LGR - Physical Copies of Digital Games!
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- Опубликовано: 6 сен 2024
- Did you know many of your favorite digital-only games are no longer digital-only? Turns out a lot of modern (and retro) games got physical releases that not everyone knows about, and it's fascinating!
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Your videos have such a homely feel. Like you're telling me a bedtime story or an old folk tale. I love it.
:) why thank you.
***** You're right, but uh... I'm not a she.
Scarfulhu Oops sorry honest mistake I think I had a bit of a drunk moment when typing that comment in I will edit now.
for reals though, clint's voice is one of those things that makes me feel warm and comfy.
this!
it'll be a sad day when no more physical games are released.
Nothing to collect anymore:( guess we have to make our own boxes then
it just plays so much warmer with all the scratches
Anyone older than the age of 8 should know how to properly handle their media without scratching it. Out of the 4,000+ discs I own I don't think a single one has even so much as a finger print on it.
videogameobsession did you first burn off your fingertips like kevin spacey in seven?
that sounds just as nuts to me, i remember throwin all my tupperware out just so i didn't have to stack it and pack it when i was moving to a new apartment, can't imagine dealing with thousands little cardboard boxes of nerd vinyl, just the thought of dusting it gives me nightmares
No, but that's a good tip!
I just pick up discs and hold them like they suggest. Press on the middle to release the disc and hold it on the edges.
I have been wearing glasses since the age of 4 so I know how to keep things from getting scratched. "In the case or on your face"... or "in the case or in the tray" when it comes to this. ;)
Heh, well this is surprising. I didn't realize that some of those boxes weren't available in the USA. In Polish stores I have seen physical copies of Blood Dragon, Amnesia (with more mysterious box art that doesn't spoil monster), Worms Reloaded, Alan Wake's Nightmare, dlc packs for every Call of Duty, Simulations games, Minecraft and more.
If had to guess reason of physical copies of digital games in Europe:
- PC gaming was and is very popular in Europe even before the existence of Steam (personally I prefer GoG).
- It's always nice to install a game without waiting hours for it to download - not everyone has fast Internet connection.
- When talking about Poland itself there was problem with piracy. Back in a day there were big delay between premiers of games, new consoles in US and here. For example NES never came here, and we only had a clone called Pegasus and people would literally sell pirated copies of PC/cartridge games on markets. Since then it became a thing that publishers (like Cd Project) would publish games with goodies like maps, instruction manuals, guidebooks etc. - encouraging people to buy official products. Probably the same mentality publishers try to convey with digital games.
Oh and by the way our first official consoles were PS1 and PS2 and Nintendo never became a thing here in Poland.
Sorry for my overlong rumblings :P
I'm six years late, but I stopped buying physical releases because when I think I bought the orange box tonget l4d, tf and etc or it was l4d2.... it it was just a cd to install steam and then put in the cd key and it becomes bound to your account
I can only speak for Germany, but over here, credit cards are not as common as in the US and paying online is/was 'a big deal' sort of. People are also more afraid to give away their credit card data to 'some obscure foreign internet company'.
Also easier for minors to just go into a shop and buy a physical copy.
Probably also slow internet conecctions in some areas... would take me an entire day to DL 4gigs of a DVD at home.
I think you got a point. Steam is also a huge thing here in Germany. But most of the gamers here don't trust unknown companies so they prefer to buy it in a physical form. And there is also the issue of bandwidth. Download 30-60 Gbs for one game only is nearly impossbile for a lot of people. And as a collector I also buy the physical disc. So I bought Duck Tales Remastered and will buy (even I have lets played it) Broken Sword 5 in a physical form. Maybe we'll get the Castle of Illusation Remake as a disc version. This would be nice.
for a Lithuanian it's horribly difficult to get a debit card that would work in the first place. First, to get a debit card you have to be 18. Secondly, a lot of internet stores will deny you because they don't send to your country. So I can buy digital goods from Steam and Amazon.com (fake adress and digital only), but if you try to grab items from European amazons they just refuse to send. Then places like Humble Bundle send you your money back and take away your games because your card confused them (even though it's a mastercard - a known brand).
Makes a lot of sense!
Easy for minors to buy games in Germany??! You must be kidding me. In Denmark a 6 year old could by GTA, in Germany they'll ask for your passport if you don't look 16 enough (Buying a 16+ game being 16...)
sejekage01 At least Media Markt always asks for a passport if you buy any 18+ stuff. I was quite perplex the last time I bought a DVD there... I'm 40.
Still easier than asking your dad for HIS credit card number to buy the game online.
It's really easy to answer the question of "why Europe gets this stuff?" To put it simply, PC gaming is big in Europe and it always was even before Steam so releasing boxed copies is some kind of a habit that sticked with European publishers guess because it is still worth it.
In the US consoles rule the market, in Europe PC gets that attention in most countries.
