I'm really irritated by this. While it's not good for any of us that like physical media (or low prices), I don't think it'll be ultimately be good for Sony either.
For one, it might invite EU and/or other regulators to force the PS6 open, to accommodate other digital stores for greater competition.
Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, physical media appeals to collectors. The possibility of physical media selling out encouraged FOMO, pre-orders, etc. In my own case, it has led me to buy many games I might not have otherwise bought, especially for full price, in case I would be able to easily purchase physical versions of them later. With digital games, a "copy" is nothing special. For games I want, I have no motivation to buy a digital copy before I am ready to play it, and/or it is heavily reduced on sale. Many games I would previously have bought physical copies of, I simply wouldn't bother buying, as I could theoretically buy at any stage in the future if I ever felt like playing them.
On PC, it's incredibly rare for me to buy a game for full price, and my behaviour would be similar on an all-digital Sony platform, assuming I eventually even picked one up. I have 120+ physical PS5 games and twice that for the PS4, not to mention a large steam catalogue on a 20 year old account. No physical media means I'll be spending a lot less on games going forward, and instead playing more of my back catalogue.
Comments 1
Re: Sony Kills Physical PS5 Games, Starting in January 2028: A Gigantic Hint That PS6 Will Be "Adorably All-Digital"
I'm really irritated by this. While it's not good for any of us that like physical media (or low prices), I don't think it'll be ultimately be good for Sony either.
For one, it might invite EU and/or other regulators to force the PS6 open, to accommodate other digital stores for greater competition.
Secondly, and perhaps more importantly, physical media appeals to collectors. The possibility of physical media selling out encouraged FOMO, pre-orders, etc. In my own case, it has led me to buy many games I might not have otherwise bought, especially for full price, in case I would be able to easily purchase physical versions of them later. With digital games, a "copy" is nothing special. For games I want, I have no motivation to buy a digital copy before I am ready to play it, and/or it is heavily reduced on sale. Many games I would previously have bought physical copies of, I simply wouldn't bother buying, as I could theoretically buy at any stage in the future if I ever felt like playing them.
On PC, it's incredibly rare for me to buy a game for full price, and my behaviour would be similar on an all-digital Sony platform, assuming I eventually even picked one up. I have 120+ physical PS5 games and twice that for the PS4, not to mention a large steam catalogue on a 20 year old account. No physical media means I'll be spending a lot less on games going forward, and instead playing more of my back catalogue.
Considering that a small percentage of players are responsible for much of the games industries' sales (see https://www.eurogamer.net/if-you-buy-more-than-two-new-games-a-year-youre-in-the-minority-new-report-reveals), then irritating collectors, who would likely be part of that small but lucrative group, may not be a winning strategy going forward.