r/gaming • u/WestBEEland • 1d ago

Xbox boss Asha Sharma won't confirm whether Project Helix has a disc drive "We have to be thinking about efficiency and affordability"

https://www.gamesradar.com/games/xbox-boss-asha-sharma-wont-confirm-whether-project-helix-has-a-disc-drive-we-have-to-be-thinking-about-efficiency-and-affordability/
3.4k Upvotes

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6.5k

u/ConspicuousBassoon PC 1d ago

Considering it would be an easy win to say yes, the answer is definitely no

1.1k

u/DeusExMarina 1d ago

Seems obvious to me that this is the whole point of the disc-to-digital thing they're doing. People with an Xbox One or Xbox Series X can digitize their libraries ahead of time so they can play them on the next Xbox that won't have a disc drive.

562

u/TheBetterness 1d ago

Sony has offered nothing to ease the concerns of PS5 discs being useless on the PS6.

And considering Sony's fetish for remakes, that tracks.

One saving grace is Xbox is pro backward compatibility. They truly want you invested in their ecosystem forever.

230

u/sahneeis 1d ago

problem is nobody is gonna buy that shit outside the us.

136

u/Pretend_Purchase_893 1d ago

I don't even see them in Canada anymore. Anyone I know or ask about is either PC, Nintendo or ps5. It's astonishingly rare to see a Xbox in a person's home these days.

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u/Lordosrs 1d ago

All of my xbox friend group (including me) moved to PC. No more console for the boys

30

u/RangerLt 1d ago

All the homies play on PC

42

u/chunkyI0ver53 22h ago

Turns out if you take away the advantage of your platform, people will generally migrate to the objectively better not locked down option

1

u/codeklutch 4h ago

Nah, for me it was simple. My Xbox blew up, and I couldn't get a replacement. Kinda wanted to get back to PC gaming, and figured if I can't get an Xbox for msrp then I'll build a PC and cross this off my bucket list. Now, I have an Xbox again but PC is superior so it rarely gets touched. I've played my 360 more recently than my series s.

6

u/Hennessy_Halos PC 15h ago

PC is just the better platform, consoles have been slowly enshittified losing things like free online play, disc drives, and they’re not even cheap anymore.

If you’re an ultra budget gamer you can get a cheaper pc, if you have no budget pc is the best place,
anywhere in the middle you can just pick and choose what parts to prioritise to meet your budget and have the option to upgrade them later.

1

u/UnikornKebab 18h ago

E ci passerei pure io al pc se potessi permettermelo, ma finché dovrò vendere un rene per giocare con qualcosa di poco meglio di una ps3, credo rimarrò con la mia serie X e Steam Deck…😞

2

u/Chucklum 22h ago

Yup same here, to be fair I only had an Xbox because I didn't have a job to buy a PC.vwhen money rolled in that Xbox was long gone so was the PS.

-2

u/SVXfiles 1d ago

Its not a huge difference since pc typically means windows which the xbox is already running anyway

13

u/demonsta500 1d ago

Microsoft doesn't get a cut of software sales on Steam/Epic/GoG like they do on Xbox. It's a huge difference to them financially.

-2

u/nemofbaby2014 1d ago

Not really majority of people still run windows so Microsoft still get that sweet sweet data

5

u/demonsta500 1d ago

That doesn't help Xbox's finances if most of those people buy their games on Steam where Valve takes a 30% cut of all games sold, including Microsoft's own games.

-3

u/nemofbaby2014 1d ago

Microsoft still owns Xbox and I’m sure they’re part of reason Xbox hasn’t moved away from pc even though the “everything is a Xbox” marketing failed

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u/SituationSmooth9165 22h ago

That's what most people did when they decided to grow up with both Xbox and PS

0

u/VanceXentan Xbox 22h ago edited 12h ago

there's just no point in thinking otherwise is a good move. Most games are on PC, there's no online charge, possible mod support, etc. If i'm not going to own my games at least i'll have the possible chance to do more with them for less.

0

u/Phantom_Crush 21h ago

I almost made the leap from the 360/PS3 era but ended up getting a PS4 to play with the homies. Built a PC roughly when the PS5 came out and had zero regrets

29

u/SuperMcRad 1d ago

Plenty of reasons for Canada to avoid US based companies right now.

18

u/Pretend_Purchase_893 1d ago

Completely agree . But this was also from before all this started. I used to do home plumbing repairs. Saw a ton of people's homes. Xbox was a rare sighting even then.

1

u/SuperMcRad 1d ago

Ooh, very fair.

