Game 'tangibility'

Mr Bloat

There are many different ways to get games these days, all at different price levels.
We have download services like Steam, who charge full price for a game even though the purchaser isn't getting anything tangible, such as a DVD or a box. I've used this service on occasion and, to be honest, I've always felt slightly cheated, even though I got full value from the game I felt that I should be charged less than what I would have paid in a bricks and mortar shop.
We have these bricks and mortar shops, where we can wander around, pick up the game box and buy it. I don't know about you but I love the feel of a new game box. I love breaking the seal on the plastic wrap, opening the box, flicking through the manual. It has a physical presence and I'm secure that I have bought 'something'. Prices can vary in these shops but obviously it involves legwork to shop around.
We have online shops, Game.co.uk, Play.com, Amazon, loads more. Prices can vary in these shops, depending on where they are in the world but they are generally much cheaper than going to a bricks and mortar shop. I used to buy online a fair bit but I got fed up of doing it for new releases and have them arrive a good number of days after most of my friends who went down to the local Gamestop got theirs. It is very satisfying, however, to see that envelope in the hall when it does arrive.
There's other download services like metaboli where you pay a subscription each month for access to older games but I haven't used this.
There's console download services too, like XBLM, PS Store and Wii Shop Channel where you can download games. These are usually either vintage or indy produced games, usually quite short and cheap to buy.
Or there's P2P, which is obviously free but let's not go there, the Spore thread is handling all that stuff.

Do other people care about having something solid in your hand after buying a game? What does it matter that you get a printed map in the box or a small comic when all you really want is the game? Are people who buy collector's editions mad? Should services like Steam have lower prices or does the convenience of it give them a mandate to charge more?

Please don't turn this into a piracy is bad thread!

Frisbee

Im with you on buying a game in a 'bricks and mortar' shop.
Nothing like the feeling of excitement as you open the box on the bus/car journey home...

Holsten

I have not nor will I any time soon get a game as a digital download.

I much rather have the actual physical game.

Though I would download a game for free no problem, wouldnt really annoy me then but if I had paid full price for the game I'd want the physical stuff.

tman

I spotted in another thread that someone purchased Warhammer from the EA store. Decided that I'll buy it for myself this evening, so I toddled over there expecting it to be in the area of €40, much to my surprise it's fifty bloody euro!
I really can't see the point of services like this if they charge MORE than it costs to buy elsewhere online. Hell, I can most likely wander into Smyths tomorrow and get it for a fiver less thanks to my loyalty card!
Even with Play.com's Euro price hike, it still works out at €8 cheaper than the EA store...

I just love collecting stuff (records, dvds, games etc...), so unless the price is right I'll keep buying online and waiting for delivery.
There are some exceptions where I might be swayed, like being able to play the TF2 beta thanks to preordering the Orange Box via steam.

Retr0gamer

I think one other big issue with buying by digital distribution is that if the company running it goes tits up and the servers get knocked off you won't be getting your game back especially if online authentification is necessary.

A lot of people got screwed over when buying Prey by digital download and the servers went down within 2 weeks.

mayordenis

I kind of collect games so pretty much yea I have to have the boxes in most cases,
except some great services like steam, which I could never say a bad word about look at there huge epic game value packs and stuff unbelievable price and no bs. great service tbh.

super_furry

In fairness, Steam games are pretty much always cheaper than buying in store and offer some amazing value packs. However, with the likes of Direct2Drive charging the same as the physical product is a joke and just down to greed. They don't have any of the overheads of a shop and are just milking it.

Zillah

Holsten wrote: »

I much rather have the actual physical game.

You mean you'd much rather have a physical cardboard box and a DVD.

RobertFoster

I miss big box PC games!

That said, I tend to agree about downloads. I'll buy (boxed) online first. Then, if there's a big discount, I'll buy in shops. After that I'd go for digital distribution.

Steam is great etc. but I still bought a tangible copy of HL2 because it was cheaper (new) from eBay. Same goes for the Orange Box, cheaper from ASDA online. But I did buy Prey when it was less than €5 through Steam.

I barely give EA the time of day, and I've not heard anything good about their download service, so I only buy their stuff when it's at sale/discount price.

Sabre0001

I'm 50/50 - as someone said, it's crap when the servers go down and there is also the risk of someone getting access to your account (happened to me but I got it back ).

