Gamers are fighting back with petitions, but production is already being gradually wound down. How could Sony reverse this now?

PlayStation’s decision to end game-disc production in 2028 has quickly become one of the most hated decisions ever made by a games company. The move could have enormous consequences for the entire industry.

The chances of Sony reversing course, however, appear slim. That is not only because factories are gradually switching from disc production to other work, but also because this spreadsheet-driven decision has been in the works for a long time, according to former PlayStation executive Shawn Layden.

The decision, and its obvious consequence that PlayStation 6 may launch without an optical drive, had reportedly been developing for a long time and was finally made feasible by advances in broadband connectivity. Industry insider Kepler_L2 recently suggested that the move could be aimed at reducing the used-games market, increasing revenue, and offsetting growing hardware costs that may push PlayStation 6 above $1,000. Layden does not believe that is the main reason, however.

“I don’t necessarily agree with it, but I don’t work in the business anymore. Maybe it’s just too expensive to produce discs. When a company decides to discontinue a product, feature, or model, it is usually largely a straightforward spreadsheet decision. What are disc sales compared to digital sales?

I’m old enough to remember when digital sales were 10%, or even 0%, because there was no digital market yet. That share grew over time. For the last 20 years, I was asked every year: when are you finally going to give up on the disc drive?

My answer was always that it would happen when I felt confident enough that worldwide broadband throughput was good enough to support the download experience and reach the majority of customers. What is my incentive to keep the lights on for the other 20% when it is effectively only 5% of the business?

Used-game sales used to be a huge factor. GameStop’s business model revolved around used games, but over time the rise of digital formats practically ruined that part of the business and made things harder for people earning money in the secondary market by selling games.

I don’t think that reality is driving this decision, because it has been happening for a long time. I think we have now reached a kind of homeostasis, a strange balance. Second-hand game sales obviously still exist, but I do not think they are important enough to the business anymore for it to be a concern.” Layden told Eurogamer.

The end of disc production could have numerous dangerous consequences for consumer rights and game preservation, which is why it has sparked broad criticism and rapidly escalating backlash. Beyond signing petitions, players are using every available means to express their disappointment, to the point that Sony has gone quiet on social media following the announcement.

Even if digital sales currently account for more than 80% of total revenue, there remains a sizable audience that buys games in stores, and those players are clearly unhappy with the decision.

PHYSICAL GAMES FOREVER pic.twitter.com/p3OqVsOIA0

– Ilona 🎮 (@LikeToBeBossy) July 1, 2026

Kotaku pointed out that fans have been voicing their opinions loudly online. That is illustrated by thousands of angry replies to an apparently unrelated tweet about the new Spider-Man movie on Sony’s official X account.

Many PlayStation fans have launched petitions on Change.org, although the largest such petition was actually submitted by Canadian retailer PNP Games and has already gathered nearly 63,000 signatures.

But will this anger have any impact on Sony? That seems highly unlikely, especially because factories are already shifting production away from PlayStation discs and toward other purposes.

Austrian public broadcaster ORF confirmed that Sony’s Thalgau factory will be significantly affected. Dietmar Tanzer, CEO of Sony DADC, said that PlayStation currently accounts for roughly 50% of production volume there, with about 20% of that volume coming from new orders. By 2028, the volume is expected to fall to around 10%.

The good news is that there are no current plans to lay off any of the factory’s 300 employees. On the other hand, workers are already being trained to manufacture optical microlenses, with mass production expected to begin in early 2027.

This indicates that Sony has been preparing to move away from physical discs for quite some time. In light of that, it seems very unlikely that online backlash could influence these plans in any meaningful way.

Source: WCCFTech, WCCFTech, Eurogamer, Kotaku, Change.org, Change.org, ORF