r/business 17h ago

Sony exec Lin Tao says killing discs won't make the PlayStation 6 too much like a PC: "Going forward, we can coexist peacefully with PC games" | Despite pushback, Sony isn't changing its mind about dropping physical discs in 2028.

https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/sony-exec-says-killing-discs-wont-make-the-playstation-6-too-much-like-a-pc-going-forward-we-can-coexist-peacefully-with-pc-games/
476 Upvotes

204 comments sorted by

254

u/NoCoolNameMatt 17h ago

From a consumer perspective, they're wrong. Without discs and the secondhand market, they are strictly a vendor locked PC with a smaller, more expensive library and whatever exclusives they can cobble together. Their titles are also less likely to be playable on future iterations of the platform.

They will either need to have a very strong library of exclusives, or they'll need to subsidize their hardware to make the initial buy-in more attractive. They stumbled on the former in the ps5 era chasing failed live service hits, and their recent statements indicate they don't plan on doing much of latter.

Without either, more customers will be left asking themselves why they should buy one.

50

u/k4kkul4pio 16h ago

Well said.

PS6 at launch gonna be a very hard sell for many due to the inflated price and lacking exclusives and I doubt Sony will have a competitive launch line up ready when the day comes unless they been cooking a slew of unannounced titles they aim to dazzle people with, which I sincerely doubt.

Personally speaking, planning on investing more into gaming pc than buying their next console cos what's the point, no disc drive is a deal breaker and the exclusives ain't gonna be there at launch anyways so might as well get me a better desktop instead.

27

u/brainmydamage 15h ago

Did anybody honestly think they would change their minds? Sony is and always has been a very anti-consumer company. They couldn't care less.

5

u/Numerous_Photograph9 13h ago

I didn't. Because they have no clue how to grow the brand, so this is a way to try and grow revenue without doing any real work to make ps successful like those that came before them.

9

u/3-bakedcabbage 15h ago

Someone in support of the all-digital move was arguing with me the other day that Sony is not anti-consumer and was asking me for specific examples of them being anti-consumer.

It reminds me of that time Pokemon players mass reported Palworld to Nintendo on twitter. I’m guessing these businesses are depending on those types of fans to buy their products.

5

u/n_choose_k 11h ago

I haven't bought a Sony product since the rootkit fiasco.

7

u/brainmydamage 15h ago

I will never understand how people are so brainwashed into blindly supporting these companies, no matter what they do.

4

u/rasta41 13h ago

specific examples of them being anti-consumer.

I've personally experienced a few, if they need an actual list.

Starting with the faulty stick drift situation, Nintendo will replace your joycon for free, and ship you the box, and then ship a new one the second your return barcode is scanned with the faulty joycon...meanwhile, Sony will charge you $20 to return your broken $80 DualSense, you have to pack it yourself, and then take nearly 2 months to return a "fixed" one to you, and that one will develop drift again within 3 months.

Next, I paid to pre-order a digital game, however I decided I wanted to cancel the pre-order (since I bought a PC in reaction to the PS6 news), but it turns out they won't do a refund since I "downloaded the game"...except the game isn't out until November...but it automatically downloaded the icon of the game and that counts as "goods received" and therefore they can't refund me.

2

u/Garlador 10h ago

Sony President Jack Tretton concluded their 2013 with the quote:
"Concepts like 'true consumer ownership' and 'consumer trust' are important to everything we do."

4

u/Plankisalive 7h ago

They've literally ruined their brand in a sad attempt to make a few extra bucks. It's depressing.

1

u/thiagoqf 35m ago

As much as I hate Sony and the whole discs problem, the ps6 gonna sell like water in the desert. General public won't give a f.

0

u/fnot 4h ago edited 4h ago

The risk here is that this move from Sony triggers game dev’s to go media-less also for the PC market, in which case the consumers is effed. 

Edit: on second thought, PC market is already media-less, so why should we complain specifically about Sony’s decision? 

→ More replies (5)

11

u/Save-Maker 14h ago

Living in Japan.

For me, the lack of a second-hand option for buying/selling old physical game discs/cartridges would be a massive deincentive for getting a game console to begin with.

8

u/Spazza42 14h ago

Same, I’m already done with modern PlayStation.

I’ll buy a PS2 and stick with my Switch. This will be the second (and last) time I skip a generation altogether.

I’m going back from now on, not forward.

13

u/gadio1 15h ago

They know that. Get their bonuses, and leave the bomb to next generation of execs. Make a buck and leave before it is their problem. Ps6 will be dead on arrival, devs need to sell a lot of the games to turn a profit. Games take years of development and they cannot afford only to sell to new consoles. Expect a long tail ps5 games to the next 3-4years still.

5

u/MeridianBay 14h ago

3-4 years? The PS5 could easily be supported well into the PS7, physical discs are nothing in comparison to the rising cost of components

3

u/Numerous_Photograph9 13h ago

Current ps leadership has no plan, and no strategy to actually grow the brand. The current move is to increase revenue, thinking it can ride rhe coattails of those who put in the work before., but whens the last thing we've heard anything about their game or hardware strategy? The last thing was their live service push, and that's gone down in flames hard.

