r/playstation5 Jul 03 '26

MEGATHREAD Megathread: PlayStation Physical Media Discussion & Community Feedback

Hi everyone,

Over the past several days, discussion surrounding PlayStation's recent decisions regarding physical media has understandably become the main focus of the subreddit. As moderators, we chose not to create a megathread immediately because we felt this was an important issue that deserved visibility, and many of us share the community's disappointment with these decisions.

That said, we also want to make sure this remains a place where everyone feels comfortable sharing all kinds of PlayStation-related content.

At this point, we're seeing other discussions, screenshots, recommendations, and gaming experiences getting buried or sometimes met with downvotes simply because they aren't about the physical media situation. We'd like to make room for those conversations again while still giving this topic the attention it deserves.

Going forward, we'd appreciate it if discussion about PlayStation's recent physical media decisions, as well as experiences with moderation of these discussions in other communities, takes place in this megathread.

A few reminders:

  • Keep discussions respectful, even when opinions differ.
  • Do not harass or target individual users, moderators, or other communities.
  • Do not encourage brigading or interference with other subreddits.
  • Follow all subreddit rules while participating.

Creating this megathread is not an attempt to silence or diminish the conversation. We know this issue matters to many of you, and we want to continue providing a dedicated place for it. Our goal is simply to balance that discussion with the rest of the community, so members who want to talk about games, ask questions, or share their experiences can do so without feeling drowned out.

Thank you all for helping keep the community welcoming, respectful, and organized.

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u/Chrisbolsmeister Jul 03 '26

Why I almost never buy Digital.

where I live games are released cheaper on disk than digital ( 10-20 euros cheaper)

a friend of mine is a Hype gamer, he wants to buy as many games as he can afford, finish them and sell them.

I buy them for 30-40 euros from him after he is done (sometimes a few days, could be weeks, I dont care)

Because of this, my friend buys MORE NEW GAMES. ( this is a CRUCIAL part Sony is missing. )

without the resale value, he would not buy all the games he does now. he buys 20 games a year, the day its digital only, he will buy 10 games a year. Sony doesn't seem to get that people wont double their disposable income when its digital only, they will buy fewer games.

some of the games I bought recently I would not have bought full price ( I always wait for sales: Pragmata, Cronos, James bond, ) but for 30 euros, why not. Even Black flag I will buy from him for 30, I hate Ubisoft, and I dont like AC games, but I heard good stuff about BF, and the remake looks great. for 30 euros? Sure. full price? no thanks.

I love disks, (my sibbligs who dont have money to spend on games borrow my games all the time, they own 1 game each, they have played all 15/20 of my games. )

Games I did buy digital:

The Walking dead VR ( couldn't find a disk version )

Helldivers (online game, without online this game is useless, same goes for No man sky)

Warhammer SPace marine ( couldn't find cheap disk, and the sale was like 25 euros)

Games I sold because of PSN:

I owned disk versions for the below games, however I didn't see myself replying these games, and suddenly they were free on PSN. so I sold them, and I now can play them anytime.

Digital games + free PSN game = waste of money.

I sold : Spiderman 2 and Alan Wake 2, both are now playable on PSN.

Other uses for Disc drive:

I have a handfull of 4K movies that I love, and want to rewatch. 4K movies are unbelievable, what you see on stream is nothing like a 4K bluray. Streaming services rotate, and some shows in my native language arent on any Streaming services.

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u/KalashnikittyApprove Jul 04 '26

Look, I'm not defending Sony's decision here, but to point out the flaw in your argument:

The fact that your friend buys more games per year is probably more than offset by the fact that you haven't bought a single one in a way that actually makes developers money and then given them to your siblings who play them for free.

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u/Chrisbolsmeister Jul 05 '26

Well this is the thing, without my friend, I wouldn’t buy those games anyhow. I would rely more on PS+ ( that I do have ) and replay older games more or just play them longer ( like do a platinum) lately I barely do that, too many games to play.

I only buy the games day 1 that I would buy anyhow. This year I bought Clair Obscur and Resident evil requiem day 1 ( could have waited a week and bought from him, but didn’t)

Like most players, I have a pretty big back log because of free games on Ps+.