- Resident Evil 2 director Hideki Kamiya says that keeping games playable matters more than physical or digital releases.
- While he says PlayStation's no-disc decision doesn't affect him, he urges IP holders to restore older titles unavailable on modern hardware.
- Kamiya also states that he doesn't care about a game's format "so long as these games will be available to people in the future".
Hideki Kamiya has directed some of Capcom’s most influential games, including Resident Evil 2 (1998) and Devil May Cry, so his word holds weight. Now leading Clovers on the Okami sequel, the Resident Evil 2 director has shared his thoughts on PlayStation ending physical disc production starting January 2028 in a new interview.
Speaking to VGC, Hideki Kamiya said PlayStation’s decision doesn’t affect him personally, as he buys games “100% digitally.” But he still raised concerns about whether all games will be available to play on newer-generation consoles like the PlayStation 6 and beyond.
“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,” said Kamiya.
“There are already so many of these older classic games that are not playable on modern hardware at all,“ added Kamiya. “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 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.
PlayStation’s decision to end discs didn’t sit well with the gaming community, as disc enthusiasts held a one-week PlayStation Blackout boycott at the end of August to protest. Yet, Sony is sticking to this decision. Sony CFO Lin Tao even doubled down on the move at the company’s Q1 2026 earnings call.
Meanwhile, Xbox has introduced a disc-to-digital feature, which supports exactly what the Resident Evil 2 director said in the interview. If you are interested, learn how to convert Xbox discs to digital games. That said, do you agree with Hideki Kamiya’s statements about PlayStation’s decision? Tell us in the comments section below.
