Everything runs in cycles but some cycles are less expected than others.  Once games were only physical, then slowly digital started being added to the mix.  There was a bit of push-back at the time due to worries about storage, what happens when the console dies, you only license not own, etc, but the future kept on happening anyway.  Digital and physical coexisted for a while but the convenience of digital made the shelves of local retails feel a little more empty as months went by and one store after another closed down.  While physical never really went away it was getting harder for anything but the bigger titles to earn a pressing, and then small-press publishers picked up the slack.  It's not a perfect system but it works, and most console games eventually get a copy to place on the shelf to go with their digital version.  Even so, the physical-only game is dead, except all of a sudden it's not any more.  Devolver Digital announced a physical-only copy of whatever Demon Throttle may be yesterday, but Super Rare Games is taking it a step further with the creation of an entirely new line called Super Rare Shorts that will only ever exist in physical form.

The idea behind Super Rare Shorts is that these are smaller titles that would never have gotten a full release without Super Rare Games backing them, released at the rate of one per month.  The games will be smaller titles ranging from original games, completed versions of prototypes, expanded game jam games given a shiny round of polish, and even revamped and definitive versions of games that didn't quite get the spotlight before.  That last part is particularly interesting because, while the Super Rare Shorts version of the game will never be released digitally on any console or storefront, it does imply that a fleshed-out version could be viewed as a different game and gain a wider release.  No matter the possible future of the titles, though, each Super Rare Short release will be 5,000 copies minimum with open preorders for a month, with the plan being to have a quick turnaround for shipping.

One of the more interesting aspects of the news breaking earlier today is how incredibly negative the reactions have been, with accusations basically coming down to SRG artificially limiting distribution in order to manufacture rare must-have collectibles that only tangentially happen to be a games, pricing at $30 what would have been $5 digitally.  No question there's going to be a good amount of fear of missing out combined with a collector/scalper mentality driving sales, but it's important to note that A) no order limits and B) these are games that wouldn't have happened otherwise.  Maybe these titles would have found another way to exist or maybe not, but Super Rare Games is the one stepping up with the money (and admittedly the business contract stipulating terms) to bring these out, and the developers aren't sheep waiting to be fleeced by fast talk and a slick deal.  It's another way to get something new and sure, a bit of a risk due to no advance review/preview, but seeing as the first game is from Glass Revolver (Itta, House of God) that's an incredibly promising start.  Super Rare Shorts is going to be a fascinating experiment, and like any experiment there's the possibility it all could go horribly wrong, but I'll still wait for that to happen before wailing against something different coming along.  We've been here before as recently as the PS2 days, and the only major differences are this being mail order and Gamestop refusing a return but offering to buy it back for $2.