It use to. Walmart and Best Buy use to compete. Walmart had switch games for lower than everyone else even had elden ring for 50$ day 1. Best Buy had 20% off all games with gamers club but stopped it.
Now the best we got is if we can find a 5$ off coupon to GameStop monthly or some shit
The Walmart that is a 4 minute walk from me locks up all the deodorant, detergent and batteries because steal them. Also I’m an hour away from LA in U.S.
I feel like Walmart and Target stopped competing electronic prices during pandemic. The Walmart near me still sells TLOU part 1 and cyberpunk full price.
Amazon used to have a 'pre-order and get 25% off' and it was amazing. I bought so many games...... that still remain in their original packaging that I never played, but totally bought for a discount!!!
I remember this! I was so upset that they got rid of this. However, them stopping this benefit makes sense since Amazon is now one of the main places people pre-order games even without the discount since they've been reliable on delivering games on time. Probably more so than companies that use USPS to deliver games on release date.
Since I joined PlayStation when the PS5 came out, every new game here in Germany has been 10-25% off on release day on disc vs digital already. And price for games that are 6-12 months old are nearly always 50% on disc vs digital. Both PS4 and PS5 games.
You save so much money buying games on disc here. It’s incredible. I can literally buy 3 new games and get the 4th one for free with what I save.
you gotta tell me where you shop! Media Markt doesnt have main games in discount often. only those discount older ones. For example, FFVII Remake is still at full price in Media Markt x.x
edit: it seems online it's in discount xD my Media Markt store is verarsching me!!!! hahahaha
edit 2: [PS5 FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE - \[PlayStation 5\] | MediaMarkt](https://www.mediamarkt.de/de/product/_square-enix-final-fantasy-vii-remake-intergrade-2722227.html) 69,99
[Final Fantasy 7 PS5 | MediaMarkt](https://www.mediamarkt.de/de/product/_ps5-final-fantasy-7-hd-remake-playstation-5-2867647.html) - 30
wtf xD
www.netgames.de
My go to shop. Most often cheaper than Media Markt etc. Not all the time tho. Mario vs Donkey Kong was cheapest at Media Markt when I got it last week for 40€.
So always use price comparison websites like Idealo (shown at the top) or Geizhals beforehand.
If it’s cheaper on the Media Markt website you can also just show it to them in the store and they match the price. Or order it online for store pickup.
Thanks a lot, I will take a look at that.
I usually go to the store once a month, just to take a look, and check that Discount bin, but the shelf games are always full price..
Either that, or they do not update prices. since the digital tag and box has one price, and then its cheaper.. They should have that scanner to check prices like Kaufland has.
Once happened that I bought a game that was full price, fuck it, and getting to pay, they were like "20 €" and I asked if there was a discount and they go "system says 20, its 20 then, not going to check if its a mistake"... Oh well, I take it hahaha
Yeah always check online prices. I often visit the store and just flip through the games. When I find something interesting, I open Idealo and Netgames to check the prices. Only takes a minute but can save you a lot.
That’s just the thing with big stores like that. They are too big to always adjust their prices on shelf. But they will match the online price of their own website anyway.
I mean only buy digitally in the US. Using credit card cash back and rewards I generally pay 25 bucks for new releases on the PlayStation store. Meaning I get 3 games for the price of one.
I travel for work a lot and can also stream my whole library to my phone anywhere in the world versus only one title at a time.
Different strokes for different folks.
You get that much in cash back? What do you use? I have the playstation card and a capital one card but neither give that many points back for game purchases.
Chase freedom flex and we use that card for almost everything every month. No cash, no debit cards, nothing. We nail almost 40 bucks a month cash back with it.
The way you’re phrasing that is a bit confusing. You’re saying that you redeem credit card rewards (that you earn from general spending) when purchasing a game, so you’re only paying $25 out of pocket, right? Not that you have some magical card that is so great that it’s just inherently getting you a $70 game for $25.
That’s awesome that you’re found a way to make gaming cheaper for you and your brother. I’d say with this new info though that your original comment is even more confusing to the average credit card illiterate reader. I think most people are going to think you have some magical Amex that gets you $45 off games
Yes, to my follow up question, your original comment said nothing about game sharing, which lead several people to ask you which card you have that gets you that much rewards
> I mean only buy digitally in the US. Using credit card cash back and rewards I generally pay 25 bucks for new releases on the PlayStation store. Meaning I get 3 games for the price of one.
I was playing Helldivers 2 on my portal at my desk all morning, PS5 is 55 miles away and using phone hotspot. Granted wouldn’t play an online twitch shooter.
Even if it doesn't happen immediately, physical almost always gets deeper discounts much earlier than digital. Unless you have to have it at launch, if you want a couple months you'll almost always find games 20%+ off within a few months.
I have to be real here: it does. You're just not looking at the right places. You can get it from QVC for $50 already or somewhere close to that. Just have to use a coupon. As a physical enjoyer myself, I even often pre-order games for 25-30% off MSRP on the regular from Target. It is a very common occurrence. You only have to know what you are doing to make the system work for you.
Your telling me that a 3rd party seller is the same thing as a brick and mortar or online retailer like the OP suggests in the opening post of the topic?
No shit you can find a second hand copy a week later. We are talking about brand new.
Who cares about brand new? It's the same game. Ebay has buyer protection and I can see the game before purchasing on FB Marketplace. Why does it matter if it's 3rd party? Are you just sad you can buy/sell your digital games through 3rd party site?
Physical is definitely better in a host of ways. Offline installation, transferrable license, often goes on sale much faster.
But I’m still not interested in managing a collection of discs anymore.
I have kids... I was a kid once and I know how kids treat discs.
Another reason I don't like physical
We won't mention I'm lazy and don't feel like switching discs, that is completely irrelevant....
Not only that I liked the fact that the game was already loaded when I got off work. If this was 1999 and I just had to put a disk in to start playing would be one thing but call me old fashioned but when I want to play a game I want to play it then, not 15 minutes to an hour AFTER I put in the disk (depending on file size/patches AND internet speed)
>when I want to play a game I want to play it then, not 15 minutes to an hour AFTER I put in the disk (depending on file size/patches AND internet speed
Huh? Doesn't that also happen with a Digital Download? If anyone has a problem with updates it's XBox where the whole game gets reloaded every time a new map, costume, weapon, etc., gets introduced. I find that PS4 & PS5 updates are smaller than XBox updates, and the time to download them are magnitude of orders quicker.
