PlayStation Consoles to Stop Getting Disc-Based Physical Releases in 2028

Yay, fewer options for consumers!

PS6 digital-only, a dream (nightmare?) coming true!

With no cost savings for the consumer. Welp, that'll do it.

Wow that’s a bummer

Kinda shocked. I expected Xbox to be first one to do this. Especially since physical:digital ration on Xbox is higher than on PlayStation.

But. It's just the way industry evolved.

Trash suits making trash decisions again.

I can't wait for Hulst to get fired.

So the PS6 will be all digital

That's me done with modern gaming then. Backlog gaming for the rest of my life!

Terrible news for gamers and game shops alike

Xbox, take the easy W and announce physical support for next gen.

Explains the GTA 6 situation then

Well guess I won’t be buying day 1 releases then. Because get f***** if you think I’m paying more. I’ll wait till they land on PSplus. You can have less of my money.

Proper scummy and anti consumer. Seems like Sony is finding those Xbox rakes.

Honestly can’t say enough how disgusting this move is. And everyone should find it that way. Even if you only buy digital.

Edit - no disc drive for ps6 then. So I’d assume another anti consumer move with bad back compatibility.

To be honest I don’t mind for games personally as I only buy all digital, but I’m a huge blu ray collector for movies so I get why this sucks for others. End of an era.

Damn, guess Sony is making me quiet gaming on PlayStation . I don’t buy a lot physical but for the exclusives I made the exception. I also liked to have the choice of looking whether I could get a good deal. Just started going to the gym more regularly so will continue that then..

EDIT: I think I have 100 games on ps4/ps5. The majority in plastic so for the time being I’m fine. I am not going to buy a >€1000 ps6 or Xbox

I was always told on here that Xbox would do this first. So i fully expect Xbox to announce digital only for 2027. I’ve been saying it wouldn’t be much longer. There is next to no physical media in stores anymore for PS5 and Xbox. Nintendo has a good amount still. For now anyways. I am just waiting for everyone to finally say they are quitting gaming, cause it has been said on here 3,452 times that if physical media goes they will stop gaming. Spoiler: they wont.

This will literally kill retailers, not to mention the ability to sell a game once you're finished with it.... My library is full digital but this really really sucks... Taking away options is never good for the consumer!

F*** F*** F*** F*** F*** F*** F***

Welp, it was good while it lasted. Time to build up as many games as I can before they inevitably disappear.

Completely outrageous. I’m going to buy a PC then.

(This is a joke)

Yeah I'm not on board with this at all. Horrible decision. Time to buy some spare disc drives and start working on my huge backlog.

Terrible news. I see the development and people already buying more digital versions but this is also more or less the end of discounts around the release and no more giving games to friends.
Gaming is in a terrible state currently. That’s getting more and more a luxury and totally missing out what’s the main idea of console gaming.

PS5 physical media, including PS4 and PS3 before it, look as cheap, lazy, uncreative, unnatractive and throwaway as it gets, slathered in legal text agreement. There's zero appeal imo, other than resale value. I've been 99% digital since PS4 Pro & NS1. No regrets.

I'm way more interested in physical game media from the 80s & 90s, but even then thats starting wane.

Bizzy to stop purchasing digital based PlayStation services and hardware releases in 2028.

PS5 is my last Sony console.

What does “choice” mean - how will retailers be able to sell games? Didn’t Sony stamp out physical retailers selling codes for full games back during the PS4? (I might be remembering this wrong.)

Gaming is becoming an elite sport i don't want to be part of.

So goodbye to all those UK and Japan physical sales charts

Cheaper games from stores? Forget about it! You can have our over bloated store as your only option with deluxe edition releases front and centre whilst the standard edition is hidden behind an icon button. Killswitch now on every game we “purchase” that we don’t really own. Great year to be a PlayStation owner, truly!!

Well PC it is. As soon as you give them full control of the digital store, you can expect them to dictate all the pricing. Good luck.

PC gaming is about to grow like crazy if PS6 is digital only, $1,000 dollars and have to pay for online. Looks like MS and Sony are doing the most to hurt console gaming for the future.

Thanks a lot all you digital buyers. Oh well at least my collection value will go even higher but what a shame

I repeat my prediction:

PS6 will get an optional disc drive, but it will only play PS4 and PS5 games (and video discs), because PS6 games will be digital-only (in PS Store or als code-in-the-box).

Oh Boy

Better grab a large bucket of pop corn for this comments section

Ah well, fully move to pc it is then

And this is right on the back of the news that they're removing 500+ movies from people's accounts because of licensing issues.

Guess the future is that we really don't own anything.

I dont know how anyone can celebrate this.

I personally dislike physical, 99% of my games are digital, but fewer options to the customer is never good

And yet their refund policy is unlikely to change.

And that's the the end of Playstation for me. Todays Sony are way to anticonsumer.

This could mean that the PS6 is in fact more like a Switch and they didn’t want to create a new cart for it. Now that i would like. Otherwise I’ve been saying this would happen. As the numbers showed it for over 2-3 years now.

Is this just for Sony made games or all games?

Also sounds like they are going to start allowing retailers to start selling digital playstation games again, which is going to be a saving grace for me as I can't afford to pay £70 for every game I play and have no resale value.

Ultimately this will just mean I buy fewer games day one and will wait for sales. I assume a lot of people will also do the same so I wouldn't be surprised to see sales figures dip for new releases.

Alright, goodbye Sony it was nice with you!

Hopefully, you'll get sued into oblivion.

I think this is a good idea, but I understand that some people have large libraries of physical media, and this is heartbreaking for them. Personally, I think that having a bunch of plastic boxes around is junky. Often it takes longer to retrieve and install a game from the disc than it does from the internet. And if you do use discs, then the stupid console makes you find it and put it in to act like a key to play the game.

Also, all of the reselling in previous generations put a good portion of the profits in the hands of middle men rather than developers.

The games themselves are also often too large to fit on our 'ancient' (at this point) physical media. It's a relic of the past that has to go at some point. Sorry for those negatively affected, but this had to happen.

Well that will be the end of my gaming career, as I will not buy digital. Glad I finally have a date!

wow, this is just stupid.

incredible, always making the wrong choice.

BREAKING NEWS:
THE END IS NIGH!
More at 6.

That is why my fellas you always root for things such as GOG, Pirating and other independent game preservations methods, this companies DO NOT care for game preservations nor user preferences they only care for MONEY and BRAND VALUE it come to us(unfortunately) as a community to preserve the games ourselves

@Yusuo Yep, lots of physical media choices there...

So Switch 2 will be the last console with physical games. I kind of suspected that PS6 would be digital only but what does those mean for thsoe with a physical library moving forward to PS6? Presumably it won't have a disc drive

@BusyOlf new games will be available on PlayStation Store and at retailers in digital formats only.

The PlayStation store won't be the only option and I'm sure these retailers will be selling the games cheaper than on the PlayStation store. It will be just like PC where you can buy games cheaper from CD keys than actually buying them from the Steam store.

I haven't bought a single PS5 game physically, but I also live in a city with very stable internet. I don't buy the whole "game preservation" angle, but this really stinks for our rural gamer brothers and sisters with slower download speeds.

So much for this https://youtu.be/kWSIFh8ICaA?is=3B63XzJHQfMM55ls

@WaveBoy I assume you don't really think the the box art is the only issue here...?

This is horrible news.

Disgusting move. I always buy physical where possible due to it being cheaper 99% of the time. Digital prices on the PS Store are just ridiculous.
At least with Steam and Xbox quite often, you can get game codes a little cheaper off CDKeys, etc. Now you won't be able to shop around at all for PS games. This sounds like an unfair monopoly to me and surely can't be legal?

Gets us closer to PS6 launch!! This is necessary for the portable to make sense. And the numbers have been clear for a while now that the money in physical isn't worth keeping the hardware/discs around for.

Took em long enough. Physical has been dying a slow death for a while. Haven't bought a disc since I got Gran Turismo Sport. Terrible for those who still prefer discs, probably just killed it for good now

Time to go fully over too pc boys! Play what I have on ps5 right now and then say hello to Gabe

This also pretty much confirms the PS6 will be releasing before then and this is basically put in place for that console as it doesn't make sense to do this for the PS5.

Not the kind of news I wanted to wake up to lol. Admittedly it's not that damning for me cause I've been shifting towards digital for a while now but getting rid of another option for consumers is so utterly ridiculous. No doubt we'll never get any real communication from them for their baffling decision. Just the usual we're doing great and we believe we're making the right choices

Oh wow uh yeah nah. Hope Sony changes their mind from outcry. This is a colossally terrible announcement for ownership. What’s to be gained from destroying 15% of your sales and assuming people will move to digital? That’s a pretty bold assumption.

I hope we at least get supported external disc drives moving forward, so places like Limited Run can still thrive. But this sucks. My game purchasing is going to drop significantly. No more FOMO purchases for me!

"This transition will enable us to align more closely with how most of our community prefers to access and play games today."

This is such a nothing sentence. Read it again - it's nigh-on meaningless.For those who already buy digital nothing will change, and nothing changes for Sony and they in no way cater for them any more or less. What they really mean is that this transition will cause them to abandon their physical-purchasing fan base.

What a sad, dystopian state of affairs.

@UltimateOtaku91 not allow, they were sued over it. Sony is awful with being greedy, you can admit that and still like PS. They were SUED not just a sudden change of heart to ALLOW. Now that they are Digital only in 2008 they will have a lot of eyes on them to make sure they have fair practices. Something Sony isn’t in favor of doing most the time. Not to mention XBox and Steam have the best refund policies in the business. Sony is going to have to catch up in that area as well. So they have a lot of ALLOWING to do.

I didn’t expect this to happen so soon. So this will be the last PlayStation generation for me and I will remain with Nintendo only. Decided that a long time ago though. I am nearing 50 years old and this just isn’t for me. At some point Nintendo might go the same way but I think it will still take some time. From then, my backlog will carry me till my last breath. However this is just my personal stand, by no means do I say that people should do the same and for everyone who is ok with all digital, good for them. Guess i gotta collect a little harder now before prices for remaining copies of popular games will even go up more.

I’m honestly done with PlayStation after this generation, it’ll be my last. They have been so anti-consumer this last few years that I honestly don’t want to give them my money anymore. If Xbox stay physical, I’m switching next gen. If not, I’ll stick to Nintendo.

Awful, just awful. PS5 is my last PlayStation. Glad it plays PS4 games too. Guess I need to start loading up on games before they get too expensive

Big oof, feel bad for those still trying to stick with physical media.

