Sony Surveying Developers on Phasing Out PS5 Physical Discs

Sony is surveying development partners about its decision to discontinue physical discs for PlayStation 5, according to YouTuber Moore's Law Is Dead, who claims to have industry contacts.

The survey, described as larger than most Sony has previously sent to developers, includes questions about physical media. Moore's Law Is Dead stated: "There is a survey Sony sent out to developers which is, what I was told by my contacts, a bigger survey than they've sent almost ever before. There was a question in it trying to ask in a not-direct way: is there an issue with not selling games physically? It's asking developers for feedback on killing discs."

The move comes as physical copies of games like Wolverine continue to sell strongly. Moore's Law Is Dead suggested Sony may reconsider its position if developers express significant concerns: "Wolverine is still selling plenty of physical copies and Sony is starting to ask devs if they are worried about killing physical copies, suggesting that if they got a bunch of feedback, maybe they would consider some sort of mea culpa."

The digital-only shift offers clear benefits to publishers and developers. Without manufacturing delays, games can reach gold status closer to launch. Digital sales also generate higher profit margins by eliminating middlemen and cutting off used game markets.

Notable is that major publishers have not publicly opposed Sony's decision, suggesting internal alignment with the strategy. The survey results could ultimately validate PlayStation's direction or prompt reconsideration if developer feedback proves overwhelmingly negative.