u/Story-Boring

Several media outlets in various countries have reported that SKG has joined the lawsuit against Sony in the Netherlands for monopolistic practices. Here are two examples, but there are many more:

https://www.msn.com/en-us/gaming/playstation/stop-killing-games-joins-dutch-consumer-group-s-457m-lawsuit-against-sony-over-digital-store-monopoly/ar-AA29V9Io

https://www.yahoo.com/news/politics/articles/stop-killing-games-backs-dutch-154929003.html

However, when searching for more information on this, I haven't been able to find anything "official" from SKG. Have I searched incorrectly, or is this clickbait? Since I don't have an X or anything similar, I don't know if there has been any official statement.

If this is true, although it is a legitimate fight, I am concerned that SKG will get sidetracked or diluted in its fight against digital consumer rights, since many of us see that even if discs make a comeback, there is still an elephant in the room problem.

Edit: As I mentioned to a user, on the one hand, your capacity isn't infinite and is limited to a specific timeframe and scope of action. Dividing that capacity into two tasks does have an impact. I don't think SKG has a large capacity or a top-tier law firm, unfortunately. I suppose it's a move with just enough financial backing. I'm just guessing, but that's my hunch.

On the other hand, I think Sony's decision puts you in a privileged position if you're pushing to guarantee digital rights with European regulators, who have no idea about the poor state of current physical formats. A sudden change of course by Sony could lessen that sense of urgency among legislators regarding a digital rights law.

Regardless of the bugs, I thank this developer for the work they have done and continue to do. The app has recently had a big impact because the media reported that it allows a Steam Deck, Steam Machine, or Linux machine to run PS5 cloud gaming, which shows that many people were asking for this feature.

Without diminishing the developer's great work, here are a few things I've noticed that could improve the app:

On Steam Deck and Bazzite, when configured for 2K or 4K streaming, the app freezes while loading the game, and only the audio plays.

On Android, sometimes when you launch the app, it gets stuck in "searching" mode for a long time, as if it's not loading. You tap the cloud button in the top left, but nothing happens, and when it finally does, neither the PS Plus games nor any other games load. After several minutes, it finishes loading, and then you can select and play.

Another issue is that when I use Bazzite with my ROG Xbox Ally, the application doesn't detect the controller when it launches in game mode or big picture mode for TV; it only detects the ROG's controls. However, it does detect the controller when I switch to desktop mode. But I don't know how to exit the game afterward unless I force it with the keyboard, and when I do exit, the desktop is left with distorted colors. Perhaps it's due to something with HDR, since Linux doesn't handle it very well.

Otherwise, this application is fantastic. Thanks!!

The title says it all. What do you think? I'd be surprised if, should the app become too widespread, Sony doesn't take action, because they want to sell PS Portals and a hypothetical home PlayStation focused on streaming. Besides, it could hurt them, since Sony makes its money selling software through its own hardware. I love the app and I'm using it a lot on my ROG Xbox Ally. I hope Sony stays put, and at most comes up with its own solution by hiring this amazing developer.

I wanted to ask Stop Killing Games a question. Have you considered forming an alliance with the VHF? Although the VHF is more dedicated to preservation, archiving, and research, its work overlaps with that of Stop Killing Games. Each seems to operate from its own perspective, with SKG being more focused on consumer rights but also advocating for preservation, like the VHF. Establishing an alliance could be beneficial for both, to legislate preservation rights and consumer rights in digital purchases.

He sido gamer desde la época del NES, aunque no soy fan de ninguna marca en particular, y fui coleccionista hasta que lo dejé hace un par de años. Ahora mismo hago aportes chiquitos a la preservación y el archivado de varios tipos de contenido, sobre todo videojuegos, pero también películas que están en riesgo de perderse o de quedar en dominio público, cómics, anime, manga, etc. O sea, sé bien cómo funciona esto.

Hablemos en serio. Hay buenos argumentos a favor de los juegos físicos:

· Ayuda a que quienes preservan puedan preservar y archivar UNA PARTE del código del juego hasta que la scene lo descifre y entonces se pueda preservar todo el juego.

· Garantiza la preservación de UNA PARTE DEL CÓDIGO en la biblioteca personal del usuario.

· Competencia de precio en el mercado de segunda mano.

· Libertad para heredarlo, prestarlo o venderlo.

· La posibilidad de presumir tu colección.

