PlayStation Bug Removes Purchased Digital Games from Users’ Libraries

Video Games

If you needed another argument for buying hard copies of video games (and all media, really), PlayStation just gave you one. An article from Metro reveals that a new bug affecting PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation Vita is “wiping digital games from people’s libraries.” So far, fifty gamers have reported that their games have gone missing. A Redditor named dSuds2342 reported on the issue in detail, explaining that while your transaction history remains the same, “your ‘Purchased’ tab in your ‘Games Library’ on the Playstation.com website will only show titles that were added after you became afflicted by the bug.” Any games purchased after the bug infected your system will be unaffected, as will those from hard copies. Those affected also say you can’t even buy the games again (not that you should have to) because the game still registers as being purchased. It appears PlayStation is slowly fixing the problem, though it took some pushback from customers. You can click below to see the lengthy post:

PSA: People are losing access to their digital licenses, and people need to be talking about it.
byu/dSuds2342 inplaystation

I’m a big proponent of physical media, and this is one reason why. The bug is bad enough, but it took a lot of people complaining for Sony to finally do something about this; if it were a more targeted attack that hit just a few gamers, you could be waved off by a big company that doesn’t seem too invested in customer service. After all, you don’t actually own the games you “purchase” digitally, or the movies or TV shows; all you bought was access for as long as the companies and platforms want to give it to you. Is it a wonder they weren’t terribly motivated to fix a problem for their renters? That this comes less than two months after game studio Ubisoft said they want more gamers to become “comfortable with not owning your game” should be the death knell for digital purchases. This is a hoodwink, a way for the gaming companies to save money at your expense, and even when there’s a problem that hurts their customers beyond what they’re already doing, they have to be pressured into fixing it. People want to clutch their pearls over phrases like “Embrace tradition. Reject Modernity,” but this is what the inverse gets you: begging to be allowed to play games you already bought. Discs and cartridges are the way to go, just like DVDs, Blu-Rays, and 4K Blu-Rays are for movies.

Jeremy talked about this in a video on the Geeks + Gamers YouTube channel: