The PS5 Pro will hit the market on November 7, although it can now be reserved, for 799 dollars. It is important to note that this model is only available in digital format, that is, without a disc drive. Optionally, you can purchase the reader and support mandatory which increases the total price of the PS5 Pro by up to 959 dollars.
Why the PS5 Pro doesn’t have a disc drive
The main, and one could say only, reason why Sony only released a model in digital format is to reduce its user base since they continue to choose to buy the model with a disc drive though above digital format. This is not what we are saying, but rather the latest study published by Circana.
According to the analysis firm Circana, since Sony launched the PS5 in 2020, more than 80% of all units which were sold only in the United States include the disk drive. With these numbers on the table, it is logical to think that Sony wants to take advantage of users by forcing them to purchase the disc drive independently to continue enjoying their games in physical format.
However, this could be a boost for the company and might not meet sales expectations, as it’s likely that not everyone will be willing to pay double what the PS5 with drive currently costs disk so that the new generation continues to use the they have games in physical format and choose to wait for the new generation whose launch is scheduled for 2028, relying on the most optimistic forecasts.
Sony and Microsoft have tried to encourage the purchase of video games in digital formata format that gives them a greater profit margin since they don’t have to share distribution costs. However, the price of games in digital format is exactly the same as physical format, so there’s really no compelling reason to go digital.
Plus, if we buy a game in digital format, we keep it forever. But if we buy the games in physical format, once we have played them we can I sell it second hand and recover part of the investment to buy a new one or always have it in our library without fear that it will disappear from digital stores.
If Sony and Microsoft really want users to buy games in digital format, they need to offer a compelling and important reason to change users’ minds, by offering the titles at a lower price than the physical format, because otherwise, If your plans involve launching the next generation of your consoles without a reader and without the possibility of adding one, it will be time to upgrade to a gaming PC.
Although for many years games in physical format for PC have ceased to exist, when purchasing a game we are not obliged to go through a specific store, but we can do so through Steam, Epic Games Store o GOG among other things, which allows us to obtain better prices.
