is DD too good for devs and just too bad for everyone else?

[QUOTE="skilfulgary"]

Digital distribution is good for devs but bad for everyone else involved imo.

I think that if devs had less competition from sh sales and retailers the price of games could actually rise.Games would come out more frequently and from a lot of different devs,causing a saturation of the market leading to consumer apathy.

A lot of people would lose their jobs across the board,from retailers to manufacturers.

i wouldn't be able to sell my well deserved hard copy which is bang out of order as i have the right to do what i like with what i own(within reason) or lend it to any of my frenemies,which would suck because i wouldn't have any excuse to see some of them if this happened.

But at least the top devs would have more money which is the main thing right?

skrat_01

[QUOTE="Indie_Hitman"]By replacing retail with DD, youre replacing retail jobs with... oh, no jobs. As opposed to technology repalcing labour, whre the labour can then move onto help construct the very machines that took their jobs (Though even then, the result has been an increase in unemployment). N30F3N1X

Developers distribute the games themselves through the internet. Is that not replacing the labour of retail workers?

[QUOTE="skilfulgary"]

Digital distribution is good for devs but bad for everyone else involved imo.

I think that if devs had less competition from sh sales and retailers the price of games could actually rise.Games would come out more frequently and from a lot of different devs,causing a saturation of the market leading to consumer apathy.

A lot of people would lose their jobs across the board,from retailers to manufacturers.

i wouldn't be able to sell my well deserved hard copy which is bang out of order as i have the right to do what i like with what i own(within reason) or lend it to any of my frenemies,which would suck because i wouldn't have any excuse to see some of them if this happened.

But at least the top devs would have more money which is the main thing right?

skrat_01

dd will take far more jobs then it gives. Also it will hurt young people most as retailers are some of the biggest companys for low skilled workers.

[QUOTE="N30F3N1X"]

[QUOTE="Indie_Hitman"]By replacing retail with DD, youre replacing retail jobs with... oh, no jobs. As opposed to technology repalcing labour, whre the labour can then move onto help construct the very machines that took their jobs (Though even then, the result has been an increase in unemployment). Indie_Hitman

Developers distribute the games themselves through the internet. Is that not replacing the labour of retail workers?

Yes it is. "um, no?" isn't a counter argument. Internet working as the retailer is very much technology replacing labour. There's no other way to spin it.

dd will take far more jobs then it gives. Also it will hurt young people most as retailers are some of the biggest companys for low skilled workers.

dontshackzmii

God forbid forcing young people to actually get a clue about the world, that should be labelled as a crime :roll:

[QUOTE="dontshackzmii"]

dd will take far more jobs then it gives. Also it will hurt young people most as retailers are some of the biggest companys for low skilled workers.

N30F3N1X

God forbid forcing young people to actually get a clue about the world, that should be labelled as a crime :roll:

wow just wow young people really dont have options what should they do? Whos going to give them a job? How are they going to pay for college? How is this going to force them to get a clue?

Wow,DD has fanboys already,why?...actually never mind.

How is DD good for gamers who have bad internet connections?,or no internet at all.

Also, this misconception that DD only games will be cheaper is very arguable,if you want examples just look at xbl games on demand and if thas not good enough for you what about the pspgo?which actually cost the same as a psp even though it was minus the tech for reading cartridges.

[QUOTE="Indie_Hitman"][QUOTE="N30F3N1X"]

Developers distribute the games themselves through the internet. Is that not replacing the labour of retail workers?

N30F3N1X

Yes it is. "um, no?" isn't a counter argument. Internet working as the retailer is very much technology replacing labour. There's no other way to spin it.

wow just wow young people really dont have options what should they do? Whos going to give them a job? How are they going to pay for college? How is this going to force them to get a clue?

dontshackzmii

Dude, just stop, you're making yourself look ridiculous.

Giving more chances to small developers >>>>>>> giving more jobs to hurrdurr gamestop salesmen.

Teens survive even without knowing anything about gaming. Making retailers shrink will not hurt anyone more than it will do good.

None of this can be argued for it would go against the very concept of evolution.

Wow,DD has fanboys already,why?...actually never mind.

How is DD good for gamers who have bad internet connections?,or no internet at all.

skilfulgary

That's like asking why it's good for people without a TV. It's just a stupid arbitrary limitation. It's not good for people with slow or no internet :?

Also, this misconception that DD only games will be cheaper is very arguable,if you want examples just look at xbl games on demand and if thas not good enough for you what about the pspgo?which actually cost the same as a psp even though it was minus the tech for reading cartridges.

skilfulgary

The issue there is the lack of any form of competition. Look at DD PC prices.Sites will often have pre-order discounts (GMG.com/D2D/etc.)

