'No Man's Sky' Refund Debacle Highlights Why Physical Media Still Beats Digital Downloads

ScreenGurus looks across the recent refund debacle and ponders why buying video games on discs is still a better option in 2016.

[keegamer80]

Okay just based on the fact that steam was will to suspend the policy they had set makes it better than physical. You take back an opened game, you get the same game in return.

[MasterCornholio]

You can sell it if you want.

You won't recover much but the option is there.

[boomtube1987]

In the UK Cex give you cash if you bring new AAA games within 2 weeks or you can price match it with games for in store credit. You either lose 5 or make 5 quid so no big loss. I love physical games. I really don't get why a console gamers would even consider buying a full Digital game. They are way more expensive and you cannot trade them. Those that do go digital. He or she is either rich or deluded. I never buy games full price. I always trade or find bargains. I ALWAYS get games i want on launch. Its one of the great perks of being a console gamer.

[Kosic]

Trade within 2 weeks for cash? I'm confused by that statement. You can get either cash or credit based on if you're older than 18 for cash (required an adult I.D). Also game match and beat both cex store credit and cash buys by £1, not just credit alone.

Going digital on console is decent at times when you know the game is worth its cost. Reason why, is account sharing. A £55 digital game becomes a £27.50 game per person for 2.

A sale game becomes half of its price tag if you share with a friend.

[boomtube1987]

@Kosic Yeh i meant price match it in GAME.

OK, point taken. Maybe also gamesharing is one good reason for digital but i doubt most console gamer's do that. But i'll give u that one. However. Its still better if you buy and trade SP games.

[Mr_Writer85]

@boomtube
I'm fully digital on my PS4.

You do know that consoles have sales right?

I used my USA account to buy FIFA15, Destiny and Dragon Age in the Xmass sale in December 14 for £75

No where else did those 3 games so soon after launch for that price.

Sure when launched digital is stupidly expensive, but as I said sales exsist, digital obviously doesn't suite those who are not patient enough to wait a few months.

I also have less clutter, when I have finished with a game I just delete it to make room, but I can always go back to it if I want.

It's also a lot more convenient for remote play which I use a lot, being able to pick any game I want and switch on the fly?

I have two young kids so my PS4 is up high so they can't reach. Again no discs means less clutter and nothing for them to dirty/break.

And I'm not rich either, or deluded.

Digital just suites my lifestyle more.

HTH

[admiralvic]

By design physical is almost always going to beat digital due to how limited digital is.

The selling point, which I found interesting that the article didn't mention, is not having to mess with discs or deal with that. It's nice knowing I can play Destiny, get invited to do some Call of Duty and click a couple of buttons and be playing with my friend, only go to back by pushing the same buttons to go back. Despite how handy that is, it typically costs as much, almost always costs more due to a lack of competition/stock concerns/making back what companies paid/etc (this is why Grand Kingdom can be bought for $27~ on AMZ and $50 off the PSN), limited number of people you can share it with and almost no recourse if you dislike your purchase.

Sure, maybe in the case of No Man's Sky the refund policy worked to their advantage, but you're guaranteed some recourse with physical over digital. Even if you end up selling No Man's Sky for $5 and you take a $55~ hit that will still typically be better than the $0/$60 hit you'd take with the vast majority of digital games.

[XStation4pio_Pro]

how limited digital is? i think its the other way around. physical media - in this particular case has lots of limitations. - speed for one. a finite amount of storage for another. damage to a disc for another reason still.... the limitations of digital are nonexistent. you can download a local copy for play, licensed thru your console HWID for those who fear one day the internet will disappear and for some reason their first fear would be to not be able to play the latest COD.

The only storage limitations are how big can the game be installed on the hard drive. Hard drives - especially SSD drives are embarrassingly faster than optical drives for that matter. And yes, in theory people could buy, sell and rent digital copies of games. This is what MS tried to do with the xbox one at launch before people flipped the F out about needing a periodic online checkin. Sony has already proven a similar version of this is possible with PSNow in regards to rentals. Its technically streaming the games but the licensing mechanism would be similar for renting digital games.

Third party retailers could easily get involved with digital sales as well... in fact they already do. you could even go as far as to take an sd card into gamestop and download whatever game you want if you don't want to wait for a digital download or don't have internet or just love sitting in traffic trying to get to the store to pick up the game you could have just bought from your smartphone while playing another game - like a disc. all of this is possible and the fact that we still use optical drives in the year 2017 is laughable imo. All they have to do to refund the game is deactivate your license and refund your card. Same would go for trades and sales to other people. Get an access code and give that code to the person buying it. they could credit your psn or xbox account or even your paypal account. this could all be real, right now but people just fear change.

