Buying a digital verion of the game vs Blu Ray - Blu-ray Forum

bhampton · 11-19-2013, 10:08 PM

Hey,

Normally,... This shouldn't even be a question really... I mean, I love Blu Ray and so on.

However, I bought Tomb Raider from PSN store directly and I really like the fact that I don't have to go find the disc when-ever I want to play.

So,... Anyways,.... I'm thinking of buying Madden 25 and Amazon has it cheap now for some reason and it's the same price for the disc as for the download.

I'm kind of tempted to go the download route... crazy?... I guess you could someday sell back a disc but sports games tend to lose all resale value anyway.

The hard drive version should load faster too,... right?

-Brian

mywhitenoise · 11-19-2013, 10:16 PM

Welcome to a few years ago, haha. The only advantage there is to disc based games is the resale value, and constant competitive pricing (unless you're buying off of Steam). Digital always wins, baby. Faster load times, convenience, no drop in quality. Sooner or later you'll figure out you can have those benefits with films as well!

MOONPHASE · 11-19-2013, 10:49 PM

Well you will definitely need to get a bigger HDD. Most of my games are physical copies and just the Install feature in those games takes up quite a bit of space and I have a 320GB with only like 6GBs left on it.

bhampton · 11-19-2013, 11:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mywhitenoise

Sooner or later you'll figure out you can have those benefits with films as well!

ok, but I know that depends on how you get those digital films. iTunes and UltraViolet sell "HD" stuff that may be in 720p or 1080p but the compression degrades the quality.

I have my DVDs backed up at full quality (no added encoding or compression) as digital MKV files now so I guess I already know that's possible with films or should we say movies.

I sort of thought maybe there was more audio tracks or something on the disc version of the game. (Though it's not likely music I like ha ha.)

bhampton · 11-19-2013, 11:40 PM

Come to think of it... getting a bigger hard drive is simple.

But moreover,... replacing the hard drive is much simpler for me than replacing the blu ray drive.

I think, I'm going with the digital copy. (Price is the same.) It should load faster, be more available, and be easier to maintain (I mean changing hard drives instead of replacing optical drives)

-Brian

mywhitenoise · 11-19-2013, 11:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bhampton

ok, but I know that depends on how you get those digital films. iTunes and UltraViolet sell "HD" stuff that may be in 720p or 1080p but the compression degrades the quality

You're absolutely correct. In this case, iTunes, and UltraViolet really need to get with the times. There's no reason to release "1080p" files that are only 2GB in size.

jamclaur · 11-20-2013, 01:34 AM

If Sony would let me sell my PSN titles back to them for a decent amount... Or at the very least stay competitive with the disc prices i'd go more digital... But I have no desire to pay $60 for a title I beat and can't resell so I just delete it...

awongus · 11-20-2013, 02:51 PM

I used to be a "disc only" kind of guy, but I've since come around. The convenience of digital is just too good to pass up. Plus, I rarely sell my games, and digital takes up a lot less physical space in my cabinet.

Also, if u have 2 PS3s in the house, u can have digital copy on both, allowing for LAN play. Invaluable for boosting, powerleveling, etc.

KVM · 11-20-2013, 05:07 PM

One of the downsides to digital is if your ISP limits your data speed and usage capacity. I am referring to ATT Uverse, with the 250GB/month limit. I dont know if/how/when they are/would impose the limit and charge for overage since I dont have ATT Uverse, and that is just to obtain the game, not inclusive of playing online, downloading stuff off the net, etc.

Pro/Con for digital if you dont have to worry about internet usage/caps is the time it takes to download the game from the server (I have done digital and this can be hair pulling slow, so doing this overnight is ideal, but it would be quicker to drive to the store to buy the game). Would it take longer to install the whole game verse installing the required files from the physical copy? Installing patches would be the same for both (and those can be canceled if not playing online).