Seen this on twitter and i just burst out laughing. Like wtf is going on, its like every game company wants us to just stop gaming

This gen will be my last if ps6 doesnt support disc simple as for me and at those apparent prices im not even certain ill get a ps6 anyway ,ill hold to what ive got and get bavk into retro gaming ,sony can kiss my a&&

@Cres_Waven1 same here

If this happens, would this means that digital games will cost less right? so convenient! (not) Playstation is the new apple.

I used Gamefly in the past. I wonder what this will do to them.

As for me, I haven't bought a phyiscal disc in years, but I hate this for the collectors and those who are passionate about this.

No hyperbole. That’s me done. A shame.

Guess it’s classic consoles only for me for the rest of my life.

I just recently bought Pragmata and 007 on disc…. This sucks.

Of note, Sony is also the only console platform that doesn't allow you to purchase codes for games from other storefronts. All digital purchases are playstation store only. So this is even worse for businesses that sell games

This is extremely dumb to announce when people are finding tremendous security gaps in your online ecosystem constantly lately. So now if someone calls your outsourced customer service line with minimal info you lose access to your entire gaming collection permanently with no other option. Criminal empowerment at its finest.

IDK before doing something so anti consumer you maybe fix your backend first?

We all knew this was coming.... doesn't make it any better though

I hope sony struggle big time

It was a good run, PlayStation. I got my first PlayStation in 1998. I suppose 30 years isn't too bad. I'm happy at least that we'll get Resident Evil Veronica on disc.

Well, that's it, I'm just simply not buying any more new games on PlayStation that aren't budget. Not that I didn't do that already in general, but Sony is 100% not getting to buy any games at launch or for full price. That stuff better go on sale or else I'm not buying it

Very very awful news!!!

I can't believe my worries became true this fast once that GTA 6 physical copy only have download code news came out.

Oh well, i guess PS5 will be my last Sony console. It's been a ride Sony 🍻

Well it at least sounds like we know when PS6 is planned to come out. Not surprised by this once they started talking handheld.

In some way I am even happy it happened now as today’s Sony don’t care about their customers, so it was inevitable. You know when you wait for something bad to happen but when it finally happens, even you are sad, you can also feel relieved. Its over for me with PlayStation.

Sony the first to jump, but we love you Sony 🤣.
PS6 all digital then.
I don’t care I’ve been all digital for years across all three consoles.

And digital buyers are the problem

@HonestHick Yes they were sued but the term allow still applies, because they lost the case (have they?) then they now have to allow other retailers to sell their games.

Maybe it's because of losing that case that they have made this decision, to claw back some of the potential lost revenue but curring out the second hand market.

But I think it will backfire and less people will be buying games day one, those who rely on second hand games and rentals (me sometimes) will probably not invest in consoles going forward. This is a huge turning point for gaming, with closures lay offs, no more physical, AI boom, RAM shortage etc. The gaming market is going to crash hard over the next year or two.

I think this will be my last generation as a gamer. Certainly have enough backlog to last me years at this point. Maybe I’ll check back in with what’s new in the digital-only world when I retire…

A sad day indeed, we did expect it but as others have said if the 10 - 15% of us that still buy physical are locked out and don't buy a PS6 then Sony can probably suck that up and keep milking the rest!
Gutted

Yeah this is another hint for the window of PS6’s release. Sony is telling everyone to enjoy physical while they can because once next gen hits, that’s it. I guess this will be my last console with them, I’ve no interest in having a digital only library unless it’s Steam.

For those of you who don’t care about physical… you should still want this option available for those who do care about it. A lot of us have been here since the PS1 and before, not to mention the importance of preservation.

I’ve so many questions about it, but their focal path has been made clear enough for now. I expect to hear this news about Project Helix in the near future, and for Nintendo to follow suit in their next gen (probably will be a digital only S2 at some point).

Terrible news.

I wouldn't be surprised if this was driven by the architecture of how game delivery will happen across the ps6 and portable. E.g. if it was a disc, then does the portable download the full digital version anyway or fallback to streaming etc. Digital download to any of your devices is easier management.

For me however, my journey probably ends at ps5 as a result. I have a 50/50 mix of disc and digital, and generally the digital are just my throwaway games I dabble with. Any of my "good" games are disc

Welp it was a good ride while it lasted boys… I might be going to Xbox or pc as my primary gaming platform next gen🤷🏾‍♂️

Goodbye sony gd while it lasted

I've bought quite a few games digitally now, and I just can't see the appeal. Is it purely because you don't have to get up and change discs?

Please tell me there's more to digital than that, as a gamer. Because I feel like I'm missing something.

I havent purchased a physical game in 5+ years

They'll make it easier for me stop supporting Sony made games and go fully in with Indies. If I have to buy digital games I want to focus my efforts on studios who deserve it. I'll probably spend more time PC gaming too. I never thought my physical PS4/PS3/PS2 and PS1 libraries would overtake my PS5 one so quickly but apparently here we are.

It's a really bad move for preservation, not to mention the regions who do depend on physical imports for whatever reason. I wonder how this will affect physical retailers too. And then there's the eradication of competitive pricing. They are making it far too easy to play elsewhere, I'd genuinely start collecting Xbox games, unless they are also going digital. Preservation for me is not about the price, the platform only the principle. I've seen too many countries ban or restrict games, physical was their only option.

Edit: My Girlfriend who isn't even a gamer just sent me this, if she already knows about this? Then this story is probably blowing up. We never talk games, I don't even know how it came up on her radar. And Sony expect to sell a new console while doing this? Good luck to them.

Horrible decision. I'm not going to say I'm completely out but this will significantly reduce the number of games I buy. Awful move. Thanks to Sony for letting me find new hobbies to invest in i guess

Be interesting to see if Sony still release an optional disc drive on PS6 to enable ps5/4 backwards compatibility and blu ray playback. But assuming they are not interested in that now

@PneumaPilot no physical media there but what they do have is better deals, better performance, free online and the ability to sail the high seas.

If I'm going down the route of having to be digital only I'd rather not spend £1000+ to be locked into a closed ecosystem when I can easily upgrade my gaming PC every now and again and get way better performance.

Also wasn't it reported about a week ago that customers would lose access to 500+ movies they'd bought due to licensing issues, it's already happened with games as well in the past, but welcome to the future huh

Then I’ll wait for 80% sales on your games

In the poll, the first option should be I will be buying fewer games as a result, not less games.

I wonder if this isn't going to land them in hot water with the EU and others over having a de facto monopoly on the entire market of PlayStation games. They already have that for digital games, but take away physical and it becomes all-encompassing. A future where they have to open their platform to third party storefronts suddenly doesn't seem that unlikely.

Literally no point in getting Playstation for me now. It's just a PC but worse. Digital only but it's a closed ecosystem with a fee to play online games. I'd say exclusives would be the one redeeming quality but it sounds like Sony is tripling down on live service games.

As if I needed more reasons not to buy PS6.

@Nei Yeah, not happening I'm afraid.

The final nail in the coffin... My next console could be the Neo Geo AES+ after all.

Where’s the poll option

•I’ll be buying the same amount of games, but all my 3rd party purchases will be on Steam or GOG as that’s the closest you can get to actually owning digital code.

?

About time. Whenever I see walls completely full of game boxes at my local stores I think what a waste of plastic that will one day end up in a landfill or around a dolphin's neck. There is zero need for physical media in this day and age. Zero. Full props to Playstation on leading the way to healthy consumerism.

Goodbye Playstation.

Someone mentioned above, in a tongue in cheek way, that they were going to buy a PC.
Well I did. And have never looked back.
I sold my PS5 on for more than I paid for it, and my Series X is tracking the same when I sell it next spring.
There is no physical media on PC, but everything I play is free, and always will be.
007, Forza 6, etc etc, played 'em all. Gratis.

And just like that, I’ve completely lost interest in the PS6 or any releases after Jan 2028.

I didn’t think Sony could push me away completely, but they did.

Well, some of my recent comments certainly aged poorly! While i’m not exactly shocked or affected (already digital for a while now), i am actually very surprised that next gen wont have the option for physical

@Enriesto I mean, most Xbox games don't have the games on the discs now. The Helix is supposed to be a PC/Xbox hybrid, so I assumed all new games would be PC releases rather than proprietary next gen Xbox games. I'd hope it still has an optional disc drive for people who have physical copies though.

@Balaam_ What's the difference between Steam, GOG and the PlayStation Store? I'm not a PC gamer, but they all seem the same to me.

Well, I've actually found gaming incredibly expensive over the past couple of years so I don't buy new releases very much anyway. Ps6 probably won't be for me.

Oh well, there's plenty of books in my backlog!

@Yusuo Exactly. I don't see any reason to buy the PS6 unless some very captivating exclusives pop up, which will probably be few and far between with Sony's live service obsession.

Looks like I won’t need to think where should I put my physical copies on shelve in next generation…and it looks like I’ll have to wait for discounts to buy a game. This sucks a lot 😑 In my personal opinion Sony is making a very stupid move.

@lets_do-this_1999 Sorry. It's convenient for me. Has been for years.

@dskatter Ditto.. I like buying games so I can resell them after I beat them.. if I have to go all digital then I’m PC bound.. I’ll drop 5K on a gaming rig 100%.. F*** this sh*** ass practice and F*** PS for this one.. PS5 Pro is my last console 🫡 it’s been great guys

I generally don’t have an issue about this as it makes sense if the market is going that way, however, they need to respond to questions about a monopoly on pricing.

Will games be available via steam, epic etc or just on the PS store?

If you look at the music and movies sector, many people are now re collecting physical media as they are sick of streaming and lack of rights for longer term purchase.

Will be interesting to see how this plays out.

Also, i'm gonna say thanks to all of you digital only buyers who wants physical copy to be completely gone and keeps defending gamers shouldn't have options. You guys made this awful situation became true. So yeah, thanks again! 🖕

@Yusuo It’s all about the games. I think it’s a good idea for platforms to distinguish and differentiate themselves based on exclusive games. Want Mario? Get a Nintendo. Want Ratchet and Clank and Horizon, etc.? Get a PlayStation. I’m perfectly fine with that arrangement.

I guess I won't be buying a PS6 then.

I've been digital only since the latter ps3 days so it doesn't bother me at all. But there are still a significant portion that prefer hard copies for whatever reason and it should be catered to. If it's a cost issue then charge more to cover the costs and give people the option.

@BentIeyma Steam, GOG, etc are usually much cheaper by default and you can also get codes from other online retailers for most games. The sales always have much deeper discounts too.
With the PS Store, you pay the price shown and you cannot get a cheaper code elsewhere. Sure, you can sometimes buy cheaper 'wallet topups', but that will now be the only option.

@BentIeyma PS Store is the most restrictive, anti-consumer storefront followed by Steam then GOG. Not only are Steam and GOG cheaper usually but GOG has no DRM whatsover, meaning you get to do whatever you want with the. exe file. Want to make copies and store them on an external device or cloud? Go nuts. You're not relying on the storefront to continue supporting the ability to redownload.

