Dialogue

Issue 359

What about Bob?

Robert Frazer’s angry dismissal of my blithe dismissal made me curious. Firstly, I agree with Robert’s point about digital landlordism. I don’t actually own much of my games library, because Nintendo and Microsoft can do whatever they want with it at any time. They can modify it without my consent or even knowledge. And I don’t have the freedom to sell it as I would wish. I think this move to digital should be questioned and critiqued because it is at the confluence of so many issues. Robert’s reference to ownership is one of them, and I am in complete agreement with his misgivings. This is another issue around games preservation which is something that this publication does commendable work to unpick, along with important figures such as Frank Cifaldi.

My thoughts are contradictory. On a practical note, I don’t want to own every piece of media I consume. I’m happy