
GameStop Lays Off 120 - gk1
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2019/08/gamestop-lays-of-120-corporate-staffers-as-stock-continues-to-tumble/
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moksly
I have a lot of fond memories of going to the local video game shop with my
friends to look at boxes, or a mid-night opening to pick up Diablo 2 before a
weekend-long LAN party. I miss the meaty manuals, that I still have for games
like Baldurs Gate or X-com because they are just such awesome pieces of art
and arguably part of the game story.

Things move forward of course, chains like GameStop killed that local video
game shop I mentioned. I’m sure my children will have fond memories with
digital downloads, after all it was the friends/LAN party that was the
important part. So I’m probably just an old nostalgic git, but digital
distribution will just never be my cup of tea.

~~~
flukus
> So I’m probably just an old nostalgic git, but digital distribution will
> just never be my cup of tea.

I like physical copies but IME this is becoming no longer viable. I went to
pick up a game recently from a shop that used to have massive game sections
and the only had maybe a dozen switch games, nearly all of which were the more
child oriented ones. The playstation and xbox sections weren't faring much
better and I couldn't find the PC section.

Throw in gaming-as-a-service models and indie developers with zero retail
presence being the only (non-nintendo) developers making games I like and
physical copies have become a thing of the past.

~~~
moksly
Even when you buy a physical copy it’s often just a steam activation code in
an empty box.

