Sony: Gamers may be emotionally attached to discs, but it won’t hurt us financially

Sony claims their controversial move away from physical PlayStation game discs will not affect the console’s identity, as it believes its biggest strengths come from its games and ecosystem rather than the disc format itself.

During Sony Group’s latest earnings call, CFO Lin Tao said the company’s decision to stop producing game discs from January 2028 was mainly due to the continued shift towards digital content.

Sony revealed that digital downloads already made up 78% of full-game purchases on PlayStation during its latest fiscal year. The company said it does not expect a major financial impact from ending disc production, as most game sales have already moved online.

However, Sony acknowledged that some players remain emotionally attached to physical games, and that the company must approach their response to these gamers with some thought.

When asked whether removing discs would make PlayStation closer to PC gaming, Sony said the disc format was never a major differentiator. Instead, the company highlighted curated content, a stable gaming environment and more affordable hardware compared to high-end gaming PCs as PlayStation’s advantages.

Sony also shared that PlayStation continues to have a strong user base, with monthly active users reaching 125 million accounts in June, a record high for the month. Although total play time declined 4% year-on-year, Sony said this was due to a stronger comparison period last year and expects upcoming game releases to boost engagement.

With the company noting that it’s working with retailers to manage the transition towards a disc-less PlayStation ecosystem, it seems that gamers will need to get used to download codes and digital purchases instead of discs—whether we like it or not.

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