Going into 2020, game streaming will undoubtedly be a topic of interest. Apart from Google’s Stadia, details about Microsoft and Sony’s upcoming consoles are limited to speculation and generalized comments about using custom-designed AMD Zen2 Navi APUs and boasting X-amount more graphical processing power than the current crop of consoles. A digital equivalent of what dying stores like GameStop have based their entire operation around will need to be ironed out to convert physical media devotees. Only vinyl records are holding their own in … Digital downloads on the platform accounted for 53% of full game software sales from the start of the year to June – a 10% jump on figures for the same period last year. For over half of the 42.9 million units sold, consumers opted to download rather than invest in digital copies. Digital copies of video games are downloaded onto your video game system or associated storage device. But often times, the digital sales really rival the brick and mortar stores. Become a Patron, so we can produce more of the content you enjoy! Whether Sony follows suit remains to be seen, but a partnership with Microsoft to make use of the Azure server network suggests digital content will form part of the Japanese gaming giant’s next-gen strategy. Speculation aside, the ongoing growth of digital is inevitable, and the next-generation of console signals a cataclysmic shift not just in how consumers play games but how they buy them. September 23, 2020 UTC: 12:51 PM. And I'm running out of room to put physical games. Sony's Q1 financial results reveal digital sales of games surpassed those of their physical counterparts for the first time. Joost van Dreunen, CEO of SuperData, told The Huffington Post that digital game sales are trending upward while physical purchases are trending down. In the third quarter of 2015, Electronic Arts, a massive video game publisher, made $666 million in physical sales and $480 million in digital, according to numbers provided by SuperData. In Benelux, for example, 33% of AAA game sales were digital in Q1 2018 but 43% were digital in Q1 2019. Physical vs Digital—Why Physical Video Games Are Better. Here, digital game copies have the consistent advantage of being available on the web, and can offer as many sales or bundles it takes to make a buzz overnight, which just is not as simple to do with physical copies. VGChartz delivers comprehensive game chart coverage, including sales data, news, reviews, & game database for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Series X, Nintendo Switch & PC New Killstreak FORCES Gamers to Commit War Crime, Zinedine Zidane Scores FIFA 20 Ultimate Edition Cover, Hacked.com - Protection against online abuse and cybercrime. Like our content? First-quarter financial results released by Sony today reveal that digital sales of PlayStation 4 games surpassed those of their physical counterparts, marking the first time the balance has shifted in the favor of digital content. Best answer: If you value convenience, Xbox Play Anywhere, or Game Pass above all, digital is your best bet. Serving as a surprise standout is Just Dance 2020, a yearly franchise that hasn’t often gained much attention since it debuted in 2009 among the advent of motion-controlled play for the Wii and later the Xbox Kinect. Faster than both the PS2 and Wii which were just behind. It's also easier to travel with a digital collection. The market for digital game downloads has changed a lot since then; Sony said a full 74 percent of its full game sales were digital downloads for … PS5 Digital Edition will be harder to find this holiday season than the standard PS5 with a disc drive, according to a number of sources and reports. I have a CD case for my physical games, but it fills up quickly, so it's much easier to travel with a hard drive. For consoles games are often indeed cheaper in physical form, even in the long run. Perhaps most interestingly was the finding that 2014 was the first year so far where digital* sales were greater than physical sales (52 % vs 48%) * Digital format sales include subscriptions, digital full games, digital add-on content, mobile apps and social network gaming Late 2020 will see the releases of the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5, and both systems will support digital and disc-based games. | Source: Shutterstock. That companies are trying to replace their beloved, collectible physical games with less tangible alternatives they don't fully own. Copyright ©2021 Designtechnica Corporation. The report also shows that the PlayStation 4 passed the 100-million-units-shipped milestone, seizing the coveted spot as the fastest console to do so, according to Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad. Digital PlayStation 4 games have seen steady growth over the past few years, rising from 32% of total sales in 2017 to 37% last year. That’s a First. Physical game sales have been smaller and smaller each year, but are they still relevant? Still, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One also did well, with sales of the three consoles increasing by more than 160% over last year. The message is clear: physical games are now a high-end, optional part of the console gaming experience. Between retail discounts, digital sales, used game deals from my local shops, and now subs, $60 day one purchases are rare for me. Both physical and digital versions of Nintendo Switch games have their perks as well as their shortcomings. NPD Group uses data from both physical sales and digital downloads of games. Game sales for 2020 have already topped $2 billion — and that’s for software sales alone. The best-selling platform was the Nintendo Switch, which continues to hold onto its top spot as the Sony and Microsoft’s competitors age out and prepare for the next generation to release later this year. All rights reserved. Sales of CDs continue to slump as consumers turn towards music streaming services rather than owning physical media. More realistic is a tandem of models for each console: one offering a purely digital experience, the other a more powerful device capable of reading physical media. NPD’s Group’s report states hardware spending for April grew by a massive 163% compared to 2019, from $160 million to $420 million. The two franchise top performers are joined by 2015’s Call of Duty: Black Ops III on the list of the Xbox One’s top 10 for April. The Xbox marketplace has crazy good deals. Sony and Microsoft generally price digital copies higher, sometimes upwards of 10% compared to the physical versions – even on launch day titles. Email me | Bug me on Twitter. PlayStation 4 Digital Game Sales Overtake Physical. Regardless of the hurdles still marring digital game sales, exclusively cloud-based gaming platforms like Google Stadia and Microsoft’s Project xCloud will stampede onto the gaming market shortly. Historically, users are unable to resell or gift games bought on console storefronts held by Sony and Microsoft – except under specific circumstances. All images not from Shutterstock.com has been sourced by NTB. That means that gamers need to start working on upgrading hard drive space on their PCs and consoles because there will come a time when video games are no longer available in physical … PS4 was just 5 years and 7 months. Meanwhile, Animal Crossing: New Horizons had a record launch for its exclusive Switch platform and quickly outpaced its predecessors. By: Thomas Bardwell | Email. The number of subscribers to Sony’s digital PlayStation Plus service also rose from 33.9 million in Q1 2018 to 36.2 million in the same time frame this year. Additionally, the ability to pre-download titles in the days leading up to release means players can jump into the action quicker. We assume the physical sales to be 60% of GameStop’s overall new video game software sales, which translates into $1.4 billion in physical sales. The video game industry is constantly evolving and inspiring innovation. Video game sales continue to skyrocket with people all over the world staying home to follow social distancing requirements due to the coronavirus pandemic. 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A tranche of people will continue to find pleasure in the simple act of carefully pulling the plastic off a new game, catching a whiff of the factory-sealed PlayStation 4 box, and inserting a disc into a console. Mid tier stuff is … To determine which route is right for you, you'll need to weigh the pros and cons of both physical and digital games against each other while considering how you plan on playing your games. PlayStation 4 Digital Game Sales Overtake Physical. However, Just Dance 2020 is climbing the ranks, and it’s the fast-selling entry since Just Dance 2014. UK-based writer covering the video game industry. First-quarter financial results released by Sony today reveal that digital sales of … On the PC, unless you pre-order or have to play everything at release, sales make digital much cheaper.