The Video Game History Foundation has issued a call to the Entertainment Software Association (ESA) to develop "meaningful solutions" for the legal preservation of digital-only video game content. This plea follows Sony's announcement that it will cease producing new games on physical discs by 2028, a move that exacerbates existing challenges in game preservation.
Frank Cifaldi, director of the Video Game History Foundation, acknowledged that the discontinuation of physical media impacts consumers, resale markets, and the preservation of unique game versions. However, he noted that for professional preservationists, the shift to digital-only releases presents a more significant hurdle. The majority of games released over the last two decades were not exclusively on dedicated consoles, and even physical releases often received day-one digital patches, meaning the disc itself may not represent the version of the game that players experienced.
Further complicating matters are the evolving nature of game development, particularly with early access titles. Cifaldi highlighted that different versions of a game, such as pre-1.0 releases that significantly differ from the final product, are also valuable historical artifacts that require preservation. The foundation points to instances like Hades 2, where the ending changed substantially between its early access and 1.0 releases, underscoring the need for access to these earlier iterations.
Cifaldi expressed frustration with the ESA, a trade association representing major studios, which has historically lobbied against preservation efforts. "Everyone agrees this is a serious problem, but the ESA has repeatedly opposed the efforts of cultural heritage institutions to reform digital copy protection laws to make it easier to do this work," the statement reads. He stressed that the industry must actively engage in finding solutions, stating, "The industry needs to meaningfully come to the table on this issue, because asking museums to download a copy of Grand Theft Auto VI and hope it'll run in 50 years is not a preservation solution."
The foundation's statement also coincides with Sony's decision to permanently close the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita digital storefronts. While games may remain available for download for existing owners, this further erodes the long-term accessibility of digital titles, leading Cifaldi to observe that piracy is currently the most reliable method for preserving certain games.