@madmaxrules I think looking at GTA 6's "physical" release, a la code in a box, shows how they interpret selling in retailers. They want the physical presence but with inability to resell. Pretty *****

In our house we currently have, a playstation, ps2, ps3, 3 × ps4, 3x ps5, ps5 pro, psp, psv. Every single 1 purchased day 1.... there will be no ps6 added to the list.
At last count we have over 300 physical games spread between them(and all the ps+ games we have got over the years), im pretty sure they will keep me/hubby and the kids busy/happy for another 30 years.
Thanks for the great times playstation, if you ever change your mind we will be back, until then... peace ✌️
walks off into the sunset

@PneumaPilot and that's fine, but alot people won't be.

Short of the last of us 3, this is the nail in the coffin for me

Absolute disaster. No way I'm paying full price for a digital game. I love having a physical collection, sitting alongside my books. I absolutely hate this.

@themightyant the only way this could work in gamers favour. Multiple digital storefronts

Physical games in stores had to be manufactured, assembled, shipped across the world, delivered to a retailer, and often the delivered to your front door, AND THEY WERE STILL CHEAPER THAN THE DIGITAL PRICE!

Even more profit for Sony, and no lost income from the 2nd hand market, more expensive for gamers, and Sony 'sales' are so bad compared to Steam.

the writings been on the wall for awhile now

@Truee Which both also will not have physical media.

People complained about the GameKeyCards on Switch 2. But at least Nintendo still offers an option for physical media. And even a GKC is still a physicial medium.

People saying "I will just buy the game on PS/XBOX" well, this is where you're at now. Physical media is something of the past.

Yikes. I care not for physical media, but the choice is good. I can't help but to think four things about this:

1) The increased costs of everything surely made the slimmer and slimmer chunk of physical sales less worth the effort and cost for Sony and other publishers. Rest assured, they won't pass on the savings to us because this is a measure to prevent future price increases, which will happen, anyway!

2) This is a death sentence for Gamefly and surely very bad for used game stores.

3) Will they still make a separate disc drive for the PS6? I'm thinking so because it will aid in backward compatibility and other media functions.

4) I am glad I switched to all digital with the PS4. It has made gaming far more convenient and also prepared me for the all-digital future we knew was coming.

Snackfood ,buyersc llke you are the pronlem as i said

I guess we will be relying on limited run and other boutique labels for physical releases of PS5 games. I am not going to be paying full price for digital games. Backlog gaming from now on I guess

But isn't PS6 rumored to be launching in 2027? Does that mean there might be disc-based versions released just before this cut off?

@UltimateOtaku91 to be completely honest - if we look at the multiple sources of data - even if some stop buying games day 1 you are looking at less than 10% at the max being your physical media users.

I don’t like this but I also can see why from a business standpoint. If 90+ percent of sales are digital only and have been for awhile, ending production on the lower use case makes sense.

that probably means ps5 is my last playstation ill buy. Got craploads of games to get through anyway. Im starting to think ive lived the golden age of gaming and thats it now.

@CheesyOatcake Online play is free. You aren't stuck with only one storefront to buy from. Sites like Humble Bundle allow you to get deep discounts on bundles. Multiple storefronts give you free games without needing a subscription like Plus. One storefront has no DRM whatsover. Yep, they're both exactly the same.

They way they try to make it sound like it's them giving people what they want, rather than what suits the most profit and control for their business. I guess I knew it would go this way in end, so just like Switch 2, I won't buy their next console. With prices through the roof and now destroying the 2nd hand disc market, I cant see how this industry is sustainable. It's not for me at least. As a gamer since the Atari 2600, I'm finished with consoles for next gen.

Guess that is one way to guarantee I will not be spending a cent with Sony anymore

@TheOldHunter4K as in you stole them all, I'm guessing?

I'm not sure why folks that pirate don't just state it more bluntly. It's always "I sailed the seas" or "played it for free."

Don't dance around it. You stole it.

I am not buying a £1000 console that doesn't even allow me to own my games on a disc. That is ridiculous.

Thanks PlayStation. It's been a fun ride, but it ends this generation it seems.

@PuppetMaster people buy what they want to buy. I don't have the space to store lots of physical media, so I'm all digital. I'm not going to buy discs just so Sony keep physical media around for other people.

and now everybody start pointing fingers to Sony. Really ????? Well, if more people were buying physical and not digital this would not have happened. Around 85% are digital. Well, actually Sony did what the audience whanted. I hate it and I always bought physical where possible. But we are only 15% so Sony are not the bad guys, we are.

Also, I'm not normally a "let's put you on a list" guy, but I feel like we need a list of everyone claiming they won't buy a PS6.

There are quite often situations that gamers kind of over react to and go on a kind of pointless crusade.

This is...not one of those occasions. this is actually outrageous and incredibly anti-consumer. I actually may consider making changes next generation because of this

@Swandivetotheasphalt In all seriousness, being able to buy physical games is of the advantages of a console. Without it, why not just buy a PC?

@Lanmanna From what we’re seeing, it would only cover last gen, maybe the previous two gens. I already have a PS5 Pro with a drive, so I have the “latest and greatest” when it comes to Sony hardware that plays games physically. I’m not getting pulled into a gen that’s only digital for software simply because it can still play my previous gen physically, especially with all these bonkers prices in tech today.

And yes, same applies to Helix and whatever plans Nintendo cooks up.

While it sucks in one regard i think we all saw this coming one day eventually.
I do like the convenience of digital but we should still have options too. Maybe something like CDkeys or online retailers can still offer their discounts on games.
I best not have to repurchase PS4 and PS5 games though. That would be an epic fail if Sony dont sort that out!

Can't let Xbox has all the negative news stories lol

As long as they allow retailers to sell digital codes then i'm fine with this. they stopped letting amazon sell digital codes for a while now, hopefully this changes things.

***** Sony. That’s I need to say.

@OpheliaDynamight Have you seen console prices lately? Even people who would still buy a PS6, won't with these prices.

Well f*** people who paid more for a PS5 with a disc drive, I guess.

At least I have a solid date for when I stop buying PlayStation games, as I refuse to buy digital.

99% of my purchases are digital so this is not going to massively affect me however i still buy the odd game on disk. Very disappointing regardless as choice is always good. Nintendo are looking like the last bastion of physical releases moving forward.

Results of the poles here I don't think will represent what will actually happen.

I've been saying for ages it's more and more likley as physical isn't really relevant ans yet everyone told me I was wrong and physical is still alot of sales (in general for physical media) and PlayStation wouldn't go digital.
Here we are 🤷

Glad they're doing it at the end of PS5's life and before PS6 instead of mid generation, that way I can duck their next console entirely.

Vote with your wallets.

It is always better for consumers to have more choice, so I would rather this not happen.

But the vast majority of my gaming library is digital, so this will have very little impact on me or my gaming habits.

The corporate newspeak makes this sting even more. A bit of a mystery that they go from "consumers prefer digital" to "we're only offering digital now". It's like a restaurant starting to only serve its most popular dish instead of making less quantity of the others. Just bizarre.

@OpheliaDynamight
Yep, stole. Every one of 'em.
Proper Bill Sykes me.
Don't leave you family silver out on mantle or I'll see it through window and have it away.

@Lanmanna I hear you. Heck, I only bought a PS5 last month.

But I'm just saying, reading a lot of, "no physical, I'm out!" I'd just be curious how many actually stuck to it.

@BentIeyma GOG games are free of DRM. Steam isn't really any different from the PlayStation store

@HangryHero I guess it could be that… Not sure that’d save them much on the logistics costs, but you’re right that the presence probably shouldn’t be underestimated. In Japan, Xbox has a tiny presence in physical stores compared to Nintendo and PS, and it gives off quite weak brand impression.

I purchased gta 6 and it bothers me its not a disc. As a now aging gamer I will bow out on this console. We had the best days with e3, midnight releases and collectors editions.

@ThatOtherNewGuy Don't give them a copout. I assume PS6 will also play PS4 and PS5 games, both of which have physical discs.

It does make me wonder how Sony is going to (not) support people with the previous gen physical libraries. I assume they will just be SOL on PS6 with no optional disc drive add-on. "Sorry, just need to rebuy digitally or play on your PS5."

It was always coming but I'm sure the rumoured handheld had something to do with this too.

I really think there needs to be new laws put in place to protect people's digital purchases in perpetuity.

As long as other retailers are still able to sell in box codes similar to what's happening with GTA6, if not only being able to purchase from a single digital source will result in higher prices for games. Physical is always best but it's an unfortunate sign of the times.

Sony and Microsoft are practically begging for a AAA industry crash. It's like they're trying to speed run the collapse of high-end gaming as a mainstream hobby.

They've done everything they can to crush consumer confidence in them and will turn around and demand 1k+ price of entry in a couple years. Let's see how that works out for them.

@Ristar24 I think it’s more looking at the reality and trends - look at the Capcom
reporting for example. 93% of their sales were digital last year. I don’t like the move personally but I can see why

Honestly gutted they are doing this but it's also not surprising as the Helix was likely going to be digital also. If it shaves a couple of quid of the build price then I guess that possibly a saving grace, but I still expected then to produce it with an optional extra like the pro.

Hopefully this does mean cheaper games tho of we can buy through online retailers like CD keys.

@glennthefrog They're tired of their customers having all the fun playing games. Now, it's their turn.

Why no option for "No I won't buy the PS6 or any games if they go digital only"?
Sony can get stuffed.

@OpheliaDynamight
An awful lot of people who simply won't be able to afford one, whether they've invested in previous generations, cost will shut out a huge amount methinks, not just the vocal few on here.
Gaming is for the payers.
So I opted a different route.
Thefted. Is that a word?

Everyone talking about the handheld. Has everyone forgotten how quickly Sony dropped support for PSP, PSVita, PSVR and PSVR2? You would be mad to buy into another Sony gimmick or even PS6 at this point.

@BentIeyma All i can say is thank you for contributing to this awful situation. I hope you're not gonna complaint when Sony or any publishers delisted their games from the store and also from your library without notice.

Enjoy the future of you'll own nothing and you'll be happy. Cheers 🍻

Shi**y news.
But would this mean

1. Stopping 3rd party from producing discs for PS5/PS6 crossover titles from Jan 2028 or just 1st party or just PS6?

2. Having a digital only storefront, would they now be forced to allow other online retailers to sell their digital codes where we might see more competitive pricing like Steam?

Edit*
3. Will we hear more from that Sony patent talk of a physical media digitiser?
There was docs looking at them being able to digitise your physical media library of games. (Would people even partake in this idk)

Really unfortunate that I won't be buying the PS6 now, I'll stick with my grey PS5 Pro...

