Capcom Currently Has No Plans To End Physical Game Support

I would hope not! I love my physical games, it would be Asha,e if 8 couldn’t get the games I really love physical.

Well, as we’ve seen with this type of language coming from businesses, ‘currently’ means today only. Tomorrow they can and will flip the switch if it benefits the bottom line. Never take any security from corporate pronouncements no matter how flatteringly they put it..

Good Capcom, good. Also, don't go full scumbag like Ubisoft or Konami by turning to LRG for distribution... 😡

I think it's inevitable, the physical format will disappear in one way or another over the years.

And not because of the companies, I think it's us players who are pushing for a digital world.

I'll believe it when they actually release stuff physically here. Europe is getting practically NOTHING from them on Switch. I had to import all of the Ace Attorney games and pay through the nose for the privilege, Investigations included since that's also not coming to Europe.

These companies understand that retail presence remains important. What makes a better impression? A physical case on a store shelf or some thumbnail on a web page? Even if you end up buying the game digital, physical makes for excellent marketing.

There seems to be new news about Capcom every 12 hours minimum. 😂 Someone tell them to take a break.

@Pabpictu extactly this, there a tendency to blame the companies but the majority of consumers are going digital. So it's only a matter of time before they all start one by one deciding physical is no longer worth the cost of producing.

IGN had a report that 90% of game sales last year in the UK were digital.

Push Square reported that only 4% of overall sales for Sonys Q2 for 2023 were physical with 21% of sales being digital.. this breaks down to games sales overal being 67% digital and 33% physical.

Convenience is killing off physical games more than any big push from gaming companies.
I don't want it to happen but I can't see it going any other way, same with dvds and blu rays.

@RudyC3 : That's really surprising as it's getting an Australian physical release (the first local Ace Attorney physical release since the original Investigations game, I believe!).

I also imported most of Capcom's physical releases, but fortunately, many of them were budget priced (Ōkami and the original Ace Attorney trilogy, for example). I also had to buy the Mega Man 5-in1 box from eBay as it sold out so quickly (as it was the only way to get a physical copy of the second half of the original Legacy Collection).

I suspect that this is a gross misrepresentation of consumer preference given that many digital games can be purchased with loose change, which may very well account for the majority of overall sales, but I think a fairer comparison would be to look at games within a higher price range and/or differences in purchasing habits regarding games that have a physical release in the first place.

I think we'll see more limited/boutique releases in the coming years (so long as the hardware continues to support physical media), but if they ever go all digital, I'll likely check out and do all of my gaming on a portable PC instead.

It's me. I'm the increased demand. Me and everyone else that's ever been told to piss off by Limited Run customer service.

Also Antdude.

@SillyG look I don't extactly trust ign tbh to get everything right but it at least shows were the money in the industry Is coming for. Yes the cheap games that will never get a physical release tilt the scales of the overall picture but most gamers I know are now fully digital.

I do an 80/20 split myself in favour of physical for the Switch. For other consoles you can flip those numbers.

Thinking about it one of the reasons I'm not as into physical on xbox or playstation is that their digital shops have sales that often see big games like resident evil 4 remake reduced for well below cost in shops , often about 2 months after launching. Switch games can be cheaper in shops on release and later cheaper in shops even with sale in eshop. The eshop doesn't do the same level of discounts generally.

then release kunitsu gami path of the goddess physically!!
I want to play it but I dont want spend full price on digitally games.

What I can see happening is more games being downlaod codes in the box, that allows people to still buy from different market places and at different prices and collect their physical packaging but it will eliminate the second hand market which is what publishers really want.

Capcom does a good job with their packaging and artwork. Love my Street Fighter 6 steel book.

Particularly with the Street Fighter series, they love to show off their artwork via in-game collectibles too.

@RudyC3 Yeah, it would be nice if Capcom actually start releasing physical games here.

Oh yeah? Where's my Disney Afternoon Collection physical copy then? While you're at it what about making it available to Switch as well? grumble grumble

Now if only they'd release Devil may Cry 3 on a physical switch card. That definitive version is STILL digital only

One reason why I still love Capcom, Sega, and Nintendo, they always embrace physical release while still offering digital option as well. This allows their fanbase to double dipped their support, this is what EA, UbiSoft, Microsoft, and Sony need to realize. If you want more supports keep the options open. Limiting it will only shrink your fanbase and your earnings.

Laughs in European.

