As Sony Kills Physical Games, Classic Big Box PC Releases Find New Life Thanks to GOG
Overview & Key Takeaways
GOG Preservation Program now includes 3D models and original art for big box releases of Myst, Hitman, and more
Whether players like it or not (and they very much don't), the video game industry is moving toward an all-digital future. Sony Interactive Entertainment announced it will end physical-disc production for new games in 2028, a move that has been met with plenty of backlash. Xbox is giving players a way to turn physical games into digital codes. The next generation of consoles from both companies will almost certainly have no disc drive. Many game publishers are releasing physical boxes that contain only a digital code.
What are physical media aficionados to do? Game storefront GOG has a surprising answer, announcing a new plan to preserve some of PC gaming's big box history.
The company has announced that five games in the GOG Preservation Program will have more than just their code preserved. The titles, which include the original Myst, will also come with a 3D scan of their original box art.
"We had the actual boxes scanned — front, back, spine, the works — and turned into rotatable 3D models you can download after purchase and open right in the 3D viewer that’s already built into Windows and Mac," GOG wrote in the announcement, "No extra software, no plugins. Just spin the box around on your screen like you’re holding it."
All GOG Preservation Program games with box art
Image: Big Box Collection / Cyan Inc. / Broderbund Software
The new initiative from GOG launches with five titles. Descent, Hitman: Codename 47, and Myst — which were already in the GOG Preservation Program — make up the first three. Armikrog and Star Trek: 25th Anniversary (added just in time for the series' 60th anniversary) have also been added to the program with their box art.
For those who feel a digital scan of the box doesn't go far enough, GOG has you covered there as well. The box art will also be available in flat, printable versions. Players can use these flat, printable files to craft physical boxes at home. This has been done in collaboration with the Big Box Collection project, which has preserved the box art for dozens of games.
