New PS4 and PS5 games purchased digitally from the PlayStation Store are now locked after 30 days if the console is not connected to the internet, as part of a new form of DRM copy protection.
Do you actually own the games you "buy" digitally?
The debate is taking a new turn. Digital games have never been resellable, but now their licenses are also tied to an internet connection, even for offline titles that do not require internet.
Also read: Steam admits that you don't own "purchased" games
New type of copy protection
The first reports surfaced in March, but the issue gained momentum over the weekend. On PlayStation 4, an information menu shows that a game's license expires after 30 days, after which the console must connect to the internet to renew it for another 30 days.
On PS5, the expiration date is not shown, but outlets such as DoesItPlay and Spawn Wave confirm that the same applies here. By removing the CMOS battery in the PlayStation 5 console to manipulate the system date, they triggered the following error message:
- "Can't use this content. Can't connect to the server to verify your licence. Wait a while, and then try again."
This is a new form of DRM (digital rights management), possibly introduced in response to the PS5 being 'jailbroken' for the first time, which theoretically enables pirated games to run.
Microsoft attempted to introduce a similar system with the launch of Xbox One in 2013, tied to physical discs, but abandoned the plan following intense consumer backlash.
On PS4, a countdown shows when the game's license expires after 30 days. Photo: DoesItPlayNewer digital games – not physical?
Spawn Wave tested four games: Saint Slayer (purchased digitally this week), Vampire Crawlers (purchased digitally this week), Crimson Desert (purchased digitally a month ago) and Pragmata (purchased on a physical disc).
The two recently purchased digital titles both have the 30-day DRM restriction, while Crimson Desert does not. Apparently the change applies only to digital games purchased after March 2026.
Games on physical discs are not currently affected.
Potential consequences
Most consoles are connected to the internet, but this type of DRM only works as long as PlayStation's servers – or those of game publishers – remain online. Sony shut down PlayStation 3 servers after 15 years, with PSP and PS Vita losing access at the same time.
The DRM system also makes it impossible to use a PS4 or PS5 in locations without internet access unless games are purchased on physical media.
A form of planned obsolescence.
Sony has so far declined to comment but PlayStation support has confirmed the behavior. It does not matter whether the PS5 is set as the "primary" console or not.
- Source: Reddit, Spawn Wave, DoesItPlay