Could also argue that some parts of Europe dont have the bandwidth to download big titles. I know I saw a lot of people on reddit posting about how many days it was going to take to download GTAV
***** I live in Rural America and it still took me a fucking week to download.
ZaxxerDog *laughs in Balkans' supreme internet connection*
That's not an issue actually:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_Internet_connection_speeds
Weirdly enough a lot of poorer European countries had better overall internet connections than the rest of the world for a long time... and well, compared to South Korea eveyone sucks. :D
@@ZaxxerDog sure it's available but how many people have access to it?
Your voice is one of the most soothing, plesant things i've ever heard. You should narrate books.
Why thank you.
Say that's not a bad idea. I use the heck out of audible-dot-com, I've heard plenty of voice actors less interesting than Clint.
We get all these physical copies in Australia as well, I work at EB Games so I also get first picks on all this stuff ;)
The only downside is a few physical copies nowadays in Australia just have a steam installer on the disc which is bullshit.
Damn I wish we still had EB Games... (In the US)
That's cool, but more likely to find more variety in JB HIFI ( my local EB never has the games I'm looking for😭)
@@sholva6809 It's not bullshit. In parts of the world where speeds are slow (Africa, Middle East), getting a DVD saves tons of download time, as only the updates need to be downloaded. I bought an imported physical release of Need for Speed: Heat, which came on 4 DVDs stacked on top of each other. Obviously, I only used the code to download the newest version of the game from Origin and kept the box as a novelty.
Retro City Rampage got a physical release for MS-DOS on an actual 3.5" floppy disc. It also got an extremely limited release (I think 2000 copies) on PlayStation 4 and PS Vita.
ruclips.net/video/Il65FIKWgEk/видео.html
Aliens Studios Productions Did that even work on Dos? Seemed pretty resource intensive even if it's small in comparison to modern games
How is it that I've only recently discovered your fantastic channel? Your content is absolutely phenomenal, you are definitely a top tier "RUclipsr".
Thank you, I'm glad to have been found!
I prefer physical copies of games. I have slow internet & actual copies of games are great.
Z M In the words of The Nerd (I think) "I prefer something I can get my hands on."
Thats true me too
Found a physical copy of I Am Bread at Target yesterday and bought it. Weird. Also got Goat Simulator at the same Target last year.
Oh wow, didn't know I Am Bread had a physical release, will have to track it down.
Duke Nukem 1
Duke Nukem 2
Duke Nukem 3d
Duke Nukem 4ever
+Mason Dorobek omg I never noticed. Although 4ever sucked though lol
+Mason Dorobek do not forget Manhattan son.
I literally never noticed this
Retail distribution is easier/cheaper in the UK at least - we've only got one small island to supply. It may also be because of the slower spread of fast internet connections in the UK - some places in th eouter reaches are still offline.
About some regions of the country being offline - that's try in the US as well. Hell, there are patches of USA without stable internet connection bigger than the entire UK! 😂
See, the reason your channel is awesome is your sense of humor and facial expressions. They're great!
Actually... I just noticed that you look like me with an added beard. XD
Don't forget his Duke Nukem voice. :P
Right, right.
*In Duke Nukem voice*
Marvel at the amazing voice of Duke Nukem
Be dazzled as he takes on goat simulator
Wait what?
Gamecool10 Still wouldn't be surprised if Duke took on goats. :P
There are many reasons why you're my favourite youtuber and videos like these is one of them. I love how you think outside the box and deliver such unique content; you really stand out from the rest. I've said this many times before but I'll say it again - keep up the good work, Clint. What you do is awesome.
Thank you very much :)
Actually, there is a PS3 physical copy of minecraft, and a physical copy of the vita version coming up.
Also, Killing Floor got a physical release, something that surprised me when I picked it up.
I ended up buying DuckTales Remastered 3 times. once from PSN, then they released a physical boxed version for the PS3 which contained a cardboard disc with a code.. then they announced a Blu-Ray disc version for the PS3 so I bought that as well...
Yeah, I'm glad I waited and just got the disc version for PS3! Very cool to own.
Well, at least the first cardboard disc release came with a collectible Disney DuckTales pin. So not a total waste hehe.
I have the Wii U version!
You're part of the problem
@@mbii7667 Who's part of the which problem?
I have a physical copy of the Half Life 1 collection. It's quite funny really, it's a physical copy of a digital copy of a physical game.
Madness.
*THE ORANGE BOX* RRRREEEEEE
I think the reason Europe gets a lot more physical releases is because our internet can be absolutely rubbish in some parts. Downloading a whole game can take days so people just go buy it from a shop because it's easier. At least that was the case with me when I was living in the British countryside when I was younger.
I just love the idea of Goat Simulator sitting on a shelf next to the 20 other more serious simulators out there.
I hate when they pull this crap. Its fine for the people who buy the game with fast uncapped internet but what about people with either slow internet or internet with a cap? If it's not going to actually use the discs why don't they just sell the case with the code?
They do. At least here in Australia
When you pulled that first manual out and flipped through it, it brought back so many memories! Every single time I got a new Sims game, I'd open the manual first and just enjoy the blissful scent! So beautiful! Don't you agree?
