The ongoing decline of physical video game media continues to stir debate within the gaming community, though some industry voices contend that the battle was effectively lost over a decade ago.

Across social media, organized groups of players have mobilized to protest and boycott PlayStation and other publishers that appear to be steering the market toward all-digital ecosystems. Yet these efforts, according to market data, stand in stark contrast to actual consumer behavior.

Valve veteran Chet Faliszek recently pushed back against such protests, asserting that there is little tangible support for physical media, given that the majority of players had already made their preferences clear years ago.

Half-Life Writer Chet Faliszek Blames Players for End of Physical Media

During a live stream on his personal YouTube channel, Faliszek, whose writing credits span multiple entries in the Half-Life, Portal, and Left 4 Dead franchises, addressed the controversy ignited by PlayStation’s latest digital-focused announcements.

In his view, the shift away from discs is not a unilateral corporate decree but a direct response to how consumers actually choose to purchase their games.

He placed the responsibility for the format’s decline squarely on players themselves, as they have favored digital downloads over boxed copies.

“You, the consumer, have made a choice, and your choice is for digital,” Faliszek says plainly in a new YouTube video on the subject. “Right now, today – the games we are talking about are available at retail today. The used games are available at retail today, and you aren’t going into retail and buying them. GameStop gets 18% of all its revenue from the sale of new and used games. 18% of a company called GameStop that used to do nothing but sell video games.”

Faliszek Dismisses Conspiracy Theories Suggesting Sony Is Falsifying Sales Metrics

According to industry reports, digital purchases account for roughly 85% of full-game software sales on PlayStation platforms, a figure Sony has cited as the primary motivation for reducing its emphasis on physical media.

Some disgruntled fans have accused the Japanese company of manipulating those numbers to serve its financial interests, but Faliszek rejected that line of thinking.

He argued that Sony stands to gain nothing from dishonesty and that corporations are fundamentally reactive to consumer demand, not the other way around.

“That shows you’re really not looking at it, doesn’t it?” he said. “You don’t recognize that you created this problem for Sony and GameStop. You, the consumer. 85% digital download percentage of full software on PlayStation. You think everyone is lying to you. Do you think they’re somehow benefiting from this? No. They’re just reacting to your purchases. They had a system in place, and you told them you didn’t like it. What we like is buying digitally. We want it instantly.”

For more news on the gaming and entertainment industries, click here.

Stay tuned to LEVEL UP for continuing updates.