The company responded to the widespread criticism in its latest earnings call.
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Sony's controversial decision to discontinue discs for new PS5 games starting in 2028 has broadly not gone down at all well with its huge audience. But the ongoing backlash seemingly hasn't given the company much pause for thought about its future strategy.
Sony published its latest earnings report this week, and with it came the traditional investor Q&A, in which the company was asked about its decision to ditch discs as we likely head towards the launch of the PS6 in the next few years. Sony's CFO Lin Tao fielded the question, and while she acknowledged the widespread discontent from gamers reluctant to just roll over and accept an all-digital future, the important bit was her reaffirming the plans.
Speaking through an interpreter, Tao said (H/T to Kotaku's Ethan Gach for posting the exact clip from the Q&A) that a number of reasons contributed went into the decision, chief among them the growing "digitalization of contents overall," making clear that she wasn't just referring to games. Despite Sony receiving what she referred to as "various opinions" and "strong views" from consumers, and acknowledging that games (especially in their physical form, I would argue), are often "connected to people's fond memories," Tao confirmed that the company would nonetheless "cautiously move this forward."
Tao's final comments were potentially interesting, though, as an optimist might read them as a hint at some sort of physical preservation compromise in the future. "And so we understand those emotions. We want to consider that," she concluded. "And in the future digital ecosystem, how do we engage the gamers is something that we would like to continue to explore."
Despite clarifying that it would at least continue to make discs for games released before the 2028 cutoff after that date passes, criticism of Sony's decision has been pretty relentless since it made the announcement at the beginning of July. As well as flooding (often unrelated) social media posts and comments sections with angry sentiments, a player-led boycott has also been suggested.
And it's not just players who have expressed their disappointment. Industry icons like Hideo Kojima and Nier Automata creator Yoko Taro have also said they're saddened by the all-digital shift, with their feelings echoed by several developers of Game of the Year-winning Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