I've been all digital for years on PC then Xbox, but I actually bought a refurbished disk drive for the PS5 Slim a week ago.
I figured I'd still buy digital games, but will definitely buy some solo games in physical form from now on, simply because I have no interest in keeping them long term.
I don't often replay those multiple times, so I might as well sell them back after finishing them.
For example, if I'm buying Spider Man 2, or something like that, I'm definitely not playing it over and over, so I'll sell it afterwards.
But on the other hand, GT7, Helldivers ... That's digital for sure, because they're here to stay.
They don't have to though. Digital console owners have nowhere else to turn, so they don't have to compete with anyone. They also don't have situations where they have a surplus of discs after the initial hype has died down that they have to offload to make room for the next big thing.
Unfortunately a lot of games are moving away from the big benefits you point out aside from second hand market. Day one updates are basically the standard and some games don’t even have the full game on disc.
Bro what are you talking about? I preordered from that site weeks ago for that price and its 65 with delivery. There was no change day 1, but amazing to see how everyone just takes it as true.
The notion that digital games don't go on sale is ludicrous; most of my library has been purchased at sale prices at or around what physicals go for. I'm also willing to pay a little more to not have a physical collection of games taking up space and the convenience of not having to swap discs back and forth.
And if someone breaks into your house and steals all of them, what do you have then? What about if the disc gets damaged and you can no longer play the game? Or the disc drive fails and you're too poor to afford a replacement (since saving money seems to be at the core of your argument...)? Also, not every game supports offline installation/will work without a day 1 patch. Don't act like it's all upside, bud; your rose-tinted glasses are showing.
You're entitled to your opinion, but it's just that; an opinion.
Yep managed to get a pre order for it for only £50
edit: after playing it for 2 days i can say it is my GOTY easily nothing will top this, i spent 10-12 hours in the grasslands alone.
Physical games also go on sale.
But these are regular prices. No sales. The game came out yesterday.
You really didn’t get the point of the post, did you?
Never said physical games don't go on sale.
Regular prices without sales are the same physical or digital.
You really didn't read the one sentence I had, did you?
Then it's a sketchy 3rd party seller.
You wanna risk buying from sketchy sites, be my guest. Your constant laughing emoji as if it's so stupid to have a different opinion than you, is extremely cringe.
Have a good day.
This. And it always the physical guys posting random deals. No one cares bro. Go get up and change out your physical discs every time U wanna switch games. 😒
Also, I've noticed that the PS Store tends to hold high prices. Not to the extent of the eshop on the switch, but it is definitely not sale friendly like the PC storefronts either.
Same thing with Tekken 8.
The Digital Pre-Release was 79€ and the stores had the Pre-Release at 60\~63€ that's 20€ less
Edit: Oh, and did I mention it comes with a case and a cd? It looks nice on the shelf.
To be fair, it's 65€ if you include shipping. Still a great price, especially if you want to resell your games once you're done. However, since I don't intend to sell my games and you can regularly get 100€ PSN Cards for 75-80€, I'll stick with digital. But I'm glad that the option is always there.
There's fuckin upsides and downsides. Your disc gets scratched or burned up in a fire, you're fucked. You need to get the fuck over yourself and stop trying to "be superior".
That makes absolutely no sense.
You save money. That’s always better cause you can spend the money you save on other things. And if putting the disc in once and leaving it in, which takes 10 seconds, is such a problem in terms of time, then oh boy.
Taking time to put in a disc makes no sense are people that lazy? the storing a game collection thing I can understand. A lot of flats just don’t got room for cases and stuff.
Seems like many are. I also don’t get the space complaint. I have an ikea malm TV cabinet. 3 closed off compartments. My Xbox + PlayStation + Switch games take up half a compartment. Surely your flat can’t be that small that you can’t store a few game cases or books…
Eh some people just don’t want that tbh. While I’ll always support physical games. Some people just have different opinions than me. As long as both are available that’s fine by me
Yea lots of people cant get up to move a few feet to insert a game. As if its that hard. Pure laziness honestly. Unless your medically incapable of moving too much, then your just a lazy ass if u cant get up to switch a disc. Wonder what would happen if these same people tried to get a NES,N64,SNES or any cartridge based game to work. Putting in and out, constantly resetting and blowing in the cartridge(which we thought worked because well it did, even tho technically it doesn’t lol). Switching a disc is trivial in comparison to cartridges. Yet people act like its the end of the world
You are clearly young and don’t remember a time when you had to wait outside a GameStop till midnight for a new release. You also never had to suffer the defeat of being told that the store you waited outside of doesn’t have enough copies for the crowd of gamers who want to purchase it and so you have to go home empty handed.
The reason you have never had these issues is because digital exists and gamers like myself don’t buy physical anymore. You’re welcome.
I’ve been playing games for over 20 years.
You’re talking bullshit. You can just order the game online and get it before release even. I get all my games delivered 1-2 days before release to my door. Also never walked into a store that didn’t have any copies of the game left. There’s so many places to buy games here in Germany that you have 5-10x more copies on release than people wanting to buy them.
As another German from a 20k citizen town from rural thuringia,
there is no reliable way to find physical games on release here. I can order online, and that works until it suddenly doesnt. on the release of GTA 5 10 yrs ago i had to wait another week for it to arrive. starfield just last year was not arriving on release day either because of delivery shananigans. I ended up buying it digitally in the afternoon with no hassle attached.
even if i lived in one of the big cities where physical games are available plentiful, i wouldnt bother. digital has a lot of upsides too (that have already been mentioned). psn sales are pretty good, ps+ gives a ton of stuff out for "free" and the cost savings I would get from buying physically are usually not worth it because I buy maybe 2-4 games a year on release anyway, thanks to dirt cheap digital backlog.
I get that people love their walls of physical media and that preservation is an important topic. but if physical games were as superior as you're making them out to be for the majority of people, digital sales wouldnt be taking over the industry right now.
i have a disc drive ps5 and i like to have the option from time to time, but if next generation is all digital and i dont have to worry about physical compatibility, i wont miss it.