I primarily buy the boxed copies because they're cheaper than the Steam versions.
Tends to be the opposite for me.
Mashu You should look in bargin bins, I got 6 copies of frozen synapse with red dlc for $5
In the U.S. (the area I live in at least), I have yet to find a hard copy cheaper than a Steam copy. I work at Best Buy and am constantly looking for better deals but Steam always beats the store version, even after my employee discount. I have looked in many other stores as well but Steam is always the best bargain.
PS4 version of Watch dogs (Special edition) costs 10$ less than digital
Iris Zizka Yup, let the spawn of capitalism engulf you ^_^
I SEE JAZZ JACKRABBIT 2 IN THE BACKGROUND.
REVIEW CONFIRMED.
+1!
I have the original JJ2 box with comic/manual :3
Yeah but you're not reviewing it.
It's really weird to hear that america doesn't get many physical releases.
Part of me still hopes that The Sims 4 GPs, SPs, and EPs will come out as physical copies. I just don't trust digital copies. Its nice to look at a shelf full of Sims games rather than a screen full of box art.
You can buy some combo packs physically, I got spa day and perfect patio bundle at walmart
Well, phsical discs are still the deal in Germany and it looks like it keeps going that way. Most of the gamers I talked from Centra and East Europe are aware of they actually do not OWN the games on Steam. They consider Steam as a rental system which would be shut down one day. Believe me, it sounds crazy but they really consider that posibility. Given the fact that the "beloved" users of OnLive were burnt so bad, I cannot blame them. >;-)
As a person who travels between different far and close locations time to time, I prefer to reach my games any time and anywhere I want. Therefore, I prefer digital copies over physical ones.
BTW, Doom 3 BFG Edition's DVD includes Doom 3 remastered alongside with The Ultimate Doom, Doom II and Doom II: No Rest for the Living. Requires Steam though...
danielroxheaps Yeah, that is why OnLive's consumers burnt and physical game users have a point to be doubtful for Steam.
+REA987 Valve once said that if they go under, they'll make a way to play all your Steam games without Steam.
Love the Tapwave Zodiac in the corner. Perfect match with Jazz Jackrabbitz.
A few games I didn't expect to see in stores but found them anyway:
Monkey Island 1 & 2 Special Edition for the PS3 (which I bought without even blinking)
Walking Dead Season 1 for PS Vita
Angry Birds for PS3 (yes, you read that correctly)
As a games retail clerk from Czech Republic (at least until recetly - calling higher management useless won't exactly get you promotion, who would have thought) I'd say there are several reasons for these PC physical releases here:
- PC is still the main gaming platform here (and that's probably true everywhere east from Germany, them included I guess)
- There is little trust towards online payment methods here - many people just won't do online payments, kids usually can't. So just buying a boxed game with steam code (and yes there is almost always a disc) is pretty much the most straightforward, if not the only way to sell a game to basically all non-enthusiasts and kids.
Hell, "we" even have boxes with codes fro DLC packs for AC, HoMaM games and such. Terraria actually suprised me though, never had that in store, lots of kids were asking for it.
Sounds very reasonable, to me. Thanks for the insight!
The reason Europe get so many physical releases and the US doesn't is because of everything else the US gets. In Europe, and pretty much everywhere else, we have to go through all sorts of travel problems and such just to get a Twinkie. I know you can probably order them online, but it's not the same as going to the store and getting them yourself.
Plus you'll have to pay twice as much for it
I love twinkies...
In Germany exists a boxed version of Beat Hazard Ultra, published by Headup Games (they published alot of indie/download games).
Fun fact: on the Disc from Beat Hazard Ultra, you can find a Track made by me :D
I'm so buying a copy, because why not? I live in the UK, But hooray, The UK gets something the US doesn't, what a change!
It'd be very hard for the US to do that, They are also very well implemented. They stop a lot of crime, so I don't mind.
Andrew Fishburn
I'd rather stop crimes from "needing" to happen and not have to have cameras on every street corner.
Voxel8or The UK has CCTV the US has the NSA, same shit different name. Except the CCTV cameras stop crime just by being there, can't say the same for the NSA.
*****
You must be living in an alternate version of Britain then because that's exactly what I see on the streets every week.
cardiacade Yeah, but you'd see more of it. Crime can never be completely stopped.
I've seen a bunch of physical UK PC releases get released here in Canada with the Pegi rating still on them.
The Binding of Isaac also has a Most Unholy Edition, which I'm fairly certain was only in Germany - it comes with the same kind of stuff as in the Super Meat Boy boxed version
Ah yes, this was one of my fears as adopting the PC Gaming way of life. Physical copies of games. Being a collector of games, I feel much more satisfied getting a boxed copy of a game rather than a digital one, putting that case on my shelf and taking a few steps back to see my entire collection before my eyes, it's wonderful. That's why no matter what, if there's a physical copy of a game, I get it always over the digital version. Obviously some games are digital only, and that's kind of unavoidable. My only exception is Steam Sales. Sometimes, those deals are just too good to pass up, but, I still infinitely prefer physical. Hell, for recent games, I got Watch Dogs and Titanfall on PC physically cause why the hell not?