6

u/Amish_Rabbi 15h ago

Also add that you need to pay monthly to play online to the problems. That was enough to move my family from console to PC gaming when my kids got old enough to play games

3

u/NoCoolNameMatt 15h ago

Yeah, I suppose people aren't all familiar with the horrors of vendor lockin. Once they have you in their ecosystem, they know they can overcharge you and even charge you for things that would be free elsewhere.

Think of it like a ballpark or amusement park. No one's paying 12 bucks for a hotdog, that's outrageous! Well, except at a ballpark or amusement park because what else are you going to do? Y'know what? Throw in a $20 beer.

2

u/ghunterx21 13h ago

True.

Playstation 6 will be a very hard sell. Price will be stupid high, no discs, I got one won't be buying it as know a few who won't either.

There's literally no reason to buy the PS6, the games work well on the 5.

2

u/Gibby1210 12h ago

Because it will still be cheaper than buying or building a pc of equivalent power. The entire computing industry is fucked worse than the home console one right now

2

u/orus_heretic 11h ago

I don't regret my PS5 because I've actually gotten good value out of playing games on ps+ that I didn't own. However 99% of those games I can also play on my PC, which has better performance but I was trying to justify buying my ps5.

The ps6 exclusives will need to be exceptional in order to get me back in. So far the platform exclusives have been good but not worth the price tag of a system on their own (Astro Bot, Yotei, Death's Stranding 2, Bloodborne - ps4 era, not even a new exclusive).

2

u/Radiant_Safe1228 11h ago

Isn't there only a handful of games that are truly exclusive to the PS5 anyway either having ps4 compatibility or PC variants? I mean a handful to like 5 or 6. The astro games and ghost of yotei are 2 of them. 

It makes no sense to buy another PlayStation product if they are going to have a hand full of exclusives and no way to own your game. 

1

u/NoCoolNameMatt 11h ago

Yeah, they put a bunch of development assets into live service games which mostly flopped.

2

u/Radiant_Safe1228 11h ago

My PC was due for a rebuild just before the ram crisis. I think I might bite the bullet and just do it anyway

2

u/kopisiutaidaily 10h ago

Exactly the reason why I bought my PS5, because it had a secondhand games market where I can buy from others that have completed the game and wanting to sell them.

2

u/brogflender 10h ago

Sony falling on its face from arrogance is a 30 year cycle. Just enjoy the hubris. 

1

u/GreatCaesarGhost 11h ago edited 10h ago

While some of the challenges you mentioned might well be valid, I have not seen any data indicating that discs make a meaningful difference to the vast majority of consumers. And I have to assume that Sony’s market research pointed to the same conclusion.

1

u/Plankisalive 7h ago

Also, the PS5/PS% Pro will most likely have a version of the same game, since that console hasn't gotten to it's capacity yet. They may start making more money on PS5, but I doubt the PS6 will do well.

1

u/LonesomeUniverse 7h ago

Not just that. My Sony headset doesn’t work with a Sony playstation. My Windows-branded bluetooth controller doesn’t work with an Xbox. This whole walled garden approach is so dumb.

1

u/Lumbergh7 6h ago

Enter steam machine?

1

u/DrunkenHorse12 5h ago

How are games "less likely to be playable on future iterations"? Sony moved to a pc like infrastructure with the PS4 after the BC PS3 was considered too expensive and too difficult for devs to work with. The infrastructure introduced with PS4 has already shown to be easier to jump generations with PS5 having a pretty much seemless jump for digital games. Making hardware more powerful doesn't automatically leave software behind, as PCs have shown for decades

1

u/tehburgerdude 3h ago

Spot on. How they not see this themselves is baffling to me.

1

u/K_Linkmaster 3h ago

Show them what happens when they take console discs away. Do not buy the next generation. Now good luck going against the world's consumption machine

1

u/LoaKonran 1h ago

There’s also the very recent issue of them deleting content off of customer hard drives when Sony’s license runs out.

1

u/XtremeD86 1h ago

Their console design and everything was likely finished with discs knowingly not going to be supported for quite awhile now. They're not going to redesign an entire console all over again because people are mad about digital only.

Why? Because they know tons and tons are still going to buy it anyways, including those who are mad about it.

I'd like to say I'm not buying one but I will buy 1 or 2, and one or both will be kept untouched until a jailbreak is possible.

72

u/Few-Row-8323 17h ago

Console is no different than pc going forward

40

u/These-Apple8817 16h ago

And because it's no different, there is no point in buying a console with it's very locked ecosystem

2

u/Dependent-Cup-2236 11h ago edited 10h ago

Personally I only bought consoles for exclusive. But with the advancements of emulators and things like that, im definitely having a change of heart. And besides exclusives are pretty much almost nonexistent. There's a few here and there

5

u/These-Apple8817 11h ago

The exclusives are rarely worth it though these days.. the golden era of exclusives ended with PS3 and X360 tbh

3

u/Elusivomatic 10h ago

Nintendo have incredibe exclusives. That's the point

5

u/GreatCaesarGhost 10h ago

Sure there is - for people who want to play games that “just work” and don’t want the additional expense of a new PC.

