All PS4 Games Will Be Available as Downloads

[Steven Bogos]

All PS4 Games Will Be Available as Downloads

Unfortunately for those of us with crappy internet, digital downloads of PS4 games will clock in at around 50 gigabytes.

Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida has been debunking rumours next few years. [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/122307-PS4-Wont-Require-A-Constant-Internet-Connection]

"We're shifting our platform more and more to the digital side - PS4 will be similar to PS Vita in that every game will be available as a digital download, and some will also be available as a disc," Yoshida said, in response to a question about how the PS4 will better support smaller development studios. "The Witness will be a digital release and because of the flexibility of the digital distribution scheme, we can have more small games that might be free or available for a couple of dollars, or different services like free-to-play or subscription models."

Yoshida claims that the focus on digital downloads and cloud computing is to make the gaming experience more instantaneous. He wants playing a game to be like watching a TV show. You should be able to turn it on and play straight away without having to sit around waiting for patches and downloads. "Waiting for downloads - That's ridiculous, that's crazy! We want to get out of this madness with PlayStation 4. The games are big, they're 50GB; download isn't instantaneous. So we're making purchase available from any device, so when you're at work, you can spend a couple of moments looking at PlayStation Store and choosing a game, and straight away it starts to download at home."

PS4 downloads will utilize a "progressive download" system, says Yoshida, which means you won't have to wait for the whole thing to download before you start playing. "Once you have the minimum amount of data downloaded you can begin the game, and while you play, the remaining data downloads."

Currently, a large number of PS3 games are available as digital downloads at a cheaper price than their physical retail versions. The success of PSN, Xbox Live Arcade and Steam have pushed digital distribution into the forefront this generation. Downloaded titles on the PS3's PSN, including full PS3 games and digital-only titles like Castle Crashers and Fat Princess, won't transfer [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/122284-PSN-Games-Wont-Transfer-to-PS4] to the PS4.

Source: The Guardian [http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/gamesblog/2013/feb/22/ps4-shuhei-yoshida-interview]

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[Lvl 64 Klutz]

50 gigs per game does not make any justifiable sense whatsoever. Even some of the most graphically intensive and expansive MMO's today cap out at about 20 gigs. I mean, what does that mean for the monetary cost of physical copies if the data cost is so high?

 

[wooty]

50 gigs per game? The hells that all about?

Though I am happy to see physical disk copies still on the table, for now at least. Even all my PC games are still bought in disk form. I'm an impatient guy and still cant be arsed downloading big games when my internet speeds go up and down like Liverpools goal difference.

 

[Daystar Clarion]

50 gigs?!

How the fantastical flying ferret fuck is that even possible?

Even with large HDD, going completely digital isn't even an option for the PS4 if the games are 50 gig, not to mention download caps.

 

[SonOfMethuselah]

I... I can't do 50 gigs! Hell, given my monthly cap, I feel like a huge jerk when I download anything larger than, like, 10. You can keep your digital copies, Sony. I'm sticking with discs for as long as I can. The thought that they might be phased out during this console generation makes me queasy.

 

[Beffudled Sheep_v1legacy]

50 Gigabytes? Unless they have 30 gigabytes of free porn on it I will continue going "WTF!?"

 

[Something Amyss]

50 gigs per game? The hells that all about?

Though I am happy to see physical disk copies still on the table, for now at least. Even all my PC games are still bought in disk form. I'm an impatient guy and still cant be arsed downloading big games when my internet speeds go up and down like Liverpools goal difference.

Bit don't you hate going out and interacting with people?

50 gigs?!

How the fantastical flying ferret fuck is that even possible?

Even with large HDD, going completely digital isn't even an option for the PS4 if the games are 50 gig, not to mention download caps.

To be fair, this kind of stupidity isn't new. Remember when Microsoft was trying to push their HD digital services AND DLC with only a 20 GB HDD as an option?

EDIT: not to downplay the DL cap, either. Comcast is still the most generous in offering a 250 GB monthly cap, which means on the best cap you'll burn a fifth of your monthly allotment with one game.

It's like they're trying to turn me into a PC advocate.

Anyway, what are they doing? Creating exact disc images of the game disc and shipping those to us? I do note that 50 GBs would be the right size for that.

 

[Chimpzy_v1legacy]

50 gigs? Seems a little much. The way I see it, I can think of three possible explanations:

1. The increase in content and audiovisual quality is large enough that PS4 will average at about 50 gig.
Possible, but unlikely.

