Hey,

The point of this post is to discuss a potential problem with digital stores and how it may have a negative impact on society as a whole (far fetch, I know... And it also sounds pretentious). I think the way we shop in digital stores may be something the free market wasn't build for, but I don't know anything about economics, so even mentioning the free market feels like I am trying to bite more than I can chew. Basically, I want to be told how wrong I am because I want to be optimistic about the future, and I feel like there are lots of gaps in my thinking right now that I'd like to fill.

Anyway, here's a scenario that I want to compare in both the traditional physical setting vs the new digital setting to illustrate the problem:

Let's say it's the early or mid 90s. You've just bought a new monitor for your computer, but you don't have the right cable, so you decide to go to the local electronics store. You are going there with the intent of ONLY buying this cable. You enter the store, and as you make your way to the 'isle of cables', you pass the software section where you spot a game you've never seen before that has a cool cover. Let's say you just got a badass paycheck as well, and you haven't had a new game in a while, and man, a new game would look real awesome on your new monitor. It's a strategy game though, you don't like those... But the cover is real awesome, what if this is going to change your mind about strategy games?! If you're like me, you think about it for about ten minutes, then grab the game, get the cable, pay for them and leave the store with a huge smile on your face.

The key thing here is that you've just bought one more unexpected item, just because you saw something in the corner of your eye that caught your attention for some reason. What you just did (besides spending money on a game before checking video game reviews) is that you got roped into purchasing something because that thing was in some way alluring to you. More importantly, by buying the game, you just handed in a vote for that product and told the free market "I like things like these, these are cool, I would potentially buy more of these". The invisible hand shifts oh-so very slightly, and companies will note that shift...

Fast forward to 2045... Okay, 2017. Same idea, you got a 144hz G-Sync monitor but you don't have a DisplayPort cable. Dammit, you should've known. But that's alright, you log into your Amazon account, you type in 'DisplayPort' in the search bar, you find a cable with five star reviews and order it. And you know what? You just got a fat paycheck too, so you can even order it for 1-day delivery so you won't have to wait 3-5 days to get it! Awesome. So you order the cable..... Aaaaand you're done.

You purchased one item - the item you intended to buy... Nothing else. Why? There could be many reasons, but in this hypothetical scenario you had the potential of buying a game, but since you didn't run past a video game isle by chance you didn't realize that potential. You just came with one purpose and you did what you came to do, which is as it should be... Right?

Here's my question... Isn't that a huge problem? To me, what that means is that (in the modern world) people are able to filter out everything that they don't intend to purchase. You can't just stumble onto something in a digital store, since all you do is click on the search bar, type in what you need, and just get that one thing. Basically, everything else is filtered out, especially with the way stores try to only recommend you things you've already proven to like.

Furthermore, that means you won't be voting (with your wallet) for new things that got you curious, but instead just continue voting for the same things you've already voted for before. Doesn't that mean companies will just not make new things, because they think this new thing won't sell because there seems to be no demand. In reality, it's just not selling because people have no way of 'stumbling' on it... So basically, the modern video game industry in a nutshell, no?


So, as a result of this change from physical retail stores to digital distribution, will society become more and more closed minded and only purchase what they're searching for? Will we all make our personal bubbles even smaller and smaller where we won't try out new things at all, which would result in not giving new products and ideas that could have a positive impact on our lives a chance in the free market?

I know there's lots more to this, there are lots of things to consider like the effect of marketing (Effect of watching TV, which is declining, replaced by YouTube, and how YouTubers now change our 'filters'), but this post is too long already so I'll leave it at that. I think the way most video game distribution is going (GOG is the only one who seems to try and be like a retail store in some ways, imo) is a good marker of how the future of society might look like. In my pessimistic view, we'll end up only knowing what we already know without expanding our horizons the way this is going.

"Harmlessly passing your time in the grasslands awayyyyyyyyyy..."

Baaah!

But digital-only companies have done all sort of things to ensure you always buy something you don't 'need'. Related products, sponsored listing, weekly sales, daily sales, flash sales, holiday sales, insomnia promo, steam discovery, indie bundle, humble monthly etc.

If the sales at GOG. Steam et al have taught us something, it's that customers are more than willing to buy new games that they weren't intended to purchase in the first place. Take a look at the backlog or the piñata threads, or any sale announcement, really. I think the market is safe from the gamers' side.

Right, but you go to a digital video game store to buy a game, and end up buying more games than one. But you won't end up buying some completely different product like a book or a movie, you'll just buy the same type of product you were after. You won't pass by an offer for anything that isn't a game on Steam/GOG, from my experience anyway.

As an example of how it was before, say a parent in the 90s found an edutainment game lying around for her son/daughter when she walked toward the VHS section to get a movie. Those sort of situations started the edutainment market I think, but there was no 'edutainment store' (or maybe there was?) to facilitate that. The only reason those things got big was because people accidentally came across them, I think? Does that make sense...?

