Sonic Origins Plus Physical Listing Says New Content Is "Downloadable Via Included Code"

man, baby, babyman, undo this curse wrought by the manbaby's hand!
Stir the prodigious and protest digital.
Sing supreme and wrest upon all physical the right to remain.

I was on the fence about getting it physically, but with this bad news I have decided not to buy it at all!
thanks for saving me $40 US, Sega!

Well, crud. I already pre-ordered it, and I'll still pick it up, since I wanted to get the Switch version anyway, but this is really disappointing.

Boo! Boo! Hiss! Hiss!

But, why? Just why? It was just one thing you needed to do! I’m still going physical anyway.

Bruh WHY SEGA WHYYYYYYYY

De-compilation projects + MODS + emulation FTW.

@vicviper001 I've been remembering advice like yours every day when I am tempted by Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster, too.

Can't believe Sega screw this collection up so badly when this could had easily been a slam dunk compilation from the get-go. From beginning to end, the history of this collection was an awful ride from having a confusing pre-ordered edition charts to not letting Headcannon actually completed Sonic 3 and Knuckles to having terrible versions of the prototype music in Sonic 3 and Knuckles to having missing contents such as no playable Amy in all the games to having multiple buggy gameplay and glitches galore (that still were not fix) and now the lazy extra stuffs aren't even included with the physical package?

C'mon those 12 Game Gear Sonic games are only 6mb, you mean to tell me a 16gb card couldn't handle those extra 6mb? Sonic Origins by itself is only 3.8gb, you could include the entire Game Gear and Sega Master System library on that card and still had room for Sonic Adventure 1 & 2 and the entire Sonic Advance trilogy. Whoever is making these lame decisions at Sega is worst than Yuji Naka himself now. Congratulation Sega, you won't see anymore of my money. Talk about taking one step forward and three steps back.

Still physical media. Still has the art book. Not a big deal.

Yeah, this is a huge deal, unfortunately. While Internet connections are a more widespread thing, there's still plenty of scenarios where people don't have a stable connections. Or, what if this were passed on second-hand? That's a huge slight against the subsequent owners. Especially when the eShop inevitably goes down or if Sonic Origins ever gets de-listed, a la Deadpool. Sorry, but Sonic Origins is not a huge file size. Everything should be on the card.

Can't you go a day without screwing up, SEGA?

Cheap *****

Guess I'm spending this month's free cash on Gunpla instead

Sega you break my heart…welp preorder cancelled.

SEGA drop the ball yet again. Where has their pride gone?

This is extremely annoying, but I want a physical copy of Origins to sit on my shelf so I'll buy it anyway. On the one hand, its potentially only a minor inconvenience... I hate download codes because the servers will eventually go offline, but to be honest by the time that happens the game will be easily available to play "pirated" anyway - ridiculous that someone with a legit legal copy should need to resort to that, but thats apparantly the world we live in nowadays.

My main concern is: how many times can you legitimately use the download code? Like, can I use it on both my OLED and my Switch Lite? What happens if one of my systems break or Nintendo release a new model that I want? Part of the joy of owning a physical copy is you can play it on any system you own, for the rest of time. But if the download code can only be redeemed once, that means having to buy the DLC over and over. And of course its likely that you can't lend the game to a friend without them buying the DLC too - ditto brothers and sisters who share games but have their own consoles...

Grrrrrrrrrrr this could get annoying (and expensive) quickly if they don't just make the codes valid for as many users as you want as long as its somehow tied to that specific cartridge... which I'm not sure is possible. Tying it to a specific console, yes. But presumably the cartridges are all identical and they won't be burning a unique identifying code onto the rom of every cartridge? [EDIT] Thinking about it, its possible (likely?) that the download code will link itself to your My Nintendo account? So any Switch consoles linked to that account will be able to use the DLC? I REALLY hope thats the case rather than just being a "one use" code or having it tied to your console. If this is the case, then I'm back to thinking this is annoying but not a huge deal.

