Hideki Kamiya, creator of Bayonetta and director of Resident Evil 2, said he isn’t too fussed about physical vs digital games; instead, he’s more concerned with preserving games for players to enjoy in the future.
Hideki Kamiya is behind some of the biggest franchises in gaming history. From Bayonetta to Devil May Cry, Resident Evil 2, and Okami, he’s a veteran of the industry. As such, fans are naturally curious about his stance on the current debate surrounding PlayStation’s plans to end production of all physical game discs starting January 2028.
In his usual candid manner, Kamiya admitted he doesn’t actually buy physical games at all anymore, as told in a September 2 interview with Video Games Chronicle.
“I don’t buy a single physical game these days – every single game I buy is 100% digital, so I look at that decision and think, ‘Yeah, I guess this is where things were heading,'” he told the outlet.
He went on to say that the disc vs digital debate isn’t really relevant for him; instead, he hopes publishers make efforts to preserve their games for future generations of players, no matter what form that might take.
“That’s the big thing for me, is whether or not the IP holders are going to take responsibility for ensuring that all of these games will continue to be available to future generations in order for them to be played. Whether that’s physically or digitally is less important to me, just so long as these games will be available to people in the future,” he continued.
“Because, as you know, there are already so many of these older classic games that are not playable on modern hardware at all, and I hope that the IP holders will recognize that and continue to make those games available to future people not just from a gameplay perspective, but also from a game culture perspective, and to continue to foster and grow that that culture of gaming. So to me, it’s less important whether the games are made available physically or digitally, but that they’re made available at all.”
Kamiya’s thinking reflects a trend in the gaming industry that’s cropped up over the last decade; many publishers have begun re-releasing their older games for modern platforms, with some remaking them completely. While it’s a good way to profit from studios’ previous work, it also allows these games to be experienced by a new generation of players on updated hardware, or re-experienced by longtime fans without them having to dig out their AV cables.
Other fan-driven initiatives, such as the Stop Killing Games movement and the Video Game History Foundation, aim to protect games both for posterity and consumer rights. Stop Killing Games, which recently joined a Dutch consumer group in a lawsuit against PlayStation, hopes to install legal framework to require publishers to maintain servers for live-service games after official support has ended, while the Video Game History Foundation collects games to “preserve, celebrate, and teach” the public about the history of video games.
There’s still a strong movement from players rallying against PlayStation’s version for an all-digital future, though. Lawmakers in Mexico have even introduced an anti-trust lawsuit against the company over its decision to end physical discs, accusing it of engaging in “anti-competitive practices.”
Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.
