Jolumas

Mostly use this account for gaming related stuff. Favourites include Star Ocean, Zelda, Star Fox, Pokémon, Banjo-Kazooie and Fire Emblem

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@bloob3rry_ I've only played bits of the NES games, but can recommend the Netflix show at least, its pretty great!

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@TTVxNEOx @_brickguy He said he wanted to buy it "today". Not when some company decides to put a sale on. Having more options and convenience is never a bad thing

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@dreamrog @FerrisWheelPro Bad examples, CDs and DVDs are still available to buy, you're the one who needs to open their eyes. More options is never a bad thing. Some people still buy vinyl and cassetes even. There's no need to take options away from people

[Rino🚀 @RinoTheBouncer]

Don’t give up💪🏼🚀

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@Uncle_Lu_92 @AnalogKidMusic @MrGrimmYT @RinoTheBouncer Are you actually serious? There is no outrage because you can still go out and buy CDs and blurays if you want to. Just because they're not the most popular options doesn't mean they're gone. Sony want to stop producing physical games full stop, its not the same. Options are good

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@AnalogKidMusic @MrGrimmYT @RinoTheBouncer Except vinyls, dvds, blurays are all still available for enthusiasts. Just because theres "a newer version" doesn't mean old options can't be supported too. There's a reason why they still make music and movies on these old formats, because there is a demand for it

[Metal Gear Network - MGN @MGSMGN]

Sorry, I'm going to keep speaking up about this because it genuinely means a lot to me.

@PlayStation, please reconsider the decision to move to a digital only future.

I've spent hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars on Sony products over the years. I recently bought a PS5 Pro with the disc drive, and I've been a PlayStation Plus subscriber for years. Do I buy digital games? Absolutely. Like most people, I appreciate the convenience. But I also make a point to buy physical copies because ownership matters.

I never know if there will come a day when I can't download one of my favorite games anymore or lend it to a friend. Physical media isn't just about collecting plastic cases. It's about preserving something that genuinely means something to me.

I'm also the kind of fan who buys collector's editions of the series I love. More often than not, I end up buying multiple copies of the same game because I want to support the developers while also owning a physical version that I can keep for years to come.

This is personal for another reason.

I grew up in a low income family. My parents couldn't afford to buy my brothers and me every new game we wanted, but they always did everything they could. They waited for sales, bought used copies, traded games, and stretched every dollar to give us experiences we never would have had otherwise.

Those games became some of my favorite childhood memories, and I'm forever grateful for the sacrifices they made.

Without physical media, many of those moments simply wouldn't have been possible.

Please don't take that choice away from future generations of players.

[Canadian Guy Eh @Canadianguyehh]

Did more digging.

It gets worse.

I decided to compare, isolating the PS5 Platform as a comparison. How many more digital exclusive games are there? and does it correlate with the 85% number?

There are, at this point in time, about 1,120 PRINTED PS5 games (give or take). We are going to assume, that all 1,120 of those games also have a digital counterpart.

I went to the PSN store and simply clicked PS5 Platform and games. So this does not include DLC, MTX, etc. The total? 7,590 games.

But what about free to play?

Lets exclude those, this brings the total down to 7,451 games on the PSN store sorted specifically for the PS5. I want to note, this would be a COMPLETE PS5 library (thus far).

So, simple Math

7,451 - 1,120 = 6,331.

There are 6,331 MORE games on the PSN store than what's PHYSICALLY PRINTED For the PS5. That is 5.65x MORE games. These are all games that sell for 1 dollar, all the way up to your 100$+ digital special editions. If you Buy Final Fantasy Rebirth for 69.99 physically, go home, and buy "Quack McStuffins" for a dollar on PSN, those quantity of numbers are treated as equal.

and it gets even funnier.

Lets take that digital catalogue of 6,331 games and divide it by that complete library number (7,451) and turn it into a percentage.

6,331 divided by 7,451 = 84.96%

Meaning? almost 85% of the PS5's available library is DIGITAL ONLY. Ironic how 85% of Playstation's sales are digital eh?

So, what's happening here?

"All digital" defenders are using False Equivalency, and an Availability bias to gaslight users into thinking that no one plays physical anymore and to "get with the times" in the digital era.

Playstation themselves stated "This is a natural direction for Sony Interactive Entertainment to adapt to consumer trends as the general preference for digital media significantly outpaces physical discs." But this logic is ONLY sound if you apply a False Equivalency.

ALL OF THIS- Before we even take into account of the insomniac leaks back in 2022, which showed that 31 out of the 33 first party games sold MORE in Physical than Digital. And in recent memory, Astrobot selling around 55% physical vs Digital.

So, why are they doing this?

Because MONEY!

Playstation makes WAY more money if you buy the game digitally vs Physically. So playstation is using the backing of convenience, Digital Incentives, indie/AA teams, Mini-Games, and yes, AI Slop, to validate jamming gamers who prefer Physical games with a hot poker into a 100% digital era.

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@rockyguy1984 @StarOcean I would buy The Divine Force again on Switch 2 for sure, love these games

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@StarOcean Both great games, played them both at launch! I hope we will see a new Star Ocean game before Sony stops doing physical discs. Love tri-Ace games and I hope we will continue to get physical games from them and Square Enix for many years 🌠

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@mizo_mizo06 @pixnlove_games @Focus_entmt @MIOinOrbit You likely own the ESRB release, this is a PEGI release for Europe. Glad we are finally getting it over here!

