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PlayStation Founder Kyu Kuroki stated that physical discs are merely a metaphor for "owning a game." If you are dissatisfied with the cessation of physical disc production, then that is a "mentality issue."
These remarks came after Sony decided to stop producing game discs starting from 2028, a decision that has encountered strong opposition from fans.
Several veterans of the gaming industry told Decrypt that the decision to stop producing CDs is usually driven by publishers, as it helps to increase profit margins, while Sony underestimated the reaction of its community.
PlayStation Founder Kyu Kurakami responded to fans' anger over Sony's plan to stop producing physical game discs, calling it a "mindset issue." A senior figure in the gaming industry stated that reducing disc production "usually" is only driven by publishers, as they seek to achieve better profit margins.
This controversy arose amidst the fallout of Sony's decision to cease disc production in 2028. A former PlayStation executive, Shawn Layden, also launched a petition at that time.
At the Game Republic New Horizons event, Kurokawa said, "I understand that physical discs have become a metaphor for 'owning' games. I truly comprehend this mindset. However, no one would think that for connected devices like smartphones, a physical medium is necessary, because people assume they will keep the content anyway. So, that's just a way of thinking."
Kuwakura Yasuhiko retired from PlayStation in 2007 and is best known for designing the first three generations of PlayStation consoles. Since his departure, PlayStation has released two more generations of consoles. He currently serves as the CEO of Japanese companies Ascent Robotics and Cyber AI Entertainment.
According to Video Games Chronicle, he said, "I really understand [why some people might be unhappy], but I don't think it's economically reasonable. Perhaps it's just a matter of mindset."
A former Infinity Ward creative strategist, now the person in charge of a game studio //18. bravo, told Decrypt that publishers are "the only" party that will push for a reduction in physical game discs. He stated that doing so can increase profit margins by lowering production costs, and at the same time, it will also hit the second-hand game market dominated by companies like GameStop.
Bowling said to Decrypt: "This reflects the division that has already formed in our industry: one side views games merely as software products, while the other sees them as art, entertainment, collectibles, and a way of life."
According to court documents, Sony argued in the lawsuit that no rational consumer would consider themselves to own the digital games purchased on PlayStation Store. Sony stated that purchasing from the store was essentially equivalent to buying a revocable license.
A veteran in the gaming industry, Chris Heatherly, stated that company executives are accustomed to “issuing orders” in the office and “hiding behind the public relations team,” but this approach no longer works in the era of social media. He believes that Sony did not engage in “dialogue” with its audience, which led to a misjudgment of the reaction that such actions would provoke.
Heatherly said to Decrypt: "I think that for those players who generally feel exploited and harmed by these hardware manufacturers, this is just adding insult to injury. If you look at Steam, people buy far more games than they actually play, because they enjoy collecting them. So what else is the point of having them if they don't even play them?"
However, Heatherly also believes that wanting to have online multiplayer games is not "a completely rational and coherent thought process," since publishers usually control the servers anyway. But he thinks that there are still compromise solutions available.
“I believe that ownership models worth discussing do exist, but not the kind of falsified financialized ownership like web3,” he said to Decrypt. “To be honest, I think people would be satisfied with locally permanent access and peer-to-peer [online services].”
