1 00:00:00,041 --> 00:00:01,375 Big news, according to 2 00:00:01,375 --> 00:00:02,958 Sony's blog post, quote, 3 00:00:03,125 --> 00:00:04,916 "In response to shifting trends in 4 00:00:04,916 --> 00:00:05,958 consumer preference, 5 00:00:06,166 --> 00:00:07,041 new games will be 6 00:00:07,041 --> 00:00:08,708 released on PlayStation Store 7 00:00:08,875 --> 00:00:10,041 and at retailers in 8 00:00:10,041 --> 00:00:11,500 digital formats only." 9 00:00:12,500 --> 00:00:14,125 That's right, Sony's done 10 00:00:14,125 --> 00:00:15,958 producing disc-based games. 11 00:00:16,083 --> 00:00:17,458 And now if you wanna buy 12 00:00:17,500 --> 00:00:20,083 PlayStation 5 games at GameStop, 13 00:00:20,083 --> 00:00:21,041 you're gonna be buying 14 00:00:21,041 --> 00:00:22,208 an empty plastic case 15 00:00:22,208 --> 00:00:24,125 with a license key that you can redeem 16 00:00:24,125 --> 00:00:25,375 on the PlayStation Store. 17 00:00:25,666 --> 00:00:26,750 Make no mistake about it, 18 00:00:26,833 --> 00:00:29,083 shifting trends in consumer preference 19 00:00:29,208 --> 00:00:31,166 is how they choose to frame. 20 00:00:31,375 --> 00:00:33,333 We took away the poor's 21 00:00:33,375 --> 00:00:35,500 ability to play disc-based games 22 00:00:35,750 --> 00:00:36,458 so that we can make it 23 00:00:36,458 --> 00:00:37,333 look like people want 24 00:00:37,333 --> 00:00:38,083 to download their 25 00:00:38,083 --> 00:00:39,958 games instead of own them. 26 00:00:40,208 --> 00:00:41,875 It's yet another euphemism 27 00:00:41,875 --> 00:00:43,166 that the boot-licking 28 00:00:43,166 --> 00:00:44,458 corporate crat stooges, 29 00:00:44,500 --> 00:00:46,666 I mean, C-suite executives employ 30 00:00:46,875 --> 00:00:48,250 on their unending quest 31 00:00:48,250 --> 00:00:50,000 to enshitify everything. 32 00:00:50,250 --> 00:00:51,916 But Gardner, I prefer 33 00:00:51,916 --> 00:00:53,458 to download my games. 34 00:00:53,750 --> 00:00:55,083 Great, get a PC, 35 00:00:55,208 --> 00:00:56,416 Steam will get you there. 36 00:00:56,500 --> 00:00:58,666 And so will GOG and Zoom platform, 37 00:00:58,666 --> 00:00:59,250 and they'll get you 38 00:00:59,250 --> 00:01:01,000 there faster and cheaper too. 39 00:01:01,250 --> 00:01:03,458 And not to mention, if a 40 00:01:03,458 --> 00:01:04,541 game ever gets delisted 41 00:01:04,541 --> 00:01:05,041 from one of these 42 00:01:05,041 --> 00:01:07,208 platforms, you can still play them. 43 00:01:07,458 --> 00:01:09,333 But Sony in particular has 44 00:01:09,375 --> 00:01:11,250 a long and storied history 45 00:01:11,250 --> 00:01:14,208 of stealing your purchases long after 46 00:01:14,208 --> 00:01:15,791 the refund window has closed. 47 00:01:16,083 --> 00:01:18,041 And that means that this move 48 00:01:18,041 --> 00:01:19,333 should have you very worried 49 00:01:19,333 --> 00:01:21,041 about your PlayStation library 50 00:01:21,375 --> 00:01:23,250 and the games industry as a whole. 51 00:01:23,625 --> 00:01:24,541 Let me explain. 52 00:01:24,916 --> 00:01:25,875 When you purchase something 53 00:01:25,875 --> 00:01:27,083 through the PlayStation Store, 54 00:01:27,250 --> 00:01:28,208 you don't own it. 55 00:01:28,250 --> 00:01:28,666 That's something 56 00:01:28,666 --> 00:01:30,583 probably everyone knows by now. 57 00:01:30,916 --> 00:01:33,250 You own no stake, you have no control, 58 00:01:33,250 --> 00:01:34,541 and you get nothing in 59 00:01:34,541 --> 00:01:36,000 exchange for your hard-earned money. 