Sony's Doing What?!

Physical media has always been important to me. It’s why I have a library of movies and games, and why I was hesitant to adopt streaming initially. It’s also why I try balancing physical purchases with digital ones. There’s nothing like having direct ownership of something, especially since digital licenses aren’t indefinite. And now my biggest concern, having to renew purchases constantly, is becoming reality.

Sony recently announced they were discontinuing physical purchases in early-2028. This isn’t exactly “new”, the industry’s been moving toward digital only for a while, but it feels like a decision that won’t bode well. I’m not alone on that, as many corporate accounts have been throwing shade on social media. It makes sense, as the reasoning Sony gave was pretty shortsighted. Truthfully, I feel like ripping on it too.

Let’s look at what Sony said. On July 1st, they made the following announcement: 

“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.

We’ll continue to prioritize our resources to drive innovation in how players can access games and provide choices as to where players prefer to purchase new games, whether that’s at retailers or PlayStation Store. We remain committed to delivering a world-class gaming experience to our fans and we thank you for your continued support.”

At first glance, this doesn’t sound bad: physical game discs won’t be produced, but there are digital kiosks for those interested. Unfortunately, receiving a download code for a kiosk is a waste of a trip. Why schlep to a store if you can buy the game online from your console directly? Considering people usually don’t go out to buy downloads, this isn’t a great use of resources. I know I wouldn’t go myself.

It’s also not good for interacting with people. Half the fun of buying or renting a video game has always been chatting with reps and customers about what’s worth checking out. Yes, sometimes you can be taken advantage of. But even then, the benefits of socializing outweigh the risks of scams. Especially since video games aren’t cheap.

By saying that future games will only be digital, you’re removing that experience altogether. That sucks. It sucks because it’s limiting options, and because it’s minimizing socialization. It also sucks because it cheapens the ownership that comes with physical games. That’s the worst part.

Sony going digital won’t stop at Sony. These decisions never do. We’re seeing game development studios be shuttered because higher ups don’t feel the space they occupy matters, and programmers are being let go as a result. Digital only will exacerbate that further, as now Sony can cut the middleman and further reduce overhead. It’s not like Sony’s bleeding that drastically, especially given what they make outside of video games, so this is sketchy.

This decision parallels that of other companies as well. Disney in particular comes to mind. They recently laid off their home media division, forcing people to rely on Disney+. And yes, Disney+ has a great backlog, no doubts about that. But if something happens and Disney+ shutters, their output disappears forever. No amount of scouring for older prints of shows or movies will change that.

I’ve heard this will increase rates of piracy. I have my own issues with piracy, many of which I won’t discuss, and the biggest involves how relying on it for authentic media isn’t so clear-cut. I remember when I pirated Paper Mario in high school, and how the ROM kept crashing. I had to wait for it on the Wii’s Virtual Console, and I prefer how clean its emulation is. I also purchased that with real money.

Piracy’s a band-aid solution, and not even a great one. Ignoring how Crunchyroll started as an anime pirating site, piracy relies on a clean source code. And that’s not always feasible, especially when files risk corrupting. I experienced this with a Blog series I wrote for ScrewAttack, and that was text! I can’t imagine how annoying a full-on game getting messed up is!

So yes, piracy’s not the answer. And it doesn’t factor in how easy it is for companies to issue take-down notices over copyright infringement, all while not taking accountability over games being inaccessible. Because they shouldn’t be inaccessible. Entertainment exists to help people temporarily retreat from the harshness of reality, and gatekeeping that is ghoulish and cowardly. It’s ghoulish because it prices people out of hobbies, and it’s cowardly because there are better long-term investments with physical media. At least give people options!

Also, what does Sony have to gain long-term? Like with forcing A.I. on consumers, companies might get a temporary boost in revenue, but only temporary. It doesn’t guarantee indefinite growth, especially when that doesn’t exist. Nor would it here, since emulation’s often finicky. I can’t stress this enough.

Besides, physical media’s making a comeback. And in surprising ways. Vinyl aside, there’s a reason physical copies of media aren’t decreasing in price anymore, and it’s because people like actually owning them. I say that knowing physical media can wear out too, as evidenced by VHS tapes stretching and DVDs getting scratched. But that’s better than a license to rent something that might not work and can get snatched away without warning.

It’s times like these where being a Nintendo fan comes in handy. Yes, their hardware and software isn’t cheap. And yes, their physical games are often download codes. But at least they have physical media. At least I can go to a retailer, talk to an employee and buy something based on recommendations. That’s more than I can say for Sony come 2028, assuming this goes through.

In the end, I’m not happy with this decision from Sony. I think it’s short-sighted on their part, and I hope it comes back to bite them. I also hope they don’t go through with this decision. Because they make good video games, and it’d be a shame letting that go to waste. I’m sure I’m not alone on this, which is why I’m writing about it.