YouTube Comments Are Going To Change PlayStation's Mind About Physical Media

Physical Media Is Dying, And PlayStation Doesn't Care That You're Upset About It Currys Published Jul 22, 2026, 12:01 PM EDT Jade King is Lead Features Editor at The Gamer and University of Sussex journalism graduate with 10+ years covering the video game industry. She has been seen in outlets such as Trusted Reviews, Kotaku UK, VICE, and more over the years covering everything from the latest releases to major events to in-depth interviews. She loves nothing more than speaking with devs, creatives, voice actors, and so many others about the passion behind their craft and bringing that into the hearts of readers everywhere. It has been a couple of weeks now since Sony announced it would abandon physical media starting in January 2028, a window that likely aligns with the launch of PS6 as well as confirmation it will be a digital-only and very expensive console. As expected, people are not happy with this decision, with thousands of players boycotting PlayStation by cancelling Plus memberships, refusing to make further digital purchases or piling into the comments of every single video uploaded by the company to voice their virtual protest. And I’m right there with them in believing this is a terrible decision that will have a terrible impact on preservation, user rights, and the general state of the industry, as PlayStation is free to enact a monopoly on digital ecosystems. When it is the only place we can buy games in a few years’ time, Sony can control pricing, licenses, and decide whether we’re allowed to access the things we’ve paid good money for whenever they like. Unfortunately for us, Sony remains the market leader, and not nearly enough of its overall audience is protesting for it to even consider changing course. This is the future, and it sucks. PlayStation's Digital Future Is Coming Whether We Like It Or Not Sucker Punch Reports have suggested that Sony has already begun repurposing facilities previously used for manufacturing video game discs for other functions, meaning this change has been in the works for quite some time now, and we’re only just finding out about it. Regardless of how we feel about it, this is a large-scale operation that, on a global scale, will take a long time, along with requiring some serious behind-the-scenes logistics. Going back on this due to negative consumer sentiment wouldn’t be good business sense, even if I hate it with my entire being. There’s also the bottom line for a digital-only landscape in terms of profits. Far more money goes directly to PlayStation, and not a single penny goes to retailers selling physical copies. It would be nice if the lack of manufacturing and shipping costs would result in far lower prices, but we know that Sony won’t do that. It will nickel and dime us for everything it can, while knowing we’ll have no alternate route like more affordable physical versions or even pre-owned copies floating around at brick and mortar stores. Lending games will be a thing of the past too, unless PlayStation introduces some sort of sharing feature like Steam or Nintendo. Surely something like this will need to exist in the future? PlayStation Game Cards on the Switch 2 are far from perfect, but I’m able to share my library with family and friends using different consoles with relative ease. Despite Sony moving forward with its abandonment of physical media, I do think it will influence millions of gamers around the world. There are countless places in which internet speeds still aren’t where they need to be to download triple-A games in sufficient amounts of time, meaning many people will be stuck waiting to play games, or simply won’t be able to at all because their local circumstances prevent such a thing. They will be left behind as PlayStation pursues record profits and video games become this prohibitively expensive hobby that fewer and fewer people are able to access. It’s an art form that deserves to be accessible to all, but in a capitalist society where the dollar always wins, that perspective is impossible. We already exist in a world where physical discs are simply a formality anyway, and playing a game still requires a digital download, massive update, or to prove you are online and able to access a server that gate keeps the entire experience. This digital-only future is simply the next step. Why Speaking Out Against PlayStation Is So Important I know the headline of this article highlights how fruitless it is for the masses to speak up against major corporations, but there is proof that such measures have worked in the past. Sony has already delayed the closure of the PS3 and PS Vita digital storefronts due to how we were so demonstrably angry about it, with them finally closing up shop next year across all territories. Every single YouTube video being uploaded by PlayStation right now, whether it be a massive trailer for a triple-A behemoth or an extensive glimpse at small indies, is filled with users protesting the death of physical media and how the company is making a huge mistake that it will come to regret. People who care about owning their games and not having their pastimes at the whims of a singular corporate giant. You have to hope that somebody is listening, or at the very least, PR managers are telling idiots in suits sitting at the top that people are going to walk away from PlayStation forever because of this. We already know that developers aren’t happy, since so many of them are passionate gamers themselves and understand the importance of physical media and the permanence it brings. Going digital only will simply encourage people to pirate, emulate, or walk away from the hobby altogether, even if they don’t wish to. But when loads of gamers were celebrating the digital launch of Black Ops 1+2 mere weeks after protesting, you have to question how committed people are to the cause or if it’s all for nothing. If PlayStation can see the money coming in and has crunched the numbers enough to know it will be worth the risk, there isn’t a force on this Earth capable of stopping it. Keep on invading the comment sections, keep on voicing your opinion, and hopefully it will lead somewhere. Even if it doesn’t, at least we tried. Brand Sony Original Release Date November 12, 2020 Original MSRP (USD) Disc Edition: $499.99; Digital Edition: $399.99 Processor AMD Zen 2, 8-core / 16 threads, 3.5GHz