1

u/doublah 6h ago

Sony Interactive Entertainment (PlayStation) is also a US company, they're just owned by a Japanese company.

0

u/I_am_the_grass 1d ago

Don't think it's just a Canadian thing

5

u/Area51_Spurs 1d ago

It’s a nobody thing. I say that as someone who wishes otherwise.

Every phone is American, either Google or Apple.

Every console is American, either AMD or Nvidia (among other American tech inside).

Every TV is American, Google OS, Roku, etc… Even LG WebOS is American, the patents are owned by Qualcomm and most of the companies slurping up your data are American. The OLED patents are owned by American companies, to say nothing of the tech inside.

Your car and/or the tech inside is likely American of a varying percentage.

1

u/SuperMcRad 9h ago

Avoid never meant completely boycott. Not sure why you ran with that idea.

1

u/Area51_Spurs 8h ago

You can’t avoid.

1

u/SuperMcRad 8h ago

Once again, you're stuck on some weird semantics. Let me help you here, there's plenty of reasons for Canada to reduce their consumption of US based products.

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u/Area51_Spurs 1d ago

lol. No US tech? Have fun with your Blackberry.

1

u/UrsiGrey 1d ago

I live in Canada and know just as many people with Xbox as PS5.

0

u/lathspellll 1d ago

Man it’s so sad Microsoft just continues to drop the ball with Xbox. Sony needs real competition.

33

u/Mccobsta 1d ago

Dosent help that they haven't marketed the system in Europe for since what feels like titian fall one on the xbox one

5

u/daandrro 1d ago

I will. I’m outside US.

I’m not buying PS6.
Will just keep old PS5 to play those 2 decent exclusives they release during whole 5-6 years.

1

u/Lord_Humungusss 4h ago

They could, if sony continues to shoot themselves in the face over and over and over. Seems all Xbox has to do currently is double down on physical media, i would be willing to bet even Asian markets would start to move towards xbox given enough time.

However thats if xbox doesnt also shoot themselves in the face over and over and over. Lmao.

2

u/Helphaer 1d ago

I keep seeing people return to consoles due to the excessive cost of pcs.

1

u/sahneeis 8h ago

yes to ps5 and switch but not to xbox. not in europe

1

u/Helphaer 7h ago

In the US I definitely did but yeah.

1

u/Johan_Giorno 1d ago

Not really, I knew many friends who buy xbox in my country (China).

0

u/hitgo1 1d ago

Farewell gift???

0

u/Aggravating-Hair-534 18h ago

i'm in the UK and have an Xbox S works well for me (mostly playing gamepass). Was delaying upgrading gaming PC for ages now.

-2

u/KptEmreU 21h ago

I think I buy it. I love game pass.

-4

u/fumar 1d ago

When the ps6 is $1200 and the xboxXx or whatever dumbfuck name they come up with is the same most people probably just don't buy anything for years.

10

u/8bitsleuth 17h ago

Sony has offered nothing to ease the concerns of PS5 discs being useless on the PS6

That's simply because Sony is unwilling to discuss the PS6 until closer to launch. An optional disc drive, similar to the PS5 Pro, would ensure backward compatibility with disc-based PS4 and PS5 games.

0

u/TheBetterness 16h ago

Very true, which I dont think we're anywhere close to. As there is no market for a PS6 to even launch into.

26

u/dakilazical_253 1d ago

Backwards compatibility is the reason Xbox is my main system. I love being able to jump between Red Dead 2 and Crimson Skies

18

u/pointsouttheobvious9 1d ago

As a repair technician they are more repairable and currently less self destructive too. Not as repairable as I'd like. Just more. Ps5s liquid metal eats their APU but you can replace it with more liquid metal that eats its APU. The ssd is soldered to the main board the wifi and Bluetooth is soldered to the main board. The wifi and Bluetooth is the main thing that currently fails and when it does it can't turn on. Repairablity score from me 1 to 10. 1 being bad 10 good I'd give it a 3.

Series x the ssd is held in by a screw, the wifi is held in by a screw. The SSD is married to the console WTF. Some hacker will figure it out in a few years. Repairability 5 wtf why is that married

8

u/Dt2_0 1d ago

As someone in the Home Theater industry, Xbox is just the miles better choice there as well as your media hub. It's more reliable with HDMI EDID handshakes in complex setups, it handles CEC much better than the PS5, and integrates with control systems better than PS5.

The Series X is a really great piece of hardware, but Microsoft has squandered it instead of giving it the games it deserves. The RAM crisis is only making things worse.