For the record, the PS3 edition of Minecraft is getting a physical release very soon, with different box art than the 360 edition.
It did come out a while ago, I saw a copy at a store.
Yeah I just saw a copy and I was just like "Oh wow when did this come out?"
Excellent video, Clint! Weird how some games are only physical releases overseas.
The only physical (known as digital only) release I have is Necrovision: Lost Company. I'm huge fan on the original game, and have a physical copy of it. I had to get the prequel in physical condition. I got a physical copy of Lost Company from Thailand. Though the box and manual isn't in english the game is, and it's an actual install DVD, no Steam needed. :)
A lot of those games didn't get a US physical release since they were developed in the UK/EU. Worms Reloaded by Team17 in UK, Sniper Elite by Rebellion in UK, American Nightmare by Nordic Games (self explanatory).
Earlier versions of Worms, Sniper Elite 1, and Alan Wake were all sold in America in physical form though is the thing :) It's these more recent ones that are odd over here!
lee mottreshead It's K, I'm gonna go eat a hamburger, break the chair I'm eating in because I'm so fat and then blame it on all the "Feraners" invading our "Murica". Ahh stereotypes.
Shmaples Actually, Mexico has become fatter than america. Yay, we in murica lost 0.0000001 pounds! Thats real progress. Yes, I am american
I really can't believe you uploaded this! What a huge coincidence. Yesterday my friend and I missed a bus from town and had 2 hours to kill until the next bus came so we went to the GAME (British video game shop with an original name www.game.co.uk ) and we were surprised how good the PC section had been updated. The prices were great and I picked up Tropico 5 for 30 pounds and then we suddenly realised that goat simulator was there. I picked it up to look at the box and then we realised that Monaco was there as well (in a very nicely designed box too) and then I saw LIMBO and Hotline Miami. It was very strange for me seeing these games but even though I owned them on Steam I really wanted to get them because the boxes were SO NICE (with the exception of Goat Simulator which was pretty standard). They were embossed and had sleeves and opened up like a book and stuff. Some even had holograms on the box such as Monaco.
We were the only ones in the shop and we started chatting to a guy that worked there. He was talking about these boxed digital games and then we played a game of FIFA on the PS4 on display. In the end I bought goat simulator because I didn't actually own it at all anyway. But it was £9.99 which is quite a bit more than the standard price of the digital version. But it is expected for the packaging and stuff I guess but Tropico was actually cheaper than the digital version and it was on sale. I also bought LIMBO and Monaco for their lovely boxes. And they actually were boxes. Like in the old days. It's amazing you released this video today when this all happened to me yesterday.
What can I say, I'm a sucker for boxes. XD
If you are wondering the exact shop it was GAME, Ards Shopping Centre, Newtownards, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom :D it's my local shop and I love it to bits. :D
Physical copies ftw!
I Live in the UK - I have 'Might and magic X: Legacy' on physical release - this wasn't available in the US (at least on release, dunno about now) - you got the game on dvd, a FULL MANUAL!!!, soundtrack, Might and magic 6 uplay code, the first DLC and a cloth map, the map is great and really helpful.
The good thing was that the physical release was the same price as the digital on release day plus if you bought from uplay directly they gave you a pre-release key so you can play when it went live and you just put in the code in the box to progress past act 1, so if the game was delayed then you could still download and play on release day - i wish more companies would do that, instant access to digital but post out a physical also
Maybe Europeans just have more Shelves
I knew it! Shelves are the real MVP.
Thanks Ikea!
I suppose the lack of DVD rom drives in modern PCs is a driver for less physical copies. Also, some games are massive like GTA5 which would probably need 10 DVDs or so. My two cents :D - finally, thanks Clint for some of the best content on YT.
Worms isn't surprising at all.. There were console and handheld versions and shit.. Big franchise..
Considering we don't get them physically here in the US, it's surprising to me!
Lazy Game Reviews We get them in Canada 0.o..
I always try to get physical copies of games if I can.Not only for the box/case but the manual.Lets face it few of us actually look at the digital manual on steam games.
Complicated games like the x3 (for example) series its almost a must to have the hundred plus page manual.As its not too convenient to tab out of a game to look at the digital manual then end up writing down key binds so you can remember.
Edit: A old friend that now works at Tripwire Interactive says companies actually make more off selling physical copies.Since places like Steam take money off the top along with their publisher.His company publishes their own games so a physical copy for them is almost 100% profit.
For small Indy type devs they deserve every penny so physical copies help support the developers.
Over in Euroland they don't have FUCKING GAMESTOP. Gamestop killed the PC retail scene by not carrying PC games anymore.
Gamestop in my country (in europe), still have physical PC games.
In England, CEX and Game still carry physical PC games.
