I admit it - - I haven't read the whole thread.
But anyway, one big issue with all of this is that Best Buy, Walmart, and other major stores have all simultaneously decided not to sell physical copies of video games starting in 2024. For example, no more physical copies of Nintendo, Playstation, or Xbox video games will be available in these stores. No more games for sale on any type of physical medium. I play Nintendo games and this is a subject of hot discussion on Nintendo sites.
Apparently the only way to get (and/or play?) future Nintendo games will be online from Nintendo, perhaps using the Nintendo Online accounts that some gamers are already paying for every month for multiplayer gaming. This sounds to me like it would essentially make the monthly Nintendo Online payments mandatory. Some people are not enthused with the idea of enforced future monthly payments of who knows how much, in order to continue playing a game they already bought.
There are concerns among gamers about this for several reasons which all boil down trust (or lack of same) in these video game companies. And some, like me, have always bought physical copies of games so that I can play them even if/when the internet is down (such as after a major hurricane, if I still have power or using battery power).
There are numerous youtubes and columns about this lately, like this one.