download or disc?

[matty-hodgson]

i've recently noticed that a lot of places seem to be trying to use downloading as a method of purchasing a game, this is all good and well.. but.. do you not feel slightly cheated when you don't actually get the game to open in your hands?

Steam seems to be very popular on here as well, and no doubt there's a few people on here that regularly just download them?

i know that i would much much much rather buy a game than download one but i was wondering if anyone has actually adopted this new download feature and get their views on it.

[jim]

Recently there have been some fantastic deals on Steam games, Defense Grid: The Awakening, The Orange Box, Braid, probably more on top of that. Unless it's dramatically cheaper on Steam though, I won't bother.

Would always rather have the physical game, more for the sake of resale value than anything else though. If I make enough of a saving on Steam though, that wipes out any potential money I might get back later on.

[Prime]

im a sucka to self programmed OCD when it comes to Games, DVD's and CD's - if i like them and want then then i HAVE TO own them on an original physical copy - if i receive a downloaded game/movie from the PSN shop for example . . .i'll have to go and buy it if i enjoy it or delete it :S

[Phage]

I voted for the cheapest method as well. If they were the same price then I'd get physical media. But given the amount of patches and updates that follow any re-installation from disc, there's not much in it.

[jim]

The thing I've never understood is that in my eyes, downloaded games should be cheaper because of all the money that's being saved - there's no shipping, no middlemen (or at least fewer), no packaging, no disc, so on so forth. Yet Steam is regularly £10-15 more expensive than the physical version... I find that ridiculous.

[Salazaar]

The majority of my PC purchases over the last 12 months have been download, largely thanks to the special offers on Steam, D2D and EA Store.

You certainly don't seem to get very competitive pricing as standard from any of these stores though, but the convenience of downloading, not having to take a trip to the shops, not having to mess around with discs, makes it very attractive to me.

[Saracen]

Physical copy for me. I'm not a Steam fan, don't use it and don't see that changing.

[menthel]

I prefer to download. I don't have enough room in my house for CDs, DVDs, Blurays and then PC games as well. Its strange because for music I just hate downloads!

[jim]

I prefer to download. I don't have enough room in my house for CDs, DVDs, Blurays and then PC games as well. Its strange because for music I just hate downloads!

I hate music downloads as well, which is fairly weird because the first thing I do when I get a CD is rip it, and then it goes into the rack, never to be opened again. I should be the perfect consumer for digital music.

[Domestic_Ginger]

Download sizes put me off tbh. I suppose I am more interested in the price and Steam gets on my nerves.

[GheeTsar]

Generally I prefer to have physical media as I like having a hard copy instruction manual and fast install speeds (downloading most modern games takes several hours for me), but I prefer the auto-patch feature of Steam and the ability to pick up titles really cheaply every now and again.

[Stephen C]

Prefer a physical, I have a thing for game artwork..
Though if it's much much cheaper to download then I'm not too fussed but that depends on the game, game box, artwork etc.

[Barry]

I like downloading, though the file sizes are silly (anyone remember when games where 500 MB?)

Not a lot of fun waiting on a 5 GB game to download but I do find it very handy being able to backup the games from steam and being able to download them to any PC is a huge bonus

[Terbinator]

Physical copy for me. I'm not a Steam fan, don't use it and don't see that changing.

Maybe not by choice...

[Mblaster]

Generally I prefer to buy a physical copy, but I do have a couple of games that I've bought online through Steam, got them online purely because it's quicker than waiting for the postman to arrive.

[kalniel]

EA store basically quashed my main download problems, so I'll definitely use that if I have a choice. Steam is pretty good too.

But I like my maps and manuals too.