00:00PlayStation's return to social media sparks fresh backlash following digital-only announcement.
00:06After remaining silent for nearly a week following its controversial decision to phase out physical
00:11game disc, PlayStation has returned to social media, and the response from fans was overwhelmingly
00:17negative.
00:18Sony's official PlayStation account posted for the first time in six days on July 7th,
00:23sharing a promotional video for its upcoming wireless arcade fight stick.
00:27Rather than celebrating the new accessory, many gamers flooded the comments with criticism
00:32over Sony's recent announcement that future PlayStation consoles will abandon physical
00:37game disc.
00:39One of the most widely shared replies came from gaming preservation group Does It Play, which
00:44wrote, Wireless Fight Stick?
00:46More like Spineless Corpo, accusing Sony of sacrificing game ownership in favor of an all-digital future.
00:54That sentiment was echoed throughout the comment section.
00:58Thousands of users demanded the return of physical media, posted photos of their disc collections,
01:03and criticized the company for what they see as an attack on game ownership.
01:07Others questioned why Sony chose to resume posting promotional content without addressing
01:12the backlash surrounding its announcement.
01:15Within the first hour, the promotional video reportedly accumulated more than 12,000 negative
01:20comments and nearly 4,000 quote posts, with very few users defending Sony's decision.
01:27The criticism stems from Sony's announcement that it will discontinue physical game discs,
01:32beginning with future hardware.
01:33If those plans remain unchanged, the PlayStation 6 would become Sony's first digital-only home
01:39console, ending a tradition that has existed since the original PlayStation launched in 1994.
01:44The announcement has sparked a growing movement among collectors, preservation advocates, and
01:50long-time PlayStation fans.
01:51Many argue that removing physical media reduces consumer ownership, limits preservation efforts,
01:58and leaves players dependent on digital storefronts and licensing agreements.
02:03Adding fuel to the controversy is Sony's history with digital content.
02:08Critics have pointed to previous situations where purchased digital movies were removed from users'
02:13libraries after licensing agreements expired, arguing that digital purchases do not always guarantee
02:19permanent access.
02:21The backlash had also extended beyond social media.
02:24A petition launched by PNP Games CEO Jade Pierce has surpassed 160,000 signatures, with supporters
02:31urging Sony to reconsider its decision and continue offering physical editions of future PlayStation
02:37games.
02:39Some long-time PlayStation fans are now questioning whether they will purchase a PlayStation 6 at
02:44all.
02:45Instead, many say they are considering moving to PC gaming, citer greater platform flexibility,
02:51wider storefront options, and access to DRM-free games through services like GOG.
02:58Others believe Sony could still reverse course, pointing to Microsoft's decision in 2013 to abandon
03:03its original Xbox One policies after facing significant consumer backlash.
03:08At the time, Microsoft scrapped plans for mandatory online connectivity and restrictions on used games,
03:15following widespread criticism and weaker-than-expected consumer support.
03:19Whether Sony follows a similar path remains uncertain.
03:23While some fans remain hopeful that the company will reconsider, others believe PlayStation is fully committed to an all-digital
03:30future.
03:30Reports have even suggested that at least one manufacturing facility responsible for producing PlayStation
03:36game disc has already begun transitioning its production lines toward other products.
03:42But now, Sony's return to social media has done little to calm the controversy.
03:46Instead, it has reignited criticism from fans who continue to demand one thing above all else.
03:52The option to keep buying and owning their games on physical discs.
03:56I do have to say that this is a blunder, it's a mess-up by Sony.
04:06And honestly, I'm seeing a lot more backlash from what Sony is doing than when Microsoft tried this with the
04:22Xbox One original in 2013.
04:26When they tried to, you know, go all digital on the Xbox One and saying,
04:33if you want to trade games with friends, you're going to have to trade the license.
04:38And that's just, it's not just, you're not going to be able to sell your games back to GameStop.
04:43You're not going to be able to sell them to someone else, like on eBay or anything.
04:51Because the license there would be, it'd be, you know, you can't sell it to just whoever.
04:57And then that disc, and wait until the disc is sold, and then you got, that would never work.
05:04Because when you sell a game to GameStop and they sell it to someone else,
05:06you don't know who that person is unless you just happen to be in the store when it sells.
05:13But now with Sony, you know, I've seen a lot of people, I've said this for a long time,
05:21but I think it's probably, it's probably, it's probably more likely to happen now if it was ever going to
05:35happen.
05:35And that's with just a backlash.
05:38People have been canceling PlayStation Plus, as the article said.
05:43People are now reconsidering buying a PlayStation 6 at all,
05:47whether or not Grand Theft Auto 6 will be on it or not.
05:53So, that's a good thing.
05:57I used, I did, I said it before, I'll say it again.
06:00Again, in the, like 2022, 2023, I had moved away from digital, even on my Xbox One.
06:11And I was basically moving away from Xbox One games.
06:14I was going back to PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3.
