It’s no surprise that tides haven’t been in PlayStation’s favour since the beginning of 2026. Between the soul-crushing closure of the studio behind Demon’s Souls remake and the rage-inducing live-service death of Destiny 2, things have increasingly become grimmer, and many players have started to feel disconnected from the once-beloved Japanese game publisher.
Now, things have escalated to an unprecedented level with the most bizarre announcement: PlayStation shutting down physical disc production in January 2028. The news has ignited widespread outrage not just in the games industry but in the overall entertainment industry, with many fans deeply concerned about the future of physical media.
To counter PlayStation’s oppressiveness on the matter, a physical videogame preservation organization called “Does it Play?” has called for a week-long PS blackout in late August.
Physical videogame preservation organization appeals for PS blackout
Does it Play has called for a week-long PS blackout starting from August 23 to August 30. The post mentions 7pm local time, but it’s unclear what their local time is as of now.
This physical game preservation organization is encouraging players to participate in the blackout by shutting down their consoles for seven days. According to Does it Play, “this period gives publishers and developers minimal impact while still giving players a choice.”
That said, three of August’s biggest games arrive on August 27, 2026, which falls during this upcoming PS blackout period. These include Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol.2, Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy, and Star Wars: Zero Company.
It’s worth noting that Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 2 includes the first-ever port of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots, which had been stuck on PS3 since 2008. Many MGS fans have been asking Konami for years to port MGS 4 on modern platforms.
Sony wants to abandon fans? Let's give them a small taste of their own medicine!
— Does it play? (@DoesItPlay1) July 26, 2026
Together with other creators we call for a 1 week #PSBlackout in August. No logins, no play sessions, no purchases on any of Sony's platforms. pic.twitter.com/v6JvdvbHLD
While there’s no indication how many PS players will be willing to sacrifice their week-long game time during this period, Does it Play’s X post has garnered 1.5 million views so far, suggesting the blackout could be bigger than initially expected.
In addition to this, Does it Play? started a petition to Save Physical Games in June, which has received 348,144 signatures at the time of writing.
While PlayStation has not shown any signs of reversing its decision regarding physical disc production, it has assured that its upcoming first-party releases, Marvel’s Wolverine and God of War Laufey will have physical releases.