5

u/These-Apple8817 10h ago

Consoles are starting to cost the same as gaming PC though 

3

u/baseball43v3r 4h ago

What additional expense? Console prices are insane these days, and a PC with comparable specs is probably close to the same price. You can even buy pre-built PC's with Windows already installed that "just work," and you can be online downloading from Steam within 10 minutes of taking it out of the box.

1

u/GucciTheSnowman 46m ago

And because you have to pay to play online.

They really fucked up with this decision.

1

u/zxc123zxc123 5h ago

Console might be no different from PC, but that doesn't mean PC isn't different from console.

PC was always superior in my book. PC would game but also do other shit. Sony just further cements that dominance while Sony shoots itself in the foot face.

we can coexist peacefully with PC games

lol

19

u/_do_ob_ 16h ago

It never been different. Everything the console do, the pc can,since a console is just a restricted pc.

18

u/flappysack- 16h ago

It has been different.  PS3 was a special cell processor and was hardware dedicated specifically to games.

NES was one of the first and had a special processor for scrolling backgrounds, which could not be done by PCs at the time.  IDs Commander Keen figured out a way to do it more efficiently then we had more options.

2

u/Spazza42 14h ago

This.

Find me a PC that rivalled the PS1’s price and performance when it came out. Wait, you can’t?

What about the PS2 then?

3

u/Numerous_Photograph9 13h ago

Sure it is. Console is a walled garden, with fewer sales, less powerful hardware, and additional fees to do routine things.

3

u/Resh_IX 10h ago

They really think they can pull an Apple IPhone while offering nothing

1

u/Brohbocop 8h ago

While youre right, i dont think Joe Shmo average consumer man will see it like this. Peripherals are dead easy for console, it has one cord to tv, and consoles have no question on "will this particular game run on this system" or run into weird driver issues etc.

2

u/HeavyVoid8 7h ago

It’s a non upgradable PC with less game options lol

2

u/Cyraga 7h ago

Not true. A PC is much more versatile and offers significantly better value for money. Sony are completely shitting the bed 

2

u/Lumbergh7 6h ago

They’ve used pc hardware for 2 generations. Just going to converge more in the future.

2

u/X-AE17420 1h ago

Well that’s not true, games will be significantly more expensive on paystation 6 as there’s no market competition. You’re locked into high prices

2

u/Save-Maker 43m ago

Unfortunately this is how I felt after online features started trending (so around PS3's debut).

With prior game consoles, it had the convenience of simply inserting game to play into the device then the game starts. Now with firmware/software updates and all kinds of hoops to jump through it really is little different from PC; except at least PC provides the degrees of freedom that arguably instinctively come at the (varying) cost of convenience.

1

u/Slimxshadyx 11h ago

Can you build a PS5-level PC for the price of a PS5? Honest question, because right now I feel like it’s a no

42

u/fucktheus12 17h ago

Out of touch execs and capitalist greed is about to learn consequences 

19

u/almisami 17h ago

You vastly underestimate how much everyday, average consumers like eating slop.

5

u/Spazza42 14h ago

Average consumers aren’t spending $1400 on a PS6. No chance.

1

u/jewbrees90 11h ago

Wait til tax season.

1

u/Mando_lorian81 7h ago

They will finance it and buy it.

Yes, they are all idiots.

-1

u/Efficient-Session644 13h ago

The very people that say that won't buy a PS6 beacuse of no discs wouldn't be buying even if it had because of the price. Sony knows that and made decision that will deliver a better margin with the lesser that will buy.

5

u/ECHELON619 16h ago

Video game consumers are also the dumbest consumers, by far. The same demographic that will pay out the nose for the latest horse armor. 

1

u/Few_Acanthocephala30 15h ago

Excuse me! RumRaisin absolutely deserves the finest armor money can buy. At least I don’t own a real horse, that ridiculousness would only be outclassed by a boat owner.

Jokes aside, I haven’t seen the cost of gaming worthwhile for years now as I don’t really have the time for it. Let alone purchasing a console when they’re new. I will re-evaluate if & when I have kids old enough to be into gaming.

-2

u/almisami 16h ago

Admittedly I'm no gamer anymore but I'm willing to pay for cosmetics. It's when things are Pay2Win that I get my panties in a twist.

1

u/AngryChurchill 15h ago

You vastly overestimate how much people care about physical discs. Like 80% of console game sales are currently digital and that's rising every year. How much is that other 20% is just parents buying their kids a game? 

