Just because a game is on disc doesn’t mean it will work in the future

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2026/07/the-disc-is-not-the-game-physical-releases-increasingly-require-extra-downloads/

47 points · 6 comments · view on lemmy.world

6 Comments

tacosanonymous@mander.xyz · 14 pts · 13d (1 reply)

I’d rather enforce quality standards than use their shitty release states to justify their limiting acces to physical media. Fuck these apologizers.

darkdemize@sh.itjust.works · 6 pts · 13d

I'm not sure pointing out the fact that many discs ship with incomplete software requiring patches is apologizing for the state of the industry, it's simply acknowledging reality. I didn't see them voicing their support for the practice.

Kolanaki@pawb.social · 6 pts · 13d (2 replies)

There's only 3 reasons for that:

  1. Physical degredation of the disk rendering it inoperable.

  2. The operating system you use in the future may not allow the software to work at all if said softeare is old enough.

  3. DRM that checks a server over the internet to verify you have the liscense to run it, but those servers no longer exist.

Item 1 can't be helped, only slowed. Item 2 can be fixed. Item 3 is bullshit and needs to disappear.

Required Day 1 updates were not mentioned because that isn't having the game on a disk. It's having a download link on a disk.

supersquirrel@sopuli.xyz · 2 pts · 13d

Required Day 1 updates were not mentioned because that isn't having the game on a disk. It's having a download link on a disk.

What if the download link is included on another CD encoded into a crypto currency stored on it?

HerbGrower@slrpnk.net · 2 pts · 13d

1 can be solved by not having DRM that prevents you making backups. So the obvious one is GOG.

subverted_per@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 4 pts · 13d

Yes, but having a physical manifestation of the game allows me to have a plausible reason to have a backup of the complete game in my personal data storage. Not so if my games can only be stored digitally in the publishers walled garden service that can revoke my access for any reason.