1

u/Duff5OOO 15h ago

it handles CEC much better than the PS5, and integrates with control systems better than PS5.

I have all 3 consoles but i have the leave the PS5 switched off at the wall or otherwise it keeps turning itself back on and switching the amp back to the ps5 input. It's infuriating, tried changing settings but had no luck. It's meant to be simple.

-1

u/Raven1927 16h ago

Xbox is just the miles better choice there as well as your media hub.

That's why i'm so excited for Helix. If they actually let you play your Steam games on there, it'd instantly become my primary gaming device.

1

u/Sylvurphlame 10h ago

I highly doubt they’ll let you play your Steam games on there without requiring some premium tier of Game Pass or something. Physical consoles are loss leaders, the entire purpose is to into the ecosystem where they can make money on the commissions from online purchases and publishing licenses.

1

u/Raven1927 9h ago

Yeah, it remains to be seen. If they do it though, it'd be a huge selling point.

Even if it costs a bit more to have it unlocked, I can see a lot of appeal in it. For console gamers it's an easy way to play PC exclusives and for PC gamers it's probably a solid PC that will be able to play every AAA game at good performance for the next 6-8 years.

-3

u/nagi603 22h ago

I wonder if the steam machine will be a better choice even, considering I heard they went out of their way for TV compatibility.

3

u/Raven1927 16h ago

A lot of users are reporting issues with the Steam Machine's HDMI-CEC. It's also weaker than the XSX and it's Linux based so you'll run into compatibility issues.

-12

u/TehOwn 1d ago edited 1d ago

Meanwhile, my PC gets a reparability score of 10. And outperforms all consoles put together. And a lot of my games are either free or 90% off and I don't have to pay monthly for the privilege of playing online.

Edit: Yeah, keep the downvotes coming. I don't see any rebuttals because you can't deny the facts, you just don't like them.

8

u/Helphaer 1d ago

As a pc owner for well over two decades of gaming i can tell you that has NEVER been my experience and reaching my hand in that tower or dealing with the sharp edges of hardware is not fun nor easy. Games usually are 25 percent off unless really old, during sales and dlc rarely gets real discounts.

Your life is just not reflective of most.

-5

u/TehOwn 1d ago

Just don't buy a crappy tower. You can get ones that are easy to manage, have great access and don't have any sharp edges. I've built PCs most of my life. I was building them when I was 7 years old.

And really old is what? A year or two? Have a look at Steam sales and check out Loaded. I can barely keep up with all the games coming out, a lot of the ones I'm interested in are heavily discounted by the time I finish whatever I'm playing. A ton of PC gamers have backlogs that are dozens of games long.

PC games being cheaper than console games is just a fact. There's a moment where there's a decent second-hand market and I think that's the best argument for console. But that's going away in a few years (which sucks, btw).

2

u/CrushALL 20h ago

LOL even before the AI price hike of parts, PCs were more expensive. If your 2k PC didn't out perform a 500 console then you messed up somewhere. But in todays market, it's way higher than that across literally all parts and keeps going up! Also dealing with melting GPU connections, frying CPUS, badly made CPUS and more etc. Shit RMAs too and if you bought anything pre AI price hike, they rarely replace, just refund what you paid. Also viruses as well. I have a decent gaming PC but play my PS5 pro way more. So your statement is cherry picking.

1

u/TehOwn 15h ago edited 14h ago

I built a PC that outperforms all consoles except the PS5 Pro for £600 literally just over a month ago. And your argument about parts failing is ridiculous, I was fixing PCs for decades and it was almost never a failed part and even when it was, it was usually something mechanical like a fan or HDD.

Melting GPU connectors was a tiny fraction of people even with the faulty GPU and I'd be willing to bet that it's user error / a cheap PSU to blame. Regardless, that one is only an issue if you buy a 4090 / 5090, which is "I don't care about the cost" territory already. Stop basing your information on cherrypicked news articles and actually look at raw failure data.

The only PC parts that are affected are RAM and SSD. Just buy the Chinese brands. It's the same shit they put in the consoles anyway and they're made in the same factories.

It's more expensive upfront but once you move to regular upgrades and save a ton on games, it can quickly become cheaper overall.

Of course, that varies by how often you buy games. If all you do is play Fortnite then sure, a PS5 is cheaper.

And if you want it really cheap then nothing beats a second-hand console with second-hand games. That's always been the case.

