous topic around these parts XD

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:45

            Have you heard about 3 of the top 10 games ever made?

          • Ottokie

            February 27, 2015 at 11:56

            No No I have not heard, please go on

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 12:03

            Are you sure? It’s quite the Fable…

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 12:04

            These riddles! 😀

          • Ottokie

            February 27, 2015 at 12:50

            Maby the Final Fable?

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:56

            It really is. Except for Umar, no one judges him anymore. 🙂

        • Mossel

          February 28, 2015 at 13:36

          The struggle is real. Also born in 89.

          Reply

    • DrKiller

      February 27, 2015 at 15:54

      I wouldn’t know… Wasn’t alive yet 🙁

      Reply

  5. Uberutang

    February 27, 2015 at 10:37

    Digital:

    It is cheaper
    It does not screw over the developer / publishers (trading / reselling etc)
    I have no space to store plastic dvd stuff

    Reply

    • Admiral Chief

      February 27, 2015 at 10:38

      Very valid points

      Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      February 27, 2015 at 10:39

      That’s right. PC games doesn’t come on Blu-ray discs yet, that I know off.

      Reply

      • Viking Of Science

        February 27, 2015 at 11:04

        And I don’t think they ever will. Bluray Drives aren’t as commonplace on PCs. And Hell, These days, many gamers opt for a PC without any optical drive. Big games may be a pain To download on SA internet. (I’m looking at you Bioshock Infinite GOTY) but Digital Distribution on PC is quickly becoming the norm.
        Do you know a PC gamer without an internet connection? because I sure don’t…

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          February 27, 2015 at 11:10

          There are none

          Reply

          • Viking Of Science

            February 27, 2015 at 11:20

            Exactly!

          • DrKiller

            February 27, 2015 at 15:56

            They just won’t comment here… you know, because of no internet 😛

          • Hammersteyn

            February 27, 2015 at 16:03

            lol you’re right

      • DrKiller

        February 27, 2015 at 15:56

        Who is the Master Race now? 😛

        Reply

    • Umar

      February 27, 2015 at 10:46

      Thing is right, digital is actually more expensive which completely baffles me. I know this is not the case with Steam, but on consoles, the games are much more expensive.

      Reply

      • Blood Emperor Trevor

        February 27, 2015 at 10:47

        It’s the same with Steam. Often a new game will be $60 on Steam, retail will be R500 or so.

        Reply

        • Pariah

          February 27, 2015 at 10:48

          Yeah, the real benefit is that Steam has sales going all the time. So with a little patience we can get games cheaper than retail, even as early as a month after release.

          Reply

          • ReaperOfSquirrels

            February 27, 2015 at 10:51

            I got Borderlands 2 GOTY for PC for R50… it’s $39.99 on Steam.

            I won’t buy new releases on Steam, cos they’re normally more expensive than Retail even on sale.

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 10:59

            I picked up Shadow of Mordor for R240 a month after release on Steam. Was still R500 in store at the time.

          • ReaperOfSquirrels

            February 27, 2015 at 11:02

            Yeah, it’s really a toss up between retail and Steam most of the time. If there’s a sale in store, you’re probably good. If there’s a decent sale on Steam, then you’re golden.

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:03

            That’s just it I think. Some patience really allows us to get the best deals. For the last year though, that’s always been digital (at least the games I wanted). BL2 isn’t a bad example, except I bought that retail on release day. Still don’t regret it. 😛

          • ReaperOfSquirrels

            February 27, 2015 at 11:06

            I’m not ashamed to say I’ve got 2 copies of BL2 GOTY… one on the Xbox 360 and one on the PC… and I don’t regret either. The game is epic and more fun with friends, which is why I double dipped for it. GTAV will be another game I’ll get twice (once Heists come out).

        • Umar

          February 27, 2015 at 10:53

          You’d think it’d be the other way around. Digital tax?

          Reply

          • Blood Emperor Trevor

            February 27, 2015 at 10:57

            I don’t think so, been that way for years. I remember preordering Borderlands 2 & Dark Souls at the same time, B2 was cheaper physically while DS digitally. Made no sense to me then that digital was more expensive, still doesn’t.

          • Viking Of Science

            February 27, 2015 at 11:09

            The main thing on Steam is, we don’t have a South African storefront, we get shunted to the American Marketplace. Russia, for example has it’s own Steam Storefront, and there, AAA, $60 games sell for the equivalent of $40, give or take.

            If we had our own storefront, The Digital Prices would be closer to retail prices.

