The PS5 blackout campaign saw “no significant change” in terms of player count in the US, according to Circana’s Mat Piscatella.
In case you haven’t been keeping up, the blackout was arranged by fans online as backlash to Sony’s plans to cease production of PlayStation game discs in January 2028. The aim was to stop playing PS5 to put a dent in Sony’s active player count, and initially took place between August 23 – 30, but the campaign has been encouraged by organisers on social media to continue for as long as possible.
“No. There was no significant change at all in player count or engagement in our tracking,” said Piscatella, referring to US player data. It’s not known how much of an impact it caused in terms of other regions at this point.
Sony has been met with huge criticism for its decision to go digital-only from January 2028. Almost immediately, a petition was set up by the CEO of a Canadian independent retailer, asking the company to reconsider its plans; it quickly amassed over 300,000 signatures. Metal Gear creator Hideo Kojima also offered his opinion on the matter by saying he was “very sad” to hear about the news, while ex-PlayStation boss Shawn Layden said he didn’t “necessarily agree” with Sony’s decision while attempting to see things from their perspective in terms of costs.
Sony itself has acknowledged that there have been “strong views” coming in wake of its decision to stop making PlayStation game discs, but made it clear it’s still going forward with the move.
[Source – Mat Piscatella on BlueSky via PushSquare]