Xbox and Nintendo have also been pushing consumers towards digital games.
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Sony has announced that PlayStation is going all digital, with physical game disc production being discontinued starting January 2028. After this date, you’ll only be able to purchase new games digitally on the PlayStation Store and in retailers.
Sony says its decision is a response to “shifting trends in consumer preference,” with digital sales significantly outweighing physical. Last year, physical game distribution accounted for just three percent of PlayStation’s revenue, and the fact that the PS5 Pro launched in 2024 without a disc drive was a pretty good indication of Sony’s future direction.
The strategic shift will have no impact on physical games already released or those that are planned for release before January 2028, but the ramifications of the announcement are huge. The second-hand market will face a significant decline if people are no longer able to trade in their unwanted PS5 games. Retailers are also likely to feel some negative effects too.
The trend was already evident when Rockstar announced that it’s ditching discs for GTA 6, and today’s news quashes any hopes of that being an outlier. Physical discs may be beneficial for consumers and preservationists, but the cost benefits of a digital-only model for companies like Sony are clear. Xbox has been moving away from physical for a while now, and even Nintendo, which remains the dominant force in physical game sales, seems to be nudging customers toward digital with cheaper prices and game-key card cartridges that don’t contain the full game.
Sony’s move isn’t the only PlayStation-related news today. The company has also announced that it’s closing the PlayStation Store on PS3 and the PS Vita. Once these platforms are gone, users won’t be able to purchase new games or content, though Sony will still allow downloads of previous purchases “for the foreseeable future.”
In some markets, these store closures will occur as early as August 2026, but in the US, users have until July 2027 to download any desired games. “We know this news may be disappointing to PS3 and PS Vita players who hold a special place in their hearts for this generation of gaming,” Sony said. “PS3 and PS Vita represent an important era in our PlayStation history, so this was not an easy decision for us to make.”