60 00:01:36,250 --> 00:01:37,666 And there are a bunch 61 00:01:37,666 --> 00:01:38,750 of examples of this. 62 00:01:39,041 --> 00:01:40,625 Exhibit A, the most recent 63 00:01:40,625 --> 00:01:42,583 one, the Studio Canal Theft. 64 00:01:42,958 --> 00:01:44,500 So on Sunday, "High-Tech 65 00:01:44,500 --> 00:01:45,791 Low Life", "Games Revealed" 66 00:01:45,791 --> 00:01:46,708 and I discussed on our 67 00:01:46,708 --> 00:01:48,250 podcast "Off the Console", 68 00:01:48,291 --> 00:01:49,125 featuring Noah from 69 00:01:49,125 --> 00:01:50,291 "Steam Deck HQ" this week, 70 00:01:50,666 --> 00:01:52,875 we discussed Sony proudly announcing 71 00:01:52,875 --> 00:01:53,750 through their website 72 00:01:53,958 --> 00:01:55,583 that due to the end of a 73 00:01:55,625 --> 00:01:56,875 content license agreement, 74 00:01:57,041 --> 00:01:58,791 some movies are gonna be removed 75 00:01:58,791 --> 00:02:00,041 from the PlayStation Store. 76 00:02:00,250 --> 00:02:03,791 They shared a list of 551 movies, 77 00:02:03,791 --> 00:02:04,916 including "Terminator 2", 78 00:02:05,416 --> 00:02:06,416 published by Studio 79 00:02:06,416 --> 00:02:08,125 Canal on PlayStation Store. 80 00:02:08,583 --> 00:02:10,875 And not only are these 551 films 81 00:02:11,000 --> 00:02:12,583 being removed from sale though, 82 00:02:13,041 --> 00:02:14,750 they're also being removed from 83 00:02:14,750 --> 00:02:16,875 customers' media libraries 84 00:02:17,041 --> 00:02:18,958 after September 1st, 2026. 85 00:02:19,750 --> 00:02:21,208 Put another way, if you 86 00:02:21,208 --> 00:02:22,625 purchased "Terminator 2" 87 00:02:22,708 --> 00:02:24,041 through the PlayStation Store, 88 00:02:24,458 --> 00:02:26,958 you will no longer be able to watch the 89 00:02:26,958 --> 00:02:27,875 movie that you bought, 90 00:02:28,166 --> 00:02:29,583 the 20 something bucks that 91 00:02:29,583 --> 00:02:31,666 you put down to own the film. 92 00:02:32,208 --> 00:02:33,333 Poof, gone. 93 00:02:33,583 --> 00:02:35,250 You own nothing. 94 00:02:35,333 --> 00:02:36,833 Your right to download or 95 00:02:36,833 --> 00:02:39,250 stream that film entirely, 96 00:02:39,500 --> 00:02:40,708 arbitrarily revoked 97 00:02:40,708 --> 00:02:42,166 through no fault of your own. 98 00:02:42,375 --> 00:02:43,750 You won't be getting a refund 99 00:02:43,750 --> 00:02:46,083 and PlayStation's Senior Vice President 100 00:02:46,083 --> 00:02:47,208 of Media Licensing and 101 00:02:47,208 --> 00:02:48,333 Public Relations said, 102 00:02:48,833 --> 00:02:49,333 "Thanks for your 103 00:02:49,333 --> 00:02:50,541 hard-earned money, sucker." 104 00:02:50,791 --> 00:02:52,375 Now, of course, I'm 105 00:02:52,375 --> 00:02:53,458 reading between the lines 106 00:02:53,458 --> 00:02:54,833 and inferring that quote. 