Sony’s decision to go fully digital by the start of 2028 by ending physical releases on PlayStation altogether might have a major impact on the gaming industry. However, Circana’s Mat Piscatella doesn’t believe that Nintendo will follow in Sony’s footsteps. In an interview with VideoGamesChronicle, he said that Sony’s decision was an inevitability thanks to general market trends that seem to favor digital releases over physical copies.
With Sony’s announcement, as well as reports of Microsoft looking into a way to turn physical game ownership into digital ownership, Piscatella also believes that the PS6 and Project Helix will both end up being digital-only consoles.
“Through a combination of consumer preference and manufacturer strategic decisions, we are now seeing Sony announce it will cease production of physical discs in January 2028,” Piscatella explained. “This will result in lower sales of video game software at retail (although publishers will still certainly sell code in box or special editions in physical boxes at retail for as long as it makes sense to do so), and it is now safe to assume that both PlayStation 6 and Project Helix will be digital-only devices.”
Despite these trends, however, Piscatella believes that Nintendo will be the last console manufacturer that still focuses on releasing physical media, at least until the end of the Nintendo Switch 2 console cycle. Nintendo is “going to be Nintendo,” said Piscatella.
“My gut says Nintendo does what Nintendo wants to do, and I don’t see them changing anything in their plans based on what Sony or Microsoft do on anything, really,” he said. “Nintendo is going to be Nintendo, for better and/or worse.”
Part of this may also be the fact that retail outlets have been relying on Nintendo to a greater degree over the last few years, likely thanks to the company’s strong share of software and hardware sales. The Nintendo Switch 2, in particular, is noted for seeing great sales since its launch.
“It’s not like boxes on shelves will go away entirely with this change,” he said. “There will be more codes in box, more merch, maybe more special editions with swag included, that kind of thing. But the change should also result in the continued decline in physical game retail spend.”
When it comes to long-term effects, even Piscatella doesn’t quite know what is going to happen. Sony’s announcement came just this week, and the industry might see more upheaval in the coming days.
“But yeah, we’re kind of in dartboard territory when it comes to things,” he concluded. “The day is young (in the US at least). Anything could still happen today, tomorrow, surely Monday. It’s madness.”
Sony’s announcement has worked out quite well for the company, at least for now, with its stock price having risen by around 3.2 percent on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. On the other hand, even prolific game creator Hideo Kojima has expressed his fears about media going completely digital. Analysts have also noted that this move gives us a look at Sony’s next-generation console plans.
