High street game shops coming to an end?

[chris]

Correct. From the developers perspective there's no difference whether you buy it used or pirate it.

I read a good article about this.  The argument for "pre-owned" is that the people trading their games in, then spend the money they've gained on buying more games (which they otherwise wouldn't be able to afford).  So, indirectly, developers do lose out if there is no 2nd hand market.

[scuzzb494]

Being a games junkie I am kinda struggling to know where I'm going to get my fix now. Whilst I have downloaded games like Rift I generally still like the boxes as with Warcraft, STO and SWTOR... plus the stuff on the PS3 like my latest FFXIII-2 I get from Game. I have been using Game since the days on the Amiga and I always kinda hoped they would survive. They are a great source of interest to me cus often I go in and we just have a chat. They also let me know whats coming up and I can pre order. I prefer the boxes and the content and never feel like I have gotten the game till I have the case and the manual. Same with music, even though I do put all my CDs on the MP3 I still have the originals.

I kinda sense the download brigade will eventually destroy much of the digital market and we will see HMV get pushed over next along with the big book stores, magazines, music retailers on the high street. Its more than a loss of facility its a loss of human interaction that I miss. I did enjoy going into Lansdown Computers here and spending an age talking about computers, software and games. If all this stuff is coming over the wire or through the courrier we really are going to lose so much.

So in losing Game we can chalk up another tick onto the anonymous Facebook society of self actualisation and human interaction via text only.... and a big cross sadly against true human contact. But then I did enjoy Amiga groups way more than forums. Must be getting old I guess. The next gen can have their Facebook and Amazon... personally I liked clubs and real shops. Something about 'eye contact' and real flesh and blood.

[smerf]

Hi,

I will miss them, basically I like having discs for my computer. Just think as the old CD's and DVD's go away and more people start downloading their games, music, and movies, the internet compainies are going to start modding the bandwidth, allowing you just so much and then charging you for the extra bandwidth that you need. Don't say it isn't going to happen , just 2 years ago I had unlimited bandwidth, then they cut it down to 500 gigabyte, then just last month it was cut in half again down to 250 gigabyte plus they raised the price by $10, and then to top it off Microsheet is coming up with updates every other day (using up more of my precious bandwidth). So you don't think you will miss those CD's and DVD's think again.

By the way the politicians are once again discussing taxing the internet by bandwidth usage after all we computer people have been having too much fun for to long.

smerf

[CritAnime]

Hi,
 
I will miss them, basically I like having discs for my computer. Just think as the old CD's and DVD's go away and more people start downloading their games, music, and movies, the internet compainies are going to start modding the bandwidth, allowing you just so much and then charging you for the extra bandwidth that you need. Don't say it isn't going to happen , just 2 years ago I had unlimited bandwidth, then they cut it down to 500 gigabyte, then just last month it was cut in half again down to 250 gigabyte plus they raised the price by $10, and then to top it off Microsheet is coming up with updates every other day (using up more of my precious bandwidth). So you don't think you will miss those CD's and DVD's think again.
 
By the way the politicians are once again discussing taxing the internet by bandwidth usage after all we computer people have been having too much fun for to long.
 
smerf

I agree.
 
there is nothing like walking into a shop and buying a physical product, getting it home and playing it.
 
I recently got a ps3 and a copy of Infamous 2. In it came a code allowing me to get the first Infamous and a reduced cost through download. Great I thought until I noticed the game is 7.8gb in size. Thats 7.8gb of bandwidth allowance that my ISP is gonna take off my "unlimited" (which I have just found is actually 250gb under their fair usage policy. After which they will impose restrictions on my line up to and including cutting my my line completely) allowance. Now if I had got that game from Game in the first place i would have probably paid the same for a new copy and not needed to bother with downloads.
 
There is one thought I have always had at the back of my head regarding all this download buisness. What happens if the service suddenly goes out of buisness. What happens to all my content that I purchased. Especially if your someone that uses a cloud based service such as On Live. Sure I could backup content from Steam, for example. But there are a lot of other services that use this cloud based model where nothing is physically stored on your system. So you can't actually back anything up. What happens then? And what happens if my backup suddenly becomes corrupt?
 
I know people will argue that ownin a physcial copy puts you just as much at risk. For example the boxes of Amiga floppies that are already coroding or losing data due to use. But when it comes to modern media, so long as you look after them right, should last for ever almost.
 
Also there is the second hand market that these shops provide. Something that the game industry seems to working very hard on destroying.
 
plus it just looks cool to have boxes sat on a shelf. Like with my collection of 2600, 7800, C64, NES, SNES, Mega Drive, Amiga, Playstation, Playstation 2 and XBOX 360 games. looking at them is like a little pat on the back to myself. because I have worked hard and bought them from a shop with money I have earned. Something that downloads doesn't seem to give.

[swoslover]

Actually EB took over Game, not the other way around.  They rebranded themselves as Game in the process.

QUOTE]

Apologies.

In my teenage mind they replaced them.

It was EB then suddenly every EB was Game.

I have never liked Game for some reason.

The shops are too uniform.  At least with EB and Gamestation there was a feeling you might uncover a hidden gem somewhere in the store.

Plus the staff are annoying.  I know they are trying to provide good customer service and they are nice and friendly but I hate shops where the staff approach me asking if I need their help.

[CritAnime]

it would seem that there are a few interested parties in purchasing Game. So maybe it's not all a complete loss.

