{"id":1506,"date":"2026-07-08T06:54:12","date_gmt":"2026-07-08T01:54:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=1506"},"modified":"2026-07-08T06:54:12","modified_gmt":"2026-07-08T01:54:12","slug":"games-inbox-will-sony-do-a-u-turn-on-ps5-discs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=1506","title":{"rendered":"Games Inbox: Will Sony do a U-turn on PS5 discs?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img fetchpriority=\"high\" width=\"646\" height=\"431\" src=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_293360871-7302.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=646\" class=\"article-image wp-image-29001243\" alt=\"Hand holding a DualSense controller in front of a PS5 logo\" decoding=\"sync\"\/>\t<\/div><figcaption>Will Sony change its mind? (Credits: Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>The Wednesday letters page thinks that the <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/xbox\/\" data-track=\"inline-tag-auto-link_article\">Xbox<\/a> is regressing back to being a ShooterBox, as a reader is very upset at the layoffs at id Software.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" data-track=\"inline-tag-auto-link_article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/games-inbox\/\">Games Inbox<\/a> is a collection of our readers\u2019 letters, comments, and opinions. To join in with the discussions yourself email <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/08\/games-inbox-will-sony-a-u-turn-ps5-discs-29081208\/mailto:gamecentral@metro.co.uk\">gamecentral@metro.co.uk<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Thick as thieves<\/strong><br \/>I know that <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" data-track=\"inline-tag-auto-link_article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/sony\/\">Sony<\/a> has already <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/03\/sony-wont-u-turn-ps5-discs-factory-already-making-something-else-29027392\/\">changed how its factory works<\/a> but I really can\u2019t see them getting away with this all-digital push without a U-turn. I don\u2019t even understand why they\u2019re doing it now. If the <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" data-track=\"inline-tag-auto-link_article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/playstation-6\/\">PlayStation 6<\/a> was digital-only I don\u2019t think many people would be surprised and while they wouldn\u2019t like it, you can\u2019t say much if it never had the option.<\/p>\n<p>But the <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/playstation-5\/\" data-track=\"inline-tag-auto-link_article\">PlayStation 5<\/a> is in its last couple of years, what\u2019s the point of changing anything now? Unless you love bad publicity. I put the blame squarely on <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/rockstar-games\/\" data-track=\"inline-tag-auto-link_article\">Rockstar Games<\/a> who I suspect put Sony up to this. They want 100% of the profits from <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/grand-theft-auto-6\/\" data-track=\"inline-tag-auto-link_article\">GTA 6<\/a> and they\u2019re big enough that they can make that happen.<\/p>\n<p>Kudos to the memes and people <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/07\/ps5-social-media-makes-first-post-six-days-gets-annihilated-angry-fans-29077037\/\">posting against Sony on Twitter<\/a> and elsewhere. If you keep it up, I think they will U-turn, for the PlayStation 5 only. Except I bet there\u2019s one exception\u2026 for GTA 6.<br \/><strong>Zeiss<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Exec Unit 3021-6<\/strong><br \/>Kudos to that Bungie dev that called execs <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/07\/ex-xbox-dev-slams-game-execs-money-grubbing-idiots-quote-year-29073072\/\">\u2018stupid detached money grubbing idiots\u2019<\/a> you can\u2019t get a better description than that without using harsh language. These people are all the same and everyone\u2019s already noticed that Asha Sharma speaks exactly the same as Phil Spencer.<\/p>\n<div class=\"factbox\" data-ico=\"factbox_article\" data-track-module=\"factbox_article\">\n<h2 class=\"factbox-title\">\n\t\t\t\tExpert, exclusive gaming analysis\t\t\t<\/h2>\n<div class=\"factbox-content\">\n<p>Sign up to the <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/newsletters\/game-central\/\"><strong>GameCentral newsletter<\/strong><\/a> for a unique take on the week in gaming, alongside the latest reviews and more. Delivered to your inbox every Saturday morning.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>They probably both got ChatGPT to print off their scripts and give them their opinions. I\u2019m beginning to think that the only reason we never hear from Sony nowadays is because they don\u2019t want to make it obvious that they talk the same way. They\u2019re all just robots who couldn\u2019t give a damn about <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" data-track=\"inline-tag-auto-link_article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/tag\/games-news\/\">video games<\/a>.