With a push toward digital-only games, is physical media going extinct?

In the modern age of gaming, it is not hard to notice that big gaming companies such as Sony and Microsoft are focusing on digital-only games more than physical ones. While physical copies still have demand among gamers, especially hobbyists and collectors, their future in gaming looks quite uncertain.

Although digital-only games are much more cost-effective and easier to update and patch from the backend, they also have shortcomings. In this article, we will look into all the positives and negatives of both options and theorize if physical media in gaming is actually on its way to extinction.

Disclaimer: This article is subjective and is solely based on the writer's opinions.

---

Physical vs digital-only games: will one erase the other in the future of gaming?

Gaming back then vs now

PlayStation 5 online has a large variety of digital-only games. (Image via PlayStation)

Back during the golden age of arcades, gamers had to go out of their houses to play video games. The pattern started witnessing change with the advancement in the gaming world.

First came the disc and cartridges that turned the hobby into an indoor activity. After that, when digital options hit the market, gaming saw another wave of change as it became portable. Right now, anyone anywhere can play games to their heart's content.

---

Concerns about digital copies

Innovations in digital technology have had a vital role in this transition. Publishing games on digital platforms has made the media the most accessible it has ever been.

However, this massive transition to the digital-only games format has also raised many concerns, the most severe among them being the topic of ownership rights and game preservation.

Another glaring con is that digital copies cannot be shared or resold in most cases, making them far less flexible than physical copies. Its dependency on internet connectivity has also been a distasteful quality for many.

---

Concerns about physical media

However, physical copies aren’t devoid of downsides either. It is comparatively more expensive to produce physical game discs than to publish a game on online platforms. Also, dependency on mined goods such as copper, nickel, gold, and zinc in manufacturing game copies contributes to a larger carbon footprint.

---

What's the verdict?

According to a survey conducted by Gitnux, nearly 80% of games are bought digitally for PS5 and PS4. In 2020, around 74% of sales in the video games industry were made digitally. Even industry leaders prioritize digital options and go as far as launching digital-only consoles such as PlayStation 5 Digital and Xbox Series S at cheaper rates compared to their physical disc counterparts.

In the end, it is not possible to determine if we will see physical media go completely extinct in the future. However, given the current trend, their usage can be seen diminishing considerably, to the extent that gamers might opt for convenience over other factors.