Physical Retailers Refuse to Sell GTA 6 Over Decision to Skip Discs

The phrase "Cutting your nose off to spite your face " springs to mind

I'm not saying I agree with the code in the box thing, because I certainly don't, but selling it would be no different to selling an all digital console.

eg. Xbox series S or the OG digital PS5 before the new model was available with a detachable disc drive

While it won’t make much of a dent in sales, good for them for sticking to their guns.

Honestly, I am here for it. I sadly don't think it will accomplish anything, but I respect them for at least trying.

i'm going to be honest , those places are just using this as way to advertise and market their game shop , which is pretty smart on their end.

VGP’s bread and butter is imports. Also Canadian.

Honestly don't think take two care. Physical sales are rapidly declining, would have referred buying physical on disc, but can see take two point in not wanting any leaks before the launch.

Not really going to make a dent unless the likes of Amazon do the same (they won't). These small retailers are just missing out on the biggest game of the generation.

It's a valiant effort but unfortunately it won't accomplish anything. Most people are ok with this and physical media is on its way out.

I run a grocery store. There's certain extremely popular foods that I don't personally like so I won't stock them anymore.

I thought VGP was Canadian. I’ve been buying stuff from them for years (I find them extremely reliable and they package games very well for shipping).

I am worried about the future of physical media as well.

Even though I buy digital, I don't agree with Rocktar games putting a download code in a box and calling it a physical edition. If its to prevent spoilers, just release the PE a week or 2 later (with discs).

On the other hand, I'm not sure why retailers are refusing to stock - its not that different to selling top ups, subscription codes, etc.

I think all shops should do this. This really is an important moment for the industry. If they want to have any kind of future they should refuse to sell codes in boxes or even key cards really.

Additionally, this is crazy irresponsible of Rockstar to make, transport and sell millions of empty plastic cases. I feel like it should be illegal to sell a plastic box with no physical product inside. Let's face it, the only reason they're selling these boxes is to catch the parents and grandparents buying for the kids that shouldn't be playing the game in the first place. It's kind of soured the excitement for me, if I'm honest. A new Rockstar game was a big event, with some nice extras in the case like the maps or posters. Now it's just exercising every nefarious tactic used in the industry today in one gross package.

The bigger story here is the insane profit margin they're going to be getting.

Charing above standard pricing, but also not requiring manufacturing of a disc. Still get physical retailers taking a cut, but dang. Insane.

It'll be worth $80 no doubt, but I'm a bit disappointed no disc, even if digital is more convenient and discs are basically just a SSD download anymore anyway.

They must doing well. As will be losing out on money. For refusing to stock the game . The coming if the digital age. Where physical disks will no longer be made isn't fat off

I think their attitude to discs is “skip em don’t slip em” which makes zero sense?

Imagine paying shipping for a case only

All I'll say is that it's very bold of them. I mean, this is GTA 6. It will not fail no matter what.

@SystemAddict i'm guessing that people want the box , which makes them happy , and they don't have to print out millions of discs , and i would assume if there was a disc the game would have actually cost more money. do you want a 79 dollar game or a 89 dollar game with a disc.

It's good to have principles and stay true to them. They know it's not gonna change anything, but that's not the point.

@ATaco Don't think this about failing or not but just their principles.

They do right

Good. Why keep up the pretense on this release?

@Stragen8 Downloads FROM the disc, not from the internet.

This is a distinction that is most certainly an important difference.

@AmericanSamurai1 “but can see take two point in not wanting any leaks before the launch.”

Having no real physical release of a game for the (probably not sole, but large) reason of avoiding pre-release spoilers seems like a massive overreaction on the publisher’s part.

Industry has been heavily leaning towards digital for over a decade now so although its a good gesture, I doubt it will make any difference to Rockstar's decision.

@Oram77
I just mean that this is an absolutely massive payday they're choosing to walk away from. I guess I can respect it but if I were a merchant I wouldn't be able to handle the constant "no we don't have GTA6 because..." on launch day. I'm sure they'll explain their reasoning while the consumers simply respond "Oh, ok." And walk right out the door to pick it up somewhere else.

Fair play to them for sticking to their guns. Would be easy for them to set aside policy for this. Hopefully they see a positive response from their customers for doing this.

@Member_the_game totally different, at least the digital console is hardware.

I don't relish anyone losing their business due to changing times, in the same way I don't relish people losing their jobs due to AI.

Their business model is dying though.

Similar to how Iran always waved threats to close the Strait if anyone attacked them, games retailers always waved the threat of not stocking the products of anyone who didn't play ball.

