RetroFed
PlayStation’s Physical Media-Free Future Isn’t Just Concerning, It’s Offensive
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The original was posted on /r/games by /u/Gorotheninja on 2026-07-03 01:48:30+00:00.
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They are taking ground step by step. We must push back.
You push back by switching to PC (preferrably Linux) and never giving Sony a single cent ever again
ripcord…where you can buy physical media! And resell your games!
DupaCycki…where you can pirate every single one of Sony’s games. And emulate not ported ones. Pirated too, of course. Pirate and seed even if you have no intention of playing.
ItsamelemmyWhile completely ignoring the fact that there is at least competition on pc and therefore more likely to get the games for significantly cheaper. No online costs. And at least 2 of the PC storefronts have never given us a reason to fear losing our library that we paid for. And if they ever did enshitify and steal our digital games from us, we could easily sail the seas and recover our games.
How can you? They’ve done the numbers and have decided they can exist without customers who have to have physical discs. Physical media only makes up 25% of sales to begin with.
They’re expecting people to give in. It’s easier to buy something digitally, but it sure as hell ain’t better. They are counting on us shrugging our shoulders, throwing our hands up, but ultimately giving up and giving in.
Don’t.
The people who have an issue with Sony’s business practices are already not buying their products, like me for instance.
They’ve already decided that they don’t want you as a customer. It’s like telling your boss, “You can’t fire me; I quit.”
The last thing I need is more crap around the house. I vastly prefer digital, as long as I get the files and can do anything I want with them.
I am opposed to DRM, but digital itself is far preferable. When I travel knowing I can grab any game I want from my server (before or even after I arrive) and play it on any device I want is far superior to having to carry around physical items that only work with one device - a device I also would have to bring with me.
The problem is people already gave in when they choose a system that is useless for anything except one specific purpose and one specific game format.
Your last sentence fits perfectly about their hardware.
It is better for many people. It all depends on what you prefer. I personally prefer having a full digital library that I can share via home console sharing, that I can access at any time from any Internet connected console at any time, that I don’t have to worry about my kids damaging or losing my disks, and that I can just buy and play at any time of day. I’m middle aged with kids, I’m not loaning games to friends or trading games in.
It costs more of my time to drive to the shops to buy a game than I’d save over buying digital, and as you get older you understand that time is the most important thing you have.
I have 1 physical PS5 disc. Everything else is digital. I get the convenience factor. But after Sony just deleted over 500 movies that people bought from their library, I don’t trust Sony. So even preferring digital, I will never buy another digital product from them. I’ll still play wolverine and other exclusives, but I’m buying physical. And used, because fuck you Sony, you aren’t getting another cent from me. I’ve had every single console, including the vita and PS+ since the ps3, that recently got canceled when the stopped letting you stack membership.
AshtearSimple, you buy competitors’ products and you vote for policymakers that commit to regulatory policy.
CouldbealeotardI’m going to fight this by purchasing digital games on steam. That’ll show ‘em.
But seriously, this isn’t an attack from Sony, it’s a reaction. People are trending towards digital purchases on all platforms. If the PlayStation is irrelevant without physical games then they will die by their own sword. Prior to this plenty of people were denigrating consoles as overpriced locked down computers anyway, this hardly makes a difference.
If this was a lone decision, it’s a reaction. Same time as deleting purchased movies from your library is an attack.
Look, I recently jail broke my PS3, now I can put any digital game from PS1,PS2, PS3 or PSP. I can also rip my discs to the hard drive. Discs for games are irrelevant for me. I prefer digital games on any platform these days, and of the service providers device to remove my ownership I will take that as a sign that I can procure them through other methods.
That’s great for older hardware. I just modded my switch. I might look into it for my ps3 or ps4 as well. Would potentially bring life back to a device thats collecting dust in storage.
Do you have the ps3 that has the ps2 hardware in it? I got a later model that I think that backwards compatibly hardware was removed. Wondering if you could still play ps2, or if you need one of the original models?
Regulatory policy to force a company to make a product?
NikeluiRegulatory policy for customer protection. The “stop killing games” initiative raises good points: make games playable in perpetuity and clearly state if you are only renting a license, rather than buying.
To preserve a right to ownership. But you knew that already.
It’s much less than 25% actually.
As you said, they’ve got literally all the data on game sales on their platform. They know that digital is the winner for the large majority of their customers. As you said, they know they don’t need physical buyers as they’re people who generally give less money to them anyway.