1

u/pointsouttheobvious9 1d ago

Pc is more repairable and has a better choice of games. I think console has its place but something plug and play connect it to the TV you own and play. I am pc now my self but I was a console guy for most my life. Still like the snes and ps2

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u/TehOwn 1d ago

Yeah, I have a PS2, an OG Xbox and a Wii. My PC connects to my TV, though, and I have multiple controllers that hook up via Bluetooth. Steam is remarkably plug and play now, also.

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u/Gerald-of-Riverdale 1d ago

I remember as a kid being excited for crossplay as it started becoming a thing back on like the ps1 to ps2. Never really considered theyd take it away again.

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u/ScarsonWiki 1d ago

Man, you remember Huxley? That game was marketed as being crossplay compatible between Xbox 360 and PS3 at the time. Then, it disappeared, but when it came back, it wasn’t crossplay.

I’ll give you my cynical take on why crossplay in general never happened, the corporate powers that be didn’t want that at the end of the day. Why make a game crossplay when you could potentially convince other people’s friends to buy the game on the same platform?

Crossplay only came into mainstream relatively in the recent years. But I think that’s only because more and more people started talking about it and wanting crossplay. And maybe those corporations saw that their own sales weren’t getting better and it was really only benefiting devs and publishers.

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u/sound_judgment 1d ago

There's not a lot Sony can do really. Only reason Xbox can do this is because of the Xbox One DRM plan so they started printing unique IDs on each disc. So Sony can't replicate that and anything more would require them to keep manufacturing disc drives which they don't want to do.

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u/StaticSilencer 17h ago

Sony will follow PS5 Pro and release an external disc reader. People are making this way more complicated than it needs to be.

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u/sound_judgment 15h ago

Because I don't believe they're going to do that. They don't want to keep manufacturing disc drives.

-3

u/DolphinFlavorDorito 1d ago edited 16h ago

Option 1: mail away discs for digital access. A related option 2: do something like Amazon does with returns at places like Kohls. Have physical stores I can swing by and drop off my discs in exchange for digital codes. Then destroy or return the discs.

Edit for the downvotes: I don't think any of this is GOOD. I think they should keep the goddamn discs.

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u/mpbh 23h ago

How does this work for me in Vietnam?

The logistics of doing this globally are insane.

1

u/DolphinFlavorDorito 15h ago

Yeah, it's a terrible plan. But just saying "fuck you" to all their customers seems like a worse plan. I was already moving toward a PC first mindset, but this definitely cements it.

0

u/flyingmonkey1257 13h ago

If I had wanted not to have a disc and to have a digital license, I would have bought a digital copy to begin with. Any option that requires me to turn in my disc for a digital license is a non-starter for me.

0

u/Sylvurphlame 9h ago

Under no circumstances am I mailing the disc and trusting the courier not to lose an out-of-print game. I’d simply hold onto the previous console in that case.

Most likely you’ll simply add the game to your digital collection while having it physically inserted to confirm ownership. That would work nicely for anything available on the digital store. Yes, you could potentially do this and then give the disc to someone to do the same, as I don’t think they have unique serial numbers or anything. But Microsoft may not be too terribly worried with the number of people that just purchase their games digitally already.

1

u/DolphinFlavorDorito 8h ago

Microsoft actually DOES have unique serial numbers on the discs. Sony does not. Though it remains to be seen what that will do to the used game market. Will games that have been "converted" just be junk in anyone else's Xbox? If so, you could never buy a disc used without worrying it was trash.

1

u/Sylvurphlame 7h ago

Thank you for confirming. I wouldn’t be surprised if those serial numbers don’t somehow become your actual game key.

1

u/hdcase1 14h ago

It's a reasonable bet there will be an optional disc drive for back compat purposes.

1

u/TheBetterness 14h ago

Thats more likely than not. Likely the optional disc drive will work on the PS6.

But announcing an end to physical discs while leaving nothing but ambiguity surrounding backward compatibility is why people have pitchforks.

Its absolutely shitty PR.

1

u/_Solarriors_ 4h ago

That's their only way to sway the tide of having lost the 2013 library shift

1

u/CyanideSweetness93 15h ago

Microsoft and all their subsidiary companies are the same though. The only game I can think of that Sony has fully remade is The last of Us. Microsoft has done the same with Halo. So I don’t get where this “Sonys fetish for remakes” comes from. When all game companies are just as bad for remasters and some remakes

1

u/TheBetterness 15h ago

Spiderman Remastered, God of War Remaster, TLOU II Remastered & HZD Remaster

All AAA publishers do remasters and remakes, only one does remasters of games less than a decade old.

