While I do have a VR device I've done the whole digital thing before (I have versions of some of my games on Tabletop Simulator, in fact one of them is downloadable on Steam Workshop right now) and it's just not the same as being able to handle things physically.

My brain doesn't catch things as easily without being able to physically manipulate objects. Like one example is I didn't notice how fiddly resource manipulation was when I only had a digital version of one of my games. It was only when I was manipulating it physically that I went "yeah that's not going to work".

Without playing with the physical bits, it's harder (for me) to come up with special actions or different ideas for mechanics. Not impossible, just harder.

Also my local playtest group and game designer conventions meet in person, so I better have something physical for those.

I do write simulation programs for some things though, like to help balance scores, determine if there's a first person advantage, how often do draws happen, etc.

However, I am interested in the recent push for sustainable game production, with people making roll and write games where the sheets you play on can be done on an iPad without printing anything out. I may have a design that's compatible with that, a concept that popped in my head recently that I'll start designing soon. One example[1] and another [2] and another [3] of these games on Kickstarter.

I reuse a lot of components anyway. I have a tub for wooden cubes, another for wooden meeples, a third for dice, a fourth for money chips, etc. and I have a few decks of cards that have six suits and numbers from 0 to 15 on them that covers a surprisingly wide range of games, that I can just grab and start using. But if I want to have special cards, then I use index cards (and eventually do graphic design and print card art for).

Also not sure why you think VR and E-ink is somehow not a consumable resource. They take an incredible amount of resources to make in the first place, probably far more than some sheets of paper, and eventually they'll need to be upgraded or replaced, which uses much more resources as well.

[1]: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/postmarkgames/voyages/d...

[2]: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/peterchayward/sunshine-...

[3]: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/wayfarerstale/a-wayfare...