In 2023, Sony deleted hundreds of Discovery’s content from PlayStation Network. Last month, they announced that they’d be deleting more than 550 Studio Canal movies. Now they’re ending physical PlayStation discs. Beginning in January 2028, Sony will no longer sell disc versions of their games. People will only be able to buy digital versions of games. Needless to say, many are not happy about this policy. Here’s more from IGN:
Sony has announced physical disc production ends in January 2028 for new games releasing on PlayStation consoles.
It’s a shock announcement that follows Rockstar’s decision not to sell a physical disc version of GTA 6, which is expected to dominate console game sales from this November onwards. This new policy will cover all games released on PlayStation consoles from all publishers after this cut-off date, which some analysts believe hints at when the PS6 will be released.
“In response to shifting trends in consumer preference, new games will be released on PlayStation Store and at retailers in digital formats only,” Sid Shuman, Senior Director, Sony Interactive Entertainment Content Communications, said in a post on PlayStation Blog.
“As consumer preferences and the broader entertainment industry continue to shift away from physical discs to digital, physical game disc production for all new games releasing on PlayStation consoles will be discontinued starting January 2028. Following this date, new games will be available on PlayStation Store and at retailers in digital formats only. This transition has no impact on games that already released, or will be releasing, prior to January 2028 in disc format.
“This is a natural direction for Sony Interactive Entertainment to adapt to consumer trends as the general preference for digital media significantly outpaces physical discs. This transition will enable us to align more closely with how most of our community prefers to access and play games today.”
This is a terrible call on Sony’s part and there will be backlash. People are not going to like being forced to buy a product that can be taken away at any time. Constant platform decay has eroded consumer trust in big tech. We’re already seeing the start of an Analog Renaissance among people seeking out retro technology like DVDs and digital cameras because of technology fatigue. That’s only going to grow, especially as more people turn on AI.
One company seeing the writing on the wall is Commodore, who just announced the Callback 8020, a flip phone with no social media or browser capability. I’d love it if Apple brought back old-school iPods that don’t connect to the internet. My husband was frustrated with the instability of digital media, so he started switching back to physical media last year. He frequently visits a local record store and said it’s always busy. I wonder how long it’ll be until the bigger companies catch up with what consumers actually want.
Photos credit: CFOTO/Avalon, Matheus Bertelli on Pexels, Amanz on Unsplash
If I were a PlayStation player, I’d be done with them. I want to own the things I buy and you don’t truly own digital content.
You will own nothing unless we fight back and continue buying physical media and ditching companies that have you pay to use your key.
Ridiculous decision that will hurt them long term. Like the saying goes: “if buying is no longer owning, then piracy is no longer wrong.”
Buy physical copies of everything you can. Buying digital media in any form is a con. The user agreements clearly state the content is licensed and not yours. The user agreements give big tech the power to do anything they want with items you thought were yours. I have had digital movies, audiobooks, books and games I bought randomly disappear. I hope the players understand the ramifications and quit playing Play Station. Years ago I was absolutely hooked on Angry Birds. (Those games were technically free, but good lort, the number of ads cost my time and made Rovio $$$$.) Several specific versions I liked and played to completion were completely deleted from my devices without my knowledge or consent. The older versions of the original Angry Birds were so much more enjoyable than the modern versions. I quit playing altogether because the modern versions are just such a hastle with ads and way over-complicated. The Play Station Players may completely love a specific game, but a couple updates can totally change a game and make it horrible. You cannot go back to the version you liked if you do not own a physical copy.
My kids wanted a Playstation until they heard about this. Now they are sticking with the husband’s Xbox and the Nintendo world. They already know at tween ages that media disappears and it might not be findable again. This is a STUPID move by Sony.
We go to the local used media store regularly for cd’s and dvd’s. If you are Canadian and want some nostalgia, it is really hard to find MuchMusic cd’s from the 90’s/early 00’s. (Big Shiny Tunes or MuchDance anyone?!) Luckily the owner knows us now and keeps an eye out for the disc’s we are looking for! We hit up the used video game store all the time because tastes change and they want to try some of the older games out there.
@Rosie, you can get some decent MP3 players on amazon that don’t hook up to the internet! We bought some for a trip overseas last year so we could have music on the train and not be on our phones/have to buy more overseas data!
I find this particularly annoying – because video games, like ye olden DVDs and CDs – were great, easy gift ideas to put on a list for grandparents and aunts and uncles. No grandma wants to buy and wrap a download code.
I’m not a gamer at all — my interactions with video games ended when I left my last job in the restaurant industry, and no longer spent my breaks playing Tetris on the console where I tended bar.
That said, I’m interested in the idea of letting go of physical production of anything that exists primarily in a digital format anyway. I want to know if it’s better for our efforts at resource conservation — or is it worse? Less plastic is, on the face of it, always a good thing. But it’s not necessarily that simple.
Either way, the makers of these products are going to have to find a way to allow consumers to feel confident in their ability to access content they pay for.
That is something they have so far utterly failed at, because they don’t want to do it. So if they don’t meet that challenge they’re going to have a lot of problems — see the rest of the comments on this thread!
It’s absolutely possible for digital content producers to make their products permanently available to customers. They simply have to make it a priority. Until they do, a lot of people are going to be resentful and unwilling to purchase.
Such a colossal mistake.
I’m so glad I only ever stuck with Nintendo and Xbox (and still have my Sega Saturn, GameCube, SNES, NES, Turbo grafx 16, Atari, etc)
I have a Nintendo Wii with all the accessories (boxing thing, extra controls, step pad, HDMI adapter, etc.) and a few exercise disks. It has been sitting in a bag on a shelf in our utility store room for… 15 years… Thankfully, I remembered to remove all the batteries from the components before storing it. I bring i out perhaps once every two to three years. It still works. Then it goes back into the bag and into storage.
It is what it is. Future yard-sale fodder.