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@SweisSenpai Same, man. I don't have as many as PS5 titles, but I spotted your Star Ocean games which I also picked up, great series. Its sad thinking how the next one may not get a physical release, but we can push back Sony and hope the public outcry is enough

[GOG.COM @GOGcom]

Shall we? 📦💿

[Jon Cartwright @JonComms]

Market value about to be decided entirely by the corporations

[Does it play? @DoesItPlay1]

Everyone is talking about the digital-physical-split percentages. So we will too!

The TL;DR: Most of what has been parroted about consumer preference is wildly exaggerated at best, or a mix of a bad faith campaign and severe negligence at worst.

Sony has announced the death of physical media because of "changing consumer trends". Most of us can already smell the bullshit it in this fake excuse. It is when we take a closer look that we discover just how much of a lie that statement really is.

Let's start by scrutinizing the most repeated number lately: 85 % of sales are digital.

This number exists. But in what context?

It comes from the Fiscal Year Q4 report for 2025. ONLY IN THIS QUARTER did we get this number. The overall percentage for the entire year 2025 is "only" 78 %.

Still sounds bad. Where is the lie, then?

It comes with what both sides include. The digital part also accounts for digital-only games. AKA products which didn't give a choice to the customer. You could either add to the digital tally or not play these games at all. This alone should show you how they use statistics to deceive the public.

But we are not done.

If you look at honest comparisons, like those we got through the infamous Insomniac leaks in 2022, or certain market reports from the UK more recently, you will find games that even sell predominantly physical. Many of which are Sony's own first party titles. So their games sell more physical copies, but they still dare to use consumer preference as the excuse.

Not convinced?

Let's look at the even broader picture. Researching online we can find an infographic illustrating the development of the physical-digital split over the years. Admittedly, there is a constant decline for the physical share. Abysmal even in the years up to 2020. HOWEVER, in recent years the year on year decline has slowed down and has almost reached a stable plateau.

Oh, and have we mentioned that the vaaaaaaast majority of all players own a console that can read discs? 82 % is the number floating around online. We take a page out of Sony's book and just run with it for now. Only, let's add that even the other 18 % might not be digital-only die-hards. After all, there were times when both the disc console and the detachable disc drive were sold out at some point.

What would you say does that show about consumer preference?

Less than 18 % actually prefer digital.

Just with a little research we have come from "85 % prefer digital" to "less than a fifth of the customer base actually does".

So why does Sony push for a change? You know by now. Money!

Multiple areas they benefit in in an all-digital future:

1) Margins for digital games are simply better. The save the entire overhead for physical production, logistics, customer service/returns, retailer cuts, etc.

2) This is the big one: The death of the second hand market. Or at least they think that's beneficial, if they ignore the facts that second hand buyers can also contribute to digital revenue, and they help with discoverability/word of mouth advertising. We wouldn't be surprised if this comes back to haunt Sony.

3) Pricing monopoly: They set the prices. They decide discounts. They decide the number of sales that happen, if any.

The key word is REVENUE!

Because that is another great opportunity to play with alarming numbers. The revenue percentage split between digital and physical makes the gap look even wider, of course. Despite selling almost 70 million physical copies, that area generated relatively low revenue. It accounts for only a little over 10 % of the revenue generated by game sales.

That's the moment when "reliable" analysts and "quality" media could formulate headlines like "Physical media is dying - Makes up only 10 %". But that's not alarmist enough. They can do one "better".

You might ask, "But DoesItPlay?, why do I see people claim that the gaming space is over 95 % digital?"

Let's reveal the most evil trick of them all, shall we?

Let's take a look at that FY 2025 report again. The overall category is called "Game Software". In here (and subsequently in the blogs of the anti-physical crowd) the biggest lie materializes. "Game Software" does not only include digital and physical game sales. It also accounts for ANY TYPE OF ADDITIONAL CONTENT (expansions, in-game currency, microtransactions of all sorts) and "Other Software", which is not even specified as to what that could be exactly. If we now lump all of this together and check the percentage of physical game revenue, we land at roughly 4,7 %.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is the single biggest gaslighting this industry has pulled on you when it comes to lying about consumer preference.

It was never about consumer preference. It was about maximizing profits and control over what should be rightfully yours after a purchase.

[Maku @TropicalMaku]

If you want physical games to stay and you play on consoles, buy the physical versions. That includes the upcoming ones you excited for. Vote with your wallets and continue putting pressure on Sony. Don't let this die easily without a fight.

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@rasenburst @Genki_JPN Digital sales aren't counted so it could well have doubled Zero and we just won't know yet. We know digital takes a higher percentage of overall numbers than it did when Zero released a decade ago

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@Genki_JPN Much better than Star Fox Zero's 25K sales in Japan first week. Given that was 10 years ago there are probably a lot more digital sales too

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@TheRPGDummy I bought a new album physically a month or so ago. Also bought a book for my nephew recently. I was given a few blurays a month or so ago and want to buy a few more for my collection. Physical forever

[Jolumas @JoeLukeThomas]

@OppositeMario @SkyKniight The difference is that Steam is just one of many options on PC, because PC has an open marketplace. Playstation only has the one digital store. If something is expensive on Steam you can get it on another store etc. There's competitive pricing. Sony will have complete control