Take-Two Interactive CEO Strauss Zelnick says the company’s business is already overwhelmingly digital, making physical discs a poor fit for some major releases. His comments came as the publisher discussed the future of distribution and Rockstar’s upcoming Grand Theft Auto 6.
Zelnick addressed the issue during Take-Two’s Q1 2027 earnings call on 7 August. While much of the investor discussion focused on GTA 6, he was also asked about Sony’s reported plan to end physical game production in 2028.
Take-Two is already mostly digital
Zelnick declined to assess Sony’s specific decision, but said more than 90 per cent of Take-Two’s business is already digitally distributed. In his view, discs are particularly difficult to justify for large games when customers generally need an internet connection and online registration to play.
From that perspective, downloading a game can offer the same practical result as buying a disc while removing manufacturing, shipping and handling from the process. The company therefore expects digital distribution to become an increasingly important part of its release strategy.
That broader shift is being watched across the arcade and gaming industry, where modern machines and home entertainment products also depend on software, updates and digital content.
What this could mean for GTA 6
Take-Two’s position is especially relevant to Grand Theft Auto 6, described in the discussion as one of the decade’s biggest game launches. The title is expected to skip a conventional physical disc at launch. Retail copies planned for November are instead expected to contain a download code, and the game may not receive a disc release later either.
If that approach becomes standard, future Take-Two releases could increasingly appear as digital purchases or boxed download codes rather than complete physical editions. That distinction matters to collectors, since a box on a shop shelf may no longer contain the game data itself.
Physical editions will not disappear completely
Zelnick did not suggest that Take-Two will abandon physical products altogether. He indicated that the company will still produce physical editions in selected cases, comparing their continued presence to vinyl records in the music business.
The likely outcome is a more selective physical market: some games may receive boxed releases, while others will move entirely to digital distribution when the publisher believes a disc offers little practical benefit. Players who value ownership, resale or collecting will need to pay close attention to what each boxed edition actually includes.
For Australian gamers building a dedicated setup, the same question can arise in a different form: whether a system’s software is stored locally, downloaded or dependent on online services. Our arcade machine buying guide covers the broader considerations involved in choosing a machine, while the arcade machine range shows the kind of hardware that keeps game access centred on a dedicated cabinet.
Leave a Reply