MyMMO demon Cortyn does not understand the fuss about the elimination of discs. Because that also brings many benefits that have been utilized for years.
In recent weeks, one topic has caused quite a stir in the gaming community: the upcoming elimination of discs for the PlayStation. For many players, this was the reason for a huge outcry and already some planned boycott actions.
That said, I do understand the criticism. The decision to no longer have physical media can certainly be criticized.
Discs have long been absent in my life
I simply compared this to my life reality and I believe: The impact on me will be extremely low.
That said, I also loved collecting boxes.
I had a large empty wall back then and equipped all my PS2 and PS3 games with Velcro to hang them on the wall. It had a bit of a video store feeling (does anyone still remember video stores?) and it looked good – at least until summer when it got so hot that the glue on the back of the Velcro strips came off and half the wall came crashing down in a chain reaction.
Even now, I still like to display a collector’s edition on my shelf. But I no longer need physical media for my gaming experience.
Honestly? Discs actually annoy me immensely now. Every time my PlayStation asks me to insert the disc for “Detroit: Become Human,” I roll my eyes in exasperation. It is essentially the only game for which I still have to get up and where the PlayStation occasionally rattles loudly with the drive because some file needs to be loaded that could have been on the PS5.
Discs are mostly slower than fully installed games
Additionally, physical media increasingly serves as an obstacle that hampers performance. With the Switch 1, you could clearly see from the loading times whether a game was fully installed on the console’s storage or whether something had to be constantly loaded from the disc. With the Switch 2, games are already installed on the console’s storage with gamekey cards.
Moreover, I still have memories of problems associated with discs. I clearly remember borrowing a friend’s PlayStation (1) to play Final Fantasy IX. And I remember exactly that disc 2 of the game had a scratch that caused the game to freeze during a cutscene. I had to play the last passage multiple times and always hope the scratch would be skipped this time – until it finally worked.
These are simply errors that would hardly occur if the game were completely stored digitally on an SSD or hard drive. Sure, there is data corruption sometimes – but it is far rarer than a scratch on a disc. And even then: You can simply redownload the game from the shop.
However, I also find the argument curious, to ask what will happen if Sony eventually decides to discontinue an online service. We have been facing this scenario on PC for several decades with Steam. Of course, this is a potential risk – but how realistic is it?
When I think back to my youth, it was anyway quite rare for anyone in my circle to borrow games. It was more the case that each household had a different console. While I could play Ocarina of Time on my N64, a friend had the PlayStation with Final Fantasy and another later had the Xbox with Halo.
No one borrowed games; they simply passed around the entire console and got it back after a few weeks.
I also never felt the urge to sell games used or buy used ones. If I really wanted a game, I waited for a special offer or bought it at the regular price. Yes, that may seem like a luxury to some – but I rarely buy games. Maybe a handful per year, if at all. But for those I generally pay full price to support the developers. For a Baldur’s Gate 3 or for Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, I would almost feel bad not having “bought it myself.”
Perhaps I simply have a different relationship with games than many who are currently upset. Because when I buy a game, I usually play it intensively for several weeks or months (unless it’s an MMORPG). I might come back after a patch, update, or DLC. But after two or three years, I don’t even start many games anymore. I can count the exceptions on one hand, like Final Fantasy IX or a few other old JRPGs.
Despite all the concerns that certainly exist: I no longer need discs and other external media. For me, the purely digital future of games is significantly more convenient. And if I’m completely honest: I have actually been living in exactly this future for years, toward which Sony and many others are working, so there really isn’t any change for me. But how do you see it? Are you worried about the elimination of discs? Or do you take it relatively calmly?
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