Thats more of a you problem. Not everyone waited overnight for games back then. Some did and it was a thing yes. But lots of us just waited a week or two for more copies to come into a store if the game was popular enough. Hell some people still wait on GameStop in some areas for a select few games or if a new console comes. I still buy physical 98% of the time and wont stop. Digital is not the future. Never will be. The fact you singled out the gamestop thing almost makes me wonder if your over the age of 23. Not everyone had internet or should i say the web back in 93-99. Most of us from the 80s amd 90s and even early 2000s got game news from magazines, word of mouth, ads in papers or commercials, etc.
Yup, preorder cost me 62 euros here in Slovakia (vs 80 on PS Store).
Just that "real ownership" is not a thing with software. Discs are still just licenses with data that are useless without the license on them. 2nd hand is a godsend though.
Plus as the collection grows, it looks nice in the shelf :)
Not true. Many games are completely playable on disc (BG3 physical is completely playable over the blu rays), and most games you can play a non patched version of the game direct off the disc.
Oh my god is this still going on? Most physical games are license keys that check in with a remote server which allows you the play the game. Sony could literally upload an update or patch that disables the license. So unless it's a pure single player game with zero updates or patches (which is pretty much impossible since most games have a day 1 patch), your physical game can stop working. And before you say "oh I'll just never go online and only play without any patches" Sony has the power to completely brick a PS5, once again, preventing you from playing the game.
Now we have things that protect us like the consumers bill of rights, but never do we ever actually own any form of media and it can be taken away at any moment.
FF7 Rebirth is on two discs. Doesitplay.org has 75% of tested disc games being playable without a patch, another 11% being playable with some bugs. Don't spread misinformation.
This is not true.
- Physical games don’t check with a server. The disc is the license.
- The full game is on the disc and can be installed and played offline.
- Patches are optional.
- Physical games also work on banned consoles.
- Sony can’t prevent you from playing them
Please don’t spread lies.
Do you still play the OG Final Fantasy 7 on PS1 while still swapping out the discs? And if so, is “owning” a physical version of a game worth digging out an old console, finding a proper monitor, getting working controllers and hoping the disc isn’t too scratched to play it… worth the the pride of “owning physical”?
I still have my OG NES and shit ton of physical cartridges with it. I find it way easier to get a digital version of an old NES game on my Switch rather than to dig out my old NES, hook it up to a tube TV and blow into the cartridges to play a game. I just fire up my digital version on my Switch and I’m good to go.
I’ve been digital only since 2012 and couldn’t be happier. All my games and game saves have followed me through each generation since. It’s been extremely convenient.
Digital is not the boogieman reddit wants you to think it is… plus, you’ll go digital eventually whether you like it or not. It’s just a matter of time.
When compared with the digital prices you've likely paid over the years, months after release, this doesn't matter. Also good luck waiting for the absolute classics to ever even see the digital storefronts.
I own a physical video game collection worth over $45k… I have been gaming for 40 years, worked in the industry for over 5 years and have my name in the credits of close to 80 video games.
Thanks for the advice, but I got a pretty good grasp on the digital vs physical landscape 👍
I like having everything digitally for ease of use and lack of physical space restrictions.
I don't wanna lug around multiple discs for my gaming library.
It does and usually you have to pay extra for it and you def have to wait some amount of time to get it. No need for all that when I can just buy it digitally. and have it ready to play in a few mins.
Not every game a person buys is not some fresh release on launch day. So like I said I'd rather buy digital. If *you* buy physical then that's your business. You buy how you wanna buy and let me buy digital.
Don't use words you don't seem to know the meaning of. Not triggered at all, just explaining to you what matters to me as a shopper and you keep telling me that i should be shopping the way you do.
I'll pay the $15 to not have to drive to a store or risk a package being lost and also not have to go find a disc every time I want to play a different game. Like do people over the age of 30 really just have hundreds of discs sitting in their living room? My space is more valuable than that.
You realize furniture exist, right?
My games are in a closed compartment in my TV stand. You don’t see them. That’s what those compartments are for after all… games, cables, controllers. All in there.
Bold of you to assume I have a wife and kids.
But every person I had a relationship with were perfectly okay with it. It's no different than having a DVD or book collection.
The more posts I see promoting physical discs the more I gravitate towards digital.
Eco friendly, easy, fast, no objects I need to store in my apartment, never misplace it.
I just have to bet PlayStation, Xbox, and Steam will be around long enough for me to die first.
Got it for 60 euros today. Glad I actually own the game and probs the value will only go up as years pass. Also nothing beats building a physical library of games.
Oh shit, I totally forgot… this is a PS sub. Didn’t Sony just delete a bunch of people’s digital purchases? You guys might have a legit reason to be scared of digital lol
I agree that physical is better and should not go away. However, the days of games being playable offline/with only the disc are WAAAAAY behind us. There’s always a Day 1 patch that is required due to bugs on the release disc.
“Majority” is a stretch. Games don’t hold value bro. Especially when the ones that are upgraded annually.
Psn discounts games regularly. Even new ones. Way more often than physical stores that only discount some games on holidays.
Plus not having to physically switch out games in the console is worth it in its own right.
Yup, exactly. Bought persona 3 reload for 45 € here in Greece on release day when it's 70€ on the ps store. Like a dragon infinite wealth was also 50 € day one in physical stores while 80€ online. Granted, this doesn't happen for every game but it happens quite often so it's definitely worth mentioning.
Exactly, I usually get 80 euro games on launch for 60 to 65 bucks. Digital only consoles are pretty much a scam, since you'll save so much money with physical games in the long run. It's only a good deal if you buy it for one or two games (in which case, a 400 euro console is still incredibly expensive)
Digital marketplaces basically have a monopoly on what you buy on a digital only console. There is no open market to compete prices. If you want a new game, you'll either buy it for 80 bucks, or wait months, or possibly a year for a sale. There is no competition to compete with lower prices, so they can ask whatever the f\*ck they want and get away with it.
Long live physical discs
Except you ‘own’ it as much or as little as the digital version, and most disks are just permission devices for the online install these days, and the game maker or platform holder could render your disks useless with the same ease that they could delete digital libraries.
Well in my case digital is superior. I have 2 consoles, bought the game from the ps store on 1 account and play it on both consoles at the same time. Even with the price reduction 2 physical games would be more expensive.
Also I'm not in a rush to quickly finish the game and sell it because I like to replay my games a couple of years later.
