14 Legit Services to Buy & Download Video Games in 2022

The video game industry has come a long way from Tetris to the current 4k resolution games. Advancements in technology have boosted the capabilities of gaming consoles as well and the internet has ensured that gamers are always connected to each other.

Gone are the days when you would visit a physical shop to buy a CD/DVD of a game. Faster internet connections have enabled gamers to directly download the games to their PC or consoles like PlayStation, Xbox and Nintendo. Digital titles have had a massive impact on small game developers who have historically struggled to sell their games across the world.

Risks of buying games online

Playing video games has become a luxury, with AAA games charging upwards of $50 for a copy. And guess what, you still are not the owner of the game, but are just given a license to use. This is why many gamers prefer to find games for cheaper, and end up being defrauded.

A few warning regarding video downloading and streaming sites:

• If any website is offering free downloads of a paid game, it most likely is a pirated version. Pirated games often contain malware and viruses disguised as cracks or activators.
• Discounted activation keys are generally trial items or stolen. The game publisher could revoke these keys anytime and the game will vanish from your account.
• Buying an account instead of a game is a good trick to save money, but not without issues. We have previously written about the risks of buying whole game accounts and items using online stores.
• Official looking game stores may also have hackers and scammer who create fake pages. Clone websites are also common on the internet.

How can you stay safe?

We understand the pull towards discounted games, but the associated risks far outweigh the amount of money you want to save. Here are some tips that you can follow to safely buy games online.

• Be wary of discount stores. Video games are generally on sale during the festive season and any websites handing out cheap copies around the year are likely to be a scam.
• Pay using a credit card. Never buy games from individuals who approach you in chatrooms.
• If you want a game for cheaper, just wait. Most AAA games slash prices by 70-80% in a few years after their release. Or just wait for a sale from the video game distributor.
• Publishers may not allow the sale of used keys, so check if it is legal before you pay any money.
• Do a background check and read reviews of a seller or website before buying any games. 

In general, we advise players that they only use official channels to buy video games as they provide better customer service compared to most other websites selling games.

14 Legit Services to Buy & Download Video Games

We have listed some official platforms as well as third-party websites which sell video games.

Video game sellers and distributors

PlayStation Network

Nintendo Store

Microsoft Store

GameStop

Steam

Epic Games

GOG

Origin

Blizzard

Humble Bundle

Amazon

Walmart

Best Buy

Gameflip

 

PlayStation Network

PlayStation Network (PSN) is a digital media entertainment service provided by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Launched in November 2006, PSN was originally conceived for the PlayStation video game consoles, but soon extended to encompass smartphones, tablets, Blu-ray players and high-definition televisions. This service is the account for Playstation consoles, accounts can store games and other content. PlayStation Network's services are dedicated to an online marketplace (PlayStation Store), a premium subscription service for enhanced gaming and social features (PlayStation Plus), music streaming (PlayStation Music, powered by Spotify) and a cloud gaming service (PlayStation Now).

Nintendo Store

Nintendo Co., Ltd. is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo has produced some of the most successful consoles in the video game industry, such as the Game Boy, the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, the Nintendo DS, the Wii, and the Switch. It has created numerous major franchises, including Mario, Donkey Kong, The Legend of Zelda, Pokémon, Kirby, Metroid, Fire Emblem, Animal Crossing, Splatoon, Star Fox, Xenoblade Chronicles, and Super Smash Bros. Nintendo's mascot, Mario, is internationally recognized.

Microsoft Store

Microsoft Store (formerly known as Windows Store) is a digital distribution platform owned by Microsoft. With Windows 10, Microsoft merged its other distribution platforms (Windows Marketplace, Windows Phone Store, Xbox Music, Xbox Video, Xbox Store, and a web storefront also known as "Microsoft Store") into Microsoft Store, making it a unified distribution point for apps, console games, and digital videos. As with other similar platforms, such as the Google Play and Mac App Store, Microsoft Store is curated, and apps must be certified for compatibility and content.

