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The Internet Entertainment Games

Buying Boxed Games - Important To The Gaming Experience? 150

Posted by simoniker from the click-and-buy dept.
Thanks to GameSpot for its 'GuestSpotting' editorial, in which a reader discusses why going to the store and buying a videogame is a vital part of his gaming experience. He argues: "When I hear talk of the future and how broadband-enabled gaming platforms will allow us to download entire games without leaving the comfortable wombs of our homes, I shudder", and sings the praises of "...a place where you can look over your collection [of game boxes] with pride, reminding you of the enemies you have defeated, the points you have scored, the races you have won, and, of course, the money that has been spent." Although the author of the editorial admits he's somewhat of "a fetishist when it comes to the corporeal aspect of the video games", are you happy with buying games that have no related physical artifacts?
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Buying Boxed Games - Important To The Gaming Experience? More

Buying Boxed Games - Important To The Gaming Experience?

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  • I like nothing better than the instant gratification of buying games online.

    • Re:Buying Games Online (Score:5, Insightful)

      by b0r0din ( 304712 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:16PM (#8043623)
      I do too for some games, but I also dislike the idea of having everything in one location. I'm against this in a console settings. As I see it, there are two ways game companies can do this:

      1) You download the game onto a hard drive device. Hard drives are a lot different than individual media. If you pay 500 to download 10 games, and your hard drive dies, you lose all of the games. You have to then wait until a replacement drive comes, and even then, whose to say there won't be problems with getting those games back? Currently, with CDs/DVDs, if a CD or DVD gets scratched up, you may have to replace it, but you certainly won't have to replace every disc.

      2) The company stores this. In other words, I'm paying for a product that I have access to only over the network. What if the network goes down? What if I have a bad link for whatever reason? What if some asshole launches a DOS attack on my site? I just don't want the media company to have that kind of control. I don't want to pay for 'virtual ownership' and frankly, the bandwidth won't exist for many years.

      I would much rather prefer something more along the lines of solid state memory chips or drives before I would consider this sort of technology transferrable. For PCs, this is fine; PC games have worked by this model for a while. But I won't pay 30 bucks for a PC game online if I can get a real physical disc for the game for 10 bucks more, and if it comes with a guide, even better.
      • Or they can just offer downloadable versions of the CD online like stardock did when I bought GalCiv online. As for needing an internet connection most systems are designed to allow offline play too you know.
      • Not sure what you mean. I certainly wouldn't but software online if I can't burn it to cd.

        That's a completely seperate issue from having to go to the store to get a box.
    • I'll have to agree with the article on this one. Yes, buying games online does save alot of time, effort and paper, but it's nice to have something tangible.

      Plus, buying a physical thing also allows you to have an actual manual, which is a must. You can have your .pdf and word files for figuring out the game. Give me a nice beefy book anyday. Yes, I know, most books that come with games are usually found inside the jewel case and contain a half-page of useful data, but I can dream, can't I?

  • Physical artifacts ... (Score:4, Interesting)

    by dzym ( 544085 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @11:56AM (#8043434) Homepage Journal
    I'd much more rather have a cardboard box and a CD sitting there nice and pretty than not. Even if I'm making a backup of a game CD for regular usage, I'd still rather have the original sitting in a jewel case on a CD shelf.

    So even when (if) HL2 comes out and it launches on store shelves and over Steam, I'd still buy the store version. No questions about it.

    And no, the paper sleeves some games are coming in, just aren't cutting it for me. Jewel cases forever!


    • And no, the paper sleeves some games are coming in, just aren't cutting it for me. Jewel cases forever!

      I actually like the DVD style cases better.

      I hate plastic/paper sleeves.

      • Re:CD Jewel Case (Score:3, Insightful)

        by dzym ( 544085 )
        At least with just plain paper sleeves I can stick the game CD into a CD wallet and store it that way.

        What in God's name am I supposed to do with a paper sleeve with the CD key printed on it? That's a situation that's completely ass and awkward to deal with.

        • Take one CD-R marker/pen, write CD key on the CD, throw away sleeve. Job done! :p
          • That is wrong on just so many levels. So not only are you suggesting ruining the original game CD by writing on it, but you're also throwing away the original sleeve with the serial number that may be required to prove ownership? I don't think so.
            • Ruining the game CD? Maybe in an asthetic sense, but not physically. Who cares if you have the serial number on your CD? I have it written on my old half-life cd and I will swear to you it's never caused an install error.

