Board 8 > Physical or Digital

(+) Yeah! (+)

Im primarily digital, its mostly space more than anything else. With numerous storage options making digital gaming easier too it just made more sense to me.

I guess theres the fear of the games not lasting forever but I dont know if I plan on playing most of those games a decade from now anyway

---

Physical unless there's literally no other option (primarily Ace Attorney) or I happen to stumble across a really good digital deal for a game I want to play very soon (or it's a free PS+ game I might play)

---

Mostly digital nowadays, but I'll get a physical copy here and there.

---

Whoops, didn't read the poll question. All things being equal, I'd buy physical, but I usually buy more digital games because of sales (even excluding games without a physical release.)

---

Mostly prefer physical unless it's something I know I'll want to have always available with me - like Animal Crossing & Smash Bros. on my Switch.

---

I used to be 100% for physical, but now I prefer physical for consoles and digital for PCs.

---

Definitely digital. It so much more convenient, it takes up no physical space, and with the exception of Switch I think, physical console games still need to be downloaded in full.
---

Switched over to all digital partway through last gen. All the advantages of physical games that I cared about vanished and now they're just straight up inconvenient. I get where people come from with caring about collecting boxes or reselling their stuff but I don't care about either of those so I don't expect I'll ever buy a physical game again.

---

Xiahou Shake posted...

Switched over to all digital partway through last gen. All the advantages of physical games that I cared about vanished

which one were those?

---

Physical unless there is no other option

Though I will take advantage of sales for digital games and through PS+

---

All digital. I admire people's physical collections, but for myself, convenience wins out.
---

redrocket posted...

which one were those?

Quicker to get access to (negated by both preloads for digital games and massive installs/updates being required regardless of whether you have a disc or not)

Easier on hard drive space (negated by discs now just being cumbersome "keys" to content you have to install anyway)

This last one's a change in personal perspective, but I care a lot about the preservation of games through the ages and I used to see physical games as a nice defense against threats of delisting/servers shutting down, etc. I've since realized that degradation of physical media and hardware is a way bigger threat to preservation and that digital copies - through whatever means necessary - is the only completely reliable road to saving all games for future generations.

---

I'd been fully a 100% physical person when it was an option, but this gen with the Switch really changed that do to being both home and portable. Digital is just so much more practical that it's not even close.

---

Xiahou Shake posted...

Switched over to all digital partway through last gen. All the advantages of physical games that I cared about vanished and now they're just straight up inconvenient. I get where people come from with caring about collecting boxes or reselling their stuff but I don't care about either of those so I don't expect I'll ever buy a physical game again.

yeah this is what it was with me

with extended storage becoming cheaper and easier and physical games mostly just being a key to install the game, theres just no need

I will occasionally buy a physical if theres a good deal (VII Remake was one) but apart from that its all digital


---

Digital, in large part because saving space is great. I never really sold my physical games anyway...
---

Historically nothing gets me playing a game more than looking at the box art in front of me.

A console just doesn't BEG me to play it like Noctis and his friends looking like they're having a good time.


---

Physical.

It'd take me a week to download most games with my internet speed. Like if I wanted to download Red Dead Redemption 2 it'd take at least 8 days.

Physical for consoles.
Digital for PC's...But I'd totally shell out more for physical flash drive and small box or something if there was an option.

---

Whichever is cheaper/more convenient at the time. Really no preference

---

Physical unless it's unavailable. I just like having a box collection.

---

It's pretty rare for me to actually buy digitally.

Physical, even if it costs more and is more difficult to obtain.

---

Physical since it's cheaper and I can sell it after I'm done.

---

As time goes on and old consoles break and discs get scratched, I've converted to owning things digitally.

Ideal scenario is owning things DRM free and slapping things onto an external hard drive or somewhere in my cloud if I'm really worried

Physical with game manuals is super fun but not worth the hassle

---

Am I going to play it lots and lots over the span of several years? Digital

Am I going to play it once, maybe twice through the story mode? Physical

---

one day i looked around my room and was like "why the FUCK do i have so much SHIT" and constant thinking about possible fires/earthquakes got me converting to digital now

digital - it's easier and physical stuff is just inconvenient

---

i might still get physical for some stuff if i think i may one day jerk off to the box art

kateee posted...

i might still get physical for some stuff if i think i may one day jerk off to the box art

fair point

---

Cant you just search specific box art

---

not rly doing it for me


---

I haven't bought a physical game since Mario Odyssey. I'm probably like 95% digital over the past few years

---

Physical unless there's a sale or something.

---

Physical whenever possible. Even if it doesn't technically matter, I like to feel like I actually own my games and I'm not just renting them until the publisher decides fuck you.

---

I forget, do most digital games let you still download them after purchase

---

digital unless physical is on sale that digital isnt

---

FL81 posted...

I used to be 100% for physical, but now I prefer physical for consoles and digital for PCs.

Pretty much this.

Low hard drive space and bloated game update download sizes are a major factor in this.

---

If it's a game I'm excited to have Day 1, more often it's digital these days. If it's something I'm not sure I'll enjoy, I try to go physical so I can sell if I don't like it. Otherwise usually it's just whichever way is cheaper.

On Switch, I think my split for retail games is 7 digital and 10 physical.

---

LiquidOshawott posted...

I forget, do most digital games let you still download them after purchase

Uh what?

---

Sorry, I meant when their licenses expire

---

I don't think so.

---

LiquidOshawott posted...

Sorry, I meant when their licenses expire

Yes
---

I'll admit I'm not really sure how it all works. But I thought if the license expired, that's when it's pulled from the store? But then again now that I'm thinking about it, you can usually still re-download it. The cases where you can't even re-download are pretty small.

---

Digital whenever possible for pretty much the last decade. Not sure why anyone would still be sticking with physical in 2020 (aside from slow internet situations).


---

physical. Fuck digital and fuck the service based economy. Disaster for the consumer

---

Ngamer64 posted...

Digital whenever possible for pretty much the last decade. Not sure why anyone would still be sticking with physical in 2020 (aside from slow internet situations).

People have given plenty of reasons in this very thread...

---