Is a discless future really so scary?

Like the VHS or that printed Argos catalogue, discs have been long dead way before the plug was actually pulled. There’s a shelf of games from the last two generations gathering dust in my arcade, because the reality is I now buy games digitally. I’ve never been one who spends money on those premium limited edition copies with plastic statues, and downloads don’t hamper my gaming enjoyment one single bit.

Hot on the heels of Sony’s news was the suggestion that Microsoft was ready to ditch the disc drive from the next Xbox too - and was said to be working on a method to upgrade physical purchases to a download. Judging by the response online to the loss of the disc drive, there’s a rump of gamers who can’t stand the shift - with Sony’s blog garnering more comments than the one on my local Facebook group about uncollected bins.

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There’s an uncomfortable truth for those who still want to be in the boxed game era - it isn’t coming back. Back in 2013, when the PS4 launched digital was a mere 13% of game sales. Today it’s around 80% globally. What does buying a boxed copy get you in 2026? Most of the time you get a couple of lines of code that allows your console to download a full 90GB update while you make a cuppa and question whether it was worth heading into town after all. Now GTA VI - the biggest game in history is skipping physical it’s time to move on.

There are some real upsides to ditching the drive. An optical drive should make a PS6 at least £50-£100 cheaper to build, and having seen five year old consoles going up in price rather than down, any saving is good news. Part of me is also relieved that I’ll no longer see my 8-year old using my PS5 Spider-Man disc as a coaster for her drink.

It’s not all great though - digital games disappear when storefronts close, and with Sony shutting down the PS3 and VIta handheld stores by mid-2027 it’s hardly confidence that digital ownership will ever be treated with the same respect as buying a physical game. Collectors are worried too - there will be no more second-hand bargains, and unless the investigation into the lack of competition on digital marketplaces yields results, it’s quite easy to imagine prices going up once that glut of £20 pre-owned copies is no longer possible.

I’ll miss discs and the physical-era. It’s a bit like how I think of Blockbuster - warmly and nostalgically, but nowhere near enough to chain myself to the Blu-Ray pressing plant in protest.

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How is marketing strategy different from paid advertising in games?

Marketing strategy defines your brand position, product messaging, target audience and long-term direction.

Paid advertising drives targeted reach through performance channels.

A strong strategy ensures that paid activity supports a coherent brand narrative rather than operating in isolation.

Bastion focuses on building strategic foundations first, then aligning execution channels around that framework.

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