              Being able to prove ownership is an interesting point, but I've yet to ever need to prove I own a game. Besides, what better proof of ownership is there than a manufactured CD? Hell, anyone can print a nice professional copy of a CD insert now-a-days. I doubt the same person could st

        • Re:CD Jewel Case (Score:4, Informative)

          by The Evil Couch ( 621105 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @03:38PM (#8046502) Homepage
          I have a giant 400-disc CD wallet and roughly 300 game discs. (I've been playing games too often for too long).

          First person shooter discs go towards the front and adventure/RPG/RTS/etc go towards the rear.

          Dividing the two sections are two pages that I have all of the pieces of paper, fragments of jewel cases, and cardboard with the CD keys on them.

          Dismantling a jewel case to get at the piece of paper, or artfully breaking a piece of the case off because they glued the CD key to it and stuffing it into a pocket on my CD wallet is a simple chore that I do while I'm installing the game.

          The end result is I have at least 5 shelves worth of games in the space of a 3-ring binder, relatively well organized, with my CD-keys easily accessable in case I need to reinstall.

          That's my solution, anyways.

    • I'd much more rather have a cardboard box and a CD sitting there nice and pretty than not. Even if I'm making a backup of a game CD for regular usage, I'd still rather have the original sitting in a jewel case on a CD shelf.

      But would you rather have 500 cardboard boxes and CDs than not?

      Would your answer changed if you moved every year or so?

    • Re:Physical artifacts ... (Score:4, Funny)

      by Tofino ( 628530 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @01:47PM (#8044693)
      So even when (if) HL2 comes out and it launches on store shelves and over Steam, I'd still buy the store version. No questions about it.

      Also a practical consideration there: by the time you've successfully downloaded HL2 via Steam, HL3's source will have been stolen already.

  • Manuals, Yes. CD's, Yes.

    But the boxes? Those I ditch within a week.

    I prefer the physical product, particuarly if it has a useful manual...
    • To be fair, he didn't really mention PC games, and specifically mentioned DVD cases as the current standard for the 3 major home consoles being a great benefit.

      The worst, imo, were the old PC game boxes, although they left plenty of room for extras (though very few games actually had anything in those boxes).

  • clutter (Score:3, Funny)

    by m0rphin3 ( 461197 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:01PM (#8043473)
    I usually toss the boxes. I've got no space to spare for huge, over-wrapped game boxes which I will never open again. Unlike books or films, games need to be installed and/or require some time to 'get into' if you haven't played them for a while, so it's not something you take down from the shelf and play for two hours and then put back up.

    And this guy seems slightly out of tune. If you start telling your friends that 'this box commemorates the Great War on Kilrah' and 'I lost some good men in that campaign', they should have you committed.

  • Media without keys is important. (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Godeke ( 32895 ) * on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:01PM (#8043478)
    Is going to a store vital for me: no. However, I am exceptionally leery about buying any product over the internet that does not come with packaging, but does include some form of protection. This is because I have been burned thanks to RealArcade... I participated in the launch of RealArcade, and brought down about eight games from them. None of them are great, but a few were mildly amusing, and were perfect for my slightly aging machine that I was using at the time.

    Fast forward about six months: I get a new computer to replace the aging machine. I transfer the hard drive as a slave to my new computer, and a few weekends in, decided to pull up one of my old games. The game failed to load. I pull down a new copy (onto the new hard drive) and of course it is still in demo mode. So I call Real and ask them to help me get the games running on my new computer... figuring that since I have my old drive in the new machine, I can either relink the keys, or get new ones for the demos I downloaded.

    Fast forward a few days of dealing with clueless technical support, with the end result being that I have been told that I can't have new keys in various manners. Some simply said it was impossible to transfer the games to a new computers. Others accused me of being a pirate in no uncertain terms, despite my removal of the old hard drive from the old hardware. My entire real account was cancelled on my behalf (not just the arcade portion, but the premium content for Read Audio as well) and yet they billed me for 3 months subsequent to the cancellation.

    In the long run, it just wasn't worth the battle to try to get my purchased content back. I did have my credit card company back out the entire Real subscription (which I had only had for three months prior to RealArcade) as well as the subsequent charges after the cancellation that were incorrectly applied.