      • Uberutang

        February 27, 2015 at 10:48

        There are more digital shops than just steam 🙂

        Reply

        • Umar

          February 27, 2015 at 10:51

          Yeah no, not well versed in that side of the digital world. To me, the only digital outlets are Steam and GOG because all other online keys else gets banned at some point (I know this is not the case though lol)

          Reply

        • Kromas Votes LAG WCMovie Event

          February 27, 2015 at 13:00

          Who pull your steam codes a few days after you buy the game from them thanks to Ubisoft. 😛

          Reply

          • Uberutang

            February 27, 2015 at 13:02

            Happened once to one game and everybody go their games back in the end…

          • Kromas Votes LAG WCMovie Event

            February 27, 2015 at 19:25

            I know but it is oh so fun to rip on Ubisoft. They really deserve all the crap they get.

      • Matthew Holliday

        February 27, 2015 at 11:17

        steam prices for AAA games are actually 30% more than the price of physical copies.
        the preorder for Witcher 3 cost me R450, while it was on steam for 60$ / R690

        Reply

  6. CAE9872

    February 27, 2015 at 10:37

    Physical usually unless I spot a crazy sale going on XBL or PSN – then I will happily buy the digital version. I sometimes buy more than one version of a game and will then make the 2nd one a digital copy at a low price.

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      February 27, 2015 at 10:40

      Apparently there’s a huge PSN sale come March.

      Reply

      • CAE9872

        February 27, 2015 at 10:42

        Yeah I heard about that; one going on now for Vita’s 2nd birthday (or 3rd or whatever). I still need Killzone and Tearaway for Vita.

        Reply

  7. Hammersteyn

    February 27, 2015 at 10:37

    Depends on the price. New games go for R900 on PSN but R800 at BT Games. Then you get a 10% preorder discount from them plus 10% on top of the second hand games you trade in when collection a preorder. Day one games can cost almost R400 or less depending on how many games you trade.

    Reply

    • Ir0nseraph

      February 27, 2015 at 10:44

      For me it’s all about the price , a few vouchers , some Ebucks trading old games gives the disk option my main choice, but when digital games hits specials like for a good price I buy it.

      Reply

    • Pariah

      February 27, 2015 at 10:44

      The problem comes when you want to play those older games again. I had this exact issue with Mass Effect, meaning I bought the trilogy on PC again (for R150, the whole trilogy). This time though, even if I uninstall, I’ll be able to download and play them again in a few years time.

      Reply

      • Hammersteyn

        February 27, 2015 at 10:46

        I dont linger that much on older games tbh.

        Reply

        • Pariah

          February 27, 2015 at 10:47

          When nostalgia bites man, nothing can satiate the itch aside from playing the game again. Even if you’re bored in an hour and uninstall again. Sometimes just that hour is all you need.

          Reply

          • Hammersteyn

            February 27, 2015 at 10:48

            This is true, but my nostalgia is still stuck on arcade games and the 16-bit era. That’s why I bought Q-bert recently. Controls sucks though

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 10:49

            Fair enough man. One day though, you’ll kick yourself for trading that one game in. It’ll happen.

          • Ir0nseraph

            February 27, 2015 at 10:51

            Or just wait for the remastered version 😉

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 10:59

            WP man. hahahaha

          • Hammersteyn

            February 27, 2015 at 10:51

            That one game compared to all the other ones? I like those odds. Still holding on to Doom 3 BFG edition but mostly because of Doom 1 and 2

          • Kromas Votes LAG WCMovie Event

            February 27, 2015 at 13:02

            Nostalgia bites all the time if we are talking Mass Effect. 🙂

        • CAE9872

          February 27, 2015 at 10:57

          I don’t know how you do it – my OCD kicks in not allowing me to do so. I have to do pretty much everything including things no sane person would do e.g. complete every level of Halo on legendary without dying (which I eventually did but took 10 yrs). Halo 2 alludes me on that particular aspect. But you get the idea.

          Arrrrgggghhhhhh…damn OCD…

          Reply

          • Blood Emperor Trevor

            February 27, 2015 at 10:57

            *CDO fixed.

          • Hammersteyn

            February 27, 2015 at 10:58

            I’m not into achievement hunting. If a game is done it’s done

  8. theseasonswither

    February 27, 2015 at 10:37

    I like the physical copy for 1 reason – I don’t have to download 40GB or more to play.
    I install then patch, if needed, and play straight away.