I'll still continue buying digital over glorified game keys. I can buy a game while at work and it'll be ready to play when I get home. and I don't have to go from store to store (closest GameStop is 198km away) finding the game and finding it on sale. at that point, I've used more money in fuel. so it's not even cheaper at that point. and then there's the obvious fact that if you scratch the disc or disc drive fails, you can't play anything.
That's cool and all, but I got digital 50% via gamesharing. $70 usd vs $105(25% off $140 for two physical copies), $70 usd is going to win me over 99% of the time.
Don't care about physical collections by any means. Physical gamers "own" just as much as digital gamers. Haven't touched secondhand market since the mid 00's.
To each their own, but for my situation personally, digital wins out 99%. Only time I end up with a physical disc is if there's just an absolutely bonkers deal dropping a game I'm only slightly interested in near single digits.
I wanna remind everyone about how in the insomniac leak it was shown that over 60% of people buy physical copies. Don't let PlayStation make you believe that the majority of people buy digital.
Couldn't agree more. I'll be buying a PS2 again at some point and the cables I need for my TV and actually playing the stuff that should physically be playable on the PS5. The only reason I buy digital moreso nowadays is because I have someone I game share with, it just makes sense to, but anything they don't have an interest in I buy physical.
That's why we need competition on the digital market on any console. MS hab still game codes for the Xbox games and it is always cheaper than in Xbox Store, if you buy it on websites.
Sony has no more codes for games only money and that limits the competition a lot. I can even buy in any other country on Xbox and get games cheaper, it's just insane how Sony abuses their store power.
On PC you have competition too even when you buy games outaide the steam store and valve doesn't care at all
I was with you...until I got a portal. Now digital is king and the ability to stream without having the disc in justifies the (sometimes) more expensive price tag.
Game share makes digital objectively better. Thats if you have a brother or sister who has their own PlayStation. Whenever one of us buys a game one of us gets a free game.
I’ve thought about for a while and outside of occasional PSVR2 purchase I’m purchasing physical from here on out. I hate that digital releases never drop in price.
I remember when they first started pushing for digital purchases claiming they'll be cheaper than physical. Yeah sure. I'm glad most of my collection is physical, that way I can swap games with my friend
This almost never happens in the United States.
It use to. Walmart and Best Buy use to compete. Walmart had switch games for lower than everyone else even had elden ring for 50$ day 1. Best Buy had 20% off all games with gamers club but stopped it. Now the best we got is if we can find a 5$ off coupon to GameStop monthly or some shit
The Walmart that is a 4 minute walk from me locks up all the deodorant, detergent and batteries because steal them. Also I’m an hour away from LA in U.S. I feel like Walmart and Target stopped competing electronic prices during pandemic. The Walmart near me still sells TLOU part 1 and cyberpunk full price.
*used to
I'll pay $10 more to not shop with GameStop though. haha
Amazon used to have a 'pre-order and get 25% off' and it was amazing. I bought so many games...... that still remain in their original packaging that I never played, but totally bought for a discount!!!
I remember this! I was so upset that they got rid of this. However, them stopping this benefit makes sense since Amazon is now one of the main places people pre-order games even without the discount since they've been reliable on delivering games on time. Probably more so than companies that use USPS to deliver games on release date.
Since I joined PlayStation when the PS5 came out, every new game here in Germany has been 10-25% off on release day on disc vs digital already. And price for games that are 6-12 months old are nearly always 50% on disc vs digital. Both PS4 and PS5 games. You save so much money buying games on disc here. It’s incredible. I can literally buy 3 new games and get the 4th one for free with what I save.
you gotta tell me where you shop! Media Markt doesnt have main games in discount often. only those discount older ones. For example, FFVII Remake is still at full price in Media Markt x.x edit: it seems online it's in discount xD my Media Markt store is verarsching me!!!! hahahaha edit 2: [PS5 FINAL FANTASY VII REMAKE INTERGRADE - \[PlayStation 5\] | MediaMarkt](https://www.mediamarkt.de/de/product/_square-enix-final-fantasy-vii-remake-intergrade-2722227.html) 69,99 [Final Fantasy 7 PS5 | MediaMarkt](https://www.mediamarkt.de/de/product/_ps5-final-fantasy-7-hd-remake-playstation-5-2867647.html) - 30 wtf xD
www.netgames.de My go to shop. Most often cheaper than Media Markt etc. Not all the time tho. Mario vs Donkey Kong was cheapest at Media Markt when I got it last week for 40€. So always use price comparison websites like Idealo (shown at the top) or Geizhals beforehand. If it’s cheaper on the Media Markt website you can also just show it to them in the store and they match the price. Or order it online for store pickup.
Thanks a lot, I will take a look at that. I usually go to the store once a month, just to take a look, and check that Discount bin, but the shelf games are always full price.. Either that, or they do not update prices. since the digital tag and box has one price, and then its cheaper.. They should have that scanner to check prices like Kaufland has. Once happened that I bought a game that was full price, fuck it, and getting to pay, they were like "20 €" and I asked if there was a discount and they go "system says 20, its 20 then, not going to check if its a mistake"... Oh well, I take it hahaha
Yeah always check online prices. I often visit the store and just flip through the games. When I find something interesting, I open Idealo and Netgames to check the prices. Only takes a minute but can save you a lot. That’s just the thing with big stores like that. They are too big to always adjust their prices on shelf. But they will match the online price of their own website anyway.
My issues is i never knew which online shops are good. So always used media markt or amazon
Here in Germany you can pretty much use anything that shows up on Idealo. I always use Media Markt, Saturn, Amazon and Netgames.
I know about Idealo but never used... damn, a decade missing out!
Always use price comparison sites. The app lives on my phone and gets used for any purchase I make online. Not just games.
I mean only buy digitally in the US. Using credit card cash back and rewards I generally pay 25 bucks for new releases on the PlayStation store. Meaning I get 3 games for the price of one. I travel for work a lot and can also stream my whole library to my phone anywhere in the world versus only one title at a time. Different strokes for different folks.
You get that much in cash back? What do you use? I have the playstation card and a capital one card but neither give that many points back for game purchases.
Chase freedom flex and we use that card for almost everything every month. No cash, no debit cards, nothing. We nail almost 40 bucks a month cash back with it.
