Before The The Digital-Only Announcement, More Than 70% Of Users Purchased PS5 Physical Editions Last Month

Physical ownership for PlayStation players is a major pillar to be on the platform. So for Sony Interactive Entertainment to announce that it is ceasing production for physical games in 2028 is a punch to the gut for millions. Some of the shared thinking within Sony disclosed by Jason Schreier reveals that the costs to cut off the support altogether outweighs the demand that majority use when making digital purchases.

And this is an upward trend according to analytics for PlayStation users. It was reported that only seven titles sold over 100K units physically thus far in 2026. The report also points to a new tendency for users on PlayStation Store to purchase the most expensive version of new releases. And increased pricing is a big possibility with this new digital direction for PlayStation. In Latin America, regional pricing is to be implemented next month.

From Circana analyst Mat Piscatella, he shared on BlueSky that even before the decision to strike down physical production for PlayStation, majority of new console owners still paid for the physical edition PlayStation 5. It was understood that more than 70 percent purchased the model over the 27 percent that purchased the digital edition.

It is evident that there is a loud number of PlayStation users dissatisfied with the maneuver to go digital-only. And even if there were employees that shared the same sentiment, they are instructed not to share their opinions. Former Santa Monica Studio writer Alanah Pearce told that the strictest guidelines for public relations were enacted by Sony related to demise of physical games for PlayStation.

Looking ahead, it might not even be an option for the next-generation PlayStation either. According to Kepler_L2, the PlayStation 6 does not look to feature a disc drive and Niko Partners’ Daniel Ahmad is not convinced either. The leaker also indicated cost to manufacture will still be close to $1,000 despite the disc reader being absent. You can read the full report by heading here.

Are you surprised how many people still purchase consoles intended for physical games?