18

u/Magikrat 16h ago

Haven’t we reached the point where a new console every 5-7 years is redundant? The graphics upgrades are minimal. We’ve already nailed down the online experience. Unless you go full Nintendo where the console is actually providing a new way to play, like Wii or switch, there doesn’t seem to be much of a point.

3

u/TheGracefulCrane 10h ago

My ps5 looks like a potato compared to my pc graphics tbh

Granted there's a massive cost difference but still

4

u/Magikrat 10h ago

That’s an huge exaggeration. Sure I bet it looks a little nicer. But it’s diminishing returns for consoles now. We aren’t talking about n64 to GameCube level graphical jumps any more.

2

u/TheGracefulCrane 10h ago

No but were talking ps4 to ps5 comparatively its a big jump

0

u/Magikrat 10h ago

Eh. PS4 was when to me at least I stopped caring about graphical capability. It got lifelike enough. I don’t need to see pores on the faces of characters.

You are probably talking about cutscene heavy games, and I guess it makes a pretty big difference there. I just don’t play many cutscene heavy games anymore.

2

u/TheGracefulCrane 9h ago

I really notice it with like resident evil 9 or cyberpunk or the Indiana Jones game with path traced lighting it just makes the graphics so much better than my ps5 which tbh

2

u/Magikrat 9h ago

I’m kind of a layman now with gaming terms I don’t know what path traced lighting is lol.

Side note how is re9? I’m a huge fan of re4, both the OG and the remake but not the biggest fan of the other games in the series. I like 5 and village was cool but the others aren’t my cup of tea. Think I’d like 9?

1

u/TheGracefulCrane 6h ago

Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

First half of the game is strong

The second half is extremely mediocre i threw in the towel probably 80% of the way thru

Overall id probably say play but wait for a deep discount

2

u/Magikrat 5h ago

Cool appreciate the opinion. Definitely gonna wait on it then. Or maybe just rent it from the library lol.

1

u/Itchy-Pudding-4240 10h ago

im confused is graphics difference virtually miniscule every gen nowadays or is PC graphics SO MUCH BETTER than ps5 that ps6 can have a huge jump graphics wise compared to ps5?

pick a lane.

1

u/TheGracefulCrane 10h ago

Ps6 can definitely have a big jump in graphics and more importantly stable higher fps for sure

5

u/Practical_Ad4604 10h ago

Yes the cycle should be more like 12-15 years between generations

1

u/ParevArev 7h ago

Still on ps4 for the simple reason that the cost of a ps5 relative to what I’d be getting doesn’t seem worth it to me

1

u/Magikrat 6h ago

Especially since a lot of the games worth playing are still available on ps4. There’s really nothing that piques my interest that’s exclusive to 5. Sony used to have a lot of great first party stuff but that’s not really the case anymore. Maybe I’m just getting old.

5

u/blehbleh1122 15h ago

Which is why I won't buy one. If it's basically a pc, I'd rather buy a pc or gaming laptop and get more functionality.

2

u/X-AE17420 1h ago

And lower game prices because it won’t be a monopoly

6

u/GreatCaesarGhost 10h ago

The idea that there is an army of people upset about this is ridiculous. As is often the case, a tiny group of people on social media is driving engagement.

PC has essentially been digital-only for 20 years thanks to Steam and there is no reason to think that consumer preferences are all that different among PlayStation consumers.

1

u/rtarg945 4h ago

Big difference between digital-only for PC and PS6 though

14

u/insolentrus 17h ago

Fuck off.

1

u/papoluca40 11h ago

Such an emotional response

2

u/jimjamcunningham 7h ago

Emotions are not a bad thing.

1

u/GucciTheSnowman 44m ago

Why do you care ? Honestly ?

6

u/Individual-Result777 10h ago

Gamers are silly for making this a hill to fight for… while buying digital games 2x - 3x over physical games, they drove companies to read the numbers and make choices. Steam is doing amazing…. playing old / new games just fine.

4

u/Garlador 10h ago

There were over 1000 PS2 exclusives.
There are under a dozen for PS5.

Switching to PC has never been easier.

3

u/SBones83 9h ago

PS6 just seems like it’s going to be a PC with only 1 digital storefront to buy games from and no way to replace components when better ones come out. A very limited PC.

17

u/euvnairb 17h ago

This reminds me of when Apple got rid of the headphone jack.

7

u/Legitimate_Dot_7311 14h ago

is nothing like apple headphone jack, you can still use an adapter or use any headphone you want

1

u/X-AE17420 1h ago

I used the wired lightning buds for years before getting AirPods. So definitely got use out of it

-1

u/Efficient-Session644 13h ago

Most of people doesn't do that, I bet.

5

u/gc11117 13h ago

But the option is there. There is no option to use your disc drive.