WRT digital prices: Create a new user, download the game, split the cost of the game with your family/friend/trustworthy coworker. When you are done you (and even the other person) could sell the digital version to another family/friend/trustworthy coworker. But rarely do the digital version of new games go on sale as fast as their respective physical version. But split 50/50 a digital version of a new release game is say $30 per person (not including applicable tax), compared to new release Black Friday sale price of $35+tax at Walmart. Reselling the physical version has many venues and varied prices, and the digital version would be a limited market of trustworthy people and it would have to be cheaper than the physical version at the time of sale.

AndyD · 11-20-2013, 06:13 PM

Digital is way over priced so I don't buy.

Some examples:

GTA V is 69.99euro on PS Store. Its 55-60e retail here. I got it from Amazon UK for 43e (ended up trading it in for 35e after I finished it)

Arkham Origins is 59.99e on PS Store. Retail is again 55-60e. I got it from Amazon UK for 33e (almost half of retail/PS Store)

Ghosts is 69.99e for standard edition in PS Store. I got the Hardened Edition from Amazon for 85e

I've seen the likes of Tiger Woods Golf priced at 79.99e on the PS Store!

Why on earth would I pay these stupidly ridiculous prices for a digital version that takes up HDD space, I can't trade it in & it would never really feel like its mine because I can't physically hold it.

Physical media all the way for me

Snake_XRS · 11-20-2013, 06:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AndyD

Digital is way over priced so I don't buy.

Some examples:

GTA V is 69.99euro on PS Store. Its 55-60e retail here. I got it from Amazon UK for 43e (ended up trading it in for 35e after I finished it)

Arkham Origins is 59.99e on PS Store. Retail is again 55-60e. I got it from Amazon UK for 33e (almost half of retail/PS Store)

Ghosts is 69.99e for standard edition in PS Store. I got the Hardened Edition from Amazon for 85e

I've seen the likes of Tiger Woods Golf priced at 79.99e on the PS Store!

Why on earth would I pay these stupidly ridiculous prices for a digital version that takes up HDD space, I can't trade it in & it would never really feel like its mine because I can't physically hold it.

Physical media all the way for me

You have a point but there are deals to be had on the PS Store. I bought Remember Me & DmC for $13.99 each, and the cheapest I've seen them on Amazon or in stores are around $25 each.

mywhitenoise · 11-20-2013, 07:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AndyD

Why on earth would I pay these stupidly ridiculous prices for a digital version that takes up HDD space, I can't trade it in & it would never really feel like its mine because I can't physically hold it.

There's really no reason why digital games can't throw in a 20% discount. You're already saving them distribution costs.

11-19-2013, 10:08 PM	#1
bhampton Blu-ray Count Member since:Aug 2007 4K collection:989 Blu-ray collection:2545 DVD collection:67 Blu-ray reviews: 6 Trading Score:18	Buying a digital verion of the game vs Blu Ray Hey, Normally,... This shouldn't even be a question really... I mean, I love Blu Ray and so on. However, I bought Tomb Raider from PSN store directly and I really like the fact that I don't have to go find the disc when-ever I want to play. So,... Anyways,.... I'm thinking of buying Madden 25 and Amazon has it cheap now for some reason and it's the same price for the disc as for the download. I'm kind of tempted to go the download route... crazy?... I guess you could someday sell back a disc but sports games tend to lose all resale value anyway. The hard drive version should load faster too,... right? -Brian Last edited by bhampton; 11-19-2013 at 10:14 PM.

11-19-2013, 10:16 PM	#2
mywhitenoise Power Member Top ranked HT gallery Top contributor Member since:Apr 2009 Location:California Home Theater Gallery:19 4K collection:73 Blu-ray collection:238 Blu-ray reviews:3 Trading Score:4	Welcome to a few years ago, haha. The only advantage there is to disc based games is the resale value, and constant competitive pricing (unless you're buying off of Steam). Digital always wins, baby. Faster load times, convenience, no drop in quality. Sooner or later you'll figure out you can have those benefits with films as well!