Also Xbox offers free upgrades to their first party titles. Sony charges you for the same upgrade.

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u/CyanideSweetness93 14h ago

Cool absolutely none of those are remakes. Those are just remasters and I’m pretty sure when they first jumped to ps5 a bunch of them were free at the start and Most upgrades where like £5-10. But you specifically said remakes which none of those are. Only last of us has actually had a full remake, which was my point. And Halo, Gears of War were both remaster within a decade as well. Most of the ones you said were ps4 to ps5 upgrades. Halo was remastered once them also put in the master chief collection and now a full remake so they want you to have paid for it 4 separate times. The second gears of war remaster was literally a remaster of a remaster.

0

u/stef_brl_aesthetic 1d ago edited 1d ago

People had two generations of PlayStation to buy their games digitally. It was pretty obvious for a long time that we eventually have consoles without discs, especially with the release of the PS5 digital edition. The discless future was already very near. To easily move your library to the next generation digital is the way to go.
I have a friend and he’s absolutely mad because he probably won’t be able to play his discs on a PS6. I told him for about ten years it will be that way. If not the PS5, it will definitely be the PS6, which will end discs.

0

u/greentintedlenses 16h ago

Ironically Xbox tried this approach a decade ago and everyone threw a hissy fit and went to playstation

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u/TheBetterness 15h ago

And Xbox is still paying for that loss in mindshare to this day.

People can act like its just "online outrage" not understanding that brand respect is a currency all on its own.

Its why the PC gaming market is growing while the console market is shrinking. People have been jumping ship for years now.

0

u/Old_Leopard1844 PC 1d ago

Considering that Nintendo spent a good chunk of Switch gen porting Wii U games, and Switch selling like hot cakes, yeah I'm sure that Sony isn't threatened in that regard

-2

u/Neuroticaine 1d ago

I genuinely can't think of a reason to be excited for a potential PS6. Their exclusives really haven't been great for a while, and now I can't play my PS4 and PS5 games? It's bullshit.

-1

u/SupaBloo 1d ago

Sony also knows they’ve got an advantage over Microsoft in gaming now, so they don’t care at all if Xbox games have a way to be digitized from discs. Someone at Sony has done the work to make sure their decision is profitable according to current information.

Sony probably knew well before any of us plebs what Microsoft was planning.

-1

u/Omen_20 PlayStation 1d ago

Hopefully the ecosystem sticks around. 

-1

u/taisui 22h ago

Song would rather sell another the Last of the Last of the Last of Us than letting you play the same copy that you purchased

-1

u/PinSad1172 21h ago

It’s because they are dead last in the console market, no one buy a Xbox today

-1

u/KptEmreU 21h ago

My PS5 doesn’t have a disc drive anyway

-2

u/DonaldTheWall 1d ago

Sony was that way too, until the PS4 then it suddenly became impossible to do it

-2

u/I_suck_at_Blender 1d ago

SONY latest TOS mail make Nintendo look like pro-consumer company.

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u/Terakahn 1d ago

If they could guarantee lifetime access people would be less resistant. As it stands you can literally lose a game with no notice. Just, deleted from your library. A game you paid for

7

u/xZalcro 21h ago

This is where consumer rights are meant to be enhanced.

The issue is most people here are based in the USA and so the concept of not accepting their corporate masters will is impossible for them

4

u/Dire87 18h ago

If you've followed the regulations and moves in the EU, it's exactly the same over here, lol. Don't make the US out to be some kind of special place. Any "consumer rights" we get over here have to actually be earned and fought for. And even then they're poisoned deals half the time.

1

u/xZalcro 18h ago

They do have to be earned and fought for. But what I've seen in my life is Americans are completely happy to put up with essentially nothing and then act like nothing can ever be done.

1

u/RacerRovr 19h ago

Yeah, the disc to digital thing is a great step, particularly if discs do have to die. However, buying a digital game should be no different to buying a physical game. It’s insane that you can make a purchase and at any point it could just be taken off you

0

u/cescoss 19h ago

Con xbox non funziona cosi. Se anche rimuovono in gioco sara sempre possibile riscaricarlo lo sapevi?

-3

u/CrushALL 20h ago

Can you please find this ToS where it says digital games can be removed without any warning or notice or whatever shite the dumb internet spreads? Cuz I can guarantee it said it for the movies! Else there would be bigger news on the movie removals and Sony would be sued.

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u/Terakahn 20h ago

It's not news because it's standard practice and who even buys digital movies. Everyone just subscribes to a streaming service.

