Will Microsoft end rare game hunting?

[Hamel]

http://www.thatvideogameblog.com/2009/10/23/microsoft-retail-store-lets-you-print-your-own-physical-copies-of-pc-games/
Pretty good idea
Now I hope everyone will do that for every console that uses CDs/DVDs/BRDs that would be awesome

[jeffx]

Wow, clever.

[kelvinc]

Of course we will still be buying things the old-fashioned way because they haven't figured out how to do this for plushies and art books. :wink:

I'll believe the claim of "retail" quality in the print material when I see it, but put me down as "skeptical" for now on that aspect.

[IceCold_Assassin]

Of course we will still be buying things the old-fashioned way because they haven't figured out how to do this for plushies and art books. :wink:

I'll believe the claim of "retail" quality in the print material when I see it, but put me down as "skeptical" for now on that aspect.

Probably just get whatever the bonus is shipped like the manuals or something.

[Hamel]

Of course we will still be buying things the old-fashioned way because they haven't figured out how to do this for plushies and art books. :wink:

I'll believe the claim of "retail" quality in the print material when I see it, but put me down as "skeptical" for now on that aspect.

Not every game has plushies and such as a bonus
for exemple I would be happy to get a normal-priced Suikoden 2

[Enzeru]

Of course we will still be buying things the old-fashioned way because they haven't figured out how to do this for plushies and art books. :wink:
Well, since we have 3D printing, anything is possible. xD 3D Auto Sewing?

[Foobar]

I'll believe the claim of "retail" quality in the print material when I see it, but put me down as "skeptical" for now on that aspect.

Its actually poses the chance of having a better quality since it gets around that thing called "shipping." From the factory to the store, those game cases can and will be thrown around.

Doesn't matter if the box says "fragile." The FedEx and UPS guys do not have the time to be gentle with everything and get the deliveries done.

Plus the quality isn't much different than titles being digitally distributed, its just you're getting a physical copy. Enjoy that while it lasts.

[AdrianMorales]

Microsoft retail store lets you print your own physical copies of PC games.... people have been 'printing' their own physical copies of PC games for decades. And why only PC games? All the good games never make it to the PC.

http://www.thepickards.co.uk/images/pirate63.gif

[kelvinc]

I'll believe the claim of "retail" quality in the print material when I see it, but put me down as "skeptical" for now on that aspect.

Its actually poses the chance of having a better quality since it gets around that thing called "shipping." From the factory to the store, those game cases can and will be thrown around.

Doesn't matter if the box says "fragile." The FedEx and UPS guys do not have the time to be gentle with everything and get the deliveries done.

Plus the quality isn't much different than titles being digitally distributed, its just you're getting a physical copy. Enjoy that while it lasts.
I meant "print" as in something like a manual: there's no comparison with digital distribution in that aspect. I just can't imagine the store keeping a printer in-store that's any more sophisticated than your average business use colour laser printer. Keep case inserts can be printed with less expensive paper and printers, I suppose, though cardboard boxes are probably out.

But damn, if they do keep an industrial use printer just for that purpose, then all the credit to them.

[Cloud737]

Hmm, interesting! However, I doubt things will really go as smooth.

You see, some PC games have really tricky protections that involve altering the way CDs/DVDs are written to in a way that normal CD/DVD-writters can't do, thus applying some sort of signature to the media (that's how all consoles work, hence why MS probably doesn't offer this for console games, besides the legal troubles with the console manufacturers themselves for not obtaining a license to print copies for their consoles).

Take StarForce for example, even though no one uses them much anymore (it took a lot of backlash to pull that off, but finally, they're 3 feet under now... almost).
Most new CD/DVD readers/writters (note: old ones have problems) could read the data from media protected with StarForce, but no CD/DVD writters could copy that onto a new disk (otherwise, what was the point?).

While most games now don't rely on that and instead rely on unique per-copy serials and online activations, you've got to wonder what happens with past and future games that will use non-standard disk-writing techniques. Will Microsoft have special disk-writing hardware in the back of their stores (and remember, we aren't talking about burning disks here, but pressing them, the way true ROM [Read Only Memory, i.e.: DVD-ROM] media is done)? What will they do with the unique per-copy serials?

PS: Another good point is how the manuals and cardboard boxes will be printed, like kelvinc pointed out. This, like the case above with DVDs, will require industrial hardware for actual retail-quality copies.

[Terash Cas]

How long do burned cds last again... 5 years or less?

[Sanctine]

Hmm, interesting! However, I doubt things will really go as smooth.

You see, some PC games have really tricky protections that involve altering the way CDs/DVDs are written to in a way that normal CD/DVD-writters can't do, thus applying some sort of signature to the media (that's how all consoles work, hence why MS probably doesn't offer this for console games, besides the legal troubles with the console manufacturers themselves for not obtaining a license to print copies for their consoles).

Take StarForce for example, even though no one uses them much anymore (it took a lot of backlash to pull that off, but finally, they're 3 feet under now... almost).
Most new CD/DVD readers/writters (note: old ones have problems) could read the data from media protected with StarForce, but no CD/DVD writters could copy that onto a new disk (otherwise, what was the point?).

I'm sure they already thought of this...