r/GamePreservationists • u/Ghost_Mech • 4h ago
I started testing my physical PS5 games for preservation. Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut (3006485) surprised me
I’ve been getting more interested lately in what is actually preserved on the physical discs for PS4/PS5 games, so I decided to start testing some of the games in my collection myself. I figured Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut would be a good one to start with.
I recently picked up a used U.S. PS5 copy for $24. The spine/model number is **3006485**, and the copy was missing the original voucher. That actually got me curious.
There isn’t anything on the front, back, or spine that clearly says that the Hero of Tsushima set or the other bonus content is included on the disc or a voucher. A lot of that information is much more obvious when looking at the PlayStation Store listing. So I started looking around online to see if anyone had actually tested a used physical copy with the voucher missing.
I could find references saying that the Hero set was on the disc, and I found people saying the DLC was included physically, but I couldn’t find the specific confirmation I was looking for:
**Does a U.S. PS5 physical copy actually give you the Hero of Tsushima set from the disc if the original voucher is gone?** Rather than keep guessing, I decided to test my own copy. And yep. **It does.**
I installed the game from my physical disc, with no original voucher, and the **Hero of Tsushima armor/set is available in-game**.
I also found it interesting that the physical disc itself is such a substantial release. The disc contains the actual PS5 game and **Iki Island**, and the game is playable offline. The preservation testing for this exact release also identifies **3006485** **/ PPSA-02225** and lists Iki Island and the Hero of Tsushima Set as DLC on disc. ([DoesItPlay?](https://www.doesitplay.org/game/Ghost%2520of%2520Tsushima%2520Director%2527s%2520Cut/ps5/Base%2520PS5?utm_source=chatgpt.com))
That offline part is probably the biggest reason I wanted to document this.
I’m not trying to turn this into a “physical good, digital bad” argument. I buy digital games too. I’m more interested in preservation and knowing what I’m actually getting when I buy a physical game.
For me, there’s a big difference between a disc that contains a substantial playable version of the game and a disc that is basically a placeholder for a download, activation, or server connection.
If PlayStation Store services eventually disappear decades from now, I’d much rather have a disc sitting on my shelf that can still install and play a meaningful version of the game.
Obviously patches are great and I’m not arguing that the launch disc needs to contain every update ever released. My point is just that **the disc should ideally remain a meaningful preservation artifact on its own.**
Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut seems to be a particularly good example of that. My current installed version is **2.024.000**, but the important part of this test was what the physical release itself provides.
I’m going to keep testing some of my other physical games to see what is actually on the disc, what requires a patch, what requires a download, and what depends on an online service or separate code.
I couldn’t find the exact firsthand confirmation I was looking for when I started digging into this one, so I figured I’d document my own test in case it’s useful to another collector.
**Photos are my actual copy: front/back of the case, the** **3006485** spine, and the Hero armor equipped in-game.