+Milo O'Rourke me too but they mostly have very obscure games were I live
+Ollie Taylor cex doesn't count because all the games are second hand.
+otakuploader I don't get why people say GameStop is evil?
Holy crap, I've seen that Blood Dragon box in a mall two weeks ago. Didn't know it had a poster, now I just have to get it.
Also, this made me look up World of Goo on an online ebay-like used goods shop which lead me to boxed copies of The Void, Planescape Torment, SWAT 4, The Thing and Tron 2.0 for about 1.25 bucks each, and a copy of The Dark Project for about $2.5 (all boxed, sadly Thief isn't the big boxed edition, but some weird "small-big" box with a jewel case inside, and it's german). I owe you a lot for these, man.
makes a vídeo about one of these phisical releases that Just come with a key code inside
Really glad to see the Scratches box only because Im Argentinian. Also great video as always, you're one of my favourite youtubers, always admired old pc hardware and software.
Since I live in Europe, finding downloadable games in physical form is so common I just never really notice it and I always assume it's like that over there as well. Kinda shocked the US is weird in that regard.
Square and NIS America sometimes still release Boxed copies of game exclusively on their online store for Pre-Orders only. I know I've bought a few that never saw the light of day outside of that. One of my most loved physical copy happens to be the US Soundtrack to Final Fantasy VIII. Got it signed by Nobuo Uematsu at a Distant Worlds concert where no one had ever seen it before. Great moment there.
Main reason for physical copies here in Europe are 1. You want to feel that you actually own it, for same price as a digital you get a physical that you can uninstall and reinstall again and again and again unlike having an digital account that might ban you and ending up with you loosing all the games you bought. 2. Older gamers do not play games that manage accounts over the web (origin, battle.net, steam). 3. Digital doesnt do games justice sometimes, getting more "loot" for same price is better. It feels better.
The EU and Germany in particular are really cracking down on valve to allow reselling of games and other things on steam.
***** What? I don't think so.
***** Errrm, Most of EU has bad internet Errrrm Nope, compare with Aus, NZ, and Most of US.
Hell even most of the World, EU has Pretty amazing access, I am getting 12Mbit access on my PC through tethered android device (unlimited download), and upto 60-100 Mb if I could be bothered getting a physical connection, and I am not living within 20km of a city.
***** that is 12mbs on a 2012 HSPA+ enabled phone (theoretical max is 14.4 Mbs) for the same price I could get a physical >100Mbs connection with unlimited transfer (and TV and phone), which seems to be a lot better than a lot of the US/Aus/Africa
seriously bandwidth caps, packet shaping, throttling to certain competitor site servers really US internet providers,
***** I am aware that in some places throughout the EU there are varying degrees of net provision, however the majority of the EU enjoys good ISP choice and availability of service providers. Turkey espescially has it's own list of Internet problems the least of which is bandwidth.
This was a response in the misconceived fact that the bulk of the EU is somehow impoverished, whilst the majority do not enjoy terminal 2Gbs fibre connections, the nature of having many individual nations and EU diredctives to increase communication availability throughout the EU states has resulted in many areas enjoying good connectivity.
As to this reducing the preferance to Digitial distributed media, this isn't really a factor, I still have a steam / GOG /Desura /Origin account and even if the individual file DLs at 4Mbs I can just leave it on overnight.
However there are a lot more physical copies available from the UK especially, this is due to market preference, (just that the argument that internet is crap over the bulk of EU is considerably incorrect)
Normally I don´t collect retail versions of PC games but you have to check out the physical releases of Limbo, with need oldschool 3D glasses and Gone Home in a sweet SNES-Box style packaging. Keep on making awesome videos.
i got minecraft on disc mostly because it was a time when I couldn't get internet.
I have an interesting comparison to this practise. Being a huge hip hop fan you can occasionally buy a physical form of a mixtape (meant to be a free alternative to an album) whether it be on vinyl, cassette or cd. This usually comes months after the mixtape has been given away for free online and i suppose is comparable to free games getting a boxed retail release.
Living in Europe, I had no idea all those games DIDN'T exist in the US. I see these in stores all the time.
Physical releases are popular here in the UK because they are usually cheaper than Steam. For example, Wolfenstein is £35 on Steam at the moment, but I can get a physical copy from almost anywhere for £25. I assume the distributors have some sort of deal with Steam and other retailers to keep the in-store copies cheaper.
I have a physical copy of Awesomenauts and Chivalry: Medieval Warfare, I never knew these even existed (I mean the physical releases, not the games D:) and I just found them while browsing an ebay-like website for games :S
Whoa, Chivalry got a retail release huh? Will have to track that one down.
Lazy Game Reviews www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Chivalry-Medieval-Warfare-PC-/380915963796?pt=UK_PC_Video_Games_Video_Games_JS&hash=item58b05c5794
Right here bud.
Lazy Game Reviews Also, it only again seems to have been released in the uk. That's all I've seen so far.
