Physical vs. Downloadable Media

The impetus for this discussion came about recently while trying to decide if I would buy Spore. Now, for many of you, this would be a no-brainer, but for me, working on a very limited disposable income supply, all extraneous expeditures need to be carefully considered before making. Anyway, during my deliberations on whether or not to pick up the game, the additional factor came into play, one that I wasn't prepared for: should I buy a physical copy of the game (either from a B&M location or have it delivered from an online retailer), or do I download the game from a download service?

The answer to this question, in this specific case, is not an easy one. Like many of you, I'm a big proponent of the new distribution method, and being able to almost instantly have access to a purchase without having to leave home to get it is attractive (of course, in this case I'd be waiting a couple of hours for the game to download, but that's neither here nor there). To go to a B&M location would cost gas (sadly a factor to be taken into account these day), time and some hassle (traffic where I live always has to be taken into account). To order the game online (say, from Amazon) would eliminate these hassles, but then I'd have to wait for several days for the order to arrive, which isn't a big deal, but since I often have the mentality of a 5-year old and want instant gratification, this is not ideal. After looking at the previous options, the logical choice would be to buy the game from a download service, thus avoiding the gas, time to get to and from a store, the traffic, or the wait for delivery from an online retailer.

However, while the direct download would seem to be the best option, a hitch exists even in this option. I will confess to being a fan of services like Steam, where you have an account, you buy games with this account, and thereafter you have access to those games with your account info. For example, when I switched from my older laptop to the desktop I currently use, all I had to do to get the games I'd bought through Steam onto the desktop was to install the Steam client, enter my user info and download the games again. I consider that a very useful service from the Steam client, and am willing to deal with the consequences of Steam (the 'calling home' the client does on occasion, being online to play games in most instances, etc.). Since I have nothing to hide, this doesn't bother me, unlike some people seen on the Internet, who complain about Steam as an invasion of privacy. That's an argument for another time, though. The hitch in the plan comes from the fact that Spore is not currently available on any service such as this, but from direct download services that allow you to download the game once, and then (if the file were lost, corrupted, or otherwise misplaced) would have to pay again to get another copy of the file. Of course, I could pay extra for an 'extended download window', but even that is for a finite period of time.

There would be no question or debate if Spore were available from Steam (or Impulse, or some other similar service), but as it exists now, I would pay my $50 for a single digital copy of the game, and would then lose it if my hard drive crashed (and let's face it, that happens a lot, especially when you can least afford it to happen). I'm not one to lose physical media, but I would then have the responsibility of keeping track of it. Call it paranoia, but I'm horrified to think about losing everything in a hard drive crash.

The question, and the entire reason for this post, is this: Is it better to have a physical copy of the game or a digital copy of the game, given the restraints laid forth? Again, this isn't an earth-shattering decision to make, but one that I've been thinking about for a bit now, and I still haven't come up with a good answer either way. To be honest, it's spiraled into a philosophical debate now more than anything, because it isn't that hard to go get a copy from my local Gamestop or Best Buy. I just think it's been an interesting thought exercise going through all of the different scenarios.

So, I'll throw it out to you, the reader (if there's anyone out there in fact reading this): Which method do you prefer to get your games and why?