It looks like Grand Theft Auto VI was just the start of the avalanche of physical media news. Last week we reported that Rockstar Games would not be launching GTA VI with physical discs. We said the move was anti-consumer and takes ownership out of customer hands. Well, if we thought that was bad, we were not prepared for today. On July 1st, 2026, Sony’s PlayStation brand announced their plan to stop accepting physical discs in 2028.
PlayStation Games Will Be Digital Only
In the official PlayStation Blog post, Sony stated, “As consumer preferences and the broader entertainment industry continue to shift away from physical discs to digital, physical game disc production for all new games releasing on PlayStation consoles will be discontinued starting January 2028.” That is absolutely devastating news to game collectors. The idea that games will only be released digitally spells the end for the concept of ownership as well.
Some may argue that this doesn’t matter much for games anyway. Almost every game that’s physically released gets updates that need to be downloaded and patched anyway. This is true. Another argument could be made that larger games are getting to the point that they would need multiple discs anyway and drive up costs. Also true. But multi-disc games were common in the PlayStation era up to the Xbox 360 days. But none of those arguments address the ownership problem.
Physical Media and Ownership
We discussed before that game companies have been shifting from the idea of a person owning a game to licensing it. When you purchase something in the online store you’re not purchasing a product, you’re purchasing a license to play that product. If that license expires or is revoked, so is your access. That’s what’s happening to some users in the UK and their film purchases. Your digital library could be extinguished without you having any say over it.
Is this surprising? Not entirely. It is an absolute joke though. Sony states, “This transition will enable us to align more closely with how most of our community prefers to access and play games today.” That’s incorrect. It’s not how most of the community “prefers to access and play games,” it’s how many are being pushed to. Scaled down physical releases, digital only games, distribution costs, incomplete games released on discs, day one patches, and more are pushing people to digital purchases. This isn’t a matter of preference, it’s a matter of necessity.
This is like what happens at the supermarket. A lot of people would prefer to have someone do the scanning and bagging for them. But as stores cut back on cashiers, it forces more people into the self-checkout lane. The more people use that lane only for the business to say, “Look, more people are using the self-checkout! They must really enjoy it!”
PlayStation 3 and Vita Stores Closing As Well
To make matters even more darkly comical, Sony announced the upcoming closure of the PS3 and Vita store. Now, that isn’t as surprising. They already tried to do this once and it didn’t work out. Fan backlash forced them to reverse the decision. Now the PlayStation Blog states, “As the PlayStation Store continues to evolve to support modern commerce systems, including updated payment processing standards, PS3 and PS Vita are no longer able to support these updates at the level required.” Which is not an acceptable or honest answer really. They COULD support these updates if Sony upgraded the architecture. They are choosing not to. It’s ironic they’re announcing this on the same day they’re talking about how important digital downloading of games is.
Sony is planning a phased closure of the PS3 and Vita stores, with North America’s closure happening in July of 2027. Act while you can to get what you can get. Some games have DLC you can still purchase and there are still some digital only games you can pick up. You’ve got a year to make things happen before the store is down for good. Previously purchased items can still be redownloaded after the closure. For now at least. But as we stated, digital purchases effectively mean you don’t own anything.
Welcome to the future. It’s shit.