Steam

Steam is a video game digital distribution service by Valve. Steam has also expanded into an online web-based and mobile digital storefront. Steam offers digital rights management (DRM), server hosting, video streaming, and social networking services. It also provides the user with installation and automatic updating of games, and community features such as friends lists and groups, cloud storage, and in-game voice and chat functionality. Though initially developed for use on Microsoft Windows operating systems, versions for macOS and Linux were later released. Mobile apps were also released for iOS, Android, and Windows Phone in the 2010s. The platform also offers a small selection of other content, including design software, hardware, game soundtracks, anime, and films.

Epic Games Store

The Epic Games Store is a digital video game storefront for Microsoft Windows and macOS, operated by Epic Games. It launched in December 2018 as both a website and a standalone launcher, of which the latter is required to download and play games. The storefront provides a basic catalog, friends list management, matchmaking, and other features. Epic entered the distribution market after the success of Fortnite, which Epic distributed by their own channels to users on Windows and macOS system rather than other storefronts. 

GOG.com

GOG.com (formerly Good Old Games) is a digital distribution platform for video games and films. It is operated by a wholly owned subsidiary of CD Projekt based in Warsaw, Poland. GOG.com delivers DRM-free video games through its digital platform for Microsoft Windows, macOS and Linux. GOG.com works to offer older games as well as new releases to users, with the product lacking any type of digital rights management to give consumers the ability to install the game anywhere and as many times as they want.

Origin (EA)

Origin is a digital distribution platform developed by Electronic Arts for purchasing and playing video games. The platform's software client is available for personal computer and mobile platforms. Origin contains social features such as profile management, networking with friends with chat and direct game joining along with an in-game overlay, streaming via Twitch and sharing of game library and community integration with networking sites like Facebook, Xbox Live, PlayStation Network, and Nintendo Network.

Battle.net (Blizzard)

Battle.net is an Internet-based online game, social networking service, digital distribution, and digital rights management platform developed by Blizzard Entertainment. The platform currently supports storefront actions, social interactions, and matchmaking for all of Blizzard's modern PC games including Hearthstone, Heroes of the Storm, Overwatch, and StarCraft: Remastered, as well as various Call of Duty games, and Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time from corporate sibling of Blizzard Entertainment, Activision. The platform provides cross-game instant messaging and voice chat service.

Humble Store

Humble Bundle, Inc. is a digital storefront for video games. The Humble Store is an extension of the sales system developed for managing the Humble Bundles. It offers the capabilities of the payment and customer services that they had created for the various Bundles to independent developers as an alternate marketplace for these games. As with the Bundles, once purchased the buyer has access to all software games from the store at any time. 

Amazon Digital Software & Video Games

Amazon Digital Software & Video Games is a digital video game distribution service owned by the international electronic commerce company Amazon.com.  It was launched on February 3, 2009 as Amazon Digital Game Store, having 600+ game titles available for download at that time. The service was then rebranded to Amazon Digital Software & Video Games in 2019 as they had begun to offer digital software, the service would also expand to Xbox One and Nintendo Switch consoles, and later in 2020 the service would also launch on Xbox Series X/S consoles as well.

GameStop

GameStop Corp. is an American video game, consumer electronics, and gaming merchandise retailer. It is the largest video game retailer worldwide. In addition to retail stores, GameStop owns and publishes Game Informer, a video game magazine and in Australia runs Zing Marketplace an e-commerce retro gaming and pop culture marketplace that facilitates consumer-to-consumer sales.

Walmart

Walmart Inc. is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States. Walmart is the world's largest company by revenue, with US$548.743 billion, according to the Fortune Global 500 list in 2020. Walmart.com has a dedicated ‘Video Games’ section where consumers can buy games, gaming consoles and accessories.

Best Buy

Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American multinational consumer electronics retailer. Best Buy sells consumer electronics and a variety of related merchandise, including software, video games, music, mobile phones, digital cameras, car stereos, and video cameras. Under the Geek Squad brand, Best Buy offers computer repair, warranty service, and accidental service plans.

Gameflip

Since launching in 2015, its 6 million loyal community members have safely transacted over $120M on the Gameflip Platform. The Gameflip Platform utilizes environmentally friendly and sustainable technology that captures the benefits of blockchain technology without all of its complexities. Transactions within the Gameflip Platform are fully secure using fiat or cryptocurrencies, do not require mining or gas fees and have built-in regulatory compliance.

 

Sources: Wikipedia, Crunchbase