Editorial by Jeffrey Nowak

How to Make a Disc Drive Free Gaming Console Work

How to Make a Disc Drive Free Gaming Console Work

Apple announced this week that the high-end Mac Book Pro will no longer be equipped with an optical disc drive. This move by Apple may start a trend that continues into the game console market. Prior to this, early reports about Microsoft's successor to the Xbox 360 foreshadowed that the newer console's disc drive will be omitted. Although I personally do not believe this will happen, these rumors do fall in line with the industry's desire to see the used game market cease to exist.  

While I do not currently support the idea of eliminating disc drives from game systems (or computers for that matter) it may some day inevitably happen. Here are some ideas for what manufacturers can do to make a disc drive free video game console a success:

-= It has to have a large on board hard drive. I'm thing a terabyte or two.

-=If all of our games are now digital, allow us to put them on external hard drives for long-term storage.

-=Continue to sell games in retail stores on flash drives. This will allow people not connected to the Internet to continue to buy games. It will also keep retail outlets relevant  and will help make sure as little jobs as possible are lost at the retail end. Besides, think of the good conversations we've all had at the video game store and the networking that occurs there daily. It would be a shame to lose this.

-=Ensure that once a game has been purchased that it can be downloaded again without any hassles or penalties. Keep games on the servers for 5 years after they are released, and notify people 30 days before they are removed so that they can download them one last time if desired. 

-=Allow people to "loan" games to their friends. I'm not sure how the logistics would work, but there are a lot of smart people at Microsoft and Sony that can figure it out. If all else fails, I'm sure there's some form of sorcery that can be applied to accomplish this.

-=Lower the price of games. When I buy a game, I pay $60. I play it, finish it and then right away either trade it in or sell it on eBay. I get around $30 for them on average. Taking the resale into consideration, I pay a net of $30 a game; half price. That is the price point I feel download only games in the future should be at. The money that manufacturers save on discs, packaging and distribution should be passed onto the consumers. This is especially true if purchasers cannot resell the game or trade it in.

While the negatives of a disc free system are obvious, there are some benefits if it were to be implemented. With no disc drive, video game systems should run cooler. In theory then, they should last longer than the current generation of consoles. At last count, I believe I was on my third Xbox 360.

 I am in no way advocating that console makers ditch disc drives for the next generation of systems. If, however, they did with the suggestions I have outlined, I may be able to get behind the idea. 

Jeffrey Nowak is a VOG Staff Writer.

Editorial by - 6/15/2012 12:00 AM645 views

Comments

Auspher
Auspher
6/15/2012 5:57 PM

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I can see things going down the "disc-free" route in the future, but I really am not looking forward to it for console games.

My issue is simple. I LOVE having a physical copy of the games I purchase. It's something you can physically collect and admire, rather than just own an intangible product.
DarkTetsuya
DarkTetsuya
6/15/2012 6:36 PM

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I do wonder if Nintendo will eventually go digital-only... they've already started to do digital downloads on 3DS and I think the WiiU will have them too so it's something to keep an eye on.
ShadowNextGen
ShadowNextGen
6/15/2012 7:19 PM

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Both the next Xbox and the next PlayStation will have optical drives. We are simply not at a point where a 100% digital console is feasible. Perhaps with the Xbox 4/PS5. Something that doesn't get brought up a lot is ISP data caps. That would become an even bigger issue than it already is if the next generation of consoles was purely digital.
act_deft
act_deft
6/15/2012 9:19 PM

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"This movie by Apple..."

Wait, I thought you were talking about Disc-free consoles, not movies!
LOKI
LOKI
6/15/2012 9:22 PM

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The problem is you're describing a system that still relies on removable media. Going the flash cart route is more expensive than pressing a disc, which is why many systems use that medium.
Zeether
Zeether
6/16/2012 11:18 AM

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I can embrace digital only a little but having physical copies of games is so much better too. It's the same way I feel about e-books, I like being able to hold a book in my hand but at the same time having something stored digitally to read is nice too.
Auspher
Auspher
6/16/2012 11:37 AM

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I suppose that the one advantage of digital download-only games is that they last forever, being something you can re-download from the store (assuming you're given that right) if something happens to your data. Physical copies of games will eventually wear and tear, causing the game to become unplayable over time(unless you take extremely good care of it).
TigerClaw
TigerClaw
6/16/2012 12:20 PM

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To make a console Digital Download only, They have to make it so any games you purchase will work across the board in any of the consoles. Say you bought some games on your account, Then one day you decide to go to your friend's house who may have the same console as you, You log into your account on that console and play your games from there. Sort of like how Steam works.
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