117,000 gamers signed a petition in four days to stop Sony killing physical discs
Sony confirmed on July 1 that it will stop producing physical discs for new PlayStation games from January 1, 2028. The backlash was immediate — a Change.org petition called "Don't Kill the Disc" gathered 40,000 signatures in the first 48 hours and crossed 117,000 within four days. For anyone who owns a disc-based PS5 or buys games secondhand, this decision narrows your options permanently.
The irony is hard to miss
Sony's PlayStation Blog frames the shift as a response to changing consumer habits. But the timing cuts awkwardly against a moment many players still remember: at E3 2013, Sony mocked Microsoft directly for restricting game sharing and resale on Xbox One — holding up a disc and demonstrating how to "share" it. That clip has resurfaced across social media since the announcement, and petition signatories cite it explicitly as evidence of broken trust.
The petition was started by Jade Pearce, CEO of PNP Games, a physical game retailer. Beyond the nostalgia argument, Pearce raises a structural point: when you buy a disc, you own the game. When you buy a digital license, you hold it at the publisher's discretion — servers can go offline, accounts can be banned, storefronts can close. The 2024 PS3 Store closure scare, reversed only after public pressure, is the obvious precedent.
What this means practically
The petition also flags job losses in retail, distribution, and disc manufacturing — including Sony's own factory in Austria, which the company has already begun retooling for a different product line. Pre-owned game stores and distributors in the US and UK face the prospect of a market that simply stops receiving new stock.
The "Don't Kill the Disc" petition on Change.org surpassed 117,000 signatures in four days following Sony's announcement.
After 2028, new PlayStation titles will only be available digitally or — in a format yet to be clearly defined — as a code in a box. How traditional retailers like GameStop or GAME in the UK will stock and margin those products is still unaddressed by Sony.
Sony hasn't moved
As of July 5, Sony has not responded to the petition or offered any modification to the plan. The Austria factory retooling signals the company is treating this as settled. Fan pressure delayed the PS3 Store closure in 2024 — whether 117,000 signatures carries comparable weight remains to be seen.