@TheOldHunter4K no idea what a Bill Sykes is.

I honestly wasn't judging you. It's just a pet peeve of mine I guess! I also have the entire NES, SNES, and N64 catalogs on several devices. Spoiler alert: I stole them.

Well that's me likely going all in on Nintendo even with Game-Keys unless that is a digtal format but still got to make something to go into PS6.

Why does one of the options mention game prices coming down. 🤣. Let’s be honest everything is going to go up. If Sony aren’t able to sell hardware going forward because of extortionate ram and storage prices then software and ps plus prices will rise to make up that shortfall. Some tough times ahead for us gamers.

Obviously we knew this was coming sooner or later, but one of the biggest issues is, will we see games go on sale as often? Sony doesn't have the best reputation when it comes to how they behave when they have a captive audience, so $80 games that rarely go on sale is a distinct possibility...

@Coversnail Remember how companies and gamers said we'd see cheaper games because of none of that overhead? Good times.

Will just move to PC and Nintendo from January 2028 then. PC is more flexible with graphics settings, and Nintendo don't go peak high end meaning I can have more practical, portable, lightweight hardware that is also quiet/silent.

@ShadLink I’m sure they all will eventually. If I go pc I’ll have way more games available to me so the trade off is worth it. As for PlayStation, while it’s my favorite platform currently, this gen hasn’t set or even met the bar from previous gens in my opinion. Every gen they drop 2-4 games that define the era. This gen it’s all been cross gen and them chasing those gaas dreams.

@AinsleyE Fewer options for the 15% of gamers who only buy discs. Wow. That's a big loss for that extreme minority of gamers.

Being able to only buy games from Sony's store front sounds awfully like a monopoly

@ilyn zero chance that anyone other than big box retailers or gamestop are "allowed" to sell codes. This is also their chance to finally kill the secondhand game market.

I got my ps5 pro a year ago and it looks like I'll stick with it for the rest of my life.

The thought of paying full price for new games that to me were pretty average and being stuck with them is not something I'm interested in.

In the last year I've bought, played and sold :

Yotei
Silent hill F
Crimson Desert
Pragmata
RE9
Tsushima
E33

Made my money back on all of them if not a small profit. Roughly would have cost over £300 to buy these digitally and be stuck with them.

I've kept :

Death stranding 1 & 2
Cyberpunk
Ghost of new eden
AW 1&2
Control
Returnal
Outer Wilds
RE 2-8
Silent Hill 2

The savings are not going to be passed onto the gamer so no way I'm going digital only. Long live the PS5 pro and then I'm done with gaming.

I didn't need another reason not to buy a PS6. I might even buy my first Xbox if the keep physical games.

@SMJ definitely need legislation changes so that companies can't just remove digital purchases down the line.

Also some action maybe to force sony to open up the sales of their games now to other retailers if physical is going away. Can't have that monopoly on ps store.

Just another reason to switch to PC. Physical games was one of the last advantages consoles had.

interesting , so is this for all games first and 3rd party?

PS5 will be my last Sony console then.

@Bizzy it mentions retailers btw

Less choice = bad. There's plenty of people in here though saying they are done with Playstation. As soon as they release the next big game like TLOU3 or a new Uncharted or God of War or whatever and a lot of those people will buy those games day one

@HangryHero I like your optimism! Only first party wouldn't be too bad but I feel like third parties will fall in line and follow suit with the occasional "Limited Run" type release.

@Bizzy PSP and Vita failed due to games having to made specifically for the handheld. The new handheld from Sony will likely play down scaled versions of existing games and therefore doesn't really need support.

If you weren't already locked into the Sony ecosystem you will be in 2028.

@blockfight Only when the PS6 and game is deeply discounted. Like that'll happen. Sounds like there will be fewer games like that and more live service though.

Soooo…
I guess the PS6 will not be backwards compatible with all my physical PS5 discs, huh?

As someone who's been digital-only across all consoles since 2018, I literally don't care. Piracy will keep old games alive via emulation. A massive majority of people are all or mostly digital nowadays anyway: I'm sure a poll on here somewhat recently pegged the number at like 80%+ of people were more digital than disc-based. Can't blame Sony.

Anyone advocating for discs is part of a very vocal, but very teensy, minority.

"people who are probably way past their prime to still be playing video games"

I didn't know playing games had an expiration date. What do you consider "way past their prime"?

80 to 85% of sony first party games are digital downloads.. that is the reality.

@johnedwin What does that even mean? Pretty much every game has a digital option. Lol

@twitchtvpat That seems disingenuous. Why would people go to a bricks and mortar store to pick up an empty box with a code in? Are Nintendo games or other games which are sold this way ever cheaper than buying them through the online store?

I've been buying a good few disk games this generation. So They'll all need to be finished with before the move to PS6.

I‘d short GameStop shares right now (if I had the money to do so).

Would be interesting if Xbox decided to stick with physical games to get one over on Sony. Kinda wish they do as it may force Sony to reconsider.

I smell another antitrust lawsuit in the works. if Sony controls the store and all the pricing then how is this not the case.

@Lanmanna it’s not falling inline - it’s actually something they likely want because there are many advantages to digital, it means you can still bug fix much closer to release vs physical where you have to have it printed then patch later /day 1.

This isn’t counter publisher trends or player trends … it’s actually right in line but maybe that’s not what people want to accept yet

Dear Backlog,

I'm so sorry for neglecting you for the past few years. I will make it up to you in 2028.

Sincerely yours,
Czar

This is awful news. We went from winning E3 by still having used games to getting rid of physical games. Awful awful news. This also gives total control over pricing and hurts physical stores. I’m questioning if I’ll even want a PS6 now. Not to mention this has ramifications for backwards compatibility for all my discs.

Sony needs to reverse this. This beyond bad news for consumers. Watch your sales be less and less generous over time while you’re told it’s “the natural evolution”.

@Slimdawgmil pricing is still set by the publisher - there is no indication that Sony ever says your game must sale at x price on our store

@UltimateOtaku91 I really hope Xbox does this and comes up with some great exclusive games. Sony needs competition and ASAP.

@HonestHick agreed. They all talk but few will do it. The other interesting part is those who say I’m done with PlayStation. To go to a digital PC library? To go to Xbox who will follow suit? To go to Nintendo who currently charges more for physical so they can shift to digital in a generation too? I’m pretty sure most of them are subbed to Netflix or AppleTv or another streaming service too.

@PuppetMaster Yep, me and 85% of PlayStation gamers. You might not like it, but you're in the minority. It would be great if Sony continued to release games on disc, but I live in a small flat and I don't have space for physical media, so I'm not going to buy them.

@ElectricWizard Hopefully some laws change that. It would resolve one of my many issues with digital purchases on Playstation.

@wildcat_kickz Maybe rural people should stop voting for politicians who are more than happy to sell them out to the telecom companies? Zero empathy.

@madmaxrules yeah well here's hoping it might also force Sony to legally have to sell their game codes via 3rd party online sites a bit like steam. Multiple digital storefronts means Steam doesnt have the monopoly.
In my country, CdKeys (loaded now) for example doesnt sell many playstation game codes. Mostly dlc/obscure titles or sports titles. And not really discounted either. But steam has loads of options digitally.
What we really need is legislation change though to make digital mean ownership, not "for as long as we feel like it"

Adorably all-digital

@Lanmanna I know you were just waiting to type 'what does that even mean' like every other Gen Zer out there. To pretend like you have no idea what on Earth he could be referring to.

You know exactly what he is talking about. Sales.

Well, we knew this was coming. A sad day nonetheless. I'd imagine that this confirms that PS6 will only have an add on optical drive, and be sold as a strictly digital device. I buy almost all of my games (with the exception of a small handful each generation) digitally, so this doesn't affect me as much as others.

@Max_the_German I do wonder how Gamestop and Gamefly will survive.

Decided to paste my thoughts from the PS Blog given only just read about this & have zero confidence it won't be deleted there.🙄

As others have commented. Owned every console from the OG PS1. If this is the cheapskate strategy for PS6, then my PS5 will be my last PS Console.

One of the very features dating back to PS1/PS2 gens were cheaper games over time like the platnium classics range. Compare & contrast present day Sony that you're lucky to see digital first parties reach what would be day one PS4 new release prices!

Since PS Plus Essential subscriptions got removed from retail stores you've pushed the prices up multiple times & even excluded Down Under from ANY discounts for Days of Play!🙄
The tone deafness of this management make Jim Ryan's reign look like the "good old days!"😑

Few things

For a company that produces Blu-ray discs, drives and the Blu-ray licence it's a bit odd

Two, what if you don't have internet access or speedy internet?

Finally it's obviously just a play to close off the used game market. That's a loop they've all been trying to close since the code debacle thing back in the PS3 360 days.

Finally 2028....PS6 launch date confirmation

Tldr: that's pretty ***** stuff from Sony, corporate espionage is a thing so I imagine Xbox is doing the same. Great opportunity for Microsoft to reverse it tho and get an instant win. A reversal of the Xbox one debacle

So retailers will sell boxed codes?

Well looks like PS5 will be mine last console as I buy physical games so not buying PS6 now

@ErrantRob So disingenuous. PC is digital but you have a multitude of options for games. You're not stuck in one ecosystem. Plenty give you free games. You can buy keys from legit and gray key markets. DRM free games can be bought from GOG.

Welp, time to invest in a proper gaming PC. There is literally no reason to buy a PS6.

@Lanmanna The business model for GameStop can‘t be selling plushies and other gaming kitsch. There’s a reason why they want to swallow eBay. Retailers for games apart from electronics markets will vanish, easy as that.

Gaming is about to get massively more expensive. No second hand game market to buy from or sell to. I don’t suppose Sony will improve their options in this area, not without government intervention anyway.

Seriously contemplating if PS5 Pro will be my last console since owning every PS console (apart from VITA), the digital prices for games are just not attractive in any way, shape or form. I mean we still have AC Valhalla (a cross-gen release title) sitting at £60 on the storefront... I paid £8 for the physical nearly 5 years ago.

@RBRTMNZ Wow. Zero empathy, indeed. I'll never cease to be amazed at how much of a prick others show themselves to be.

Ok bye Sony👋 If the games industry isn't bad enough as is this is possibly gonna kill it substantially.

@Czar_Khastik you’re always there when we need you man. Never change Czar ❤️

@JJtheTexan If you sell a physical copy on(or if patch support stops) you've essentially rented it, too.
Doesn't mean I like it though. I wasn't expecting a blunt cut-off like this for another generation

Wait, you're telling me Sony makes games?

What!?!

I thought all they did was make super expensive consoles...