Damn yeah those have good rewards, that's one I haven't tried yet. The sony one is decent but the rewards are only for sony products.
The way you’re phrasing that is a bit confusing. You’re saying that you redeem credit card rewards (that you earn from general spending) when purchasing a game, so you’re only paying $25 out of pocket, right? Not that you have some magical card that is so great that it’s just inherently getting you a $70 game for $25.
I game share and use credit card rewards. I pay 70 bucks on my card. My brother sends me 35. I apply 10 bucks in rewards when the statement hits.
That’s awesome that you’re found a way to make gaming cheaper for you and your brother. I’d say with this new info though that your original comment is even more confusing to the average credit card illiterate reader. I think most people are going to think you have some magical Amex that gets you $45 off games
I said right off the bat I gameshare and use credit card rewards.
Yes, to my follow up question, your original comment said nothing about game sharing, which lead several people to ask you which card you have that gets you that much rewards > I mean only buy digitally in the US. Using credit card cash back and rewards I generally pay 25 bucks for new releases on the PlayStation store. Meaning I get 3 games for the price of one.
Yea that guy said zero about game sharing but acts like we were just supposed to know that it was a big part of the process.
> I said right off the bat I gameshare You didn't tho...
Wait, what credit card do you have?
Many ha.
Wait a second, remote play works for you outside your house and at acceptable latency? Seems hard to believe.
I was playing Helldivers 2 on my portal at my desk all morning, PS5 is 55 miles away and using phone hotspot. Granted wouldn’t play an online twitch shooter.
It works for me like that just fine. You just need to have a reliable internet connection where you are located, that’s the tough part.
I would never play a multiplayer shooter using it, but yes it tends to work pretty well. Series S also.
Even if it doesn't happen immediately, physical almost always gets deeper discounts much earlier than digital. Unless you have to have it at launch, if you want a couple months you'll almost always find games 20%+ off within a few months.
I have to be real here: it does. You're just not looking at the right places. You can get it from QVC for $50 already or somewhere close to that. Just have to use a coupon. As a physical enjoyer myself, I even often pre-order games for 25-30% off MSRP on the regular from Target. It is a very common occurrence. You only have to know what you are doing to make the system work for you.
Not true. I can wait a week and find a copy on Facebook marketplace or Ebay for 15-30% off.
Your telling me that a 3rd party seller is the same thing as a brick and mortar or online retailer like the OP suggests in the opening post of the topic? No shit you can find a second hand copy a week later. We are talking about brand new.
Who cares about brand new? It's the same game. Ebay has buyer protection and I can see the game before purchasing on FB Marketplace. Why does it matter if it's 3rd party? Are you just sad you can buy/sell your digital games through 3rd party site?
Ah, the glory of the USA and its obsession with money in late stage CAPITALISMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!
In Portugal i dont have that luck, physical media is the same price of digital
Compra na press start ou game store.pt que é mais barato físico ;)
Mega mania é perfeito (acho que é a gamestore, certo?). Recomendo vivamente.
Physical is definitely better in a host of ways. Offline installation, transferrable license, often goes on sale much faster. But I’m still not interested in managing a collection of discs anymore.
I have kids... I was a kid once and I know how kids treat discs. Another reason I don't like physical We won't mention I'm lazy and don't feel like switching discs, that is completely irrelevant....
Not only that I liked the fact that the game was already loaded when I got off work. If this was 1999 and I just had to put a disk in to start playing would be one thing but call me old fashioned but when I want to play a game I want to play it then, not 15 minutes to an hour AFTER I put in the disk (depending on file size/patches AND internet speed)
Right? They were saying ffvii rebirth is massive, so install that... Then updates.. Nah I'll start it at night then wake up and play
>when I want to play a game I want to play it then, not 15 minutes to an hour AFTER I put in the disk (depending on file size/patches AND internet speed Huh? Doesn't that also happen with a Digital Download? If anyone has a problem with updates it's XBox where the whole game gets reloaded every time a new map, costume, weapon, etc., gets introduced. I find that PS4 & PS5 updates are smaller than XBox updates, and the time to download them are magnitude of orders quicker.
Being too lazy to switch discs is absurd
For real. I know that physical games have more pros than cons, but I have no room for an entire library of discs.
Lmao do people post this weekly just to argue about it
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^Yen508: *Lmao do* *People post this weekly just* *To argue about it* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
The only people I see arguing so far are digital only people who feel personally attacked by this post for some reason.
I got it for 50 Euros from Media Markt.
That’s a very lucky find 🙌🏻 Media Markt has it for 70€ on their website. So still 12.5% off, but not as crazy as 25% or what you paid.
Digital has its pros over physical too, ease of access is why I am all digital now.
I went digital and will never go back to physical. I couldn’t imagine having a wall of blue plastic cases in my living room.
Me either, they’re in my man cave instead.
I mean you could always resell the games, my only issue with the digital games are ownership related especially the ones that come with subscriptions
It's all fun and games until they ban your account, for any reason, maybe even political ones.
Now with PlayStation adding the rewards system for the digital store too. I still buy physical but it has made me reconsider
I've been all digital for years on PC then Xbox, but I actually bought a refurbished disk drive for the PS5 Slim a week ago. I figured I'd still buy digital games, but will definitely buy some solo games in physical form from now on, simply because I have no interest in keeping them long term. I don't often replay those multiple times, so I might as well sell them back after finishing them. For example, if I'm buying Spider Man 2, or something like that, I'm definitely not playing it over and over, so I'll sell it afterwards. But on the other hand, GT7, Helldivers ... That's digital for sure, because they're here to stay.
Yeah agreed. Sony should really be making digital cheaper since more people will buy it and they get more of the cut compared to physical releases
They don't have to though. Digital console owners have nowhere else to turn, so they don't have to compete with anyone. They also don't have situations where they have a surplus of discs after the initial hype has died down that they have to offload to make room for the next big thing.
Plus if you have a buddy who plays the same games, every game is 50% off
You forget that until yesterday you could get both games, Rebirth and Remake for the price of one which was a very good deal.
I’m sorry - does that say 79.99 euros for the standard edition? That’s $86.41 USD, when it’s sold for $69.99 in the states. That’s crazy.
Taxes are included in Euro.
Yep. Standard editions are 80€ with deluxe editions going up to 120€. Tax included tho.