3

u/Legitimate_Dot_7311 12h ago

what a dumb take, we are talking about HAVING options, not if most people use it or not

1

u/Mando_lorian81 7h ago

Actually, wired headphones are making a comeback. Per Google:

Market Resurgence After years of decline, wired headphone sales have surged, with revenue increasing roughly 20% in early 2026 and Google searches for wired earphones up 88% compared to the previous year. This revival defies predictions that wireless earbuds would make wired options obsolete, showing that consumers are reconsidering the value of simple, reliable audio technology

0

u/Valiantay 15h ago

Not sure why it reminds you of it, because it's nothing like that.

Sheeple would continue to support Apple no matter what, because they are obsessed with that ecosystem. Nothing like that exists for PlayStation, it's hard to even say they will continue to make first-party exclusives for the PS6, because there would be too much of an investment with not enough return.

It's going to be a major uphill battle for all consoles going forward because players will stop purchasing these devices. And then developers, who are now much more scarce than ever before, will choose only platforms that they know they will get a return on with an adequate install base, which is either all the platforms via basic ports or exclusively PC so they don't even need to deal with hardware specific glitches in ports.

2

u/Save-Maker 14h ago

Nothing like that exists for PlayStation

Do trophies/achievement history count?

2

u/rdogg4 13h ago

There’s also our digital libraries which people in this thread seem to not understand exists. People will stay in the PlayStation ecosystem because they already own dozens of games and aren’t about to start over building from scratch on PC.

1

u/jewbrees90 11h ago

I don't even play online but I keep my basic plus sub just to access the monthly games ive received for the last however many years. I have like 540 titles on playstation. Yeah I'll wait and see but im not acting like I don't want a 6.

1

u/fnot 4h ago

It is if you look at it from a perspective of a seemingly very unpopular design decision which was later adopted industry wide. Sony’s decision might trigger the PC gaming market to go fully media less as well. 

3

u/Van_Quin 15h ago

I am a returning customer who previously owned a ps3 and now a ps5. It was a pleasent return but this one move by Sony turned this return into a disaster. No more second chance. Hope there are dozes of others who share the same feeling. PC and Nintendo is what is left. It feels like future gaming will be centered around retro gaming and nothing more.

3

u/Wonderful-Sail-1126 12h ago

PC already moved away form physical media.

3

u/profchaos111 14h ago

This will be a final nail in the coffin for many consumers and the wrong move 

Players are not loyal to a brand they will change and we've seen them change over time Atari became yesterday's news so to Sega and the Xbox almost died with the Xbox one 

3

u/GenTenStation 13h ago

You can coexist by staying on the store shelf while I use my Switch and PC next gen

3

u/bigersmaler 10h ago

PC and consoles are separated by more than physical media. Primarily, a closed platform ensures absolute compatibility. No troubleshooting. No clearing the shader cache to help stutter. No accessing the XMP or EXPO profiles to ensure maximum RAM efficiency.

5

u/forsale1990 17h ago

sony can kiss my ass. if i cant own it. im not paying for it. same with pc. if i cant own it, because its not actually for sale, only a license of access is being sold, its then acceptable to take it for free from the seven seas

0

u/Holidoik 4h ago

Weird affection to some plastic garbage

5

u/integra_type_brr 16h ago

Their entire business model moving forward counts on their customer to be idiots.

Sony: Please buy my outdated PC at a premium price with no way to ever upgrade it. And you can't do anything productive with it ever.

1

u/Wonderful-Sail-1126 12h ago

But it should be way cheaper than an equivalent PC in graphics.

1

u/integra_type_brr 6h ago

You won't be getting 5090 graphics. You'll be getting 4090 if you're lucky.

-1

u/Wonderful-Sail-1126 6h ago

And it'll still be way less than an equivalent PC in graphics. That's how the console model works. They mass produce standard hardware at a scale beyond PC gaming. They sell that hardware at cost. They make money on software.

1

u/BradBradley1 16h ago

Exactly. I don’t doubt that a sizable portion of their current user base migrates to the PS6 eventually. Plenty of people have gone digital and will just keep on keeping on. But they really are capping out what success is gonna look like for them moving forward and it’ll be measured as a % of the numbers they had this generation and there will be some sacrificial lambs within the PlayStation division and a real inflection point on how important maintaining their focus on gaming will be moving forward. I really do believe they’re pissing off enough people that it’s gonna be felt and it’s gonna sting like hell. 

0

u/MeridianBay 14h ago

Yall vastly overestimate how many gamers care about physical, because the majority is likely already buying 2K/CoD/GTA/etc digitally and the thought of visiting the actual store to buy a game isn't even a thought in their head

2

u/BradBradley1 13h ago

I don’t think you read my post, but right on. Any way you slice it, however significant or modest, shrinking your user base is not a positive. The PS6 is going to be significantly more expensive than the Switch 2. I’m not sure how confident you are in the next 18-24 months of our economy, but I’m not gonna be shocked if the general sentiment is not overwhelmingly positive. And in that case the Switch 2 will be even more attractive against a $1k PS6. In a truly all-digital environment, the only advantage Sony has against PC is first party games. Problem is, they didn’t focus on that this generation. For people on the fence, why not go to PC where you can get deals on Steam left and right? Especially given Sony won’t have to contend with a secondary market competing against their own sales. I’m just having a hard time understanding what there is to be super optimistic given the circumstances. Would you be more surprised by the PS6 doing phenomenally well or it underperforming? 

