UK Physical Media Sales Plunge 

Not helped by the major lack of stores actually supplying physical media anymore.

After watching this video, I had to reflect on the downside of digital games: (a) You never own them outright (b) You have to pay a subscription to access your bought games (c) No resale value (d) If the online store closes you lose them forever (e) Games are non-transferable (f) The prices will not drop much in the future as going into CEX and picking up a copy. (g) Yes, you don't have to have the physical copy, but something about owning the physical copy is better as you own it. You're basically renting it as a digital copy. (h) What does the future hold when you decide you want to play a certain game, and it's unobtainable, no physical media, or you simply cant get a copy as it's either big money or hard to find. Personally, physical copy is the winner 😂

I miss the late 80’s and more so the 90’s it was truly the golden age when comes to going into pretty much any shop / store to buy video games

Here in Ireland we have even less options to buy physical media.

It doesn’t help when games like black myth Wukong doesn’t have a physical release and Dead rising doesn’t have a physical release until November

I suppose games on disc will ultimately become a niche product ...like CDs.. Cassettes...and some 4K movies ...all still available but expensive and for collectors..

There has been no game deals in my local Asda for a while now. They used to be a common occurrence.

Tesco dont sell physical media anymore, unfortunately.

Black myth is one of the best games I’ve played in years. 100% buy it. The only reason it didn’t get a physical release is because the studio is small and didn’t have capacity to release it physically straight away.

Physical game sales suffer from Gamepass too. The Xbox is a third of the market and GamePass suits so many players. It means you don't buy games - I never have. Not only that, at certain points the games are offered with good discounts if you did want them. Certain games, like GTA5, DayZ, Skyrim, Fallout, etc are games that you can define with your imagination, rather than be set by the game. That's what gets you back time and time again. I can't think of a modern one like that.

I derive pleasure from acquiring physical games. I typically wait for the highly anticipated games to decrease in price before purchasing them. If I desire a new game, I have the option of trading in my old ones. However, if the industry ever transitions exclusively to digital distribution, I will opt to play games on my personal computer and explore the realm of pirated games

My town used to have loads of places to get physical games - 2 game, gametrading, a few independent businesses, whsmith, hmv, cex, blockbuster, I could go on. Now there's only 1 game that's due to shut in november and cex that's it 😞 no supermarkets near me stock any physical games either now. Not everyone downloads games, what happens when the Internet cuts out, digital games can't be played, physical games (and for movies and boxsets) are my preferred way to watch or play media

I always buy physical but it’s becoming harder to do so, there’s fewer physical stores selling physical games. Also a lot of new releases do staggered releases now where the digital comes out first

Don't think i'll ever pay retail for digital games. I've bought 5-10 digital games from playstation store since 2014. Already got my physical pre orders in for BO6 & Undisputed.

I went into the game in Cardiff well sports direct and they didn't have any of the recent games in stock. No astrobot, nor did they have space marines 2. It's so weird

I buy all my physical games online, i didnt ever (Even years ago) buy them in GAME / HMV due to their prices not being competative with online retailers.

I remember buying games from Boots in the 80’s and Woolworths of course.

As someone who has sold new physical software, the profit margin on games is very low if you sell at rrp, even more so if you lower the prices to compete with other retailers / online. It is greed by the games companies which is leading to less shops selling new physical games.

I cleared all my physical collection this week. Bought a 8TB NVME for the PS5 to go along with the 4TB external SSD. The drives are full. I, however, haven't played a game in the last 15 yrs. Too busy working

Lollipop Chainsaw Repop - No physical release barring a run by Limited Run Games that isnt available till Dec 2024 or later. So most will just get the digital copy ... same for Alan Wake 2 where the physical isnt out till much much later.

Back in the day, I used to sell Physical Games at Come, mostly when they were buying the consoles 🎮

I’m only getting wukong on sale, not paying £55-60 for no physical release, the only game I want to get early is ac shadows lol

Argos is my main (well only) high street retail place for games these days. But even that, you go there with the intention of what you’re buying, it’s not really a place you can go to browse.

Still lots buying, lots of RU-vidrs still buying out here like myself, but yes deffo going digital kids will think we are dinosaurs using discs 😂

I only buy physical and think the only release in August I was interested in was Emio - The Smiling Man. And the only reason I got that was because it looks like it'll be a faff to get it in a few month when it inevitably turns out it was short printed and going for silly amounts. If anything I'm finding I'm having to import the vast majority of titles now as the likes of Capcom are doing English releases but they're America/Asia/Japan only.

Bring back the 1n up series lad 😂

Tesco’s only sell the fifa clone. Don’t bother with Currys as they stay at full price and never get reduced. They even overcharge on printer cartridges by them costing more than you can get anywhere else by about double.

Not surprised at all wukong was digital and as of recent dead rising remaster . Also it takes 20 seconds on the store to purchase or you could travel 10 20 30 mins to your store and buy it for 5 quid cheaper . Times have changed it is what it is

What about cash converters Independent game stores

I didnt buy black myth simply because there was no physical version

This is a cook, the market for collectors is microscopic in the physical sales. Has no bearing on the decline

Can sell games in chicken shops, barbers or mobile repair shops uk got those in abundance .

No major switch release is probably the major culprit?

