It seems like Sony has become one of the most despised entities in the gaming world in 2026. It was announced on the first of July 2026 that Sony plans on ending physical disc production in 2028. The news regarding Sony discontinuing physical media production is something that gamers were not happy about. Sony made it clear that by the time their next generation console PlayStation 6 comes out players will only be able to own future games through digital downloads. While digital downloads make it easier for players to purchase games they will not truly own whatever the buy which is considered to be problematic. Also, to make things worse Sony had plans on deleting more than 500 purchased Studio Canal movies from PlayStation accounts in September 2026. Sony’s decision has sparked massive backlash and outrage from the gaming community especially since there has been no mention of any type of compensation in the future. It should also be noted that Sony executives are seemingly unapologetic for these decisions which makes you wonder what the company’s future looks like within the gaming industry. Sony has been having nothing but legal issues and facing scrutiny from gamers post COVID-19.

The success of the PlayStation 5 along with high-profile first party games like Marvel’s Spider-Man and Gran Turismo 7 have been strong positives for Sony. However, Sony has been dealing with a variety of issues within the past five years or so. It was back in Spring 2021 when Sony got hit with a major class-action antitrust lawsuit. Sony was accused of not only creating a monopoly on the PlayStation Store but they had allegedly cut off third-party retailers from selling digital download codes while increasing the prices of certain games. In 2024, Sony had agreed to a $7.85 million settlement to resolve the issue with a final approval hearing set to take place in October 2026. While the 2021 lawsuit cost Sony millions unfortunately it was probably just the beginning for of the end for the global tech conglomerate. In 2022, Sony was on the receiving end of multiple major lawsuits for unethical business practices. During that year Sony ended up becoming apart of the The UK PlayStation Antitrust, The US Digital Game , The Crunchyroll Privacy along with the Cox Communication lawsuits.

There are many who believe that dishonest business practices and corporate greed are things that have damaged Sony’s reputation over the years. Also, within the past few years it feels like Sony’s appeal to gamers have been slowly declining despite the success of the PS5. As of right now the PlayStation 5 has reached more than 93 million units in sales since its release back in late-2020. PlayStation 5 currently has the lead over its current competitors Xbox Series X and Nintendo Switch 2. However, Sony decision to end physical disc production for video games is something that could end up being detrimental the PS6 in the future. Since 2023, Sony has implemented multiple rounds of layoffs as it responded to industry-wide economic pressures, rising development costs, and organizational restructuring.

The layoffs really got started after Sony had acquired video game developer Bungie for $3.6 billion in July 2022. Apparently, things have not been going so well for Sony since they purchased Bungie because in late June 2026 the company was forced to make significant layoffs within the studio. Between the massive layoffs, growing discontent among gamers and questionable business practices Sony is not same company everyone knew and loved 30, 20 or even 10 years ago. Since the PS1 era of the mid-90’s Sony’s consoles always included physical media in the form of CD-ROM’s to a point where it felt like tradition. Sony ditching traditional means of video game distribution in the form of digital download only is something that feels strange because its something no one thought would ever happen. There were many who believe that Microsoft was going to be the first to ditch physical media for video games because of their obsession with cloud-based gaming.

In the past few years Nintendo has been faced scrutiny from young and older adults over the years for their war on piracy, emulation and overpriced games. While Nintendo might be strict with their IP’s they have always provided gamers with physical video games since the 80’s. Nintendo is a company that feels more traditional and providing players with customer satisfaction has been a core apart of what has kept alive for the past four decades. Nintendo does not seem like its going to move away from providing players with physical media similar to Sony and its something gamers can appreciate for the time being. However, Nintendo has been slowly moving more towards game-key cards while slowly placing more emphasis on their online Nintendo eShop. It feels like by the time we reach the 2030’s physical video games will eventually become more scarce and digital will be the primary way to go.