<br \/><strong>Spender<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Final Doom<\/strong><br \/>Really disappointed that <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/07\/doom-dev-id-software-loses-half-staff-coders-xbox-bloodbath-29077951\/\">id Software have been hit by layoffs<\/a>, with some suggesting that the bulk of their development team have been let go. As game developers they gave us a truly excellent modern Doom trilogy where each game was unique, rather than a minor evolution on what came before.<\/p>\n<p>Doom Eternal, in particular, is a wonderful game that will stand the test of time. Additionally, as technical specialists they have developed proprietary, incredibly scalable game engines that other studios leveraged to give us experiences like Indiana Jones And The Great Circle. My condolences to everyone who has been affected but as a huge id Software fan that news really stung.<br \/><strong>Magnumstache<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>GC: <\/strong>You\u2019re right, including about Doom Eternal being great.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Email your comments to: <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/08\/games-inbox-will-sony-a-u-turn-ps5-discs-29081208\/mailto:gamecentral@metro.co.uk\">gamecentral@metro.co.uk<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Saw it coming<\/strong><br \/>All in all, that seems to have worked out quite well for the likes of Tim Schafer and Guillaume Provost. I\u2019m guessing in the desperation during Xbox One, Microsoft paid them a decent amount of money to buy Double Fine and Compulsion. They then got the freedom to work on what they wanted for almost a decade and at the end Microsoft has seemingly just handed the studios and all the IP back to them.<\/p>\n<p>So essentially they\u2019re just back where they were at the beginning, just a lot richer.<\/p>\n<p>A lot of people say Microsoft only cares about money. But Xbox seems far better at giving it away to people than actually making any.<br \/><strong>Tim<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>GC: <\/strong>It\u2019s been suggested that Double Fine had a carefully constructed contract that planned for just this sort of eventuality.<\/em><\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube\">\n<p>\n<span class=\"embed-youtube\" style=\"text-align:center; display: block;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Kiln - Official Launch Trailer\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/5y4Le4sMtMk?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<p><strong>Over the top<\/strong><br \/>I wonder what the first big game to launch after GTA 6 will be? I see Sega\u2019s Stranger Than Heaven will be out on January 15, but I\u2019m not sure how big I\u2019d say that was going to be. After that it\u2019s the Tomb Raider remake in February, which seems to be the first big one we know about at the moment.<\/p>\n<p>Although I have read rumours saying that God Of War Laufey is going to be out very early next year, so maybe Sony has struck some kind of deal that they\u2019ll be the first to make a move, and Rockstar won\u2019t try to counter them with too much marketing at the time.<\/p>\n<p>If it is out early next year that kind of hints that Interstellar: The Heretic Prophet will be the big Christmas game for Sony. I hope it gets an unveil at The Game Awards in December because I really want to know what it\u2019s like, but that may be a bit early if it\u2019s not out for so long.<br \/><strong>Rizzo<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>ShooterBox Pro<\/strong><br \/>One glance at the <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/07\/xbox-lost-five-studios-left-make-new-video-games-29074169\/\">studios Xbox has left<\/a> and it\u2019s obvious what their game plan is. As you said, they just haven\u2019t got the talent any more to make anything other than Halo, Gears Of War, and Forza. So they\u2019re right back to be being the ShooterBox, targeting young American men and nobody else.<\/p>\n<p>This was their main problem with the Xbox 360 and the reason they never went further than that, in my opinion. I think the main reason Phil Spencer bought companies like Double Fine and Compulsion is that he wanted to expand things, do more arty games, but it never really worked out. It took too long for the games to be made and in the end they weren\u2019t really that great.<\/p>\n<p>I think he thought they were going to be award-winning darlings, but it never happened, and instead they just ended up looking like weird double-A games that nobody played even when they were free on Game Pass.<\/p>\n<p>Resetting the clock back to the Xbox 360 era might see a small increase in Xbox\u2019s popularity but it\u2019s also admitting they haven\u2019t moved a step forward in 15 years. Personally, I think Team Xbox should call it a day, they haven\u2019t got anywhere to go now and it\u2019s only going to get more embarrassing from here.