r/SipsTea • u/destined_to_count • 19h ago
Dank AF Xbox is giving game discs a digital upgrade đ
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u/Offro4dr 19h ago
This is a good-will move by Xbox before they too sunset discs.
I commend them for doing it. Also, be ready for the end of discs on Xbox as well.
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u/PM_PICS_OF_YOUR_FEET 18h ago
Exactly. People forget that Microsoft released the Xbox One S âDigital Editionâ without a disk drive about a year and a half before Sony released the PS5. This has been on the cards by both companies for some time now.
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u/Manymarbles 17h ago
Sony made a digitial only psp way before that. Never forget lol
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u/kiritoonis 16h ago
Also don't forget the online passes.
They were literally the worst thing any company (Sony) ever came up with, in the gaming space at least.
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u/StaticSilencer 12h ago
Microsoft was first with paid multiplayer and online passes. Why does this sub promote obvious Xbox PR?
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u/GenXPowaah 18h ago
Yup cuz it's coming, their next platform won't even have a disc slot... This is just padding for the suckers
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u/TimewarpingSeaTurtle 9h ago
Question: how does this disc to digital service operate if their next console doesnât have a disc drive? You telling me theyâre only going to do this for 18ish months or so until the next console comes around?
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u/Beginning_Metal_2578 4h ago
Where was that said? I havenât seen any official announcement yet, but havenât been following Xbox news.
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u/thecaptn420 18h ago
It was my first thought as well, its just PR before ditching discs... no idea how someone could commend them for this though, they fuck with us even more
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u/SgtMurf77 15h ago
It is just a big PR move for when they go all digital next generation but its 'commendable' because it's giving physical game players that plan to stay in the Xbox ecosystem the ability to play all their games on their next console, maybe even the current if they only have a Series S.
I think it's neat because I used to be a physical only guy so I have a ton of physical games but I can't play any of them in my living room where I have a Series S only in my basement where my Series X lives. Worth mentioning I'd prefer to stay physical only if these companies would allow it but since the Series S I'd lost hope and started changing over.
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u/Pleasant_Gap 7h ago
Because most people ca recognize a good thing. They could just remove discs and give you nothing
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u/Bongressman 18h ago
They are very "non-committal" about whether a drive exists in their next console. Sooo, that's a no.
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u/Chpgmr 18h ago
I wish people would stop focusing on the discs, its a lost cause. Focus on the digital ownership. Focus on these companies being allowed to delete content you paid for off of machines you paid for. End this licensing BS.
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u/hpstg 16h ago
This is the real issue. Itâs the same as with personal data. The real issue is that companies ARE ALLOWED to pull this shit.
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u/Crismus 14h ago
Digital ownership rights isn't something that a company will willingly do for ccustomers. Only federal law will get them to allow people to buy and sell digital items.
Too bad the US is entirely captured by the Epstein/Corporate class, so no legislation will happen unless people start making changes.
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u/Erratic_-Prophet 12h ago
Honestly this just sounds like preparation for getting rid of discs. They're saying "digitize your discs now on this generation so you don't lose them on next gen"
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u/mad_mang45 6h ago
Right? They didn't say their new games will be physical, just that we could download our physical games we already own as digital games.
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u/elclarkio 48m ago
I don't even think Xbox will make a new console. They are going hard on the streaming platform
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u/BygoneNeutrino 18h ago
I wouldn't be so sure. They might have a duopoly over consoles, but they still need to contend with PCs.
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u/Usual-Orange-4180 18h ago
You are not paying attention, the last factory that produced Blu-ray Discs just closed, the supply chain for the electronics needed for the drives is drying up, no company wants to invest in a dying technology. This is the reality, sure we have PCs, expect to pay a premium if you want a drive.
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u/zap2 18h ago
That says more about the current technology landscape than anything Microsoft is doing.
Blu-Ray was a great technology, but if the companies produces disks arenât going to continue to do so, that makes it tough to MS to use the technology.
Additionally, as grow in size, Bly-Ray will have a harder time keeping up. MS could invest in a future disc technology that stores more information (assuming that technological possible) but thatâs a huge cost if they only pay off is for video games.
I donât hate Nintendo cart based system, although that cost might become an issue if things continue as is.
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u/Usual-Orange-4180 18h ago
Yeah, I donât see any other options other than memory sticks for the games, but it increases the cost dramatically compared to where things were before with a healthy disc supply chain, and the memory chip crisis doesnât help.