Can that happen in a digital-only future, where every type of product has it's own digital store (Kindle store for ebooks, Steam/GOG for video games)?

But, in that digital-only future, will we be able to download rice?

I'm not sure I get the point here... Are you suggesting impulse buys are a good thing for consumers?
Because everything I've ever read/seen/been told suggests otherwise...

As for a digital only future... Only computer software and various media entertainment (books, movies and music) fit that idea. You can't download physical products (at least not until 3d printers are more advanced and in every home) so there will still be ample chance for discovery of new products.

On top of that, not all stores specialise. Amazon is one of the most successful and profitable online stores there is and it sells all kinds of digital products and physical ones. And I often browse for random stuff there (typically in their Kickstarter and new products section to see what new ideas people have had for stuff)

At best, I've probably only seen 50-100 different different pc games in a store at one time. Compare that to GOG or Steam, where there are thousands of different games all available. In Steam's case, thousands of new ones every year. I don't see this possible future you are afraid of.

If you only want obscure games, there are even specialty stores for that like itch.io

The point of the post was more about how digital stores are about just getting in there and buying the one thing you need without distractions, while physical stores often caused you to look around and see things that are outside 'of your own bubble'. Impulse buying isn't a good thing, but seeing new things that I don't know anything about is a good thing.

If you'd imagine a physical store that works like a digital store, it'd be just a person at the counter in a small room asking what you want, you say what you want, and the person goes in the back and just grabs the item for you. You wouldn't see a selection of items until you specifically ask to be shown specific items, or items of a certain category.

I think something's lost there, and I think if every store (and every thing online) operates this way, you'd pretty much end up being stuck in your own bubble for the rest of your life. How can you develop an interest in something if you never come across it?

I get it, though I can't say how much of a problem it will turn out to be - if at all.

All the time I do what you describe. Go to the local Ace Hardware for an HVAC filter or some small bit of hardware, but end up in the electrical stuff aisle because I noticed that aisle and remembered that I need to replace the GFCI outlet that trips for no apparent reason.

But the folks at the local Ace try a little too hard to be helpful and I'm not five seconds in the store before they ask if I need help finding something. I might need help, but if you let me wander around first then I may pick up some other stuff while I'm at it.

Of course, digital stores know this, too, and that's why the big ones have "You may be interested in this" and "Customers who bought this item also bought..." and "Frequently purchased together".

The same way it works in the real world: IT DOESN'T.

Not only is it poorly regulated, but there's massive waste, too. So many redundant jobs, products, and production.

Let us seize the means of productions and replace middle managers with simple scripts and computer programs!

The market barely works now, TBH. Digital storefronts aren't a threat, though. Automation is. Not that that's a bad thing IMHO. Once enough can be automated to cripple markets, we shoulldn't need them anymore.

I am less worried about the markets (let them die and let's get away from even using money!), but I am worried about how this influences the way we think. How can a child be curious nowadays and explore things if all the things it could explore are 'hidden'? If they can't run around a store and see a book or game that just seems interesting to them personally just from how it looks judging by the cover... How can a child develop tastes?

I am worried that we are now shaped more by what our parents, YouTubers and government recommend us, and there is much less room for us to discover things for ourselves. Digital storefronts are one way to limit the amount of exploration we can do, I feel like.

Then again, I've never tried to let a child loose on the Steam or GOG store, so who knows, maybe the complete opposite is true and it'll develop even more individual tastes than it would have in the previous era.

Fair point. I do see what you mean. That sort of annoying specialized recommendation is why I moved away from Google and now have Duck Duck Go as my preferred search engine.

One of the big problems with the net is how easy it is to isolate yourself into your own small echo chamber, and another is how that often even proves a good idea because dealing with trolls can be so stressful. However, since no hobby is shared by just a single political affiliation and you already have a starting connection, specialized online stores may actually prove a good thing, especially those with forums. Also, anecdotally, the ease of browsing GOG has allowed me to dredge through the catalog and find myself interested in things I never would have noticed otherwise, especially now with my cynicism of anything promoting itself with pretty pictures having been honed to a razor-sharp edge by AAA publishers. Yeah, I've actually gone browsing through GOG's catalog multiple times looking for cool stuff, though that's harder with Steam due to volume (and now getting spammed with barely-qualifies-as-a-game games). Plus, when forum members recommend books, I take note, so there's that too.

We do actually have a store like that in the UK, it's called Argos. It was supposed to revolutionise shops years ago but never did.

I can see what your saying, but I browse when I want to browse and buy things when I want to buy things.
If I want a specific item I go straight to that item and buy it, if I want to look and see what's available I do that. I'm sure I'm not the only one..