'Don't Kill the Disc' Petition Tops 170,000 as Sony Plans to End PlayStation Discs

The pushback against Sony's decision to walk away from physical media is turning into one of the loudest fan campaigns of the year. The "Don't Kill the Disc" petition on Change.org, launched after Sony announced it would end physical disc manufacturing in January 2028, has now sailed past 170,000 signatures - and it is still climbing.

The move is a bigger deal than it first sounds. According to the report, Sony's plan ends *all* physical media on PlayStation, not just its own first-party titles. That means third-party releases would also be affected. From that point on, everything heads to digital - including so-called "code-in-the-box" versions on store shelves, where you buy a case that basically just holds a download code.

Whether Sony actually responds is another matter. As many have pointed out, petitions rarely move a corporation of this size. But the sheer volume of signatures shows how many players still care about owning a game they can hold, lend, and keep.

Why this hits harder in our region

For players in Croatia and the wider Balkans, discs were never just a collector's fetish - they were the smart way to buy. A physical copy can be resold, traded, borrowed from a friend, or picked up second-hand for a fraction of the launch price. Those bazaars, Facebook groups and local shops full of used games exist precisely because a full-price new release is a serious chunk of an average monthly paycheck around here.

Kill the disc, and you kill that whole ecosystem. There is no second-hand market for a digital licence. You cannot gift a download code the way you hand over a boxed game at a birthday. And when a title only exists as a purchase tied to your account, the regional habit of splitting costs, reselling after finishing a game, or waiting for a cheap used copy simply disappears.

Digital storefronts also love to keep prices high in euros regardless of local wages, and without a physical alternative there is no pressure valve. No shelf to browse, no shop owner to haggle with, no borrowed disc making the rounds through a friend group.

What happens next

Sony has not signalled any change of heart, and 2028 is still far enough away that plans could shift. For now the petition is less about forcing a U-turn and more a very public reminder that a large slice of the audience - especially in markets where every euro counts - does not want a fully digital future forced on them.

If you have a stack of PlayStation discs on your shelf, hold onto them. In a few years they might be the last of their kind.

Image: Evan-Amos / Public domain, source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Sony-PlayStation-3-2001A-wController-L.jpg