Sales of physical copies of video games have dropped quite a bit, according to a new report on the health of the video games industry in the UK The ease of access to digital games has proved that the convenience of being able to download a game directly onto a console or PC from home is just too alluring. It seems the age-old digital versus physical debate is being settled by people who would rather buy games from the comfort of their own homes.
Physical sales have been on a steady decline over the past decade. With the rise of digital storefronts, most prominently Steam, owned and operated by legendary video game developer Valve, the old Brick and Mortar retail model has struggled to keep pace. Now that Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony offer their own robust digital storefronts, it seems like the era of discs and cartridges may be nearing its end.
The Digital Entertainment and Retail Association (ERA) is a UK-based trade organization that tracks physical and digital media sales for the music and video game industries, among other services. The ERA estimates 89.5% of games sold in 2022 were digital downloads. Only 10.5% of copies sold were physical discs or cartridges. Digital sales make up nine out of every 10 games sold in the UK All told, the UK games industry totaled €4.7 billion worth of sales, far surpassing the sales numbers of the music, TV, and film industries.
Since digital game retailers like Steam and Epic aren’t exactly forthcoming with their sales figures, the ERA cautions that the data is based on estimates. Still, the ERA has built itself a reputation for producing data trusted by the titans of the video game industry. When their data points to a larger trend of physical media steadily becoming more of a niche purchase for diehard fans and video game preservationists, publishers listen and adjust their sales plans accordingly.
As for digital versus physical video game sales in the United States, in February 2022, a video game industry data tracker called NDP Game Pulse found that the number of new games available for purchase on cartridges or discs in the US dropped significantly to 226 titles in 2021 compared to 321 titles in 2018. That’s a 30% drop in two years, leaving the percentage of physical game sales at only a 10.3% share of the market. This trend is reflected in the rise of digitally released indie games getting physical releases after they have achieved a degree of success that justifies the manufacturing costs. Games publishers are taking note that consumer preferences lean heavily toward digital purchases and are manufacturing fewer physical copies than they have in the past to reflect the shift. The trend points to physical copies becoming more of a novelty than a necessity.
Source: BBC/Ars Technica