Today, Sony announced their decision to end physical game disc production beginning January of 2028. This came on the heels of news breaking about Grand Theft Auto VI, the next Rockstar Games title, only being produced in a digital format. They also announced the closure of the PS3 and PS Vita online stores beginning this year.

The reactions following Sony’s blog post has been mostly negative, with users on X venting their frustrations in a multitude of ways. One common thread that is present in these complaints are feelings of dread toward what this spells for the future of the industry. Are we going to see price hikes? What about the current news cycles following the Stop Killing Games movement? How will this impact retailers? All valid questions that need answers.

Put simply, the feelings of gamers in this moment are completely warranted. In an economy where everything seems to be increasing in price with no end in sight, this feels like another knife in the back. Mainly because, at the end of the day, this is surely an attempt from Sony to scrape in as much revenue as possible. With games going fully digital, this would allow Sony to have complete control over pricing structures, meaning that picking up a game at a discounted price is over. Going to GameStop to grab a pre-owned copy of a game that released a few years ago would be done. This is before mentioning the end of game sharing entirely. If you want to share a gaming experience with your friend, you’ll now also have to hope that they can afford it.

This also adds into the ever-present conversation of ownership. There is worry that, with the swap to digital-only, owning a game will no longer be an option. Instead, players will pay for a license, meaning that the ability to play that game only lasts for as long as Sony allows it. Gamers from previous eras never had to worry about their favorite games having a shelf-life. Nowadays, we have to hope that a game will stick around long enough to fully enjoy any replayability it has to offer.

While these are only a couple of the gripes one can hear from those in the community, the bottom line is that Sony has opened a Pandora’s box that leaves the future of the gaming industry in a state of uncertainty. It’s hard to have faith in a company that says the decision they made is based on “consumer preference” after seeing the uproar heard from fans only a few days before about similar news. Who knows? Things could (and should) change. The big question is what is the change were going to see?