Even though, like most people, I don't buy physical copies anymore, this is simply a horrible decision that will bite them in the butt. By the time they realize it, it will be too late.

Well done, Sony execs. Well done.

I'll be honest, this doesn't really affect me, as I've been almost exclusively digital for years at this point. I honestly can't remember the last time I used the disc drive on my PS5, if ever. But I absolutely get why folks are upset. Regardless of my own buying/gaming habits, it's a sad day. Honestly though, my personal concern is less about the disappearance of physical and more the introduction of discretionary/selective pricing on the PS Store. If physical is ditched in favour of system where Sony can set you an individual price different to what other people are seeing, that's the reddest of all the flags in my mind.

Wow that's enormous news, awful in fact.

Will be a major blow to retailers, codes in boxes aren't worth running a shop for. And just when physical media in music and film is showing signs of a come back.

I give it a 50% chance of them reversing it.

So long Sony! Been an avid supporter since the original PlayStation though that has waned in this money-grabbing PS5 era and now you've just put the final nail in the coffin!
Might as well decamp to Nintendo and their weird cartridges.

If PS6 also doesnt have a attachable disc-drive option, then good luck playing all your physical games when ur current console(s) break down.

@gomersoul
Was thinking about this exact moment lol

So that's it for me then, the end of my console days is with PS5 Pro.

@Lanmanna it means is most ps gamers dont care about physical games

Don't much like this for consoles, but it does work perfectly fine on pc and zero pc gamer's are complaining about physical releases

So I'll wait and see, PSN will have to significantly lower the cost of old games in line with Steam and epic.
If things like how 2018 start costing 3.99.for example them sure, basically cheaper than buying a 2nd hand disc off eBay

No idea how they get ps5 owners with big physical collection's over though. It's a tough task ...this may be a odd roundabout way to lower the price of the 6

Thanks @Enriesto, I'm sending my best regards to you and all the other physical media lovers here.

$800+ consoles and now digital only.

I’m out. I’m fortunate enough to have a good PC so I’ll stick to upgrading that + getting Nintendo consoles for the rest of my life. If I’m buying digital, why wouldn’t I use PC clients like Steam and cheap key sites? Cheaper games and better performance.

RIP console gaming for me

No PS6 for me then, I’ll wait to see what Xbox do. If they go the same way then I’ll just stick with my switch 2.

@Eld "Every other Gen Z'er"? They live rent free in your head, huh? I'm not even Gen Z. Good job playing into the tired generation vs generation thing though.

Their comment wasn't clear at all. That was my issue.

Well that's me not gaming as much. Physical game sales save me thousands a year

So, no rush on my backlog now, as I will be waiting for a significant discount/ being put on Ps Plus before playing games if this is the case.

@Sunraku I'm really just speaking about people with bad internet connection, regardless of where they live. I know people who have had to rely on Starlink or slower cabled internet and it sounds like a nightmare. In a lot of cases, there's nothing you can really do. I'm lucky that I have like 4 providers to choose from, but some don't have any options.

Another reminder. I hope you guys enjoy Sony DYNAMIC PRICING where some people will pay a lot more than the others because Sony thinks some are willing to pay more lol
https://www.xda-developers.com/sonys-dynamic-pricing-on-the-playstation-store-is-outraging-gamers/

@BentIeyma I don't and never want to be a part of that 85% who gladly killed their right as a consumer in return of convenient. So i'm glad i'm in the minority.

@WaveBoy u can buy steelbook, I buy a lot

So, if PlayStation decides to delete games for whatever reason, will those who purchase the game lose them? I say that because that is what happen when digital purchase of movies got pulled and those who purchased them no longer had access.

Kind of expected this with the talk of a handheld version of PS6. I have no interest in that and honestly I’ve already contemplated the idea that this might be last console generation. I have such a huge backlog that I will have games to play for years to come. The huge price of the new consoles really started this. I’m at a point in my life that I have enough disposable income that it’s not a problem to afford to buy a new console but I’m having trouble finding enough value for what I’m assuming will be close to $1000. Now with the news of no physical media that really kills my enthusiasm.

Only 15% bought phsycially yet here the numbers are super skewed towards not buying digital.

I think less choice sucks, but I'm struggling on the math, honestly. (Oh, it won't include all those buying second hand, so there's that. Could we get a poll on how many people here buy second hand?)

But overall, my reaction is... wow. RIP Backwards compatibility and second hand gaming for a lot of people 😬

@LastNorth_16 the movies thing is different though , sony just rents those licenses from the movie company , so if that movie company decides to pull that license they have to remove those movies. however i doubt they would just pull a game for no reason i haven't seen it yet. other then the ai shovelware slop that should be removed.

I guess I will be a PC gamer going forward from the PS5. So long Sony. It was fun while it lasted.

Like i said on another post everyone here is all talk! Just look at the numbers digital has been surpassing physical and it’s not even close. People complain about digital but it seems like people still purchase them?

Well well well...

Personally, I'm really not bothered as I went digital a while ago... That being said, it's sad to see those who prefer physical copies will eventually loose the ability to collect their games that way.

Having interest in the hobby of gaming today is seriously not worth it anymore for many because its expensive, many don't respect peoples time, wallets and minds, many are broken and now you don't own any of it.

The industry needs to crash big time.

Wow thats a horrible news what is Playstation doing. This generation have been the worst generation ever.this is crap.i enjoy physical games so this is horrible. Word up son

i knew this day was coming but not this soon my head cannon was 2035 or beyond but I guess the PS5 is my final console before switching to PC gaming now I guess , if im gonna play digital only no point in owning a console now

@helloim_anthony One thing to note, it's more the hardcore gamers on sites like this that often, not always, express a similar view to each other. Millions of gamers are made up of casual people and from all sorts of backgrounds, that probably don't care, and are the majority purchasing digital.

This is terrible news, I rent most of my games because they're too expensive as it is and now I'm going to be locked out of playing new games because I don't have the money, that's gutting.

Will be interesting to see if the ps6 is digital only.

If you really give a damn about this, write to your elected representative, Push Square should organise a campaign.

F***🤐 Sony for this.this is the worst decision Sony have ever done.sony don't care no physical and fuc🫣 the ps6 Sony can shove it to hell.its ridiculous. Word up son

Welp, this went down well.
Waiting for Microsoft to snap back at them like PS did with the Xbox one in 2013.

Can't say I'm surprised. Very disappointed, but not surprised. The industry has been moving this way for years. I feel like Sony is doing it's best to absolutely kill the PS6 before it ever gets revealed.

With almost every other entertainment medium that has moved on to a digital format, it was only a matter of time before gaming followed suit. Tech is getting more expensive and the sales figures for physical doesn’t support the effort to continually produce discs. So it’s only natural these companies will find ways to cut corners where they can. I guess gamers who only buy physical are to blame when you get down to it.

This'll certainly make me look seriously into a Steam Machine or equivalent or building something myself when I'm finished with my PS5 games.

I've chosen consoles for exclusives, the affordability of second-hand physical games and the ease of lending games. The first will remain, Sony may solve the last, but if I lose the second I do wonder if my increasing desire to support more open platforms will lead me to give up on those exclusives.

I have very few digital PS4/PS5 games, so I'm not so tied to the platform as some and I'll keep my PS5 for whenever I fancy replaying a physical game.

It'll be a few years until I have to decide and if AI-induced pricing gets worse I can always replay my pretty extensive collection (NES -> Switch 2, GB -> 3DS, PS1 -> PS5 and a decent number of Steam games from Humble Bundles) or spend more time doing other stuff.

I'm not saying it's a good thing , but it was definitely inevitable. People buying second hand copies of games can't complain about studio closures you never supported. And as an adult in their mid 30's , I quit having time to replay many games and space to store multiple generations of discs and cartridges a long time ago. They're all packed away and almost never accessed. The vocal minority lost here.

Predictable. It's been heading this way for years. But it still sucks for people like me who prefer physical.

I borrow a lot of games from my library. My library actually has 3 different game sections - adult, teen, kid - located far apart in the library, and each has dozens of games. And I just bought Ghost of Yotei on disc this weekend (had $20 of Target credit from shopping). Doesn't mean I don't buy digital games, I do, a lot, but I borrow and buy physical as well.

So I don't know what I'll do now. Not get a PS6 was always tyhe plan, seems unnecessary as games will still get PS5 versions for years. Just got a Switch 2, which for me almost has better 3rd than 1st party support, so that could pick up some slack. I think the library has every Switch 2 game.

But it's still a sad day, even if it was inevitable. Pour 1 out for discs. It's PSP Go from here on out. Kids ask your parents.

Honestly think this will get challenged especially in the EU. If there’s digital only games, that means the PS Store is the only way to buy them and there’s a lack of competitive pricing. I don’t think that will be allowed to stand.

In that regard you are better off buying digital licenses for pc, ecosystem that isn't closed and even if you lose access to your purchase at least you can warrant putting a pirate hat on. Might be the last playstation for me

Good. It's time to move on. I haven't bought plastic since the 360. If this really upsets you then find a new hobby.

Yeah...this move will hurt game preservation on consoles more than anything.

This was inevitable and GTA 6 was the matchstick to light the fire.

Over 85% of games are bought digitally now. Sony is a mega corporation. They have never and will never be our friend. Its a business-consumer relationship. Once it stops being beneficial to you, leave.

They only listen to money. Vote with your wallet but then again, GTA 6 is the most bought game on all PSN storefronts across the world so the casual consumer does not care sadly.

F YOU SONY!
You just made my decision of not buying a PS6 much easier!

I have a huge back catalog of PHYSICAL games to catch up on, so it looks like my Switch 2 will be the last console I buy for long time.

@twitchtvpat you are correct and forgot to factor that in... just so crazy and has me thinking about the whole PS6 Digital version. wonder if PlayStation wants to keep cost down or something. who knows...

@Ainu20 Could be on the cards, that's essentially what Epic were aiming for with their Google and Apple lawsuits.

Well, no PS6 or games after 2027 for me then. Thanks Sony!

@Frmknst ever bought food?

At this point, might as well just ditch console and go all in on pc if everything is going digital,. At least that way I will have way more options than wasting my time with PlayStation and it's limits.

PC becomes the better value then even if the machine is more expensive. I used to be home console all day everyday because of the convenience and value. PCs have also been becoming less of a headache to game on. This move tips the scale. Looks like I’ll be playing through my PS5 backlog and then switching to PC.

I primarily buy used physical, but for games I was super excited about I’d buy the digital version at launch, probably a couple a year on par with gamer averages. And I also subscribed to PS+. Sony is going to lose gamers like me.

This move also will only invigorate pirating. I anticipate emulation of PS6 will be in record time.

