Yesterday, Sony dropped a few bombs on the gaming world - first, they are discontinuing support of the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita stores by next year, at the latest, with support ending immediately in some areas. Second, they will cease production of physical games by January 2028 for all releases on PlayStation consoles, leaving only another year and half before you'll no longer be able to grab the latest games pressed to a disc.

At face value, this is obviously devastating news for consumers - and companies like GameStop and GameFly - as the second hand market is surely about to die. While the digital storefronts definitely offer discounts, none truly rival the ecosystem created by Valve with Steam, which gives PC gamers unparalleled choice, with modest pricing.

It's not the only anti-consumer move game companies have been making lately, either. Nintendo's game keycards are nothing more than a license key on a piece of plastic - sure, it can still be sold and traded, which makes it better than nothing, but I'm not sure it's much of a consolation.

Microsoft, well, don't even get me started. They go on a buying spree and then proceed to shutter countless studios, with more on the chopping block as we speak. Most are victims of a failed GamePass strategy, which was driven by the leadership at Microsoft. Of course, studios like Obsidian, Arkane, and Double Fine are paying the price for Microsoft's obvious enshittification gambit (get everyone on the service, then continuously jack up the price once they're fully bought in).

Then we have the massive console price hikes due to the growing AI bubble that is dominating the entire world's economy and calling dibs on all of the chips needed to make consumer electronics. Not to mention the increasing price of games with stuff like Mario Kart World and GTA VI launching at a price point of $79.99, a staggering price tag regardless of what's on offer. In the case of GTA, it seems the real price is even higher, as they are gating content behind the deluxe release of the game.

And if a major publisher isn't causing your favorite studio to shutdown, private equity is making a mess of them, or equally possible, they are underperforming expectations that we all know are ludicrous. It's not possible any longer to just make a great game, sell a couple million copies, and have it be a win for the company.

All of this taken together is pretty bleak. It's clear that the industry is shifting right now, and probably not in a way that holds much long term benefit for consumers. If you want to keep console gaming, you're going to have to accept only buying digital games, not trading, renting, or selling your games, and hoping that the big three are kind enough to let you keep playing the games you purchased even after they decide to shut down storefronts.

I've been a collector for years, but this generation has pretty much killed any real desire I have to continue doing so. Most of these games aren't really playable without an internet connection, because what's pressed to the disc is incomplete and unfinished. While that's been true for a while now, it has certainly only gotten worse. This combined with consoles feeling less useful overall, I've found myself predominantly PC gaming these days. I appreciate the flexibility of the platform, the ability to use lots of different control mechanisms, and the myriad storefronts and modding capabilities that come part and parcel with it.

That said, I still have some pretty grave concerns there too. First, while Valve has been an excellent leader in this space, I feel like we are mostly leaning on their goodwill. Eventually, it stands to reason, that things will change there too. As a private company, they've followed their desires and those have been a win for consumers. Steam offers the best digital storefront, with no real competition in the industry. But what happens if they suddenly change their policies?

At this point, I have been adding to my Steam collection for decades - I have hundreds of games there. All it takes is one bad policy, a sale of the company, a death of a founder, or really, anything that disrupts the equilibrium to change it all. That feels... bad, like the rug could be pulled at any moment.

I don't have any sort of solution to this problem; I am along for the ride, like everyone else. All I really know is that a PlayStation 6 is not in my future, and frankly, Sony has themselves to blame for that.