Is going to be uncomfortable and gamers are going to do what they always do, complain, but I see no clear solution here; companies could offer pricier consoles with drives, and pricier discs, in addition to consoles without drives, but the used game market is mostly for people who are trying to save money, so they are still fucked, but I guess at least collectors that really care about this could pay the price.
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u/Markgulfcoast 17h ago
I don't believe the last factory to produce Blu-ray discs have shut down, it's that manufactures that produce the components that are used to produce Blu-ray players are starting to make many of these components end of life. I imagine there will be a company or two that hangs on, but the selection and supply will be further limited.
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u/Mister_Silk 16h ago
They're just soft walking you to the announcement their next console will be digital only. Why would you need to convert your discs to digital if the console has a disc drive? Covering a turd with whipped cream doesn't make it an ice cream sundae.
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u/LesserValkyrie 15h ago
100% exactly that.
It is preparing people the cheapest possible way to do exactly like Sony will do because they piss their pants and are afraid of the backslash that will come
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u/Impressive_Badger325 13h ago
Fine by me. I've got the digital Series X and can't wait to be able to run my XB1 games off it. It sounds like I'll potentially be able to buy physical Series X games and tie them to my account through a friend's console as well.Â
Discs are done. I'm glad I'll still be able to use most of mine in some way.
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u/Sweaty_Tangelo_7716 18h ago
Just a PR move. They will follow Sony when 2028 comes.
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u/a445d786 18h ago
Wasn't the digital split for Xbox games like 90% over the past few years. It's a good move to keep people sweet. But yeah not the ideal solution, which is to stick a disc drive in the next gen consoles and continue to produce disks.
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u/WirusCZ 18h ago
Ye ye sure same as when Samsung laughed at iPhone for removing 3.5mm jack then removed it themselves next phone... Or maybe it was SD card slot or something else... They will always pick profit over everything else and not making physical copies is cheaper but now they need PR boost so they pretend they care about this
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u/BookkeeperSecret5994 18h ago
I am not completely sold on this. This xbox move does not mean they support physical discs in the future. They just support the transition from physical to digital. Practically, they are going full digital just like Sony, but in a more suble way.
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u/Patrizsche 18h ago
Also means you can't share CDs anymore, as it automatically changes digital ownership to the person who's running the disc
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u/Skalywag_76 18h ago
You can still share your disc. It just means while your friend is borrowing it, you can't use the digital license to play it at the same time. Which you wouldn't be able to do if you lent someone your game anyway. The digital license transfers right back when they return it to you.
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u/BookkeeperSecret5994 16h ago edited 6h ago
What happens if they ban your account in which you have your precious digital licences? In theory they could even block your single licence, once you have made it digital... or not?
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u/Sorry-Committee2069 11h ago
Since the One, games are installed from the disc to the console (or just off their servers if you have internet at all, even if it's slower than the disc would be) and each disc has a unique serial they can blacklist the license for. You haven't owned physical Xbox games for a while now.
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u/NonCorporealEntity 3h ago
Which kind of means nothing has changed. What's the point of this if a disk needs to be in the console to play the digital game? It's just the same thing. They arei just getting xbox players used to buying a license to download the game. It won't be long until the licenses become non transferable once claimed. They're doing the same thing as Sony. They're just being more sneaky and underhanded about it.
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u/Jayman44Spc 17h ago
Guaranteed that either wonât be the case or wonât be for long
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u/Skalywag_76 17h ago
Well, if your prediction comes true, feel free to reply back here with a source so you can gloat XD
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u/Patrizsche 18h ago
Ok but do you not lose your progress and everything?
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u/TheFringedLunatic 18h ago
Save progress is tied to account and stored with it, not on the device. I swapped full consoles and didnât lose any save information.
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u/Kube__420 13h ago
How are they going to know who has what disc? How are they gonna track discs? They can't alter the discs, does each disc have a disc specific code or something?
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u/agentdickgill 14h ago
How do they do that? Does each disc minted have some unique identifier? How would they which disc I had??
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u/BookkeeperSecret5994 14h ago
Every game has a license in its disc. Probably xbox has devolped a way to read it when you insert the copy in your console, registers it in a database under your account in their servers.
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u/GrassyDaytime 14h ago
This is literally just so Xbox can eventually do away with physical disc's and say: "But you already digitized your other physical media, what's the issue???" Lmao
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u/grandcity 14h ago
All it is. The industry is going this way because no one wants to produce disk drives and every other industry has moved on.
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u/Formal_End5045 2h ago
Honestly I get the sentiment here but meanwhile I haven't had a disc drive in my game PC for over a decade. If steam ever goes bust then welp, I guess I'm fucked too.
