Ken Kutaragi ‘understands’ why PlayStation fans don’t want to give up physical games

‘Father of PlayStation’ Ken Kutaragi says he understands the frustration from some players over Sony’s decision to end physical disc production, and suggested game companies need to change sentiment around digital ownership.

Speaking to VGC at the Game Republic New Horizons event in Middlesbrough, UK, this week, the former Sony Interactive Entertainment chairman and group CEO shared his views on a range of industry topics, including PlayStation’s impending transition to being a digital-only company.

Kutaragi, who oversaw the creation of the first three PlayStation consoles before his departure in 2007, has long predicted the transition away from physical media. As far back as 2006, he stated that he believed digital distribution would eventually remove the need for discs, or even hard drives via online streaming.

Asked this week for his views on Sony’s decision, the 76-year-old acknowledged that Sony’s handling has “caused some friction with game enthusiasts”, even if he believes it isn’t “economically reasonable” for PlayStation to continue dedicating resources to discs.

“Although we had network capability back in the PS2 and PS3 days, it was not that common [as it is today]. Now, many, many people are connected,” Kutaragi told VGC.

“I understand that physical discs have become a metaphor for ‘owning’ games. I really understand that mentality… But nobody thinks [physical media] is necessary for a networked device like a smartphone, for example, because people feel that they will keep their content. So it’s a mentality.

“I really understand [why some people are upset], but I don’t think it’s economically reasonable. Maybe it’s a mentality issue.”

Kutaragi said that PlayStation’s current leadership may be shifting away from the traditional idea of a game console towards a network-connected platform for delivering all kinds of content, and that this conflicts with what many dedicated gaming fans want.

“I’m not the CEO at PlayStation anymore, but we still have some common [viewpoints]. Right now, Sony Interactive Entertainment has many people who have come from outside, like from Gaikai or streaming companies.

“So it’s understandable that by utilizing network connectivity [they may see] PlayStation as not just a game console, but also a content terminal. Maybe that’s how those people are thinking. But this has caused some friction with game enthusiasts.”

PlayStation co-creator predicts consoles could end

Ken Kutaragi is best known as the architect of the original PlayStation, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation 3. Since leaving Sony in 2007, he served as an outside director for several companies, including Rakuten, Kadokawa, SmartNews, and GA Technologies. He is currently the CEO of Ascent Robotics and Cyber AI Entertainment.

At Game Horizons, the former PlayStation chairman held a keynote talk hosted by The Game Business in which he shared his views on the current state of console gaming and what could come next.

“When we released PlayStation 2, people would ask me, ‘what’s next?’ And I would say, ‘merging with the network’. [I expected] everything would merge with the network and that’s what’s happening right now,” he said, adding that he was concerned about the growing price of consumer hardware, caused by the global components shortage.

“Currently, machines are super expensive and that’s not a healthy situation… [even though] architecture has changed direction from console-based to PC-based, with the intention of making the platform easier to create, but right now PCs are so expensive. It’s the price of a car! It’s not healthy,” he said.

Hardware manufacturers need to “find elegant solutions”, Kutaragi said, and if gaming firms are able to utilise AI and cloud computing to their full potential, “we won’t need any console”. He added, “this isn’t an official comment from Sony Computer Entertainment!”