The Monday letters page examines how PlayStation's all-digital announcement and Xbox's ongoing challenges inadvertently boost Nintendo's position, even as the Switch 2 launch has been mildly disappointing. Readers weigh the merits of combining a PC with Nintendo's hybrid console, while others reflect on the history of physical game media and the uncertain future of game preservation.
Winner by Default
Louie writes: "Interesting article on how the current upset with PlayStation and Xbox plays into the hands of Nintendo. Like you said, it's not because of anything they've done – I think most people would agree the Switch 2 has been at least mildly disappointing so far – but compared to the mess at Xbox, and Sony ditching physical media, it suddenly makes Nintendo look a lot better by comparison. Sometimes all you have to do, to seem like you know what you're doing, is just not be as bad as your rival and I think this is a classic example. It's particularly good for Nintendo because they're not going to give up physical games anytime. If those rumours about GTA 6 coming to Switch 2 are true then this could be a gift for them. The biggest winner is going to be the PC but combine that with the Switch 2 and you've got almost all bases covered. You'd miss out on Sony single-player games but that's like one game a year and I know I can live without that quite easily. Especially if it means saving a grand on not getting a PlayStation 6."
Choice Is Overrated
Bobwallett writes: "For a change, I'm going to be positive regarding the threat of a choice-less future regarding discs. It's a year and a half away, so Sony could change their policy, especially if Xbox announce it first that they will continue to support physical media. Should I be wrong, however, I do still have a good few months to keep collecting and they'll keep me going. This combined with the games I'm getting free on Epic Games Store on PC means I'll have enough to keep me going until retirement."
GameCentral responds: "A U-turn seems very unlikely, given they've already repurposed the disc factory."
Vinyl Preservation
Freeway 77 writes: "I was reminiscing the other week about old Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum games. If you're old enough, like me, you will probably remember being able to buy these cassette games right next to the ex-jukebox records in your local paper shop. Yes, that's right, paper shops used to stock games and some of them had quite a selection, if I remember correctly. It got me thinking, if games where available on cassette (which was primarily for music and audio) then wouldn't being able to get a game on a vinyl record be possible? As it turns out, it has indeed been done and the vinyl came free with a 1984 Computer & Video Games magazine. It was called Thompson Twins Adventurne, The Thompson Twins being a popular music band at the time. The quality of the game is apparently questionable, but I digress. That high pitched shrilling noise you would get on the loading screens was recreated to vinyl and was easily duplicated onto cassette at the time, much like the other cassette games if you had the means to do so. What fascinated me even more was that it went back even further than vinyl records and apparently you could record off a dedicated radio station or programme over the airwaves. A bit like the internet before the internet. Anyway, as a retro gaming fan I just found this all incredibly fascinating and there is quite a few videos online delving a bit deeper into this subject if anyone else is interested too. Turns out the download-only future started a lot further back than most of us realise."
The Time Has Come
G4RBO writes: "I must agree with many gamers, that I think it is time to eventually deviate from consoles and purchase a PC. I've owned a couple of desktop PCs over the years, although I have always enjoyed the convenience that consoles have offered since the 1980s. Owning cartridges from the Sega Master System and Mega Drive/SNES and N64, to discs from the Saturn and PlayStation onwards throughout the generations, I have always enjoyed my hobby of collecting physical media. I know it's inevitable for the gaming industry to become totally digital eventually, and I will admit I buy digital titles myself (only when they are on offer), but I feel that downloading a game for convenience is soulless. Personally, I think it's a bit gung-ho for Sony to pull the plug on physical media this generation, especially as their current console has a disc drive. Sadly, it all boils down to cutting costs and generating profit, without a care for their customers in mind. Physical media is still important! It's a sad state of affairs, and I hope there is enough backlash for a considered U-turn on their plans, otherwise Sony's reputation will be tarnished more than ever before."
