Sony Wants You to Stop Owning Your Games

Sony has decided that the physical game disc is on its way out. Apparently, owning the games we play has become an inconvenient tradition…

In July, Sony announced that physical disc production for new PlayStation games will end in January 2028. The company says this reflects the way most PlayStation players now access their games. For Sony, it seems like a simple response to changing habits of the consumer. For me, it feels like we’re slowly being told that owning a game is no longer an option.

I understand why people like digital games. I buy them too. It is incredibly convenient to be able to sit on the couch, buy a game and have it ready to download without even leaving the house. No disc, no case, no trip to the store, not having to deal with people. Easy.

But why should that mean physical games have to disappear?

A physical game isn’t only just a different way of installing a game. You can lend it to a friend. You can sell it when you’re finished. You can buy it second-hand. You can collect it. You can find a game years later and put the disc directly into your console.

Try doing all that with a digital purchase.

Sony’s decision has already drawn backlash over what this drastic change means for game ownership, which I think is the real and scary issue here. Digital games give companies considerably more control over how we access the games that we have paid for.

We’ve already seen this with the PlayStation 3, as Sony announced that the PlayStation store on the PS3 will close, meaning players will no longer be able to purchase new digital games on the platform. Previously purchased games will remain downloadable for the foreseeable future.

But how long is “foreseeable”?

What happens when a game disappears from the digital store? What happens when an account is lost or hacked? What happens when online services eventually shut down?

Per PlayStations terms of service:

When you order or purchase a product from PlayStation Store, you buy a personal license to use that product for private, non-commercial use. That license is not transferable unless your local applicable laws say it must be. This means you can use a product in the ways described in the license, but do not own the product.

Maybe none of these things matter for some people, but some of us have been collecting games for decades.

If most players genuinely prefer digital games, that’s fine. Let them buy digital.

But don’t take the other choice away from the rest.