Hideo Kojima Calls All-Digital Games Future Frightening as Sony Ends Physical Discs

Hideo Kojima has called the prospect of an all-digital, streaming-only future for games “frightening,” warning it would strip away any real sense of ownership. The Metal Gear Solid and Death Stranding creator made the remarks at Italy’s Il Cinema in Piazza film festival in Rome, as Sony winds down PlayStation disc production ahead of a January 2028 cut-off.

For Kojima, the concern is less about discs themselves than about what replaces them. His comments, translated by Genki, land as the debate over the death of physical PlayStation games continues to build.

Speaking at the “Il Cinema in Piazza” Film Festival in Italy.

Translation by me.

Source: https://t.co/ztnvmIHbcE

— Genki✨ (@Genki_JPN) July 5, 2026

“You Don’t Actually Possess the Data”

Kojima said he grew up with physical media and finds the shift “really sad,” adding that he has lately been buying up plenty of Blu-rays and CDs. He drew a line between today’s downloads and a possible streaming future: “The situation is different for games, as they are downloaded to the hard drive, that means the game data remains on your own hardware. However, if things shift to streaming in the future, that won’t be the case anymore.”

He compared that scenario to subscription platforms like Netflix or Amazon, where “there is a server somewhere, and you essentially just have the right to turn the tap, and when you do, the data flows out.” The consequence, he warned, is that “you don’t actually possess the data yourself. That is what is frightening.”

Kojima extended the warning past games. Servers owned by companies let users “turn the tap” for a monthly fee, he said, but political or national shifts could see the data inside stop being distributed. “And if that happens you won’t be able to watch or play the movies and games you like,” he continued. “So, what is happening to video games in 2028, might also happen to movies. I’d like everyone to keep that in mind.” It is a pointed intervention from one of the industry’s most recognisable creators, and it echoes a message he shared in 2021 warning that people could one day lose free access to the movies, books, and music they love.

Read More: Sony’s 2028 Disc Shutdown Raises Questions for PS5 Owners Who Watch Blu-rays 

Read More: PlayStation Disc Petition Tops 44,000 as Sony’s 2028 Digital-Only Plan Sparks Global Backlash

Sony’s 2028 Disc Shutdown and the Studio Canal Removal

Sony confirmed earlier this week that it would cease production of new physical PlayStation game discs in 2028, leaving many players fearful of a digital-only future in which purchased content can vanish from libraries at any time through expiring licensing agreements or other circumstances beyond their control. Sony has said existing physical games will still be supported after 2028.

Kojima’s fear is not hypothetical, and Sony has given the exact scenario a live example. The disc announcement arrived just days after PlayStation removed more than 550 films from the PlayStation Store, and from the libraries of players who had already bought them, following the expiry of a licensing agreement with Studio Canal.

GTA 6 and the Wider Squeeze on Physical Ownership

The shift extends beyond Sony’s own discs. In late June, Rockstar Games confirmed that the physical version of GTA 6 would ship in a box with no disc inside, with the game itself available only as a download code. Together with the 2028 disc cut-off and the Studio Canal removals, it has given fans of physical ownership a run of bad news in a matter of weeks.

What’s Next for Kojima Productions

Kojima Productions wrapped work on Death Stranding 2: On the Beach last year. Next up is Kojima’s horror project, OD, which remains at Xbox following recent reports of studio closures and cancellations across the platform.