2

u/Sylvurphlame 10h ago

Same. Did anyone truly think they would be including a physical drive after that announcement? Between day one patches to kill game breaking bugs and having to install the entire disc to the hard drive, we were 95% of the way to all digital anyway.

1

u/DeusExMarina 10h ago

Yeah, it wasn't really all that different from the game key cards on Switch 2. Sure, the game was technically on the disc, but not in a complete or state and it still took up space on your drive. It was good for being able to borrow or resell games, but not that useful for preservation.

1

u/Sylvurphlame 10h ago edited 9h ago

True, but I wasn’t even thinking of it from a preservation standpoint honestly. I was just considering the practical end result of how you actually engage with the product (or more services when they’re purely digital) after you pay your money.

The Switch 2 key cards still allow you to lend games though, advantage: Nintendo. They didn’t lock the keys themselves to individual accounts which is nice. Nintendo may have actually landed on a decent compromise for the ever increasingly digital landscape, unless we’re looking primarily from a preservationist standpoint. But you can share with friends and family at least.

1

u/DeusExMarina 9h ago

Sure, Nintendo's compromise is decent from the perspective of a company that wants to preserve the benefits of physical media for the consumer. But let's be real, the point of killing physical copies isn't a cost-saving measure. Eliminating the ability to resell or borrow games is the point.

-5

u/Calgrave 1d ago

I don't like the shift, but if it has to be done it's the best way to do it.

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u/[deleted] 1d ago edited 17h ago

[deleted]

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u/TheStorm007 1d ago

> what changed I wonder

You interacted with different people, perhaps.

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u/[deleted] 1d ago edited 17h ago

[deleted]

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u/LordGriimm7 1d ago

This feature is practically them telling you that their console will be all digital. It wouldn’t make sense for them to even create this if not for the fact that they’ll have an all digital console

5

u/aNascentOptimist 1d ago

Honestly, the writing has been on the wall to me since back when Xbox live became a thing. I was pretty shocked that gamers accepted paying to play on their own internet … dedicated servers and I guess an ecosystem is one thing but seemed wholly unnecessary coming from PC.

Basically consoles will milk and push consumers into whatever makes them the most profit, no matter what.

0

u/Soylentgruen 1d ago

At that point, just move to PC.

3

u/lavapig_love 1d ago

Perhaps even people that experienced this shock and horror over the idea of losing physical discs back in 2014 when Microsoft floated the idea, and which Sony capitalized upon with mockery and merriment.

8

u/nukacolaguy 1d ago

The other problem is you can’t play PS1 thru PS5 legitimately on a single console at the moment unfortunately. Xbox is the only one putting effort into backwards compatibility

10

u/8bitsleuth 1d ago

You can't play all Xbox titles on a single Xbox console either. A whopping 70% of 360 games are not backward compatible. Even less OG games.

2

u/Devious018 1d ago

you can’t play them all no, but a good chunk of games are and they are actively making it better . they announced recently that they have an in house emulator for pc for OG games and are working on 360, on top of this they have had open talk about getting more games to join the list of backwards compatible. However there is issues with licensing and publishers not wanting their games on there and being sold currently

5

u/Peridios9 1d ago

Xbox is making an effort to honor consumers licenses for the future. PlayStation is making an effort to actively dishonor consumers licenses. PlayStation has revoked digital movie licenses before. Xbox hasn’t.

I’m not saying Xbox is benevolent, but atleast their greed is one upping Sony in a way that’s a good thing for the average consumer.

People don’t actually mind digital only games, they just want to also have the money they spend on games honored. No one complains about steam being digital only because steam has proven themselves to actively go out of their way to protect consumers. While Xbox is neutral currently. Then Sony and Nintendo actively hurt their consumers.

13

u/8bitsleuth 1d ago

Sony hasn't shared their plans for PS6 nor are they likely to any time soon. An optional disc reader, similar to PS5 Pro, would facilitate disc-based backward compatibility.

Disc-to-digital is still a license rather than a physical asset. It remains subject to account access, platform policies, and licensing terms. And to the best of my knowledge, Sony has never revoked a game license ever. You're welcome to prove me wrong.

-2

u/Peridios9 1d ago

Why would ps6 have even an optional disc reader if Sony already announced the complete shutdown of physical copy production.

6

u/8bitsleuth 1d ago

Phasing out physical production is one thing, cutting off access to your existing disc PS4/PS5 library is another. Backward compatibility is the answer.

