As some of you know, I live on Blue’s News and Shacknews along with a few other sites so when I saw the Impulse top 10 sales list on there I thought that pretty cool. So here are some random thoughts on digital distribution, numbers, and retail.
These are just my personal opinions take them for whatever you think it’s worth.
1. Retail still dominates compared to digital distribution on PC games.
2. Individual retailers don’t sell that many units a week. I.e. I would say that Steam outsells an individual major retail chain on a new release and that Impulse probably outsells the typical individual smaller retail chain.
3. Retail will continue to dominate as long as digital distributors don’t come up with a standardized digital format for games (i.e. standardized installer). I don’t have to make different boxes for every retailer but if I want to put my game on various digital distributors, I end up having to do work on each one.
4. Many hard core gamers I’ve noticed think that it’s all or nothing for digital distributors. It’s not. Gamers should want as many choices as they can competing for their hard earned money.
5. My guess is that digital distributors represent around 25% of the PC games market for games also sold at retail.
6. My guess is that Steam currently has around 80% of the digital distribution market. Impulse probably has around 10% and all the others have the remaining 10%.
7. The entire combined active online community of Steam, Impulse, etc. is less than the Halo 3 community on the Xbox 360.
8. The market penetration of digital distribution is probably at around 10% on the PC IMO.
9. The top 10 sales numbers on Steam and Impulse are easily as statistically valid as the top 10 PC games sales on Amazon.com (in terms of actual units sold). Or to be even more clear cut with my opinion, I believe, based on having seen numbers, that a random game on Impulse or Steam will outsell same game on Amazon.com. This isn’t a critique of Amazon.com (where I do an insane amount of shopping) but more of the numbers that Impulse and Steam (particularly Steam) are capable of doing and their specialization.
10. Most games in digital distribution sell terribly. However, those same games would simply be unavailable at retail. The onus is on the providers of digital distribution services to make it easier to get games on their services. It is not the responsibility of publishers to do this. Digital distribution offers the opportunity for game developers/publishers to turn their games into long-term assets.
Interesting take on this, Brad. I've long wondered what the numbers (retail vs. digital) look like, as I've never had any data to look at. Anecdotally, I can't recall when the last time any of my friends bought an actual boxed game. I think every purchase we've made in the past 2 years has been digital, but I realize we're in the minority!
Where do you see retail vs digital numbers going in the next 5 years? Do you think the ratio will stay somewhat the same, or do you see digital taking more and more of a share?
I remember Derek Smart (yes I know) talking about DD here:
http://www.3000ad.com/aaw/2009/08/developer-blog-15/
According to recent tracking estimates, the predominant online distribution sites are segmented as follows: Valve’s Steam (40%) Metaboli / GameTap (+15%) <--- They have White Label partners Digital River (12%) <--- They have White Label partners and also host EA's stores Real Networks Trymedia (+9%) <--- They have White Label partners e.g. GameStop, Yahoo Games etc IGN’s Direct2Drive (9%) GamesGate (3.5%) Everyone else (Stardock’s Impulse, Boonty/Nexway, GameStreamers, Ztorm, Gamesload etc): 11.5% <--- some have White Label partner
According to recent tracking estimates, the predominant online distribution sites are segmented as follows:
Not sure where he got his info from.
For a second there I thought he said "I live on Blue's Clue's".
Seriously though, when it comes to digital distribution, I think there will always be gamers who want a "hard copy" of the games they buy. I'm included in that category. Though I like being able to download my games and save myself the trip to the store I'm always going to want a hard copy in case I get stuck in a area with no Internet access. Take Elemental for example. I chose to buy the Digital Download AND the retail Boxed copy to be shipped to my house when the game launches. I like this option and I'm very glad it was a choice. If digital distribution was the Only way to get the game I'm honestly not sure whether or not I would have bought it to get in on the beta or if I would have waited and bought the boxed copy in stores instead.
I really don't like the digital distribution trend. Developers often forget there Are people who live in rural areas where high speed Internet simply isn't available. I'm not one of those people now, but I was for Ten years. For Ten years I lived in a county here in Florida called "Lake County". On the outskirts where I lived we had cable television, but not cable Internet. The only Internet option for a long time was dial up, even when cable Internet had been out for 5 or 6 years. The cable company out there said it would not be cost effective to run cable Internet. As that was my situation for such a long time I always remember that when a company brings out a awesome game and decides to only distribute on-line. I think that's a mistake and they are cutting out a huge share of potential customers.