    Reply

    • Ottokie

      February 27, 2015 at 10:42

      True but for so many a CD rom is now just a dust collector, just the other day I realized I did not even have a CD Rom in my Pc for the last 2 years XD

      Reply

    • Pariah

      February 27, 2015 at 10:42

      I don’t mind the download time really. I have a 4mb line, but 40gb’s takes a day or so. It’s still really convenient to buy a game at say 40% off, and then wait another day or so to play. I save money in the end, and then the box doesn’t take up unnecessary space in my home.

      Reply

      • theseasonswither

        February 27, 2015 at 10:44

        I only have a 2mb line with a 20GB cap sadly.
        But I do get where you are coming from.

        That said, I did buy Batman Arkham Origins on Steam and am pretty sad that I don’t have the oriignal to go with the other 2 Batman games I have 🙁

        Reply

    • Kromas Votes LAG WCMovie Event

      February 27, 2015 at 13:05

      That is becoming quite the opposite lately.

      For example. I bought Evolve digitally. On release I clicked play and bam I was in thanks to steam pre-loads.

      A friend bought it physical on release day and had a 2 gig odd day one patch. He eventually just came to grab my steam backup.

      And this has happened quite a few times over the last 2 or so years.

      Reply

  9. Dutch Matrix

    February 27, 2015 at 10:37

    I would say digital only. Or rather would love to go digital only, if I did not have a 2MB/s line, and games were not busy getting huge as they are.
    That said, I have scored quite a few well priced, hard to come by games on PC thanks to Steam: Injustice and MK 9 to name a few…

    Reply

  10. Blood Emperor Trevor

    February 27, 2015 at 10:38

    The only reason I’ll go for a physical version now is for cool collectors edition goodies, and those will be few & far between. Witcher 3 is the only physical edition I’ve bought since Borderlands 2 came out.

    I’ve gone digital for my fiction reading too, even more convenient than games.

    Reply

    • Dutch Matrix

      February 27, 2015 at 10:39

      Sir Terry Pratchett MUST be read on paper. His footnotes in his books is quite trying when trying to read on Kindle..

      Reply

      • Blood Emperor Trevor

        February 27, 2015 at 10:45

        Nah, only get dead tree editions for non-fiction.

        Reply

    • Kromas Votes LAG WCMovie Event

      February 27, 2015 at 13:09

      If it has a CE and I want to play it then I will own the CE. The only exception to that rule was with Dragon Age. When I wanted to drop my R10000 for it I found out that the pre-orders were sold out within the 1st 40 mins of it being available.

      Reply

  11. Ottokie

    February 27, 2015 at 10:39

    Physical for all the “pretty” boxes to go in my future display, but we all know that’s a lie since everything is becoming digital 😛

    Reply

  12. ReaperOfSquirrels

    February 27, 2015 at 10:43

    I love having the visual of how many games I’m sitting on… but if I can get it cheaper digitally, then digital it is.

    That being said I’m going to be selling a bunch of 2nd hand Xbox 360 games soon… need to fund newer gaming somehow… and I’ll only trade-in the ones I can’t sell.

    Reply

  13. WitWolfy

    February 27, 2015 at 10:44

    My PS3 has go quite a collection of purchased games on its HDD.. I’m more physical ouk mostly for display purposes, but digital is also cool for games those are hard to find PS1 and some PS2 games…

    Reply

  14. Matewis Jubilai

    February 27, 2015 at 10:45

    I don’t care for actual discs, but what I do miss are those big old gaming boxes games used to come in.

    Reply

    • Rock789

      February 27, 2015 at 10:48

      I miss how awesome they looked! But my cupboard doesn’t miss them… Always had space issues.

      Reply

      • Matewis Jubilai

        February 27, 2015 at 11:00

        I’ve still got all of mine neatly stacked in a row at my parents’ house. Here is my pride and joy:

        Reply

    • Norm

      February 27, 2015 at 10:52

      And those colourful manuals.

      Reply

  15. Rock789

    February 27, 2015 at 10:48

    I’m still about 95% physical – I just like having something to show for the money I spent. Not to mention trying to avoid any “my console broke, I got a new one, and my online account is now corrupted so there go all my games!” issues… 🙂

    But yeah, especially on XB1, they have some insane prices online in the last few months and I just can’t justify waiting for physical releases… Then digital it is.

    And yeah, my digital consumption has definitely gone up with the new-gen consoles.

    Reply

    • RinceThis

      February 27, 2015 at 10:55

      You are a hoarder!

      Reply

      • Rock789

        February 27, 2015 at 10:58

        *whore – there, corrected for you! :p

        Oh… And you’re just JEALOUS! :p

        Reply

        • RinceThis

          February 27, 2015 at 11:01

          I, I… Okay, but there is good reason to be jealous!