Spanked Diox
I own a Polish copy, it's being distributed by, well, CD Projekt D:
www.g2a.com/chivalry-medieval-warfare-steam-cdkey-global.html?___store=englishus
This is the only different version I've been able to find. The Polish version only seems to come from steam, I don't know man. I can't find a hard copy everywhere. Maybe your just lucky and have the only hard copy in existence xD?
I can't talk for all of Europe, but in Germany I can think of two factors, why we tend to prefer Physical Games: The main one: When you live outside of big citys (and sometimes even inside citys) the Internet tends to be not so great. So getting a game from the store, going home and installing it is sometimes actually more convenient than waiting for 5 hous upwards. The 2. Point is, that a physical copy actually evokes more of a sense of ownership. I think this is slowly going away, but it's still nicer to have a box, than just a Line of Text in your Steam Library.
Another example is the physical version of Skullgirls. After the game became unexpectedly popular in Japan, it eventually gained a physical release in Japan because of their general adversity to downloadable media.
Japan is great - quality rice, vending machines everywhere, still an almost entirely cash society (which would be a problem to most western people but I think it's interesting), and just likes physical stuff in general, such as video game boxes.
Caleb Jaaniste Then again, there is the fact that their workforce is merciless (to the point where their have their own term, Karoshi, that refers to death from overwork).
@@Kytseo I say it's worth it
At the Walmart in San Bernardino there was a copy of Space Engineers. Didn't have the money to buy it though :/
"Forget life play Snood"
Last year, I managed to snatch a copy of Dink Smallwood, a fun "RPG" Zelda-like game released in 1997-1998 in very limited quantities. Once the copies were sold, it was released as freeware in 1999.
I had been looking for it for years and I was super excited to finally own it!
Some of the weirdest physical releases I've seen are for simulators, such as Train Simulator and Farm Simulator... Really weird to see that sort of stuff at a store...
You've clearly never visited a German game store :P
Dutchling Aren't most of the simulators made in Germany?
Whole section to NOTHING BUT simulators in a Gamestop shop in Dublin. It was amazing.
As european: I think one reason for these physical releases (even though they are steam activations) is just preveilevance of retail outlets and credit cards not being such a common commodity here, so a lot of people do not have a way to pay for products online, giving retail an better change of making good bit of money even if easy and digital would be option.
You are delightfully nerdy, mate.
In the Netherlands we have this store called Nedgame, and it sells a lot of these kind of physical copies of games that you wouldn't think they got one. I always love coming there just to see what they have. I'm the kind of person that loves to have my games in physical form, like many people I assume.
Sniper Elite V2 is free on Steam !!!
i wish you had shown some more old boxes from 80/90s where all the boxes had awesome artwork that had nothing to do with the real game :P
But i sure do miss buying games from the shelves.
Europeans don`t trust in online shopping and prefer buying a retail game
I was surprised to come across a physical copy of Torchlight some time ago. It's nice to have the option to get yourself a box for a game you enjoy, even if it might be more convenient to get it digitally.
There's a couple of those jewel case w/ cardboard sleeve versions of Amnesia released through another value software company.
Importing would be more fun if the PEGI logo didn't look like dogshit. Yeah I said it, ESRB for LIFE.
Hey man I love your channel. You always have cool and unique videos. Anyways, if you have a PS3 there are a lot of digital games that have physical copies. The first one is the Journey Collector's Edition where it comes with Flow, Flower, and Journey and also some codes for extra content. Second, the remastered HD version of Okami had a physical copy only in Japan, but you can still play it in an American PS3 since the games are region free. Lastly, the Best of PlayStation Network Vol. 1, has 4 popular games on the PSN in a retail disc. The games are: Vikings Attack, Sound Shapes, Tokyo Jungle, and Fat Princess.
JJR2 video incoming!
We still get these physical releases here in Australia too, it's not just Europe. I have a handful of the games you featured, and they're mostly the same editions/box art as here too.
i'm more jealous of japanese people and what japanese games never see a release anywhere else. you won't even hear about so many of them because of the language barrier. i wonder how many ni no kuni caliber games are there that are forever lost unless you learn japanese and go to japan in person because even if you figure out how to order something, the shipping fees and import taxes make it really expensive IF they deliver internationally at all.
I recall Tux Racer initially being a piece of shareware, so you could install the free version (even ones hosted by the distributions), but in order to unlock all of the levels, you had to buy the box version.
physical game releases suck now because of steam. we won't be able to buy these games second hand anymore, the discs are totally useless and the manuals are pathetic.
The Pinball Arcade had a PlayStation 4-only physical release; it's just the first season, but it's a really strong one with tables like Star Trek: The Next Generation, Twilight Zone, Medieval Maddness, etc. Ducktales Remastered had a PlayStation 3-only physical release as well.
because Europe is cooler :)
Stfu nerd :)
+Garry Cowan at least the US has 1 language....!