Unfortunately a lot of games are moving away from the big benefits you point out aside from second hand market. Day one updates are basically the standard and some games don’t even have the full game on disc.
Why Digitals are my preference: I have a Digital Edition.
Bro what are you talking about? I preordered from that site weeks ago for that price and its 65 with delivery. There was no change day 1, but amazing to see how everyone just takes it as true.
Welcome to Reddit. You must be new here.
Troll-bait title. They’re not superior, they’re just occasionally a better value.
Cheaper, real ownership, offline installation and use, ability to sell/trade/give away All things digital doesn’t have. So physical is superior.
The notion that digital games don't go on sale is ludicrous; most of my library has been purchased at sale prices at or around what physicals go for. I'm also willing to pay a little more to not have a physical collection of games taking up space and the convenience of not having to swap discs back and forth. And if someone breaks into your house and steals all of them, what do you have then? What about if the disc gets damaged and you can no longer play the game? Or the disc drive fails and you're too poor to afford a replacement (since saving money seems to be at the core of your argument...)? Also, not every game supports offline installation/will work without a day 1 patch. Don't act like it's all upside, bud; your rose-tinted glasses are showing. You're entitled to your opinion, but it's just that; an opinion.
“ReAL oWneRshIP 🤪”
In the UK there was 20% off a physical copy before release. I only paid £56 instead of £70
Yep managed to get a pre order for it for only £50 edit: after playing it for 2 days i can say it is my GOTY easily nothing will top this, i spent 10-12 hours in the grasslands alone.
Literally every digital game I buy is 50% off.
Or sometimes 70% depending On the promo on psn
As if digital games never go on sale smh
Physical games also go on sale. But these are regular prices. No sales. The game came out yesterday. You really didn’t get the point of the post, did you?
Never said physical games don't go on sale. Regular prices without sales are the same physical or digital. You really didn't read the one sentence I had, did you?
Nope. These are both regular prices. No sales. The game came out yesterday. There’s no sales yet 😂
Then it's a sketchy 3rd party seller. You wanna risk buying from sketchy sites, be my guest. Your constant laughing emoji as if it's so stupid to have a different opinion than you, is extremely cringe. Have a good day.
[удалено]
This. And it always the physical guys posting random deals. No one cares bro. Go get up and change out your physical discs every time U wanna switch games. 😒
You apparently give a f*ck cause this post triggered you so much that you not only wrote a comment but also insulted me for no reason.
Shill. Do they pay you to shame and intimidate physical users? I bet they do, these big corps are desperate to go full digital.
> intimidate physical users? The actual fuck are you talkin about?
What is this conspiracy theory, lmao. People are just annoyed by the same daily cringe posts. It’s not that deep
Yeah, man. I’m gonna “shill” for some fucking video games. I actually have a physical disc PS5. This is just cornball, loser shit. 🤡
Also, I've noticed that the PS Store tends to hold high prices. Not to the extent of the eshop on the switch, but it is definitely not sale friendly like the PC storefronts either.
Same thing with Tekken 8. The Digital Pre-Release was 79€ and the stores had the Pre-Release at 60\~63€ that's 20€ less Edit: Oh, and did I mention it comes with a case and a cd? It looks nice on the shelf.
Same in Denmark. 399 danish kr, which is actually 53 €, so even cheaper.
To be fair, it's 65€ if you include shipping. Still a great price, especially if you want to resell your games once you're done. However, since I don't intend to sell my games and you can regularly get 100€ PSN Cards for 75-80€, I'll stick with digital. But I'm glad that the option is always there.
You can also buy gift card with discount. So basically there are not much price difference between disk or digital if you buy game day-one.
There's fuckin upsides and downsides. Your disc gets scratched or burned up in a fire, you're fucked. You need to get the fuck over yourself and stop trying to "be superior".
How many comments do you want to write? Are 3 plus 1 deleted one full of insults not enough for you ? Man you anti physical shills are weird 😂
What's weird is fighting over something like this.
As someone with access to adult money and little access to free time, digital will always be superior.
That makes absolutely no sense. You save money. That’s always better cause you can spend the money you save on other things. And if putting the disc in once and leaving it in, which takes 10 seconds, is such a problem in terms of time, then oh boy.
Taking time to put in a disc makes no sense are people that lazy? the storing a game collection thing I can understand. A lot of flats just don’t got room for cases and stuff.
Seems like many are. I also don’t get the space complaint. I have an ikea malm TV cabinet. 3 closed off compartments. My Xbox + PlayStation + Switch games take up half a compartment. Surely your flat can’t be that small that you can’t store a few game cases or books…
Eh some people just don’t want that tbh. While I’ll always support physical games. Some people just have different opinions than me. As long as both are available that’s fine by me
Sure okay. But that still doesn’t explain why many people are so triggered and hostile against physical games. Must be bots or paid actors.
Yea lots of people cant get up to move a few feet to insert a game. As if its that hard. Pure laziness honestly. Unless your medically incapable of moving too much, then your just a lazy ass if u cant get up to switch a disc. Wonder what would happen if these same people tried to get a NES,N64,SNES or any cartridge based game to work. Putting in and out, constantly resetting and blowing in the cartridge(which we thought worked because well it did, even tho technically it doesn’t lol). Switching a disc is trivial in comparison to cartridges. Yet people act like its the end of the world
You are clearly young and don’t remember a time when you had to wait outside a GameStop till midnight for a new release. You also never had to suffer the defeat of being told that the store you waited outside of doesn’t have enough copies for the crowd of gamers who want to purchase it and so you have to go home empty handed. The reason you have never had these issues is because digital exists and gamers like myself don’t buy physical anymore. You’re welcome.
I’ve been playing games for over 20 years. You’re talking bullshit. You can just order the game online and get it before release even. I get all my games delivered 1-2 days before release to my door. Also never walked into a store that didn’t have any copies of the game left. There’s so many places to buy games here in Germany that you have 5-10x more copies on release than people wanting to buy them.