107 00:02:55,041 --> 00:02:57,375 I don't even know if PlayStation has a 108 00:02:57,375 --> 00:02:58,500 Senior Vice President 109 00:02:58,500 --> 00:03:00,166 of Media Licensing and Public Relations, 110 00:03:00,166 --> 00:03:02,500 but the truth is, this is 111 00:03:02,500 --> 00:03:04,458 exactly what every executive 112 00:03:04,500 --> 00:03:05,541 at PlayStation is 113 00:03:05,541 --> 00:03:06,708 probably thinking right now. 114 00:03:07,125 --> 00:03:09,708 Exhibit B, the Warner Discovery rug pull. 115 00:03:10,000 --> 00:03:11,416 The same thing happened 116 00:03:11,416 --> 00:03:13,208 back in December of 2023, 117 00:03:13,333 --> 00:03:17,750 when 1,318 seasons of 118 00:03:17,750 --> 00:03:19,541 Discovery Channel shows 119 00:03:19,666 --> 00:03:20,625 were quote unquote, 120 00:03:20,958 --> 00:03:22,916 "delisted" from the PlayStation Store. 121 00:03:23,375 --> 00:03:25,583 This delisting meant that paying 122 00:03:25,583 --> 00:03:27,291 customers were robbed 123 00:03:27,375 --> 00:03:29,250 of their content that they purchased 124 00:03:29,416 --> 00:03:31,041 without receiving a refund and with 125 00:03:31,125 --> 00:03:32,833 absolutely zero recourse. 126 00:03:33,666 --> 00:03:35,583 Exhibit C, Funimation. 127 00:03:35,916 --> 00:03:38,625 Now, Sony revoked paying customers access 128 00:03:38,625 --> 00:03:39,791 to Funimation series 129 00:03:39,791 --> 00:03:41,708 on the PlayStation Store back in 2024. 130 00:03:42,333 --> 00:03:43,750 Now, I believe that this is actually the 131 00:03:43,750 --> 00:03:45,708 most damning of all of these, 132 00:03:45,708 --> 00:03:48,458 because get this, Sony owns 133 00:03:48,500 --> 00:03:50,125 Funimation and all of its IP. 134 00:03:50,916 --> 00:03:51,791 When they acquired 135 00:03:51,791 --> 00:03:54,166 Crunchyroll from AT&T back in 2021, 136 00:03:54,708 --> 00:03:56,958 they decided to roll all their existing 137 00:03:57,000 --> 00:03:58,250 IP into Crunchyroll. 138 00:03:58,666 --> 00:04:01,541 Meanwhile, Sony unilaterally decided to 139 00:04:01,583 --> 00:04:03,500 literally steal your content 140 00:04:03,583 --> 00:04:05,416 from your library, make 141 00:04:05,416 --> 00:04:06,375 it inaccessible to you, 142 00:04:06,541 --> 00:04:07,458 and not because of a 143 00:04:07,458 --> 00:04:09,083 license agreement expiring. 144 00:04:09,375 --> 00:04:11,750 No, they thiefed this media 145 00:04:11,833 --> 00:04:13,125 because they wanted to force 146 00:04:13,125 --> 00:04:15,416 their already paid customers to pay for 147 00:04:15,416 --> 00:04:18,166 an endless subscription to Crunchyroll. 148 00:04:18,291 --> 00:04:20,083 And that is genuinely the 149 00:04:20,083 --> 00:04:22,041 most generous interpretation 150 00:04:22,041 --> 00:04:23,958 that I can offer for this decision. 151 00:04:24,291 --> 00:04:26,500 So when Sony says that going forward, 152 00:04:26,500 --> 00:04:27,625 you're only going to be able 153 00:04:27,625 --> 00:04:29,625 to buy games through their store. 154 00:04:30,250 --> 00:04:32,833 Well, you should be very, very, and I 155 00:04:32,833 --> 00:04:35,750 must emphasize here, very worried. 156 00:04:36,125 --> 00:04:37,125 And look, I get it. 157 00:04:37,208 --> 00:04:39,125 Video content ain't the same thing as 158 00:04:39,125 --> 00:04:42,000 games, but there's a whole website 159 00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:43,791 dedicated to games that are being 160 00:04:43,791 --> 00:04:44,583 delisted from 161 00:04:44,583 --> 00:04:46,083 PlayStation's vertical monopoly. 