However, I have found Steam to be cheaper and where it isn't I look elsewhere...Same as if I visited one store, thought the price was a bit much so went to the next one. Plus there is the ease of installation and how you can just leave it off rather than sitting there waiting for "Insert CD 3 / 7". I do like the digital distribution method I have to say - also saves me putting a CD somewhere / it getting scratched. And you can re-install stuff later just by having it on your account unlike physical CDs that you have to know where they are (you may be able to guess that there are some older games I would like to install but can't find CD! )

mcgovern

Holsten wrote: »

I have not nor will I any time soon get a game as a digital download.

I much rather have the actual physical game.

Though I would download a game for free no problem, wouldnt really annoy me then but if I had paid full price for the game I'd want the physical stuff.

+1 (apart from Xbox Live Arcade games).

Was looking to get a few old games for the PC recently, found them in online shops like play for ~€10.
Went to Steam and they were around twice the price.
It would have to be a lot cheaper for me to do without the box, case etc

thelordofcheese

i like having something tangible after i spent my money, I mean i even went and bought the TF2 disk rather than buy it over steam.

It confers a sense of ownership, in my opinion. While technically the same thing, copies of games bough and downloaded online, like say the half life episodes, don't feel as real to me, i can't see them or touch them.

Also two things which make physical distribution superior for me

One: it's harder to have a stack of games to clear when they only exist on your HDD, or maybe that's the completionist in me coming out.
Two: if you've purchased soemthing exceptionally vile you just don't get the same satisfaction out of pressing delete as you do from say, snapping the disk in half or burning it.
Once again, maybe that's just me.

Maximilian

I *hate* buying boxed copies. I also hate having to put a dvd in the drive to play them. I hate the amount of shelves I have filled with games boxes. I hate when a dvd gets scratched or cracked and you can't play it. Even typing in the damn serial codes pisses me off.

I have probably bought upwards of 30 games in the last year (no I don't finish half of them) and only one or two at some shop.

With digital delivery, a new game comes out, I don't have to bother going into the city to find it. I don't have to worry if it's sold out or not. Yes, they tend to be more expensive but that will change in time - they can't undercut traditional retail.

The box, the manual? Ripping off the plastic? Who cares I say. I felt the way some of you did once, in that I felt slightly cheated not having a physical package. All I can say is my attitude changed & now I can never go back.

It seems to me you guys are (whether you realise it or not), to some extent at least, the same as those people who wouldn't embrace CD's and stuck to vinyl. Or stuck to CD's instead of ITunes or whatever.

Time to get with the times guys!

thelordofcheese

Maximilian wrote: »

I *hate* buying boxed copies. I also hate having to put a dvd in the drive to play them. I hate the amount of shelves I have filled with games boxes. I hate when a dvd gets scratched or cracked and you can't play it. Even typing in the damn serial codes pisses me off.

I have probably bought upwards of 30 games in the last year (no I don't finish half of them) and only one or two at some shop.

With digital delivery, a new game comes out, I don't have to bother going into the city to find it. I don't have to worry if it's sold out or not. Yes, they tend to be more expensive but that will change in time - they can't undercut traditional retail.

The box, the manual? Ripping off the plastic? Who cares I say. I felt the way some of you did once, in that I felt slightly cheated not having a physical package. All I can say is my attitude changed & now I can never go back.

It seems to me you guys are (whether you realise it or not), to some extent at least, the same as those people who wouldn't embrace CD's and stuck to vinyl. Or stuck to CD's instead of ITunes or whatever.

Time to get with the times guys!

I get forty rods to the hogs head, and that's how i likes it!

Mr Bloat

super_furry wrote: »

In fairness, Steam games are pretty much always cheaper than buying in store and offer some amazing value packs.

I've seen some fantastic value multipacks on steam but some of their stuff is ridiculous. COD4 is $70, Orange Box and Bioshock are $40.

Maximilian wrote: »

It seems to me you guys are (whether you realise it or not), to some extent at least, the same as those people who wouldn't embrace CD's and stuck to vinyl. Or stuck to CD's instead of ITunes or whatever.

Time to get with the times guys!

I agree with you to a large extent, even when I was writing the first post I felt like I was a bit of a luddite! I remember when I was a lad and strolling into town with my mates and picking up a game on cassette tape for my Amstrad CPC464. I suppose I'm trying to recapture that feeling by buying a boxed game now.

thelordofcheese wrote: »

if you've purchased soemthing exceptionally vile you just don't get the same satisfaction out of pressing delete as you do from say, snapping the disk in half or burning it.
Once again, maybe that's just me.

Ha ha! I have, on occasion, flung a disk out the window in frustration but I don't think I've ever burnt one!

Sabre0001

Mr Bloat wrote: »

I've seen some fantastic value multipacks on steam but some of their stuff is ridiculous. COD4 is $70, Orange Box and Bioshock are $40.

