Whether you like it or not, the push towards a mostly-digital game industry is ahead of us. It may not be next year, it may not be in the next five years… but it’s coming.
Brick and mortar retailers like GameStop have known this for years, and have been planning accordingly. The latest move,according to GameStop COO Paul Raines, is to let customers purchase downloadable content right in the store.
When they get home and turn on their console (or PC), that content will be waiting for them. While the logistics of this remain unclear, this would mean a few things — GameStop clerks could upsell you on downloadable content as you buy the game, and you could use your trade-in credit directly towards that same content. You’d just never be able to sell it back. Or return it.
“We believe we can convert a significant portion of our in-store traffic to digital for publishers,” Raines said.
Interesting concept, this leaving the house to buy downloadable content. I’ll have to think this over. I have a little time — the program is said to begin testing in early 2010.