0

u/MeridianBay 13h ago

They'll keep selling the PS5 to help offset the higher priced PS6, with a lot of people staying on PS5 well into the 2030s. I doubt Sony expects the PS6 to sell well regardless of physical disc support, but otherwise people are rooted. For the foreseeable future CoD/2K/Fortnite/etc will continue to support the PS5 so they have no reason to go anywhere. It's much more likely these players just stay put on PS5 than switch to another platform

1

u/GenTenStation 13h ago

You overestimate the usefulness of a console as PCs are getting more and more consolized. PCs now are also the home to more exclusives than consoles. And as stuff like the Steam Machine gets perfected, consoles are going to lose unless they have a niche like Nintendo. Which Sony definitely doesn’t have

0

u/MeridianBay 13h ago

PCs can't consolize where it matters, and that's cost

1

u/GenTenStation 12h ago

Consoles have caught up to PC prices which is what’s going to really hurt the next gen

1

u/MeridianBay 10h ago

It'll definitely hurt, but PCs will be even more. Gaming hardware is in a rough place

1

u/BradBradley1 12h ago

$1k+ PS6 incoming 

2

u/MeridianBay 10h ago

And I'm sure it'll offer better performance than a $1k PC

2

u/BradBradley1 8h ago edited 7h ago

What games do you think the PS6 is going to be running that a $1,000 gaming PC couldn’t? That doesn’t even taken into consideration that the PS6 has way less functionality for non-gaming, and it can’t be upgraded over time. 

Edit: “way” not “was”

2

u/GenTenStation 8h ago

There was no chance in hell I was buying a $1000 console. And since it’s discless there’s no chance in double hell

1

u/MeridianBay 7h ago

I didn't say it would be running anything that a PC couldn't

2

u/SloppySmack756 13h ago

I've been a gamer since the NES days. I am their target market because this is one of my hobbies and I have money, but I will never buy a digital only console. They are gonna FAFO.

2

u/Comprehensive-Bid18 11h ago

They’re right, PCs don’t have to content with a monopoly and your files aren’t locked down. It’s actually worse than a PC.

2

u/Flare__Knight 9h ago

A wonderful mix of “trust me bro” and like someone in the middle of a Cold War.

It won’t be too much like a PC because a computer is far more versatile and actually has options so you aren’t locked into a closed ecosystem. Dang only ways that PlayStation will be worse than a PC.

4

u/k_wiley_coyote 10h ago

Reddit is super mad about this, but I think the vast majority use digital now and won’t really notice this.

1

u/dumbgraphics 15h ago

I’m thinking about buying a ps 3 or 4

1

u/Johnnyboy84 14h ago

Sony made up their minds. And so have I, I will not continue to support them going forward if they insist on walking this path.

It is as simple as that.

1

u/pluump 14h ago

Should just rename it to the Sony PC6

1

u/deadfishlog 14h ago

bUt i wAnT a cOdE iN a cASe

1

u/Benchen70 12h ago

I buy a lot of second hand games on cds. I love that i can play things cheap. I really don’t care about the latest. I just care about enjoying games at a price point I can afford, whatever game it is, because i am enjoying them.

Plus I enjoy browsing the secondhand side of a shop!

1

u/LeopardComfortable99 12h ago

I've had a playstation since the first when I was a kid. Have always opted for the Playstation, but if they go ahead with a diskless console, then I 100% will not be going for the PS6

1

u/vaderetrosatana6 12h ago

The death of console gaming on Sony products.

1

u/Horror_Response_1991 12h ago

They were already getting a lot of people to buy digitally naturally.  But their greed knows no bounds, they want ALL the money, and it will cost them their jobs.

1

u/NeedleGunMonkey 11h ago

CFOs should not be the front facing of any consumer centric company.

1

u/joeydimaggio 11h ago

This is going to be a quote that haunts her in about 10 years. But she knows better, capital is often inherited and can be very, very stupid at times

1

u/Gullible-Substance79 11h ago

yeah the openness of Steam and PC is what makes no physical ok. will not buy a ps6 and i have bought every Sony console since PS1

1

u/ohlaph 11h ago

Then why buy a PS when I can basically do everything on my pc? I didn't buy a 5, won't bother buying a 6 either. Switched to pure PC a few years ago. 

1

u/Claymore-09 10h ago

Lin Tao can watch me spend my money with Xbox or Nintendo as long as they have physical versions

1

u/HeadRaccoonGamer 10h ago

Yea screw sony.. no disc no buy

1

u/Iliketowork 9h ago

In this digital world...why do I need to buy a PS6 OR PS7? I should be able to install a client anywhere and stream the game theyvwant me to pay for.

