Sony to End PlayStation Game Discs in 2028

Sony framed the decision as a "natural direction" that reflects shifting consumer habits, noting that the general preference for digital media now significantly outpaces physical discs. Industry data supports the claim: according to Sony, digital downloads accounted for roughly 80% of its full-game software sales in fiscal 2025, up from just 13% when the PlayStation 4 launched in 2013, as analyst Piers Harding-Rolls of Ampere Analysis observed. The company began its pivot in 2020, releasing a disc-free version of the PlayStation 5, and many observers believe the move all but confirms that the next-generation PlayStation 6 will be digital-only.

Still, the shift has drawn sharp criticism. Gaming journalist Vikki Blake called it a "body blow to consumer rights", warning that it threatens game preservation and penalizes lower-income players who rely on trading or borrowing titles to afford expensive releases. Retailers and collectors fear losing the secondhand market, while Joost van Dreunen, a games professor at New York University, noted that dropping discs improves margins but demands costly extra storage. Critics also point to Sony's decision to remove more than 500 purchased films and television shows from users' libraries, fuelling wider anxiety about what "ownership" means in a digital age. Sony has yet to say whether players will ever be able to transfer digital games.