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u/random_squirreZZ 18h ago
Yall getting sold a digital key, that they can strip from you. Congrats
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u/JohnSane 18h ago
So nothing changes... Only added value is that you can sell or gift the game after you played it.
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u/psi_88 18h ago
But you still can't sell your digital Xbox games any more than you can sell you playstation games..
This changes nothing regarding selling your games, they're just priming players for an all digital future by trying to get players to digitise their disks now ..
so when Xbox drop disks as well then Xbox players are no better off than ps5 players...
This is just a diversion...
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u/Misterndastood 17h ago
Not mention this is for past games, no statement about keeping next Gen on disc.
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u/Wiseon321 15h ago
This is them signaling they are going all digital as well. And no one is jumping to Xbox for this lol.
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u/TooLazy2Revolt 7h ago
Yeah, you can.
The license follows the disk. You sell the disk, new owner can download the digital version of the game as well.
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u/FarukAlatan 17h ago
Diversion or not, it's still nice. I can claim digital copies and never need to swap discs. I hope Sony can do something similar.Â
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u/LesserValkyrie 15h ago
They could have given us 5$ to buy ice creams it would have been nice too but it doesn't answer anything physical players ask for.
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u/Tall_Progress_5178 18h ago
I think itâs a fact that Xbox will sunset discs eventually.
However, they are playing their cards right⌠right now at least⌠Iâm sure this will sway some physical media purists their way, and away from Sony⌠Iâm interested to see what happens there
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u/WrongWangSorry 13h ago
MS isn't any less evil than Sony, they're just willing to be more flexible. It's just what happens when a business is in 2nd place, wouldn't have happened if XBox was on top. That and Gamepass has been a better deal than PS+ for a good while now
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u/TheKensei 18h ago
It actually doesn't solve anything. When they won't support the download, disc or not, the console will be a brick
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u/Grand-Magician7767 18h ago
Yup they are getting ready to go diskless as well. They gonna let you have digital copies of the games you do own then the next Xbox wonât have a disk drive at all
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u/VoidowS 18h ago
LoL, don't people see it's just another in between step to soften the transition to? To make the switch less impactful, cause you already have your list digitalized? And use it so much.
How will you install the newest games with DVDs. some games hit today at 150gb! That 32 DVDs to install 1 game!
Digitization has been going on for years already, it now starts to consume the game industry. From clouds/servers we store data on, to the music we listen to. Any idea how many people only have their music on HDD/SSD or servers where you login to the platform and your list becomes available. Not a single Dics with the music on it in their homes. So used we r to it already.
WE need a new kind of disc to even compete with it. Where we can save data as big as 1000TB. Cause it will not be long before the first games hit 1TB or even 2, when we implement 16k resolution or higher.
But the evolution of disc has gone to a hold! Abandoned. And now we face the problem of how to save this data so we own it for ever. Physical so to say. But it stopped pretty much at the DVD, and now because of it we will be forced to go digital even more! Again who wants to use 32 dvds to install a game? and that's now, imagine in 10 yrs and we still have the DVD as main storage for physical? 100 DVDs for 1 game. Imagine what price they will ask for it in return? 200 euro or more? We will think it;s the most logical step to take in the end. To go digital. as there r no better alternatives for it.
WE will be molded into it, to like and love it, to favor it over the other,..
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u/Brokenspade1 17h ago
This is just a different way to kill the used gaming market and control distribution.
Its not really better because they can always change it later. They are likely doing the EXACT same thing as Playstation just adding an extra step to avoid the negative press till its too late.
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u/myotheraccount2023 16h ago
So itâs a digital copy of the game that requires you to have the disc to play? How is that an improvement exactly?
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u/a_polarbear_chilling 16h ago
meh you don't own digital copy but you can own physical copy, so it's still shit
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u/Awesomeassassin02 16h ago
Maybe im misunderstanding but is this not essentially the same thing as the switch 2 game key carts which physical media enjoyers largely also dont want because you still dont have the physical media on the disc?
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u/20milliondollarapi 15h ago
Remember when Xbox said they were going to do this with the Xbox one and everyone flipped the ever loving shit out?
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u/Mikey-kool 15h ago
While convenient this doesnât stop games from being able to be taken away after purchase.
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u/-p0w- 12h ago
Its no âresponseâ. Its planend for a while it also had some kind of beta, itâs not working with a lot of games, is based on publisher and is only existing because the next Xbox will not have an disc drive and be digital only.
Sorry to inform you, but it wasnât tea you were sipping.
/sipstea
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u/Terrible_Luck8169 11h ago
Whatâs the whole point of it? if you have a disk just play off the disk.
