I bought Fallout: New Vegas today...

Tachikaze · 2011-11-03 06:28:23

...And apparently the 6GB on the game disc is just a setup menu that starts up Steam. I was under the impression that one of the benefits of buying a physical copy of a game was that you get to avoid having to download the thing...it seems I was mistaken. I'm pretty sure the downloading thing isn't actually a problem for a lot of people, but I've got a cap on how much I can download in a month before I get dropped down to dial-up speed...which is kind of annoying. And having a bit over 10% of that sucked away for no discernable reason seems kinda stupid to me.

Oh, and before anyone points it out, yes I know the install data is actually on the disc, but good luck getting any use out of it without a run command.

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 06:31:22

It could be worse.

Apparently, the box for GTA5 won't even have a disc in it.

Tachikaze · 2011-11-03 06:37:23

...Seriously?

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 06:45:12

I heard. Though even if it's true, it's possibly not set in stone.

Chagen · 2011-11-03 07:18:29

Okay, that is fucking retarded.

I'm really not liking how physical media is dissappearing. There's no soul in a bunch of ones and zeroes on your hard drive. There's soul in a disk. Holding a physical object is vastly superior than downloadinc non-descript ones and zeroes. Fuck this digital bullshit.

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 07:24:16

^It apparently will come with feelies, though.

Though I don't see how a disc is different from a download.

DarkDecapodian · 2011-11-03 07:31:16

And just think, people were saying the same thing about discs and cartridges not too long ago.

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 07:34:57

Also, it saves money. Now, you may not care about a game publisher saving money, but consider that if they get more of the money you spend on a given copy, they don't have to sell as many copies of the game to make a profit. That means they can take risks. That means that their superiors won't be as likely to be breathing down their necks, making stupid demands on how to make the game more like some best-seller, forcing them to sacrifice quality to meet requirements.

Glowsquid · 2011-11-03 07:48:58

Apparently, the box for GTA5 won't even have a disc in it.

It's simply the random prediction of some research firm. Neither Rockstar or 2K actually indicated anything of the sort.

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 07:51:26

^Ah, okay, never mind.

Stupid rumors need to cite sources.

Yeah, I thought it seemed a bit early. I'm thinking next generation.

Chagen · 2011-11-03 07:51:27

"Though I don't see how a disc is different from a download."

You can HOLD a disc. It has a physical presence. It looks different from every other disc, rather than all being a bunch of 1s and 0s.

Honestly, the move towards digital media scares me. The idea that one day, kids will be deprived of the glory of cracking open a new case and putting it in your console/PC is......what the fuck.

WTF are we to do? The entire idea of "personal ownership" will dissappear and give way to some....neo-communist idea of "everyone owns everything", or some othsr crock of bullshit like that.

Yes. My tin foil hat is on tight today, why do you ask?

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 07:53:14

What does it matter that you can hold a disc? The ones and zeroes are what you actually use.

As for personal ownership, you don't own the data on a disc.

Chagen · 2011-11-03 07:56:52

Because holding a disc is infintelt superior to having ones and zeroes.

Really, INUH. You're scaring me. You're asking questions thay I thought were simple common sense. Your thought processes right now are utterly alien to me.

This should just be common sense! WTF is wrong with today's society...

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 07:58:24

A disc is ones and zeroes, just less efficiently stored and costing money to produce, sometimes with a little picture that's invariably cut out from the boxart on it.

Chagen · 2011-11-03 08:00:52

That doesn't stop it from having a physical presence.

Really. This isn't that difficult.

If this is how media is going, then, fuck it all.

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 08:02:46

Physical things are great.

I shelled out an extra $70 for Skyrim instead of getting it from Steam at midnight on the 11th so I could get that map, artbook and beautiful statue. These things bring me joy with their physical existence to the point that I'm spending more money than would get me another game. The CD? Eh, it's a means to an end.

