Any PlayStation game released from January 2028 onwards will not have a physical disc, as Sony shuts down the PS3 and PS Vita digital stores.
Just a week after Rockstar announced GTA 6 will not launch with a physical disc, Sony has decided to join them in inviting hostility from gaming collectors.
In a PlayStation blog post, Sony announced it is ending physical game disc production for all new games – both first and third party – on PlayStation consoles, starting from January 2028.
After this date, all new PlayStation games will only be available via the PlayStation Store and at retailers in ‘digital formats’. In other words, it’s likely we’ll be seeing a lot games like GTA 6 where ‘physical’ copies contain a download code in a box, and that’s it.
Sony clarifies this will have no impact on games released prior to January 2028, so Marvel’s Wolverine and Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 will still get physical discs.
As outlined on the blog, Sony describes the move as a response to ‘shifting trends in consumer preference’, adding: ‘This is a natural direction for Sony Interactive Entertainment to adapt to consumer trends as the general preference for digital media significantly outpaces physical discs.
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‘This transition will enable us to align more closely with how most of our community prefers to access and play games today.’
The death of physical games has felt inevitable for some time, but it’s bad news for players as it means you can no longer share games with friends or resell them later. Considering most people do buy digitally today though, we probably only have ourselves to blame.
Publishers have been happy to encourage a move away from digital though, as not only do digital copies make second-hand sales impossible but they’re also intrinsically more profitable, since Sony and others don’t have to give a cut of the sales to retailers or spend money on packaging, etc.
Sony has not made any specific reference to other third party publishers, so it’s not entirely clear whether they could choose to release game discs themselves, after next year. It’s very unlikely many will want to, since it’ll be more profitable for them as well, but they may be prevented from doing so anyway, depending on the fine print of the PlayStation licensing agreement. At the moment, Sony makes the discs on behalf of other publishers, so few, if any, are going to want to take on that burden, even if they’re able to.
The bigger implication is what this means for the PlayStation 6, as this strongly suggests the console will not have a physical disc drive – unless Sony wants to promote backwards compatibility.
At the same time, Sony has announced it is shutting down the PlayStation Store across the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita. In the UK, both stores will close in July 2027.
This means you’ll no longer be able to purchase new games or downloadable content after that date, although you will still be able to download previously purchased software.
As for why this is happening now, Sony said: ‘As the PlayStation Store continues to evolve to support modern commerce systems, including updated payment processing standards, PlayStation 3 and PS Vita are no longer able to support these updates at the level required.’
Sony seems to have missed the irony that at the same time as they go all-digital they give a perfect illustration of why many gamers are wary of the concept, considering in the same breath they’re shutting down two online stores and making it impossible to purchase any new games for those systems.
If the PlayStation 3 and PS Vita had been digital-only then it would now be impossible to buy any games for them, since nothing would be available on the second-hand market.
It’s also peculiar timing in terms of the bad news that’s imminent from Xbox, regarding massive layoffs, as if the two companies were competing to seem the most unscrupulous and anti-consumer.
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