06:19Because I have, and just basically getting more of the games that either I wanted and never completed,
06:28that I had at one time and never completed, or that I never got to play in the first place.
06:34As long as they were affordable with my budget.
06:39And, um, and most, and most, and obviously that had no effect on digital.
06:46Digital just continued business like everyday normal.
06:49And I figured, well, I'm the only one who can do it.
06:52You know, that can, I'm the only one, I can only control what I do.
06:57I can't control what other people do.
07:00Uh, but we knew this day was coming.
07:03Uh, before even PlayStation made that announcement.
07:06Um, but I do have to say, uh, one thing I was getting ready.
07:14I can play these games anytime I want.
07:17And I don't need an online connection.
07:21Um, and I'll show my disc also.
07:27Make it so you can see it.
07:29Um, this is not going as smoothly as I'd hoped, but whatever.
07:37All, you know, I can play these games, and as long as I got electricity, and the game works, and
07:44my console works, I'm good to go.
07:47Um, that's what, and that's honestly what I think I'm going to do if PlayStation does not reverse course.
07:53Because, think about it, we all know Microsoft is going to do the same thing.
07:59There's, they're going to, um, Microsoft is going to, uh, go all digital, because they wanted to do it before
08:07Sony did.
08:08And then, what's left?
08:10Nintendo?
08:12And isn't Nintendo already trying to do that with their, um, with their key cards?
08:19Now, I do want to say, some people, um, I watched RGT85's video on this, this morning.
08:27Or this afternoon, rather.
08:29Um, and I do have to disagree with him, because he was like, what does gaming look like in the
08:35past, you know, in the next five years or so?
08:38And what I have to say to that is, maybe not modern gaming, maybe not current day gaming, but I'm
08:46actually excited for retro gaming.
08:49Because if us, and a lot more people are spending their time on retro gaming, uh, we're, we're going to
08:57be going through games, or we're, uh, everyone that just chooses to go retro gaming, like, like I probably will,
09:03they're going to, uh, be playing games that they've never played before, or playing games that they love, but maybe
09:10never completed.
09:13And before anyone says, well, you know, you probably know of every game.
09:18Um, I already did it, uh, last time on Twitch, where I tried to name just 10% of the
09:24N64 library.
09:26And actually, I couldn't do it.
09:27I watched that video back.
09:28I named, um, uh, I named three different games twice.
09:33In that 29.
09:35And there's 288 N64 games.
09:39And if you say, well, a lot of them are sports games, and this goes for any console, a lot
09:44of them are sports games, so what if there are a lot of sports games?
09:48You know what, uh, at this point, I would take, uh, Major League Baseball featuring Ken Griffey Jr. on N64
09:54for a game or two, see if I could get used to the N64 controls, or, um, because I'm used
10:02to playing, uh, PlayStation 3, um, sports games.
10:08Um, you know, so, even if a lot are sports games, okay, but there's still games out there that we
10:15maybe never heard of, or maybe that we heard of, but never heard anything about, that we never got to
10:22play before.
10:23Uh, one game I'll bring up, 40 Winx, other than the title, and that it was released for N64 and
10:28PlayStation Original, I know nothing about that game.
10:31Um, so, you know, like I said, uh, there's, and, you know, maybe use your favorite, um, AI, ChatGPT, Claude,
10:41Gemini, um, to suggest these games based on whatever console you already have.
10:48You know, as many, as many, as many people that dunk on the Sega CD, there's good games on the
10:53Sega CD.
10:55So, you know, maybe that's a, you know, it all depends on what games, what console you're interested in, and
11:02what's in your budget.
11:05And if, and I don't blame anyone getting upset for digital, especially since these, uh, developers, or these console developers,
11:14anyway, that want to go digital, they don't protect you.
11:17They're not looking out for you.
11:18If you get screwed, they say, too bad, buy our next product, though.
11:23So, so, you know, I mean, that's really, you got really three options here.
11:29You can either deal with whatever direction that gaming is going in, you, if you have the money, you can
11:37go to, uh, PC gaming, or you can go retro.
11:42My laptop, they can't handle anything current, anyway.
11:46Um, it's like, um, anything, uh, with my, with my specs the way they are, I could probably run, like,
11:56something like a PS3 game from Steam, or PS3 era game from Steam.
12:02Um, um, uh, like on medium, maybe.
12:06My, maybe I could stretch it to a PS4 launch title, because the technology and specifications that would be needed
12:13to run those games between a PS3 and a PS4 launch title was not that different.
12:20But, you know, my, my laptop that I use for everything couldn't play, uh, current games anyway.
12:29So, maybe I'll, maybe, you know, maybe instead of console, maybe instead of PC, I'll go to retro.
12:36Because I do have a lot of consoles, old consoles, that still work.
12:41And, you know what, there's, like I said, there's games I never completed.
12:45There's games that, um, I wish I hadn't sold that I'd love to play again.
12:51More, really, in the first category.
12:54And, that's where I'll spend most of my gaming time.
12:57Let me know what you think.
