PlayStation Plus logo (Sony)
In the age of streaming, subscriptions and battle passes, it’s no surprise that Sony would attempt to release a competitor to Microsoft’s extremely successful Xbox Game Pass. When they announced that Playstation Plus and PlayStation Now would be combined to provide players with seemingly unlimited titles for a fee, many people were skeptical about how extensive the catalog would be and how successful it would be.
The findings: it’s not that bad at all. The new Playstation Plus has various tiers. Essential, which is priced at $9.99 monthly; Extra, for $14.99 monthly; and Premium, for $19.99 a month. Gamers will have a unique experience with each of the tiers, and it all depends on your individual preference and what you are seeing to get out of each tier. But the benefits overall, are worth it.
For example, with the higher tiers, you are afforded tons of first-party content and exclusive games such as God of War, Days Gond, Ghost of Tsushima and more. There are also the PS5 Director’s Cut versions of Ghost of Tsushima and Death Stranding. In addition to first-party content, there are a ton of large third-party games, such as Fallout 4, NBA 2K and Red Dead Redemption 2, as well as smaller indie titles such as Absolver, Child of Light and Bad North.
For those who hunt for trophies within their games, and get a rush from seeing that 100% complete progress bar, classic PlayStation games now have trophy support. This is one of the clear advantages that PlayStation Plus has over Game Pass as Xbox did not add any trophy support to their titles.
However, there are some distinct flaws with the new service. For example, PlayStation exclusive titles will not be added on release day. Therefore, if you want to play newer titles such as God of War: Ragnarok on the day of release you will have to buy it from the PlayStation Store or wait to download it when it becomes available later on the PS Plus. Xbox Game Pass however allows the same-day play of exclusive releases.
There is also a lack of classic games available within the catalog. In comparison to the hundreds of PlayStation games released over the multiple generations, the 13 that are available with PlayStation Plus seem almost insulting. Not to mention the varied frame rates that each game plays at as it relates to your location.
PlayStation Plus is worth your money, but there is so much to be done with the service, therefore you don’t need to go out and rush to spend your money yet. There isn’t anything groundbreaking about it, as it doesn’t really do anything different to cater to the players. It’s just fine. For now, the first two tiers should be enough to scratch your gaming itch, but shelling out $20 a month for the Premium tier is not advisable.
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