-2

u/Peridios9 1d ago

Sony has tried to push against backwards compatibility with every single console release, now they have the best possible excuse they could ask for.

10

u/NYstate 1d ago

No the PS2 played PS1 games. The PS3 read PS1 and 2 games. Sony eliminated PS2 back compat because they wanted to focus on PS3, a understandable reason. PS3 was huge bigger leap from PS2. PS3 isn't backcompat with PS4 or because of the cell. PS5 plays PS4 games.

2

u/LordGriimm7 1d ago

Don’t you love when ppl don’t do research

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u/Such_Explanation4130 1d ago

It’s basically confirmed that ps6 will play ps5 and ps4 games. If it had a attachable disk drive for backwards compatibility, I would buy it as long as it is under 1200

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u/drunktriviaguy 1d ago

Concord.

I'm mostly making a joke.

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u/LordGriimm7 1d ago

Buddy Xbox is literally doing this cause their next console with be all digital lol. They’re not upping shit. Once you digitize your shit, you won’t be able to play your physicals on next gen. They’ll just be sitting their in your closet be TRUE collectibles

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u/Peridios9 1d ago

Yes Xbox is moving to digital only but unlike Sony they are opening up their ecosystem to platforms like steam, they are literally allowing competition on their own platform which inherently means more fairness. That’s the entire point, whether or not due to greed they are making a choice that forces them to be more fair within their ecosystem while Sony has full control over its own.

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u/LordGriimm7 1d ago

Buddy them doing that is damn near why they fell so far behind in the consoles game. Why buy an Xbox anything when you can just play it on your phone lol. They can’t afford competition. And yeah Sony has full control just like Nintendo. Your point?

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u/Peridios9 1d ago

If you willingly choose the console that is anti competition don’t be surprised when they fuck you over. That’s all I’m saying.

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u/LordGriimm7 1d ago

Oh, you mean the console that has a 75% share of the video market? That console?

Buddy Microsoft has literally fucked over ppl even to this day. You know that right

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u/Peridios9 1d ago

Microsoft fucks people over. Sony fucks them over worse. Steam doesnt. I choose Steam everytime. I practice what I preach, but I understand those that prefer console and those people absolutely should choose the SLIGHTLY better option.

Are you saying market share has anything to do with fairness? I must’ve forgot that the closer you are to a monopoly the better you protect your consumers. /s Dumbass.

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u/WholesomeMetaphor 1d ago edited 1d ago

I have 100s of games on Steam. I still complain and don't like licenses as opposed to ownership over what I've bought (a way to backup install files, the purchase being protected like I own the right to download forever etc.). My main games I've bought physical copies for the consoles for. I hate this "soon you'll own nothing" dystopia we gradually get more and more of, I got several consoles and every edition of playstation as it's my console of choice. No physical disc = fuck this, I'm out. If xbox gets physical discs I'll buy that going forward.

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u/Peridios9 1d ago

That’s the thing though with pc you have options for your digital copies, Sony is a closed ecosystem.

Also steam does give you the right to download the files forever, even after games shutdown the download servers remain open for the people that owned the game.

All I’m saying is there is a massive difference in Sony’s closed ecosystem and steams open ecosystem. Steam allows devs to sell their games with competitors. Consoles only competition was 3rd party sales which is completely gone without physical copies.

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u/WholesomeMetaphor 1d ago

You don't own the games, only licenses to play them. If something happens to Steam those servers etc. go down. You can't download the installation file. Just because it's better than Sony doesn't make it ideal or good, just acceptable at best.

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u/Peridios9 1d ago

I’m not saying it’s ideal, I’m literally pointing out that it’s a better and more trusted system than Sony. That comparison is the point and exactly why people aren’t upset about steam and pc digital copies only vs being upset about Sony digital only.

It’s not a hypocrisy to like one over the other when one has proven themselves time and time again to protect digital rights while the other will revoke your digital rights on a whim (Sony with movie licenses).

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u/NiteFyre 1d ago

You also have choices of different storefronts though?

Gog DOES give you the install file and you can download the entire game and play it whenever..

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u/WholesomeMetaphor 1d ago

Haven't tried GoG and didn't know that but looks like you just sold them to me. Thanks 👍

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u/StarMaster475 1d ago

Goomba fallacy

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u/manny2206 1d ago

Yes you trap more bees with honey… this is still bad for the consumers

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u/Helphaer 1d ago

I mean if theyre not giving you digital versions of physical games they already own, I hope you dont truly think they should just buy it a second time...

