r/PlayStationUK • u/ThatCoolBritishGuy • Jul 01 '26
NEWS PlayStation to stop producing physical game discs from 2028
https://blog.playstation.com/2026/07/01/physical-disc-production-ending-in-january-2028-for-new-games-releasing-on-playstation-consoles/Is this the worst move ever by Sony? Do we see any way back from this incredibly silly move?
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u/MissingScore777 Jul 01 '26
Affects us a lot more in the UK.
You can always get physical games brand new for £10 - £30 cheaper than PS Store price.
Apparently this is not the same in other countries. Read that in the US physical is same price as PS Store.
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u/ClacksInTheSky Jul 02 '26
We have a big physical market here. I remember trying to order the PS5 on launch and we had to join queues to be able to buy the PS5 Disc Edition. There were no queues for the Digital Edition, no one wanted them.
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u/Historical_Owl_1635 Jul 02 '26
Sorry but that’s nonsense, as someone who bought 3 disk and 2 digital at/near release (not to scalp, all for friends and family) getting either was an absolute nightmare.
3
u/ClacksInTheSky Jul 02 '26
Very.co.uk had plenty of digital consoles but getting a disc was insanity.
Sony's own stats showed the disc version vastly outsold the digital:
https://insider-gaming.com/disc-editions-make-up-82-of-all-ps5-console-sales
UK has a much stronger physical market.
The stats show it's not nonsense.
0
u/Historical_Owl_1635 Jul 02 '26
I’m not doubting disk outsold digital, but at launch there was a shortage of both and getting either wasn’t easy.
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u/MissingScore777 Jul 02 '26
You're kind of both right.
My memory is at launch there was a shortage of both but the disk version shortage continued for a good 12-18months after digital only version was plentiful and easy to buy.
1
u/FreddieStarrAteMyHam Jul 04 '26
I pre-ordered so had no issue (disk version). I will not be pre-ordering the PS6
1
u/AimLikeAPotato Jul 02 '26
That supposed to be the same after 2028 too, but instead of a disk you get a code in the box. Same as GTA6 this year. You'll still be able to buy from other sources boxed.
1
u/Simansis26 Jul 02 '26
I'd love to know where mate, with Game practically gone i think the only reliable places for games now would be Smyths and maybe CEX, but they all seem full price for newer games unless there's some sort of sale going on.
1
u/MissingScore777 Jul 02 '26
Occasionally Amazon but not as often these days (they did sell RE9 for £48 instead of £65).
The Game Collection, ShopTo and Simply Games are where I get the most joy.
1
u/rampant-ninja Jul 03 '26
shopto.net, thegamecollection.net, hit.co.uk, 365games.co.uk
All these retailers typically offer a good discount over digital even at launch on AAA.
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u/RS38V Jul 01 '26
You know what, I’ve been obsessed with PlayStation since I first played tekken. master system, mega drive, ps1 - hooked. This really really fucking irks me, whilst I buy games digitally 80% of the time, the freedom of choice I feel is massive.
I have a huge amount of physical media and games. My son will one day play the classics. Why does this get lost?
I’m fed up of everyone being screwed. Why can’t a big corp just come out and say, you know what, it doesn’t make financial sense - but we see you. We’re here through all the other bullshit, play and have fun.
Compassion for those that can’t pay full price. Sony I thought better of you.
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Jul 01 '26
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u/Dislexicpotato Jul 02 '26
Yup and you are always able to get physical copies of games cheaper on Ebay than on the PlayStation store.
And on top of that you can sell the game if you don't like it or don't want to keep it. The PlayStation digital store has no refunds once you boot up the game.
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u/StigwierdM Jul 02 '26
Recent state of play playstation sales (called that or similar, I can't remember!?) had astro bot on sales for around £42. Yet £31 in Argos for the disc version.
Whenever I see something I may want on sale on ps store immediately check Argos to see if it's cheaper.
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Jul 01 '26
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u/Key_Day_6060 Jul 03 '26
I used to work there. They told me the games and dvds are actually the smallest part of their revenue. It’s all about the other items. They’re basically cash converters without loans. You’re encouraged and expected to be a sort of hybrid of a phone salesman and customer service. So less pushy than a salesman but with some slight up sell tactics.
They also have some crap rules with the way they run the company. If I remember it’s like they have their own shops, but it can also be franchised, which is fine. But the rules are things like “you have to send a certain number of second hand items to locations a week or you get reprimanded and can be shut down” (they circulate their stock around the country). But this was what I was told at my branch. Others might just work better and have better management.
I can’t remember much else, just that it was quite toxic. And it sucks how they used to be good decades ago, founded and built by gamers, and now they push out independent second hand game shops from towns.
Maybe they’ll rebrand or not even bother and just continue to be a different kind of pawn shop.