Rolls eyes. This is getting so boring. It’s Sony. You don’t need games. You certainly don’t need their hardware.
I couldn’t care less.
Edit: left out a word! No wonder people jumped on me, lol. I meant to say you don’t need SONYS games.
Why do people feel the need to announce they don’t care about something?
Because this is freaking everywhere. People won’t shut up about it, and it’s Sony. Have people not been paying attention?
Are you not aware that this is a gaming community
Yep. No sense in complaining at all the other places. And Sony has been fucking over people forever, its what they do.
Yeah this guy is right. You don’t need games. We should shut down this whole community. In fact, destroy all aspects of society that have ever had the slimmest negatives that aren’t vital to daily survival
No more offensive than two streaming companies offering the movie “It Part I” on one companies subscription and “It Part II” on another’s. They’re just blatantly pissing in our face from above and yelling “Fuck You!” out in the open now.
tb_I know they won’t, but Microsoft has the chance to do something hilarious right now.
HarkMahlbergThey basically put all their eggs in the Gamepass basket, and Gamepass sure as hell wasn’t physical discs. If it was, it would just be Blockbuster… which is actually kinda funny to think about.
BeigeAgendaKnowing Microsoft they would rather make all their games rent only and non transferable.
Is the hilarious thing to follow suit and announce the end of them offering physical disks?
They’ll probably release a new Series S as a streaming only console. And a new Series X, maybe with a disc drive. Gen after that it’ll be streaming only.
Thin client xbox and stream games only doesn’t sound too hilarious, but I think that’s what we’ll see.
nicpicnameFuck Sony
axxIsn’t this one of the biggest things that tanked Xbox’s series x announcement? Like, they changed their minds but still lost good will and customers?
You might be thinking of the Xbox One. That reveal had a number of major unforced errors, but the killing of the used game market was the one everyone remembers because Sony REALLY nailed them to the cross with it.
Other hilarious fumbles include:
- The name.
- Forced inclusion of the Kinect, a mandatory $100 always-on camera and microphone in your living room, in the same year that the Snowden leaks happened.
- Underpowered DDR3 memory compared to the PS4’s GDDR5.
- Unwavering, pathological obsession with using the Xbox as a TV set-top box, going so far as to showing The Price is Right on stage. For context for younger people, The Price is Right was your great grandmother’s favorite show.
Actually, rewatching that video, this is basically where the Ball and Gun Gamer was born. Xbox really was forward thinking on this one specific thing…
You’re misremembering too. They didn’t want to kill the used game market. You were still going to be able to trade in your games.
Their original Xbox One system was the best of both physical and digital combined in one.
🇰 🌀 🇱 🇦 🇳 🇦 🇰 🇮Imagine if, like, 6 years after Steam launched, Valve deleted 500 games from the libraries of those who bought them and didn’t refund anyone. I guarantee nobody would be using it in 2026 if that happened.
What makes this interesting is, for some period, Valve did sell movies. You could even download the WMVs of the Meet the Team trailers.
Pretty sure that’s not been deleted from anyone.
The only movie I ever got was Kung Fury; and, yeah, I still have it. Tho finding where it was now took a minute.
That was the last thing consoles had going for them. The only thing that will keep the next gen from flopping is inertia and maybe EXTREMELY aggressive pricing.
Sony can’t be trusted with digital content: https://consumerrights.wiki/w/Sony%27s_attempted_removal_of_%22purchased%22_content They can’t be trusted to keep providing support for digital content storefronts https://gameinformer.com/2021/03/22/ps3-ps-vita-and-psp-stores-are-closing-permanently-this-year-according-to-new-report And they can’t be trusted te keep offering features they announced https://consumerrights.wiki/w/PlayStation_3_Removal_of_OtherOS_with_System_Update_3.21
So, yeah, why would I buy a box with built in obsolescence from a company who has pressed the “make obsolete” button multiple times? If I’m buying downloadable games I’ll do so on a platform that I can run in any machine I want to, and that will keep supporting things I bought for decades to come.
It’s not the physical media that makes this suck. It’s the fact that there are no protections in place for ordinary customers to prevent them from being abused like this.
Virtual digital media is just fine. The problem is that it’s all DRM-wrapped garbageware that is “licensed” not owned. It ought to be fucking illegal to sell this kind of shit.
kintherI haven’t bought physical media in years. I haven’t lost any games by buying digital only. That said, there is something concerning about the ability of companies to take away what you have already paid for, or retire it from a platform.
