Physical games account for 30.4% of paid console libraries

Physical copies represent 30.4% of the console games respondents paid for outright, according to a Newzoo white paper produced with G2A. The survey of 6,166 premium gamers in August found that physical ownership drops to 11% when including free-to-play and subscription titles, which together account for more than half of all games played. PC-only players reported 6% physical ownership.

Image: TechPowerUp

Respondents cited playing without a stable internet connection, tangible ownership, and saving storage space as the primary reasons for buying physical media. Reselling, trading, or lending games was the fourth most common reason. This comes as Sony says it will stop producing discs for new PlayStation games starting January 2028, noting that digital preference significantly outpaces physical. Alinea Analytics data shows physical sales at under 20% of revenue for 2026 PlayStation releases.