[admiralvic]

@ Mastablasta_9K

The issue with your argument is that a lot of it is theoretical. I'm not saying I disagree or that I agree, but I am saying that, in the current landscape on consoles like XBO and PS4, digital is far more limited than physical.

[LamerTamer]

@mastablasta_9k

And what happens when your HDD fails or you upgrade consoles? Downloading 1 TB of games is going to take forever and many have monthly data limits.

Disc games install MUCH faster. If I want to re-play something I once removed for space I can be playing in a couple of minutes (PS4) instead of many hours.

Eventually games will be removed from the servers, then you lose them. You don't own digital download games, DRM and all of that. You are only buying a license to use. When that license is pulled for ANY reason, tough luck.

Not everyone likes having to go to the internet for permission to play something, not everyone has internet, or it is not the best speed etc. That is why MS online DRM crap was bad. Not everyone plays COD or online MP games either. I can play Fallout 4 any time I want OFFLINE. You don't mind handing control of your entire game library to a third party corporation. I like to control my own library thank you. Remember not everyone is like you with blazing top speed unlimited internet access or is always online.

[spicelicka]

Many video game stores take back new games for a pretty hefty credit. If you don't want credit you can trade it.

But let's be real here, the main reason it's better than digital is that you can always sell games privately for cash. While digital owners are struggling and fighting with Steam and Sony to get a possible refund, physical owners are just reselling it at a discount, sure you may lose $10-$20 but no one cares if you put 50 hours in the game or 1000 hours.

I enjoy the comfort in knowing that my library of games will always have a monetary value.

[DeeBeers]

Digital always wins. Have only ever once traded a game back. I like to have my games at my fingertips, not shoved in cases and folders.

[spicelicka]

How can you just assume "digital always wins" just because it's convenient for you?

I like to have my games on display with tangible covers instead of having virtual copies which never really feel like they belong to me.

I also like to be able to sell games I don't want anymore, and use that money to buy new games. It has allowed me to experience games I never would have bought if it was digital. Heck I just bought Fallout 4 for $20 last week, while digital copy is still $40, and I can easily sell it back for $20 next year if I wanted to.

My local library also has physical games I can sign out that I never would get to try if they were digital, because I would never pay for them. I support the devs I want for games that I know I will play for a long time.

[Razputin]

A 2 hour, 2 week policy is BS. I have 1800 Steam games just so you don't think I'm talking out my ass or something.

You'll never know how good or bad something like a game is in 2 hours. For indie games I understand some of them aren't very long, but at least a 4-6 hour playtime to actually get into a game. Typically the first 2-3 hours or missions are the biggest showcases of the game, and never mind if it has lengthy dialogue or cut scenes.

[Lighter9]

I've never gotten a full refund for any physical game unless it was unopened.

[annoyedgamer]

Gamestop has a 7 day return policy I believe.

[kingmushroom]

Yeah but opened games don't count

[C-H-E-F]

@kingmushroom, used games only

[peewee11016]

Yeah they will take it back.... Give you another copy of the same game.

[spicelicka]

Resale. Many people resell $60 games for $50 after a month if they don't like it or have finished it. $10 for a month with a game is worth it for the seller, and $50 is still a bargain for the buyer.

[Loktai]

most people won't get 50, especially if they are selling it because it's infamously flawed . most used game sales go for 2/3 or less of the purchase....

[medman]

Amazon, in my experience, gives full refunds.

[gangsta_red]

Gamefly is the reason why physical always beats digital!

[gangsta_red]

Six disagrees!? I guess these guys have an issue with Gamefly.

[ElementX]

Game rentals are so '90s.

[gangsta_red]

Back when hip hop was hard!

[Dabigsiebowski]

Game rentals never go away please!

[Enigma_2099]

You didn't need this story to see why physical media shouldn't go away. I still prefer full ownership of my games, without the worry that one day it won't be available for download and wiped off the server, or tied to a single system.

@keegamer80
That's just proof that demos should come back. And some places will give you your money back, you know. But I can see how some people would look at you funny when you try and get a full refund for a game you've kept for an extended period of time.

[FreddyFazbear]

This is what ive been telling everyone. A digital game cant guarantee you if 10 or more years later you could still find it on the servers. Unlike my physical collection they will stay there until the moment im gone given of course you take good care of it. heck my superNES, N64 Gamecube and its games are still around kicking. Still have my ps2. Digital is just there for convenience and not for the long run.

[JackBNimble]

Are you saying my old games on psn aren't going to be accessible to me soon? Is psn shutting down?

Come on now, all my digital games are still there and are not going any where. Question is, how many 10 year old physical copies do you have that are still even playable?

[C-H-E-F]

I wonder how does the guy that paid 2k for this game feel... lOl, I enjoy the game for the 30$ experience I paid for.

[Yobo5]

Kinda funny now to see how excited devs were at releasing what they knew was an unfinished game, lol.

