It’s been revealed that Square Enix’s “Final Fantasy VII Revelation” will ship its PS5 packaged edition on a single disc, and that playing the game will require downloading additional data. The previous title, “FF7 Rebirth,” shipped its PS5 version as a two-disc set (a Data Disc and a Play Disc), but this time the setup has changed—buying the physical disc alone won’t be enough to boot the game. Reactions in the thread were mixed: some pointed to the capacity limits of UHD Blu-ray as the reason, others suspected Square Enix secretly wants to phase out physical discs step by step, and others compared it to GTA6 and Switch 2 titles that also require mandatory downloads.
Square Enix’s “Final Fantasy VII Revelation” PS5 packaged edition will ship on a single disc, and playing the game will require downloading additional data. This is a change from the two-disc setup of the previous title, “Final Fantasy VII Rebirth”—this time, even buyers of the packaged edition won’t be able to play from the disc alone.
Square Enix’s official product page states that for the PS5 packaged edition, “an internet connection and download of additional data are required to play.” According to the overseas announcement, both the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S versions will ship on a single disc. The previous title’s (“Rebirth”) PS5 packaged edition was a two-disc set made up of a Data Disc and a Play Disc.
Source: gamestalk.net / Original article here
PS5 can't even read CDs anyway.
Xbox Series X could, though.
Whether it requires an online connection or not.
PS5 uses Ultra HD Blu-ray, so the max capacity per disc is 100GB.
You could fit more if they added more recording layers.
They say they'll keep releasing the physical version through January 2028, but honestly it feels like they want to end physical releases as soon as possible.
They'll probably keep a token amount going just to cover themselves, but at this rate it'll gradually become nothing but code-in-a-box.
I think making it a two-disc set is just too much of a hassle for them.
Feels more like they got forced down to one disc, honestly.
It's not like the pressing mistake was even Square Enix's fault.
I think the real issue at stake is whether a PSN account is mandatory or not.
PlayStation is sold in 120+ countries, but you can only make a PSN account in fewer than 80 of them.
In countries where PS hardware is sold but you can't make a PSN account, there's no legitimate way to buy the download version.
For those 40-plus countries, it's basically the same as PlayStation hardware pulling out entirely.
Honestly, they might really fold up shop and withdraw from those markets for cost-cutting reasons.
This is genuinely dumb, it's kind of funny.
Xbox's service that lets you convert a disc into a digital install also requires online authentication, which is just as far removed from actually owning something—yet people praise it anyway.
Guess the 'honey' relationship really is over too. (a pun on 蜜月/"honeymoon," which literally contains "honey"—蜂蜜)
Because depending on your connection, it can actually be faster than the disc.
Someone just needs to invent a disc format with more capacity than BD.
Blu-ray's been around for decades now and nothing's replaced it yet?
Most games these days can't be played from the disc alone anymore.
Same thing I noticed during the whole 'get rid of discs' debate—there are actually a lot of people who don't realize this.
That's why the conversation never lines up.
I have a feeling it got approved because the expected production run is pretty small.
Does he only show up to defend things when Yoshida's involved?
Quit trying to summon him, lol (i.e., stop conjuring him up just by talking about him).
GTA6 probably has to press at least 5 million copies, so…
Revelation might not even hit 1 million?
I doubt they'll actually need it, but pressing ends in 2027, so timing-wise they can't ramp up production later.
With the trilogy factor too, gauging yield (the so-called 'green tea' judgment call—5ch slang for a quality/inspection call) is pretty tricky, but I'd guess the first run is around 1 million copies.
It's just that it's not really announced upfront, so a lot of people probably haven't even noticed.
I get why Sony might start thinking, 'well then, who even needs the disc anymore.'
But they let Rebirth 'reverse' back then?
This time they won't even let it 'reverse'? (another pun on リバース, meaning both "Rebirth" the previous title and "reverse")
Who's actually inconvenienced by this?
Who cares if you can't play it 20 or 30 years from now.
Same thing came up back when the key-card format launched—people without internet access, or with weak connections, are going to have a hard time playing.
With Switch 2 you can at least carry it around and use free Wi-Fi spots somewhere, but that's not really an option with PS5.
Though with Steam at least you don't have to rebuy it, right?
Guess a microSD card is mandatory.
Why though?
The Switch 2 has 256GB of internal storage.
Background and Key Points of This Topic
The setup that became a talking point here—”a single disc plus mandatory additional download”—stems from the capacity limits of the UHD Blu-ray discs (max 100GB) used by the PS5. The previous title, “FF7 Rebirth,” secured enough capacity by splitting its PS5 packaged edition into a two-disc set (a Data Disc and a Play Disc), but this time, with the disc count cut to one, it appears most of the main game data will instead be supplied via download. Thread reactions split between those who felt that since it already exceeds BD’s capacity limit, this is effectively a “key disc” in all but name, and those who felt it’s nothing to be surprised about since many big-budget games these days require additional downloads even for their disc editions. Other points raised included the fact that the PS5 doesn’t support reading CDs, and that fewer countries allow PSN account creation than actually sell PS5 hardware—meaning that depending on internet access or account-registration eligibility, some players may simply be unable to play at all. Note that the information in this article draws on gaming-media reports, including an overseas announcement, so an official explanation of the specs for the Japanese market may still be issued separately.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5channel (Hardware/Industry (Geha)) thread “[Bad News] ‘FF7 Revelation’ PS5 Packaged Edition Goes ‘1 Disc + Mandatory Download’—Unplayable Without Additional Download“.