Lol
A language which you borrowed from us which in itself is an amalgam of many European languages French unfortunately being one :)
Well, the UK is definitely cooler than Texas... especially in the summer. Although honestly, I don't like Germany, Sweden, or France at all. Switzerland, Norway, and Austria are all right... but really, aside from the UK and Australia, my favorite countries outside the US would probably be Japan and South Korea. I never understood what people see in continental Europe, or how they'd feel safe backpacking across it.
There are a couple of reasons why Europe sees more boxed copies of games than the US.
One of the big reasons is that broadband internet is not nearly so widespread in a lot of Europe as it is in North America. While it is pretty common in the UK, France, Germany and other western European countries, especially in Eastern Europe, it's pretty patchy.
Also, even in countries like the UK, a lot of people are on metered broadband packages with download limits. Some of the cheaper packages limit users to as as as 1GB per month, BT, the national provider's most popular package is limited to 10GB per month and even a lot of the so-called "unlimited" packages have "Fair use" policies, which may actually limit them to as little as 20 GB per month. Even these relatively small games can quickly eat into your usage limits if you are not careful.
A second issue is that credit and debit cards are nowhere near as ubiquitous in Europe as they are in North America. Having a bank account does not automatically give you a debit card in a lot of parts of Europe, and even a basic debit card is something you have to apply for. Many basic current accounts (checking accounts in US parlance) only come with a cash card, which can access your money in an ATM and be used for online banking, but not to make payments. This is not universally true across the whole of Europe, but because many publishers treat all of Europe as one big territory, then if it is true in part of it you have to treat it as true across the whole of it. Even in countries where most accounts do come with debit card facilities, big parts of Europe are still sceptical about buying online generally, and buying "digital" products particularly. Paying money for something you can't see or touch leaves some people feeling quite uneasy in certain parts of the world.
Additionally, there is the fact that European consumer protection law (things like the Sale of Goods Act and Distance Selling Regulations in the UK) is quite strongly worded in favour of the consumer-at least when it comes to physical products. Digital distribution is still a grey area for these sorts of laws, and so many customers simply prefer to by a physical boxed copy versus a digital one-even if all the box contains is a download code-because they feel this gives them more protection if something goes wrong.
I'm sure there are other things too-the perception that games are for children, who obviously don't have the ability to buy with credit/debit cards, and limited availability of certain products and certain digital marketplaces in some countries in Europe, among them-but these seem like the big three as to why you see more of these over here.
I live in Poland, and although I'm not 100% sure why there are boxed releases here and not in the US I have some hunches that I can give from my perspective.
For starters - downloadable games can be expensive in some countries. Steam operates in Euros here and has prices that you would expect, but the average pay over here is much lower. Local publishers sell PC games for half the price that you would expect to get people to buy them and they can still be considered expensive.
Lots of people still don't have good download speeds or a credit card that can take internet transactions (in a different currency no less). Some are scared of inputing their credit card info on the internet (even though it's more likely to lose the info by giving a cashier the card to swipe).
Finally there's just market penetration. A lot of people will buy the game in the box when they're just walking through that part of the supermarket or electronics store (there are zero physical stores that sell just games. You'd go bankrupt in a month.)
Of course lots of this applies mostly to moms buying games for their kids, or kids buying games with their allowance. Most tech-savy (if you can call it that) people look through various sites on the internet and find some cheap options, though you'd be surprised for often you can get a physical copy ordered and shipped to your house and still pay less then the asking price on steam.
PS: I have a polish retail copy of World of Goo myself. Sadly it's less snazzy then yours. It's just a CD with a DRM-free polish copy of the game, in a DVD box, in a cardboard sleeve. No extra slips of paper.
I also have a retail copy of Civilization V. Not sure if you had those or not. It came in a DVD box with a Steam key and installation DVD, instructions and a giant fold out piece of paper that has a keyboard shortcut cheat sheet, the tech tree, policy tree, all the resources, units, upgrades, pretty much everything and half of it is totally inaccurate by this point.
I live in the Netherlands and I was surprised to learn that I could buy a physical copy of the Resident Evil 2 remake on PC. Had to be activated through Steam of course. I think the main reason why they still sell some PC games physically in Europe is because there are a few places where the internet sucks and buying things online isn't common. I also feel like PC gaming is a lot bigger than console gaming in some European countries, particularly eastern Europe, and the US was always more console oriented and quick to accept PC games going digital only.
Hey LGR!
Another odd thing about Tux Racer... I actually played Tux Racer on an Arcade Cabinet before I knew there were any other versions. It was strange indeed. My local Gattis had it I believe. you controlled the penguin with a WHEEL. A literal Car Wheel.
Since you had Super Meat Boy there i might as well mention that Binding Of Isaac also got a pretty cool boxed version, it has some pretty awesome looking art on the front of the box and some cool goodies along with a non-drm copy of the game and the expansion patched to a newer version compared to the steam version (mostly bug fixes and what not). It's pretty easy to find around these parts, I've seen it in most Gamestops around here in Finland.
