Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Why am I such an old guy that hangs on to the old ways of doing things? I know that has to be what some of you have been thinking over the last week or so as I have been talking extensively about games getting delisted, the debate of physical versus digital gaming, and modern video game preservation. Here are my biggest concerns with the gaming industry's recent trends moving us toward a digital-only future.
First, I will grant you that digital-only gaming is more convenient. When traveling, that convenience is undeniable. I recently had to empty out physical game cases for a road trip to my youngest daughter's dance competition. She wasn't allowed to touch the game cases because they could easily get lost in the car. If you lose a Nintendo Switch cartridge, you are completely out of luck. That is where digital shines. She could simply switch games on her Switch Lite and play without worrying about losing a tiny plastic cartridge.
However, manufacturing physical cases costs money. It costs money to produce the physical media for publishers. It also costs a significant amount to ship, transport, and warehouse these products globally. When video game publishers sell physical copies through a third-party retailer like Walmart or Best Buy, those retailers buy them at wholesale. This means publishers earn less profit per transaction compared to a direct digital sale.
So my biggest problem with the digital-only strategy on home consoles is that there is almost never a reduction in price for the consumer when you eliminate the physical cartridge and shipping costs. Nintendo has been the only major publisher I have seen address this, and it is a very recent development that they have backed down the cost of their digital-only games.
The upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 is a perfect example of this shift. It started with Yoshi and the Mysterious Book. This is the first major first-party game that was officially announced to be less expensive digitally than physically. While I appreciate the gesture, it is only a ten dollar difference. That is simply not sufficient. For me, the biggest argument against the current digital pricing model is that there are not enough savings passed down to the consumer.
That is exactly why I prefer physical media. For a ten dollar difference, I'd pay the extra bucks to get the physical edition. With Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, the entire game is physically on the cartridge with no required download to play. Once I have the physical cartridge, I own it forever. If the digital storefront goes down, I do not lose access to my game. With a digital purchase, it is essentially an extended rental.
These are my major concerns and exactly why I am really bummed out about Sony's announcements regarding the end of physical discs. I don't anticipate Xbox or Nintendo to be far behind. Game preservation is incredibly important to me, and seeing the industry move away from true ownership is frustrating. Let me know your thoughts below!
Thank you all so much for watching the video today! Make sure to subscribe to RoXolid Productions.
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Why am I such an old guy that hangs on to the old ways of doing things? I know that has to be what some of you have been thinking over the last week or so as I have been talking extensively about games getting delisted, the debate of physical versus digital gaming, and modern video game preservation. Here are my biggest concerns with the gaming industry's recent trends moving us toward a digital-only future.
First, I will grant you that digital-only gaming is more convenient. When traveling, that convenience is undeniable. I recently had to empty out physical game cases for a road trip to my youngest daughter's dance competition. She wasn't allowed to touch the game cases because they could easily get lost in the car. If you lose a Nintendo Switch cartridge, you are completely out of luck. That is where digital shines. She could simply switch games on her Switch Lite and play without worrying about losing a tiny plastic cartridge.
However, manufacturing physical cases costs money. It costs money to produce the physical media for publishers. It also costs a significant amount to ship, transport, and warehouse these products globally. When video game publishers sell physical copies through a third-party retailer like Walmart or Best Buy, those retailers buy them at wholesale. This means publishers earn less profit per transaction compared to a direct digital sale.
So my biggest problem with the digital-only strategy on home consoles is that there is almost never a reduction in price for the consumer when you eliminate the physical cartridge and shipping costs. Nintendo has been the only major publisher I have seen address this, and it is a very recent development that they have backed down the cost of their digital-only games.
The upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 is a perfect example of this shift. It started with Yoshi and the Mysterious Book. This is the first major first-party game that was officially announced to be less expensive digitally than physically. While I appreciate the gesture, it is only a ten dollar difference. That is simply not sufficient. For me, the biggest argument against the current digital pricing model is that there are not enough savings passed down to the consumer.
That is exactly why I prefer physical media. For a ten dollar difference, I'd pay the extra bucks to get the physical edition. With Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, the entire game is physically on the cartridge with no required download to play. Once I have the physical cartridge, I own it forever. If the digital storefront goes down, I do not lose access to my game. With a digital purchase, it is essentially an extended rental.
These are my major concerns and exactly why I am really bummed out about Sony's announcements regarding the end of physical discs. I don't anticipate Xbox or Nintendo to be far behind. Game preservation is incredibly important to me, and seeing the industry move away from true ownership is frustrating. Let me know your thoughts below!
Thank you all so much for watching the video today! Make sure to subscribe to RoXolid Productions.
#PhysicalMedia #DigitalGaming #NintendoSwitch2 #YoshiAndTheMysteriousBook #VideoGamePreservation #GameCollecting #RetroGaming #GamingCommunity #PhysicalGames #Nintendo #Sony #Xbox #ConsoleGaming #GamerTalk #GameIndustry #DigitalVsPhysical #GameCollector #NintendoSwitch #PlayStation5 #XboxSeriesX #SwitchLite #GamingDebate #VideoGameNews #GamingDiscussion #RoXolidProductions #PhysicalCartridges #VideoGameCollection #SupportPhysicalMedia #PhysicalReleases #SavePhysicalMedia #NoDigitalOnly #PhysicalGamesForever #GamingHistory #NintendoFan #SonyPlayStation #XboxGaming #Switch2Games #Yoshi #GameDev #GamingCulture #VideoGameAddict #GamingLife #RetroGamer #PhysicalGamesMatter #PhysicalGaming #VideoGameIndustry #StopDelistingGames #OwnYourGames #GamePreservation #RetroGamingCommunity
