'We Are Deeply Saddened' – Game Retailers and Historians React to PlayStation Abandoning Physical Media

The gaming industry is reacting poorly to news that PlayStation will stop producing game discs in January 2028.

The Video Game History Foundation issued a statement calling the news disappointing but hardly surprising. The organization noted that the industry has been moving away from true physical media for years, with many physical games still requiring internet downloads, and others like Grand Theft Auto 6 not even being printed on disc. The foundation used this as an opportunity to urge the industry to take action on game preservation.

"What continues to baffle us is what the industry expects institutions like ours to do about it," the organization said. "If platform owners are deciding to eliminate physical media and older digital storefronts, then we'd also like to see trade groups like the Entertainment Software Association offer meaningful solutions for archives and museums to legally preserve digital-only content and make it accessible for research.

"Everyone agrees this is a serious problem, but the ESA has repeatedly opposed the efforts of cultural heritage institutions to reform digital copy protection laws to make it easier to do this work. The industry needs to meaningfully come to the table on this issue, because asking museums to download a copy of Grand Theft Auto VI and hope it'll run in 50 years is not a preservation solution."

Lost in Cult, a boutique gaming book publisher and advocate of physical media, also released a statement saying it is "deeply saddened" by the news but will do whatever it can to preserve video games.

"As a company on a mission to preserve video games, we are deeply saddened by the recent news from PlayStation on ending physical disc production from 2028," the company said. "We aim to do everything in our power to preserve video games to the best of our ability and will continue to do so for as long as we can."

GOG, a DRM-free PC storefront, chimed in to note that it doesn't revoke access to digitally-owned games even if a title is delisted from its store.

"Even if a game vanishes from the GOG storefront, it never leaves your library. Exactly as digital ownership ought to be."

Prominent gaming retailer GameStop also found itself part of the discourse. The retailer shared a photo showing a customer trading in their Xbox 360 collection for over $1,000 in store credit, allowing him to purchase a haul of PS5 games. Naturally, many mocked not only the irony of the situation but also the seemingly low trade value for such a massive stack of games.

"A GameStop Customer in Columbus, Ohio traded his old Xbox 360 collection for over $1,000 in store credit. Left with new PS5 games and very happy!"

As if this wasn't enough drama for one day, a report also emerged claiming that the next Xbox won't have a disc drive and that Microsoft is exploring ways to digitize physical libraries. All in all, it's a rough week to be a physical media lover, leaving many concerned for the next generation of consoles.