Trine 2 also got a Physical collector's edition similiar to that of Super Meat Boy. It came with an art book, which is neat because as far as games with 2.5D graphics go, Trine is as gorgeous as it gets.
It seems like PC gaming is the only area where US has it worse than EU, as many (mostly Japanese) console and hand held games that the US gets are only released digitally in Europe or not at all. Atleast with Nintendo DS and PSP you could import, but Nintendo put a region lock on 3DS and some games have on disc region protection, so no Shin Megami Tensei IV or Persona 4 Arena for Europe.
This is the exact same thing about physical copies of digital games, in Poland. You may go to every shop, which offers games in sale and you'll find a lot of them. It seems, that Europe is the continent of "physical plenitude".
Amnesia actually has a physical release with a different cover. I saw it on CDON (Scandinavian site) years back. Sadly there is no trace of it anywhere nowadays. I managed to find one obscure place that is selling a 2nd hand copy by using a prize comparison site. Frictional Games and "Norden" are both credited on the cover. I have no idea what this "Norden" is but my guess is that it was a limited release for the Northen European countries. On the very grey/blue cover you will find a red rose in the center that is surrounded by some stones and water.
Back in 2002 America's Army was mainly distributed through download, but you could get physical copies from Army recruiting offices. I couldn't download it with my slow internet at the time, so I actually picked one up at a recruiting office.
I have a lot of games on my Steam account but i have less than 10 physical copies of pc games. Mainly because buying pc games in digital form is so cheap and easy nowadays but also because trade-in values on pc games are so low (in the UK at least) they're not worth trading once you're finished with them.
A lot of PC games also have activation codes which can only be used once so you can't re-sell them, which i found out the hard way a while back buying some second hand pc games on Ebay.
I do miss the days of getting a nice thick manual with games though, i bought Battlefield 4 and The Last Of Us on PS3 and all i got was a cheap leaflet with a help line number on the back and a link to the developers website.
You might want to check Shattered Horizon as well. 2 different physical copies were released in the EU: the 1st came with stickers and the 2nd came with a cool poster.
One of my favorite physical editions of digital games is LIMBO. And now that you have mentioned it, it seems that it's also a game that got a physical release only in Europe (at least, the one that is available on amazon US is a UK import). I don't know if you have already seen it, but it's really a beautiful edition.
As for Super Meat Boy, I also have the very nice "Ultra Rare Edition" including the OST, a sketch book, a comic, a poster and a t-shirt.
I'm also thinking about Telltale games. I don't know if they sell their games in shops in US, but they do in Europe, for some of them. And they also sell, directly on their website, beautiful physical editions of their games as Jurassic Park (an edition far better than the game itself to be honest, that would please any fan of the original movie btw).
We get most of these newer boxed versions in Australia as well, and it is how I buy the majority of my games. For whatever reason, they are usually cheaper boxed than they are on Steam itself.
I had a bunch but they went out on the front nature strip when I moved. Was the metal box container for CIV III (the disc stopped working after a while)
Here on Greece, I find many physical copies of games that need Steam activation to be cheaper than Steam. Like Injustice Gods Among Us Ultimate Edition and Batman Arkham Origins cost 35 euros in most stores on physicial copies. And on the same stores I see the new Shadow Warrior at most 20 euros physical copy. And on small store on the center of Athens, where I like to go (called Gamestation, on Omonoia) has Wolfenstein The New Order for 33 euros, and DMC: Devil May Cry physical copy for 12 euros and CoD:Ghosts for 37 euros and Sleeping Dogs physical copy not Limited Edition: 10 euros. My Internet is good, and I can DL a game from Steam fast enough for me. To give more examples of recent games that come on my mind that need Steam activation: Amazing Spider-Man 2: 20 euros or less on Steam 30 euros. Those prices kinda buffle me, since I thought they would be the same thing. But hey, cheaper games. :D
BUT for games like Titanfall, Watch_Dogs, Battlefield 4, etc the prices are the same with Steam/Origin/Uplay/the ones you expect to be, 40+ euros
Hmmmmm......... Do you have a physical copy of Monaco: Collector's Edition? It has a DRM-Free copy, 2 Steam keys, soundtrack, profile cards for each character with descriptions like they were written from Interpol and a card from the developers. 'Cause I find it weird that in the US there aren't physical copies of Botanicula.
The Bit Trip games on Wii Ware got physical Wii Disc & 3DS cart releases and also DuckTales Remastered got physical Wii U, PS3 and 360 releases.
The free to play game "Warface" from Crytec is sold as a physical Copy, just because, the are some people in Germany that live in a rural region, that have just a slow internet connection. The 10€ for the game are compensated with virtual goodies and ingame currency that is worth 10€.
Just to let you know, Sonic Generations on PC also had a Europe-only physical release. The US only has the digital version for PC. the PS3, X360 and the 3DS versions had both physical and digital releases in both US and Europe.
I was surprised bejelwed wasn't featured. because yes it did have physical copies you could get in staples, best buy and office depot.