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Father of PlayStation Ken Kutaragi on Sony discontinuing physical game discs: player dissatisfaction is understandable
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According to IT Home on October 17, foreign media VGC reported on the 16th local time that Ken Kutaragi, former chairman and group CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment, known as the 'father of PlayStation', commented on Sony's decision to discontinue physical game discs. He believes that players' dissatisfaction with the discontinuation of physical discs is understandable, but game companies also need to find ways to change players' views on ownership of digital games. Before leaving Sony in 2007, Kutaragi led the development of the original PlayStation, PS2, and PS3. As early as 2006, he predicted that with the spread of digital distribution, players would eventually no longer need discs, or even hard drives, and could obtain content directly through network streaming.
Kutaragi, now 76, acknowledged that the way Sony handled the discontinuation of physical discs has drawn dissatisfaction from some players. However, he believes it is not economically worthwhile for PlayStation to continue investing resources in producing physical discs. He recalled that as early as the PS2 and PS3 eras, Sony already had networking capabilities, only they were far less widespread than today. Now that so many people are connected to the internet, physical discs are still valued by some players as a symbol of 'owning' a game, and he completely understands players' thinking.
Kutaragi used smartphones as an analogy to explain the change in mindset. He pointed out that no one thinks such internet-connected devices still need physical media, because everyone believes that purchased content can be retained forever. Therefore, the physical disc controversy is essentially a matter of mindset. He again said he understands why some people are dissatisfied, but continuing to produce physical discs is not economically worthwhile, and the problem may still lie in mindset.
Kutaragi also believes that the way PlayStation's current management views game consoles may be changing. They are no longer limited to traditional game consoles, but hope to turn PlayStation into a platform capable of providing various types of content through the internet. This approach diverges from the expectations of many loyal players. He revealed that although he is no longer CEO, the two sides still share views on some issues.
He further mentioned that many employees at Sony Interactive Entertainment now come from outside companies, including people who came from other streaming companies. It is understandable that they may believe that, by leveraging internet connectivity, PlayStation can be not only a game console but also a content terminal. However, this has also caused dissatisfaction among some gaming enthusiasts.
At the same event, Kutaragi talked about the current state and future of the game console industry. He recalled that when the PS2 was launched, people always asked 'what's next', and his answer was 'integration with the internet'. Even then, he believed everything would eventually integrate with the internet, and that is indeed what has happened. He is likewise worried about global component shortages driving up the prices of consumer electronics hardware, saying bluntly that devices are now far too expensive, which is not a good sign.
Kutaragi also pointed out that hardware architecture is shifting from game consoles to PC-based systems, originally to reduce the difficulty of platform development. But now PCs are absurdly expensive, almost as much as buying a car, which he considers abnormal. Therefore, hardware manufacturers must find more ingenious solutions. He even believes that if game companies can make full use of AI and cloud computing, they would not need game consoles at all, though he added that this is not an official statement from Sony Computer Entertainment.