          Reply

      • Blood Emperor Trevor

        February 27, 2015 at 10:59

        Hoarders hoard junk. Are you calling his games… junk? O_o

        Reply

  16. Ryanza

    February 27, 2015 at 10:48

    Physical or digital? Does this call for a Ryanza comment? lol.

    Reply

    • Geoffrey Tim

      February 27, 2015 at 10:49

      Don’t support EDM.
      Electronic Dance music is the devil.

      Reply

      • Kensei Seraph

        February 27, 2015 at 10:50

        That it is.

        Reply

      • Umar

        February 27, 2015 at 10:52

        Armin Van Satan!

        Reply

        • Dutch Matrix

          February 27, 2015 at 11:11

          LoL. The Afrikaner in me rad that as Armin From Satan!

          Reply

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:13

            Haha. Excellent

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:14

            The Grammar Nazi in me is cringing at “rad”.

            Edit: and “Afrikaner”.

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:15

            Dutch cannot contain his awesomeness. The rad-ness sneaks in every now and then.

          • Dutch Matrix

            February 27, 2015 at 11:16

            That is true. And sometimes it spill over. AB de Villiers got some Dutch in him this morning and wait what?

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:17

            I don’t even want to think about that. O_O

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:18

            O_o
            Don’t soil my view of Dutch! He is the most awesome of awesomeness.
            “Looks like you’ve been pushing too many pencils”

          • Dutch Matrix

            February 27, 2015 at 11:15

            Heil Gramma!

          • Dutch Matrix

            February 27, 2015 at 11:18

            Oh you have no idea. This morning a girl Tweeted: “I have the most awesome guy in the world.” I read I saw the most awesome guy in the world. So I tweeted at her: Where did you see me?
            I have never made such a fool of myself. Unless you count that one time I hit on this girl and she was like EEEEEWWWWW in front of the whole class. Kind of ruined grade 1 for me.

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:19

            Eish dude, those are both pretty harsh lol. I’ve had my foot stuck in my mouth a few times.

            The worst I’ve heard though, my sister once took a love letter, in class, walked slowly to the front, glared at the guy in front of the whole class, crumpled the letter and threw it in the bin. Yeah, that poor kid.

          • Admiral Chief

            February 27, 2015 at 11:19

            *spelling

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:20

            Oh the term is still Grammar Nazi – regardless of whether it’s the spelling, the actual grammar, or even the punctuation that’s incorrect.

      • Ryanza

        February 27, 2015 at 10:57

        • Geoffrey Tim

          February 27, 2015 at 11:01

          Don;t support DDR.

          Dance Dance Revolution is for limber, athletic asians only.

          Reply

          • Ryanza

            February 27, 2015 at 11:06

          • Geoffrey Tim

            February 27, 2015 at 11:16

            What the actual fuck.

          • Admiral Chief

            February 27, 2015 at 11:20

            CAN U DO DIS?

          • Ryanza

            February 27, 2015 at 11:21

          • Ryanza

            February 27, 2015 at 11:32

            Enjoy the weekend guys and gals. After listening to this symphony of cause. And listen the whole fucking thing.

          • Brady miaau

            February 28, 2015 at 19:06

            I do and have, frequently. But I think the 9th is 10 times betters

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:23

            This. Holy fuck.

      • Umar

        February 27, 2015 at 10:58

      • Ryanza

        February 27, 2015 at 11:08

        • Hammersteyn

          February 27, 2015 at 11:11

          awesome awesome song.

          Reply

          • Ryanza

            February 27, 2015 at 11:19

    • Admiral Chief

      February 27, 2015 at 10:50

      There you are!

      Reply

      • Ryanza

        February 27, 2015 at 10:58

        It’s friday and it was not really a Ryanza comment.

        Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      February 27, 2015 at 11:11

      He’s BACK!

      Reply

      • Ryanza

        February 27, 2015 at 11:15

        No… Just an interesting topic that no1 will comment the way I do. Maybe my nickname will send an electric pulse in some brains.

        Reply

        • Hammersteyn

          February 27, 2015 at 11:21

          Awwwwwwwwww

          Reply

    • Timmy_1988

      February 27, 2015 at 13:12

      Western Propaganda!

      Reply

      • be a man.

        February 27, 2015 at 16:07

        You know I don’t get it. I mentioned once that the west is fueled by propaganda to try and explain why the wii u won’t sell sell in the west now.
        I said it once. You have said it now so many times. I can’t understand why you have labeled me western propaganda. I said it once.
        I can understand drm and witcher 3. But trolls don’t need to make sense and to be understandable. that’s the point i guess.
        I just can not believe it. what a fucking asshole you are. i have done nothing to you. nothing. and yet you feel you can troll me. I’m sure you part of the lazygamer click.

        It’s funny cause I started commenting on here because of some1 complaining about the lazygamer click. Now i’m leaving because this type of shit won’t stop.

        Can this timmy be so butthurt over a wii u comment.

        Be a man.

        Reply

  17. Kensei Seraph

    February 27, 2015 at 10:52

    I prefer physical.
    It comes with a box and often reduces or completely eliminates the download, except for Skyrim.
    Skyrim didn’t even copy 1 meg from the disc and wanted to download the rest.

    Reply

  18. Ranting Raptor

    February 27, 2015 at 10:53

    Physical for the games I’m most hyped for. Digital for everything else.

    Also, Blue or white people?

    Reply

    • Geoffrey Tim

      February 27, 2015 at 10:55

      I hate white people. The Smurfs rule.
      Also, punctuation matters.

      Reply

      • Dutch Matrix

        February 27, 2015 at 10:56

        Screw your Smurfs! No wait! Screw the Asari people!

        Reply

      • Ranting Raptor

        February 27, 2015 at 10:57

        Oh no. I see what I did there…. Corrected

        #Embarrassed

        Now why can’t you be as accurate in the articles?

        Reply

        • Pariah

          February 27, 2015 at 10:58

          He probably does it to see if we actually read them.

          Reply

      • Pariah

        February 27, 2015 at 10:57

        LOL!

        Reply

  19. Viking Of Science

    February 27, 2015 at 10:56

  20. ReaperOfSquirrels

    February 27, 2015 at 10:56

    I’d buy DBZ Xenoverse as a physical copy if I could, but they’re not releasing physical copies of the game for PC… so I’m going to have to pay the R575 (plus digital purchase tax) to get the game, unless if it hits a sale any time soon 🙁

    It’s freaking NUTS!

    Reply

  21. RinceThis

    February 27, 2015 at 10:58

    Physical all the way. That moment when you glide your thumb down its spine. When you gently press on the spot spot and it breaks with a sudden crack. The smell, as you open the covers and breath in that sweet Asian manufactured air… http://img.pandawhale.com/51394-George-Takei-oh-my-gif-fXlS.gif Sorry, where was I?

    Reply

    • Hammersteyn

      February 27, 2015 at 10:59

      Bwahahahaha!

      Reply

    • Geoffrey Tim

      February 27, 2015 at 11:00

      Most of our games actually come from Ireland, or elsewhere in Europe.

      Reply

      • RinceThis

        February 27, 2015 at 11:00

        Loads of mine say made in Korea for some reason…

        Reply

        • Geoffrey Tim

          February 27, 2015 at 11:02

          PIRATE.

          Reply

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:05

            That’s from the Caribbean. Do you even pirate bro?

            If you say “yarrrr” I’ll plutz.

          • RinceThis

            February 27, 2015 at 11:11

            I don’t pirate!

      • Hammersteyn

        February 27, 2015 at 11:01

        So it smells like Guinness?

        Reply

  22. Avi

    February 27, 2015 at 11:04

    “especially seeing as you can’t trade them in, which is one of the principal reasons console users still love their digital media; using their old games to help fund their new ones.”

    Shouldn’t it be “especially seeing as you can’t trade them in, which is one of the principal reasons console users still love their physical; using their old games to help fund their new ones.”

    Reply

  23. Captain JJ the crafter

    February 27, 2015 at 11:08

    Physical for Special Editions, Digital for everything else.

    Reply

  24. Matthew Holliday

    February 27, 2015 at 11:08

    well i mentioned this earlier about PC games, so just copy pasting this:
    “hard copies at R450 work out to 40$ while digital copies at 60$ work out
    to near R700, we’re paying 1/3rd more for an imaginary copy of the
    game.”

    i only go digital for steam sales.

    Reply

    • Captain JJ the crafter

      February 27, 2015 at 11:12

      I must agree. SoM was $50 on Steam and R500 at BT. Easy decision there. Plus downloading that 40gig was not something I was looking forward to.
      That said, I rarely buy games on release unless it’s something I really badly want. So 98% of my games are digital purchases.
      Nothing beats a nice Special Edition physical copy though.

      Reply

      • Pariah

        February 27, 2015 at 11:13

        SoM I picked up for R240 on Steam a month after release. The download was worth it.

