You know, there has been a lot of buzz in the gaming world lately, and much of it has to do with a decision Sony is making. If I’m being honest, I think this is something people should have made peace with a long time ago—especially those who have spent years buying digital games.

Now, I’ll be honest: it’s not often that something makes me get off my throne and weigh in because, most of the time, I just don’t care.

And I’m not saying that because gaming and everything associated with it doesn’t matter to me. It does. I’m simply not in the habit of treating every snippet of gaming news like it deserves my time and energy.

But every now and then, something gets loud enough to make me look over and ask, “What the hell are you guys doing?”

This is one of those times.

What surprises me most is how many people seem caught off guard by something that, from where I’m standing, has been coming for a long time.

I’ve watched the conversation grow louder, seen the complaints pile up, and wondered how we got to a point where so many gamers are still fighting a direction that has been right in front of us for years.

After listening to the constant whining, griping, and bitching, I’ve finally decided to weigh in and make my thoughts known.

Because whether people like it or not, this conversation isn’t going away.

That said, let’s go.

Part 1 – Why I Never Fought The Digital Future.

Most Gaming Controversies Don’t Get My Attention!

Based on the gaming outrage of late regarding Sony’s decision involving digital games, I’ve sat back and watched people blow fire because they believe Sony is being unfair.

Incidentally, I just don’t care. I don’t.

The reason is simple: I don’t make it my life’s work to hang around on Facebook, keeping up with every bit of gaming controversy. That’s energy I don’t care to give away.

Besides, whatever happens in the gaming world, I form my own opinion. I’m not looking for someone else to tell me what I should think because they believe it’s for the betterment of gaming.

Free will and gaming have one thing in common: the motivation should come from the person, not the crowd fighting for what they believe is the greater good.

To me, it’s just noise.

Ten times out of ten, I’m sitting on my throne, ignoring everything around me. The world could be burning. Gamers could be justifiably or unjustifiably irate about Sony’s decision involving digital games.

I don’t care about any of it.

I wasn’t even going to weigh in on this. But because the noise finally got louder than I could ignore, I decided:

“What the hell? I’ve got a few minutes.”

I Saw This Coming, Why Didn’t You?

The funny thing is that despite all the ugliness people have shown and expressed about Sony’s decision and digital gaming becoming a global thing, this has already been happening right under people’s noses.

I saw this coming as far back as the late PS3 generation. Sony has been heading in this direction ever since, yet people want to act like this decision somehow caught them off guard.

Personally, since people were already buying digital games, I don’t think they can pretend this wasn’t eventually going to become a much bigger thing. I mean, think about it. Physical gaming versus digital gaming—if one is outselling the other, it makes sense to go where the money is.

And that happens to be digital gaming.

So, for all the yelling and tantrums surrounding the policy changes, the rumors—both new and old—and even the idea of a complete switch to digital itself, I don’t think people should treat this like some doomsday warning no one saw coming.

Sony has been moving in this direction for years.

The difference is that they’ve finally started closing the gap, and that’s no crime.

I mean, seriously, what is everyone so surprised about?

I Went Digital and Still Got to Keep My Soul –

For me, I wasn’t coaxed into going digital. No one makes me do anything.

I went willingly because I saw the ease and convenience of what going fully digital could offer.

As someone who’s busy with life, kids, parenthood, and just living overall, I can appreciate the convenience of digital gaming—especially when it comes to buying games.

For me, it has been one of the greatest conveniences in gaming.

All of my digital games are in one place. All I have to do is pick one, press a button, and play. That’s it. Wishlisting makes things even easier because when I want a game or something goes on sale, I’m informed.

I don’t understand why people can’t see the benefits of digital gaming. Even with the direction Sony is heading, many of those same benefits aren’t suddenly going to disappear.

Most gamers will look at what Sony is doing and think the company is robbing them of their right to gaming, when in actuality, Sony is expanding in the direction it believes is right.

To many people, no physical games means they’re no longer in control of their gaming. They see it as a handicap.

I don’t see a handicap.

I see the same great time-saver I always have, and just because Sony is making changes doesn’t change that.

The one thing I value more than almost anything besides gaming is time. And to put a finer point on this, digital gaming has done wonders for mine.

What has it done for yours? for yours?

The Store Lines, I Don’t Miss Them!

Digital gaming has solved more problems than most gamers want to admit.

Remember those days when we wanted a new game and had to put a little money down to reserve our copy, only to go back to the store later to pick it up?

I remember doing exactly that with God of War II on the PS2 when it first came out.

I distinctly remember the GameStop clerk asking me, “What are you going to do if the copies don’t get here before the store closes?”

My response?

“Then I don’t leave! I’ll camp outside this store if I have to.”

I was willing to do it too, even though the clerk was only kidding.

But my point remains valid.

Digital gaming cut all of that shit out.

What’s so bad about buying a game, downloading it, and eventually playing it on your own terms? What sounds so terrible about that?

To me, it seems like people are more obsessed with trying to have it all instead of making peace with what they have access to.