@Roibeard64 I don't have data or figures so dont even consider this an educated guess. I assume numbers aren't what they used to be, but part of me thinks (hopes) Bluray/dvd might survive the long haul. This is based solely on the amount of niche and re-released (including new cuts of) movies that publishing companies continue to roll out but may not be able to put out on major streaming services. All just a guess. I do understand ppl don't buy dvds casually like they used to

Well, please consider the physical version of Monster Hunter Stories 1 & 2 for PS4 / PS5 separatedly, no code in box treatment.

If the future of gaming is digital, then gaming has no future. The past validates this point. Keep these physical games coming! I will always buy physical ones only!

@juliobrand Likely that had more to do with Disney than Capcom. While Capcom does handle the game collection, Disney was the one to had the last say if they want that as only a digital release or both a digital and physical release. Still an updated release of that collection that also includes Goof Troop and the Little Mermaid would be nice since Disney did update the Aladdin, Lion King, Jungle Book all-in-one collection (sadly Pinocchio and Pocahontas aren't important enough to be included).

I transitioned to digital ages ago. I only buy physical games when the discount is significant. An SSD or SD card having 100 games fells better to hold than reserving an entire wall to hold them while gathering dust

@Kiyata “ If the future of gaming is digital, then gaming has no future.”
That’s like saying that if the future of cars are EVs then the automotive industry has no future. Things change. Try to play an SNES cartridge game now. It would either not work or the memory module is forever gone. Physical media still has a place, but it’s no longer the direction people will go towards, and that is okay.

Capcom is also a dev I wouldn't want to go all digital because their games are so good they need physical editions. Idk how some devs don't put out wide spread fully physical games when they're on 100 gig discs, but Capcom still put out SF6 fully on PS4 physically (which was a god send for me since I'm still on PS4)

Good now can we have resident evil 1 on cartridge please
And revelation 2 as well 🙏

Companies that sell physical games end up getting 2 purchases from people like me. I buy 1 physical copy that I put on my shelf and buy 1 digital copy to actually download and play.

If companies stop making physical games, they will lose that extra income revenue.

@CammyUnofficial I think they have gone down that route of being a niche market for collecters , particularly 4k and blu ray.

There's certain films I basically rebuy once formats changes eg Vhs-DVD - Blu ray-4k
However I've noticed I don't own any separate players anymore. Once consoles ditch a disk drive physical films will suffer.

I don’t like Capcoms way of doing physicals, where they put half of it on the card and half of it as a download code. For no reason whatsoever.

And no European release for most games.

Of course console makers stop using physical media, Capcom won’t really have a say in it.

@MrGawain Only Sony and Microsoft, Sony at the moment is testing the water with the PS5 Digital Edition and Microsoft is testing cloud streaming service for their gaming library. Sony's Blu-ray disc had been on a downward spiral over the years so they are looking for a new alternatives, they are testing the water with the PS5 Digital Edition to see if only customers love relying only on ssd and not disc. Microsoft had been on and off about physical since it isn't helping them in the long run so they are trying to do what OnLive and Stadia are doing and try to create a cloud streaming service that could unified their platform and bring their library to more broader audience hence their partnership with Amazon. I'm not saying both are walking in the wrong path but it seems both are not that impress with physical media as much compare to Nintendo.

doesnt explain why capcom half crap their game collections by putting half on physical and other half downloadable.

" Given that a significant number of end users demand physical games we currently do not expect to eliminate physical products."

Uh-huh, and WHAT have you actually done in the case of Europe since the start of this generation? Exactly...

@Roibeard64 good call on the separate players. I already have a modest blu ray collection of some essentials, randomly have a free player from a friend, and would probably get a new player if that one goes kerplunk. But as years go on I imagine the market will widdle down moreso, maybe not attracting as many starting a new collection and yeah, taking players out of the consoles would only make collecting more 'niche' or whatever

This statement can change with the weather. One day it'll be different. Glad it's not today.

@Savage_Joe you are completely wrong, I have 47 Super Nintendo games right here next to me that I play regularly. I also have more than 50 NES games, more than 50 GameBoy games, and many other legacy games including Atari and Intellivision that work just fine TODAY in the original systems I have owned since the late 70s and beyond. You obviously are not old enough to have experienced the joys of legacy games, and you won’t in the future because digital games will have no access.

@Kiyata I’m 34… I have played on most retro consoles since gameboy. But to tell you the truth, the rest of the world won’t care about your refusal to change nor mine. And, yes, none of my Game Boy or SNES Cartridges work anymore. Perhaps you care for them way more than the average person

Good for them. Too bad Konami probably won't share the same pledge. Someone take the rights of Castlevania and Metal Gear away from Konami, please.

