The death of physical games has been a slow and sad one as consumers gradually shift toward digital. And yet, there has remained a firm group who still likes to buy discs. It seems even their days are numbered, though, because PlayStation will stop making new discs in 2028,

Sony made the announcement earlier today, stating that “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.”

From January 2028, new games will only be available digitally, or through retails via a code in a box, kind of like GTA 6 is going to do.

In case you’re thinking that this is purely limited to first-party PlayStation games, it isn’t. Because PlayStation discs require Sony’s licensing, certification and manufacturing pipeline, third-party publishers would not be able to simply continue producing official PlayStation discs on their own. Unless Sony later clarifies otherwise, this sounds like the end of new physical PlayStation releases across the board from January 2028, with retail shifting to digital codes and other download-based formats.

The writing has been on the wall for a while. In Sony’s most recent quarterly figures, digital downloads accounted for 85% of all PS4 and PS5 full-game software sales, leaving physical discs with just 15%. Across the full FY2025 year, the split was 78% digital versus roughly 22% physical. In other words, discs are not dead yet, but they are very clearly the minority on PlayStation.

Still, like most I had assumed it would be Xbox that would kill discs first, since digital downloads are a much bigger majority over there. 22% may not be a huge number, but that’s 70 million copies across the entirety of Sony’s fiscal year 2025.

Like a lot of you, I’ve gradually moved over to digital games. But I still buy physical as well. The freedom to sell my game after I’ve finished it has played a huge part in my gaming career, letting me pick up new titles. Games are a luxury, and being able to help mitigate the cost a little has been important to me over the years.