For anyone puzzling why they would do this - its not a day one patch or anything like that, you literally need a download code. The idea presumably being that if people sell their copy, the person buying second hand will need to pay Sega to get the DLC so they might get some cash from 2nd hand sales that usually would net them nothing. I've heard of AAA games from bigger publishers do similar, or even lock off their online modes. From a business perspective, I kinda get it, even though from a consumer perspective I absolutely hate it.

Despite that, I still can't wait to own and play this. It will happily take pride of place on display. I want the book and love the reversible cover. I'm still so, SO happy Amy is being added legitimately. But this is really annoying and unecessary penny pinching on an already pricey purchase, and what for many will be a double dip.

@MustachioFurioso hmmmm...nah, probably me.

@Dr_Corndog bro, re-read the article. The art book just has a download code inside.
...jk. That would just be silly.

This is seriously infuriating if true. What the hell, Sega?
EDIT: I will be canceling my preorder because A.) I’m not supporting this behavior B.) it would mean I’m going to double-dip and literally spend more money for almost no benefit. (Won’t be able to resell it later because the code will be redeemed.)
If I hadn’t already bought it digitally I’d maybe get this but no way am I doing it now.
What sucks is Sega is probably so stupid and out of touch they’ll see the low physical sales after these cancellations and read it as “oh people don’t want physical editions so we’ll stop making them going forward.”

I can’t believe they’re pulling this crap.

I really don’t get why this surprises anyone anymore.

The only people that have a reason to own a physical copy of a game these days are people that are on a budget and need to resell it, or are serious collectors that want a case to put on their shelf. Neither of which need the full game on the disc/cart to satisfy those needs.

If you want a physical edition because of bad internet or for game preservation, that went out the window as soon as day-one patches became a thing. A vast majority of games on disc/cart are buggy, unstable messes — and that’s if the full game is on there at all.

I understand the frustration people have with this. But me personally, I switched to digital-only about half-way through the PS3/360/Wii generation, as soon as releasing AAA games at launch became standard, and have never looked back. The convenience of not having to get up to swap discs, the ability to play the same copy of a game with my niece on two different consoles through game library sharing, and the shelf space I save, outweighs the worry that someday companies will stop hosting downloads on their servers. (And, to be fair, I do have the privilege of living in a place with good internet with no data caps.)

By the time that shutdown happens, computers will have the power to emulate any system or game that isn’t being sold anymore. It’s really the only way games will be preserved, since companies — like Nintendo — obviously don’t care about making all of their games accessible to modern audiences in a convenient and cost effective manner.

Just canceled my Best Buy physical preorder.

@samuelvictor it's just a code for the dlc, so will be tied to your Nintendo account

I mean, imagine the cost of a cartridge 60 kB bigger to include Game Gear Games, terrible, SEGA would propably die from it. (Like Shenmue on his time with the Dreamcast)

Unsurprised considering the manufacturing costs of Switch cards. The physical Mega Man Legacy Collect 1+2 release only came with the first collection on card, with the second as DLC. Currently Sonic Origins is 3.7 GB on Switch, I assume the DLC pushes it pass 4 GBs and that makes it more expensive if Sega go for the 8 GB one.

Well it wouldn't be Sega if they weren't making stupid decisions, from using the Game Gear versions in the first place, instead of their Master System/Megadrive counterparts and now this. I did consider cancelling my preorder but at least the main Sonic games are on the cartridge and at worst it's a tiny install for the rest

Bummer. Meanwhile Nintendo will actively re-release cartridges of their games with updates and DLC baked in and not even mention it.

Oh boy. I’ll probably still get it though. :/

What lazy cheap b*stards, that is the whole point of getting a physical.

Very disappointing. I am still hoping we get a 3D collection though with Sonic Adventure 1 and 2, Sonic Heroes, Sonic Unleashed and Sonic Generations. I would give anything to have Sonic Heroes on a new console. Every other 3D game including Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) which is literally the least popular Sonic game in history has gotten re-releases while 'Sonic Heroes' which is a game a lot of my friends liked has still yet to have one.

Gutted! Why do companies insist on still using download codes in boxes, it's a scam and should be banned??

Absolutely, utterly pathetic.

