Essential Tier: $10 A Month $60 Per Year Extra Tier: $15 A Month $100 Per Year Premium Tier: $18 A Month $120 Per Year
In June, Sony will overhaul PS Plus to be more competitive with Microsoft’s Game Pass. The revamped subscription service will come in three tiers.
Essential is the base tier for PS Plus at $10 a month, or $60 per year. This tier is largely the same as the old PS Plus and includes:
- Two monthly downloadable games
- Online multiplayer
Current PS Plus subscribers will transition to this tier when the change happens in June.
Extra includes the benefits of the Essential tier while adding a catalog of up to 400 PS4 and PS5 games available for downloading. The catalog will include first- and third-party games including Death Stranding, God of War, Spider-Man, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11 and Returnal. This tier will cost $15 a month, or $100 per year.
Premium will have the features of both tiers and add an additional 340 classic games to cloud stream from the PlayStation 1, PS2, PS3 and PSP. Current subscribers to PS Now will see their subscriptions automatically convert to the Premium tier when the new PS Plus goes into effect. There will also be time-limited game trials available for players to try some games out before they buy.
The Premium tier will cost $18 a month/$120 per year.
Say Bye To Playstation Now Hello To Playstation Plus Essential Extra And Premium
by Kyle Orland – Mar 29, 2022 4:19 pm UTC
Tuesday morning, Sony announced plans to combine its PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now subscription services. The newly revamped, multi-tier PlayStation Plus hydra will offer multiple pricing and access options for downloadable and streaming games from across the PlayStation’s more than 25-year catalog.
Starting in June, the revamped PlayStation Plus will be broken into three overlapping tiers, with benefits and pricing as follows:
PlayStation Plus Essential$9.99/month or $59.99/year
This is a renamed version of the current PlayStation Plus, providing two monthly downloadable games, cloud saves, and basic access to online multiplayer games.
PlayStation Plus Extra$14.99/month or $99.99/year
This tier adds access to downloadable versions of “up to 400” PS4 and PS5 games. This will include some titles from Sony’s first-party PlayStation Studios but not new titles on the day of release .
PlayStation Plus Premium$17.99/month or $119.99/year
This tier offers additional downloadable access to “up to 340” games from PS1, PS2, and PSP. Premium-tier customers can also stream available games from PS1, PS2, PS3, PS4, and PSP to a PS4, PS5, or PC.
Playstation Now Vs Playstation Plus: Which Do You Need For Your Ps5
Sony offers two subscription services, PS Now and PS Plus, which provide different features to enhance the PlayStation experience.
Sony offers two subscription services that allow gamers to enjoy their PlayStation consoles: PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now. Similar to its main competitor, which offers both Xbox Live Gold and Xbox Game Pass, Sony’s services offer different features that allow subscribers to further enjoy their consoles through online play and a library of games available on demand, respectively.
However, unlike Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, which combines the benefits of both services into one monthly fee, Sony does not offer a bundle that combines their separate services. While some gamers may be fortunate enough to simultaneously subscribe to PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now, others might not actually need to pay for both.
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Playstation Gaming On Pc
Play some of the biggest and best PlayStation console exclusives like Bloodborne, The Last of Us and Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection on Windows PC, alongside hundreds of other games ready to stream on demand.
PlayStationNow subscription only available to account holders of PlayStation Network who are aged 18 and over with access to PlayStation®Store and high-speed internet .
PS Store and PS Now subject to terms of use and country and language restrictions. Service availability is not guaranteed. For PS Now on PC, minimum system requirements apply and can be found at www.playstation.com/psnow-pc-faq. PS Now games may differ from or lack some of the features that can be found in downloaded or disc-based games. Games included in PS Now are subject to change at any time. Approved payment method details required. PS Now subscription is an ongoing subscription with a recurring subscription fee which is charged every month .
Stream At Your Own Risk
The majority of titles in the Now library are only available for streaming, i.e. you cannot possibly download them. Know that streamingeven with a solid Net connection like oursis still a frustrating crapshoot.
Yes, frame rates will plummet suddenly, for no apparent reason, particularly in those early evening hours when neighborhood bandwidth is taxed. Visuals will blur unexpectedly. Lag will delay on-screen reactions by a half-second or more.