They were a significant factor in digital console stores not passing on the lower costs to consumers, as they had a tacit agreement with physical stores not to undercut physical copies - else the retailers would pull all their stuff from the shelves.

Those retailers are now playing their final card and "closing the Strait", but it's too late. A bit like if Iran closed the Strait 50 years from now when everyone is using renewables.

They don't have the power and leverage anymore. The threat doesn't scare publishers.

It's ironic that by including a code in a box, the publisher is doing them a favour and throwing them a bone. Stupidly the retailers are throwing the bone back.

Pretty dumb when the industry doesn't need you anymore. They should have been grateful.

I like a few Canadian things. Maple Syrup. Bacon. Les Stroud. Blended whiskey. VGP is on the list too. It has been one of my favorite game stores for a while now - great deals, especially with the US exchange rate and their shipping rates. Glad they're sticking to their guns here.

I'd much rather support VGP over Rockstar, so that's an easy decision for me.

I have purchased so many tiny indie games physically over the years that it baffles me when a company with such ludicrous profit margins decides to remove any choice I have over how I wish to experience their product, yet decides to charge me extra for the privilege.

Rockstar: financially sound, yet morally bankrupt.

I have had good experiences with VGP. I also prefer physical media.

Personally, I have no interest in Rockstar's games, but I wholly support a compnay that sells physical product to refuse the sale of digital product.

that would be stupid of them

I hear and understand them but all that this will accomplish is them losing out on money, nothing else. Unless they can get all the big retailers on board this will be a fart in the wind.

@Old-Red any retailer that sells secondhand physical media should boycott this. As this game won’t be able to be sold on the secondhand market for cheap. Rockstar wants only people to purchase end user agreements or in other words digital purchases.

Can't slip a copy in the back for a scalper that would pay $2M for it before release day eh...

@twitchtvpat a disc does not cost $10 and they are already charging $10 more than standard

Other companies will follow what Rockstar does. First all “purchased” games will be locked to a cloud in which one must always been connected. Then plastic boxes which only have a local chip to control input devices, tv output, and whatever internet port or wi-fi protocol will be used. All for a very high price. Future is bleak as these corporations continue to win in the internet of everything age. This isn’t good at all for the used market.

@1970sGamer I assume you mean Take Two and Rockstar

A bold move. I don't think R*/Take-2 really care but kudos to them for sticking to their guns.

@Krlozgod

A sale is still a sale though at the end of the day.

The reason I made the comparison was because when a shop sells you a console with a disc drive, you can potentially return to the same shop over and over to purchase physical games for it. So they can get more money from you in theory.

However If you buy an all digital console, once they've sold it to you they'll likely never see you again because you'll be downloading all your games.

So why not boycott selling digital consoles in the same way?

@Rich33 I’m with you, either it’s a physical release or it isn’t. A code in the box isn’t a physical release. You’d be best of just getting the digital download version as can get wallet top up vouchers at a reduced rate to pay for it from shopto and loaded etc so will be 10% or so cheaper that way.

Also the shops had a chance to sell it and take their cut too. Definitely no deferent to selling wallet top up cards, subscriptions or vouchers for digital games.

Mad respect for these retailers, hopefully more do the same.

I never buy games at launch anyway. I'll just wait until a complete edition is produced. Would rather wait a year to have a complete game with all the patches on disc than have half arsed buggy game early.

@themightyant when it comes to first party you have to think a good majority is the hardcore base which is a good amount who prefer physical over digital already. With gta 6 there's a ton of casuals who will just buy the easier more convenient option (digital). I actually prefer physical, but it's looking very dim for us. The younger generation is moving to an all digital future, my fear is that it will get to a point where we don't even have the digital copy, but just a streaming pass to it.

DonaldGloverGooddotGIF.

Not that it'll move the needle or anything, but good for them having principles.

@twitchtvpat 89.

@Dogbreath I get where you're coming from, but I believe in fact they are more successful as a business than they ever have been.

So if they cant play it for free they dont want it. This is why there are no disc and day one downloads.

I don't know what the % the retailers get, but if it's anything like gift cards, they are like 1% if that. I suspect they aren't not selling them as a protest, more likely that they don't make enough to be worth the bother.

Edit : and I bet people attempting to return 'faulty' ones must be a nightmare. They Def are in supermarkets with gift cards. Our policy is a strict, 'its between you and the gift card provider',.but that doesn't stop it from taking up loads of time.

Turns out that leak from a Polish website a few months back about there being no physical version was kinda right then, eh?