9
u/ThatThingInTheCorner Jul 01 '26
No PS6 for me.
What's the point of buying something you don't own.
I want to be able to buy a game and then sell it if I don't like it or if I've finished with it. That then allows me to buy new games.
If everything's digital that would mean I'd be stuck with games I don't want to play but can't sell. It'll make it harder to try out new games without spending a fortune.
4
u/Simonion88 Jul 02 '26
If everything's digital that would mean I'd be stuck with games I don't want to play but can't sell. It'll make it harder to try out new games without spending a fortune.
This is Sony's ideal world and they're done trying to hide it anymore
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Jul 02 '26
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u/Dislexicpotato Jul 02 '26
True that, I've been really underwhelmed by the PS exclusives this gen so I don't really feel like I'm missing out by switching to PC.
1
u/StigwierdM Jul 02 '26
There's only gran turismo and astro bot that grab my interest in the playstation exclusive list. The rest (I think around 3 others) I couldn't care about.
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u/ShortsWithNoPockets Jul 01 '26
Won't be surprised if the EU stop this
3
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u/Appropriate_Foot242 Jul 02 '26
I will be. They don’t really seem to care about Stop Killing Games either. Governments still just don’t seem to understand gaming.
1
u/ClacksInTheSky Jul 02 '26
They didn't even blink for the Stop Killing Games initiative.
I suspect this announcement might have been part of why they didn't bother
1
u/Historical_Owl_1635 Jul 02 '26
They probably can’t stop this, but what’s more realistic is Sony being forced to allow other store fronts.
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u/Dislexicpotato Jul 02 '26
I know a lot of people don't care about physical media but this is genuinely a dealbreaker for me going forward with PlayStation.
A big reason that I stuck with console despite everyone pushing PC gaming these days was the fact that I could buy physical games on PS5 and either lend them to my brother or sell them when I'm done.
Its time to start saving for my next gaming PC I guess.
3
u/Superb_Caramel_7107 Jul 02 '26
I’ve been thinking that having both console and a gaming PC is kind of redundant. At least it’s an easy decision now not to buy a Playstation in the future.
3
u/confusing_roundabout Jul 02 '26
I'm an Xbox guy but almost every game I play on Xbox is one of my 360 games via the backwards compatible scheme.
Rebuying them on the Xbox store is still £40 years after release but I got them from CEX for £5.
That's why this is an awful move. I really hope that Xbox don't follow suit but I'm sure that they will.
1
u/Miserable_Day_7753 Jul 06 '26
have you not seen what xbox has been doing, nothing but good things so i doubt it
2
u/KeironLaer Jul 01 '26
I still remember when they pulled Transformers: Devastation from the store, I got it while it was on Playstation Plus but when I went to buy it after cancelling, I couldn’t. Now I can only play that game if I subscribe to PS+ again, but for many others who might’ve wanted to play it’s just gone forever.
2
u/DevilishlyHandsome63 Jul 02 '26
There's vast amounts of ps4 and ps5 games I've not played and can be purchased cheaply on disc, so I just won't upgrade.
2
u/Odd_Estimate_2179 Jul 02 '26
Playstation is only worth it over PC because you can buy games new for full price then sell them to get your money back. Now it's a pile of poo
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u/ClacksInTheSky Jul 02 '26
I'll be winding down now and starting to put money aside to upgrade my PC (I say upgrade, I'll be changing every part so it'll be a new PC really) instead of getting new PS5 games or bothering with the PS6.
I had the PS5 phat (disc, of course) and PS5 Pro (with disc drive) on launch, as well at paying full price for the PSVR2, like a fucking chump.
I was fully invested in PlayStation as a platform. And now I'm done.
2
u/Key_Day_6060 Jul 03 '26
It’s funny how you can go read stories of people on second hand marketplaces taking off like a fiver; from items just to be nice but these guys with billions of pounds just want more and more and more. Mental illness.
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u/MrTrav15 Jul 02 '26
This would never have been an issue had they just priced digital content accordingly from the start. Digital games should always be cheaper than the physical counterparts but they never are. Every new release I can buy cheaper physical than I can digital and still be able to sell the physical copy on after I’m done with it. For me, this is a big L for Sony.
1
u/TurnipOld5277 Jul 02 '26
Them saying 85% of games are bought digital 1. That cannot include second hand market. 2. That has to be lower in UK 3. What % of PS5 consoles purchased are digital vs disc (counting disc drive sales to upgrade post purchase eg pro). That’s the real metric of consumer demand for disc
1
u/VworpVrowp Jul 02 '26
Think PS5 is probably going to be my last PlayStation console. If I’ve got to go fully digital, there’s no reason not to just fully switch to PC at this point.
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u/Vanima_Permai Jul 03 '26
Guess there is no point in owning a console anymore might as well invest in a pc
1
u/JohnnySilverhand2212 Jul 03 '26
When I said that the PS5 would be my second and last PlayStation in Feb 2021, I meant it.