Elbeem · 2011-11-03 08:06:24

I do think that PC Games will eventually move to an entirely "download only" business model. As internet speeds and usage continue to expand, it just makes sense from a cost-saving perspective. It would also do away with the absurdity of a game going "gold" a month ahead of time so that they can get the CD's printed in time, and then requiring two days of downloading patches just to make it playable.

If you're really worried about it, console games will very likely continue to be mostly physical copy-based for the foreseeable future.

To be honest I'm more concerned with the trend of PC games requiring you to be online to play as a form of DRM. My ISP is pretty bad, and I have lost internet connections for a couple days at a time more often than I'd like. I also don't like the choice being taken from me to install a PC game on a computer that's not hooked up to the internet, for whatever reason I may choose to do so.

Chagen · 2011-11-03 08:06:48

Really, it's more the case so you can show it off. You can't pimp the fact that you have a digital game that easily.

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 08:09:05

^^Steam is pretty reasonable DRM (you need to connect a minimum of once a month), and most everything's available on it.

^Sure I can. If you look at my Steam profile, you'll see a huge list of games, far more conveniently than I could show you.

But yeah, I can buy wanting the case. I paid extra to get a physical copy of the Bastion soundtrack because the artwork on the case is gorgeous.

Elbeem · 2011-11-03 08:14:11

How exactly does that work? The only Steam game I've played so far has been Civ 5, which I haven't played in nearly a year, nor have I connected to steam in more than six months after switching PCs.

If I decide to reinstall Civ 5, will I run into issues since I haven't logged on once a month?

To clarify, my concern is more with games requiring you to be "always online" as far as DRM goes.

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 08:16:30

I think the way it works is the instant you log on, all your games are good for another month of offline.

Yeah, "always online" DRM is bad.

Of course, it gets hit with karma, since it's generally trying to sell to the US, a country not in the top 25 most internet-connected.

Elbeem · 2011-11-03 08:21:09

Ah ok, so basically the process of installing Civ (and by extension, steam) would have me good to go from that point. That's fine, then.

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 08:26:28

Steam's pretty much the ideal form of DRM: it stops as many pirates as possible without more than a couple of legitimate users even noticing or caring that it's there.

Nyarly · 2011-11-03 08:55:04

Though I don't see how a disc is different from a download.

Downloading means relying on your internet connection. That means, if it's not exactly fast then it takes nearly an eternity. And if you are like me and only have a surf stick for interernet, then it becomes incredibly slow after 5 GB (this also mostly prevents me from using Steam). Not to mention that even with a rather reliable connection, it can always happen that it slows down or the connection gets cut off completely for some reason.

No, I don't see how downloads can replace physical copies. At least not now. And I can only hope that it will never happen (but I fear that this would be naive).

ClockworkUniverse · 2011-11-03 08:58:48

^Fair enough.

I don't think the time is right for them to replace discs entirely yet. It's probably 10-15 years off.

But aside from slow internet connections, the end result is identical. If a disc is more practical for a user, that's a reason to get the disc. If it's not, I can't see it being inherently superior by virtue of physical existence.

Tachikaze · 2011-11-03 15:50:01

In my case discs are preferable because I'd rather not use 10% of my monthly internet cap every time I want a new game. I have no problem with digital beyond that.

As for the market moving fully into digital distribution, I don't see it happening immediately...although I do wonder how Steam's going to take it when that happens...since they do have several practices which could be called anti-competitive.

Oh, and some Steam games require Steam to be open (probably online too, I don't know) at all times to play....New Vegas is one of these.

RedEyedAbyss · 2011-11-03 16:09:13

At the risk of sounding ignorant, I must admit the reasons I'm wary of digital distribution is partly due to fears of getting hacked. Also, apparently for WiiWare at least, you can't transfer games to different consoles.

Crimson · 2011-11-03 16:17:43

^I'm not sure about security, but Steam allows you to download all your games onto any computer you want, so long as you can log on to Steam through that computer.

Forzare · 2011-11-03 16:23:38

This and Fallout Equestria have reminded me that I really need to get back and play New Vegas.

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I bought Fallout: New Vegas today...

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