2. If I'm not mistaken, most games use various levels of compression to keep file sizes down, at the cost of having to expend some processing power uncompressing them. Perhaps PS4 games simply use less compression.
This one is just a wild guess, since I have no technical knowhow about such stuff.

3. Yoshida miscommunicated or his comments were misinterpreted and 50 gigs is simply the upper limit of PS4 game size.
This seems quite reasonable and likely.

 

[VanQ]

It's most likely just a bad translation unless of course he spoke the words in English originally. Either way it's more likely that he meant "up to" 50gb somewhere in the future or that it can support 50gb downloads. Anyone got the original quote? Even the largest MMO I can recall from memory was TERA at just shy of 28gb but that was an MMO with some very nice graphics and really high res textures.

 

[bluegate]

The 50gb is most likely the average upper limit of Disc based games that are available for download online. Cheaper PSN games like The Witness won't take up that much space, however, Uncharted 4 might fill up the 50Gb to it's fullest. Hell, I remember reading that Uncharted 3 clocked in around 30 - 35 Gbs.

People getting their panties in a bunch when reading the number 50; chill out and buy the disc version of the game then.

 

[sethisjimmy]

Now this is what i'm talking about. Although it does kind of contradict what they said yesterday.

But yeah, having the option to download every game is a huge step forward for consoles, where previously only select titles were available for download.

 

[SonOfVoorhees]

50 gig is all the cutscenes in the new Metal Gear game. lol. Now its all well and good, as i predicted this would happen so as to lead us gently to the PS5.....a full digital download only console. Only problem is they have yet to tell the prices. Now i would expect a new game to be around £40 on disc, but the digital version should be atleast £20. But some how i think they will still charge full price.

 

[Blazing Steel]

50 Gigs, really? Yeah my internet can't handle that. That would take like 40 hours to download for me.

Currently, a large number of PS3 games are available as digital downloads at a cheaper price than their physical retail versions.

Really? Are they in the USA? At the moment I'm sitting here comparing Amazon UK prices and PS store prices. Every game is more expensive digitally. Never made sense to me why I'd buy it digitally when a physical copy is cheaper.

 

[MonkeyPunch]

Good move.

Last Friday a mate and I got quite in to Sonic AllStar Racing Transformed which we were playing on
my PC - downloaded via Steam.
We got to his the next day and he wanted to download it too as he really liked it. He only has an Xbox and it turned out it wasn't available as a download which really sucked. It's not a large game either so one would presume but no way to get that game when we wanted which is a downer.
Not every game has to, or indeed will be 50 gigs large.
Just one more way to get at games, right?

 

[Legion]

Even ignoring the 50GB thing, the UK PSN currently charges £59.99 ($90.65) for Dead Space 3 to download.

It costs £38 ($57.41) from Amazon, and £40 ($60.43) from GAME who are the UK's top two retailers for games.

So who is going to really care anyway? It'd be cheaper for me to buy a game and pay express next day delivery guaranteed.

 

[ViciousTide]

I guess PS4 games will soon need to be high definition 50' room sized to enjoy, you know, how the CEO's live in their warped reality ultra-rich lifestyles.

 

[ninjapenguin1414]

They still have discs so I'm gonna stick with that for as long as possible. I hate having downloaded copies as well, physical copies are a lot better to have.

 

[ScrabbitRabbit]

"PS4 downloads will utilize a "progressive download" system, says Yoshida, which means you won't have to wait for the whole thing to download before you start playing. "Once you have the minimum amount of data downloaded you can begin the game, and while you play, the remaining data downloads.""

That... is actually a fantastic idea. I wish Steam did that. Or at least let me start playing without having to install all the updates first.

Also, I'm not too surprised at the 50GB games thing, that's about how big MGS 4 was: http://www.joystiq.com/2008/03/02/kojima-mgs4-too-big-for-50-gb-blu-ray-disc/

So looks like this guy:

50 gig is all the cutscenes in the new Metal Gear game. lol.

... was right!

God of War 3 was also about 35GB and I believe Uncharted 3 was as well. The PC version of Max Payne 3 clocked out at a similar size more or less entirely because of it's uncompressed sound and large textures. It wasn't an especially long or content-heavy game.

Honestly, 50GB is almost what I was expecting.