Sony suggests physical games will be around longer than expected
High street retailers might be in free fall but Sony has suggested disc based games will be more popular than their downloadable counterparts for the foreseeable future.
Predicting that PS4 games will be more popular in traditional physical form than as a digital download, Sony has spoken out on the future of gaming, claiming it intended for the PS4 to generate a “level playing field” for physical and digital game purchases. It suggested this move will let consumers not manufacturers dictate how the gaming market evolves.
"Our strategy has been set for some time," Guy Longworth, Senior Vice President of the American PlayStation brand said in a recent interview with GamesIndustry. “What we try to do is offer a relatively level playing field and let the gamers decide.”
He added: “We're not trying to take advantage of them, we believe in consumer choice. It's clear that the vast majority of the people want to go down to GameStop or Best Buy, they don't want to buy it online right now.”
Predicting that physical games will not go the way of the CD anytime soon, Longworth stated: “How that might change in the future is kind of hard to predict. People might be quite surprised, I think physical games will be around a lot longer than some people think."
Although claiming that physical media will remain the number one choice for many consumers for some time yet, the Sony VP stated that the upcoming PS4 will cover all gamer preferences. “Our digital business is growing fast, and we have incredibly strong partnerships with our key retail partners as well,” he said.
With the PS4 price recently confirmed as £349, £80 cheaper than the Xbox One, Longworth has suggested that the values of the new PlayStation will see its outperform its closest rival.
"The reality is that every time a generation changes the playing field is levelled,” he said. “We actually think that we're going to have superior graphic fidelity, but the whole value proposition has to be right. It's not just about graphic fidelity. What are our policies? What are our principles? What do we stand for, and how do we communicate it?"
Read More: PS4 vs Xbox One
