PlayStation's sales data was further revealed after its notice to move away from physical discs, while public backlash and criticism continue to grow.
PlayStation Only Has 7 Games That Have Sold Over 100K Physical Copies in the US
Data From Circana Indicates Physical Sales Slowing
PlayStation’s direction towards a "digital-only" future is looking more likely as Circana's Mat Piscatella, the firm's Senior Director and Video Game Industry Advisor, shared sales figures on his personal Bluesky account showing that just seven PlayStation titles have crossed the 100,000 physical unit mark for the fiscal year. Only two PlayStation games sold more than 10,000 physical units in the US during the week ending July 11, 2026, based on Circana's Retail Tracking Service.
Through observation, 100,000 is just the minimum stated amount. One example brought up for contention is Resident Evil 9, which has sold at least 900,000 physical units on the PS5. The comparison between physical and digital units shows that online-distributed copies have the upper hand, with 2.5 million digital units being sold globally.
Community members responding to the post hypothesized the likely titles behind that number. The games in question mostly revolved around EA Sports FC 26, Resident Evil Requiem, Ghost of Yotei, 007 First Light, Crimson Desert, Monster Hunter Wilds, and Lego Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight, based on a circulating analytics newsletter highlighting PlayStation’s best-selling games. Neither Piscatella nor Circana has specified which games made those sales.
Sony Standing Firm on Its Decision
These additional numbers give Sony little reason to reconsider its plan to end physical disc production in January 2028. Coverage of that original announcement framed it as more of a psychological shift than an actual market shift, since digital sales had already overtaken physical years earlier.
Despite ongoing criticism and the public actively interacting with official accounts, Sony has shown no sign of backing away from the 2028 cutoff, and this new weekly data only reinforces how small physical copies' share of the market has become. Their own report backs up why the company isn't budging. According to the studio’s FY2025 report, they made more revenue from the Game & Network Services segment. This includes digital software, add-ons, subscription services, and network services for that fiscal year.
Based on an analysis from Tech Insider, while 70 million physical games were sold, 248 million digital copies were shipped. With profits scaling towards digital, Piscatella’s statement on the sales of physical units aligns with PlayStation’s. Even so, many callouts have been tossed in Sony’s direction, even one of the creators from Disgaea stating "they may as well eliminate the hardware too" if disc production were to end anyway.
What a Digital-Only Future Would Look Like Globally
Note that Circana's figures are US-only, but 121 countries currently lack access to PlayStation Network accounts, meaning players won’t be able to use the PlayStation Store at all, barring players even harder if physical production were to stop. That would be roughly 62% of the world's countries locked out entirely, including nations that don’t heavily rely on internet access. Even in regions with PSN access, some players have flagged issues, such as unsupported local currencies or unreliable internet, as added barriers to a digital-only future.
This pushback isn't limited to just sales, as there’s still ongoing debate. A recent trailer for Marvel's Wolverine from Insomniac Games drew over 10,000 YouTube comments referencing the disc controversy within two days. Players have also pointed to a broader, recurring pattern of physical copies becoming harder to track down at launch, from shrinking shelf space at major retailers to games selling out shortly after release, a trend that's likely to keep accelerating as the 2028 cutoff approaches.
Sources:
Circana Retail Tracking Service
Sony Ends PlayStation Discs: Digital Hits 80% - 2026
2026’s top PlayStation games by copies sold, including physical splits
