Sony has already told investors that it’s not backing down from the decision to end physical game discs for the PlayStation consoles. Since the decision is about as set in stone as it can get, it looks like the company is now allocating some resources to get the word out to every potential buyer of the PS5. And what better place to plaster the message than on the box of the console itself?

YouTuber Behind The Games posted on X an image that indicates as much, though he is notably the only one who has shared an image of this nature so far. It’s not exactly clear if the PS5 boxes were reprinted, or a sticker was slapped onto the existing ones, but the message is pretty clear, and in multiple languages at that.

To quote the warning, “IMPORTANT NOTICE: From Jan. 2028, newly released games on PlayStation will be available for purchase on PlayStation Store and at retailers in digital format only. Discs for games released before Jan. 2028 can continue to be played on this console”.

On one hand, that’s one more nail in the coffin for physical games. But on the other, it’s not like Sony was going to budge to begin with. Even without the call with investors, the company had already converted a disc-making plant to make microlenses instead. Even if there’s a lot of overlap in the process, this sort of conversion indicates a decision that was made months, if not years, in advance.

This is one of those times when one could normally argue that a lot can change in 16 months, but this doesn’t look like one of those times. Sony has said that it has discussed with retailers about what the future would be like, and it looks more and more like codes printed on paper being placed in otherwise empty boxes.

(Source: Behind The Games / X)

Updated 6:16 pm, Thu, 6 August 26