SerpApi.Org
While Sony has been getting positively crucified online for its controversial decision to end support of physical games on PlayStation by 2028, new data from Circana senior director Mat Piscatella shows just how hard it will be to get the company to reverse course.
According to Piscatella and Circana’s Retail Tracking Service, only seven PlayStation games have sold more than 100,000 physical units so far this year. Meanwhile, only two PlayStation games sold more than 10,0000 physical copies in the U.S. during the week ending on July 11. Piscatella posted the stats in response to how comment sections for anything PlayStation-related have been overrun with angry remarks about the company's pivot away from physical media, including Sony's upcoming Wolverine game. “Commenting is cool, use your voice and all that. But commenting is cheap, idk,” he wrote in a follow-up post.
2 PlayStation video games sold more than 10k physical units in the US during week ending July 11, 2026. 7 have sold more than 100k physical units year-to-date. Source: Circana Retail Tracking Service— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social)2026-07-20T17:37:40.577Z
Reposting the US physical software sales trend for folks wanting more context. Circana tracks the Americas, other firms track other regions. I'm no fan of physical going away, but it wasn't my call. And I get people are passionate on this topic. I'm not saying people shouldn't be. Live your life.— Mat Piscatella (@matpiscatella.bsky.social)2026-07-21T10:46:29.558Z
Piscatella also re-posted previous Circana data showing the decline of consumer spending on physical games in the United States. According to the graph, spending on physical games over the tracked 20-year period peaked in 2009 at $11.5 billion before gradually plummeting to $1.6 billion over the last year. While it could certainly be argued that $1.6 billion is a lot of money, it seems the sales are quite split across different games, as indicated by Piscatella’s initial post.
Since Sony announced its decision to stop making physical game discs for PlayStation starting in January 2028, many players are understandably furious. On top of the collector angle, Sony’s pivot has been so poorly received because the current state of consumer rights around digital media is dismal. In most cases, “purchasing” a digital game on PlayStation and most other storefronts means the user is actually acquiring a temporary license to play the game that can be voided at the seller’s discretion.
Sony recently removed hundreds of films from the PlayStation Network store, including Terminator 2, after a contract dispute with the rights holder, meaning users who paid to “buy” these films could no longer access them. Others have pointed out how Sony has a PSN policy that allows the company to delete users’ accounts after 36 months of inactivity. Storefronts for older game systems are inevitably shut down, which can make it impossible to download games you’ve already purchased. In response to this situation, PS5 emulation has accelerated quite quickly, with many eager to find other ways to back up their
While it’s still possible to force Sony to reverse course, fans will need to find ways to hurt the company's bottom line by avoiding digital purchases or boycotting its games and hardware altogether.
