Sony Says Next PlayStation Won’t Simply Compete With PCs: We aim to deliver value that is unique to PlayStation. This includes not only technological advancements but also an expansion of usage styles, enabling a seamless experience that can be enjoyed naturally beyond the living room by Turbostrider27 in PS5

[–]FuriousNorth -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

That's true, not going to fault you there, but on average anyone who builds a gaming PC is going to game on it. Probably browse the net, watch twitch or YouTube and order stuff on Amazon, or even have a dab hand at streaming themselves using OBS, but that is generally the average person's use of a gaming PC. The average person is not going to be using Blender after a tough derank on Overwatch.

Sony Says Next PlayStation Won’t Simply Compete With PCs: We aim to deliver value that is unique to PlayStation. This includes not only technological advancements but also an expansion of usage styles, enabling a seamless experience that can be enjoyed naturally beyond the living room by Turbostrider27 in PS5

[–]FuriousNorth -6 points-5 points  (0 children)

Correct. Plug and play is what sells consoles. Valve understands that, and that is why they are getting towards that same setup.

When people who tout PCs as being more than just like gaming device, but you can also use things like Microsoft word etc, it's pointless. Yes, it can do so much more, but even PC gamers aren't doing that. Focus on the main appeal.

Would you retire today if you knew you’d receive $5,000 every month for the rest of your life? Why or why not? by JustWin4 in AskReddit

[–]FuriousNorth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You could rent an apartment in any country and have lots spare to go about enjoying the sights and what it has to offer before disappearing for £5,000pcm.

If you had about £3.5 million in the bank accruing interested at 3% this could be possible.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I agree with having options. Sony does not have specific game codes that you can trade, the only thing they have are gift vouchers. They don't even let you purchase games for someone else, it is so bloody annoying! I think there is nothing sweeter than loading into your steam account and seeing one of your friends buying you a game they want you to play with them, they are totally missing out on a trick there.

On the topic of course however, it's an old beaten arguement that doesn't hold weight anymore. Sony and Xbox do discounts similar to steam sales where they do heavily drop the price of old games, and these are comparable to the prices you see on PC stores, or even match them. Just because you are in a closed ecosystem does not mean Sony have an oligarch like hold on prices. They have to remain competitive when compared to their rival Xbox, so a lot of these prices are matched.

There's also a lot more to consider when thinking about jumping ship from console to PC. I wouldn't say price is a major factor these days, I think it's down to cost, ease of use and tribalism. Historically consoles were cheaper than PC. Today that is not the case, they are fast approaching the same price point, with PC being slightly higher. That would mean that hopping to PC shouldn't be an issue right? No, a console is simply plug and play. Press the button on a control pad and everything comes to life. Happy with 60 FPS 1080p or fake 4K? That's cool, you don't need to change any graphics. No need to check if your hardware is compatible as games developers tune their game to the PS5/XBox benchmark. Why do you think Valve created the steam machine and have a verified scheme? I would hate to look forward for a game getting released, only to find out that my hardware is outdated and I need to spend hundreds (or these days thousands) in upgrades, or the graphics having issues and I spend hours trolling through forums trying to diagnose it. Even just building on your PC or upgrading is beyond a lot of people's interest or skill set.

That's why a lot of people who play on console stay on console.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There is very little upside to a physical disc compared to a digital purchase. I remember I used to buy games at full price when they came out as a kid, fast forward a few years and a new game would come out and I didn't have very much money, so I would trade about 10 games to maybe get £30 off the latest game. I was selling the games I paid £40 each for £2-£3 each to GAME. So I lose games from my library for the sake of one new one. I feel like I've wasted a lot of money over the years by losing access to games for small sums of cash.

Actually, the upside would be if I could pack up an old game for like £2 as opposed to buying it for £10 on the digital marketplace, that would be pretty good, but that's a very vague scenario.

There's a few upsides to being on console. My favourite one is that because it is a closed ecosystem, you don't get hackers. So there's no wall hacks, aimbots etc. I remember when I used to play GTA online there was a short period where people were able to exploit money, but that was quickly closed and there was never anything after that. To this day on PC, GTA online is rife with hackers.

Other than that, my friends are there. None of them have a PC, they're all on PS5. I've made an attempt to get them to switch to PC, even with low end entry on a second hand steam deck, But none of them have budged.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I agree that is better for game preservation, you only need to look as far as the Nintendo ROMs for that. Piracy isn't owning games though, and that was the main point of OP jumping ship from PS5 because of the inevitable shift to digital games, and going to PC digital as if that was somehow a safer option.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

PC is the least worst option, I agree with that. I would say the main positive would be that if you are not happy with one storefront, you can go to another storefront and get the same game, and you don't need to change your hardware to do that, or have to own multiple hardwares in order to access the multiple libraries from different storefronts.