Incidentally, I bought Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader on sale last week. I didn't buy it at launch because the game had day one DLC that I suspected wasn't on the cartridge.

And I was right.

Version 1.0 on the cart. No updates (which is a plus), meaning that the "DLC" is damn well ON the freaking cartridge, but the publishers decided to prevent us from accessing it, hoping to make an extra AU$15 out of sheer contempt for those who actually like owning full games on physical media.

Void Bastards was also the only Switch game that I have returned. The game had day one DLC, but the physical version was released some months after it launched digitally, so it would stand to reason that the physical release would include the DLC on the cartridge by default.

Nope.

Download code.

I'll tolerate download codes when it comes to silly cosmetics (which should be on the bloody cartridge to begin with, but I can't win them all), but not substantial chunks of content.

Publishers have been testing my patience this generation like no other. I say bring on the next video game crash. And may the best phoenix rise.

@Debbiee Fat chance, I’m afraid

@romando Such as? I might look at them in the future

This honestly makes me think they DID have physical copies ready for the original launch but decided they could double down this way. That or it's just a lazy way to make extra cash on the 2nd hand market if someone buys the disc.

That being said, I still don't see why the gamegear versions alone are on here and not the master system versions. I have tons of nostalgia for the bridge song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-BVMXPTBcck

Is this not just a cartridge for the origins games and a downloload code to buy the plus dlc which is electronic only like most dlc

@Agent_P Yeah. It is sadly not looking likely. Sonic Heroes seems to have become the black sheep of the Sonic 3D games despite having its fans. It did get one re-release in the Sonic PC Collection though.

Hey, I’ll play with you some other time!

thankfully sonic isnt my thing or else this wouldnt make me laugh so hard. these games r so easy to find and play. paying for games theyve released a million times is dumb, plus 3 didnt even have the og ost.

Doubtful but hoping this a Monster Hunter Stories 2 issue where it's a misprint saying a download is required but we shall see. For me its not a deal breaker considering I never bought Origins the first time around. But I'm gonna be optimistic since it comes out on my and Sonic's birthday.

Another day of thanking God I'm no longer a Sonic fan. I'm not missing anything, it seems.

They need to put out another confusing chart. They’ve done everything with Origins to make it anti-hype, it’s particularly the Anti-Mania perhaps to soften the blow if they plan on driving the knife in with a literal Anti-Mania where they really get to show just how tonedeaf they are.

Physical games don't exist any more. Even if the Game Gear games were in the disk they game would probably miss some updates etc. Also, SEGA will most likely add Sonic 3D, Sonic Spinball and possibly Knuckles' Chaotix and the Master System versions and may offer a Sonic Origins Complete physical.

I have three physical versions of FF15 and no version has the full game. From the PS4 era and beyond physical versions are obsolete and bad for game preservation.

Edit: As others mentioned SEGA probably had the disks ready from when the first version was released and held back to release a move complete package with more value. Also, the 10 euro update won't be up for preorder. I guess you can buy the physical version and use the Game Gear download code for the digital version.

@Henchdog The music is the same in both Master System and Game Gear versions but the Bridge zone has a couple of gameplay differences. Still, my favourite song from this game is the Scrap Brain theme https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSUZZXGbipc&t=146s

It has some sort of 8-bit journey's end vibe.

@belmont Less an issue of the music than the screen resolutions. Normal battles on Master System become increasingly impossible when you can't see stuff on the game gear. I remember being so excited to have the portable sonic experience and going: Hey, why is this so darned difficult?

Edit: Also a banger track that

@Pigeon Earworm version intensifies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eURHmUBkjJA

Then I won't be buying it and will continue to play the decomps instead. Fans have already made multiple playable Amy mods including a fantastic one that released recently. There are tons of great smaller games on Switch that are complete on cart, but Sega is just too lazy.

@samuelvictor The code is added to your account. You can download the content to whatever console you’re using. You don’t redeem the same code multiple times.

@Henchdog Yeah, the worst offender is the first boss on Sonic 2. It is impossible to see the initial trajectory of the bullets in the Game Gear version making the Zone 1 boss the hardest in the game. The boss in the Bridge zone is actually easier in the Game Gear version but I hate the autoscroll in the previous stage.

