[June 13, 2011] Console or download: how to get your game Tweet BERLIN, Jun 12, 2011 (dpa - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Is this it for the DVD as the delivery system for computer games? More and more players are just downloading the newest titles straight onto their computers. But there are pros and cons to both delivery methods. The download trend isn't limited to computers. Developers of console gaming systems like the Playstation 3 or the XBox 360 also offer download platforms. In the XBox's case, the service has been up and running for more than a year. Demand is increasing, pushing up supply, says Microsoft spokesman Felix Petzel. Steam is currently one of the most popular distribution platforms for PC games. It was created in 2003 by the makers of the first-person-shooter game Half-Life, says gaming expert Stephan Freundorfer. Customers get almost no price benefit from downloading as opposed to buying a box in the store. But platforms like Steam, Gamesload or Gamesplanet routinely offer sales and deals. Sometimes classic games go for as little as 3 euros (4.35 dollars). "Download platforms are hugely important in the United States," says Freundorfer. Many other parts of the world remain more focused on store-brought versions. "A lot of players place a lot of value on the physical box." And there's nothing tangible when you download a game. "For some people, it's hard to pay out 40 to 50 euros and then have nothing you can hold." Nor can you resell a download, says Freundorfer. That's an important factor for younger people who don't have a lot of money, but would like a new game from time to time. Of course, that option looks set to be shut down anyway, regardless of downloading. That's because store-bought DVDs also have to be activated the first time a player goes online with them. "After they're individualized, the game can't be activated on any other computer," said Peter Schmitz of the German computer magazine c't. This restriction exists on about 60 per cent of titles currently on sale. But it's impossible to underestimate the desire to have a physical product in your hands, says Petzel. "We think, for that reason, that digital and retail distribution are going to have to exist in parallel form for a long time." Anyone who can resist the need for something tangible will be able to notice advantages in downloading. One is that products are immediately available: there's no messing around with a DVD. Nor do you have to physically go to a store. It would also put an end to long waits in stores -- sometimes for hours on end before stores open on the day of a new release. Sometimes portals even have current titles for download before their official release date, says Freundorfer. "That lets you start playing the game at home one minute after its been officially released." Of course, problems can crop up when a network has breakdowns, as seen recently by the massive hacker attacks on Sony's gaming network. The network was offline for weeks after thieves broke into Playstation's PSN network and stole account data for millions of users. Small game designers suffer especially from such network problems, which could quickly push them into ruin, says Freundorfer. But there is unlikely to be any move away from the downloading trend. "Downloading isn't a trend that affects just certain consoles," says Schmitz. Even classic publishers are putting more of their products online. "There's going to be a lot of titles and extras traded exclusively online," he says. There's no getting around the trend because the profit margins are just too lucrative. "Online sales can't be slowed down." To see more of dpa, go to http://www.dpa.de/English.82.0.html Copyright (c) 2011, dpa, Berlin Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]