@Truee "Welp it was a good ride while it lasted boys… I might be going to Xbox or pc as my primary gaming platform next gen🤷🏾‍♂️'

Xbox was already half way there this gen, they will follow! also if you game on PC you are also all digital, Steam doesn't give you a physical game 🤷🏻‍♀️ You only option is Nintendo assuming they don't follow Xbox, Playstation and Steam.

I have been a long time fan of Sony, since receiving a PS1 when I was a young kid. Have backed them through some hard times. But this is the single worst decision they have made since joining the gaming sector. This is so bad for consumers and retailers who are not Sony. I really hope they feel the fallout of this tactic and rescind this decision sooner rather than later.

I recall an article somewhere in recent years about an experimental way of storing data on diamonds I think, it got me hoping that future video games could possibly come on cartridges with a carbon faux diamond substitute inside (or whatever is cheap and least harmful to the environment) as a way to cut down on plastics.

Anyway, this is regrettable news, I was enjoying my return to PlayStation since late PS4 and PS5 but I can't justify the investment in a PS6 for a maybe a potential Last Of Us 3 and maybe a 3rd Ghosts game in digital rental form that Sony have shown they're willing to take back.

Probably go full PC again as that's pretty open. Maybe Switch 2 and Xbox if they keep physical.

I absolutely buy more games digitally than I do physical these days, but this is garbage news. I love to have a shelf with games on it, even if it's a fraction of the games I actually play anymore. However, I will never buy a box with a code in it.

Ultimately this is anti-consumer and anti-industry as a whole. Digital will always be the primary driver but you close off the industry to a lot of folks without physical media and it's terrible for preservation.

Lol. I hate having to change disk. I honestly have no idea why everyone is crying. The only publisher that stil really makes disk based games is Sony - eventually that just had to end because STATS don't lie, the only liers in here are all the people saying digital games isn't the vast majority of their collection. Articles like this are just designed for engagement and to make people upset with fake outrage. Losers.

@wildcat_kickz We are talking about people in my country, the US, who have zero empathy for families being violently ripped apart, human rights violations, people being shot extrajudicialy in the streets, non-criminal immigrants and POC citizens being sent to death camps, and millions of Africans likely to die of Ebola so yeah I have zero empathy for them when they have to suffer minor consequences of their political decisions.

I don't want to sound like a corporate shill, and this is definitely bad news that limits the options of consumers. But, man, it always feels like people are too f***ing dramatic about physical vs. digital.

I think the issue is how many misconceptions there are about ownership and digital purchases. Basically, whether digital or physical, you have no ownership over the game — or really its data. Buying physical, you own a hard copy of the game's data, and that's it. Buying digital, you own a digital license that allows you to download and store the game's data. Which is to say, it's the same d*** picture. If you buy digital, you can have a hard copy of the data, and no company can take that away from you (though there should be more thorough legal protections to ensure that).

This does effectively kill the resale market (technically, it probably wouldn't be that hard to implement a digital resale system, but no company would put money into that). And this is definitely a preservationist nightmare (ignoring that modern gaming has already been that regardless of physical releases). So, again, BAD news. But digital purchases are not as bad as people are asserting.

Well, at least I had a good run. Master System II to Playstation 5, and plenty in between. This takes a tough decision out of my hands. Thank you Sony.

With the news of digital movies being removed from consoles, good luck to those naïve enough to welcome a digital only industry.

Sony is literally the worse company in gaming, when they think they are winning.

thats a nail in the coffin of CEX then

I just canceled my Flexstrike pre-order. If they are getting rid of physical games, why support their physical accessories?

I think the poll results are curious. It just shows how little overall impact the hardcore PS audience has on the overall direction of PlayStation. Less than 15% were purchased physically on PS5, yet the overwhelming majority of people on this site say that it'll cause them purchase less games with no physical editions available. We're in our own bubble here, no doubt.

Currently speedrunning the stages of grief; I'm up to bargaining.

At least the statement explicitly mentions retailers selling digital codes, meaning we'll probably see some competition from online stores for digital games too. I wonder how the "consumer preferences" look for brand new games. I'm sure holistically the numbers are heavily skewed by all the digital-only or $2 - $5 digital games I buy... I will never pay full price for a digital game.

@Bizzy I was just asking the same thing over in the article at PureXbox. Surely this cannot be legal?

@Drax007 That's what I'm doing. no point staying with PlayStation now.

@SoonForget I'm sure there's better fighting stick with cheaper price than Sony overprice fighting stick.

@Blightor All you have to do is read people’s comments as to why they hate this move. It’s honestly really very easy to understand just by having the capacity to see perspectives other than your own.

hahahahaha the company who just removed a collection of over 500 films from peoples accounts, films they had PURCHASED.. is going all digital on games!!! hahahahahaha GOOD LUCK SONY!

Well I am thinking of pulling the trigger on a Switch 2 to try out so may as well now.

Id never thought id say this...but after this comes into effect ill stop gaming.
Nintendo and xbox got nothing for me and i will not go 100% digital. Shame

This is monopolistic and I would argue illegal too, they have COMPLETE control on the pricing now, no second hand games, no lending games, no cheaper Amazon games, no game keys at a cheeper price as Sony doesn't allow those... Jesus.

@RoomWithaMoose https://www.pushsquare.com/news/2026/06/sony-will-permanently-delete-550plus-movies-you-already-paid-for

For years, they were doing everything they possibly could to skew players toward digital purchases, such as:

• delayed physical releases;
• incomplete physical releases (require downloads to run, instead of shipping on more discs as used to be the norm);
• limited access to physical releases (e.g. scalping, releasing in limited territories, or “partnering” with limited-edition publishers instead of official releases);
• unavailability of disc drives (shortages, exorbitant prices, consoles sold without drives);
• straight-up unavailability of physical releases (e.g. indie games); etc.

Now they have the NERVE to justify this blatant anti-consumer move as “consumer preference”. No further comment.

Stop buying games at full price. Digital should be cheaper

Also this now means you CANNOT use Sony's current or future consoles offline.. yeah plenty like the idea of being offline, not anymore matey.

I don't believe poll result. Unless everyone is within that 15%. It's just noise

these companies are going to shoot themselves in the foot for a variety of reasons:

1. playstation doesn't know how much of its software revenue will be impacted by this move. i.e. many people buy physical games cheaper on the used game market, which frees up cash to be spent for digital releases... physical options going away means they will spend less on digital due to their gaming budget being impacted...

2. people lend physical games to their friends as a way to try out the game... that may result in a digital purchase down the line but will no longer be an option now... could result in lost sales...

3. with no other options available to find a "deal" or sell their physical games, many people will buy fewer games across the board, digital or not...

sony's software revenue generation will fall by a large margin... could be anything from 5-25% if i had to guess, especially in markets with lower standard of living and less disposable income...

also, we haven't even gotten into the topic of people with poor internet access and who will simply not be able to download large files... you will cut out another 15% of the market there alone. imagine all the people who want to play gta 6 but can't? that is a lot of people to alienate... are these publishers willing to leave all the money on the table? because i don't think they like that side of this dilemma!

now, sony has no choice but to include a disc drive with the ps6 for b/c of ps5 games at the very least. they will have to respect that much. if they don't, i expect ps6 to sell a fraction of the ps5 (as if the price wasn't already going to sabotage the console anyways haha)

p.s. being at the mercy of psn for ALL OF YOUR PURCHASES will only result in less discounts. you will be paying more on average for all your games. publishers will have less of a reason to put games on sale if you literally have no other choice but to buy digital. i already see tons of games that rarely get price drops.

Terrible news!! So PS5 is my last Sony console! Good thing I have Switch 2! I will support Nintendo until they also ditch physical media.

No thanks Playstation I'm done.

Nintendo only for me going forward.

Even though I'm a PC gamer, where all games are digital, I just don't trust Sony enough, to buy AAA games digital on their platform, unless it's on a very deep sale, like $5 or something.

I'm not gonna bother buying anymore PS5 games. Not interest in their third person games.
And I'm not in a hurry to play GTA VI.

I still have a great collection of PS1-PS3 games, to remind me of the old Playstation, that I knew and loved, since day one.

Put it this way too.... Sony charge you £800 for PS6 BUT ALL games are Digital only AND the they increase game rises to £80 to £90 for base versions of games.. AND they have total control over any discount sales..

That is what they mean by looking at the business model of next gen changing it....

Your indie game you get for £30 now goes up to £50..

This is disappointing, but not altogether unexpected. I’ll be getting every game I want physical until then. I hope they change course with backlash, but not thinking so

Fantastic!!! So how can they say the ps6 will be backwards compatible with ps5 and ps4 if the large library of physical discs I own will not work on a system that is digital only 🤔
Seems the ps6 will NOT be backwards compatible with a large number of games I own on ps5 and 4 🤦

I exclusively only pay full price for physical games. Digital I always wait for a big discount. That said, I've got no interest in live service games so maybe I'm a product of the past anyway.
What a depressing day. On the upside I do tend to spend a fortune on physical games that I never get round to playing so I guess I'll be saving a lot of money lol.

@S1ayeR74

Yep. People that stick with Sony after this will eat ***** on their new Nintendo style pricing!

@Juic3B0x And as a result online only too. No offline mode for it.

There's 340 comments and I don't have anything new to add, but I'll just say ***** this.

It's to kill off the second hand market, it'll remove any competition on prices and it'll be terrible for game preservation.

And if you don't have decent internet, or any connection, I guess you'll just have to stick to old games.

I have loads of other hobbies anyway and always have ,whats that song lyrics from yesteryear,dont forget its the millioms that have put you where you are now and dont forget we can put you back down too.i think sony may well regret this decision big time,

@RedAngel_Dragnet yes, the games won't be discounted so quickly with no competition from stores, that's a certainty.

It's not that big of a deal, I think I've inserted a phsyical game into my ps5 maybe nine or ten times? In nearly seven years. The loudest complaints are from people who buy a brand new launch physical release maybe once a year, tops.

What an own goal for PS6. So many people with a huge catalogue of physical games, locked to the PlayStation ecosystem, and now instead of getting a PS6 to play them in a superior form (ideally) they now get no benefit from getting any console. Sony just threw away the fact they had people locked into their ecosystem. Madness!

I am a primarily digital gamer because PC's my main platform. On PS5 I'm half and half between physical/digital.

I think the arguments against digital in favor of physical are often overstated, it can become a bit of a circlejerk esp. When most people don't understand how software licenses work. (If you ever actually "owned" your games, you would be allowed to sell copies of them)

However, I despise Sony's decision here. IMO physical games can have a great future as collector's items as opposed to the main method of release- much like how physical music is still very much alive despite all the more popular alternatives.

