Senua’s Saga: Hellbade II is Xbox’s subsequent massive console unique online game coming this 12 months. We realized rather a lot concerning the upcoming motion recreation throughout Thursday’s Developer Direct. We additionally realized, afterward, that Hellblade II gained’t get a bodily launch, persevering with a pattern of huge AAA console video games skipping discs and going digital solely. And that’s not nice.
For an extended, very long time, massive and small console video games (PC is a special story) at all times launched bodily editions of video games as a result of there wasn’t some other possibility. However across the period of the Xbox 360 (almost 20 years in the past), some smaller video games or indie titles began skipping bodily releases and went digital-only, usually at a less expensive worth level. There was concern from some that this might result in video games changing into unavailable as soon as the servers internet hosting the content material have been shut down—which did occur and continues to. Nevertheless, for the final twenty years, exterior of smaller video games or indie titles, most video games have been nonetheless getting bodily releases throughout all platforms.
After which Alan Wake II occurred.
Whereas I really like Alan Wake II (it’s my private recreation of the 12 months of 2023) an odd and miserable little bit of trivia concerning the recreation is that it is likely to be the very first main, AAA, blockbuster, GOTY-contending recreation from a big writer to skip any bodily launch on any platform, even consoles. Treatment Leisure defined in an FAQ that the choice to skip a disc launch was so the value of Alan Wake II might keep at $60 as a substitute of $70. The studio additionally needed to keep away from delivery a disc however forcing folks to obtain a big replace anyway, which is actually annoying, however is it so dangerous that it justifies Alan Wake II present solely as a digital $60 recreation? I’m not so positive.
What’s so dangerous about digital-only video games?
Digital-only video games have a couple of issues. They’re more durable to protect on consoles, of us with restricted web choices are screwed, and digital video games can’t be resold or traded in. And let’s not neglect: Digital video games exist solely so long as the businesses who run digital shops permit them to. Positive, all the main platforms will allow you to re-download video games you beforehand purchased, even when they have been faraway from the storefront for licensing causes. However that’s solely true so long as the oldsters operating the storefront deem it so. (And in some instances, it isn’t true in any respect.)
So it’s not nice when an enormous recreation skips a bodily launch. Positive, not each recreation on a disc might be performed offline or with out “Day 1” patches, however most are certainly playable, as documented by followers on this nifty web site.
That’s why it was so disappointing to see Hellblade II confirmed by Xbox as a digital-only $50 online game. Some may argue that many will play the Hellblade sequel through Sport Go and by no means even personal it anyway, which is probably going true. But it surely’s nonetheless not supreme that one other AAA console recreation is charging a lot—in comparison with different, cheaper digital-only titles— whereas additionally eradicating the choice to purchase it bodily. Which means that of us gained’t have the ability to commerce in Hellblade II or maintain on to it and play it years after servers die and firms shut.
The online game trade has lengthy been horrible at preserving its personal historical past. It’s usually followers, modders, and even, sure, pirates who’re doing the exhausting work that publishers and devs must be doing to ensure as many video games as doable are playable 30 years from now. And if this new pattern of AAA console video games skipping the disc and going digital-only continues to develop, the already dire state of recreation preservation will worsen.
.