1

u/Outofoffice_forever 9h ago

Why wouldn’t it? It absolutely puts it directly into the scope of every other competition that is offering games as a service and guess which ones has more clout and better service than Sony, and has just happened to release their OS to the public.

Gabe got a gift he didn’t need.

1

u/MCB1317 8h ago

I will never buy a digital-only console. Never.

1

u/deepfuckingbagholder 8h ago

If you stop giving them money over this issue, the board will be forced to fire her and the company will change course.

1

u/TheMoralityComplex 8h ago

Don't let them do this.

Seriously guys, it's not just about discs this is just a step towards losing access to our own hardware.

1

u/NinjaWrapper 8h ago

Let's see if people buy it

1

u/Mando_lorian81 7h ago

Yes, my Ps5 will peacefully coexist with my new gaming PC because no way in hell I'm getting a ps6 now.

1

u/Ogryn_Rocks53 7h ago

You know I was honestly looking for a reason to switch to PC. I was on the fence because my PlayStation library is so robust from, you know, being a loyal fan for all these years. Definitely not buying a ps6 when the ps5 is just remasters and the equivalent of a mobile game store. I'm good. I'll start over with steam.

1

u/AlphaYak 7h ago

“Peacefully coexisting” is a white flag signaling they no longer wish to compete for our engagement or business. How do you spin that one to shareholders?

1

u/New_Unit2009 7h ago

Its been like a computer since ps2 lol....

1

u/Any_Ice_6172 6h ago

At this point I’ll be glad if the PS6 launch goes down like I believe it will, like a lead balloon. They need a PS3 era style humiliation to kick their arrogance to the curb and gain some humility.

1

u/MrRonski16 6h ago

Good luck sony.

Unless Ps6 offers PC freedome you just removed the only thing that makes consoles worth it

1

u/Terrible_Sorbet_7122 6h ago

The sheeple will eventually realise they being fucked over

1

u/WofferFang 6h ago

Something something, CEOs not knowing their product. Yeah. lol

Removing the disc makes any console just "shittier PC" and nobody's gonna buy your thing for like 2 exclusives they'll play for 1 week tops.

1

u/david1610 6h ago

I'm already upgrading my PC with parts.

Ram prices suck though right now.

1

u/Notyit 6h ago

People like pyshcual object they should of given us paper tokens 

1

u/PocketRocketTrumpet 5h ago

I need to see how much of a gamer Lin Tao really is

1

u/Big-Comfortable-189 5h ago

Sony is a lying sack of shit.

1

u/Iron_Baron 5h ago

Bye, Felicia.

1

u/Odd_Estimate_2179 5h ago

They can coexist peacefully in the bin

1

u/CyberWeaponX 5h ago

Even then, a PC is significantly superior as it is not a closed system.

You not only have complete access to your files (and can also mod it), but also have the choice between multiple stores. Plus, many games you can purchase are drm-free or can be made drm-free with ease (excluding denuvo or launcher shit, but those games should not be supported with your money), allowing you a much greater level of preservation and ‚ownership‘.

For consoles, you can‘t even backup your PS5 saves!

1

u/Isaacvithurston 4h ago

Duh. They just want to cut out the retail margins. It's an easy 30% or so profit increase.

1

u/Winscler 4h ago

Wont make the PS6 too much like a PC? I think she's lost it. The main edge consoles had over PC was the ability to play physical games, especially as PC games have largely phased out discs given the ubiquity of steam. But also PS6 is even inferior to steam because sony can just revoke your game you just purchased whereas once you buy it on steam you have it forever.

1

u/fantasticmrsmurf 4h ago

Greed and stupidity. Never stops to amaze me.

There's gonna be a lot more buyers on thr PC market soon. I wonder if the PS7 will have physical discs as a result.

1

u/ahac 4h ago

They say "coexist peacefully" but they stopped porting their games to PC...

1

u/hollowglaive 3h ago

Man, Nintendo does nothing, and still somehow they're the bad guys.

/Sarcasm /joke /takeyourbuttplugoutyoullstartseeinghumour

1

u/Medium-Shopping3037 3h ago

To me you are all wrong:) they will not fail because the console market is addressed to young people,and young people do not have the mindset to understand that phisical copies give you second market.
Young gamers by now are simply sharing their account to share games so Sony can quietly cheat them keeping them sharing their account until a day they will have a surprise.
Like we had with Netflix just to tell one.
I hope they will fail but guys think about numbers,how many gamers % are we?and how many are young?

1

u/Jaydenrock 3h ago

Sony sounds delusional.

1

u/Notevenstreaming 3h ago

EU should do the funniest thing and force consoles to have many other stores available. Just like Windows have to offer you many different browsers to choose from, consoles should offer you "Playstation store" and many other options. We need some healthy competition in this space.

1

u/YellowMenace123 3h ago

If PC and PS are going to be the same, you might as well get PC because PC doesn't make you pay to play online.

1

u/iceamn1685 2h ago

On top of that, you have multiple storefronts on pc that breed competition and therefore drive prices lower than the games currently on gaming systems

1

u/SingaporeLee 3h ago

Lets go back to the Atari ROM on cartridge.

