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Today may have marked the beginning of the end for game console disc drives. Sony finally announced the $699.99 PS5 Pro, and while it looks to be an impressive machine, it\u2019s the first PlayStation console that will require<\/em> you to buy the console and a separate disc drive if you want to play your physical games.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Sony\u2019s offered disc-free variants before and inched in this direction with the PS5 \u201cslim,\u201d which you can buy with the separate disc drive already attached or add a disc drive to later. But with the PS5 Pro<\/a>, you\u2019ll have to get a separate PS5 disc drive<\/a>, whether that means you buy it for $79.99 or swap a disc drive from a slim PS5 to a PS5 Pro.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n It\u2019s like Apple removing the disc drive all over again<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n It seems likely that Sony and Microsoft are testing the waters for going all-digital for the PlayStation 6 and the next-generation Xbox \u2014 or at least offering disc drives separately. It\u2019s like Apple removing the disc drive all over again.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n I have mixed feelings about this potential shift to a no-disc drive future. I long ago moved to an entirely digital library for my games, as I like switching games without having to swap discs and because I don\u2019t have a lot of space in my home to store physical cases. It\u2019s convenient!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n We\u2019re going to have to wait a few years, likely until the next full console generation, to see how far down the discless path Sony and Microsoft are willing to go. For Xbox, at least, Microsoft Gaming CEO Phil Spencer recently said<\/a> the company\u2019s strategy \u201cdoes not hinge on people moving all-digital\u201d and that \u201cgetting rid of physical\u201d is \u201cnot a strategic thing for us.\u201d On the other hand, Spencer noted that \u201ca majority\u201d of its customers are buying games digitally, so it might just be a matter of time.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n