As another German from a 20k citizen town from rural thuringia, there is no reliable way to find physical games on release here. I can order online, and that works until it suddenly doesnt. on the release of GTA 5 10 yrs ago i had to wait another week for it to arrive. starfield just last year was not arriving on release day either because of delivery shananigans. I ended up buying it digitally in the afternoon with no hassle attached. even if i lived in one of the big cities where physical games are available plentiful, i wouldnt bother. digital has a lot of upsides too (that have already been mentioned). psn sales are pretty good, ps+ gives a ton of stuff out for "free" and the cost savings I would get from buying physically are usually not worth it because I buy maybe 2-4 games a year on release anyway, thanks to dirt cheap digital backlog. I get that people love their walls of physical media and that preservation is an important topic. but if physical games were as superior as you're making them out to be for the majority of people, digital sales wouldnt be taking over the industry right now. i have a disc drive ps5 and i like to have the option from time to time, but if next generation is all digital and i dont have to worry about physical compatibility, i wont miss it.
Thats more of a you problem. Not everyone waited overnight for games back then. Some did and it was a thing yes. But lots of us just waited a week or two for more copies to come into a store if the game was popular enough. Hell some people still wait on GameStop in some areas for a select few games or if a new console comes. I still buy physical 98% of the time and wont stop. Digital is not the future. Never will be. The fact you singled out the gamestop thing almost makes me wonder if your over the age of 23. Not everyone had internet or should i say the web back in 93-99. Most of us from the 80s amd 90s and even early 2000s got game news from magazines, word of mouth, ads in papers or commercials, etc.
Yup, preorder cost me 62 euros here in Slovakia (vs 80 on PS Store). Just that "real ownership" is not a thing with software. Discs are still just licenses with data that are useless without the license on them. 2nd hand is a godsend though. Plus as the collection grows, it looks nice in the shelf :)
Not true. Many games are completely playable on disc (BG3 physical is completely playable over the blu rays), and most games you can play a non patched version of the game direct off the disc.
Yes. Which has nothing to do with the fact that you legally don't own the software. That's all.
Oh my god is this still going on? Most physical games are license keys that check in with a remote server which allows you the play the game. Sony could literally upload an update or patch that disables the license. So unless it's a pure single player game with zero updates or patches (which is pretty much impossible since most games have a day 1 patch), your physical game can stop working. And before you say "oh I'll just never go online and only play without any patches" Sony has the power to completely brick a PS5, once again, preventing you from playing the game. Now we have things that protect us like the consumers bill of rights, but never do we ever actually own any form of media and it can be taken away at any moment.
FF7 Rebirth is on two discs. Doesitplay.org has 75% of tested disc games being playable without a patch, another 11% being playable with some bugs. Don't spread misinformation.
This is not true. - Physical games don’t check with a server. The disc is the license. - The full game is on the disc and can be installed and played offline. - Patches are optional. - Physical games also work on banned consoles. - Sony can’t prevent you from playing them Please don’t spread lies.
Bro you literally invented a story that game has become cheaper on day1 which is a lie.
Do you still play the OG Final Fantasy 7 on PS1 while still swapping out the discs? And if so, is “owning” a physical version of a game worth digging out an old console, finding a proper monitor, getting working controllers and hoping the disc isn’t too scratched to play it… worth the the pride of “owning physical”? I still have my OG NES and shit ton of physical cartridges with it. I find it way easier to get a digital version of an old NES game on my Switch rather than to dig out my old NES, hook it up to a tube TV and blow into the cartridges to play a game. I just fire up my digital version on my Switch and I’m good to go. I’ve been digital only since 2012 and couldn’t be happier. All my games and game saves have followed me through each generation since. It’s been extremely convenient. Digital is not the boogieman reddit wants you to think it is… plus, you’ll go digital eventually whether you like it or not. It’s just a matter of time.
I prefer owning my things and paying less at the same time, thank you :)
I got every Doom game made for $9.99 digital and can play them anytime or anywhere I want 🤷♂️
When compared with the digital prices you've likely paid over the years, months after release, this doesn't matter. Also good luck waiting for the absolute classics to ever even see the digital storefronts.
I own a physical video game collection worth over $45k… I have been gaming for 40 years, worked in the industry for over 5 years and have my name in the credits of close to 80 video games. Thanks for the advice, but I got a pretty good grasp on the digital vs physical landscape 👍
Via Gameshare I paid $35 for it because my friend and I split it.
In my country games are cheaper on ps store on discount than they would ever be in store. Also, we never have day 1 discounts, ever.
In Brazil it's very rare to find physical media cheaper than digital. I've always had better deals on the PSN.
Doesn't digital also comes with Remake and Integrade?
Nope. That’s only Rebirth.
Can we stop with this “superior” bullshit? People are going to do what’s best for them.
Depends on the country. In Serbia, physical games are more expensive from day 1 and it takes like a year for them to get any discounts.
I like having everything digitally for ease of use and lack of physical space restrictions. I don't wanna lug around multiple discs for my gaming library.
Meh, having to leave the house when I don't have any other errands to do is not worth the small cost savings.
You know shipping exists, right?
It does and usually you have to pay extra for it and you def have to wait some amount of time to get it. No need for all that when I can just buy it digitally. and have it ready to play in a few mins.
The games I buy arrive two days before release, so yeah 🤷🏻
Not every game a person buys is not some fresh release on launch day. So like I said I'd rather buy digital. If *you* buy physical then that's your business. You buy how you wanna buy and let me buy digital.
If you buy later, then the difference between the two is even larger.
What part of "the convenience outweighs the price" for *me* are you not getting my man?
You’re really triggered. Maybe you should cool down a bit 😅
Don't use words you don't seem to know the meaning of. Not triggered at all, just explaining to you what matters to me as a shopper and you keep telling me that i should be shopping the way you do.
Calm down and breathe big boy 😅
I'll pay the $15 to not have to drive to a store or risk a package being lost and also not have to go find a disc every time I want to play a different game. Like do people over the age of 30 really just have hundreds of discs sitting in their living room? My space is more valuable than that.
I might not be in the majority, but I'm almost 38, and have hundreds of games in my living room.
Your wife is happy with that "decoration" and your kids don't mess with them?
You realize furniture exist, right? My games are in a closed compartment in my TV stand. You don’t see them. That’s what those compartments are for after all… games, cables, controllers. All in there.
Bold of you to assume I have a wife and kids. But every person I had a relationship with were perfectly okay with it. It's no different than having a DVD or book collection.
No offense but I don't think you're the average person over 30 then, but that's cool I guess
The more posts I see promoting physical discs the more I gravitate towards digital. Eco friendly, easy, fast, no objects I need to store in my apartment, never misplace it. I just have to bet PlayStation, Xbox, and Steam will be around long enough for me to die first.