    So, do I find the store experience important? No in the least. However, physical media is critical to me, simply because it lessons the possibility of not being able to use my purchase due to tech support stupidity.

    That said, I have had problems even with my physical purchases. I purchased a copy of The Operation Art of War, Elite Edition. Turns out that it is impossible to run this on any NT based OS, period. So I tried it on my old windows 98 box, but it turns out the old copy protection was incompatible with my drive. Techsupport refused to give any helpful suggestions, and refused to return the product. Of course, the store refuses to return opened product.

    I still have the game (and a few others in similar state) that are not games that require any technology to run (how hard are hexes and die rolls?), but have crippling technology attached which prevent me from revisiting them, or in some cases, ever playing them at all. Now, some companies are choosing to do this deliberately: I have refused to update my Macromedia products, because the new versions protection. Any product with software keys that have to come from a vendor is going to be useless when that vendor goes away, and none of the vendors I have talked to have a plan for dealing with buyouts or failure.
    • I think your problem was you were dealing with Real in the first place.

    • Unfortunately, I don't know much about RealArcade excapt what I can infer from your post (and yah, I'm too lazy to research it before opening my big fat mouth)...but just the same, I'm so with you on keyless media. I'm pretty insulted that it is just assumed that I'm a criminal when I'm really just a paying customer. Furthermore, whether a company develops or licenses a anti-piracy technology -- the consumer ends up footing the bill (I don't care what people say about economics working that way -- I still

      • They make you take keys and a certificate of title when you purchase a car, too. This doesn't imply that you're a criminal, rather it proves that you're the owner and protects you against thefts.

        You might not think this makes much sense when dealing with software and installation media, but when dealing with user accounts for a multiplayer online game, it starts to make sense. So it depends on the sort of game you buy and the business model the company is using when they sell it to you -- are they selli

        • They make you take keys and a certificate of title when you purchase a car, too. This doesn't imply that you're a criminal, rather it proves that you're the owner and protects you against thefts.

          An interesting point about the car, however, in the case of software, this does not applpy. Registration keys are decidely not for my protection. They are an inconvenience posed on the user in order to prevent theft of the developer/publisher's IP. It works the same way for newer Microsoft products (like Windo

          • Thanks for the cogent counter-point. I find a lot of the time when technophiles rant against user-hostile "features" like registration and software keys, someone usually responds with a plausible real-world example of how some common and non-malicious practice exists (such as my car keys and title analogy) which no one seems particularly threatened by or upset about, and which makes the technophile argument sound ridiculous. Good job on refuting my counterpoint.
    • Get yourself a copy of Daemon Tools [daemon-tools.cc], which will allow you to get past the protection issues for your games. Just turn on emulation modes and your originals should be able to run.

  • Tell the RIAA (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Andy_R ( 114137 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:01PM (#8043479) Homepage Journal
    If the physical article is more desirable than the download, then people will buy the article after getting the download. This applies just as well to music as to games.

    This fetish for the physical article is exactly what the RIAA should be trying to encourage with CDs if they want a business model that will actually work in the 21st century.

    • Re:Tell the RIAA (Score:2, Interesting)

      by Tune ( 17738 )
      True. The downside: so much for the environmentally clean "new economy" -- even the purely digital contents are preferably shipped physically by many. Admit it or not, but it's the stubborn consumer that will ultimately block "superior" methods of (digital) distribution. Which brings us to the upside: the RIAA is probably conservative enought to eventually understand this part of the consumer's psyche and decide that "illegal" file sharing wasn't a threat to their business after all!

      --
      Recursive, Adjective:
    • No, it does not apply to music as well as it does to games. You can't put 8 compressed games onto 1 CD. You don't rip individual levels out of games to make a mixgame.

      This argument is a very flogged horse, but the fact remains. The dollar to entertainment value of video games is superior to music CDs. If the average game is 10 hours (and that's being very generous), that's $5 per hour. A regular CD is $12-15 for an hour, even shorter some of the time. I'd say the magic price point is around $7-8 for CDs. I

  • I agree. (Score:2, Insightful)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Whenever I blow $50 on anything, including a game, I want something physical to "touch." Besides the fact that I also want a way to ensure that if my console's hard drive blows I have a way of getting the data back on the drive without a hassle and waiting for a long download. And I would not believe for a second that the reduction in costs for shipping the game, creating box artwork, printing manuals and all that would be passed on down to me. So in essence, yeah. I like the box. I still miss the big o
  • Article Synopsis: "I like game boxes"

    Reality for PC Games- publishers have the potential to make more money, and are able to release a more diverse range of games that would otherwise be unprofitable...like EV: Nova. Bigger titles like GalCiv will probably end up selling both ways, but some games will never get published except by direct sales.

