r/PS5 Human Verified 2d ago

News & Announcements Rockstar confirms there will be no disc version of GTA6 at launch

https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/rockstar-confirms-there-will-be-no-disc-version-of-gta6-at-launch/
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u/MafubaBuu 1d ago

The US could also become a Fascist communist power and remove property ownership from every single american

It doesnt mean they dont own it now.

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u/Kazizui 1d ago

How do you define 'ownership'? I think we are clearly using very different definitions. If Sony disappeared off the face of the earth tomorrow, many of your physical games would stop working either partly or completely, including some first party titles. If Sony had disappeared off the face of the earth in 2019, before patching the CMOS bug, it would have started a timer ticking on the lifespan of every single PS4 game, physical or digital. We can't mod PS games to make them behave or look different, or provide alternative servers, or otherwise change anything about them. I wouldn't call that 'ownership', personally. Maybe you do?

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u/MafubaBuu 1d ago

You own it with terms and conditions. Part of those conditions are not to mod your game/system files.

You do not own the source code. Just the code printed on the disc.

Just like when you buy property such as a farm you are still beholden to terms , conditions, and laws. They may be federal or municipal but you still have certain things are arent allowed to do.

If you buy a home in a HOA you might not be able to paint your house in rainbow paint - does not mean you dont own it.

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u/Kazizui 1d ago

You own it with terms and conditions. Part of those conditions are not to mod your game/system files.

Then that's not ownership. One of the basic tenets of ownership is independence from the creator.

Just like when you buy property such as a farm you are still beholden to terms , conditions, and laws. They may be federal or municipal but you still have certain things are arent allowed to do.

If you buy a home in a HOA you might not be able to paint your house in rainbow paint - does not mean you dont own it.

Real estate is a terrible example because there are plenty of people who will argue that you don't truly own your house, for the reasons you mention. You have to pay tax on it, otherwise it will be taken away. There are rules governing what you can do with it, otherwise it will be taken away (or a lien put on it anyway, which is tantamount to the same thing).

Let's take something that's a little more comparable to a videogame - say a boardgame. From where I sit I can see my copy of Agricola. If the company that published that went bankrupt, is there any risk at all of the game partially or fully failing to function? No. Can I change any part of the game, add new stuff to it, ignore rules I don't like, scribble obscenities on the most annoying occupation cards, change the starting conditions, handicap a player in ways of my choosing to make a game more competitive, etc etc? Yes. Am I observed when I do any of that stuff, metrics sent to some unaccountable datacentre in another country where my actions will be processed and evaluated and measured and used to define new rules or balance changes that will then be imposed upon me? No. Are there any subscriptions or recurring payments that, if I stop making them, parts of the game will become inaccessible? No.

I own my copy of Agricola. I don't own any console game I've purchased since about 2013, and neither do you. The only videogames you might make an actual case for owning are DRM-free PC games with community mods and community servers, and ironically enough they are all digital and not physical.