electrolite77

@Kalmaro

All you're posting is variations on 'lalala I'm not listening to any other points of view'. Personally I'm not advocating stealing anything available to buy brand new, however anything else is fair game. That's grey area, as nobody is harmed and nobody would take me to court.

Any basic reading around the subject repeatedly throws up the phrase 'grey area' and similar phrases like 'this is untested in court'. Thinking on this and many other subjects is still evolving, and can only do so if established thinking is challenged. That may not be for you, but thankfully others are willing.

@jimi

" The publisher got money for the used copy originally."

They don't get any money now. What they got originally is irrelevant.

"btw. Pro-Tip: the developers typically get nothing at all, when you buy any game. The publisher does. The developers were already paid."

Irrelevant. They don't get any more whether a user buys a second hand copy or a ROM.

"Another pro-tip: when a 3rd party seller sells a new game, the publisher typically already got money as well."

Irrelevant. They don't get any more whether a user buys a second hand copy or a ROM

"Which means with your silly argument, you could defend stealing everything"

Not true. False equivalence. And it's your argument, not mine

@Kalmaro

It is entirely grey area. It's just that you choose not to acknowledge that. You prefer not to think about the issue, acknowledge any alternate arguments or anything. However that doesn't make it any less true or those arguments any less relevant.

@jimi

We've reached a peak here. Pro-tip....if you buy games Second hand off eBay, the developer gets nothing. The only people who gain are the seller and eBay. There is no gain to developer or publisher from somebody paying a huge price for a second hand cartridge compared to somebody downloading a ROM. Not one penny difference.

@Kalmaro

You even need rules telling you to DO something, as well as to NOT do something? Wow. Try thinking for yourself. This subject, like many in life, is a mass of grey area. Blindly parroting 'but the rules, but the rules' is meaningless.

"Again I say, if there is literally no legal way whatsoever to obtain a game, then get the rom. Who cares?"

Nobody cares, apart from the odd person who thinks rules are black-and-white and always MUST BE FOLLOWED and will stick their fingers in their ears and go 'lalalalanotlistening' if questioned. It's a way of living that (apart from being on the wrong side of history) won't survive adulthood. Life's too complicated for that.

I often wish this had happened. I could have played more games over the years if I hadn't had to spend on two bits of hardware each gen to play everything I wanted to. One box with every third party game under the sun, Nintendo's stellar output and Sony's quirky, how-are-they-making-a-profit first and second party stuff (not to mention being a platform gamers dream) would have been amazing.

But then I also believe competition between platform holders is essential for the industry and for consumers, so it probably wouldn't have turned out as I'm picturing!

@MadAdam81

Sony making giant losses in gaming would be news to their accountants

Great read, cheers! Never heard of this before.

Arrived yesterday but I haven't had chance to take it out of the cellophane yet. Looks lovely.