    Console games will be distributed in good old boxes for quite some time to come...they are mass market items and profitable in main stream distribution. They'll
    • Reality for PC Games- publishers have the potential to make more money, and are able to release a more diverse range of games that would otherwise be unprofitable...like EV: Nova. Bigger titles like GalCiv will probably end up selling both ways, but some games will never get published except by direct sales.

      I don't think anyone's really complaining about that facet of the matter. I, personally, really enjoy downloadable games now and then, especially for smaller games that I normally wouldn't buy outside

  • Bandwidth (Score:3, Interesting)

    by nukem1999 ( 142700 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:02PM (#8043489)
    Steam gets bogged down horribly every time there's a new 50MB patch out, so bad one can't even join a server after getting the patch. I'd hate to be on that network downloading when the same number of people goes to download 1-3 gigs worth of new game if it were the only form of distribution.
  • reasonably sized boxes (IE console game sized), ar elike trophies on my shelf. Without the boxes and physical manual, buying a game would just feel empty. Besides, you can never re-sell games that are downloaded, whereas the NES and SNES games I own in their package can be sold years from now for a decent price.
  • Box of course.
    All the better to resell on eBay.

  • Not for MMORPG's (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Dr. Bent ( 533421 ) <<ben> <at> <int.com>> on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:13PM (#8043581) Homepage
    While this may be true for your run of the mill games, Massively Multiplayer games that require a subscription fee are a different animal. I have a hard time justifying to myself why I should pay $50 for a game that I have to pay $12.99 a month to use.

    Thankfully, a number of companies have realized this. For example, you can download the demo for "Earth and Beyond" from EA, and play the full game for free for 14 days. Then, if you like it, you can buy a new CD key for $14.99 that will upgrade your demo to the full version (and cover your first month's subscription). No, you don't get a box, or a manual, or a physical CD, but you also don't get to pay $50 for a game that you don't really own in the first place.
    • You're absolutely right, and you've also have nailed a very important point about MMOGs.

      The physical media for traditional games is important because, no matter what, you will be able to play that game.

      In MMOGs the real "game", so to speak, is being provided to you by the company on a way similar to arcades. People don't like to go and buy a CD and then pay for the online content since the online content is the only game. You're tied to the company, and they decide the fate of the game, so there is

  • The games I really love I want in a box. I have been buying an playing games for twenty years. Had I kept all the boxes, they would have filled two bookcases. Now I have two shelves with boxes, all of games I really enjoyed. Wouldn't want to miss them. I store the manuals of the other games in those boxes too.

    Imagine: The original Ultima IV -- in its box! The original System Shock -- in its box! Original Infocom Adventures -- in their boxes! With feelies!

    Yes, all on my shelf.

  • as long as it has the swizzle stick (Score:4, Interesting)

    by fireduck ( 197000 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:23PM (#8043684)
    the whole point of the box is to get the don't panic button or the piece of pocket lint. Infocom was truly the king of game boxes. There wasn't a lot of wasted space in their packaging, simply because they filled it up with fun, enjoyable, extra stuff that just ruled. (I still have the glowing stone from wishbringer somewhere in a drawer).

    These days, most boxes are fairly useless. Big bulky empty cartons that often don't even have much in the way of a manual. Blizzard is still nice and usually includes a pad of paper or other such in their boxes to show appreciation, but other than that I don't really want a box. Physical media, absolutely, but the boxes in most cases are disposable...
    • These days, most boxes are fairly useless. Big bulky empty cartons that often don't even have much in the way of a manual. Blizzard is still nice and usually includes a pad of paper or other such in their boxes to show appreciation, but other than that I don't really want a box. Physical media, absolutely, but the boxes in most cases are disposable...