162 00:04:46,333 --> 00:04:49,041 I mean, store. And sure, I haven't been 163 00:04:49,041 --> 00:04:50,833 able to find a documented case 164 00:04:50,833 --> 00:04:53,000 of a game being delisted from the store 165 00:04:53,000 --> 00:04:54,833 and thereby removed from customers' 166 00:04:54,833 --> 00:04:56,250 libraries unless we're 167 00:04:56,250 --> 00:04:58,000 talking about the Concord fiasco. 168 00:04:58,125 --> 00:04:59,416 But back in April, 169 00:04:59,458 --> 00:05:02,000 PlayStation 4 and PS5 users noticed 170 00:05:02,250 --> 00:05:02,958 that Sony had 171 00:05:02,958 --> 00:05:04,875 introduced a ticking time bomb. 172 00:05:05,208 --> 00:05:07,041 You had to connect to the Internet in 173 00:05:07,041 --> 00:05:08,583 order to validate your license 174 00:05:08,750 --> 00:05:09,708 or else you would lose 175 00:05:09,708 --> 00:05:11,000 your license to play a game. 176 00:05:11,333 --> 00:05:14,583 This was a new and onerous requirement 177 00:05:14,583 --> 00:05:16,125 that Sony suddenly implemented 178 00:05:16,125 --> 00:05:17,500 without notice, and it 179 00:05:17,500 --> 00:05:19,666 proves that they are in control. 180 00:05:19,833 --> 00:05:22,166 It's a very public demonstration of why 181 00:05:22,208 --> 00:05:23,333 these kinds of companies 182 00:05:23,541 --> 00:05:25,166 can never be trusted. 183 00:05:25,708 --> 00:05:27,958 The fact is, these proprietary digital 184 00:05:27,958 --> 00:05:29,250 stores are less of a 185 00:05:29,250 --> 00:05:30,791 shop to buy your games 186 00:05:31,041 --> 00:05:33,125 and more of, you know, Darth Vader's 187 00:05:33,125 --> 00:05:35,208 personal shuttle where he can show up 188 00:05:35,208 --> 00:05:37,333 on your console at any time and alter the 189 00:05:37,333 --> 00:05:38,291 terms of your purchase 190 00:05:38,333 --> 00:05:40,750 weeks, months or years after you have 191 00:05:40,750 --> 00:05:42,875 forked over your money for any reason. 192 00:05:43,125 --> 00:05:44,416 And you have no choice 193 00:05:44,416 --> 00:05:45,583 but to go along with it. 194 00:05:45,916 --> 00:05:46,791 And what happens when 195 00:05:46,791 --> 00:05:48,208 these stores go down? 196 00:05:48,375 --> 00:05:50,791 Right. Sony has an impressive track 197 00:05:50,791 --> 00:05:53,416 record of days long and sometimes weeks 198 00:05:53,416 --> 00:05:55,958 long downtime where online games become 199 00:05:56,000 --> 00:05:57,416 completely inaccessible. 200 00:05:57,708 --> 00:06:00,166 Purchases aren't possible and gaming 201 00:06:00,166 --> 00:06:02,208 becomes something you used to do. 202 00:06:02,541 --> 00:06:05,083 And all of this is ignoring the seemingly 203 00:06:05,250 --> 00:06:06,583 innumerable instances 204 00:06:06,583 --> 00:06:08,875 of data leaks from Sony's headquarters. 205 00:06:09,708 --> 00:06:10,791 And this is their endgame, 206 00:06:10,833 --> 00:06:12,166 right? Make no mistake about it. 207 00:06:12,166 --> 00:06:14,250 They don't want kids sharing games. 208 00:06:14,416 --> 00:06:16,625 They don't want adults buying secondhand 209 00:06:16,625 --> 00:06:19,041 copies of titles and gaming on a budget. 210 00:06:19,458 --> 00:06:22,083 They want to short-sightedly maximize 211 00:06:22,166 --> 00:06:23,458 every single revenue 212 00:06:23,458 --> 00:06:25,000 stream to the fullest extent, 213 00:06:25,208 --> 00:06:26,541 and then nickel and dime you for the 214 00:06:26,541 --> 00:06:28,083 privilege of being exploited. 