Ahora, veamos los contraargumentos o por qué el disco en realidad casi no importa hoy en día:

· Para la preservación y el archivado a largo plazo, seamos honestos: te importa muy poco; casi no tiene relevancia. Para quienes preservan, esta medida tiene poco impacto. Hoy en día, un juego no se define por la pieza de código que viene en el disco, que a veces ni siquiera funciona sin un parche. Vale la pena aclarar que este mismo binario v1.0 es exactamente el mismo que se descarga de forma digital el día del lanzamiento, o sea que el disco no ofrece ninguna ventaja exclusiva para preservar esa versión en particular; de hecho, los formatos digitales facilitan respaldar ese binario entre varios discos/almacenamientos y verificar su integridad con checksums, a diferencia de los discos, que son vulnerables a rayones, descomposición de bits (bit rot) y el deterioro físico con el paso del tiempo. Hoy en día, en la mayoría de los casos, el desarrollo de juegos no se queda en el lanzamiento: se parchéan y se actualizan por contenido nuevo o por arquitecturas nuevas, y que un puñado de juegos no cumpla con esto no me sirve. Lo digo con conocimiento de causa. En este sentido, la decisión de Sony tiene un impacto muy pequeño en la comunidad de archivistas, y lo que se pide es una ley que defienda la preservación y el estudio de la cultura de los videojuegos. Empresas como GOG y Steam (en menor medida) apoyan la preservación de la cultura de los videojuegos. Me preocupa que hoy la preservación en consolas y con DRM agresivo dependa de la scene y la piratería. Por eso es importante una regulación nueva. Para preservación, estoy de acuerdo con la postura de The Video Game History Foundation de que también hacen falta leyes para esto.

· En cuanto a la preservación de bibliotecas personales, el punto anterior sigue siendo relevante. En vez de insistir en conformarse con el estado actual de los discos, es mejor invertir ese esfuerzo en empujar una ley de derechos digitales que proteja los productos digitales que se compran. Además, si te importa este tema o el punto anterior, apoya Steam (con DRM fácil de quitar y políticas de usuario excelentes, aunque eliminen juegos digitales de la tienda) y GOG, que no tiene DRM: permite descargas del instalador para archivado y ofrece selección de versiones. Pero todos sabemos que lo que muchos fans del físico realmente valoran es el estante y la sensación de exclusividad.

· El tema de la competencia por precio es un punto más preocupante. Pero Valve ha demostrado que no tiene por qué ser así. Otra vez: la regulación podría obligar a Sony a abrir su ecosistema o a permitir la venta de licencias entre usuarios (lo segundo es poco probable). Aun así, el usuario tiene el poder de bajar precios con sus decisiones, por ejemplo con pocas ventas por precios abusivos o cambiándose a otros sistemas como Steam o Helix, si resulta que es un sistema abierto. Si te quejas mucho pero luego compras a precios abusivos, no vas a lograr nada, igual que los usuarios de Nintendo.

· Otro punto negativo es el daño que el mercado de segunda mano le hace a los desarrolladores. Aunque le beneficia a los usuarios, y como usuario está bien, para los desarrolladores es un problema grande: cada vez cuestan más los costos de desarrollo. Además, los estudios de desarrollo ahorita están pasando por una crisis que vale la pena mencionar, y por supuesto, todo esto termina afectando a los jugadores. Por eso hay que buscar un modelo que beneficie a todos.

· Para la libertad de vender, heredar, etc., otra vez, una ley de derechos digitales arreglaría ese problema. Además, con Keys, este problema es bastante menor, y lo que se debería hacer es premiar a las empresas que favorecen estas cosas, como Steam o GOG.

