Xbox goes down. You can't play games you own on disc
The author discusses the frustration of Xbox outages preventing access to physical disc-based games, highlighting how modern gaming has shifted toward digital licensing. The piece argues that physical media no longer guarantees ownership or offline playability, leading the author to prefer PC gaming for better control.
Why it matters
It highlights the erosion of consumer ownership rights in the digital age, where physical media is increasingly dependent on online authentication servers.
Jay Peters: Xbox’s huge outage even blocked games on disc
When Sony announced that they were discontinuing physical discs for PlayStation, I was less outraged than many. The reason I felt this way wasn't because I loved what Sony was doing. I think it came from an understanding that physical media ain't what it used to be.
I got an analog pocket a couple years ago, and I think it's an awesome product. I was able to insert my Game Boy cartridges from 20 years ago and was able to play them immediately, just like I did back then. Well, on a backlit screen with 10x the pixel density, but still.
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