One veteran developer thinks that physical video games are coming to end, according to a recent GamesIndustry.biz article.
That developer is one David Braben, founder and CEO of Frontier Developments. Frontier is most known for the wildly successful Elite Dangerous, a game that’s mostly succeeded on digital platforms.
This stance would make sense coming from Braben on those merits alone, but there’s more to his statements than his own personal experience. According to him, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the fall of the physical retail market.
“We’ve seen an acceleration in the transition from physical to digital,” he said. “That is a good thing. It’s probably two to three years before physical more or less goes away, and it’s probably accelerated that timescale a bit.”
While it’s a bold assertion, one can’t deny that it’s a feasible one. The pandemic grasping the globe successfully stymied the release of several video games. On top of that, games that weren’t delayed were faced with supply shortages and shipping issues. There’s no denying that COVID-19 has already left a huge dent on the industry.
Meanwhile, digital games have continued to thrive, by virtue of their convenience. I can personally speak to being a huge fan of physical games, but I’ve been reassessing that stance in recent months. Animal Crossing: New Horizons, a game I would’ve bought physically, ended up being easier to download as this pandemic took hold. Now, with that ease of access, I’ve been wondering why I haven’t done it sooner.
Is Braben right here? We’ll just have to wait and see.
