Overview
- Sony announced in July that it will cease manufacturing physical PlayStation game discs beginning January 2028 and will allow reorders for titles released before that date.
- The Phantom Blade Zero State of Play, which streamed Tuesday, was flooded with 'no disc no buy' messages after Sony left live chat enabled, showing protesters are targeting ads and livestreams to press the company.
- Sony executives, including CFO Lin Tao, have publicly defended the plan and kept comments on many promotional assets rather than disabling them, signaling the company does not plan to reverse course.
- Major publishers are already adjusting release models, with Take‑Two saying most sales are digital and GTA 6 slated to ship as a code in a box instead of on disc, which has intensified fan anger.
- Physical sales vary widely by market—reports put Germany, France and Japan at majority‑disc purchases—raising concerns for retailers, the used‑game market and cultural preservation while petitions and a planned consumer boycott press the issue.