<br \/><strong>Korbie<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Just try it<\/strong><br \/>I will laugh so hard if Microsoft try to make The Elder Scrolls 6 an Xbox console exclusive. If you thought the upset about physical media was bad just imagine if Microsoft try and force you to buy an Xbox to play the sequel to Skyrim. Something we will have all been waiting for close to 20 years by the time it comes out.<\/p>\n<p>I honestly want to see them try because the U-turn will be so swift it\u2019s going to take some heads off. Personally I give it a 50\/50 chance that they\u2019ll try it.<br \/><strong>Cubby<\/strong><\/p>\n<div class=\"factbox\" data-ico=\"factbox_article\" data-track-module=\"factbox_article\">\n<h2 class=\"factbox-title\">\n\t\t\t\tDon&#8217;t miss Gaming news! Add us as a Preferred Source\t\t\t<\/h2>\n<div class=\"factbox-content\">\n<p>As a loyal GameCentral reader, we want to make sure you never miss our articles when searching for gaming stories. We have all the latest video games news, reviews, previews, and interviews, with a vibrant community of highly engaged readers.<\/p>\n<p>Click the button below and tick\u00a0<strong><em>Metro.co.uk<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0to ensure you see stories from us first in Google Search.<\/p>\n<p>\n<a class=\"metro-button metro-cta-button\" data-vars-module=\"cta_button__gaming-preferred-source\" style=\"background-color:#000000\" href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=metro.co.uk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer\"><span><svg><use xlink:href=\"#social-preferred-source\" href=\"#social-preferred-source\"\/><\/svg><\/span><span class=\"metro-cta-button__button\">Add us as a Preferred Source<\/span><\/a>\n<\/p>\n<figure class=\"img-container shareable-item wp-caption\">\n<div class=\"img-wrap\">\n\t\t<img width=\"646\" height=\"363\" src=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/SEC_278479390-558f.jpg?quality=90&amp;strip=all&amp;w=646\" class=\"article-image wp-image-25613773\" alt=\"GameCentral collage of Mario Kart, Ghost of Yotei, and Halo\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\"\/>\t<\/div><figcaption>GameCentral has been delivering unique games news and reviews for over a decade<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>Hidden costs<\/strong><br \/>While going digital-only eliminates the second-hand market, there are additional benefits from the perspective of Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo. The most obvious is that they cut out the so-called middleman, the retailer, and thereby retain all the profits if, as is typically the case, they can sell digital versions at the same price as physical copies sell for in stores.<\/p>\n<p>But there\u2019s another important factor here, that if no physical commodity is produced, scenarios like that of Atari, when surplus stocks of E.T. were buried in the Arizona desert, no longer occur. With digital it is impossible to over produce, thereby eliminating the problem of building inventories, which then have to be stored at physical sites that incur additional costs, and whose value if not quickly sold decreases.<\/p>\n<p>Companies still risk considerable amounts of money when investing in game development but eliminate risks concerning the quantity of games, that would otherwise have to be produced in physical form in anticipation of potential but not necessarily realised demand. By selling games in digital format only the manufacturing costs incurred in the production of physical games is eliminated.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, as we have seen with day one patches, the turnaround time from investing in game development to point of sale is also greatly reduced, even though in many instances the game releases onto the market effectively broken.<\/p>\n<p>The end of physical games has been a long time coming. The incentives for companies going digital-only are so great that sooner or later this was bound to happen. Sony isn\u2019t going to back down, history is on their side, but you can be sure that as soon as it is expedient Nintendo will gladly follow suit.<\/p>\n<p>When you factor in all the jobs lost in retail, manufacturing, transportation, storage facilities, and so forth, the layoffs at multiple game developers are only the most visible tip of a far greater invisible iceberg.<\/p>\n<p>In the final analysis, digital or otherwise, none of this resolves the current crisis engulfing the video game industry or lessens the impact of the cost of living crisis affecting many gamers and their ability to pursue their hobby.<br \/><strong>Ciara<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Inbox also-rans<\/strong><br \/>OK Asha, hear me out. You want more Halo, and Bungie just let go all their Destiny 2 staff. Why not sub them in as contractors and make the Destiny 3 that everyone wants\u2026 but it\u2019s Halo?