Belated Release
Marc writes: "Not to defend the current moves away from physical media at all… I do still buy discs, but usually second-hand for titles I'd not look to keep. Those seven or eight out of 10 games I can take to CeX in 12 months time to swap again. In the future, if those games are purely digital, well I'd pick them up for £10 three years later in a sale. However, to look at it from a game preservation point, isn't there an uncomfortable truth here that physical ownership of games has been pretty flaky since the PlayStation 4 era? Even if those discs are sitting on your shelf, if you're lucky enough to pick up a game that doesn't require additional downloads in the first place, the version of the software on the disc is usually missing patches to fix bugs and performance. Even Nintendo, the gold standard for collectors, had a day one patch for Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom because performance was so poor. If you're popping these old discs into your PlayStation 5 in 30 years' time without an internet connection why do we think it'll still work like popping a cartridge into a Mega Drive? At best you're gonna get a buggy, poorly performing experience notably inferior to what you remember, and at worst the game will be incomplete or not work at all. I have a feeling in said 30 years you'll need to crack your old PlayStation 5 to access community servers to get even the games you own on discs to work properly. In an ideal world, once a game has been fully patched for bugs, performance, and additional content, they'd release a special edition that actually includes all the content on the disc(s). I know Game of the Year editions are a thing for some games but, again, they usually have a download component (looking at you Cyberpunk 2077). I think people would pay a premium for that, and possibly double dip if the initial purchase was a digital release, like music collectors with Spotify accounts do with vinyl. That would be the way to keep physical alive and be a better system than what we have now."
Then and Now
Simundo writes: "I'm lucky to have a PS5 Pro, Xbox Series X, and Nintendo Switch 2, so don't have to think about new hardware until at least 2030. I'm pretty sure that it will be a PC when I do, with indie gaming, VR, and being less enamoured with Sony exclusives this gen being the main reasons. So, I do find myself popping over to PC Part Picker now and then. Here you get a picture of the big increases in RAM and storage prices over the last 18 months. Prices that are predicted to go up further and maybe not normalise for years. Even then who knows what the normal will be. Here is a PC build generated 15 months ago. It shows the prices when the build was made but also the current prices if you click the build link at the top. From Amazon, the 32GB of DDR5 Ram was £91.99 and they still have the cheapest listed price now at £364.99, a 297% increase in 15 months. From Amazon, the 2TB SSD was £99.98 and is now £269.99 from Overclockers, who have the cheapest listed price. The CPU, by comparison, is £150 cheaper and now cheaper than the memory at £288 – top tier CPU too. It's no wonder the Steam Machine is the price it is. Valve pretty much said the RAM and storage makers had them over a barrel."
Conspiracy Theory
Magnumstache writes: "Interesting point you make about Sony controlling PlayStation Blu-ray disc production. Surely that's another profit stream for them, and if it isn't profitable enough they could just increase the price they charge to third parties… I'm very disappointed that they seem to be forcing an all-digital future instead of offering options for collectors. I'd have thought there would be good money in limited run prints of their games, sold at a higher price than the digital version. I also can't escape the feeling that this was all orchestrated by my wife to stop me cluttering up the loft with game cases."
Welcome Distractions
Liam writes: "So, with all the negativity about gaming recently I thought I'd write in about two positive experiences I've had in the last few weeks. First was playing Hell Is Us. This game gripped me from start to finish. The world filled with mystery, the fantastic music that absolutely nailed the tone. Playing it reminded me of Dark, the superb Netflix show, in terms of setting, again music, and the mysterious time travel related story. Yeah, the combat was basic and reminded me of a PlayStation 2 hack 'n' slasher, but I sort of enjoyed it; it was a welcome break from the endless Soulslike combat we've had for ages now. Exploring every nook and cranny, finding all its secrets, has been a pleasure for me, I must say. Second, and very different, is Super Robot Wars Y. A grid based Japanese role-player, think Disgaea or Vandal Hearts (two of my favourites) that features famous anime mechs fighting in a mad massive war. I've no idea who any of them are, aside from the Gundam Wing pilots I remember from Toonami back in the day. It's a chaotic mishmash of established characters getting thrown together for reasons, fighting many bad guys for other reasons. I've no idea what's happening, but I'm really enjoying it. It's like watching a Japanese soap opera you walk into part way through, very dramatic yet silly, that's suddenly turns into a giant mech fight! It's been a perfect fun game to play, as in turn my brain off, enjoy the silliness, engage in the tactical fighting side. For fans of anime it must be incredible, for me its silly fun which I'd say we could all do with more right now!"
Inbox Also-Rans
Gazza writes: "Closing down studios to put more people on Halo sounds exactly like the sort of thing Microsoft would think is a good idea. It's 16 years since Bungie moved away from Halo and the best idea Microsoft can come up with is another remake of the original… without multiplayer?"
Shobe writes: "Not that it really matters any more but all that stuff about Phil Spencer wearing T-shirts with old games on them… he never rebooted or brought back any of them, did he?"
