Josh Fairhurst, The CEO of LimitedRunGames seems to believe that Walmart will stop selling physical copies of Video Games. After seeing a report claiming Best Buy would give up on DVDs and Blu-Ray discs, Fairhurst claimed that he had heard Walmart was heading the same way with video games. To be fair, it makes a lot of sense.
This claim by Fairhurst was sparked after a tweet about Best Buy, which said the company would no longer sell DVD and Blu-Rays soon. According to Fairhurst, physical Xbox games will soon leave Walmart’s store shelves.
To be honest, the whole thing is believable, and many in this industry have seen how digital is taking over. Physical discs, such as DVDs, Blu-rays, and video game discs, are declining in availability as consumers shift to streaming services and digital media. This trend is driven by changing consumer preferences and the convenience of accessing digital content online, reducing the demand for physical copies.
According to Gamebyte, 90% of video game sales in 2022 were digital. Of just console games, 78% were digital. Consoles should note what PCs are doing and just eliminate them altogether because it’s a dying business.
Even I don’t like physical discs. The only reason they’re around is because people like the feel, but they cost more to make and distribute, and they’re only available for a limited period of time. Eventually, the games scratch and are no longer playable, whereas digital versions work as long as the console is functional. Even storage for them has gotten far cheaper, as a 16-gigabyte flash drive was once $100 when I was a kid, but now you can buy one for $2.42.
Sure, the size of games has increased, but that just means you’ll need better storage than a disc or that the disc will get more expensive. Essentially, stores would need to charge you based on the size of the game. When it’s digital, you’ll get the game regardless of the size.
If Walmart drops physical discs, it will clearly indicate that the future is digital-only.
What happens when the company simply decides that a console is “too old” and you lose access to all the games you paid for? Sony nearly did that with the PS3 before walking it back.
Having a console with a set of physical games means you’ll always be able to play. Plus, the second hand video game market isn’t mentioned here either – trading games has always been a part of consoles.
When I or my children decide we want a new game, we nearly always get a physical copy.