I'm just glad I own more physical games than my life span will let me complete. I only ever buy digital on dirt cheap sales on steam. I would never EVER pay $60 -$70 for a digital game. In general I have stopped buying AAA games either way, particularly from EA, Ubisoft and Activision AKA the Satan Trio

You forgot about currys, they sell games too

Not really suprised to be honest. It feels little pointless get the physical copy when 1) Game launch pretty buggy and need few patch to iron it out. 2) Having to install the game but expected to have the disc in. I'm saying this as someone that loves physical media and often collect some older games.

GAME has compeltely changed the way they want you to order and theyve just lost me as a customer too. I dont want ro buy any physical off them! Ill find other ways. But the physical games are gone soon PS6 will absolutely be digital only unless they make them ps5 to ps 1 BC

i buy physical games i used vary or studio they only way for me get physical copy of games

I love collecting but honestly I am OK with digital...the easier it is to pronounce my Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr's.

I think they baiting us in to go digital by doing physical at later dates . Bait to get it digital then buy again physical 😮I grew up in the best era 16 bit ps1 I got my treasures . Don’t really care where gaming goes from here

Black myth wukong is a great game I really enjoyed it

TVM with more doom and gloom for Cex credit

Physical all the way

Don't forget they count micro transactions in these aswell. So a bunch of whales are keeping gta 5 on those sales charts.

Tvm uses his mouthwash for cex credit

TVM goes to CEX daily just to moan online

Argos sell physical games 🎮

physical will die, so why do you bother going to this effort? Don't get it, it's like CDs and vinyl dying. Who really cares..

i dont think tesco do physical video games and blu rays anymore

I live in Belgium and can now officially confirm that, with a few exceptions, no game specialty store still exists in this country. The last major retail chain "Game Mania" has been declared bankrupt. There are still a few stores open that will probably continue independently, but then we are talking about 3 stores for the entire country. We have no CEX here and independent retro game stores are also very scarce here. Personally, I can count them on one hand. For new physical games we can only go to a few toy stores and electrical specialty stores such as "Mediamarkt" and the range of this last store chain has also recently been slimmed down. My fears have now been confirmed and that was also the reason why I have spent the last 5 years collecting retro games. I want to create the feeling of a physical store at home forever ;-)

Most would still buy them if shops would actually sell them

You have to remember so many games are download only meaning it is understandable for these statistics to be what they are.

The day discs go away completely is the day I'll be done with gaming going forward. I'll just play and build on my retro collection

I walked into Game in Cambridge last week,what a shit show it’s basically a crap forbidden planet with a scant collection of overpriced games with only one game I could see on offer “Forspoken” for £9.99 whoopee 🙄

I still prefer to buy physical rather than digital. I'd say 95% of games I've ever purchased are physical

Game pass is killing physical

A video from a feel good creator - something about him is just nice to watch - no bs

It really shows how little good actual modern games are when games that were released over a decade still have more staying power than any game that is released today. it is just plain sad man :( Most forms of Physical media of the games you want these days you have to get directly from the ones that make them it is hw it is these days.

The last physical game I bought was ReCore for Xbox One back in 2016, no joke.

I only download indie games, everything else physical games.

Anderson Melissa Miller Scott Lopez Helen

I will not support digital and only buy physical

What about Argos?

I live between two large towns in Yorkshire, both have a decent sized high streets, yet there’s literally nowhere in either town that sells games, not even supermarkets. Was the same when I visited my mother too, nowhere to buy games. I used to buy both digital and physical games, but since realising they really are getting phased out, this past year or so I’ve gone all physical, even re-buying physical copies of my favourite digital games. I’ve got a sneaky suspicion the next console generation will essentially be digital games, but have an optional disc drive for physical copies of special editions of very successful games only. It’s all fine to have digital only on PC, but it’s entirely different to have a locked console platform with digital only where we as the customer have absolutely no control at all. There’s also the dark cloud of censorship that shouldn’t be ignored. As insignificant as the censorship in the FFVII remake was, it was a massive wake up call for me personally, especially considering it had been out for a few years before they changed one of the characters clothes. I suspect little changes like that will become more common until it’s the norm, then, maybe entire “problematic” scenes will change, who knows.. Should I invest in a tinfoil hat and build an underground bunker? 😁

GAME is so damn expensive. I usually buy physical at Asda, Amazon or second hand games from CEX. I'm playing older games anyway but I'll still be sad to see physical die (if it does)

I might be to blame for gta5 as I brought it for the PlayStation 4 as it is my main gaming machine even though I have the epic store freebie.

Physical sales are down because there are hardly any stores that sell physical games. I went to Japan recently, there were 100s of shops selling video games with shelves full of them.

Does that 25% include pre owned and second hand games that are moving around?

Watching your video whilst I’m having my dinner working away

Vinyl definitely not dying

I don’t understand people. Why would you spend so much money on something that you don’t actually own! I have not bought digital and won’t unless 1. There is no other choice to do so, or 2. They are released at half the price of physical games.

Tnt/FedEx messed up all the preorders for uk on space marine 2 so focus sent everyone digital codes to download ad they hadn't honored the early access. Considering how many copies they're saying have sold I would imagine that would equate to a large number of digital purchases in august

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At 11:05 That music is from the streets of Rage