The PS Store demo section is increasingly becoming clogged with shovelware, further exasperating the long-running issue that Sony has been unable to resolve. We had reported back in 2022 that following an influx of asset-flip spam, the company allegedly took measures to tackle the issue, but it looks like people have found a way to circumvent potential repercussions.
PS Store demo section is a dumpster fire right now
I don’t usually go shopping for demos, so when I saw numerous complaints specifically about this section, I decided to scroll through it. This is what I saw:
Images: Author’s PS App
Our previous report about Sony combating shovelware was based on a leaked letter in which the company allegedly threatened spammers with suspensions and termination of partner contracts if they continued to deliberately release low-quality content. If that letter was real, it looks like these so-called devs found a way to trick Sony into thinking that they’re releasing legitimate games by offering demos for them.
None of these games actually need demos, of course, since they cost a few pennies and typically take 15-30 mins to beat. It’s genuinely annoying that this garbage is tucked between legitimate content, and Sony can’t for the life of it get its store in order.
Thoughts go out to small devs struggling for visibility on the PS Store.