The management of Japanese company Nippon Ichi Software and its Western publishing division, NIS America, announced direct consultations with Sony Interactive Entertainment regarding their previously announced plans to cease optical disc production by 2028. Kenzo Saruhashi, CEO of the publisher, emphasized that the platform holder is closely monitoring and analyzing the negative feedback from the gaming community and industry partners. According to the executive, the current dialogue leaves room for adjustments to the Japanese platform holder's initial strategy for physical distribution on PlayStation 5 and the upcoming PlayStation 6 home consoles.
For independent and niche publishers specializing in Japanese role-playing games, releasing limited edition physical discs forms the core of their business model and accounts for the lion's share of revenue. Switching to a code-in-a-box model is considered a possible compromise, but the company does not consider it the only or ideal solution. Practical experience with similar key cards on other platforms has shown a very lukewarm reception from collectors, who demand a full-fledged disc drive along with artbooks and merchandise.
Industry insiders note that Nippon Ichi's announcement coincided with a large-scale, closed-door survey sent by Sony to its partner studios to thoroughly assess the implications of abandoning disc releases. Experts speculate that the platform holder may, rather than implement a complete ban on optical media, develop flexible rules or targeted exceptions for the release of limited edition discs for collector's editions. Currently, the official status of the production regulations remains unchanged, but negotiations between publishers and the platform holder are ongoing.