      Blizzard's actually gotten better over time, but for the really good boxes they charge more. The Diablo 2 collector's edition had all kinds of fluff when the
  • When you download a game, it is not the same. All you get are bits and bytes. When you buy it from the store or have the actual box shipped to you, its kinda like a sick version of Christmas. It's the art work and holding the manual that the "Designers Made". I remember when I bought Ultima IV for the C64. The box was HUGE!!! I opened that monstrosity and I pulled out the cloth map, the METAL ankh, the instruction book, the book of virtues, and the spell book. It was awesome! Yes, IMHO, it is far better to
  • He likes the boxes because he has been trained to want the boxes. It's about possession. You want more then jsut some receipt to say what you have. Thats why people still carry cash around. They want more assurence, then jsut some faceless machine telling them what they have.

    It's like the hunter and gatherer thing. We collect coins or stamps. Things that we don't need in our life, but if something happens that they are damaged, we make a big issue about it. The things we own, end up owning us.

    But what
    • Thats why people still carry cash around. They want more assurence, then jsut some faceless machine telling them what they have.

      Slightly OT, but...
      The reason that I still carry cash around is actually completely different. It has nothing to do with needing to "feel that I have something". Rather, I use cash whenever I can because I am tired of every aspect of my life being tracked.... and cash is still anonymous :)

      (uh-oh, i must have something to hide!! call the anti-terrorist hotline :)
      • Ok, Ok, here's the OT content that I should've put in that previous one:

        I like boxes too. Pretty much the same reasons that everyone else has stated... I still have a lot of old games sittting on a shelf. And, I actually pulled out and used the journal from Pool of Radiance a month or two ago when I was playing the PoR module for NWN. The map of the city that they included in the original journal came in quite handy..

        And the boxes look nice on the shelf all lined up :P
        • dammit! should've re-read that before posting (that's what I get for not previewing, eh?). Guess that should've said: "here's the non-OT content"...

          bleh
      • I called them, they want to know where you are. What should I tell them?

        "Yeah, he's on Slashdot. It seems like some kind of pro-terrorism site."

  • Similarly (Score:3, Offtopic)

    by Otter ( 3800 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:24PM (#8043706) Journal
    In a similar vein, going to a public poll and participating in a communal rite of citizenship encourages voters to a spirit of civic-mindedness and responsibility. A switch to Internet voting would diminish that feeling in a manner corrosive to society.

    Discuss:

    • Read conformity and essential part of the brainwashing process.

      There are problems with internet voting to deal with. But this one isn't bad for the people. The current system results in only those who have been well conformed and brainwashed voting. An internet voting system means EVERYONE will vote since they can do it while avoiding work at the office.
    • You assume it does, but change is often unpredictable. We need to do something to reinvigorate democracy and I'd hate for us to become too mired in arguements about possible outcomes to at least try. Sounds like the shortcomings of your average standards body where heavy conservatism and political infighting prohibit any real invovation or advancement.
  • I do have a friend that has only recently started to throw away boxes of games from the 90s.

    I do not suffer this problem. The box only lasts long enough to get home.

    When Interplay was having trouble with their distributor and box cover art, I was screaming on the message boards 'Let me download a dvd image and I'll send ya $60.'

    Of course this was October and BGDA2 just came out yesterday. Who knows maybe BIS would still be around if Interplay had been able to ship their two most anticipated games of 20

  • It's the subscription you have to worry about (Score:5, Insightful)

    by p7 ( 245321 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @12:50PM (#8043983)
    I don't need a box. What I do want is a install package that I can burn to a CD as an archival copy. I also don't want to lose the right to use the software. My biggest fear is that the market is going to a subscription based market, like what Valve is trying with STEAM. When I purchase a game I want to know that I can access the install file six months down the line and that I will be authorized to play it. I don't want to have to maintain an ongoing subscription and possibly lose access to a game, because the hosting service has gone out of business or they drop the title without unlocking it first. Online distribution I think will work, the developers and publishers just need to accept that we want to buy the right to use the program, not a service that can vanish and leave us with nothing.
  • how about you let me buy the game online and i get to download it that instant. meanwhile, you go ahead and ship me said game?

    oh yeah, piracy, copy protection, the eventual emergence of a DNA Dongle to prove it's really you.
  • I buy games electronicly all the time, it's called shareware.

    And Im not buying a box that I can trash after I installed my game. Im buying a game that I can play on my computer. If I got it electronicly or in store doesn't matter
    • Shareware implies that you are getting a small part of the game for free to serve as an example for the rest of the game (such as the shareware copy of Doom). Shareware which you have to pay for is not shareware. The whole point of the term shareware is that the partial version is free and can hence be distributed by individuals at will.
  • ...would be my primary reason for sticking to boxed games.

