By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
Conina on 18 July 2026
Edit Thread
KManX89 said:
Conina said:

Adding ads in games and locking ads-free versions behind higher subscription tiers could/would be the same for physical versions, wouldn't it.

Such forms of enshitification are not tied to the distribution method of the game data.
Even if played offline there could be some generic ads on the disc which are played instead of newer downloaded ads. 

Except they can’t do it now because then they’ll just buy the cheaper physical versions without ads (people do still buy physical when the option is given, after all). With everything (and I do mean everything) on their console being tied to a digital storefront, they can literally paywall access to the PS store behind subscriptions and throw in ads or whatever intrusive moneysucking bullshit they like for the added “bonus” of paying to skip them (and getting paid to make them skip ads).

Sure they can add ads for every new physical release and also for older physical games with mandatory updates for multiplayer access.

They could also add the ads on a system level via firmware update. And if you don't update the firmware to the new version, you can play older games ad-free, but all new games (f. e. GTA6 or Wolverine) wouldn't run with the older firmwares.

Last edited by Conina - on 18 July 2026