[QUOTE="skilfulgary"]

Wow,DD has fanboys already,why?...actually never mind.

How is DD good for gamers who have bad internet connections?,or no internet at all.

lundy86_4

That's like asking why it's good for people without a TV. It's just a stupid arbitrary limitation. It's not good for people with slow or no internet :?

Also, this misconception that DD only games will be cheaper is very arguable,if you want examples just look at xbl games on demand and if thas not good enough for you what about the pspgo?which actually cost the same as a psp even though it was minus the tech for reading cartridges.

skilfulgary

The issue there is the lack of any form of competition. Look at DD PC prices.Sites will often have pre-order discounts (GMG.com/D2D/etc.)

you're clever aren't you,seriously though,that was a response to some systemwarriors trying to blatantly say that DD is good for everyone.skilfulgary

A lot of people have made good points in this thread. Naturally, nothing will be a solely positive influence. Everything is gonna have a downside.

It's whether the advantages outweight the negatives.

I can't tell if you're being serious, but: There is no way that the jobs created from internet distribution will be anywhere near the scale of jobs lost due to closure of video game stores. Purely on the basis of it being internet distribution - accessible across the country. For your other comment about having "young people to get a clue about the world" - one of the major problems right now is that employers want experience workers. You can have as many qualifications as you want, but if you don't have the required experience, you won't get the job. Therefore, young people are losing out due this viscious circle. DD would only make this worse.Indie_Hitman

It happened before with a thing called plow. Before, there were a ****load of people working on a single field. Then, there were few men with one plow each. Then, there were even lesser men with oxes pulling the plows. Now a single man can handle tens of fields alone thanks to automatized plows.

Since it seems a lot of people don't know what this cycle is, I'll synthetize in a single word: evolution. I'll also tell you, if we were to worry about the downsides of evolution we probably wouldn't even have plows and would still be lowly animals that hunt for food and don't have fixed homes.

Oh, what the hell am I talking about, how am I supposed to expect SYSTEM WARS to understand such a basic, inextricable rule of our society, why did I even try :roll:

[QUOTE="dontshackzmii"]

wow just wow young people really dont have options what should they do? Whos going to give them a job? How are they going to pay for college? How is this going to force them to get a clue?

N30F3N1X

Dude, just stop, you're making yourself look ridiculous.

Giving more chances to small developers >>>>>>> giving more jobs to hurrdurr gamestop salesmen.

Teens survive even without knowing anything about gaming. Making retailers shrink will not hurt anyone more than it will do good.

None of this can be argued for it would go against the very concept of evolution.

saturating the market with more devs is probably not as good as you might think either,more cod clones anyone?skilfulgary

Yep, because small developers who have to rely on DD to make their names known will only make CoD clones.

Shows how much you actually know about indie developers. Which is to say, nothing.

[QUOTE="skilfulgary"]you're clever aren't you,seriously though,that was a response to some systemwarriors trying to blatantly say that DD is good for everyone.lundy86_4

A lot of people have made good points in this thread. Naturally, nothing will be a solely positive influence. Everything is gonna have a downside.

It's whether the advantages outweight the negatives.

um...thanks for clearing that up,i didn't comment on the good points because i can see where they are coming from but thanks again,i think it's clear that the negatives outweigh the positives by quite a margin.skilfulgary

According to whom? Somebody who portrays an immediate bias in the OP?

It will likely never replace retail, just how retail will never be the sole distribution ever again.

[QUOTE="Indie_Hitman"] I can't tell if you're being serious, but: There is no way that the jobs created from internet distribution will be anywhere near the scale of jobs lost due to closure of video game stores. Purely on the basis of it being internet distribution - accessible across the country. For your other comment about having "young people to get a clue about the world" - one of the major problems right now is that employers want experience workers. You can have as many qualifications as you want, but if you don't have the required experience, you won't get the job. Therefore, young people are losing out due this viscious circle. DD would only make this worse.N30F3N1X

It happened before with a thing called plow. Before, there were a ****load of people working on a single field. Then, there were few men with one plow each. Then, there were even lesser men with oxes pulling the plows. Now a single man can handle tens of fields alone thanks to automatized plows.

Since it seems a lot of people don't know what this cycle is, I'll synthetize in a single word: evolution. I'll also tell you, if we were to worry about the downsides of evolution we probably wouldn't even have plows and would still be lowly animals that hunt for food and don't have fixed homes.