A hard cutoff into digital only absolutely blows, and will hugely weaken the case for me ever touching a PS6. This alongside Sony trying to get Playstation on more monitors instead of TVs feel like they don't understand the fundamental joy of a console as opposed to other devices

@Porco You can bet Sony has projected all of this and still concluded that it’s the correct move, even with some minor outrage. If it’s true that they are losing money on maintaining their manufacturing facilities versus the sales of the physical product they produce, then at some point this was going to happen. Maybe there are soft gains from the physical games being out there, but also…maybe that is mostly speculation.

there is no reason to assume that there won't be an optinal disc drive attachment for ps6 for backwards compatibility at least... we have no confirmation on that.

"Over 85% are bought digitally"

"The stats don't lie"

The stats do not include playstation owners who only buy physical used or at a discount a few months later. If all of these owners refuse to buy a digital only ps6 I think that will be quite a few sales lost. There are more of us then you think.

@RedAngel_Dragnet @RedAngel_Dragnet Lol nope try again, you can get Nintendo games PHYSICALLY for a cheaper price now. Won't be doing that on PlayStation anymore... Also Nintendo games max out at £70 the exact same as PS5 games do...

Sony's hubris is going to screw them badly at PS6's launch, as it did with the PS3 launch.

@RBRTMNZ It's my country, too. Stop acting like everyone who doesn't live in a city is a monolith. That reductive crap is why we're in this mess.

I don't want to fear mongering but i'm worried with this news plenty of retailers / online sellers will jacking up the price for PS4 and PS5 physical copy, either brand new or second, since those copies will be the last once Sony release PS6 and completely stop producing bluray games in 2028.

@Sunraku wait until your parents stop buying your games and you'll soon be a bit more understanding to why many don't want to shell out for a £70 game with no potential resale value.

Hate to say it, but I knew it was coming, as I think we all did. The PlayStation 5 will be my last console. Plenty of older games to play, with the amount of time I have to play these days, there are multiple lifetimes of games already available.

@Cvantez well, yea, they must have done projections on this, but there are always trends that are overlooked or (not) emphasized to please shareholders. until this actually goes into effect for a few years, we won't know the true verdict. sony may in fact come out ahead with this move, but not necessarily. there is one thing that they cannot account for: that is the good will they are losing from their loyal customers. the worst thing that can happen for sony is to lose customers from their ecosystm because that amounts to many game purchases for the lifespan of the console and will be a major revenue loss for them.

sony and othe publishers are approaching gaming as if they have these customers locked in for life. they think we are all zombies that will stick around, no matter the financial cost. that may be true for some, but certainly not all. in the end, i see sony losing money in the years ahead... it has already begun with the high cost of entry of modern gaming.

as a core playstaion gamer since the 90s, i really enjoyed the ps1, ps2, ps3 and ps4 eras... but they lost me with the ps5 generation. i have yet to purchase one due to a myriad of reasons... ps6 is already off to a terrible start to win me over (and presumably millions of others in the same boat).

What's to prevent Sony from jacking up digital prices once there's no more physical options on the table?

I really need a diskdrive for my bluray collection though. If Xbox keeps a diskdrive next gen I will prioritize that over ps. Probably wont even bother buying a ps6 tbh.

An article on why physical media doesn't solve the underlying ownership problem: https://petercoffin.substack.com/p/ownership-and-grand-theft-auto-6

@tangyzesty Nothing.

I will never buy a full priced game again. Been on ps since the ps1

Sonys gonna lose so much money when ps6 comes out. Even more reason to wait or skip ps6.

Vote with your wallet. That video sony did 12 years ago making fun of Xbox for not allowing sharing of games is rearing its head now

Arrogant sony is 100% back, baby!

Terrible, terrible, terrible...utterly disgusting. I never thought I'm going to say that, but PS5 is my last console I'm going to move to PC. There is no way I'm going to support this.. F..... you Sony!

@S1ayeR74 Digital movies are different from digital games.

Want to also say the company with the security of a paper door wats to go digital only.. wide open to abuse and theft from hackers.

@RoomWithaMoose Does not matter, the point still stands, YOU do not own your digital games even if you buy them, Sony CAN remove them from your library anytime it wants too.... that is a fact! You are totally reliant on Sony servers too working, PSN goes down well no gaming for you then...

I knew as soon as I saw this that there would be a vocal group greatly angered by Sony dropping an antiquated delivery method for getting the software to the consumer to 'download' and install on to their Hardware.

For the past two generations (PS4 and PS5), Games have NOT run from Disc because the data transfer (read/write) speed is far too slow for modern games - hence the need to install on internal storage, hence the need for SSD's this generation. The ONLY real advantage to physical has been the option to sell, to trade that licence in and recuperate some of the cost back.

For those on metered/limited internet, downloading from disk may have been beneficial, but as games have also increased in size, there has been more and more games requiring internet access to download the rest, if not the majority of the game as the disk capacity isn't adequate. So not only are disks not adequate to deliver the 'full' game, they are not fast enough to play the game from - they are basically a plastic 'key' to unlock access to the Software you've downloaded and installed on the Hardware - hence the need to keep putting the disc in the drive to 'prove' you still own that plastic key, that licence embedded on it.

Digital has its advantages - no need to keep swapping the disc in the drive just to swap games, licence is saved to your account so your 'digital' library can be brought forward with ease to new/next gen hardware and won't 'sell out' or become hard to find...

It was inevitable because Discs are just a Plastic key to access the Software you installed on your Hardware - whether they delivered that software on the disc, on both disc and via internet or just via the internet. Its too slow to play games from disc directly and lacking the capacity required in a lot of cases too. If you didn't need to keep putting the disc in to 'unlock' access because the licence is embedded on that disc, its just a plastic coaster!!!

I actually feel a slight sense of relief. I've seen this coming for years and built up a lifetime of games to play on multiple consoles, with back ups to boot.

I don't see how this doesn't end up with piracy becoming rampant. I'm definitely moving over to PC and Steam where I feel like a digital library is more secure going forward.

Anyway, thanks for all the good times in the comments and general chat and banter. We've got a year or so left to enjoy this site before a huge shift splits the industry and punters in multiple new directions.

Been digital only for the last 5 years, despite the outrage now, most people will adapt.

@LastNorth_16 some one else brought this up , but it supports the whole portable unit rumor , so if you buy a digital game for ps6 you'll be able to play it on both console and handheld only buying the game once.

There’s me thinking they will make the PS6 disc drive an optional accessory, to keep costs down. No, they’re not even going to give you that option! Assuming the PS6 will also play PS5 games, what happens if you have PS5 discs but the PS6 is digital-only?

@streetshadow I see the trend, but I believe there is a push towards that trend. I would say a lot of physical discs go into the 2nd hand market, so their (re)sales would not be making money for Sony, but I'd say it's how a lot of people access games cheaper. Once they have a closed shop with their digital store, their incentive to put anything on a decent sale will probably also diminish, as, where is the competition. For me personally, it's the line where I'll check out on buying the console, not that I'd likely be able to afford it though the way it's going ha! Good job I have so many retro games and consoles still.

Some gamers: “Screw PS for going all digital! I’m going to PC!”

Other gamers: “PC is mostly digital!”

Some gamers: “We said what we said!”

Anyway. I’ve been digital for nearly a decade. Made my choice a while ago. But it’s also nice for the physical crowd to have their choice.

I wonder if F2P and PS+ downloads are included in the overall physical to digital figures, cause that'd be one way to skew the numbers in Sony's favour, not that I doubt digital is more prevalent overall.

@AhmadSumadi PC digital is open though.

@Nightcrawler71 tbh if they aren't making new games they could use the current disc drive they are selling now to play ps4 and ps5 games on the ps6 , its not like an upgraded disc drive is really needed from the current one.

@AhmadSumadi i read that as: physical games was the last thing keeping those gamers in the ps ecosystem. if sony removes the last feature that was keeping them there, then there is no longer a reason to stick around.

pc offers other benefits that ps lacks and will sway people to jump ship. sony has not accounted for the mess they are creating here. no matter how you look at it and what your own personal preferences are, sony is destined to lose customers and revenue over this move... less revenue means less investment in software and less risks... this is bad for everyone, digital and physical gamers alike. i don't understand the argument of: "well, this doesn't affect me, i have been digital for 10 years already!" (not referring to you, but others i have seen posting). that is an entitled and selfish way of looking at it.

I'm out. I'm not buying a PS6 at a likely high price to be tied to high digital prices with no resale. If I want to do that I'll just use my PC. if I have to go without exclusives then so be it.

In the old days like most of the PS4 era when Sony actually had good discounts for their own games then it was easy to wait a few months as the discounts also came quicker.

Sony are cutting off their nose to spite their own face here.

Yes because removing choices for the customer is somehow innovation. Plus let's not forget this announcement is coming literally days after they removed a bunch of movies from people's accounts and they paid for. I sense a lawsuit brewing.

@S1ayeR74 It does matter. A lot.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I assume those movie purchases were not downloadable. Or, if they were, the download only served as an offline option for streaming them. Which is basically an indefinite rental.

Digital games are, like I said, essentially a license to make a hard copy of data. Which is more like select purchases on Vimeo, wherein you can download content and store it however you want.

The biggest hurdles for digital ownership are revoking licenses for breaking terms and agreements, renewing licenses if servers permanently go offline, and data only being compatible with proprietary storage formats. Companies straight up deleting purchases is about as likely as them releasing system updates "bricking" physical discs. There is no precedent, and the movie thing really doesn't prove anything.

For me personally I can't see the point of paying for online when I can get it for free and likely get cheaper digital games on Steam. Will be buying Steam Machine when readily available and stick with Switch 2 until it goes the same way.

There's a term for that: enshi77ification
Vote with your wallets people! No GTA 6 and no PS6 for me.
Plenty of old games to play for a lifetime.

I swore aloud on reading the headline.

Stick it up your arse, Sony. I like owning the things I spend my money on. I look forward to the day they rug-pull things I've paid for like they have just done to anyone who bought StudioCanal movies on their store.

@NerdyPaul Sales of new release games average pretty much 50/50 on major new releases based on what we know. Some are higher towards physical, others are lower. It's digital only, catalog and sales titles that really push the needle to the ratios Sony declare in their financials.

@twitchtvpat and don't forget that your digital library, the licences are all stored on your Digital Playstation Account so your old (PS4/PS5) digitally purchased games can also be brought forward to new hardware even if that new hardware doesn't have a Disc Drive.

So if PS6 and future Hardware doesn't come with a Disk drive - not only because a disk drive is too slow for games to run from and the discs themselves may not have the capacity to fit the whole game on to it anyway, but also because it adds to the cost and only really required for Backwards Compatibility for the legacy Physical Libraries.