There is also a substantial market share of customers that simply don't have credit cards or the will to go buy a bank card with which to buy things on-line. Some people don't trust spending money on-line at all due to the horror stories about identity theft and people getting ripped off. These are Real Concerns for a Lot of people who would otherwise happily be buying games on-line.
What digital distribution does for game developers is give a real way to combat on-line piracy. With Digital Distribution game makers can limit the way a game is distributed and can tie a game with it's owner to a specific Email account. This is all fine and dandy but what happens in the future when that customer moves and no longer has that specific Email account? Take my account for instance. I used the Email account my cable company provides me. RavenXavier@cfl.rr.com. What happens if I move far enough away that "Road Runner" is no longer my ISP and I don't have access to that Email anymore? Without the boxed copy of Elemental I bought with the download I wouldn't be able to re-download my game would I?
I think there will be a lot of problems in the future with digital distribution. It can be very convenient and handy, true, but as I just pointed out with the above paragraph it can have it's problems as well. Do I think Digital Distribution will save PC gaming? No, not on it's own, but I do think it will help. I just hope in the future it doesn't turn into the only option.
I enjoyed a little honesty there where you acknoledged that Steam is the dominant DD system on the market.
I, personally, would use Impulse over Steam for a multitude of reasons... HOWEVER, I do recognise that many games are Day0 on Steam and shortly thereafter on Impulse.
As somebody who hates going to the store and dealing with a tard behind the counter trying to talk me out of my PC Games, and into a used 360 title (yes I have a 360, but I consider it my room mates), I can honestly say DD is a great system.
...but I've rarely seen big name games released on Impulse on Day0. D2D and Steam, yes. Impulse? no.
Hop to with the Quickness... I hate to be the last one to start the game, let alone finish it.
how many cd stores do you see compared to before? or blockbusters? or drive in movie theaters?
all media is moving to digital distribution, this is just the beginning. all of your issues will slowly be worked out, hopefully for the better.
@Raven X
Thats why you don't use an email address from an ISP. The second you cancel it or move, its gone. Switch to gmail or hotmail.
I use both steam and impulse. I just pre-ordered Dragon's Age, on impulse today actually. (Waiting for Torchlight... when is it going to be on impulse?) I prefer impulse to steam because it is a better user experience to myself, and lightweight.
I have also used Direct to Drive and other others, but find Steam and Impulse better user experiences.
The only thing I would like to see in the future is transfer of serials numbers. Example, if I buy a game on steam, I should be able to input the serial number into Impulse and be able to download the game, and vice versa. I realize the technical details with doing this, but it would be my dream.
All the most recent games I've bought have been digital distribution, and I plan on keep doing so in the future. The lack of complete support for PC games in retail stores is awful, so it just seems this will be the way of the future, and I'm embracing it now.
You know you get Two in game items for pre-ordering right? One of them I think is a GameStop exclusive item. Could be wrong on it being GameStop exclusive but I know you get Two items for a certain kind of pre-order.
Well, Steam used to be 90%, so Impulse is picking up some Steam. I don't think Impulse will become #1, but I think it can become the clear #2, which is good enough. I do think Impulse is #1 in some genres- such as strat games.
I also think the market penetration is much higher in the genres Stardock concentrates in, so the figures probably look better for Stardock, then they do the industry as a whole.
As for the hard core, one thing I've noticed in the last six months or so, is Impulse is no longer being sneered at like it used to be. I think Sins helped here. Many are saying they now like the Impulse client better, though they like Steam's selection more.
As for Impulse, my strategy (I'm not a CEO, but I think I could do this part of it)- would be to keep going the way you are going, concentrating on qwirky games, things that wouldn't get a chance at ratail, while grabbing up whatever the big boys are willing to offer that doesn't cost your soul as a platforrm. I'd also be aggressive on sales, even if it means eating some costs- to cut into Steam some down the road. Maybe a buy 1, get hot game 50% off.
whoa @ majesty 2....
I love the fact that impulse picks up my East India Company and stores my key even though I did not buy it on impulse. I just had a problem with a game I brought in 2007 I wanted to install and play it and the digital distribution system involved did not want to let me. That really annoyed me because I payed $80 for it and I wanted to play it and had to jump through hoops to get it re installed.
So I love the fact that impulse follows your bill of rights and that would not happen on Impulse. I love the fact I get games that I'd never find on the shelf of a retail store and that I can spend $10 or so - to download them and play them for a bit and see if I like them. I don't mind paying a "rest of the world" price for some games because that price on impulse is still better than I'd get in the retail shop in Australia and I understand that publishers do that.
