Sony has finally released a new PlayStation Plus subscription package, which has long been rumored to be a competitor to Xbox Game Pass.
Now, PlayStation Plus is a combination of two Sony subscription services, namely PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now. And now there are several tiers or subscription levels, where subscribers will get access to the PlayStation game catalog that can be played streaming or downloaded.
This new subscription service will be available in Asia in June, followed by North America, Europe and other countries.
Oh yes, now PlayStation Now is no longer available as a stand-alone service. Here are the three PlayStation Plus tiers that will be available later:
PlayStation Plus Essential
Basically, this tier is the same as the current PlayStation Plus. The monthly rate is USD 9.99. Subscribers can get access to online multiplayer, two free games that can be downloaded each month, discounted games, and cloud storage.
PlayStation Plus Extra
In this tier, customers will get everything in the Essential tier, plus 400 PS4 or PS5 games that can be downloaded and played. The rate? USD 14.99 per month .
PlayStation Plus Deluxe
You can get all the benefits of Essential and Extra, plus 340 old-school games, including those from PS3, PS, PS2, and PS4 that can be played streaming. Customers can also sample new games for a certain amount of time. The rate is USD 17.99 per month .
For countries where cloud streaming services are not available, Sony will adjust the rates so that they are cheaper. In the information we received, Sony also confirmed that this subscription rate will be different for each country, and they have not determined the tariff set in Indonesia.
At first glance, this subscription service is indeed similar to Xbox Game Pass, especially on the PlayStation Plus Extra tier. But there is one thing that Xbox still "won", namely the availability of Sony's first-party games on the first day when the game was released.
This has actually been confirmed by PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan. According to Ryan, it doesn't make sense for Sony's flagship game to be available from the start on this subscription service.
"The level of investment we needed in our game studio was out of the question, and we think the impact on game quality is something gamers don't want," Ryan explained.
"This publication model doesn't make any sense at all. But things can change quickly in this industry," he concluded.