M+E Daily
What Would a Disc-Less Xbox Mean for Game Retail?
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Not long ago, rumors resurfaced that the next generation of Microsoft’s Xbox system would utilize Blu-ray discs for video game delivery. Now, an unidentified source tells UK game site MCV that Microsoft plans to drop optical discs entirely from its future console.
Instead, MCV reports, the next-generation Xbox — which could be unveiled as early as June, with a launch date in 2013 — will offer compatibility with a solid-state storage medium.
Although it contradicts earlier speculation, the new report has game industry observers contemplating how a disc-less Xbox system could impact video game marketing. MCV says such a move would represent “a potentially savage blow to the already beleaguered video games retail sector”: brick-and-mortar chains’ lucrative business in used Xbox game discs would disappear, while the console maker would presumably distribute more content directly to consumers via its own digital network.
It’s already a challenging climate for incumbent game retailers. Europe’s Game Group announced on Monday that it “has not been possible to source new products from a number of suppliers,” as the brick-and-mortar chain tries to recover from disappointing holiday sales (via the Daily Mail).
Still, some observers doubt that a disc-less Xbox (assuming the rumor is true) would spell doom for physical retail. The real question, says GamesIndustry.biz (registration required), is “whether games will be distributed on optical discs, as we currently do, or whether the next-generation Xbox will follow PlayStation Vita down the path of distributing games on flash cards.
“That’s not a matter of digital retail strategy,” the game news site points out. “Next-gen games will be available simultaneously on digital download platforms and in physical retail, regardless of what form the physical product takes.”
