Digital Games Emit 100x Less Carbon Than Physical Copies
▼ Summary
– Physical game production is 100 times more carbon-intensive than digital downloads, with manufacturing one million discs emitting 312 tonnes of CO2e versus 3 tonnes for digital copies.
– Console manufacturing and usage contribute significantly to emissions, with US consoles consuming 3.9 TWh annually and producing 1.6 million metric tons of CO2e, increasing with TV usage.
– PC gaming has a substantial carbon footprint, with global usage emitting 277.14 million tonnes of CO2e annually when manufacturing and energy consumption are combined.
– Handheld consoles are the greenest platform, emitting only 13.8kg CO2e per year, though their impact rises when docked to TVs.
– The report recommends reducing emissions through trade-in programs, energy-saving settings, and promoting second-hand games to encourage environmentally friendly choices.
Choosing between a digital download and a physical game disc involves more than just convenience and price. A recent analysis reveals that digital games produce roughly one hundred times less carbon dioxide than their physical counterparts. This stark difference stems primarily from the manufacturing, packaging, and transportation required for boxed copies, which digital distribution completely avoids.
Research conducted by the carbon accounting firm Greenly, detailed in their report ‘The Carbon Footprint of Gaming’, provides a clear comparison. The creation and shipping of one million game discs can release an estimated 312 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). In a dramatic contrast, downloading an equivalent number of 70GB digital titles results in just 3 tCO2e.
Study author Stephanie Safdie pointed out that while cloud gaming does draw significant power from data centers, the environmental toll of physical media remains substantial. She noted, “We cannot neglect the continued impact of manufacturing and packaging physical video games.” Downloading a game involves electricity use at home and in data centers, but it sidesteps the emissions linked to industrial production, landfill waste, and the excessive materials common with physical consoles and hard copies.
The production of physical games is particularly resource-heavy. The extraction of rare earth metals and the creation of plastic for discs demand high energy consumption and can strain limited water supplies. Console manufacturing faces similar challenges, with advancing chip technology requiring even more electricity for production and global shipping.
Once in homes, the energy use continues. In the United States alone, conventional games consoles consume about 3.9 terawatt hours of electricity annually, generating 1.6 million metric tons of CO2e. When you factor in the electricity used by the televisions they are connected to, that figure jumps to 6.5 TWh per year, producing 2.6 million metric tons of CO2e.
The study also broke down the carbon footprint for other gaming platforms:
- PC Gaming: The average PC, used for 2 hours and 25 minutes daily, accounts for 84kg of CO2e per year from electricity. When manufacturing emissions are included, this rises to 149kg. With a global player base of about 1.86 billion, the total annual carbon footprint for PC usage reaches 277.14 million tCO2e.
- Mobile Gaming: A single mobile user playing for an average of 97 minutes per day emits approximately 20 kgCO2e. While small on an individual level, this scales to a massive 58 million tonnes per year across the global mobile player base of 2.9 billion.
- Cloud Gaming: Services like Xbox Cloud Gaming, which require no physical games or consoles, emit about 0.44kg CO2e per hour of play.
- Handheld Consoles: Platforms like the Nintendo Switch emerged as the greenest hardware option, emitting just 13.8kg CO2e per year, largely due to less carbon-intensive manufacturing.
The report offered several recommendations for the industry to reduce its environmental impact. It encouraged console makers to launch trade-in programs for component reuse and to ship devices with energy-saving settings enabled by default. Game developers were urged to optimize their software to lower electricity consumption.
Microsoft’s digital-only Xbox Series S was highlighted as a market leader in eco-friendliness, praised for its energy-efficient operation and use of recycled materials in construction. To guide consumer choice, the report suggested that store interfaces should clearly display the estimated electrical demand of game downloads. Offering discounts for low-carbon digital purchases or second-hand physical games could further steer buyers toward greener options.
Finally, Greenly proposed a renewed industry and community emphasis on the second-hand games market. They suggested repurposing underused physical retail spaces to give more prominence to pre-owned products, a movement that could be championed by popular gaming influencers to support in-person trading and a more circular economy for games.
(Source: Games Industry)