@Savage_Joe You do realize SSD is a PHYSICAL media...right?

You're still using a "physical" storage device to store digital. So it plain-out means you're still using physical media to store digital files either way.

@DanijoEX-the-Pierrot you’re twisting my statement. SSD is a physical media, alright, but I can make as much copies of said media that I want and even upload all of that on cloud storage. That still takes me a small fraction of space that would require me to store a whole library of individual games that I have.

@Savage_Joe True, true. I guess I was stupid to even reply. Common sense isn't ALWAYS with me head sadly. Eh...oh well. Better you "ignore" me. Trust me, it's a practical option.

@Savage_Joe Well my main problem is that I'm too PASSIONATE for physical media in general.

But next time I NEED to avoid articles like these. It's pretty clear that I get pretty irked whenever the whole " physical gonna end digital is the future" subject is brought up.

But I do wish both digital & physical can co-exist. So that folks can enjoy the best of both worlds

So you're gonna finally release Mega Man Legacy Collection 2 on a Switch cartridge past that standalone Japanese release?

Physical games is the future we need.
Let's get physical, physical!
#foreverphysicalgaming 🤟

Surprising as many of their collections are digital codes so hmm. IF for their major games sure, if collections/smaller appeal games I doubt it.

I hate all these articles that treat this like some kind of moral choice.

Companies exist to make money. They will sell physical media as long as it's profitable. They will stop selling physical media when it stops being profitable. There is literally no other factor being considered.

In the US, the "trickle down" structure of retail makes it so the overwhelming majority of all the profits (1) go to shareholders and the people who own the location (NOT the stores leasing the space, the people who own the land or malls and are leasing the space to them), so it's largely not viable to be a supplier unless you have a high margin product. US companies and developers who primarily aim for that market are pulling out of retail because it's not a great deal for them. It's not like they woke up one day and decided they were morally opposed to physical media, it just stopped making them money.

Retail is pretty healthy in SEA, so physical media is still pretty heathy over there. Not because anyone decided to put on white hats and be the savor of game preservation, but because it's still profitable, with distribution and storefronts operating completely differently to how they do in the West, and a larger share of the profits ending up with the people who make the product being sold.

If it stops being profitable, they will stop selling physical media. If some massive changes make retail viable in the UK and US again, physical media will have a resurgence there as well. That's all there is to it.

(1) For perspective, while it varies greatly from state to state and store to store, if you sell a $50 game at a US retail location, $3-5 will go to the developer, $5-7 will go to the publisher, and the store will keep around $1. The rest goes to distribution and rent. When you sell the game game on the E-shop, Nintendo takes anywhere from $5 to $15, depending on volume sold, and the rest goes to the publisher who will split it with the developer based on the terms of their publisher agreement. This can be as favorable as 70% going to the developer. So put yourself in that situation ... you can get $25 a unit with no risk, or you can get $3 a unit while taking the huge risk of having to buy back unsold units. Not really a hard choice. You might think "why give up that $3, go for every possible sale", but that dosen't work in the real world. You only make $3 a sale, and you're going to be out $20+ for every unsold unit (you have to pay production, shipping, retail insurance, and disposal ), so you're taking on potentially company destroying risk just to get a few more sales with almost no margin.

@JohnnyMind I just checked, and over here (in the Netherlands), it's available to purchase through a single retailer, and it's labeled as a USA import. So I don't think we're at that point yet unfortunately. At least not for all of Europe, can only really speak for my own country in that regard.

@JohnnyMind True, but it would make me wonder why they would make such a limited European release to begin with, if that ends up being the case. I hope so at least for you though! Fingers crossed.

@Yosher @JohnnyMind I have yet to see a single picture of the game's cover art with a PEGI rating on it. and everywhere I've looked online, it's listed either with none (asia release), a ESRB rating (North America) or a CERO rating (Japan), so all of those preorders were for imports.

I preordered through Play Asia, along with a few others so I get free shipping, so i'll still get it, but to see Capcom claiming proudly they'll continue suporting physical when Europe is getting so few (No Ghost Trick either for example, had to import that as well) just makes me think they're taking us for fools.

The Monster Hunter games are an outlier, we've been getting these in Europe pretty consistently.

I’m glad but they need to sort out the gaps!
Like why I can’t get MHStories on switch in the UK yet every other country can.

This is why CAPCOM is my GOAT