Digital games allow the Consumer to play on any 'compatible' hardware when you sign into your account - whether that is next gen via BC or a portable/handheld style - the 'Play Anywhere' option because Digital provides that 'freedom'.

I do understand that Physical has its advantages - most notably the ability to sell to recuperate costs, but digital has advantages too.

As someone who hasn't bought physical in over 5+ years I guess I don't care. I don't believe anyone here for one second when they say they will stop buying games either. This is your hobby and you'll participate in it regardless because it's what you've done your entire life. Sony knows this. 85% of sales are already digital. It's nice to see acting tough on the internet is still trendy though.

People that have commented on here that prefer digital ,thats fine ,but there are still awful lot of gamers thst much prefer physical ,it gives gaming soul as one thing plus other advantages,its choice that gamers want absolturly nothing wrong with that and i personally have always much prefered physical ,now need another major company to come in with a disc based console to give sony some major competition going forward

@NerdyPaul depends how you define "just fine". these companies want to continue to grow their business — they are doing everything in their power to become stagnant and price people out of the hobby. i actually don't see playstation doing well with the ps6... the high cost to entry will likely hurt their hardware sales, reduce their install base and have a negative impact on software creation and revenue generation. across the board, it is going to be really tough on sony. remains to be seen, but optically, everything is looking bad right now.

gta 6 will be the test. many people are going to have a hard time downloading 200GB of data due to a lack of infrastrcuture. publishers leaving money on the table doesn't sound ideal does it?

@PsBoxSwitchOwner I buy only digital since I had my pro, but can count me as a backer (and part of the problem, unfortunately) of your cause.

I did buy physixal all the time but with the pro I buy day one games I want as such eith discounted vouchers and everything else in the sale.

I do still buy physical switch / 2 games (got rhythm heaven coming as I type, and star fox last week) though; and even double dip with the online and AAA switch games for the consoles to keep the carts mint. So its not like I'm short of cash if I want a game, and my reqson for supporting your comment despite my ps5 shopping habits.

But yep - this is completely anti consumer. I see why theyre doing it. And its now obvious (to me) the ps6 "handheld" will most probably be a SSD machine to make a few quid profit on the components, whikst also making people go further down the digital rabbit hole; therefore tying more into the ps infrastructure.

Also my friend messaged me about this and said its a nail on the coffin for ps6. For those that were buying it anyway; maybe. For those on the fence, certainly. I wasn't going to buy a ps6 for the quoted current prices anyway, and feel semi justified now in giving in quickly and selling ny ps5 and getting a pro after the long transition between 4 and 5 and now the dev times and component prices. I may get a handheld (cost dependant) and i already have a portal for times like this summer where if the world cup is a but dull I can still listen and play.

So really Sony have a massive uphill battle (i believe) with current owners, future owners, and those on the fence with all these "market affected decisions" they are making.

The ONLY plus I can see from this is that the machines will be maybe £50+ cheaper as there will be no drive moving forward, but is that going to suddenly drive people towards a £1k machine? I doubt it.

"Waaaaaa I'm out" they all say whilst spitting their dummies out of the pram.

Stop lying. Much like “waaa I’m boycotting game X because of micro transactions", we all know you will keep buying games.

I personally think it is great news that climate change deniers and micro plastic pollution deniers, have the option to continue with their harmful behaviour, taken away from them.

Welcome to PC circa 2003, glad you could finally leave the Stone ages and join us.

Even if you already buy all digital, this decision will hit your pocketbook. Sony will have a monopoly on digital pricing.

Definitely fantastic news for the environment. Less plastic and discs and also the energy and machines used to produce them.

@themightyant The wording of the statement seems to suggest they will open up to third parties for digital.

Was already all digital anyway, so it doesn't really affect me personally outside of the overall impact it will have on the industry at large. More people will buy fewer games, which means less success for game companies and likely fewer games being made.

I mean we knew all of this was coming eventually. I'm pretty sure Microsoft will announce this eventually as well.

Times are changing and digital will be the way too go, which I think will suck for those of us who like to get good sales on games(me included) but hopefully we get better sales on games in the future when everything is digital.

I do wonder how amazon and other retailers will handle digital codes for games and sales on the games but this a year and a half out so they have time to figure it out.

Also people can say they won't buy games from Playstation/Microsoft or Nintendo if they decide to go digital only but eventually you won't have a choice if your a fan of certain games when they come out.

@RoomWithaMoose No, people BOUGHT the films, just the same as if you bought the disk from Amazon, but Sony has DELETED the films from there accounts, they no longer own or have the films.. they can and HAVE done the same with the games. You do NOT own ANY digital media, fact, despite the, fact, you are presented as 'buying' the game for purchase.

Losing the ability to share games. Losing the ability to play games if a server goes offline.

I've been banned one time, for 14 days on PSN before and during that entire 2 weeks I was unable to play any of my digital games from my library. The only games that worked during my ban were my physical copies. This revelation led me to almost exclusively buy physical from that point forward, I had felt first hand how much we DON'T own our software.

This is absolutely insane, and absolutely sad. The medium I have spent 30+ years enjoying and collecting is going to change drastically in the coming years.

You will own nothing and be happy I guess.

Wait until you are old enough to consider moving to a different country, let alone region, then the beauty of your all digital future will hit you like a brick.

@Ravix This is probably one of many layers to it though, there will a heck of a lot people who only buy second hand and as production costs and time escalates then it starts to look like pretty daft from a business perspective. I'm practically all digital so don't really have a horse in this race but I'm hoping there is a sensible discussion around all this.

@axelhander That's an interesting read and honestly the biggest issue is a cultural one to me. The fact is 90% of people don't play a game more than once, and would probably never know if a game was even taken from them. So when you have a adoption rate that high, nothing is really ever going to change because the majority of people simply don't care. The internet has distorted this reality because you can come here, see a poll of 3k people at +60% say this is some kind of deal breaker, and convince yourself the average person cares. I think a lot of people here have forgot they aren't the main customer Sony is even looking for. They want people who spend money on new games, not people who act like playing titles from the PS1 era is some badge of honor. It's like driving onto a BMW lot and bragging about your Toyota with 200k miles on it... you aren't their target, lol.

This is the bravest thing I've seen since Apple abolished the headphone jack.

This is sad for collectors and sharing games with friends.

It seems inevitable though. I buy 80% or more of my games digitally anyways, almost always during a sale.

@Markatron84 But not even a dongle can fix this problem.

I was always planning to go completely digital for PS6 and Helix anyway so this doesn't affect me. My entire PSVR2 collection (around 100 games) is digital because of the hassle of changing discs while wearing the headset.

This sucks for people who only want physical games though. ☹️

I keep seeing stories about Blu-ray and DVD sales skyrocketing because people are sick of streaming. Having multiple places like Netflix, Prime, Disney+ etc. and still not always being able to view what you want is massively frustrating.

Look, I’m all for keeping plastic discs out of the landfill but things need to change in relation to this change.
You can’t just sell digital only licenses and then pull your store down someday so folks can’t download or use them anymore.
Downloading music and movies is different because you can burn that to discs and you have ways to play it elsewhere and back it up.
Games? No way to do it. If I can’t make a copy of my game I bought so I can play it down the line, I’m likely not buying it.
There are certain games that are staples in my life, Death Stranding being one of them.
This really sucks. If they provide a way to burn our own copies or something, it wouldn’t be such a big deal. With no way to archive or save on our end, it’s a huge kick in the nards.

to everyone saying they’ll quit gaming - no you won’t, yall ain’t going anywhere.

@S1ayeR74 You don't seem to be understanding what I'm asking.

Let's try this: What are examples of games that have suffered the same fate as those movies?

Voted “yes I’ll buy less” but that’s specific for Sony and Nintendo (if they go down that path too).

Most my purchases in an all digital future will go to Valve, and perhaps Xbox because they did a good job at keeping my games accessible when they closed the 360 store + Play Anywhere.

@SoonForget source? sony's blog clearly states retailers are going to be selling codes.

That's very stupid move

@RoomWithaMoose tbh people are just here to rage bait , its fake outrage , i doubt they bought a single movie off of the playstation store , or even know that sony stopped selling movies since 2021.

Sony's software price monopolistic ambitions come to complete fruition.

(Sarcasm alert.) So Sony will sell less consoles moving forwards but will maintain profitability and now they will sell less games too and possibly increase profits too..they will be rolling in it. I'll just wait for sales because there's no way I'll be paying day one prices..

@KundaliniRising333 👍

If digital isn't ownership then piracy isn't stealing.

I had low expectations, and I'm still let down.

@twitchtvpat I mean, pushback is fair and expected.

I just don't think a lot of people ardently against digital purchases know how they work. Which makes sense, because they've never made them.

Sure, just screw over those of us that live in places with sub-optimal internet access. Acting like the whole world has fantastic internet access to sustain such a change.
What does this mean for my physical movie and tv collection? Will I have to keep my PS5 hooked up to the tv after getting a PS6 to watch them?

@Markatron84 The mention of Apple deleting the headphone jack reminds me of this bit of irony.

If you want a modern flagship phone with a headphone jack, SD Card support, and wireless charging - all things difficult to find all together if at all - do you know what phone to buy?

A Sony Xperia. Even the one that came out 11 days ago has all of it. You'd have to go back years to find a Samsung phone with all of that built in.

Finally! Thought this would’ve happened on PS5 but Sony was too afraid. Glad they’re finally pulling the trigger so people can finally get over their addiction of physical media and making their trip to the store to buy games. It’s not like these people buy CD’s and blu-ray movies…

Well, on the positive side, this might be the hammer to finally nail GameStop's coffin.

@For-Kier Good points, and you're probably right.

The worst part I think is they rarely release a demo any more so there is no way to try a game. With physical game if I do not like it I can sell it and I am not out the full 100 bucks games are going to cost.

Gaming has got stupid lately. It is almost like they want people to stop gaming.

I couldn't be more disappointed and sad to see this news. Not that the writing wasn't already on the wall, but I think it may finally mean the end of console gaming for me after 45 years, going back to the good ol' Intellivision.

I'm not paying to rent my games, period!

I'll just permanently live in a retro gaming space which is a fantastic thing to have lived and experienced first hand.

Ive been all digital for a very long time, but always liked the option of both.

My primary concern here is that Sony just set the bar by deleting movies that people owned. I personally am impacted by that deletion choice.

Whats to keep that limited to games with Sony? MSFT and nintendo have delisted things, but ive never really lost access to something I had already bought before.

With this in mind, along with the exponential increases in the hobby and the sameness of so many titles, I think the ps5 pro will be my last sony console. (I was already considering this, but this just piles more reasons to avois sony)

Thats it PC master race here i come, sony can charge you what ever they want as no other options. Sony can Fk off.