        Reply

        • Captain JJ the crafter

          February 27, 2015 at 11:14

          Mine was technically a gift, otherwise I would’ve done the same myself. It’s not exactly a R500 game.

          Reply

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:18

            That’s sort of true. I think it depends, it’s the kind of game where you create your enjoyment. It’s more left to you to play with ranks and explore the options than it is a game where it does the work for you (so to speak).

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:19

            Agreed. I was a little disappointed to be honest, though it’s a great game none the less.

          • Pariah

            February 27, 2015 at 11:25

            Yeah I can see how some people would be disappointed, it’s not something that everyone will get the same value from.

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:27

            I played it after going through all the Batmans, and since the gameplay is pretty much the same (minus the kill moves) it got boring quickly.
            But it might just be me 🙂

        • Matthew Holliday

          February 27, 2015 at 11:23

          the same could be said for a number of other games. CoD:AW was 30% off during the summer sale and various other sales.
          borderlands titles invariably get 50% off on both the games and the seasons passes / DLC.
          etcetcetc.

          but the CoD:AW, even with 30%off, it still cost about the same as what the physical copy cost during pre-order from takealot.
          paid R450 for mine from takealot, but 30% off 60$ is 40$ / R450.

          Reply

      • Brady miaau

        February 27, 2015 at 11:26

        In one weekend I download Shadows of Morder (33 Gig) and DA:I, 45 Gig on Xbox one. Played the Saturday night already, while games were still downloading

        Reply

        • Captain JJ the crafter

          February 27, 2015 at 11:28

          Excellent! My line is decent enough but when I do actually buy a game on release then it’s because I can’t wait another minute to play it and must do it now now now 😀
          Otherwise I just wait for a sale.

          Reply

          • Brady miaau

            February 27, 2015 at 11:30

            I had to change ISPS to get that sort of speed though. First ISP told me the problem was South Africa lines. Moving ISP;s proves I can download, from Xbox Live at more or less max line speed.

          • Matthew Holliday

            February 27, 2015 at 11:33

            often times theres just nothing that can be done. some exchanges are so full that aven getting 4mb is ambitious.
            my friend had a 10mb line in woodstock, downloads would go 5mb-ish, but game ping would still be around there 512k mark, purely because of his exchange.

            while my 4mb line, even on a capped account, usually only hits about 3.5mb

            10mb is a dangerous game.

          • Brady miaau

            February 27, 2015 at 11:34

            I understand it is the distance to the exchange from your house that can effect these things. Trouble is, same house, same line, different ISP, magic.

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:39

            Difference I’ve felt with Afrimunger compared to Mwobbly before is substantial, so I completely get what you mean.

          • Matthew Holliday

            February 27, 2015 at 11:43

            its funny you mention afrimunger, they were having some major problems a couple of weeks ago.

          • Blood Emperor Trevor

            February 27, 2015 at 11:51

            My line through them has fairly inconsistent lately, pretty much since load shedding started being a regular thing again, so I’m guessing it’s related to that.

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:55

            Wow. Really?
            I didn’t know. I haven’t noticed any problems, except if it was while I was at work and I was lucky enough to miss it.

          • Brady miaau

            February 28, 2015 at 18:48

            Same, on Afrimunger. And yes, they had some problems a while back Matthew, but minor compared to other places.

          • Matthew Holliday

            February 27, 2015 at 11:42

            aye, distance plays a part in ping more than line speed.
            but yeah i get that, ISPs are super inconsistant.

          • Captain JJ the crafter

            February 27, 2015 at 11:33

            Oh okay cool. I think that SoM would’ve taken me around 20-25 hours to download. So, my speed’s not that great yet.
            A friend of mine lives in an area that they’re “testing” with fibre optics. 20-40mbps speeds. And he’s paying for a 4meg line.

          • Brady miaau

            February 27, 2015 at 11:35

            I want fibre! But will not pay a lot for it, just not worth it.

            And note the games were not fully downloaded.

            And Cheers, off to JHB for a meeting. Have a great weekend, one and all.

  25. Brady miaau

    February 27, 2015 at 11:22

    Before I got a 10mb uncapped ADSL line, I bought physical. Now, digital. ALL my Xbox One games are digital.

    Very, very rarely will I buy a physical game now. It must be special, Mass Effect 4: Sheppard’s not really dead, collectors edition. Maybe. I know many others like the feeling of keeping the copies on hand, in some sort of man cave. Too much stuff. My house is full of stuff. TOO MUCH, I tell you.