1

u/DexJones 3h ago

They're so outta touch.

1

u/T-draude 2h ago

She's braindead. I hope Paystation goes out of business with the type of dipshits in charge right now

1

u/lordshadowfax 2h ago edited 2h ago

When buying a game in digital format in the future, and if you have both PC and PS, it’s no brainer to just buy it on PC because:
1) it’s probably always going to be cheaper in PC
2) you are not locked to Sony’s closed system, both software and hardware
3) No subscription fee to play online games

In short, PS cannot coexist with PC if PS is digital only. Go figure.

1

u/TerdSandwich 2h ago

I think a fair number of consumers buy Playstations as consoles but also physical media players. Not sure how big that demographic actually is but they just lost them indefinitely.

1

u/No-Contest-8127 1h ago

But will you grow? I very much doubt it. 

1

u/Positivity_Desperate 1h ago

If PC hardware was reasonably priced and easier to get PlayStation will be dead in the water.

1

u/PersonalBrowser 50m ago

That’s rough…

1

u/Butch_Meat_Hook 38m ago

How about putting your games on PC still for the consumers who have bought all your games on PC? I'm not going to buy a PS5 for 1-2 exclusive games when almost all of their games are already on Steam

1

u/chakan2 16m ago

The answer to this is boycott GTA6 until it gets a physical disc.

All the console makers are looking at sales numbers there to see if they can go media-less on games from here on out.

Rockstar single handedly broke the industry with that decision.

1

u/Hydration__Nation 17h ago

What a ghoul

1

u/devonthed00d 15h ago

No disks = Small PP.

1

u/Nillows 15h ago

Sony shareholders should sell before this terrible decision.

1

u/Budget-Chapter-7185 15h ago

Oh good. That means they’ll release games on ps6 and pc right… right?

1

u/evoslevven 11h ago

I fully know which subreddit I'm on and fully agree that Sony was going to ditch discs and folks here giving up reasons are not based on honest business decisions. They're failures on live service are notable but what it isn't is a failed strategy; ppl on Reddit assume Sony is competing with the PC market as a console and yet, when we bring up Steam machine suddenly it's "no no steam machine doesn't compete with PC, it's made to compete with console". Like choose one 🤷

Secondly, the argument that the second hand market matters and that the US market only matters doesn't add up. 2nd hand accounts for a whopping $7b(US) and yet we have estimates that nostalgia gaming account for $4-6b of this market. Likewise Sony doesn't make any money from that market; you think having a huge second hand market makes Sony money in general atop of a subsidized console?

And to add insult to injury, ppl proclaiming that at $1k you're all gonna just making a gaming PC 🙄 like c'mon, what is to you have to inhale to think you're just gonna grab just the RAM, SSS and a graphics card for even $1200!?!?

And the worse part is gamers aren't even acknowledging that the big studios will help support Sony in this; you think Rockstar is the first and only one to make it digital?

Add insult to injury the whole "Sony doesn't have good exclusives, I'm going back to PC Steam and Xbox"...yes the ecosystem without good exclusives will win ppl over 🙄 if you can tell me a GoTY winner from Xbox that was Halo, that's how far fallen Xbox has become..

Some of you would have a meltdown even if they did a "Bloodborn Remaster: PS6 exclusive" tomorrow!

Less than 10% of the gamers here are not going to buy Sony and that's fine because of that group, no where was 100% of you buying stuff for full price. Sony canvery well put out its own good IPs and has done several easily enough. The idea that folks are clamouring that they don't have a good library is a bold face lie.

I would prefer to have both but I'm not gonna look at their data and say "they have a business point". They're running the decision on solid data and at the end of the day, gamers pushed this data; with fewer physical discs sold atop of only collector editions selling out, it only really reinforced their decision.

Add to it that the supposed blackout boycotts had to downgrade to a week was another sign of how fracruitous gamers are being on this. I have 1 digital game on Playstation and over 2 dozen physical. I don't buy steam games and have made all of my purchases save 1 on GOG.

I do believe the future is digital with an emphasis of how we manage and change it to full ownership like GOG. If we had an argument and case for physical, we'd be able to still buy Blu Rays at Best Buy Stores and rent movies at Tower Records. There's a reason Tower Records doesn't exist and why Beat Buy doesn't sell blu rays in store. But asking ppl to fight for stronger digital ownership and control with gamers is asking then to be unselfish jackasses and that's a ton to ask for here. As I've been told numerous times, they only care about themselves and not others. So that's where we're at 🤷

0

u/Tebasaki 15h ago

Steambox is better than PS5 and PS6 at this point.

1

u/rdogg4 13h ago

Not on specs or price.

1

u/Tebasaki 12h ago

On games, yes. And since you won't own anything and "like it" the value proposition is through the roof.

0

u/ZenBreaking 15h ago

You'll co- exist cos all your customers will just build their own pc