$70 = €48 which is slightly cheaper than I have seen CoD4 in shops (maybe I'm going to the wrong ones...). And you CAN'T beat the value packs. I hope more developers embrace the STEAM system - getting all the Quake games for cheap was great!

thelordofcheese

Mr Bloat wrote: »

Ha ha! I have, on occasion, flung a disk out the window in frustration but I don't think I've ever burnt one!

Black and White 2 got that treatment from me. It felt sooo cathartic. That might have been the fumes though

pwd

nope I throw out most packaging for things like games, cds, dvds - keep the discs in wallets. It's just clutter. As long as there are no issues with the purely soft copy then it's even better not to have the disc.

Naikon

I am really starting to dislike digital distribution such as Steam ect.
Physical box is nice to have, alongside minimal/No fecking DRM.

id software gets my vote every time. No draconian DRM, ability to play game without
the cd in the drive by default, and native support for my OS:D

All my other games like COD4 are boxed and stored.
Physcial game shrink wrapped > Digital distribution tbh.

noodler

Material copies don't take up hard drive space, can't be deleted if something goes wrong with your HD (Virus/crash) and seem to be cheaper at the moment.

Also if you want the manual for a game then consider how much it would cost to print out the relevant pdf for a digitally bought game. (I tend not to read massive chunks of script off a screen-hurts my eyes).

L31mr0d

*sheesh* all you digital immigrants. All the people who still want physical DVD's and boxes are probably the same people that would rather read from paper books than off a screen.

tactile response is something a digital native has no need for when it comes to the storage of media, whether it be books, music, video or games. physical media is slow to access and retrieve data from, its cumbersome and doesn't lend itself to quickly multi-tasking and switching between media types.

MooseJam

I like getting a box to add to my collection, though I don't have a dvd or music collection, they're all digital so I'm not too cluttered

DirkVoodoo

I bought Sins of a Solar Empire digitally. Stardock would probably be the one company I would trust at this service.

However, I recently reinstalled windows and have yet to reinstall Sins.

Why? Well, mostly laziness, I don't fancy downloading all the game files again. I'm pretty sure they let you make a CD though.

In general I would be hesitant to download, I do prefer having the physical copy. Plus, as a long time gamer I love being able to thumb through a manual. A huge part of the gaming experience used to be reading the manual on the bus back from town, eagerly anticipating the game.

None of your PDFs for me!

SeantheMan

Whicever is cheapest. Couldnt care less bout my discs and books.
I cant lose them if theyre stored online
Also...i love Steam...brilliant Tool.

MOH

I used to always prefer having the boxed game, especially the old large boxes with tons of crap inside. But lately there's not much different - bought the orange box expecting at least some kind of manual inside, maybe giving an overview of how TF2 worked, instead of a single A5 quick reference sheet. You get less these days, and if it's cheaper digitally, I'll be leaning towards that for now on. Especially with the likes of GOG for older games.

The main advantage of a boxed game is selling it on second hand, although the way DRM is going don't know how much longer that will be possible.

Telgere

Love buying games through steam. Very handy for playing on different pc's and when I want to format no need to reinstall all my favourite games again.

ageary08

I have brought a few things through steam and Xbox live, i think these two have the right idea, when you buy something online you own a copy, if you need another one you can download it no problem. EA afaik dont do this after a period, which is redicilous, considering you pay the store price and they save on the expense of printing a book, making a dvd and creating a case. I assume the game shop takes a cut and maybe theres some kinda rebate if the copy doesnt sell. Considering that and the fact they`ll have to store the games to keep selling them anyway it seems really cheap of them.

It feels a little odd buying pc games online though, simply because somebody else can just go on to bittorrent and the same thing for free and sometimes with less drm hassle. I prefer to buy the box.

monument

Steam has (over time) convinced me to liken to digital downloads.

But for the moment at least I perfer having a hard copies of the CDs, or DVDs. With books its the same, if not stronger -- I still want something to feel and have as a collection. Although the Sony 'Reader' looks and feels quite impressive in a non impressive way. The real test is read a book on it which I haven't done.

Retr0gamer wrote: »

I think one other big issue with buying by digital distribution is that if the company running it goes tits up and the servers get knocked off you won't be getting your game back especially if online authentification is necessary.

It would be interisting to know if Valve have a "plan B", at least for their own games.

dav nagle

One cannot trade in a digital download although I did buy most the battlefield expansion packs and half life from steam. Although the service is very good if you have to re install you operating system you end up having to dig out passwords.

Games ultimately are like new girlfriends, they are deadly at first but after you have won them your interest gradually declines.