Oh, what the hell am I talking about, how am I supposed to expect SYSTEM WARS to understand such a basic, inextricable rule of our society, why did I even try :roll:

dd will take far more jobs then it gives. Also it will hurt young people most as retailers are some of the biggest companys for low skilled workers.

dontshackzmii

I'm very happy for you that you've grasped the concept of progress, and evolution (As a scientist, I too am fully aware of them) but with the technological advancements, there are always increases in unemployment. Yes, we DID move on from a more labour intensive agricultural economy, into a more efficient system, but with that came unemployment and homelessness. The industrial revolution was great for jobs, and it was progress. It was one of very few advancements that broke this cycle. However, and I hope you understand this time - Transfer to digital distribution is NOT equivalent to the industrial revolution. I'm not saying DD shouldn't happen - it has, and it's good. But a full replacement is neither necessary, nor wise right now. Indie_Hitman

"Full replacement"? That's something *you* have pulled out.

[QUOTE="skilfulgary"]saturating the market with more devs is probably not as good as you might think either,more cod clones anyone?N30F3N1X

Yep, because small developers who have to rely on DD to make their names known will only make CoD clones.

Shows how much you actually know about indie developers. Which is to say, nothing.

i like indie games a lot actually,check me out on xbox live:skilfulgary btw,i should have made this clear but anyway i knows enough to know that most of the indie games on xbl are a pile of cack tbh,maybe you should check them out,if you do you will see where i'm coming from hopefully.skilfulgary

XBL :lol: ?

[QUOTE="Indie_Hitman"] I'm very happy for you that you've grasped the concept of progress, and evolution (As a scientist, I too am fully aware of them) but with the technological advancements, there are always increases in unemployment. Yes, we DID move on from a more labour intensive agricultural economy, into a more efficient system, but with that came unemployment and homelessness. The industrial revolution was great for jobs, and it was progress. It was one of very few advancements that broke this cycle. However, and I hope you understand this time - Transfer to digital distribution is NOT equivalent to the industrial revolution. I'm not saying DD shouldn't happen - it has, and it's good. But a full replacement is neither necessary, nor wise right now. N30F3N1X

"Full replacement"? That's something *you* have pulled out.

[QUOTE="skilfulgary"]um...thanks for clearing that up,i didn't comment on the good points because i can see where they are coming from but thanks again,i think it's clear that the negatives outweigh the positives by quite a margin.lundy86_4

According to whom? Somebody who portrays an immediate bias in the OP?

It will likely never replace retail, just how retail will never be the sole distribution ever again.

[QUOTE="illmatic87"]It's good for both consumers and developers. It's bad for those that are anal about discs and boxes.AncientDozer

The only downside to digital distribution is often times it puts the buyer in less control. I get around the more restrictive services like Steam but if you cherrypick on Gamersgate and GOG there isn't any restrictive DRM to bother with.

[QUOTE="lundy86_4"]

[QUOTE="skilfulgary"]um...thanks for clearing that up,i didn't comment on the good points because i can see where they are coming from but thanks again,i think it's clear that the negatives outweigh the positives by quite a margin.skilfulgary

According to whom? Somebody who portrays an immediate bias in the OP?

It will likely never replace retail, just how retail will never be the sole distribution ever again.

How about you link me to whatever you're talking about. I went to the "News" section, but have yet to determine what i'm actually looking for.

No, I am not too biased.

In Britain, we still haven't recovered. Things are getting worse and worse due to de-industrialisation.Indie_Hitman

dd will take far more jobs then it gives. Also it will hurt young people most as retailers are some of the biggest companys for low skilled workers.

dontshackzmii

Look at the decline of record stores, there wasn't a generation of 'job less record store workers'.

And no it will generate more jobs for developers and those running the systems of distribution. I'd say there's mre value in seeing more creative individuals being given the chance to grow and flourish then a 16 year old kid trying to earn extra side money by working at Gamestop.

[QUOTE="lundy86_4"]

[QUOTE="AtariKidX"]The software on my cell phone is a part of what i have buy....it is not something different.AtariKidX

You are purchasing a licence to use the software. You are not buying any ownership rights to the software. You are still restricted to the rules the copyright holder lays out for you.

DD has its advantages and disadvantages. For one thing, as someone else already pointed out, many indie game developers have a much better chance of selling their games. Also, without services like GOG.com, we would most likely not get old games playable on newer computers. That is the problem with physical content.

On the other hand, physical media is great, especially if you can actually hold a disc in your hand, the manual that comes with it, and/or anything else that might be included with the game (i.e. calendar, figurine, art book, etc.).