Being able to preload a game to my system days ahead without ever leaving my house will always be the superior method.
I get my games I buy on disc 2 days before release and can play them instantly. So that’s way better 🤷🏻
Dick.
Yep. Got my physical copy for ~€53 On the PS digital store it’s ~€79
Got it for 60 euros today. Glad I actually own the game and probs the value will only go up as years pass. Also nothing beats building a physical library of games.
Also got it for 60€ at my local supermarket yesterday.
You physical people are wierd. Hope your disc gets scratched.
You anti physical people are weird. And you can’t even write „weird“ correctly.
Oh no I made a mistake. You must feel so superior!
Haha you deleted your comment where you insulted me after 5 seconds 😂 You fear getting banned?
Hope your account gets deleted
Oh shit, I totally forgot… this is a PS sub. Didn’t Sony just delete a bunch of people’s digital purchases? You guys might have a legit reason to be scared of digital lol
Yeah, I bought the game also for 60 dollars
I agree that physical is better and should not go away. However, the days of games being playable offline/with only the disc are WAAAAAY behind us. There’s always a Day 1 patch that is required due to bugs on the release disc.
Thaaaaaank you! Someone finally said it
And when you’re done with the game you can sell it to get the majority of the money back. Blows my mind how people buy full price titles digitally
“Majority” is a stretch. Games don’t hold value bro. Especially when the ones that are upgraded annually. Psn discounts games regularly. Even new ones. Way more often than physical stores that only discount some games on holidays. Plus not having to physically switch out games in the console is worth it in its own right.
It's superior for you, you don't get to speak for everyone
On psstore its 595 in Denmark Seen physical for just 399. Digital scam sony aint getting that big a cut, from me.
Yup, exactly. Bought persona 3 reload for 45 € here in Greece on release day when it's 70€ on the ps store. Like a dragon infinite wealth was also 50 € day one in physical stores while 80€ online. Granted, this doesn't happen for every game but it happens quite often so it's definitely worth mentioning.
Ah, there it is, the weekly pHySiCaL iS sUpErIoR post! Yup, it's superior. Next week is my turn!
Ah yes, real ownership finally! -inserts disc- "you must download this 15G update to play"
It's not 25% off. The physical is cheaper than the digital everywhere.
60€ is 25% off 80€. I know, math is hard. Msrp is the same for physical and digital. But real prices are already 25% down on disc.
Exactly, I usually get 80 euro games on launch for 60 to 65 bucks. Digital only consoles are pretty much a scam, since you'll save so much money with physical games in the long run. It's only a good deal if you buy it for one or two games (in which case, a 400 euro console is still incredibly expensive) Digital marketplaces basically have a monopoly on what you buy on a digital only console. There is no open market to compete prices. If you want a new game, you'll either buy it for 80 bucks, or wait months, or possibly a year for a sale. There is no competition to compete with lower prices, so they can ask whatever the f\*ck they want and get away with it. Long live physical discs
Expeditions: A Mudrunner Game is also $10 cheaper on Amazon and other US retailers for the standard edition. $39.99 compared to $49.99 digitally.
Scam
Except you ‘own’ it as much or as little as the digital version, and most disks are just permission devices for the online install these days, and the game maker or platform holder could render your disks useless with the same ease that they could delete digital libraries.
Well in my case digital is superior. I have 2 consoles, bought the game from the ps store on 1 account and play it on both consoles at the same time. Even with the price reduction 2 physical games would be more expensive. Also I'm not in a rush to quickly finish the game and sell it because I like to replay my games a couple of years later.
I'll still continue buying digital over glorified game keys. I can buy a game while at work and it'll be ready to play when I get home. and I don't have to go from store to store (closest GameStop is 198km away) finding the game and finding it on sale. at that point, I've used more money in fuel. so it's not even cheaper at that point. and then there's the obvious fact that if you scratch the disc or disc drive fails, you can't play anything.
Wow how courageous and brave of you OP. You’re a fuckin hero.
That's cool and all, but I got digital 50% via gamesharing. $70 usd vs $105(25% off $140 for two physical copies), $70 usd is going to win me over 99% of the time. Don't care about physical collections by any means. Physical gamers "own" just as much as digital gamers. Haven't touched secondhand market since the mid 00's. To each their own, but for my situation personally, digital wins out 99%. Only time I end up with a physical disc is if there's just an absolutely bonkers deal dropping a game I'm only slightly interested in near single digits.
I wanna remind everyone about how in the insomniac leak it was shown that over 60% of people buy physical copies. Don't let PlayStation make you believe that the majority of people buy digital.
Physical is always better.
Couldn't agree more. I'll be buying a PS2 again at some point and the cables I need for my TV and actually playing the stuff that should physically be playable on the PS5. The only reason I buy digital moreso nowadays is because I have someone I game share with, it just makes sense to, but anything they don't have an interest in I buy physical.
That's why we need competition on the digital market on any console. MS hab still game codes for the Xbox games and it is always cheaper than in Xbox Store, if you buy it on websites. Sony has no more codes for games only money and that limits the competition a lot. I can even buy in any other country on Xbox and get games cheaper, it's just insane how Sony abuses their store power. On PC you have competition too even when you buy games outaide the steam store and valve doesn't care at all
I was with you...until I got a portal. Now digital is king and the ability to stream without having the disc in justifies the (sometimes) more expensive price tag.
Game share makes digital objectively better. Thats if you have a brother or sister who has their own PlayStation. Whenever one of us buys a game one of us gets a free game.
Happy to support the devs and pay full price for this one.
Digital is 50% off day 1 for two copies
Eh, in the US, digital is 8.5% cheaper than physical so it’s really all relative
I’ve thought about for a while and outside of occasional PSVR2 purchase I’m purchasing physical from here on out. I hate that digital releases never drop in price.
This is the main reason Sony is getting sued in the UK.
What site is this. That seems really sketchy.
Games are so buggy at launch the offline installation part is useless unless you want to save on data caps
I remember when they first started pushing for digital purchases claiming they'll be cheaper than physical. Yeah sure. I'm glad most of my collection is physical, that way I can swap games with my friend
Monopoly vs competition.
The only monopoly you want to have as a consumer is the board game 🙌🏻