Sony recently responded to reports claiming that PlayStation physical game disc production would be "cut by 90%," stating that this claim was a misinterpretation of remarks made by a Sony DADC executive. According to Game, which directly queried Sony Digital Audio Disc Corporation (DADC), the actual projected decrease in physical game disc production by 2028 is 10%, not a drop to 10%.
A Sony DADC spokesperson told Game: "To clarify and avoid any misleading information: In that statement, Dietmar projected that overall product sales would decrease by 10%, not drop to 10%."
However, the Sony DADC spokesperson did not reveal what would happen after 2028 and referred further questions about reorders to PlayStation's own PR team, which did not respond to Game's inquiries.
The cause of this confusion was PlayStation's announcement in July that it would stop producing physical discs for new games starting January 2028. However, already released games and those still scheduled for disc release before that date are unaffected, and reorders will continue to be accepted afterward.
Unlike Microsoft, which allows third parties to become "Authorised Replicators" and produce Xbox physical discs based on publisher agreements, Sony has always kept disc production in-house through DADC, rather than outsourcing the manufacturing process to external factories.
Niko Partners analyst Daniel Ahmad believes that once physical discs are discontinued, the second-hand game market could suffer a fatal blow, and player spending would be directed straight to the PlayStation Store. Compared to physical retail channels, Sony's profit margins in its digital store are obviously higher.
Former Head of PlayStation Worldwide Studios: Canceling Physical Editions Is "Disheartening, But Not Unsolvable"
In an interview with Game, former SIE Worldwide Studios head Shawn Layden stated that PlayStation's move toward a fully digital future is "disheartening, but not unsolvable." However, he admitted that he currently "cannot see the specific details," so he doesn't know if there will be some kind of licensing partnership model in the future.
Layden believes that the demise of physical media has been predicted many times, yet some physical formats have ultimately regained vitality.
"No one predicted that cassettes would become popular again. Vinyl records haven't so much returned as they never truly disappeared. The flame went out, but the embers were always there, and it came back just like that. The same goes for the book industry. We once thought everyone would be using Kindles now."
In Layden's view, collecting is an important part of gaming culture.
"Did you collect all the gems in Crash Bandicoot? Did you collect all the stars in Super Mario? We love collecting games. We have a game shelf where we display all our game cases. If you're a super hardcore gamer, you buy two copies of a game, right? One stays sealed in plastic, and the other is for playing."
"We buy steelbooks, three-disc sets of Final Fantasy, and figurines... You can't download these things. So what happens to them in the future?"
Layden believes that Sony's decisions are often treated as purely financial matters, but they shouldn't be handled that way.
"Someone still needs to keep track and ask, 'Okay, what is the impact of this move on the brand?' If we do this, Everythinggj makes sense economically. I understand, it's just a math problem. But what is the brand impact? Will people say, 'Great job, guys!' or will they say, 'We hate you, stop doing this!' Sometimes, they really do say, 'We hate you!'"
He further stated: "I see many companies making certain decisions. Objectively speaking, I don't know how much revenue this decision ultimately brings you, but your brand value may have dropped by 30% as a result. So, I hope you feel this deal is worth it."
Layden Questions: Do Digital Games That Can't Be Resold Truly Count as "Owned"?
Layden was even more direct about the industry-wide trend of shifting from physical ownership to digital access models.
"What does 'ownership' really mean nowadays? That's the real question. In fact, it's not even a question anymore. It essentially means you're shifting your business model from 'ownership' to 'access.' You could never sell your iTunes music library. You can't sell your PlayStation digital game library either." So, if you can't resell it, do you truly own it?"
iam8bit, a boutique publisher known for collector's edition games, told Game magazine that they "definitely want to find a way to continue producing physical PlayStation games."
The article also mentioned a potential solution: Conectiv Supply Chain Solutions, a disc manufacturer headquartered in Memphis.
One potential avenue mentioned in the article is Conectiv Supply Chain Solutions, a Memphis-based disc manufacturer founded in 2025 that recently acquired SDS, the home entertainment distributor for Universal Pictures and Warner Bros. However, Game reported that, as of press time, they had not received a response from the company or its CEO.
Earlier this week, during the State of Play livestream, the YouTube live chat was flooded from start to finish with comments like "No disc, no buy" and "We want Destiny 3." Switching over to Twitch, the stream was similarly inundated with Destiny-related emotes and calls for physical editions of games.