PlayStation is getting rid of physical games – that much has been confirmed. As of January 2028, PlayStation will cease all physical disc distribution and all future PS5 and PS5 games will be digital-only releases.
It was then reported by Windows Central that Xbox would probably follow suit, claiming that the company's next console (Project Helix) will not include a disc drive and will be an all-digital machine. For many, this is essentially the death knell for physical video games, with only Nintendo providing cartridges for a select number of games.
This news also understandably has many people worried about what will happen to their physical libraries. If next generation consoles are all digital, does that mean our current libraries are defunct and useless? Are we forced to keep our old systems if we want to play the games we already bought? What about backwards compatibility?
Xbox is reportedly working on a disc-to-digital feature
We don't really have the answers to any of these questions yet, and probably won't until PlayStation and Xbox gear up to sell us on their next-gen consoles in 2028, but a new report has claimed something pretty promising, at least on Xbox's side.
According to The Verge's sources, Xbox has been testing a disk-to-digital feature that will allow users to fully digitize their physical collections. To obtain a digital copy of a game, you simply need to insert your physical copy into your system, then install the game, which gives you digital rights for as long as you own the disc, and link the game to your account.
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If the disc is lent to a friend or sold, you lose your digital rights. It is claimed that this system will only work with Xbox One and Xbox Series X discs, and that some Xbox One discs may not work due to the period in which the disc was manufactured.
If the reports are true and Project Helix will ship without a disc drive, installing a system like this on the Xbox Series X and having your games ported over to the new console is a pretty smart way to make sure fans with large physical collections aren't left behind. That said, we'll have to wait and see what this feature looks like, or if it even happens, as it's currently being tested internally and nothing is set in stone yet.
- Stamp
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Microsoft
- Original release date
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November 10, 2020
- Original MSRP (USD)
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$499 USD
- Operating system
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Proprietary (Windows based)
- Processor
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Custom AMD 8-core Zen 2 3.8 GHz
- Resolution
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720p – 4K UHD