· Lo de presumir una colección en el estante es algo que en digital casi no tiene remedio, perdón. Pero aquí hay que fijarse en un tema importante: la contaminación que trae el formato físico. El contraargumento que normalmente escucho es que los smartphones también contaminan, la fabricación de consolas también, las descargas digitales también, la nube también y… también los pedos. En mi país hay un dicho: “cambiar la culpa a otro y la casa sigue sin barrerse”. Significa que mientras todos se echan la culpa, nadie hace nada. Básicamente, es un argumento demagógico. Es más bien una excusa barata para defender algo que no tiene defensa. Aun así, podríamos comparar la contaminación del físico contra lo digital, y cuál de las dos tiene potencial para llegar a cero emisiones. Como soy alguien muy preocupado por el medio ambiente, y no como otras personas que solo quieren un tema de conversación en el bar, busco estudios académicos comparativos con frecuencia. La conclusión es que el soporte físico impone un costo ambiental importante por las fábricas de discos, por el consumo de materiales primas que casi seguro no se reciclarán por la recolección, la logística, el transporte, etc. Pero el formato digital trae sus propios problemas, como la energía que consumen los servidores que guardan y administran el contenido digital, o el cloud gaming. Solo que no queda claro cuál impacta más, sino cuál tiene potencial para llegar a cero emisiones. La nube y el formato digital (Green computing). Es muy difícil y a largo plazo para todos operar con energías renovables y materiales reciclables. Esto es casi una utopía. Pero es mucho más fácil regularlo en el corto a mediano plazo para que los servidores de las empresas grandes funcionen totalmente (o casi totalmente) con energía renovable. De hecho, esto ya está pasando, aunque todavía falta transparencia por parte de las compañías.

Entonces, la conclusión de todo esto, en mi opinión, es que en vez de insistir en un sistema de medios físicos que en realidad es híbrido (disco + actualizaciones + DLC), con argumentos contradictorios que no resuelven nada o, en el mejor de los casos, solo una parte chiquita, lo que necesitamos es pelear por una ley que ayude a preservar el legado de los videojuegos y defienda los derechos del consumidor en un mundo digitalizado.

Desde la perspectiva de la preservación, el formato físico tuvo importancia en el pasado como medio para su digitalización, no como un fin en sí mismo —o sea, su digitalización y archivado— pero que hoy en día ya no sirve para mucho.

Se necesitan leyes con urgencia para ayudar a los grupos de preservación a documentar, archivar, estudiar y proteger la historia de los videojuegos, y al mismo tiempo defender los derechos del consumidor y la competencia libre.

Estados Unidos difícilmente va a hacer algo al respecto, pero la Unión Europea sí podría meter presión, tal como lo hizo con el Digital Markets Act.

Obvio, tienes todo el derecho de defender el formato físico, que ha sido parte de la vida de los gamers por décadas, y lo entiendo como alguien que ha estado en eso, pero si lo haces, por favor no uses argumentos de preservación para no enredar el debate de preservación y causar confusión a gente que no es especialista en el tema. Pero creo que le hacemos un daño a la industria si peleamos solo por un formato ya obsoleto que no garantiza la historia de su propia cultura, y tampoco peleamos por un formato que, al final del día, es el más apropiado y fundamental para preservar lo que amamos en este mini mundo de los videojuegos: los propios videojuegos. Siempre ha sido así, aunque haya ido de la mano con piratas y con miembros de la scene.

I've been a gamer since the NES days, although I'm not a fan of any particular brand, and I was a collector until I stopped a few years ago. Currently, I make small contributions to the preservation and archiving of various media, especially video games, but also films at risk of being lost or in the public domain, comics, anime, manga, etc. So I know well how this works.

Let's have a serious conversation. There are some good arguments in favor of physical games:

· It helps preservationists preserve and archive A PIECE of the game's code until the scene cracks it and the entire game can be preserved.

· It guarantees the preservation of A PIECE OF CODE in the user's personal library.

· Price competition in the second-hand market.

· Freedom to bequeath, lend, or sell it.

· The ability to show off your collection.

Now, let's look at the counterpoints or why the disc is actually almost irrelevant today:

· For long-term preservation and archiving, let's be honest, you care very little about it; it's almost irrelevant. For preservationists, this measure has little impact. Today, a game is not defined by the piece of code on the disc, which sometimes doesn't even work without a patch. It is worth noting that this same v1.0 binary is exactly the same one that is downloaded digitally on launch day, meaning the disc does not offer any exclusive advantage in preserving that specific build; in fact, digital formats make it easier to back up that binary across multiple drives and verify its integrity with checksums, unlike discs which are vulnerable to scratches, bit rot, and physical degradation over time. Nowadays, game development doesn't stop at launch in most cases; games are patched and updated for new content or new architectures, and the fact that a small handful of games doesn't meet this condition doesn't cut it for me. I say this with knowledge of the matter. In this regard, Sony's decision has a very small impact on the archivist community, and what is demanded is a law that defends the preservation and study of video game culture. Companies like GOG and Steam (to a lesser extent) favor the preservation of video game culture. I'm afraid that currently, preservation on consoles and with aggressive DRM relies on the scene and piracy. That's why new regulation is important. For preservation, I agree with The Video Game History Foundation's position that laws are also needed for this purpose.