    Reply

  26. Avi

    February 27, 2015 at 11:24

    Physical : Having sex with a real women
    Digital : mhhhh well basically wanking off to porn

    Reply

    • Captain JJ the crafter

      February 27, 2015 at 11:25

      Physical = disease

      Reply

      • Brady miaau

        February 27, 2015 at 11:27

        Same woman / man, like, I do not know, a wife or husband?

        Reply

        • Captain JJ the crafter

          February 27, 2015 at 11:29

          I know. Damn it. Was trying to give digital some support and you had to come and bring silly things like logic into it. 😉

          Reply

      • Avi

        February 27, 2015 at 12:22

        Not if your are faithful … lol

        Reply

        • Captain JJ the crafter

          February 27, 2015 at 12:38

          Then the analogy doesn’t work so lekker. Since it would mean only playing one game. 😉

          Reply

          • Avi

            February 27, 2015 at 12:48

            Ahhh, Dammm Guess u Right huh

  27. Lothy

    February 27, 2015 at 11:24

    Being that I purely play PC, I would happily take digital over physical any day. And being that the PC games are somewhat cheaper, no real need to trade.
    Also on a side note. I request that Geoff change his profile pic. Since meeting him I feel somewhat cheated… He has a full beard now and had more of a zombie look to him 😉

    Reply

  28. Admiral Chief

    February 27, 2015 at 11:50

    Man, this was a good FFD!

    Reply

  29. Aries

    February 27, 2015 at 11:51

    What ever is cheaper for me, though also depends on the download size

    Reply

  30. Gremoire

    February 27, 2015 at 11:55

    I own both physical an digital games on my XBONE. My latest purchase was the digital copy of DA:Inquisition when it was on a special. But I must say, I prefer the digital copies to the physical purely for the fact that I don’t need to change disks when I want to play the different games. The “play-while-downloading” feature is also quite nice, and the discounted specials from time to time is also easy on the wallet.

    To add to that, what is the use of buying a physical copy, then get stuck with a big day-1 download in any case, and you need to switch disks when wanting to play different games?

    Reply

  31. SmurFyZA

    February 27, 2015 at 11:59

    Physical – Trade and resale value

    Reply

  32. oVg

    February 27, 2015 at 12:01

    Could somebody please explain to me why FLOWER got a 91% on Metacritic but The Order 1886 got 65%?

    Reply

    • CAE9872

      February 27, 2015 at 12:14

      Because Flower is arty…dude!

      Reply

      • oVg

        February 27, 2015 at 12:16

        My mind boggles.

        Reply

    • Tbone187

      February 27, 2015 at 12:18

      65 % is rather generous imo.

      Reply

    • Blood Emperor Trevor

      February 27, 2015 at 13:25

      Because flowers last for days, while The Order only a few hours?

      Reply

    • DelphisFinn

      February 27, 2015 at 13:27

      I imagine it’s because people actually enjoyed Flower.

      Reply

  33. Tbone187

    February 27, 2015 at 12:17

    Game prices should be helluva cheaper in digital. It is, yes I know in most cases, but not enough.Not only is it not costing the company in printing/distribution of physical media, it’s also costing you in data.Game aren’t small any longer.No resale value. Steam is a load of crap coz u don’t actually own your stuff and can only play through their freakin protocols.

    Give the companies something to do to earn their way I reckon….
    ….so Physical all the way (for now at least).

    Reply

  34. Travis

    February 27, 2015 at 13:10

    Digital all the way. I even threw all my music cds away and copied them to my PC hardrive. I hate the way physical discs and bcases clutter up the houses. Remenber when people had cd racks #the90’s

    Reply

    • Avi

      February 27, 2015 at 13:13

      Not cursing *touch wood*
      What happens when your PC harddrive crashes ?
      BTW … where about did u throw those disks?

      Reply

      • Travis

        February 27, 2015 at 13:19

        RAID, external HDD, the bin.

        Reply

        • Avi

          February 27, 2015 at 13:28

          Haaa, well organised unlike me.

          Can anyone can help with my crypto wall 2 problem ?

          Reply

  35. Wraith

    February 27, 2015 at 13:52

    You folks should check out the Enhanced Steam Chrome/Firefox plugin.

    Injects a bunch of awesome functionality into the Steam UI. My favourite is sourcing alternate prices/specials from external sites. Awesome way of finding good deals.

    P.S. No, I am not a bot. 🙂

    Reply

  36. Christian Hartung

    February 27, 2015 at 14:35

    Physical. Internet speed in Brazil does not allow me to download digital games. 🙁

    Reply

  37. frikkenator

    February 27, 2015 at 14:36

    I don’t even have an optical drive anymore.