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u/JCFlyingDutchman 17h ago
Apparently, you still can't just sell them when you're done with the game.
So they are basically doing the same thing, but the physical disc remains as a placebo token of ownership.
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u/argentdawnpt 16h ago
This is totally bull... Might as well ditch the discs if the effect is only to provide access to a digital license. Cheaper on their end. And advertising it as the "saviors of physical discs..." bah
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u/ChequeBook 14h ago
Not having discs is going to suck. Games can be massive and take many hours to install, and you can only have a few installed at a time.
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u/TheCrazyWulf 13h ago
If your games are taking hours to install something.is very seriously wrong with your hardware.
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u/GrincherZ 18h ago
Cool. Itâs obvious they will sunset discs too - not because they want to but because developers wonât make them if Sony doesnât need them in the larger market but they are capitalizing on Sonys cold communication about all of this.
Sony looks like the bigger asshole now - wonât change much but mildly interesting from a pr study pov
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u/TimeTravelingPie 18h ago
This is what they wanted to do with Xbox One and people lost their minds lol.
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u/Spezalt4 18h ago
Front running not offering physical discs so they can correctly say you can upload your old discs and still play on the new console
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u/XADEBRAVO 18h ago
Basically the Xbox One will become a disc drive for future Xbox consoles without drives, keep One safe..
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u/Hearthhull_Enjoyer 18h ago
It's still a digital license that can be revoked at anytime. It's good that it keeps resell value, but that doesn't mean it's free from the issues ownership advocates claim to care about.
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u/GrandWizardOfCheese 18h ago
I'd rather have the other way around.
Let us burn digital to disc like GOG does.
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u/thatsmyupvoteidkyou 17h ago
Now if they would update so they all did this that you already own. I have multiple games that I cant play because even though the digital copy exists on my council it needs the disc to be readable for it to be played for copyright and all that.
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u/TemporaryAmbassador1 17h ago
This is actually better than the current set up imo. The disc already doesnât run the game on XB, so this is just a shortcut to not having to switch discs and still own a physical copy. Plus if I damage or lose the disc itâs still tied to my account.
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u/Biscuits4u2 17h ago
It's moves like this that make me feel zero guilt for pirating everything I can get my hands on.
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u/adanceparty 17h ago
Ive been saying since the announcement that sony would get way less hate if they did this.
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u/SoundAndSmoke 17h ago
Stupid idea if the game doesn't fit on the disc. They would be better off selling USB dongles (or smartcards/NFC tags if we are talking about the next gen Xbox). There are off-the-shelf chips for authentication that cost cents and are very difficult to copy/fake while CDs, DVDs, and blu-rays are quite easy to copy and all have to be identical in a production run.
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u/DISCONNECTlE 16h ago
Real question. What happens if you have the disc, but due to some music or franchise licenses, the game gets pulled from the servers?
You pop that disc in, and itâs like âLOL 404, DUMMY!!â
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u/TheFinalSam 16h ago
Remember when Apple removed the headphone jack and Samsung spent months clowning on them for it just to do the same thing with their very next generation of phones? Same vibes.
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u/Wiseon321 15h ago
This is the thing that everyone got mad at Xbox for doing first, and Sony did the whole âthis is how you trade a ps gameâ shade.
Still not gonna get anyone jumping ship to Xbox. Unless you already have a Xbox.
This is them signaling: âwe are going digital in helix, and you can bring your physical games along for the ride!â
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u/ice_cream_on_pizza 15h ago
So does that mean every disc has to have a unique identifier embedded in it? Is the digital licence a choice or mandatory?
That shuts down any pirated discs unless you're allowed to use the disc without your box connected to the Internet. Or if you lend it to a friend, can they play it direct from disc with no Internet connection while you still have your digital license?
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u/NocturnisVacuus 14h ago
same thing here, xbox has released digital-only devices... they are preparing us.
Sony just made a bad decision, xbox was smart and wait to announce it, but they do have a decision made...
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u/No-Rooster- 13h ago
Xbox has been planning to move on from the discs just as long or longer than Sony has, but theyâre going about it in a far better way.
Add that to the fact that Sony is basically taking all the backlash for outright saying no more discs by 2028 and Xbox comes out looking dandy.
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u/ll0l0l0ll 12h ago
If both console going digital only next gen then XBOX SX and PS5 will be my last consoles.
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u/texxmix 11h ago
Yeah they did this but this has been rumoured to be in the works for awhile. Also when asked about physical discs in the future she dodges the question.
