RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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As Sony is doubling down on ending physical discs for PlayStation , Xbox has announced that the rumors were true , and it's allowing players to convert physical games into digital ones by redeeming a digital license for physical copies, starting with Xbox Insider members next week on August 31.
News of this comes from Microsoft's Gamescom broadcast, where Xbox's Jason Ronald confirmed that Microsoft is taking steps to futureproof physical games as the digital future approaches. As he describes it, once the feature rolls out, your Xbox system will prompt you to redeem a digital license when you put a physical game in your console, and once you do that you won't have to put the disc in the box to play it anymore, unless you want to. This will also allow you to play the game on other platforms as part of the "Play Anywhere" system, and you can start streaming those games through the cloud.
"For 25 years, players have invested in Xbox, and the players have really been what has made Xbox special," he says. "So we're really focused on how do we honor that as we think about the next 25 years of Xbox. We just really view this as another step in making sure that your library is protected; it can move with you as technologies and formats change, and we're going to continue to invest in game preservation and adding new capabilities just to make sure that your library continues to get better just as technology evolves."
Xbox CEO Asha Sharma posted about the announcement on Twitter shortly after, confirming that the feature will start with "thousands" of games across Xbox history, with more to roll out over time.
Your physical game library is more than a collection of discs. It holds years of memories and stories worth preserving. Starting next week, XBOX Insiders can unlock a digital entitlement for supported physical games. We’ll start with thousands of titles and add more as we can. pic.twitter.com/XATsa8sjBt
Though Ronald doesn't say as much, this does imply that one day Xbox could also do away with physical games as well, but unlike PlayStation, it sounds like Microsoft is at least offering some means to make sure your collection doesn't become completely obsolete if a future Xbox system doesn't have a disc drive. Sony, meanwhile, kind of just said "sorry not sorry" and confirmed that PlayStation games launching in 2028 and beyond will no longer be manufactured on disc. If nothing else, Sony coming out with this incredibly unpopular news gave Microsoft a chance to come out looking good by comparison, which I'm sure the company is thrilled about considering it's had its own share of controversies lately after mass layoffs across Xbox Game Studios earlier this year.
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