Only Seven Games Sold More Than 100,000 Physical Copies in the United States This Year

Earlier this month, Sony announced an earthquake in the gaming market with the revelation that starting in January 2028, it will stop distributing new games on discs. The decision sent shockwaves through the industry and was met with widespread anger from players concerned about the death of physical media for games, whether in terms of collecting or the ability to play second-hand and own games forever without relying on a digital store. Players for their part have also started a petition that has garnered hundreds of thousands of signatures so far, but it appears Sony has no plans to back down and will continue with its plan to end game distribution on discs.

As much as Sony's decision is infuriating (though I think it's a good thing), it's clear to everyone that the company didn't make the decision without supporting data. We already know that roughly 80% or more of all PS5 game purchases were made digitally, with the remaining 15% to 20% being physical copies. But now we're learning that last year in the United States, only 7 games crossed the threshold of 100,000 physical copies sold. You need to put the numbers in perspective—we're talking about a very small number of games that reached relatively large physical sales, and even their achievement pales in comparison to the amount of digital purchases for these games. While we don't know exactly which seven games were the lucky ones, it's safe to assume they came from the largest companies in the market that invest massive budgets in advertising and marketing, so even this achievement is far out of reach for most developers. As I said, alongside all the arguments I can sympathize with some of, I think Sony made the right decision when it announced the impending death of the disc format, and it appears the sales data supports the decision and its validity. Think this is a huge mistake and I'm living in delusion? Let's talk about it in the comments!