11-19-2013, 10:49 PM	#3
MOONPHASE Blu-ray Duke Top contributor Member since:Jun 2007 Location:California 4K collection:8 Blu-ray collection:520 DVD collection:820 Blu-ray reviews:18 Trading Score:29	Well you will definitely need to get a bigger HDD. Most of my games are physical copies and just the Install feature in those games takes up quite a bit of space and I have a 320GB with only like 6GBs left on it.

11-19-2013, 11:40 PM	#5
bhampton Blu-ray Count Member since:Aug 2007 4K collection:989 Blu-ray collection:2545 DVD collection:67 Blu-ray reviews: 6 Trading Score:18	Come to think of it... getting a bigger hard drive is simple. But moreover,... replacing the hard drive is much simpler for me than replacing the blu ray drive. I think, I'm going with the digital copy. (Price is the same.) It should load faster, be more available, and be easier to maintain (I mean changing hard drives instead of replacing optical drives) -Brian

11-20-2013, 01:34 AM	#7
jamclaur Blu-ray Ninja Member since:Aug 2007 4K collection:75 Blu-ray collection:849 Trading Score:34	If Sony would let me sell my PSN titles back to them for a decent amount... Or at the very least stay competitive with the disc prices i'd go more digital... But I have no desire to pay $60 for a title I beat and can't resell so I just delete it...

11-20-2013, 02:51 PM	#8
awongus Expert Member Member since:Oct 2009 Blu-ray collection:540 DVD collection:240	I used to be a "disc only" kind of guy, but I've since come around. The convenience of digital is just too good to pass up. Plus, I rarely sell my games, and digital takes up a lot less physical space in my cabinet. Also, if u have 2 PS3s in the house, u can have digital copy on both, allowing for LAN play. Invaluable for boosting, powerleveling, etc.

11-20-2013, 05:07 PM	#9
KVM Special Member Member since:Sep 2010 Location:Los Angeles, California PSN:kaiser_von_metz Blu-ray collection:12	One of the downsides to digital is if your ISP limits your data speed and usage capacity. I am referring to ATT Uverse, with the 250GB/month limit. I dont know if/how/when they are/would impose the limit and charge for overage since I dont have ATT Uverse, and that is just to obtain the game, not inclusive of playing online, downloading stuff off the net, etc. Pro/Con for digital if you dont have to worry about internet usage/caps is the time it takes to download the game from the server (I have done digital and this can be hair pulling slow, so doing this overnight is ideal, but it would be quicker to drive to the store to buy the game). Would it take longer to install the whole game verse installing the required files from the physical copy? Installing patches would be the same for both (and those can be canceled if not playing online). WRT digital prices: Create a new user, download the game, split the cost of the game with your family/friend/trustworthy coworker. When you are done you (and even the other person) could sell the digital version to another family/friend/trustworthy coworker. But rarely do the digital version of new games go on sale as fast as their respective physical version. But split 50/50 a digital version of a new release game is say $30 per person (not including applicable tax), compared to new release Black Friday sale price of $35+tax at Walmart. Reselling the physical version has many venues and varied prices, and the digital version would be a limited market of trustworthy people and it would have to be cheaper than the physical version at the time of sale.

11-20-2013, 06:13 PM	#10
AndyD Blu-ray Samurai Member since:Aug 2008 Location:Ireland, Dublin Blu-ray collection:391	Digital is way over priced so I don't buy. Some examples: GTA V is 69.99euro on PS Store. Its 55-60e retail here. I got it from Amazon UK for 43e (ended up trading it in for 35e after I finished it) Arkham Origins is 59.99e on PS Store. Retail is again 55-60e. I got it from Amazon UK for 33e (almost half of retail/PS Store) Ghosts is 69.99e for standard edition in PS Store. I got the Hardened Edition from Amazon for 85e I've seen the likes of Tiger Woods Golf priced at 79.99e on the PS Store! Why on earth would I pay these stupidly ridiculous prices for a digital version that takes up HDD space, I can't trade it in & it would never really feel like its mine because I can't physically hold it. Physical media all the way for me

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