[Lurch]

Wow I thought everyone just purchased 200 floppies and go to Computer Swap meets for their game fulfillment like alot of others in the day..  those are my memories  Up until 4am on school nights playing the new games..

This is what I remember, think I went into a shop once and bought some games from the junk bin. But was more fun and more social to buy boxes of blank disks and hang out with a group of friends.

Use to have a usual run that we did during the week going around peoples houses. I miss having that, met so many people. Even a dude that had dial up internet and a room full of disks :-)

The BBS scene filled the gap for awhile after that and PC LAN gatherings but still wasn't the same as the C64/Amiga days :-)

[Lurch]

Hi,

I will miss them, basically I like having discs for my computer. Just think as the old CD's and DVD's go away and more people start downloading their games, music, and movies, the internet compainies are going to start modding the bandwidth, allowing you just so much and then charging you for the extra bandwidth that you need. Don't say it isn't going to happen , just 2 years ago I had unlimited bandwidth, then they cut it down to 500 gigabyte, then just last month it was cut in half again down to 250 gigabyte plus they .....smerf

Just read this and had to reply a little OT but I'd kill for a 250GB cap. Try living in NZ for awhile. LOL :-)

[Duce]

No reason anyone should ever wring out a 250 GB cap.  I use Netflix a fair bit, do a ton of online gaming and torrenting, and never even approach my ISP's cap.

I do have fond memories of every Saturday or two, going up to the shopping mall on the North end of my town and picking up a new Amiga game way back when.

I haven't bought a retail packaged game in likely 10 years now though, however.

[jj]

Just read this and had to reply a little OT but I'd kill for a 250GB cap. Try living in NZ for awhile. LOL :-)

Sky in UK give truly unlimited downlaods and no traffic shapping at all.
 
Dont slow down or block torrents on any ports

[persia]

Caps are things you have to live with because of the explosion in internet capable devices.  My TV, XBox, Apple TV, sundry iOS and Android tablets and phones and collection of Macs and Amigas all share one ADSL line.  Even though there's only three of us in the house there can be six or eight devices using the ADSL.  We've hit our cap once or twice and the whole thing just slows down to dialup for the rest of the month.  VERY annoying, but it's better than in the past where a bill that looks more like a mortgage statement appears in the post....

We have a 250/250 HGB cap, 250,GB peak, 250 GB off peak....

Just read this and had to reply a little OT but I'd kill for a 250GB cap. Try living in NZ for awhile. LOL :-)

[Lurch]

We have a 250/250 HGB cap, 250,GB peak, 250 GB off peak....

60GB cap here no off peak/on peak, $55 NZD a month for naked ADSL2 and $11.50 NZD for a VOIP phone. Can double to 120GB for an extra $30 NZD :-) Then that's it dial up internet for me :-)


Download linux iso's, stream tv, os/software updates (5 odd pcs and server)... still somehow on 60GB have managed to still have 15GB left each month.

[runequester]

In the US at least, you rarely have more than 1 or at most 2 options in a given region for high speed internet. Say hello to your friendly neighbourhood monopoly pricing and restrictions

[paul1981]

I agree.
 
there is nothing like walking into a shop and buying a physical product, getting it home and playing it.
 
I recently got a ps3 and a copy of Infamous 2. In it came a code allowing me to get the first Infamous and a reduced cost through download. Great I thought until I noticed the game is 7.8gb in size. Thats 7.8gb of bandwidth allowance that my ISP is gonna take off my "unlimited" (which I have just found is actually 250gb under their fair usage policy. After which they will impose restrictions on my line up to and including cutting my my line completely) allowance. Now if I had got that game from Game in the first place i would have probably paid the same for a new copy and not needed to bother with downloads.

Dear Customer,
 This email is to advise you that last month you  exceeded the usage allowance for your BT Total Broadband Option 1 service.
 Your current monthly usage allowance is 10GB.
 Your total usage for last month was 12GB.
 Additional usage is charged in units of 5GB, at £5  per 5GB. Based on your usage last month a charge of £5 will be applied to your  next bill.
 Great news! To help you keep track of your usage we  provide a usage monitor which shows on a daily basis, how much of your allowance  you have used and how much is remaining. To access the usage monitor you will  need the log-in details for your online account. If you haven't set one up then  you can register at www.bt.com/mybt  or if you already have an online account click  here to access the usage monitor.
 To avoid usage charges, you can always upgrade to  one of our broadband products with a higher usage allowance or go for unlimited  usage. To find out about your options and to upgrade, please go to click here or call 0800 707 6044, available 8am-9pm on  weekdays and 9am-6pm during the weekend.
 For more information on usage allowances and  charges, please see our Broadband  Usage Policy.
 Best wishes,
 BT Broadband team
 Please note that this is an  automatically generated email for your information only. Unfortunately we cannot  respond to 'replies' to this address.

:python:

Hmmm...I must be on a crappy deal then!
That was my sister who pushed it over 10GB when she came over before Christmas on youtube and what not.  First time ever it went over, I think my usual usage it about 6GB at most.  Yet I don't get credit for under using...

[CritAnime]

I suppose a 250gb cap doesnt sound too bad. Yet I got an email telling me my isp was restricting my line after heavy usage. This was from watching a few episodes of inspector gadget on netflix. Though Virgin ADSL seem to make the rules up as they go along.

regardless I stand by my post saying I will always prefer a physical copy of something over a download.