Crazy. What a huge difference compared to Sonic Mania Plus, which was made by fans for fans.
I already pre-ordered the game. Probably keep it. There is no other way to play these Game Gear titles on the Nintendo Switch. But as a physical collector who prefers to have all the content on the cartridge this is just stupid.

Just cancelled my preorder and will reorder if its been confirmed to be a mistake. If not, I'll just wait for a 50% off sale on Steam and then wait and see if an Asian release has it all complete and with English.

Is Sonic Origins Plus not coming to the eShop? I can only see a listing for the regular version.

So "GOTY edition of game has DLC code for DLC content ... just like most GOTY game releases have previously done".

Sure.

It's a weird choice (considering what Mania packed in), but hardly surprisingly considering how standard this is in general. Hardly News IMO.

I suppose as this is the first time Origins is getting a physical release it does make it somewhat weirder.

@cyclone5uk the "Plus" is only for the DLC content. I imagine you will find from the main Sonic Origins game-page on the e-Shop when it eventually becomes available.

@dskatter That will certainly be the best way to do it and make it more of a minor inconvenience for everything except second hand resales. Is that confirmed anywhere? Ir are you just going by how eshop codes typically work? I mostly buy physical tbh!

I know full download only games can be used on multiple systems linked to the same account, but wasn't sure if the same would apply to dlc, when the main game is physical... all seems needlesslyu complicated just to potentially sneak a few pennies from second hand copies. That can be the only reason given that adding Amy + those GG roms surely can't be more than 100mb or so, so won't have affected the cost of the cartridge... Poor show from Sega tbh.

Good thing I never pre-ordered. Laughably poor from Sega here.

I think I still don’t understand peoples’ need to have their games stored on physical hunks of plastic that can easily be lost or broken and 100% WILL deteriorate and become unplayable over time. I remember as a kid listening to tapes and CDs and wishing for a day when we could move to some kind of format that couldn’t stretch, scratch, skip, or crack.

Now we have that for pretty much every form of entertainment, but there are still die hards who want it stored on a disposable piece of plastic like that helps “preserve” the code somehow.

I know people feel like they want to “own” their media, but it’s all disposable and I really don’t feel that hoarding old NES cartridges in a cardboard box in the basement does the industry a ton of good in the end. If anything it just encourages companies to make more things out of plastic. Ugh.

@CRASH64 it’s not really news that standard practices continue to operate for ultimate versions of game titles with the DLC content not included on the disk/cart. That’s pretty common, and I half expected that here.

I’m not saying it’s is ideal. But if it saved you money personally for your reasons, then fair enough.

TBH I’m still a little in two minds on what to do. I own this digitally but do still want it physically. It’s not a code in the box scenario either and the only thing really tied to the DLC is 12 GG games I/no one really asked for and are available elsewhere. The rest (perhaps except for Playable Amy) is still on there for the cart. Probably save for the update patches. It’s just the way of the world unfortunately.

The download codes are killer. I learned how awful these were the hard way when I bought a used copy of Final Fantasy X/X2. Literally half the game is unavailable without the download code… just a scummy practice to discourage reselling, unfortunately

Kind of wastes the potential of a physical version, why not put the whole collection there unless it is the case they just want those used copy, dlc sales.

I have the game digitally anyway, I mostly buy digitally on Switch just for convenience and have the original Master System and Game Gear carts for the first two games. Still think they should have included the Master Sytem versions for a proper representation of the 8-bit games, Sonic 2 particularly on Game Gear is way too 'zoomed in', it effects the gameplay.

@samuelvictor DLC is tied to your account and this has been the case on Switch, PS4, PS3, PS5.

It’s standard. You’re safe.

@spiderman0616 Say someone hacks your account.

All your purchases are now gone. They’ve enabled 2fa and support does nothing for you.

Suddenly that all-digital world isn’t so fun. Browse the PlayStation subreddit sometime and see the number of folks who don’t take even the slightest bit of care with their account and experience this scenario.

That’s another reason people go physical. Sure, a burglar can come steal your stuff. But an online account? Also stealable and usually with less risk to the stealor.

