Sony is looking into further media expansion with the PS3, implies Hirai, stating they are "reviewing options for other content to be delivered through PLAYSTATION®Network, including music, movies, and TV, all of which can be found in the Sony family of companies." This is probably what brought up the conversation about the future of discs, particularly Blu-ray. Is the disc a dying format? Hirai shakes his head. "Far from it. For many years to come there will be a place at the table for disc-based content in the world of entertainment. It is about offering consumers options. Some may like the convenience of downloading a game at home, while others will always want the experience of going to the store and talking to the clerks and other consumers about the games they are interested in." Well, we personally just like having something tangible -- we gave up money, so having something to show for it is a plus. How many of you guys and gals like having a physical representation of your spent money? Or would you rather just download it all?
_thumbnail.jpg "Savage Moon")
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
10-05-2007 @ 5:00PM
Pistolaero said...
As much as I love gaming, I also love collecting. Cracking open a new game will never get old, and taking everything toward the download only medium would kill that for me. No thanks, I like my games shelved nicely next to one another.
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10-05-2007 @ 5:02PM
pete said...
lets get physical, physical, i wanna get physical...
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10-05-2007 @ 5:06PM
Parker said...
If Warhawk showed us anything is that that people prefer discs over downloads.
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10-05-2007 @ 5:06PM
BurnZ said...
It depends on what it is, sometimes I like to have something to show (EG: DVD/game collection) and others a download is fine.
PSN: Mr_BurnZ
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10-05-2007 @ 5:07PM
DownwardMonkey said...
Most of the people who claim that physical media is dead are utterly out of touch with the real world and the massive number of non-nerds that use computers everyday. My mum for instance isn't as young as she used to be and would never ever want to move away from actually having something she can hold.
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10-05-2007 @ 5:08PM
QWERTER said...
@1 i no exactly what you mean so yah physical discs all the way
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10-05-2007 @ 5:09PM
NNatic said...
I think that downloading stuff is convenient at times, but downloading more than a gig is just too painfull at this point in time. I dont know if it is the Sony network or our residential speeds, but it is kind of a pain in the butt to await the finished download. With that being said, i am in favor of discs for some things... music or videos and small games is cool, but that is about it.
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10-05-2007 @ 5:09PM
Justin said...
I prefer both.
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10-05-2007 @ 5:20PM
Anghel said...
For me it depends. If I can get either for the same price then I will go for the one I can get the fastest. I am not waiting 2 hours to download something that I can get in a 5 minute drive to the store for the same price.
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10-05-2007 @ 5:28PM
bored-at-work said...
Physical content for me!! I like to have the option of selling the game if it sucks or just taking it to a friends house if the occasion arises. I also feel you get more for your money by having the disk with the case, the cover art and the manual. Nothing like the feeling of having a brand new game in your hands. I also like the smell of NEW" LOL!!
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10-05-2007 @ 5:32PM
derrickgott007 said...
Everyone needs to remember that not everyone has blazing fast internet that makes streaming better than a disk. I know my ISP sucks, and if they went to download only I would have to stop gaming.
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10-05-2007 @ 5:34PM
Nonhippyhippy said...
there is a limit to how big a download can be.. i mean, who is gonna sit on thier ass downloading a massive game like heavenly sword or killzone 2? thats the whole point of blu ray, to have bigger and bigger games.... focusing on downloadable content is why the phantom died..... that and a lack of publishers....
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10-05-2007 @ 5:34PM
Ste said...
When it comes to games and movies, I prefer something physical. A download just doesn't have the same "feel". For TV shows and music, I do prefer downloading though.
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10-05-2007 @ 5:46PM
Justin said...
@ 12, there's THAT, and then there'd be the need for a HUUUUUUUGE hard drive
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10-05-2007 @ 5:51PM
Kyle said...
Everyone is forgetting about storage. Let's say that the average HD disc has 20 gigs of information on it (though many have more). Even though you COULD download all of that with the higher bandwidths available, would you really want to use up all that space on your hard drive? Would you even have a hard drive big enough?
Ten movies would take up 200 gigs. I already have 10 blu-ray movies, enough for 2 and a half PS3 80gb HDDs. I have a collection of nearly 200 DVDs. If my blu-ray collection ever gets that big I will need 4,000gb of storage... and let's hypothetically assume I have a 4,000gb HDD; now that I've filled it up with my movie collection, where, oh where, am I going to install my games?!?
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10-05-2007 @ 5:57PM
Bryant said...
Everyone who says and truly believes that physical format is dying are loco. Just like that nerd Bill.
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10-05-2007 @ 6:02PM
Don said...
I downloaded Warhawk when it first came out on the PS Store. I was originally going to wait for the disc but couldn't take it anymore. If a game is offered on either disc or download, I will wait to get it on the disc from now on. Not that I'm having a problem with the downloaded version other than I can't allow my friends to borrow it and that I'm forced to play it under the account that I set it up under (I have 3 accounts set up for our PS3, 1 for me, 1 for my wife, and 1 for my son). Plus, I just like having something in physical form to show for my money. This is why I think the disc format is here to stay and that all this downloadable media stuff won't become mainstream for quite awhile.
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10-05-2007 @ 6:26PM
Microdot said...
i would much rather have the download... but, it wont work for all. i have a fiber connection at home, so i have asynchronous 25mb connection.... downloading a 12gb file is nothing for me. but for someone with a basic cable connection, it would take FOREVER.
the broadband market has not kept up here in the united states. it should have been at the state it is now, almost 6 years ago. we are slowly falling behind, with fiber rollouts taking years to accomplish... technology not progressing to the public due to gov red tape, etc. until the majority of homes can see speeds of 10mb plus, its just not feasible to offer 10-20gb worth of content for download. smaller files work fine... but entire games (ie: imagine downloading resistance) just wont work yet.
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10-05-2007 @ 6:36PM
derrickgott007 said...
MicroDot is 100% correct. I work in the High Speed Internet and Cable Tv Field and I totally agree the nation as a whole is 5-10 years behind in internet speeds. Fiber does indeed take a long time to roll out, and smaller towns are left to linger. I live in a town where the fastest internet you can get from the cable provider is 1mg!!! And DSL has a top speed of 3mg!
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10-05-2007 @ 6:42PM
drdre74 said...
I for 1 am not about to download a 50GB game lol! That would take about a week to download on the PSN. I'd rather have my disc than carry around my PS3 if I go to someone else's house and play. Small games like the new locoroco is fine to download.
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