I don't mind not getting a hard copy of the game - I can back up an archive and save it so I don’t have to re download - besides I have actually had to send a hard copy back to the publisher so I can get a non copy protected version of the game because the game I paid for just wouldn't install on my system due to the copy protection system they decided to try on the small Australian market. I've also had to spend hours re installing and find no CD cracks and other work arounds to make copy protected games run even though I have original disc in the drive. I’ve never played Spellforce 2 even though I love the original because I refuse to install a game protected by Starforce on my computer – get a goo version I’d download it in a heartbeat.
My only advice is to get more games that are not USA (north America) only - try and get a fair rest of the world price, like you did with dawn of magic 2, so even I pay more, I can still get the game from a trusted online system.
Ya I have both Steam and Impulse. If a game is released on both, I go Impulse. Example I just preordered Dragon Age. I do preorded on both only cause of exclusives.
Hell... I havent got a PC game from retail in a long time.... years I think...
Both platforms are good and Impulse in my book is the best. As long as Stardock keeps adding features, adding developers/publishers of all sizes... and just keeping up the great work, I think Stardocks going to be just fine.
Though one thing I would like to see is more old school games to come to Impulse. Like how LucasArts is adding all their old games to Steam... Stardock Please get on that!
PS GET MASS EFFECT! Please...
I've bought 3 games digitally now, and generally I don't miss the stores much. Being in Canada it's much cheaper for me (games are usually a flat $10 less in the US, and I don't have to pay tax or shipping. Exchange rate ~ tax rate these days, so it's usually about $12-15 less than in-store in most cases). However there are a couple things that couple be improved with the system:
-Option to keep the installation files so I can back it up to a DVD or something. If I had to format for some reason, and all my games were digital I could be looking at 20+ GB worth of DLing to get all my games back. Not only is this going to take a lot of time, but most providers don't offer unlimited bandwith anymore, so this is an issue. It's fine for games that are < 1GB, but Resident Evil 5 for example is just under 7 GB. I do not want to have to download that again if it can be avoided.
-If companies are unwilling to allow the first point, prices need to be more competitive to make up for the inconvinience of not having the DVD. Many games are actually no cheaper digitally than in store. This is a huge mistake if you want to win over those who dislike change. Digitial copies need to be at least $10 less in all cases. Ideally, they should probably be $15-20 less. Some countries might have lightning fast DL speeds, but here in North America it can vary wildly. The convinience of not having to drive to the store is kind of negated if I have to leave my computer on all night to download it. You also can't resell digitial games (though this is less of an issue of PC games, which haven't been very resellable for quite some time). This IS a factor many people keep in mind when buying console games. That new game might cost $60, but I can sell it off a couple months later for $30 and just treat it as a long rental. You don't have that option with digital downloads, and this needs to be reflected in the price.
Here's the thoughts of gamer of more than 20 years.
I have Metaboli GoD, Steam and Impulse accounts. The GoD service isn't generally as robust as the DtO services but it's getting better. I'm intersted to see how the streamed games (OnLive etc.) develop. I haven't bought a game on the high street in at least two years and my Amazon game purchasing habit has almost trickled to a stop.
I'll use whatever method gets me the game I want at the price I want - but download wins because I have a reasonable broadband connection and I get it quicker. I like Stardocks attitude to DRM but I'd not pay signficantly more for the same game just for that. And it should be remembered that not all games sold on Impulse adhere to Stardock's policy and many may have exactly the same DRM as retail or Steam (but at least Impulse tells you).
I object to territorial restrictions on games but understand the legailty and practicality of it - better to make the game available territorially than not at all. I wouldn't mind if Impulse had a "Hide products not available in my region" option to save my tears of frustration - as well as "hide stuff I've already got."
I really object to unfair territorial pricing - i.e. significantly at odds with current exchange rates.
I do think that download games should be cheaper than retail because you do not have the physical manuals and other "bits". However, that is not true of all games as a lot of current game ship with nothing but a glossy DVD case insert and a registration slip with the manuals on disc. So it should be balanced against what you would have got with the retail version.
All download games must come with full manuals (Metaboli are worst for this in my experience).
P.S. One game I'm glad I got at retail is, strangely enough, Galactic Civilizations II - that tin DVD case is one of the best pieces of packaging in the history of computer gaming.
Oooh - anyone remember the Galaxian's bar table - now that's how to deliver a game.