Good on them for sticking to their principles, but this won't matter unless a major retailer like Amazon or Wal-Mart refuses to sell the game without the disc. Which we know they won't as Amazon is one of the companies trying to force everything digital.

I take it that they don’t stock any switch 2 games either then

@LiamCroft There is a small typo with where at the end of the article nothing big but I thought you should know. (That's a bit crazy to think about, even if it's whre the industry is headed.)😉

@GoatFace04 Haha thanks for the heads up!

I'll acquire my physical copy from VGP once enough Take 2 execs return from rehab to take the market segment with proper respect.

Can the game even fit on a disc?

Nice to see some retail stores sticking on their principals and keep physical copy alive 👏🙇‍♂️

@Cutmastavictory Real question is, can the game fit on a reasonable number of 50 GB standard-definition Blu-ray discs? Even assuming the whole nearly-700 GB figure I've seen floating around is a sick joke, anything north of 200 GB would mean essentially a season-boxset number of discs when it'd come to a true Xbox physical (Xbox physicals only use the standard-definition Blu-ray standard, even for those that require the Series and can't run on the One)--you'd be on five Xbox discs before needing a third disc on PS5 (PS5 physicals do make use of 4K Blu-ray discs, which have up to 100 GB capacity).

Stop calling it "Physical version" when there is no dics!

VGP is amazing and has been my go-to for a while now, despite not even being on the same continent.

My hope is that Asia region might get a true physical edition eventually. I mean, come on, how greedy is Rockstar that they'll just sell you a code in a box. Nintendo with their game key cards sound generous in comparison.

"That's a bit crazy to think about, even if it's where the industry is headed." It's been here for ages already. I've lost count of how many big games launched without a physical version (baldurs gate 3 anybody?) I've got to give these guys credit for having principals but I think they will rue their decision ultimately.

Why do gamers, especially in the west, get exploited? Because they're exploitable schmucks! The steam machine selling out at that price, buying games for 70/80$€, pre-ordering digital or things which are not in limited stock, spending thousands on Disney world,... yet scoffing about paying taxes for a social system, consumer rights and regulations in the private sector.

@Northern_munkey VGP has built a customer base as a solid provider of niche import games. The stuff that you can't pick up at Walmart. They'll do just fine as long as people see value in physical games.

I only buy physical on console, digital on pc so it makes for an easy skip untill it's discounted on pc, fair play to the store though.
To be honest I probably can't buy it digitally anyway since I haven't verified my age on playstation but regardless having an empty box offers me nothing of interest.

I'm sure R* are terrified. In about 10 years, these retailers are going to be in dire straits.

@tameshiyaku There's probably 5-10 million gamers who would be the newest box at launch even if it cost $5000. That'll probably be enough for the fairly niche steam machine. But not enough for the ps6.

Am i missing something this isnt new plenty of games have done this file sizes are just too big to fit on them

I mean I respect the moral but I mean business and money says otherwise and big retailers will still carry it regardless so I mean.

Even EB Games/Gamestop who may or may not consider codes in the box (do at EB not sure Gamestop) or other retailers wouldn't even say no to a code in the box of GTA 6 and we know many companies wouldn't. Many can say they won't carry code in a box and go hmm we only carry '1 code in a box game' and it's GTA6 that level of hypocritical would happen to.

I've never even heard of these companies and there is a lot of companies out there.

I have no interest in the game but I respect their messaging even if we know they won't be able to and will have to change course to survive as the numbers will impact things.

My opinion is that most retailers don't want to deal with the potential hassles of a code in the box. Retailers prefer to just sell a physical game that can't be returned if opened. Once a retailer sells a code in the box, retailers will have to deal with codes not working and scammers who use the code then claim it doesn't work. So no retail want to sell a code in the box and potentially lose money.

I hope ALL retailers get on board. Especially online retailers. Would make it harder to spread the word about it if the only seller is the source.

I think its fair that we criticise this sort of decision. Shipping a plastic case with a bit of paper inside is just wasteful and produces useless waste. Genuninely think companies should be fined for such practices.

I'm gutted AF. But obviously they did it to avoid leaks (and people tracks full of there merch). Hopefully a disk release soon after is just a couple of weeks. It's the same old story. The few ruin it for the many.

There are really only three 10 out of 10 games by Rockstar. San Andreas, Bully and Red Dead Redemption 2. The talent that made those games is no longer there. I thought GTA 5 was a fairly big notch below those titles, and everything I have heard has made me think that I can wait awhile and see what shakes out. My backlog is so stacked I could go a year without buying anything, and I can certainly wait Zelnick out.