It looks like Baldur’s Gate 3 will be Larian Studios’ last physical release, at least when it comes to PlayStation consoles.
As PlayStation seeks to end production of physical discs by January 2028, the RPG studio’s next game, Divinity, will likely launch after the cutoff date. While the Divinity release date has not been confirmed, the new RPG is expected to start early access sometime in 2028 at the earliest.
Baldur’s Gate 3’s physical edition gave fans a gorgeous two-disc edition on PlayStation 5 and a four-disc edition on Xbox. While major updates launched afterwards, fans can play the full version of Larian’s RPG from their discs decades into the future, as physical releases should be.
Following PlayStation’s announcement, Larian director of publishing Michael Douse said that “not having it [physical discs] as an option does suck. It’s not as though you can press a game to vinyl”. Upon realising that Baldur’s Gate 3 will be Larian’s last game available on disc, they continued: “Genuinely heartbreaking. This was both my pride AND quite literally joy”.
The Baldur’s Gate 3 – Deluxe Edition is still available to buy on PC, Xbox and PlayStation. The physical version of the game comes with the discs, a massive collectible game box inspired by the original games, a map, a 3-CD soundtrack, patches, a poster, and 32 stickers. Furthermore, if you buy new, it’s not that much more expensive than the base game on digital stores.
In a follow-up comment, Douse explained that the Baldur’s Gate 3 physical edition “cost silly money to produce”, which likely means Larian makes significantly less profit from these versions of the game. However, even though Douse admits these versions are “for a niche” audience, they are great options for hardcore fans.
“It’s f**king cool and made people happy,” the developer said. “I just wish they would license one company to manufacture discs as an option for collectors. Where there is digital there will always be a sizeable audience who want tangible.”
The reaction to PlayStation’s decision to end production of physical discs has been a resounding outcry from fans. While digital sales do make up the majority of profit for the company, many gamers are still buying physical games, especially when you remove digital-only offerings from the skewered sales data reporting.
Additionally, as we reported at FRVR, production of physical PlayStation 5 games is between three and four times cheaper than that of Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 physical versions. Despite this, PlayStation is still looking to axe the rather miniscule cost of production to maximise digital profits where prices for games are consistently higher than at retail.
As PlayStation moves to remove physical options from players, the move has grabbed the attention of major figures,including 2027 French presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon. In a statement on social media, the politician argued that video games are “cultural assets” that should be protected in physical form.
