This week, it has been revealed by fans that since the March 2026 update, PlayStation 4 and 5 games have required a 30-day DRM online license check for digital games, and today it’s been confirmed as intentional by fans.
For the uninitiated, this week, Sony has faced scrutiny regarding the PlayStation family of consoles, digital licensing and requiring console owners to ‘check in’ online to continue playing games they have purchased. Fans have hit the internet in droves, suggesting they can’t play digital games they own since the March 2026 update unless they connect their PlayStation to the internet and confirm the console’s presence online.
In the beginning, it was only confirmed to happen with PS4 titles, and only with titles purchased after the March 2026 update, but yesterday, YouTube channel Spawn Wave released a video confirming that the licensing test occurs on PS5 titles also. The video presented by the Spawn Wave channel can be seen below.
In the video, the channel tests four games: Saint Slayer (purchased digitally on April 27), Vampire Crawlers (purchased digitally on April 27), Crimson Desert (purchased digitally a month ago), and Pragmata (physical title). All four of the titles work as advertised, whether the console is connected to the internet or not; however, things begin to get interesting when the console’s CMOS battery is removed.
The video explains that this is the component responsible for the console knowing the time and how much has passed on the console. Removing this item from the PlayStation 5 Pro would essentially reset the 30-Day DRM (Digital Rights Management) licensing timer, and after the battery was removed, Saint Slayer and Vampire Crawlers (titles purchased after the March 2026 update) no longer load. The PlayStation 5 Pro gives the user a notice: “Can’t use this content. Can’t connect to the server to verify your license. Wait a while, then try again.” Spawn Wave then connects to the internet, and all four titles work as advertised once again.
While this confirms there is a kind of DRM on PlayStation preventing players from using games in this 30-day window, Sony has not responded officially to this issue. So, today, fans have taken to social media to confirm their own cases (found by PushSquare). PlayStation appears to have begun to respond to some users and shed light on the new system in place with the PlayStation Online Assistant, and confirmed that the new licensing restrictions are on purpose.
Some fans have taken these reports as gospel and have used the opportunity to troll PlayStation, as their big E3 campaign from 2013 was all about picking on the Xbox One for implementing a similar DRM with physical titles. Sony said on the screen at one point in the E3 presentation that games will require “no check-ins,” and fans have noticed the irony.
While there is an overwhelming amount of cases on the internet (especially on Reddit) of fans struggling with this issue, Sony has not issued a formal response yet on the 30-day licensing enforcement. While fans have posted images of PlayStation correspondence showing the DRM is intentional, the new DRM (or glitch, as fans think it could be) enforcement has not been confirmed.
Fans should take these DRM issues with caution until Sony confirms the licensing issues are intentional.