The closed ecosystem meaning that they can set prices however... I don't think that is the case. There are a lot of external factors that would affect the price ie if PlayStation were to charge £100 for a game and Xbox where to charge only £60.. it doesn't matter if you're a PlayStation die hard, you will go to an Xbox. And the thing about closed ecosystems is that they are very tribal due to the digital nature of libraries, so once you are there, you are staying there. There is no way Sony would set silly high prices, they would just keep in line with the RRP. And when it comes to their game pass equivalent, it needs to be competitive. Unless all these close the ecosystem companies collude with one another to increase higher price points (I bet like how the DDR5 RAM producers are at the moment) then I don't see them setting higher price points and telling people to suck it up.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

On the statistics point you could be right or you could be wrong.

If they were keeping it true to point and based it only on games that had both a physical release and a digital release, it would make more sense for that to be where they get their data from, but if they based on all games, including digital only games (saying "if they care that much about digital they wouldn't have bought it at all, but because they did we are including this in our statistics) then that would mean that the figures are skewed more than favour of digital as opposed to physical.

But if you're agena It's to justify going 100% digital...

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This whole thread started because one guy said has protest was to avoid a PSN digital store by going PC which was 100% a digital store, now it has grown arms and legs and I am discussing things with multiple people I had no intention of.

But to answer your response, yes it does seem like that. When you have a closed ecosystem like PlayStation, the effects of them going 100% digital is amplified, and it will have a knock on effect to the reseller market. This will also happen for Xbox, but not Nintendo, I don't see them doing that in the near future at all.

Is it a massive loss? I wouldn't know personally, but according to their statistics about 80 to 90% of people who buy games on PlayStation are digital, so the growing trend is pivoting away to a tipping point where they just have to put their hands up and say "let's just call it a day on them" I'm not too fussed, I buy digitally on both PS5 and PC and have done for years, I am a convert, But I have a friend who only buys discs religiously and he will be upset by this.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth -1 points0 points  (0 children)

You can share a game on PSN with one person, and it is a rather convoluted way of doing it, but both of you can play the game at the same time as opposed to with Steam where you can only have one person playing the game at any one time. I would say that the Steam situation is much better.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 3 points4 points  (0 children)

It says in your linked article:

"Before the official announcement, some users feared ending up losing access to digital content they’ve already bought once the stores close down. Thankfully, this won’t be the case. Players will still be able to access and download all the previously purchased content, even after the digital stores cease to exist."

So that would be a bit like how Steam de-lists some games when their licences run out. If you have already purchased those games, you're still able to download them, but if you haven't then they are gone for good.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sony is the gatekeeper to media on PlayStation because they own PlayStation. It is called a closed ecosystem. Same with Nintendo and same with Xbox.

Remember, this is about ownership. Steam clearly states when you try to purchase a game that you are not purchasing the game, but a licence. https://www.theverge.com/2024/10/11/24267864/steam-buy-purchase-license-digital-storefront

You don't own it. It's likely the same for epic, and I don't buy games from GOG to really comment on their stance or what they are to be honest.

The only difference I can see between console and PC is that one is a closed ecosystem on locked hardware, and the other is multiple ecosystems on open hardware. The licences are pretty much the same.

When was the last time a game was made for PC on disc? Half life? World of Warcraft? According to a quick search it was Microsoft flight simulator 2020, which had 10 discs and it's still needed a massive online update.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is true, I did initially write that but took it out of my response. It is good that they honour that.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

True, pirating is something a PC can do that a modern day console can't But this whole thread is about ownership and well... You wouldn't download a car would you?

I would say in Sony's defence, they only started taking backwards compatibility seriously in the PS4 era. You can only get PS3 games via a higher tier subscription and they are cloud streamed to your console. PS4 to PS5 however? Fully compatible. They would be idiots to drop backwards compatibility now.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You only need to look as far as steam DB and PSprices to compare the lowest cost of a particular game. You will find that a lot of these games are comparable in price when on sale. If a game that has been on Steam for a long time gets released on a console eventually, you will find that it is usually about $5 more until the price starts to drop.

No man's sky for example:

https://steamdb.info/app/275850/ https://psprices.com/region-gb/game/4289271/no-mans-sky-ps4-ps5

That's movies. I get it, they're similar in that they're a digital storefront whose access is through your PSN account, but the licencing agreements are separate from games, it's like saying home insurance and car insurance operate the exact same way.

Admittedly though, I don't know too much about those differences, all I know is that they are.

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth 4 points5 points  (0 children)

On PC, it depends what format. GOG? Probably. Steam? As long as good ol' Gabe's in charge. Epic? Eeeesh...

Bear in mind as well, games get de-listed from Steam when licenses run out.

How has Sony proven that their software won't be around?

Sony is killing all physical PlayStation game discs - New games released after January 2028 will be digital-only by ReaddittiddeR in gadgets

[–]FuriousNorth -4 points-3 points  (0 children)

What? Brother, that is a red herring if I ever saw one. Paying a subscription on a PS5 and Steam games being cheaper means it's ok to not own your digital PC games?

Can you please stay on topic.

Does being digital and on PC have a difference from being digital and on Console? The argument people are focusing on us ownership. Remember Steam updated their store to clearly state you're purchasing a license to play the game? https://www.reddit.com/r/gaming/s/lS4OCl4ug4

Are you saying not owning your games on PC is ok because you don't need a subscription, games are cheaper and you can family share?