@Mauzuri Right, but honest question, in 10-15 years you’re going to be digging out your copy of Sonic Origins? I’m not trying to start an argument, I’m genuinely asking. Those physical games will eventually break down and be unplayable. A digital store will eventually go offline. Etc.

Again, not trying to be combative. I just know a handful of game collectors and I never understood it. None of them every play or sell any of the old games they collect, so they just sit on a shelf not being played, used, or looked at. This is why I never understand the drama over digital-only releases.

@dskatter Yes, that’s definitely a case FOR buying physical copies, but at least in the case of Nintendo, who nags me for 2FA auth FAR more than they need to, this seems like a fringe use-case. I’m more adverse to having piles of plastic collecting dust all over the house than I am to MAYBE having to re-buy a game 20 years from now.

@spiderman0616 And that’s valid!

Me, I do both. I have an entire wall of blu-ray movies, with my PS1/2/3/4/5/Wii U/3DS/Switch games nearby.

We all have our preferences.

Disappointing; I’d held out for a full physical copy, but between this and the wrong music in Sonic 3 it’s not worth it (unless dirt cheap on the Xbox online store which is an inevitable eventuality). I have all the carts from back in the day so no great loss.

Btw if you have access to an Xbox of the last 3 generations Sonic 3 is still available with the original soundtrack for just a few quid. Also on the Mega Drive Collection for Xbox 360/ PS3. If you want the 8 bit games Sonic Mega Collection + for Xbox/ PS2 has them included from the beginning too.

If you are willing to mod a Wii Sonic 1, 2, 3 and S&K, alongside the 3 Master System Sonics are playable there. Where you get the ROMs from is between you and your deity though…

That’s weird. I usually don’t care much anymore about separate downloads… but wouldn't the point of waiting over a year to release a physical copy of a game be to have all the content physically?

@dskatter For sure. I’m just always surprised at how many game collectors I know actually never play the games they collect. I even have one buddy who never plays NEW games anymore either. He seems completely burned out on video games in general but still buys all the consoles and software every gen and almost NEVER gets rid of any of his collection.

I think some people get into their habits and are afraid to change, and then others just like having that archive of history in their home.

@spiderman0616 Oof. That’s sad.

I still bust out my PS3 (started playing FF13!) on occasion, and have most of my consoles hooked up and ready to play anytime.

I’m more flexible on digital games these days, but movies/shows? I’m always physical unless there’s a MASSIVE discount. Just better quality than streaming.

Gaming…I know gaming is moving to digital only and when that time comes, I have an absolutely GIANT backlog of stuff I can play/watch till I die.

Damn, that sucks.

Having said that, I was mainly interested in getting it for Sonic CD (as I've never played it), so I might still pick it up.

I mean, it is certainly disappointing. I’m not sure, I may pass on this altogether or may still pick it up since most of what I care about is still on the cartridge. But since these comments have turned into a general discussion about the pros and cons of buying physical at all, I have this to say: the biggest problem for me with all digital is storage. Your choices are to add a pretty expensive surcharge to the already expensive console price, or constantly delete and redownload games or else restrict yourself to a small subset of the games you own. I’m curious how the folks who are all digital and like it deal with this.

People say it’s convenient to not have to get up and change discs but not if you have to wait an hour for a 50gb file to download, which has happened to me repeatedly on the PS4. Do you just bite the bullet and get a massive external hard drive (or memory card in the case of the switch)? Do you not really go back to games you’ve played? Like maybe you get a game and play it for a week and then move on, so it’s no big deal to just delete/archive it? Or maybe you just don’t buy that many games? I don’t mean that as a criticism, I just mean I know that I’m an outlier in terms of how many games I buy. I recall when I worked at GameStop in the PS2 era that there was this statistic the company circulated that said that the average PS2 owner had only purchased 6 games. So literally it was like the new version of Madden every year and that’s it. People like me who had 80 PS2 games were freakish! I just a couple weeks ago broke 200 switch games. About 80 are physical, and they are by design the AAA games with larger file sizes. Digitally I mostly have indie games that don’t take up too much space.

