The Stop Killing Games movement is officially suing Sony, claiming the company’s “monopoly” over the video game market is blatantly “against the law.”
Sony is facing a number of lawsuits in a handful of countries following its controversial decision to stop printing physical games starting January 2028. This move has sparked renewed discourse surrounding the ownership of physical media, leaving players around the world fearful for the future of gaming platforms and what pricing will look like in an all-digital marketplace.
The latest entity to join these lawsuits is the Stop Killing Games movement, a consumer-led initiative working to end the trend of developers ‘killing’ online or live-service games once official support for them has ended. Formed in 2024, Stop Killing Games has made its way to the European Commission and garnered over 1.2 million verified signatures on a petition as part of its European Citizens’ Initiative — and now, it’s joining the fight against Sony’s plans for a future without physical games.
As presented in a YouTube video uploaded on August 10, 2026, Stop Killing Games announced its plans to join Dutch consumer organization Stichting Massaschade & Consument, which filed a $457 million lawsuit against Sony back in February over claims of artificially inflating their prices on the PlayStation store for users in The Netherlands.
In its video, Stop Killing Games described the increased cost of these digital titles as an unlawful “Sony Tax,” saying it wants to fight for fair game prices and “real alternatives” to the online PlayStation store, making specific mention of Sony’s plans to shift to a fully-online shopping experience.
It’s also demanding that Sony repay the money they allegedly made from Dutch players who bought games on its digital platform, with Stichting Massaschade & Consument saying this amount adds up to hundreds of millions of euros.
As previously mentioned, Stop Killing Games and SM&C aren’t the only entities taking legal action against Sony; Mexican lawmakers have submitted a formal complaint to Mexico’s National Antitrust Commission, requesting an investigation into Sony for alleged “anti-competitive practices” due to its plans to end physical disc production.
A class-action lawsuit was also filed against Sony within the U.K. in March 2026, alleging that millions of users in the region were subjected to “excessive and unfair” charges through the PlayStation store. And in May, PlayStation console owners launched a lawsuit against Sony to try and claim refunds after the company increased PS5 prices due to tariffs in 2025.
While not all of these suits are dealing with the death of physical discs specifically, it’s clear that consumers aren’t happy with this shift in policy and are making their voices heard, whether that be through a flood of comments on PlayStation’s social media posts or in the court of law.
Sony, for its part, has made no motion to backtrack on this decision, with CFO Lin Tao saying it plans to “cautiously move this forward” in a call with investors.
Virginia (she/her) is IGN’s News Editor. With ten years of experience reporting on games and entertainment, she’s got a storied background in the fighting game community, influencer news, and viral online trends. Find her on Twitter at @TheeMissGlaze.
