Disc Rot Already Afflicts Your Physical Game Collection

With the Console Wars officially being over, gamers need something to debate endlessly, and the digital vs physical argument makes for as good a fight as any other. Both positions have clear upsides and downsides, and you’re either in one camp or the other. However, some fresh fuel has just been dumped on the fire: did you know that your physical game collection is rotting as we speak, and the valuable discs themselves, rather than outlasting digital servers forever, are rapidly approaching their use by date?

Recently, TheGamer shared an intriguing post discussing Warner Bros.’ innovative DVD swap program aimed at people dealing with early disc decay, also known as laser decay. Essentially, this decay refers to the chemical degradation that occurs on all discs over time, eventually rendering them unplayable.

This inevitable fate awaits all CDs, DVDs, and Blu-rays. CDs have a 50- to 100-year lifespan, and DVDs are supposed to last between 30 and 100 years. Despite being the newest iteration, the Blu-ray discs PS5 games are printed on have the shortest life expectancy and are only estimated to last around 20 years under ideal conditions.

It appears that some of the earliest DVDs, like those treasured by Sammy Barker from Push Square (such as Mars Attacks), which are barely 30 years old, have already started showing signs of failure. This suggests that there was a period when faulty discs were distributed. Now, Warner Bros. is taking steps to rectify the situation.

Disc rot can be postponed by keeping your collection in a cool, dry, environment free of humidity, out of UV light, and sealed to prevent oxidation. Still, that’s assuming that your precious discs were pristine and not defective to begin with.

Streaks, spots, shadows, and other discolouration on the underside are all tell-tale signs that the degradation process is underway. As TheGamer notes, it’s ironic that the best thing you can do to preserve your physical game collection is to back it up digitally.

If you have an extensive collection of PS1 games, some of which may be 30 years or older now, it might be time to entomb them in some sealed preservation chamber or, failing that, fire them up again for the sake of old times. Nothing lasts forever, after all.

Did you expect your physical game collection to survive until the inevitable collapse of the universe? Are you surprised that disc manufacturers in the 90s might not have expected consumers to cling onto their shiny treasures for decades to come? Lovingly lay out your collection and savour every last moment in the comments section below.

2025-03-17 08:07

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