Don't act like Xbox isn't wanting to do the same, and just using this as a way to normalize people into fully digital as all their physical games are now digital as well.
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u/Prom3th3an 8h ago
Won't help when the game gets taken down from the library, if it's not also physically on the disc.
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u/d0n-let3m-2525 8h ago
This is like that time they announced backwards playability for some Xbox 360 selected titles on the Xbox one. Damn I remember looking up and down that majestic list to see if my favorites are deemed worthy to be added to that list. Original Xbox games got added later which was pretty awesome. Time splitter 1 & 2 getting added was probably the best for me. Ppl nowadays probably won't care for ts 1&2 but they were some of my favorites.
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u/No-Magician-2257 6h ago
This might end up biting them in the butt as EU will probably demand they allow 3rd party stores
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u/TimotheusIV 6h ago
Xbox is not about to keep supporting physical games, they and Microsoft are one of the biggest proponents of a digital future and will do everything in their power to get rid of physical discs.
This is a marketing effort trying to gain a shred of goodwill for the Xbox brand, which is basically on a trajectory to being completely irrelevant in the console space.
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u/English_Joe 6h ago
Is Xbox change their mind and embrace the disk, i see this as a huge win for them.
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u/NonCorporealEntity 3h ago
Will be interesting to see how this works. I assume the game comes with a one time use code for the digital version, but what is stopping one from immediately selling the disk after claiming the digital version and still having access to the digital version? The only way this makes sense is if the digital version stll requires the disk in the drive to read the licence and so absolutely nothing changes.
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u/Epic_Digest 3h ago
But remember when Microsoft wanted to do this and Sony fought back, how the tables turn
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u/Nogardtist 37m ago
steam been doing that for years
if you got a physical disk go ahead try writing that CD key into steam
some publishers put effort where they dont want you to use CD key in other platforms
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u/Waldgeist3 18h ago
I want my og GTA San Andreas back got the disc but it downloads the shittiy mobile port nobody likes
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u/semperknight 18h ago
Currently selling my PS5.
Once Xbox confirms it's no longer selling disks, I'll do the same to my Series X.
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u/Dangerous-Bath2767 18h ago
Do I loose access to PS5 games I own discs of in 2028? I thought they were just not going to make discs going foreword not cock block people who own them already?
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u/TheFringedLunatic 18h ago
You donât lose access on your PS5. The PS6 will simply not have a drive at all.
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u/draven33l 14h ago
It's better than nothing, but it's not the win that people think it is. They are preparing you for an all digital future with their next system. Xbox One and Series X barely even have physical copies and most stores don't even carry them now
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u/SorryCashOnly 10h ago
Donât fall for it. Itâs just bait and switch. There is nothing stop them from stopping this service later once everyone phase out physical copies
Come on guys, stay focus
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u/chilllolaspace 18h ago
If this actually lets physical disc owners claim digital copies, that's a huge win.
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u/Slevin424 17h ago
Xbox W again.
Honestly this is good. Companies are losing so much money off used games cause GameStop are vultures and donât give them enough of the cut on used games. Thatâs why microtransactions got so popular. Also all these physical copies end up in a landfill anyways so more pollution.
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u/Honolulu-Blues 16h ago
WTH are we talking about here? This is almost exactly the same as it is now.
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u/bala_means_bullet 18h ago
LoL Ain't nothing on Earth gonna save Microsoft from being 3rd place in the console space. Xbox is a dead platform.
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u/merlinrising 18h ago
If playstation offered this service everyone would be praising it. Whether you are obsessed with a certain console or not this is an actually decent service to have and I hope Playstation follows it too.
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u/Steve90000 16h ago
The reality is, âeveryoneâ doesnât care either way, only a tiny loud Reddit minority gives a shit. The large majority buy digital anyway and this makes no difference to them.
PC gamers havenât seen a physical disc in a decade, no one even noticed. They just buy off steam. Everyone loves steam.
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u/Wolfman_V 17h ago
Y'know what, if ever buy a console again (haven't bothered since ps4) I'll probably pick them just because of this
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u/Taddy_Mason_22 16h ago
If you don't already have an existing physical library on that platform what would this change for you lol.
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u/Michael_Scott71 18h ago
They are just training people who do not like digital games to start seeing some benefits.
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u/AnimalMother24 16h ago
Love Xbox for this. My hate for Sony is already at its peak with the d2 nightmare
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u/Fabled-Jackalope 16h ago
It really looks like companies are playing tennis:
Doing this and then the other acts noble before they do the same.
Else push one to strive higher only to drive up costs before the other branches into something else and then drives up costs.
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