215 00:06:28,541 --> 00:06:30,166 It's not just Sony either. It's 216 00:06:30,166 --> 00:06:31,250 Microsoft, it's 217 00:06:31,250 --> 00:06:32,791 Nintendo, and it's Epic too. 218 00:06:33,291 --> 00:06:35,750 The truth is, something has to give. 219 00:06:35,833 --> 00:06:37,458 These bold-faced corporate kratts, 220 00:06:37,458 --> 00:06:38,583 swindlers, these 221 00:06:38,708 --> 00:06:40,541 inhuman C-suite occupants, 222 00:06:40,750 --> 00:06:43,125 and their bootlicking, carnival-barking 223 00:06:43,250 --> 00:06:46,666 shellbots are blindly and firmly pushing 224 00:06:46,666 --> 00:06:49,000 the gaming industry over a cliff. 225 00:06:49,666 --> 00:06:51,791 I truly believe the console 226 00:06:51,791 --> 00:06:53,541 market is on its last legs. 227 00:06:53,791 --> 00:06:55,916 Sony is crumbling under 228 00:06:55,916 --> 00:06:57,583 their own enormous girth. 229 00:06:57,625 --> 00:07:00,166 Microsoft is taking two steps forward and 230 00:07:00,166 --> 00:07:01,125 four steps back 231 00:07:01,125 --> 00:07:02,625 seemingly every other day. 232 00:07:02,750 --> 00:07:04,791 And Nintendo is decidedly in 233 00:07:04,791 --> 00:07:06,583 cahoots with these DRM schemes 234 00:07:06,791 --> 00:07:08,375 and ruining any goodwill 235 00:07:08,375 --> 00:07:09,583 they might otherwise have. 236 00:07:10,291 --> 00:07:12,791 Meanwhile, the PC market's limping along, 237 00:07:12,833 --> 00:07:13,916 unable to clear the 238 00:07:13,916 --> 00:07:15,208 artificial hurdle that 239 00:07:15,250 --> 00:07:18,125 is the entirely manufactured RAM crisis. 240 00:07:18,291 --> 00:07:20,000 Plus, the PC market is littered with 241 00:07:20,083 --> 00:07:22,166 similarly dirty corporate tricksters. 242 00:07:22,875 --> 00:07:24,833 All of this begs the question, what will 243 00:07:24,833 --> 00:07:26,875 gaming look like a decade from now? 244 00:07:27,875 --> 00:07:28,791 Hell, what will gaming 245 00:07:28,791 --> 00:07:30,250 look like by December? 246 00:07:30,916 --> 00:07:32,250 Honestly, I don't have the answers. 247 00:07:32,625 --> 00:07:35,041 But if you give a single shit about 248 00:07:35,041 --> 00:07:36,750 gaming having a future that 249 00:07:36,750 --> 00:07:38,750 even remotely resembles something 250 00:07:38,833 --> 00:07:41,583 fair, I believe that you should stop 251 00:07:41,583 --> 00:07:42,666 buying games through 252 00:07:42,666 --> 00:07:45,583 PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch. 253 00:07:46,291 --> 00:07:47,375 Divest from Sony. 254 00:07:47,500 --> 00:07:50,500 Divest from Microsoft and from Nintendo 255 00:07:50,500 --> 00:07:52,625 today, before it's too 256 00:07:52,625 --> 00:07:54,541 late, so that gaming can have 257 00:07:54,541 --> 00:07:56,916 a future that's actually worth having. 258 00:07:57,458 --> 00:08:00,125 Demand ethical anti-cheat solutions that 259 00:08:00,125 --> 00:08:02,166 don't spy on users, or better yet, 260 00:08:02,416 --> 00:08:03,750 play games that don't need 261 00:08:03,750 --> 00:08:05,083 anti-cheat in the first place. 262 00:08:05,583 --> 00:08:07,500 Demand DRM-free games. 263 00:08:07,708 --> 00:08:10,416 Ideally, games that are created by 264 00:08:10,458 --> 00:08:12,000 unionized and or 265 00:08:12,000 --> 00:08:13,666 cooperatively run studios. 266 00:08:14,041 --> 00:08:14,958 And whatever you do, 267 00:08:15,458 --> 00:08:16,791 play more indie games.