Sony's announcement to discontinue physical game discs by 2028 and adopt a digital-only approach has ignited furious backlash. A petition has garnered 300,000 signatures, while brands like KFC and Domino's parody the move.

The shift reflects market trends: 80 per cent of PlayStation sales are now digital, up from 27% a decade ago. Sony retains more profit per digital sale, and analysts expect the PlayStation 6 to launch without a disc drive. Grand Theft Auto VI will also skip a physical edition.

Gamers' anger goes beyond nostalgia. Physical media enables second-hand purchases, lending, and library loans — consumer rights that digital licensing erodes. When games are delisted, they can vanish entirely; the Video Game History Foundation says 87 per cent of classic US games are critically endangered. Sony's simultaneous closure of PS3 and Vita stores and removal of 500+ purchased films underscores the precarity of digital ownership.

Critics argue Sony offered no mitigating benefits — no sharing systems, preservation commitments, or price cuts — betraying its most devoted fans and treating players as powerless consumers.