    Some things I can download at work, burn to a CD and take home, but in the case of Steam and other installers where you just download a front end, I'd have to pack my computer to work (or a friend's house, was at a LAN party last weekend and we had access there.)

    On the subject of keeping those boxes, I used to save all but the ones I disliked, now most of those are thrown away except the "important" ones (Ultima I-V, C64) and the ones that are
  • Not only could selling boxed versions be preferable to the consumer, it also seems like the best way to sell as many copies of your product as possible:

    "Never underestimate the bandwidth of a truck full of tapes hurtling down the highway." -- Andrew S. Tannenbaum

  • Used Games (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Unknown Kadath ( 685094 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @01:09PM (#8044181)
    What about used games? There are a lot of games I wouldn't pay $50 for, but might try if I saw in the used bin. I know it doesn't generate any revenue for the studios, but if they're going to claim that they care about their customers, they have to acknowledge that used games are a part of the market. High school kids, for example, can't afford all the new releases.

    And what about games for old or discontinued systems? (I loves me some Dreamcast.) How would you manage to resell games for an out-of-date system if they're all stored on the console itself?

    Besides, having a physical medium lets me hurl something across the room when I realize what utter crap the game I just bought is.

    -Carolyn
    • From their perspective, it's more profitable to sell you can electronic copy at a much lower price a year down the road. Imagine things like Sony's 'Greatest Hits' titles, or Nintendo's 'Player's Choice', only electronically delivered.

      That said, I don't know of any publisher that is doing this.

    • Re:Used Games (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Jim Hall ( 2985 )

      What about used games? There are a lot of games I wouldn't pay $50 for, but might try if I saw in the used bin. I know it doesn't generate any revenue for the studios, but if they're going to claim that they care about their customers, they have to acknowledge that used games are a part of the market.

      I'd say it does generate revenue, but indirectly. I discovered the Spyro games (PlayStation) based on buying one in a used games store. I loved it! So I bought the other Spyro games (even the PS2 version

      • Just a friendly little FYI... the Spyro games were not made my Naughty Dog, but by Insomniac. However, as far as I know, there were some people involved with both companies in the creation of Crash Bandicoot (Naughty Dog) and Spyro.

        Otherwise, great post :) I too have gotten a lot of milelage out of used/rented games, and have bought games I wouldn't have touched otherwise.

        • Just a friendly little FYI... the Spyro games were not made my Naughty Dog, but by Insomniac. However, as far as I know, there were some people involved with both companies in the creation of Crash Bandicoot (Naughty Dog) and Spyro.

          Doh! You're right. However, AFAIK Naughty Dog and Insomniac did share technology - I believe the engine used to create Jak & Daxter was the same used in Ratchet & Clank.

  • I still have my cloth Ultima 7 2: The Serpent Isle map hanging on the wall.

  • No box, more flexibility, more future potential. (Score:3, Interesting)

    by 2Flower ( 216318 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @01:11PM (#8044209) Homepage
    Let's look at the advantages of ditching the box.

    One, the distribution costs fall through the floor. Less money required to distribute the game means more money to develop it -- or it could give games which might not be blockbusters a chance to appeal to their niche market without having to produce a limited-yet-expensive run of boxed games just for those people who want the game. Online distribution is cheap and the savings are passed on to you in one form or another.

    Two, it eliminates the middleman -- the one step that prevents independent game developers from making mad money is that they can't afford to get a box onto the shelves. If you sell content online then you control every aspect from front to back of your game's distribution. Cheaper, more flexible, more suitable for a smaller company. Even if the company contracts out to an 'online distributor', it's still good for independent game developers since you could easily take your hobby and go professional with it via services offered by an online distribution center.

    Now, the disadvantages.

    One, ensuring that you can re-install the game or transfer it to a new machine. This is solvable by having a key system that makes sense -- allowing you to re-download games, allowing you to burn games to a CD, allowing you to jot down an easily accessible game key for later use. It's a minor, minor hurdle and one that can be surmounted if you're willing to loosen (useless) piracy controls. People who want a physical CD can make one themselves and do it for less money.

    Two, you can't include Infocom-esque extras. Except nobody does this anymore. Your average PC game comes with a paper-sleeved CD, a manual (which is duplicated in PDF format on the CD anyway) and a bunch of pack-in glossy paper promotional flyers. When I get home from the store the first thing I do is throw everything but the disc itself and the manual away. I only keep the manual if there's a key printed in it and there's no electronic copy provided, and even then they tend to pile up on my desk in a useless, rarely accessed stack of booklets.

