Phantom Blade Zero Showcase Disrupted by Disc Protesters
▼ Summary
– Sony left chat enabled during Phantom Blade Zero’s State of Play, which was flooded with “no disc no buy” comments since the game’s pre-orders are digital-only, with no physical version announced.
– The game is set for release on October 29, 2026, and its digital-only status fuels speculation it precedes Sony’s plan to eliminate discs by 2028.
– Sony disabled “Top chat replay” on the archived video, but commenters added hundreds of disc-related replies, though this is smaller than 10,000 disc-furious comments on a recent Wolverine trailer.
– Disc sales are declining in the US (15 percent), but remain majority in Germany (58 percent), France (55 percent), Japan (51 percent for Resident Evil Requiem), and 40-45 percent in the UK, meaning the shift disproportionately affects these regions.
– Sony is unlikely to change its digital-only direction for the PS6 due to cost advantages, despite backlash that removes purchaser rights and harms the resale market.
Sony opted to keep the live chat running during last night’s Phantom Blade Zero State of Play, a decision that practically invited chaos. Anyone who has glanced at PlayStation-related social media recently could predict the outcome: a relentless flood of “no disc no buy” messages drowning out every other discussion.
Keeping the chat open for this particular broadcast was an especially risky call. The upcoming action-RPG from Chinese developer S-Game has already sparked heated debate after it was confirmed that pre-orders are digital-only, with no physical edition in sight. That fueled widespread speculation that the October 29, 2026 release might skip discs altogether, positioning it as an early test case ahead of Sony’s rumored plan to phase out physical media entirely by 2028. Given that virtually every PlayStation announcement lately attracts fierce pushback from physical media advocates, the presentation became an inevitable battleground.
A clip shared by TheGamersJoint on X offers a glimpse of the relentless barrage scrolling alongside the YouTube livestream, with angry comments dominating the feed from start to finish.
Unsurprisingly, Sony has disabled the “Top chat replay” feature for the archived upload. That hasn’t stopped commenters from stepping in to fill the gap, though. One of the most-liked replies simply reads “Phantom Disc Zero,” followed by hundreds of similar jabs, with almost no mention of the game’s actual content. Still, that volume pales in comparison to the roughly 10,000 disc-focused complaints that have piled up on a recent Wolverine trailer.
Sony shows no signs of yielding on this front, but the optics are undeniably poor when every official post, video, or stream becomes a magnet for angry, off-topic commentary. It is tempting to dismiss these voices, especially since only 15 percent of PlayStation games sold in the United States are now purchased on disc. However, that figure masks a much larger global reality. A recent report from Germany reveals that German players still buy 58 percent of their games on physical media. France follows closely at 55 percent. Even in Japan, Sony’s home turf, physical copies accounted for 51 percent of Resident Evil Requiem sales. Meanwhile, UK data suggests that between 40 and 45 percent of games are still sold as plastic discs. The shift to digital-only distribution will hit many countries disproportionately hard, and these commenters may simply be making their voices heard before that transition becomes permanent.
Sony is unlikely to reverse course. The PS6 is widely expected to launch without a disc drive, given the obvious financial advantages of digital distribution. Selling games digitally cuts costs significantly, but it strips purchasers of ownership rights and eliminates the resale market, where publishers see zero revenue. At the very least, the constant backlash ensures Sony’s promotional efforts don’t go entirely smoothly.
(Source: Kotaku)