I prefer digital gaming because, as someone who lives by the philosophy, “You want my time, pay my price,” digital gaming does exactly that. I don’t lose time in any regard.

The convenience is what matters to me. I get to keep my time and do what I want with it—even if I don’t immediately start the game I just downloaded and spent $64 to $77 on.

That still beats running around trying to pinpoint which store is going to get which game.

Those days are long gone, and they shall remain so.

Count your blessings, people!

Part 2 — Think for Yourself and Let the Future Come.

Facebook Doesn’t Get to Tell Me Shit!

At different points in time whenever I’ve gotten on Facebook—even recently—there has been a LOT of buzz surrounding Sony’s so-called “designs,” as it were. One of the latest involved account inactivity.

Naturally, people started acting up. But here’s the thing: the inactivity scare people were spreading around wasn’t even about us North Americans.

One person started making noise about it. Then two people. Before long, there was an entire network of Facebookers spreading the story like wildfire and making it sound like everybody was going to be affected.

This is exactly why I don’t get my information from Facebook. No one tells me what to think, and I’m certainly not going to let a crowd of people panicking over half-read information do it for me.

At that point, people are just turning noise into unnecessary panic. If I’m being honest, they’re creating the very stress they’re putting other people under by making something seem far more urgent and widespread than it actually is.

Before long, people aren’t even reacting to the actual information anymore. They’re reacting to someone else’s reaction to someone else’s reaction—and by then, the truth is buried under a mountain of outrage.

Check your facts, people.

Sony has a massive worldwide fan base. Stop acting like everybody’s account is suddenly standing in front of a firing squad because somebody on Facebook hit the panic button.

You Guys Zig, I Zag. That Simple.

In light of this whole ownership debacle surrounding physical and digital gaming, it’s been said that people who buy digital content, like me, are traitors and that Sony is eventually going to flip the script on us—meaning we’ll be the ones who get the worst of it.

Now, I’ve been pro-digital since the PS4 era, and I still am today.

I want it to go on record that I plan to stay digital.

Direct your attention to the screen above. That is a physical copy of a game I bought. Now, you’re probably wondering, “Why did you buy a physical game if you’re all digital?”

My answer is simple: I had no choice.

The game had been delisted from the PlayStation Store, so I had to buy a physical copy. Fine. Accepted.

But that doesn’t mean I’m automatically going to change my decision or my feelings about an argument that has about as much appeal to me as dirt.

So, while you guys are making all this noise about physical media, yeah, I don’t give a shit.

I’ll stay on my side—the digital side. The side of the future.

Because, let’s face it, this is happening. You can bitch, whine, and complain about it all you want, but none of that is going to stop the direction gaming is heading.

Playstation Still Gets My Trust, For Now –

To put a finer point on this, I’ve been loyal to Sony—to PlayStation—since ’99, and that’s not going to change anytime soon.

However, while you guys are creating panic and spreading fear, my stance is simple: as long as PlayStation doesn’t start crossing the lines I’ve drawn in the sand, I’m cool.

A rumor is always going to be a rumor. A fact is always going to be a fact. But the common denominator is action. Until there is something real to react to, I’m not wasting my time worrying about baseless bullshit.

If I had one message to pass on to PlayStation, it would be this:

“All right, guys. I stand with you as I always have. That changes the second you start abusing your power—deleting accounts willy-nilly or simply because you feel like it. So make your changes. Get your affairs in order. But do not cross the line.”

Just like that. Simple.

The way I see it, everything cooking right now has been in the making for a long time—probably longer than most people want to admit. None of this appeared overnight.

So, what must be, must be.

You Keep Fighting the Transition, I’m Going to Fight to Empty Those Health Bars –

I’m going to close out this post with this, and you can quote me as saying:

“You can choose to fight the transition or whatever underhandedness you believe Sony is up to. You can even stand around bitching that an all-digital future will undo PlayStation and everything they’ve built.”

Furthermore:

“You can even spend your time trying to recruit others to your side like you’re waging war in the name of some holy crusade, believing your cause is just.”

You know what I’m going to do?

I’m going to spend my energy fighting to delete the health bars of the enemies in the games I’m playing right now and the games I plan to play later.

So, you guys keep doing what you do. I’m going to be sitting over here playing games and enjoying my gaming time.

At the end of the day, you have two choices.

A. Waste your energy worrying about something you believe is inevitable—something you think is going to steamroll over every debate, no matter how loud the crowd gets or how many people join it.

Or:

B. Spend your time wisely playing games and enjoying them.

Personally, I’m over here enjoying my games and letting the future happen. I don’t give a shit about any of it as long as Sony doesn’t get out of control.

As long as they don’t cross that line, I’m cool.

So, with that said, here’s some energy for my next boss fight.

Going digital has always been about making gaming easier for me. If you want to see some of the essentials that help me manage and enjoy my digital game libraries, check out my Benable list below – https://benable.com/RoddyMcG/digital-gaming-essentials-that-make-life-easier