When pre-orders for Grand Theft Auto 6 went live on Thursday, fans hoping to add a disc to their collection were dealt a blow: developer Rockstar confirmed that the physical edition would contain nothing but a code for a digital download. The announcement came despite assurances from Strauss Zelnick, chief executive of Rockstar's parent company Take-Two, who told Variety in February that a digital-only launch was "not the plan".
Ben, a 24-year-old UK gamer who covers GTA news on social media under the handle 'videotech', described his reaction as "one of confusion and shock". He had been among those who held out hope that a physical disc would still be available at launch, and not just for sentimental reasons. "An important benefit of owning a disc is that you can lend the game to a friend or sell it later," he said. But online retailers selling the physical edition have stated that, as with other digital codes, the GTA 6 code is single-use and will become invalid after redemption.
“GTA 6's physical edition will contain only a download code, sparking debate about the future of game discs.”
Rockstar has set the price at £70 for a standard edition and £90 for a premium edition. The move is part of a wider industry trend: digital sales now account for the vast majority of game revenue, and consoles without disc drives have become commonplace. Mat Piscatella, senior director and video game industry advisor at market research firm Circana, noted that "more than half of all Xbox Series consoles in the US don't have a physical drive, while over a quarter of PS5's are the same".
For some gamers, the news felt less like an upset. Alogirlx, a gaming content creator from Canada, told the BBC's What in the World podcast: "I'm pretty much all digital these days, I download most of my games directly onto my console. Whether there's a physical disc or not it doesn't really change anything for me."
With physical game sales at an all-time low, the issue may well be less about the disc itself than what the shift means for ownership. If one of the biggest franchises in entertainment history has decided to follow suit, can the disc survive?