Any format that ensures I can play it today or in 10 years. Most games I buy on Steam and when the GOG or pirated verson gets released - even if it’s years later - I get a backup.

Recently Last Epoch, which currently has a full offline mode, might not stay that way for long with the acquisition from whatstheyface, so I still play the Steam version but have a fit girl I know provided me with a nice fallback if I ever need it…

I’m with you on most of your priority list, but would swap perpetual digital with physical.
I would also point out that physical need to be fully on disc, otherwise they’re at best as good as game key cards (doesitplay.org is very useful there).

I think PC gaming is unfortunately the only “sustainable” option nowadays to allow for both native games and emulation to run today or in a decade. With how console manufacturers, especially Microsoft, have been aggressively pushing digital, there’s little hope of having any physical backcompat in consoles moving forward.

I don‘t even have a disk drive anymore. I prefer digital nowadays since I like to swap around games and don‘t wanna have to swap the media every time as well. It kinda bothers me with my Switch, but I still prefer physical there so I can resell.

In an ideal world I‘d like a physical copy of a complete game on my shelf where I don‘t have to use the physical medium to play it but can fall back to that in case a platform‘s failing or I want to resell it… However all that would work.

In the current reality it‘s just Steam all the way for convenience‘s sake. Gabe was right, it‘s all about service quality. If Steam ever pulls the rug from under my feet, I’ll basically have no games anymore though lol

Digital for the last 20 years.

Digital everything. Books, games, movies, TV. I don’t want a bunch of physical stuff cluttering my space.

I do prefer things I can archive to my NAS whenever possible though. I make exceptions for gaming with Steam, but all my books, video, and music are locally stored, I don’t like streaming services as an indefinite solution.

Physical these days is mostly dead, so long-term I’ve been going for DRM-free digital. GOG, 7digital or ripping via Foobar2000 for music, ebooks.com plus Calibre, and MakeMKV for DVDs. Steam’s DRM, when not paired with other DRM, is lenient enough where I’m okay with using that when no other options are available.

I do still like physical for some things. I prefer physical for PS3 games versus digital because most games read straight from the disc, and install sizes a significantly smaller if you go that route. That generation of gaming really respected your hard drive. I don’t like buying a disc and then still having to install 100 GB to my hard drive – at that point, why bother?

And I like getting consoles and flashcarts physical, but not the games themselves. There’s nothing as cozy and nostalgic as playing 3DS games on the original hardware, but I don’t need all the cartriges. Everdrive with the Genesis Model 1 is also my preferred way of playing that console so I can experience the original music through the built-in headphone jack.

The exception to that is I’m a sucker for physical game media that has connectivity with other media. So I have a physical copy of Pokemon HeartGold with the Poke Walker, and too many DDR dance pads. I really want that GBA game Kojima made where the cart has a solar panel and you build up energy to defeat vampires by going outside.

Steam Deck:

• Steam for most games because of ease of use on the Deck and what they provide to the Linux world
• GOG for old games with no achievments (I’d buy more from them if they were more Linux oriented, but I also understand they can’t do everything)

Playstation 5:

• physical except for a few exceptions as I want to be able to resell games I don’t like. I buy new physical games when I know I’m gonna love a game and used when I ain’t sure

I don’t think I have thought about it like this. I prefer digital, but it’s purely from ease of use point of view.

For me it’s where do I want to play this game? My preference is: Handheld console -> Home Console -> PC

As for PC, Gog used to be my goto platform a long time ago, but then reduced their Linux support and Steam started focusing on it, so I switched to Steam 100%, but I play very little on PC, so practically speaking this doesn’t make too much of a difference.

So, with current systems that I have, this becomes something like: Switch -> PlayStation -> Steam.

As for the discussion between owning and renting, I used to be a collector, but with time, don’t care about “owning” games too much, for 90% of the games I’ll play it once for 30-40 hours (or 90-100 hours if it’s a long RPG) and then probably never touch them again, at least not for next decade or so, so whatever let’s me enjoy that legally, at the cheapest rate, is fine for me.

I do have some opinions about Gamepass, but that is how it effects the ecosystem, so not sure if it’s relevant here or not.

Steam, but that is because of my approach to games and I do understand it is leasing/renting, not literally buying.

While I do enjoy going back and playing some games, most tend to lose my interest due to newer and improved versions of similar games. Nostalgia only goes so far when janky controls get in the way.

I also like a wide variety of games, but they are hit and miss on personal enjoyment. So what I prefer to do is buy several on a sale and then as long as one works out I came out ahead! This generally means I can check out games that are 5 to 10 or more years old at a heavy discounts due to being patient. I don’t even bother refunding the ones that don’t work out because most are a few bucks and if a few bucks let’s me check something out then I’m fine with that.

For that cheap pricing I get all the benefits of digitally distributed games that are reliably updated to run on new hardware, can re-download them at any time with no limits, get the other hit and miss benefits like friends and forums and other stuff. They don’t take up physical space, have regular updates, and addressed all the issues I had with gaming back in the 90s/early 2000s when still buying physical games.

I see it like a rental with no return date. I would probably quit gaming if steam goes under or changes enough to make it less convenient. Still hope that physical distribution sticks around for those that prefer it, and that other distribution sources like GoG stick around and are successful for both completion and for those who have different priorities for gaming.

I prefer digital for convenience, I never liked the idea of a game not being playable unless there’s some physical media inserted in my device (be it CD, cartridge, or whatever). I only buy physical when getting collector’s editions.

I always buy discounted pc game, and the choice is virtually 0 these day, so purchase directly from steam is my preferred way.

Depends on the platform:

• PC - digital is my only option
• Console - physical so I can loan/swap w/ friends

If I could trade digital games as easily as physical, I’d go digital every time.

As a person who grew up with consoles, PS1, PS2, and the Xbox360. There was nothing better than waiting from my uncle to get me a new game, or going out with my father to get some 360 discs. Sure, for the 360, they only sold popular releases, I’d see the same circulation of games at almost every store, but let me tell ya, the experience of having the disc in your hands, and begging my father to stop running errands so I can boot the disc up. I miss that experience.

I guess I’d go with physical, digital has never been that special to me. Ok I downloaded it, now I ran the exe. Cool.

For older titles, depends on if I can find them at a good price. At one point I got a bundle of old Popcap titles for a lot cheaper on Steam than if I bought each individual game on physical disk.

Though, if it’s not being sold on any digital stores, I’ll see what the price might be like on eBay and if I deem it too expensive ( varies depending on how I feel about the franchise and a few other factors ), I’ll just not both getting a physical copy, if you catch my drift.

I don’t mind physical copies of games at all, for a good price. Especially for older titles. It’s why I bought Morrowind and Oblivion GOTY edition at a thrift shop. Prices were low and they’re games that are high enough quality for me to consider playing.

No comment on newer titles because this is the patient gamer community.

I’m PC so been digital with it being the only option that is usually available.

If I was still playing on console I’d be going physical all the way assuming it’s not download codes.