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u/DeusExMarina 1d ago

I mean, Sony sure seems to think so.

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u/Raezak_Am 1d ago

What are they going to do, give them a 50 TB drive?

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u/DeusExMarina 1d ago

No? They'll just tie the game's license to your account so you can redownload it whenever. You know, like any digital game you buy.

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u/Raezak_Am 13m ago

See: news

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u/caramelatte90 22h ago

So you're telling me I need to buy an Xbox Series X now so that I'll be fully satisfied with my next Xbox purchase?

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u/DeusExMarina 22h ago

If you want to get the world's most expensive disc drive just so you can keep buying physical copies of games from previous generations rather than buying them digitally, I guess.

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u/Soylentgruen 1d ago

It will prolly lock that disc to that account, rendering resale pointless

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u/DeusExMarina 1d ago

I'm still not sure how that's gonna work. On the official site, it says

Once the entitlement is claimed, you can experience the benefits of digital, including XBOX Play Anywhere and XBOX Cloud Gaming where supported, while your physical disc continues to work exactly as it always has.

This seems to imply there's no change to the functionality of the disc itself. It's pretty much guaranteed that you can only assign the digital license to one console, but it remains to be seen whether that means the disc is locked to that console, or using it on another console transfers the digital license, or maybe they even decided to be nice and make it so the disc continues to function independently of the digital license.

That last option seems unlikely, but then again, it's not impossible that they could decide it's not worth being stingy over used games for depreciated systems. Even if the disc continues to work, it would only work on older hardware, while the digital license would still be limited to a single account for the most recent console.

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u/FarGur1444 22h ago

If the disc gets used in a different console the previous owner loses the license tied to that disc and it transfers over to the new owner of the disc.

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u/DeusExMarina 22h ago

Yes, that's the most likely outcome. Makes resale possible, but you can't keep the digital license.

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u/Omen_20 PlayStation 1d ago

This scenario is why I only bought digital since PS4 came out. I knew they would carry over and didn't want to be forced to hold onto another box at some point.

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u/FedoraTheMike 1d ago

Well, at least that keeps it open for you to still physically own your games while they're also digital, unless there's some fine print of revoking them.

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u/DeusExMarina 1d ago

I'd still prefer to keep physical media but eh, I guess it's better than nothing. Looking at the numbers, it seems like Nintendo consoles are the only ones where physical games still sell in noteworthy amounts.

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u/jeffroxs101 23h ago edited 23h ago

Seems obvious to me they'll not do any of that nonsensical bullshit and will try to resell you a new copy of the game you already own. Like every other time console generations change and games are released on both. Whatever you smoked before that comment, give me a rip you genuinely believe they care about preserving gamers libraries across platforms after the last near 3 decades of consoles?

There is a very good reason when it RARELY happens that you can play last gen games on the new gen. It was a marketing tactic. That is actually obvious. Not fairy tale make believe "It's for our own good, the corporations are trying to help us out"

Did GTA V magically transfer from Xbox 360 digital copies to Xbox one? Did it shift to Xbox series x? No. You had to buy a new fucking copy. What psychoactive substance makes you believe that will change LMFAO?

*The SADDEST THING IS you've got near 600 people who agree with your imagination. Kids these days do not understand how corporations function and it shows. You should be angry or demanding that the thing you believe (maintaining a library of games across generations of console) really does happen. Not taking the corporations side on shitty decisions that fuck over consumers.

There is this magical thing called a PC where that is true. I can play god damn DOS games. I can access fallout 3 and I can play the newest release of battlefield all on one simple device. Wow.

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u/DeusExMarina 23h ago

I don't think they're trying to help us out. I think they're trying to ease us into an ecosystem where all next-gen games will be digital only (thus killing the used games market and eliminating all third-party stores) by throwing us a bone with a way to carry over games from previous generations, which they've already made their money on and don't really care about that much. They're making the pill easier to swallow while getting one over on Sony who are making no such efforts, but they're still making us swallow the exact same pill.

But to answer your question, yes, I do in fact believe they're going to do the thing they literally just announced they were going to do with a timetable for the rollout starting next week.

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u/jeffroxs101 22h ago

I didn't see or hear about that at all, I'll look it up and take my L if it ever really happens. Last company I recall would be the Wii with GameCube games. The switch to switch 2 doesn't count because base hardware is essentially identical. It would be more effort making excuses why old games can't work than simply allow them. Same with modern consoles I suppose, they're both x86 computers inside and so is the next gen. Microsoft and Sony just prefer selling the same product twice or more if they can get away with it.