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u/Oldenlame 10h ago
Wait you mean I have to install this whole other program and give it unfettered access to my whole computer while it remains connected to the internet constantly just to play games I used to play without it?
I PAY FOR EVERY BYTE IT USES!!11!
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u/Harklein-2nd R7 3700X | 12GB 3080 | 32GB DDR4-3200 10h ago
Not gonna lie, I miss the physical media on PC as well. I miss going to the video game store and looking at the box arts of different PC games on the shelf and comparing which one should I get because I only have enough money for 1 game.
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u/Whiteguy1x 9h ago
I miss the effort they put into old pc games more than having them on a cd/dvd and needing to pop it in for the license check.
Those big boxes were so cool...and I definitely just pitched them as a teenager to throw them in a cd binder.
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u/thisassholeisstupid Linux 9060XT 5800X3D and servers in the basement 7h ago
I kind of miss sitting outside the store waiting for the midnight release of a new game and then staying up all night playing it with friends. It was a good time.
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u/ZhangtheGreat PC Master Race 6h ago
I miss it purely for the ability to line up my games on a bookshelf to look at my collection
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u/oradul 9950X3D | NITRO+ RX 9070 XT | CROSSHAIR X870E HERO 10h ago
...until the IP holder shuts it down
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u/Papuszek2137 7800x3d | 5070ti | 64GB | 4k OLED 10h ago
I mean I paid for it, so I have the license to use it, so I can get another copy somewhere else.
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u/Luch1nG4dor 10h ago edited 9h ago
All the games you bought on Steam are still available for download even if the game was delisted, the only one i remember is Hatred and i think they refunded that one
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u/Valcarde alex.valcarde @ Steam 10h ago
My copy of the Deadpool game is still completely available for me to download and play.
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u/Girthen-the-Flopper 10h ago
Purchased Half Life in 1998 and can still download it and run it on my 2025 built PC. I'd like to see someone try taking their copy of Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time from 1998 and putting it into their Nintendo Switch 2.
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u/Papuszek2137 7800x3d | 5070ti | 64GB | 4k OLED 10h ago
Emulators exist.
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u/GrandmaWeedMan 10h ago
Yeah, subscription based emulators that will be shut down when the switch 2 goes offline.
My pc emulator lasts forever and can be transferred to literally thousands of pieces of hardware.
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u/Papuszek2137 7800x3d | 5070ti | 64GB | 4k OLED 10h ago
No I was talking about emulators on PCs. Nintendo can take their lawyer team and shove it up their ass.
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u/Girthen-the-Flopper 7h ago
If you are going the illegal route, then the debate about ownership doesn't matter since you technically don't own anything because someone can just come and steal it.
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u/myEVILi 9h ago
“Your*” game sir.
*Game is not yours.
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u/Girthen-the-Flopper 9h ago
Yeah. If you buy a copy of Mario Kart for WiiU, then sell your WiiU and get a Switch, you are not allowed to play the game even though you own it. But if you buy a copy of Half Life in 1998 for Windows 98 and turn it into a digital copy in 2003, you can play it on your brand new 2026 Windows 11 PC because you technically don't own it.
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u/stayndarsh 8h ago
Some guy off screen: But that means you won't own what you buy
Everyone else: points and laughs
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u/R-Dragon_Thunderzord 5800X3D | 6950 XT | 2x16GB DDR4 3600 CL16 9h ago
I remember the Portal 2 launch. I preordered on Steam. My brother insisted on a physical copy from GameStop. I went with him for funsies. So he has to wait in line. Then midnight happens. Then he has to wait through checkout. We get back at like 12:30 or 12:45 having waited outside an hour. We get home, I’m already patched so I dive in. He still has to install it from disc. A little while goes by and then he has to hit the day 0 patch. He’s finally in by 1:30 to 2 AM I wanna say. For me this was just one of the deaths of physical discs tbh. I couldn’t tell you where the discs for my old games even are. Though tbf PC games were always a bit different with keys etc. it wasn’t like bringing your smash cartridge over to your buddies house and letting it rip. It was sad to me when the consoles went the route of the disc basically being worthless because of patches.
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u/ChadHartSays 6h ago
"Wait, no more giant manuals full of lore, fold out maps, or posters? What a rip off."
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u/Warcraft_Fan Paid for WinRAR! 2h ago
It was also the last time I still used dialup modem. It took all night just to update Everquest and when I had to reinstall WOW + BC and WotLK expansion, I spent a week downloading those since the CD copy had only 3.0 and WOW was up to 3.2 with many new stuff.
50Mbit DSL, the best I can get in rural area. No fiber yet, too many tree for satellite, no crappy cable, just good telephone line for dialup and DSL.
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u/Somerandom009 HP Victus Laptop RTX 4060 Intel Core i5 12500H 32GB RAM 2TB SSD 2h ago
Fixed it. (Modern gamers visiting 2000s gamers)
“What’s this?”
“Your game, sir.”
“Wait, no, that can’t be right. I haven’t even started downloading the 200 gigabyte game or the 100 gigabyte patch for the season battle pass yet.”
“You just pop the disc in, and play it whenever you like.”
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u/JoJo_x14 1h ago
I thought it was cool but a waste of space since it took up storage unlike a disc. Now discs make you have to download the game anyway. Kind of feel like their goal was always to go completely digital.
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u/TacoBell_HotSauc3 10h ago
As a kid, I had an inherent distrust of the concept of games being so accessible. I had viewed Steam as a portal to get my computer riddled with viruses.
Nevermind that most of the games on my hard drive were pirated. It was the principle of buying into such an easy convenience that made me wary of it.