<br \/><strong>ArmandxUltra (gamertag)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Given what\u2019s happening with Double Fine I went and tried to play Kiln on Game Pass. Emphasis on the tried, because I couldn\u2019t find anyone to play with and it\u2019s only a month or so old! I checked on Steam and it has an all-time peak of 193 people. I\u2019m kind of starting to see Microsoft\u2019s point here\u2026<br \/><strong>Dougal<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Email your comments to: <a href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/08\/games-inbox-will-sony-a-u-turn-ps5-discs-29081208\/mailto:gamecentral@metro.co.uk\">gamecentral@metro.co.uk<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>The small print<\/strong><br \/>New Inbox updates appear every weekday morning, with special Hot Topic Inboxes at the weekend. Readers\u2019 letters are used on merit and may be edited for length and content.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>You can also submit your own 500 to 600-word Reader\u2019s Feature at any time via email or our <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/submit-stuff\/\">Submit Stuff page<\/a>, which if used will be shown in the next available weekend slot.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>You can also leave your comments below and don\u2019t forget to <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/gamecentral\">follow us on Twitter<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"metro-more-link\"><svg><title>Arrow<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#common-right-arrow\" href=\"#common-right-arrow\"\/><\/svg><span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/07\/games-inbox-xbox-doomed-failure-29069577\/?ico=more_text_links\" class=\"\">Games Inbox: Is the Xbox doomed to failure?<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"metro-more-link\"><svg><title>Arrow<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#common-right-arrow\" href=\"#common-right-arrow\"\/><\/svg><span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/06\/games-inbox-nintendo-switch-2-pc-perfect-combination-29055243\/?ico=more_text_links\" class=\"\">Games Inbox: Is Nintendo Switch 2 and PC the perfect combination?<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"metro-more-link\"><svg><title>Arrow<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#common-right-arrow\" href=\"#common-right-arrow\"\/><\/svg><span class=\"mor-link\" data-track-module=\"mor-link_article\">MORE: <a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" href=\"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/2026\/07\/03\/games-inbox-giving-consoles-ps5-going-digital-only-29021104\/?ico=more_text_links\" class=\"\">Games Inbox: Giving up consoles because of PS5 going digital-only<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<section id=\"share-buttons-bottom\" class=\"share-buttons share-buttons-bottom\"><a class=\"metro-button share-bar-comments\" data-vars-position=\"bottom\" href=\"#metro-comments-container\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t<span><svg><title>Comment now<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#social-comment\" href=\"#social-comment\"\/><\/svg><\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"share-bar-comments__label\">Comments<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t<\/a><a data-ico=\"hyperlink-article\" class=\"metro-button share-bar-preferred-source\" data-vars-position=\"bottom\" href=\"https:\/\/google.com\/preferences\/source?q=https:\/\/metro.co.uk\" target=\"_blank\"><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<span><svg><title>Add Metro as a Preferred Source on Google<\/title>\n<use xlink:href=\"#social-preferred-source\" href=\"#social-preferred-source\"\/><\/svg><\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"share-bar-preferred-source__label\">Add as preferred source<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t<\/a><\/section>\n<div class=\"newsletter-end-card accent--gaming\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-end-card__inner\">\n<h4>GameCentral<\/h4>\n<p>Sign up for exclusive analysis, latest releases, and bonus community content.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Will Sony change its mind? (Credits: Getty Images) The Wednesday letters page thinks that the Xbox is regressing back to being a ShooterBox, as a reader is very upset at the layoffs at id Software. Games Inbox is a collection of our readers\u2019 letters, comments, and opinions. To join in with the discussions yourself email&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1507,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/metro.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SEI_293360871-7302_1783465438.jpg?quality=90&strip=all&w=1200&h=630&crop=1","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1506","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrity-gossip"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1506","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1506"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1506\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1507"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1506"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1506"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1506"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}