    Three, advertising your product can be tricky since people aren't used to seeking things out online yet, and there's no universally known system for doing so. Steam's trying to become that system and failing horribly. This is an area that needs to be focused on, getting people aware of how online content sales works, making it easier for them to work it, and making sure they know your product is available.

    Four, people who go "Nyaaah! I'll never buy virtual content! It's evil! Away from me, foul beast!" will not buy your game. There's not much you can do about this, until public attitudes change... no thanks to Steam and Real screwing things up and souring people on what would otherwise be a workable concept.

    Imagine a future where you can publish your own games, you own music, your own writing, anything you want -- online for less money than ye traditionale retaile systems, without needing massive industry connections and layer upon layer of production systems. Once the technical details and business models are tested and smoothed out, it can be a reality.
    • One, the distribution costs fall through the floor. Less money required to distribute the game means more money to develop it -- or it could give games which might not be blockbusters a chance to appeal to their niche market without having to produce a limited-yet-expensive run of boxed games just for those people who want the game. Online distribution is cheap and the savings are passed on to you in one form or another.

      With the way most of the developers and publishers have gone to 3rd parties to distrib
      • but they can't play without an internet connection because their key will be checked every time they try to play. Or you go the Steam route and download-as-you-play, meaning you never have all of the content to begin with. Of course, I'm not saying this is the ideal method

        <angry_rant>You're damn right it's not the ideal method! It's nowhere near ideal!</angry_rant>

        What about laptop gamers? With the rise of the Radeon Mobility and Geforce*Go lines, games can go mobile with ease. How are the

  • Download vs Store bought (Score:3, Insightful)

    by suedehed ( 21718 ) <suedehedNO@SPAMyahoo.com> on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @01:14PM (#8044257) Homepage
    Just to throw my two cents into this arena. I recently (currently) worked for a startup game publisher, who decided to offer their game via download, as well as retail chains (EB, GameStop, BestBuy, etc.) The initial thought process on our end was similar, how many people really want to download the game, and not have a box? Well, I would have to say, that the results so far are pretty good. After a few thousand online purchases/downloads, we're still going strong. Granted, we've run into a handful of problems (but what fun would it be if we didn't?) The largest problem of all...AOL. It's a 50/50 crap shoot with them somtimes. We send out a confirmation email with the CD-key for the user, with download locations for the linux, windows, ISO and manual, but for some reason, AOL would block mail sometimes, and not others.

    Overall, I would say that there are just as many people out there who want the "instant gratification" of buying it and downloading it immediately, instead of waiting for the boxed version to arrive. We do offer the original manual in a pdf format, but not the CD sleve (which we could, but there really haven't been many requests for it.) We also suggest that people download the ISO version, which has both the linux and windows installer, and burn it to CD, so they will always have it handy (although the download servers will be up for as long as the game survives).

    Just my two cents.

    Rob
    iGames.com

    • I checked iGames.com, and I was wondering....why do you charge the same amount for the boxed version as you do for downloading the game? Shouldn't there be some cost savings you could pass on to the customers on the downloaded version?
    • The way you're selling it is a little different though, because there's an iso version that people can burn to a cd-r. If they're wise and write the cd key on the cd-r (rather than, say, leaving it in their e-mail's inbox), then they'll still have access to the game when they change computers.

      Would I buy an iso (or bin/cue) of a game online? You bet! I get linux distributions this way, there's no reason a game won't work as well.

      Would I buy a game that I couldn't easily make a copy of from online?

  • I need something to read in the bathroom (Score:5, Interesting)

    by Torgo's Pizza ( 547926 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @01:20PM (#8044339) Homepage Journal
    I'm just happy to get a friggin' paper manual nowadays. Game boxes (much like old album covers) are an expression of art. I remember going to the store and seeing the cover of Ultima III. Flames, a demon and a pentagon. Heck yeah am I buying that game. (Playing the first two didn't hurt either.)

    Like an earlier article mentioned, in the early days getting a game box was like getting Cracker Jack prizes. You never knew what was going to be inside. Now it's mostly air and some shrinkwrap. For a smaller title or extra titles, I'm willing to download it. For a triple A title I expect a box, a CD and a manual. I'm willing to pay a premium for those items. Give me something tangible. Is it too hard to ask?