@PKDuckman No reason for Capcom to divide all 10 games in the Mega Man Legacy Collection into two separate package considering Sega was able to put over 50 Sega Genesis games onto one cartridge, Square Enix was able to put all 6 Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters on one cartridge, Capcom was able to put all 10 Mega Man Battle Network games on one cartridge, Namco was able to put all 13 Pac-Man games on one cartridge, Bliss Brain was able to put all 21 Wonder Boy games on one cartridge, Konami was able to include all 13 TMNT games on one cartridge, and Atari was able to include over 90 games on one cartridge.

Capcom had no excuse to not include the rest of the games onto Mega Man Legacy Collection, there was no point in taking the extra 4 games out when all were just Super NES (Mega Man 7), PS1 (Mega Man 8), and 2 flash games (Mega Man 9 &10). Capcom needs to learn from Sega, Namco, Bliss Brain, Capcom, Square Enix, Konami, and Atari.

This is kinda sad to see, but I already have Sonic Origins digitally since launch. So I figured, “Well, if Sega is charging the same amount for Sonic Origins Plus physically, I would be paying more money just for the DLC.” So I figured I might as well get Origins on a cartridge to save up space.

I can definitely understand why people are upset (I’ve seen reactions to Capcom doing the same thing with the Mega Man Legacy Collections physical bundle) but as long as the base game is on a cartridge, I will be satisfied

First I was annoyed with the music being changed for Sonic 3 then they put in the Game Gear versions instead of the Master System ones and now this.

I won't be buying day one as planned, if it comes on a good sale then I'll consider it.

@CharlieGirl Same, I have it on so many systems as it is that getting it on Switch was only because I was enojoying collecting one master collection of retro games. If it's not all actually on the cart then I might as well go back to something like playing Sonic on the DS or Genesis.

@wazlon The music was changed for legal reasons.

It’s really not that surprising. The Golden Age of Video Gaming has long since passed away. I wanna say that it began to decline around the time the PS2 came out, and JRPG series began popping up out of nowhere chasing the FF7 trend.

Since then, things have gotten more and more cutthroat and less and less creative. They are farming money out of hardcore addicts and pulling the wool over the eyes of naive newcomers, almost exclusively, at this point.

I think this is crap, too, but I am not that bothered by it, because as someone who was there and stoked when Sonic 1 released, I have kind of moved on from hoping for anything good out of the gaming world these days.

It’s just gotten so horrible…I gave up at a certain point. Not sure why I continue reading news sites for it, even.

@MirrorFate2 I know, still annoying though.

@dskatter @carlos82 Ok, thank you!

@Sonicka i hear u. I didnt buy this game yet, so i thought "hey...might as well grab the box." If you're double dipping & happy just getting the box, i can totally dig that as a collector. For me personally, ill just get this digital later on down the line.

I learnt my lesson after selling doom 2016 and bought the Slayer collection physical thinking I was getting Doom 2016, with OG Doom, D2, D3 and D64 all on the same cart....then it comes and it was Doom 2016 in a different art cover and download codes for all the other games. Wasn't impressed to be honest.

I am pretty sure the real reason SEGA chose to do it like this is so they can make money out of the second hand used games being sold online (and some stores) so that way if someone buys the game used for cheaper price they would still be forced to buy the Plus upgrade DLC and thus SEGA makes a profit out of it too. A scummy move by SEGA imo since physical copies are very limited nowadays from how much companies have limited the physical printings of their games in orther to boost digital sales.

@BASEDSAKRI More like cringe sakri

@Agent_P ppl often name call when they cant refute facts.

This might sound like a "my uncle from Nintendo" story, but play-asia confirmed to me that the US Switch version at least has no mention of a download requirement on neither the front nor backside of the box. They were confident that all content is indeed on the cart. Take that for what it's worth.

That’s ridiculous! Plenty of space to include it all physically! 🤬

@Agent_P Breath of the Wild for example. Some cartridges are already at 1.6.0. Japan has a version with the DLCs built-in too, which is super cool.

Wish I'd known this before I got my copy on Switch. Well, you get what you pay for.