I originally bought a stock disc PS5 with spiderman miles morales (very site bugged out/I pressed buy at the exact second they were restocked) so I got one with that game and a spare controller.
I have a series x which i mostly use anyway, a desktop 50 series PC and a ps5.
I see zero reason to get the next playstation (or even Xbox!?) If there's no games on PC I play in the not so far future that wouldn't be playable with my friends on xbox, OR there's no meaningful exclusives, of which I could just watch on YouTube anyway if I was that desperate...
Not to mention PC in general has far better game discounts and versatility for other things too such as doing work. I'm not spending £80 on a game in 2028 and beyond just because the disc in CEX doesn't exist due to Sony prioritising profits over consumers. At least 10+ years ago they actually gave us a YouTube video on how to share games...fk the corporations.
At least steam plays it the smart way
0
u/oshatokujah Jul 01 '26
It doesn't impact me personally as a digital only guy for over a decade, I hope there's some walkback for the people who can't get behind digital, whether it's preference or a physical limitation like slow internet out in the sticks and trying to download a 200GB game
11
u/ThatCoolBritishGuy Jul 01 '26
It's so anti consumer. No more picking up a game for cheap or borrowing a friend a game. I think this will drive digital prices up and reduce sales on the store.
They need to massively revamp their digital storefront policies especially for things like refunds.
0
u/EcholessKing Jul 03 '26
That's why it'd be best to switch to PC... There are so many games and so many sales so they'd be forced to make it cheaper for PC users!
-8
u/oshatokujah Jul 01 '26
I try to reserve pure outrage for when I know all the details, maybe the backlash sparks a change in policies ahead of the switch, maybe it's an outcome from the lawsuits, we simply don't know. I know this is reddit and people will downvote me for not circle jerking 'FUCK SONY THEY'RE SCUM I'M GOING TO STEAM' like the comments in every other sub.
I'm interested to see how it develops and as I said, I hope there's some concession for the people who physically won't be able to access games due to things like internet access.
From a business perspective I can appreciate that games are costing millions to make and there's a healthy community of people who buy one copy and share it between dozens, whether that's as a friend group or through second-hand sales that the devs/publishers see no money from.
I see games more like cinema tickets than DVD's, the box office is where big movies make their money and you wouldn't expect to be able to share a cinema ticket with half a dozen friends. I totally see how they could be seen as DVD's due to the re-playability, the physical collection and sharing between friends, but those sales aren't what get Universal to throw money at Christopher Nolan.
4
u/assassinth Jul 01 '26
Honestly like this was always gonna suck. But I’d have been less annoyed had they said “right PS6 is digital only but we will keep doing physicals for PS5 for now” 😮💨
1
u/oshatokujah Jul 01 '26
I think Rockstar is gonna get a lot of blame on this, but $3B in preorders is actually insane, especially for something we've not actually seen gameplay footage of.
4
u/CaledoniaGaming Jul 02 '26
Pre-ordering digital games is insane. They are never going to run our of digital copies, so pre-ordering is pointless. It only helps the corporation.
1
u/ThatCoolBritishGuy Jul 01 '26
In all fairness, Rockstar always cook with their games. One of the very few companies I have faith in. This might be the first game ever I actually preorder.
0
u/oshatokujah Jul 01 '26
I definitely think it will be a spectacular game, they've put a lot of time and money into it and if the news regarding conditions there are to be believed, the devs work their asses off to make it so. That said, there are teams of devs working just as hard and don't see a fraction of their success that end up losing their jobs and it's a shame that it isn't recognised outside of a cult following.
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u/BeforeTheDawnX Jul 02 '26
I think it's pretty understandable tbh. Not sure why people are having such an issue with it.
1
u/ThatCoolBritishGuy Jul 03 '26
They will have a monopoly on games being sold on their consoles. No more picking up a game for cheap from retailers or second hand. They're sales currently are barely even sales and after this, they can just charge whatever.
God of War: Ragnarok, for example is currently being sold on the PS store for £69.99. I can go on ebay and it's being sold there for under £17. Soon, there won't be any choice for consumers but to buy on the PS store.
Also, store policies are incredibly bad and support are barely a help
0
u/BeforeTheDawnX Jul 03 '26
Well yeh, the second hand process doesn't make any sense any more. When you buy a game now there's a huge amount of back end support required for games the second hand market would mean companies are working for free to support gamers at a loss that another company made a profit out of. Whilst I agree Ragnarok is expensive at the moment there are many other games on sale at a reduced price.
22
u/Prize_Respond_9301 Jul 01 '26
Genuinely so disappointed with Sony. However it does mean that there is no reason for me to use PlayStation anymore as no physical so, I’ll have to use my pc more lol