    • I think you're absolutely right about the cover art of games. This reminds me a lot of why I always preferred vinyl records: the cover art, the record covers with all the lyrics, the art on the record itself. Speaking of old Ultima boxes, I happily recall the contents of my Ultima IV box, one of my all time favorite games: a metal ankh, a cloth map, a faux-leather bound spell book, and a couple of manuals, laden with fantasy-rich back story and TSR-style art. And, then there were boxes like Leather Godd
  • The simple reason for me is that going to my local store is infinitely more reliable, quicker and easier than actually attempting to purchase and download an online game.

    There would have to be a significant cost savings for me to justify buying a game online. During the time it would take me to download the normal 1 to 2 CD game, I could go get lunch, run some errands and drop by my game store on the way home and still have it before it was finished downloading.

    Not only that, but as other people here hav
  • :) heheh, yeah, i collect them. If any of you who throw them out would be willing to send them to me I would gladly pay the shipping costs. Please contact me if you're willing to set something up.

    I'm looking for the C&C generals boxes and WC3 (full size except the undead design) boxes in particular.

    TIA

    aer2ATcoxDOTnet
  • Bully for him. He can continue to trek to the store, enjoy the experience and even have my full, unmitigated support when doing so.

    Call me silly, but for me the so-called "experience" is much enhanced by actually playing the game. Which is what I'll be doing while he's having his Calgon Moment (TM).

    Saying that schlepping to the store to go about actually purchasing the game is vital to the "experience" is a bit like saying that the act of standing in line to buy a coffee is part of the "coffee experienc
  • Part of the fun of downloading a game is the thrill of the score when you find a pirated copy and get it for free. :)
  • When customers pre-order a game at an EB or Best Buy or the like, they're often given a psuedo-box filled with "goodies." Usually this includes some kind of mini strategy guide, and/or a demo or addon disc, etc. If not a box, you'll often receive some kind t-shirt or at least some schlocky branded pencil eraser or earmuffs. Or whatever.

    Okay, okay; the employees take this crap home themselves and hoard it. The intent of the publisher, however, remains. There is this understanding that when you give m
  • If you need a reminder of your experience go buy a poster or have a large format print or even just an 8 x 10 print made up and hang it on your wall of victory or shame as the case may be.
  • Just like buying the actual CD is a very important aspect of aquiring music, right?

  • I say Both.. (Score:3, Interesting)

    by msimm ( 580077 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @05:01PM (#8047709) Homepage
    Download should always be an option. Its just plain economical. But hard copies should always be available for either die hard boxers (you know who you are) or gifts or whatever. The boxed copy should reflect a moderate increase in cost plus shipping.

    Seems a no-brainer and a win-win. I want the game that I just fell in love with while playing the demo NOW.

    As a side note, no screw authentication schemes on my download or I FUCKING kill you. If I can't whip my system and reinstall it from backup media you've ripped me off. Period.
  • I recently got a copy of Xandros 2.0 Deluxe. I've purchased and downloaded games and linux distributions before, and ordered individual CDs before, but rarely went for the boxed versions until now.

    I must admit, thought, that when I got the box in the mail just before a staff meeting, I brought the box with me and quietly opened it bit by bit throughout the meeting. The anticipation was painful.

    When I opened the box and found a 200+ page owner's manual, I got genuinely excited, and even my wife said "ooo,

  • No box needed (Score:3, Insightful)

    by angle_slam ( 623817 ) on Wednesday January 21, 2004 @06:31PM (#8048949)
    If you move from a large house to a small apartment, you'll find out the answer very quickly--you don't need a box. To conserve space, I even threw out all my CD-ROM jewel cases, only keeping the CDs and the CD keys. Once you install a game, you never look at the box again, so why keep them?
  • "...a place where you can look over your collection [of game boxes] with pride

    I would write that as "...a place where you can look over the stuff that owns you, as opposed to the stuff you own..."

    Call me too new-age or negative. I've purchased a lot of games in my time. How many boxes of boxes could I stand to have? I finally junked them all, and the jewelboxes, and haven't looked back.

    Sure, it's a matter of personal taste. Or maybe it's a matter of the degree to which you are consumed by consumer

  • Noone who puts up a web page with white text on a black background has any right to be commenting on "aesthetics".

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