    Reply

  38. DrKiller

    February 27, 2015 at 15:52

    At the moment – Digital… With the nice prices these days and my 40mb internet, this isn’t a problem anymore 🙂

    Although I would LOVE to have both… Physical to show people and digital to not have to get up and fetch a disc

    Reply

  39. Francois Knoetze

    February 27, 2015 at 16:07

    like both but I usually go where I can get it the cheapest. now and then the PS store and XBOX Live surprise me

    Reply

  40. SargonTheBatpandaOfAkkad

    February 27, 2015 at 16:25

    Physical is cheaper at release. So physical at release.
    Digital is cheaper during Steam sales. So digital whenever Steam decides to be mean to my wallet.

    Reply

  41. ShoNuff

    February 28, 2015 at 08:21

    I like digital. So much easier to pick from a list than it is to peruse a giant cabinet full of cases that take up space and have the potential to be damaged.

    Reply

  42. Nelius Blignaut

    February 28, 2015 at 09:52

    I own over 60 games on steam now, not because I prefer digital to physical. Steam is just super cheap and physical games can be hard to come by if you live in the middle of nowhere. But I will always prefer getting a physical copy delivered to me from kalahari or take alot or buying it in store, opening it up getting that new gane smell and popping the disk into my pc/ps3/xbox360 and installing it.

    Reply

  43. Dean_12

    February 28, 2015 at 12:10

    I personally prefer physical copies of the games that I buy. After reading some terms and conditions of digital copies, turns out you buying a licence and not the game itself. That to me is unacceptable, imagine they just revoke your licence as a mistake and then the game is pretty much worthless until they fix it…

    Nah, physical please. I will make the space for it!

    Reply

  44. Guest

    February 28, 2015 at 20:04

    Carson . if you think Joe `s st0rry is good, last week I bought a great Alfa Romeo from having made $8165 this-past/month and a little over ten thousand lass-month . no-doubt about it, this really is the easiest job I have ever had . I actually started 6 months ago and straight away started making at least $71 p/h . look at this site. START GAMER JOBS

    Reply

  45. Cyberats

    February 28, 2015 at 22:28

    I love to have physical copies, for the flexibility of “digitizing”, backing up and having it wherever I go. Without spyware stuffing up my works. It is a pet peeve that today you buy a game that plays offline and you have to register & upgrade online, before you even get to play it. (that is if you managed to avoid valve Steamed Poop or ea Orifice distributions of software) Cloud is Mainframe computing, turning your high dollar machine into an expensive paperweight, highly dependent on ISP and their fluctuating copper wire speeds OR the server lag.

    Reply

  46. Nova

    March 18, 2015 at 19:13

    I’m not “hung up” on physical copies, but I’m not “embracing digital” either, at least not when it comes specifically to Steam. I can’t justify using Steam for anything other than free games.

    Steam definitely has strong points. The lack of resell ability doesn’t bother me, since I never sell. I really love that it holds “my games” for me, and I can access them from wherever I am, whenever I want, without needing a DVD drive. When I’m done, I love being able to uninstall games to free up space, without actually getting rid of them. The workshop is fabulous, and had the unexpected side effect of inspiring me to start modding and making my own games. There’s tons more I like about it, but those are the main things.

    On the other hand, there is one HUGE problem that keeps me from fully embracing Steam. “My games” on Steam are *not* “my games”. When you “buy” a game on Steam, what you are actually doing is purchasing a *license to use the game*. That license can be revoked at any time, for any reason, with absolutely no warning, refund or compensation. That’s simply not possible to do with a physical copy of a game. With Steam, if your account is hacked, locked or otherwise compromised, or when Steam goes out of business, you simply lose thousands of dollars worth of licenses. (Don’t be so naive to think that Steam will *always* be around. Pretty much every company in the history of business shuts down eventually. Their faq on this matter boils down to “not our problem.”) Granted, you probably won’t be hacked, unless you’re a troll you probably won’t end up banned, and Steam will probably be around for quite awhile. That’s a lot of “probably” to pour your money into. The possibly of account loss is definitely there. Since you purchased a license and agreed to the t.o.s. you have no real legal recourse.

    If something comes along that is similar to Steam, but lets you *actually own* your digital copy, or at least has a better policy than “sucks to be you” on account loss, I’ll jump completely in. But for now…it’s just not worth it.

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Check Also

E3 2022 may be a hybrid digital-physical event

E3 kicks off this week, and due to a worldwide pandemic still currently raging about, the …