[SynestheticRoar]

That game was sorry. Physical for life.

[XStation4pio_Pro]

really? how? steam purchases are being refunded. psn purchases are being refunded. sure beats sitting in los angeles in rush hour traffic after work trying to make it to the store before they close to get back a whopping $60 for a game i should have researched before buying anyway like any responsible consumer.

[LamerTamer]

The melodrama. So you can only return a game at the worst possible time? Again not everyone is you, Many can just stop by on the way somewhere else they are going anyway. That is a bad reason.

[iistuii]

Yeah right, try taking back an opened game in the UK & see what they say.

[Jon_Targaryen]

In the real world that BR disc Sean is holding has been wasted.. The whole game can fit on a dual Layer DVD FFS!!!!

[lunatic0001]

I have best buy gamer club and Amazon prime...that means I get very game for about 47.99 compared to digital for 59.99...I don't get why digital games cost about or the same as physical copies...do they not want me to go digital?

[JackBNimble]

Just wait for the deals, they do have digital deals too you know.

[kamundo]

B-bu-but muh digital only future! It'll be great! They'll pass the savings of not having to print and distribute discs on to me, the consumer! That's why digital games release for substantially less than their on disc counterparts!

Digital distribution is anti-consumer garbage. They use it to screw you over at every turn. The day physical media is gone for good is the day I stop gaming (or at least new games). The people who defend this are the same types of idiots who bought No Man's Sky, despite it being painfully obvious for years before release that they were peddling snake oil. You get the kind of service you support. Enjoy.

[spoilerjerk]

I feel very fortunate to have pre-ordered the limited edition... not only did I get to play the "game" but I was able to easily make my money back after playing the "game". I thought about going digital on NMS, felt this was going to be my favorite game of this generation. The only thing that would have made the disappointment worse was not getting my money back.

I find that with most releases I've bought this generation and last if I don't like the game I can make most of my money back on Amazon/ebay... the loss ends up being the equivalent of a rental and if I like it then I lose nothing.

[Hypnotic]

I purchased the game from GOG and after 12 hours over two weeks I had numerous crashes and problems, they still refunded me fully.

[PhoenixUp]

Physical media will always have a place in this industry

[alfcrippinjr]

say no to digital downloads if you can buy the disc

because they can control the market total with prices

most of my games are disc based
the ones i can not buy in the store i buy digital only

[jun19inf]

You have to laugh at some of these comments.. "Digital distribution is anti-consumer!" I guess if you are into selling your games then yes it does suck but anti-consumer? That's matter of opinion. Both options have pros and cons. You have to follow what I like to call the golden consumer rules when buying video games:

1. Know the pros and cons of both distribution formats.
2. Do your homework on any game you intend on buying.
3. If you like buying physical discs for your games then always have a membership to some sort of "club". Best Buy gamer's club, Amazon's gamer club, etc.. These memberships save you money when you purchase new games.
4. Learn the price matching game. Retail stores like Best Buy, Walmart, Target, and Frys will price match. Sometimes you can get a good deal if you look around before you buy. GameStop does not price match if I am correct (I could be wrong) in case anybody asks.

I agree with the fact that digital downloads should definitely be cheaper than their physical media counterparts. I should not be paying full price for a digital download of a game as I would for a physical disc however having a digital version of a game does come with some really awesome advantages:

1. Games are installed on your hard disk, there is no fear of losing the physical disc <-- I use an Xbox One S with an external USB 3.0 HDD
2. Not worrying about the physical disc being scratched <-- If you have kids, this is huge
3. Games run faster off a hard disk then they do from an optical drive
4. Games are no longer limited by the capacity of the physical media
5. (Xbox One only until PS4 can use an external HDD) If you want to play your games at a friend's house all you have to do (if you have your games installed on an external HDD) is disconnect your external HDD, connect it to your friend's Xbox One, sign in with your account and guess what all of your games are there. No more carrying discs around.
6. Anything happens to your console, you can always re-download the games to another console

One thing to remember is that we should all be smart enough to realize that there is nothing in this world that is "pro-consumer". Companies are not in the business of losing money. They will squeeze you out of every cent you have if you let them.

[Mr_Writer85]

Neither is out right better than the other.

It's all a personal opinion.

Digital suites my life much more than physical, but I could list 50 reasons why digital suites me and only 5/6 could apply to someone else.

I'm happy with my choice, but I understand it's not for everyone, same with how those flying the physical flag, need to understand that not everyone who has gone digital has the same hang ups as you do.

[MilkMan]

Based on this craptastic FUBAR of a release, exactly how is physical media better than digital.
I contacted Sony and they refunded me my money.
Done and done and I got full price back.
With all the attention this game is getting WHO in their right mind would give you full price for this turd?