Once sold, you should have to be able to sell it back - something like “we’re offering you $0.50 to sell your copy of RandomGame2008 you haven’t played in 18 years”. I bet you a bunch of people would agree to that if it was credited to a wallet toward new games. I have a backlog of games I would sell that I bought… on sale… bought never ended up playing.
Blah, blah, blah. So tired of hearing about this.
Nobody should be trusting Sony, disc or no disc.
Rootkit anyone?
Twice Linux promised and then removed with a bait and switch?
So Sony isn’t going to have physical disks, so fucking what. Just other thing on the pile.
NekoKonekoI think you’d agree with me that it matters enough to comment on.
Yet your dumb ass has commented here a bunch of times.
Yep. Might as well do it somewhere.
Nice to call me a dumbass. You a sony boot licker or what?
I still remember when they promised the Xperia Play would get Android 4.0, released a beta, and then never released a final version and it remained on 2.3.4!! We remember, Sony!!!
Just don’t buy it? Gaming console is a luxury product
If console games get more expensive because of this, PC games will follow.
Console games are more expansive than PC, and miraculously that doesn’t happen
When console games went to €70 all PC games miraculously remained at €60—
Oh, wait, no. That didn’t happen.
And sure, that’s not most games. There are a lot of indies which are far more reasonably priced. Either way, the €60 price ceiling previously in place has moved up, making it easier for AA and indie games to move up in price as well.
“Just don’t buy those games!” Sure, whatever man. All I’m saying is that there is some influence between the two.
whoisearthI’m one of the indifferent ones and I would actually echo the companies in “no one buys physical media anymore and the stats prove it”.
Now that doesn’t mean it’s right. I’m also there I love used game shops and I still will once in a while buy a game for my Xbox series x.
That said, for decades now PC games have been dl through steam. People very much do not buy physical games. The only difference is this is a walled ecosystem in PS (or MS as I’m sure they will follow suite if they survive the console wars). Nintendo?
So I guess what I’m saying is although I get the hatred, where have all you fuckers been while physical media has pretty much disappeared everywhere? Or is the truth that you are all a vocal minority screaming into a hurricane?
I’m not looking to stir up shit. I honestly want to know. I would probably still buy an Xbox if it’s cheap and game pass is around and no physical media. I can always go back to PC gaming if I want. I still have the choice. To complain about a company business decision though if they really believe it’s where the market is going (and I think I agree) then good on them. Just don’t buy a PS6?
I agree. Haven’t got a physical game in 20 years. But again i don’t play console.
Console gamers like their physical media. You own it. You can collect it, you can sell it.
Yeah and this is where the rub is I guess. On a PC you can pirate. On a PC you can easily mod. There’s a level of freedom that is not gated like on a console.
Historically, consoles have not been cost prohibitive so they’re more attractive.
“Wait, I can play God of War and I don’t have to pay $1500 for a PC?” (Let’s ignore the truth you can build a computer for much cheaper to play games many people don’t go that far)
So I’m with you, this is console gamers. Which goes back to my point this is PS (and will be MS and Nintendo soon enough) and industry is going to the death of physical media this is the sad reality. If they want to do that to save costs and have the added benefit to further control their gated ecosystem good on them. You always can go to PC.
I’ve been a console gamer almost exclusively for 15+ years now (aside from a handful of steam games I can run on a low spec old laptop). Are console gamers really this lazy + entitled?
sp3ctr4lAha!
IGN waits 48 hrs to have an opinion, and they go with offensive.
No, that’s not hard enough, you fucking shills.
Its criminal. It subverts the entire concept of personal property rights. It is so offensive that to let it stand would be an ongoing affront to quite literally human rights.
If you allow a paradigm to exist, in an increasingly digital world and economy, that your digital goods can be evaporated, at whim, by the seller, after you purchased them, with no refund?
You get cyberpunk dystopia from this. You turn corporations formally into more powerful entities than most states.
The only reason you fucking morons describe this as baffling is because you are their second order PR agency. You’re idiots, its been obvious this was the plan for over a decade… you cannot possibly be surprised by this without being corporate cucks.
You fucking cunts dare to angle yourselves as sharing the same concerns as SKG, as Ross Scott?
Where the fuck were you a decade ago when Ross started talking about this? You’re a goddamned media company, you could have signal boosted him this whole fucking time… or even just mentioned it, maybe?
Fuck you Luke, you duplicitous bootlicking hack.
Sony has a shitty history of anti-consumer behaviours, and no one should buy anything from them, but not selling something isn’t a crime; it’s not even illegal.
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