A group of PlayStation fans is calling for a one-week PS5 blackout in August as a protest against Sony Interactive Entertainment’s direction, including its plan to end disc-based physical releases in January 2028.
The proposed action would run from Sunday, August 23, at 7:00 PM local time through Sunday, August 30, at 7:00 PM local time. Participants would be asked to turn off their consoles or log out for the full seven days, while also avoiding purchases across Sony’s platforms.
The goal is to affect the active-player numbers Sony closely tracks. The organizers said the company had grown “further apart from its fan base” and described the boycott as both an economic and gameplay protest. Their call for the action is available in a social media post from Does it play?
“Sony wants to abandon fans? Let’s give them a small taste of their own medicine!” the organizers wrote, before calling for a week without logins, play sessions, or purchases on Sony platforms.
Sony wants to abandon fans? Let's give them a small taste of their own medicine!
Together with other creators we call for a 1 week #PSBlackout in August. No logins, no play sessions, no purchases on any of Sony's platforms. pic.twitter.com/v6JvdvbHLD
— Does it play? (@DoesItPlay1) July 26, 2026
The proposed timing would overlap with several major releases. According to a Dot Esports report, Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 2, Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy, and Star Wars: Zero Company are all scheduled to launch on August 27, 2026, during the planned blackout.
Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 2 is especially relevant to the physical-media debate because it is expected to include the first port of Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots outside its original 2008 PlayStation 3 release. Fans have asked Konami to bring the game to newer platforms for years.
The same report said Does it Play?’s X post had received 1.5 million views and that the group’s petition to preserve physical PlayStation games had collected 348,144 signatures at the time of writing. Those figures indicate the campaign’s online reach, but they do not show how many players will participate in the full seven-day action.
The statement points to several other sources of frustration, including the closure of studios such as Bluepoint and Japan Studio, Sony’s canceled fan events, the company’s live-service push, and the lack of new entries in dormant series. It specifically mentions Twisted Metal, SOCOM, Sly Cooper, and Resistance as franchises fans want to see return.
Organizers also argue that restoring physical releases alone would not resolve the wider complaints surrounding PlayStation. In their view, the disc decision is the latest problem in a longer list of choices that have left parts of the community feeling ignored.
Sony has not indicated that it will reverse the planned production change. However, according to the Dot Esports report, the company has confirmed that upcoming first-party releases such as Marvel’s Wolverine and God of War Laufey will still receive physical editions.
The proposed blackout has not been announced as an official PlayStation event, and participation will depend entirely on individual players. Its effect would also depend on how many people actually disconnect from the platform during the specified week.
Would you take part in the proposed PS5 blackout? Share your thoughts in the comments, and follow us on X, Bluesky, YouTube, Instagram.