· As for the preservation of personal libraries, the previous point remains relevant. Instead of insisting on settling for the current state of discs, it's better to invest that effort into pushing for a digital rights law that protects the digital goods that are purchased. Aside from this, if you care about this issue or the previous point, support Steam (with easily removable DRM and excellent user policies, even if they remove digital games from the store) and GOG, which is DRM-free, allows installer downloads for archiving, and offers version selection. But we all know that what many physical media fans really care about is the shelf and the feeling of exclusivity.

· Price competition is a more concerning point. However, Valve has shown that this doesn't have to be the case. Again, regulation could force Sony to open its ecosystem or allow the sale of licenses between users (the latter is unlikely). Regardless, the user has the power to drive prices down through their choices, such as low sales due to abusive pricing or migration to other systems like Steam or Helix if it turns out to be an open system. If you complain a lot but then buy at abusive prices, you're not going to achieve anything, just like Nintendo users.

· Another negative point is the harm that the second-hand market does to developers. Although it benefits users, and as a user, that's fine, for developers, who have increasingly higher development costs, it is a major problem. Furthermore, development studios are currently going through a crisis that is worth mentioning, and of course, all of this ends up impacting players. Therefore, a model that benefits everyone must be sought.

· For the freedom to sell, inherit, etc., again, a digital rights law would fix this problem. Furthermore, with Keys, this problem is a rather minor one, and what should be done is to reward companies that favor these issues, like Steam or GOG.

· The point about showing off a collection on a shelf is something that has almost no salvation with digital, sorry. But here we need to reflect on an important issue: the pollution that the physical format entails. The counter-argument I usually hear to this is that smartphones also pollute, console manufacturing does, digital downloads do, the cloud does, and so do farts... In my country, there's a saying: "one blame shifting to another, and the house remains unswept." It means that while everyone blames each other, no one does anything. Basically, it's a demagogic argument. It's little more than a cheap excuse to defend something indefensible. However, we could compare the pollution of physical vs. digital, and which of the two has the potential to reach zero emissions. As someone very concerned about the environment, and not like other people who only care to have a conversation topic at the bar, I frequently look for comparative academic studies. The conclusion is that physical media imposes a significant environmental cost through disc factories, consumption of raw materials that almost certainly won't be recycled due to collecting, logistics, transportation, etc. However, the digital format presents its own problems, such as the energy consumed by the servers that store and manage digital content, or cloud gaming. However, it is not clear which has more impact, but rather which has the potential to reach zero emissions. The cloud and digital format (Green computing). It is very difficult and long-term for everyone to operate under renewable energies and recyclable materials. This is almost a utopia. But it is much easier to regulate in the short to medium term so that the servers of large companies run entirely (or almost entirely) on renewable energy. In fact, this is already happening, although there is still a lack of transparency from companies.

So, the conclusion of all this, in my opinion, is that instead of insisting on a physical media system that is actually a hybrid system (disc + updates + DLC) with contradictory arguments that solve nothing or, at best, only a small part, what we need to do is fight for a law that helps preserve the legacy of video games and defend consumer rights in a digitalized world.

From the perspective of preservation, the physical format had its importance in the past as a means for its digitization, not as an end in itself—which is its digitization and archiving—but that no longer serves a purpose today.

Legislation is desperately needed to help preservation groups document, archive, study, and protect the history of video games, and at the same time defend consumer rights and free competition.

The US will hardly do anything about it, but the European Union could apply pressure, just as they did with the Digital Markets Act.

Of course, you have every right to defend the physical format, something that has been part of gamers' lives for decades, and I understand that as someone who has been part of it, but if you do, please don't use preservation arguments so as not to muddy the preservation debate and create confusion for people who aren't specialists in the subject. But I believe we do the industry a disservice by fighting only for an obsolete format that does not guarantee the history of its own culture, and not fighting for a format that, at the end of the day, is the most appropriate and fundamental for preserving what we love in this little world of video games: the video games themselves. It has always been that way, even if it has gone hand in hand with pirates and members of the scene.