Thanks to increasingly cheap and fast internal storage and internet, the future is almost certainly digital, but is it digital downloads, or cloud gaming?
Game is stored on local storage
Able to modify game files
Unrestricted access to downloaded games
Games do not have to be downloaded
Immediate access to purchased games
No expensive gaming hardware required
Games need to be downloaded and updated, which can take a lot of time and storage space
You can only access a game you've paid for by downloading it
Downloaded games often need to connect to authentication servers before allowing you to play them
You only play games you've paid for by streaming them
There is additional latency between inputs and the video
High bandwidth internet is required
You have to pay a subscription for use of the service, as well as buying the games
Internal storage is getting cheaper and faster, so it's easier to have a lot of downloaded games
Average internet speeds are increasing, so it will take less time to download games
Can target people who are interested in games, but don't want to invest in expensive gaming hardware to try them
There are a growing number of competing storefronts, which could lead to the same problem video streaming services are having
Digital download storefronts don't work on a subscription model, however, and there is a lot of overlap in available games, so this isn't a serious issue unless things continue in that direction.
DRM can deny the customer the ability to modify game files and deny access to the game
Games could be patched to disable DRM if the authentication service is shut down
The cloud gaming service is entering an already highly competitve market with digital download storefronts
Nvidia has made deals with major digital storefronts to allow customers access to games on their Geforce Now cloud gaming service based on their ownership of games through those storefronts.
Hardware becoming cheaper and internet becoming faster may counter the benefits of cloud gaming
This is a non-issue for the forseeable future, as new games continue to be larger, and demand more powerful hardware
Game files cannot be easily modified
This isn't a problem that can be easily solved for cloud gaming services, and it's impossible to grant the freedom a customer would have with local files without introducing security risks or removing many of the benefits of cloud gaming
Digital downloads don't seem to be going away any time soon, and it's almost certain
it won't go away for good. At least with the current implementation, modding is simply not possible for cloud gaming, and it's inherently
impossible for any games someone has acquired through a cloud gaming service to be played offline. Additionally, with most big releases
requiring installation and downloading updates anyway, physical media is unlikely to make a return without a drastic change in the
way games are made and consumed. However, the technology for cloud gaming does seem to be at a point now where it can provide a good
experience, and this will only improve over the coming years. Of the current cloud gaming services announced and available, Geforce Now
seems the most promising, followed by Playstation Now. Both of these services are made by companies that have been in the game industry for
many years, and they're backed by existing stores, solving the competition problem. Geforce Now has you pay just to be able to use their
servers for games you already own on stores like Steam, which has the disadvantage of mostly targeting people who already play games.
Playstation Now, on the other hand, provides access to all games on their service for the subscription. Upcoming Amazon Luna has a similar
model, with a cross between cable packages. Google Stadia, finally, seems to be the biggest failure. Not only do they charge a subscription,
you then have to buy the games on their own storefront to gain access to them (though a small selection are included in the subscription),
and this is a large part of why this was a failure, and something other cloud gaming services should learn from.
Ultimately, there are already good services in cloud gaming out there, it's just a matter of attracting customers to them,
as a large number of potential customers are already capable of playing the games they offer, without the latency, as they have the
hardware already. I expect this to change within the next 10 years, however, when these services are more well-known and people
consider whether to buy the new hardware that will inevitably be released in order to keep playing new games, or switch to the
service - as well as people joining the hobby thanks to the low barrier to entry these services offer.