IIRC this has less to do with the policies of the publishers and more to do with cartel type action on the (chain)retailer front. Meaning: "If you sell your games cheaper via digital download (eating into our sales), we will boycott them in our stores". And since the majorty of the sales still go through retailers, and publishers need the advertising effect of a store presence for their to get taken seriously as a high quality title, they have little choice but to comply.
I imagine a similar story applies for regional locking and pricing. Though on the region locking front it's probably the region's distributers doing the dictating: "if you want to keep selling your games through our network, you'll not work with any of our competitors (online or otherwise) and we are not interested in distributing this title". And since the publisher wants to keep selling it's other titles....
Aint anti-competition clout wonderful?
Don't forget, not everybody has access to unlimited high speed Internet.
Here other than dial-up, which is worthless these days, I have a choice between Cellar/3G (5GB month cap or outrageous overage charges), Satellite (Latency, 5-12GB a month bandwidth limit); Sadly, my only practical source for games is retail.
On the other hand, not everybody has access to well-stocked retail stores either. Around 80% of my game collection at both Steam and Impulse, for instance, has never seen a retail release here in Chile based on my own guesstimations. Sure, EA can afford to do worldwide releases for every single Sims expansion pack they make, but smaller devs such as Tripwire have struggled to get their games on the shelves in the *US*, nevermind South America. And they're a relatively large dev house compared to, say, the guys behind Machinarium for instance.
For me, that's the main advantage of digital distribution: the ability to easily and securely buy games from hundreds of developers, both large *and* small, the price advantages in doing so are only secondary.
Like it or not, Digital distribution will take over a number (if not all to last) of commercial pipelines eventually. It's called innovation. A pattern which has started the minute people logged on a thingy known as www by bandwidthing their ways to online freedom.
Movies went from VHS tapes to DVD & now, Bluerays.
Phones from off_the_wall_wired_gimmicks to Trek-like communicators.
TeeVee B&W tubes to flat plasma & 3D stuff.
Heck, rock songs to Mp3 files.
Get yourselves updated to modern techno. It's the oncoming train wreck heading full steam (pun intended) outa control. Stuck & wired into Impulse, too.
Even just i certainly typed datasets in much lower Ram memory stubs in the early 80's - for it seems forever by now. Kbs went to Gigs. Bauds to Fibers.
So...
11. Consumers still somehow fear THE change. Thus, why WallyMarty alikes keep grabbing off **huge** pricing markups which would otherwise represent payout to developpers to offer & create BETTER or more affordable products. To us all, btw.
If the price is close, and it's available in physical form i go with a retail copy. I don't see that changing anytime soon either. The only way to grab me via digital distribution is pure bribery, price.
Exactly. When it is cheaper, I buy digitally - when it's not, I buy retail. This is why I like Impulse - I can order the game and get a box, manual, etc., if I want to at additional cost. If a game comes out that I really, really like or have been waiting for for a really long time, then I'll always buy the box. Seeing "Download Complete" doesn't even come close to getting home and cracking open the box of a game I've been looking forward to for what feels like forever!
Most people, quite reasonably, think like this. Which is exactly why retailers use their clout to make sure that digital downloads will not structurally (they can't stop sales etc. though, not without limiting their own options) be cheaper than the retail version. It's the status quo order hanging on to a business model that's gradually becoming outdated.
Of course it won't work in the long run, no matter how heavy handed they get, but that wont stop them from trying to keep their comfortable current status. (Ask the music industry how their version of this situation worked out for them.)
Myself I love buying off the internet and not dealing with CDs at all, but I've come to realize I spend more time downloading than I do playing some months...it can be pretty irritating. So much as I love Impulse (aside from my fresh OS install gripe about importing games back in) I'm afeared I'm back to retail for now.
I think for me it depends, For soem indie games like my X series of games from Egosoft, i would have rather that it get to be bought on impulse, but it is only on steam and it is a pain in the ass to order it through the U.S.
One game, i ordered through EBgames.com from Canada, the game was like 19.99 (US) on sale, but the shipping fees added on plus import duties made it to be like 40 bucks canadian. It was KA-50, a helicopter combat flight sim. I wish impulse would have it. Also, Bllod Bowl a game from gamesworkshop, i can't even find it on any online distribution. I don't want to fork out 50 bucks foro the game, and on top shipping charges. I might as well paid for a collector's edition for the game, even though one does not exists. All my other digital purchases are from Impulse, I really like their service, plus, the community chat feature is great where i can ask for support in a snap.
You can use download and archive option to backup application localy.
https://forums.stardock.com/336339
I used that trick to get GalCiv2 ToA to work on my machine.
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