What discs mean to a publisher of 'meaningful' games
A Game File interview with the head of Serenity Forge about a very hot topic and the implications of Sony's no-new-discs plans.
In the wake of Sony’s surprise announcement that it will not produce discs for any new games as of January 2028—even as fans flood Sony with negative feedback online—most game publishers aren’t talking.
No comment from Take Two. Nor from EA. Nor Ubisoft. Capcom hasn’t said anything, nor Square Enix, nor Bandai Namco. Microsoft’s been mum, as well.1
About a week ago, I reached out to Zhenghua Yang, founder and CEO of mid-sized game publisher Serenity Forge, to get his thoughts. I’d featured the disc copy of one of his company’s games, the Dear Dream-developed Cooking Companions, in the the photo I used atop Game File’s coverage of the Sony news.
Yang told me that he and his team had noticed disc copies of the Serenity Forge-published Doki Doki Literature Club making the rounds as part of the debate, too.
Unlike the other publishers, Yang was happy to talk.
Over the course of an email interview, Yang was diplomatic about Sony’s move but also very clear about the importance of disc games to a publisher like his.
“For us, physical publishing has actually never just been another sales channel,” Yang told me.
“It's actually an important part of our mission to bring meaningful games to as many people as possible globally.”
“Physical games help us reach audiences that digital often can’t.
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