Do you guys still buy physical PC games?

[evelynwang 0]

Hey everyone,
I was going through some old boxes and found a few of my old PC game discs (stuff like Half-Life 2, Crysis, and even The Sims 2). It made me realize I haven’t actually bought a physical PC game in more than 10 years — everything’s just Steam, GOG, or Game Pass now.

I kind of miss having the box art and manuals, but at the same time digital libraries are just way more convenient. The only downside for me is the feeling that if a service shuts down, I might lose access.

Curious — do you guys still collect physical copies of PC games, or have you gone 100% digital? And if you do still collect, where do you usually find them these days?

[SirYodaJedi 14]

I only buy physical PC games if they are DRM-free or include a Steam Key; Steam DRM is much less scummy than the various DRM schemes used in the 2000s (and I don't want to have my disc drive hogging a USB slot while I'm playing). Digital is also significantly cheaper (unlike with movies and console games), as well as generally already fixed for modern systems, which is why I don't buy 90s games physically either. Combine this with the fact that I didn't have a gaming-suitable PC until 2017, and I end up with a physical collection of… two games.

[Mastan 14]

I think the last retail games I bought were Mafia 2 and Just Cause 2 and that was around 2010-2011. 14 years ago.

Retail games are mostly tied to one or another store anyway and having physical box doesn't guarantee much since activation.

Nowadays I rarely buy new games and mostly older ones(2+ yo) when they're much cheaper, 50% - 75+% off. Retail can't offer that.