Sony Announces Wolverine PS5 Console, But It Won’t Play Discs

Marvel’s Wolverine is one of Sony’s biggest games this year, so it’s not surprising that the company is putting out special-edition PlayStation 5 consoles alongside the game next month. However, given the weeks of controversy following the announcement that the company would stop manufacturing physical discs, the announcement of a digital-only console with no disc drive version is putting a bad taste in the mouths of people who were already mad.

The system comes adorned with console plates sporting Wolverine’s angry face, as well as marks meant to look like Logan slashed through your pricey new console with his claws. Both the console and the similarly styled controllers come in two colors, a yellow similar to the hero’s suit, and a silver meant to look like his adamantium claws. Pre-orders start on August 19 at 10 a.m. local time, and the items will officially launch on September 15 alongside the game. The yellow system and controller will be available at select retailers, while the silver one will be sold only through PlayStation’s direct store.

The elephant in the room is that the consoles themselves are digital-only, meaning that if you were hoping to get a version of the Wolverine system with a built-in disc drive, you’re out of luck. And if the text in Sony’s trailer declaring this fact doesn’t get it through to you, you’ll see plenty of people in the comments section of the announcement trailer making sure everyone knows. Some might view this decision as another step in the all-digital direction Sony has been pursuing since announcing it would stop producing PlayStation discs. However, the company will be releasing the console covers separately for both digital and disc-drive consoles, so if you already have a PS5 and want Logan’s face on the side of it, that option will be available to you, but only if you have the Slim model that was released in 2023. If, for whatever reason, you’re just now buying a PS5 after it has gotten far more expensive and want a Wolverine system with a disc drive, you’re gonna have to buy the $650 console and then add another $75 on top of it to buy the face plates.

The full price rundown is as follows: