This is a seismic shift in the world of video games. I can’t find the words to describe how I feel.
This week on July 1st, Sony announced that they will discontinue physical media by January 2028. After that date, all games released on PlayStation consoles will be digital-only (and there’s no doubt that Microsoft is preparing to do the same, especially given the rumors about their new console). This bombshell announcement comes hand in hand with Rockstar’s announcement that pre-orders are now open for the world’s most anticipated game, Grand Theft Auto VI (GTAVI), which will be available exclusively as a digital download (physical versions will not include a disc, only a code for the digital version).
For just under a decade, the industry has been led by people who aren’t passionate about video games and who want to use video games as a stepping stone for a number of social and digital projects. On Internet, I’ve strongly opposed three things the industry pushed and keep pushing today: NFTs in video games, which have created a scam where the last person in line can no longer resell the assets they’ve invested in; forced progressivism in fiction, which censors a project’s creativity and originality in order to “not offend anyone” and “appeal to the widest audience”; and the use of AI-generated content, which threatens the jobs of real talents. What these three things have in common is the pursuit of profit. MONEY.
Today, this same industry which has pulled various dirty tricks on consumers now wants to get away with physical media, that’s not surprising coming from them. The end of physical media means more money for them, since there will be no more disc production, no more logistics to manage, and no more middlemen to negotiate with. Microsoft was already looking to move away from physical media, starting with the release of the Xbox One in 2013 and, most notably, the launch of its Game Pass subscription service in 2017. In fact, I had already explained what Game Pass should have been like to make it truly appealing (instead of trying so hard to mimic Netflix). At the time, Sony itself had mocked Microsoft in a “How to Share Your Video Game” video which, of course, has now aged very poorly. It’s clear that several companies are pulling the strings here; even if this is a setup, it’s not exclusively the work of Sony or Rockstar alone.
We could talk about the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) and its actions against the #StopKillingGames initiative, but we need to go back in time a bit. In 2024, Ubisoft through of the speech of Philippe Tremblay made some rather unsettling remarks to consumers, suggesting that they “would feel comfortable owning nothing.” After all, Ubisoft was advocating for subscription models and video game rentals. But that same year, Ubisoft released Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora on PS5 and XS, their first physically incomplete game on disc. A single disc that required an internet connection to install the game. While this was already a blow to video game preservation, Nintendo from anyone else surprised players in 2025 with the release of the NS2 by even producing an official format for publishers featuring cartridges with incomplete data, making the situation even more tense…
Because just like there are defenders of NFT/cryptocurrencies, “woke” movement or even the “AIbros”, some people are defending the incomplete PS5/XS and NS2 games arguing that this is inevitable and, above all, that you can always resell these games. But what these people forget is that it’s actually possible for a game to span multiple discs. Baldur’s Gate III on the XS is 4 discs. Final Fantasy VII Rebirth on PS5 and Cyberpunk 2077 Ultimate Edition on XS are both on two discs. I have Lost Odyssey on X360, which spans four discs. GTAV on PC was seven discs compared to two on X360! Complete games spanning multiple discs because they contain a lot of data, it’s been that way since the PS1. Since the very first PlayStation. Since 1994. Pushing for digital distribution with the convenience of the Internet—all of this is, once again, purely for the sake of money, and it’s truly regrettable that there are people at the helm of the video game industry and people who defend this approach who don’t think about the consequences. The future of physical stores and the second hand markets is doomed.
Can we do anything to fight back against these corporations? When video games like Fortnite, EA Sports FC (formerly FIFA), Minecraft, and the Call of Duty series are among the most-played games in the world and given the general public’s low expectations, I don’t think so. At best, we need to require that physical formats discs and cartridges alike continue to be produced (and, above all, that games to be playable without an internet connection, the physical copies must be complete), even if this means production remains on a small scale and becomes niche by which I mean in the same way as music and audiovisual media (movies, TV shows, etc.) are still available today in physical formats, even though they are no longer the primary means of consumption for the general public. The important thing is to have a choice.
In any case, the end of physical media means, for me, the end of purchasing PlayStation consoles (and Xbox consoles if Microsoft confirms their future plans). Although I have plans for making digital video games, I’m not a consumer of digital games. I mainly buy games on discs and cartridges, and the only digital games I play are free-to-play titles (Fire Emblem Heroes, Goddess of Victory: NIKKE, Horizon Walker, Brown Dust II, The First Descendant…). And of course, I do hope that one day my visual novels end to be released on physical media! And I still have retrogaming to enjoy and a collection of Game Boy / GCN / PS2 / Xbox / PS3 / X360 / DS / Wii / WiiU / 3DS / PS4 and XO games to finish anyway. This is not the end of my passion for video game. But things are going to change a lot, yes.
Otherwise, in a future where video games are 100% digital, consumers absolutely need guarantees in writing—or even enshrined in international law if necessary. Guarantees of lifetime access to items purchased online, of course, but I think it’s especially important to ensure that, regardless of future consoles, games remain backward compatible for players in order to combat planned obsolescence. For example: If Capcom releases “Monster Hunter” on PS6, that game must remain natively playable on PS7 and PS8 without the need to redevelop it. It’s difficult, but it’s necessary because otherwise, trust between consumers and companies cannot be sustained over time. And because, that’s very dumb: Why should keep playing on PlayStation/Xbox when I can have Steam and keep all my digital games even after upgrading my PC?…