Can you still have fun? While streaming? Even with lag?You can. Just know that if you are streaming via Now, there will be issues, and frustrations, and overturned furniture, from time to time. But, yes, streamed games, though not at their best on Now, are still largely playable.
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The Fickle Realm Of Streaming Now
Sony recommends an Internet speed of 5 Mbps for Now to stream at 720p.
However, if you want to play a modern, top-tier game, then your Net connection must ideally achieve 15 Mbps minimum. For 1080p, Sony recommends download speeds of 35 MBPS , and uploads of 5 MBPS. If you dont have sweet download/upload numbers like this? And youre a hardcore gamer who appreciates super sleek, super smooth visuals? Then you will be frustrated, without question, by Nows still-evolving technical limitations.
The Games Of Plus And Now
Having started back in 2010 on the PS3, PlayStation Pus has had more time to become the established premier PlayStation subscription service. While the structure and features associated with the subscription have gradually evolved to become what they are in the present, the ability for players to download a selection of games each month has remained the biggest and most important selling point. Today these refreshes tend to happen on the first Tuesday after the calendar has rolled over, and have so far in 2021 featured the likes of Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Control: Ultimate Edition, and A Plague Tale: Innocence. It’s important to remember that these games aren’t strictly free and owned by the subscriber at any point though, as an active subscription is required to play any game that’s been redeemed through the service.
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Sony Could Be Working To Bring Proper Ps3 Game Emulation To Ps5 Its Claimed
PS Plus Premium includes the above benefits but adds up to 340 additional games including PS3 titles available via cloud streaming, and a catalogue of classic games available in both streaming and download options from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations.
Priced at $17.99/16.99/£13.49 a month, $49.99/49.99/£39.99 for three months, or $119.99/119.99/£99.99 a year, Premium will also include time-limited game trials.
$10 Per Month Or $60 Per Year
To compete with Xbox Live Gold, Sony created PS Plus in 2010 for the PlayStation 3. The subscription allowed for online multiplayer, discounts in the PSN Store, cloud saves and monthly extra games. Initially, PS Plus free games included PS3 and PSP titles. Eventually, it included Sony’s other devices such as the PS Vita, PS4 and most recently, the PS5. Extra games included with the subscription are only available while a PS Plus subscription is active. Stop paying, and you lose access to those games.
There’s an extra bonus for PS5 owners. PS Plus subscribers who have managed to get a PS5 also have access to the PS Plus Collection, a library that includes some of the best PS4 games, such as God of War, Bloodborne and Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End.
PS Plus is still needed for most online multiplayer, but it’s not required for free-to-play online games such as Fortnite, Call of Duty Warzone and Apex Legends. Microsoft recently moved free-to-play games like Fortnite out from behind the Xbox Live Gold paywall as well.
Even if you aren’t interested in online multiplayer, It’s still a subscription that can pay for itself multiple times over with the monthly bonus games. In 2021 alone, PS Plus subscribers received Control, Final Fantasy VII Remake, Battlefield V and Shadow of the Tomb Raider.
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Xbox Game Pass Vs Ps Now Games
Xbox Game Pass rocketed in popularity in 2019 with some serious triple-A scalps. Highly anticipated games like The Outer Worlds launched day one on the platform, along with Microsoft first-party exclusives like Gears 5. Microsoft is committed to bringing its first-party exclusives to the service on launch so expect to see upcoming next-gen exclusives like Halo: Infinite and Fable on the service in the future.
There are usually around 200 Game Pass titles available at once – and a smaller 150-strong collection on Game Pass for PC – with games coming and going every month and offering a nice mix of Xbox One and Xbox 360. Keep an eye on your console’s Game Pass tab to see which games are leaving. You can also buy and keep Game Pass games for a 20% reduction and a 10% discount for associated DLC.
Microsoft has also bolstered its offering on Game Pass and made it even more competitive by partnering with EA Games and acquiring Bethesda. Game Pass Ultimate subscribers on console have been granted EA Play access for no additional charge, too, with PC support soon to follow. This means that subscribers now have access to over 60 EA games in addition to what’s already on Game Pass and some of these titles will be playable on Android via Project xCloud. Subscribers also get access to EA Play’s exclusive in-game challenges, rewards, and content, as well as discounts on EA digital purchases and access to game trials.
What Is Playstation Now And Is It Worth It
Cameron Summerson
Cameron Summerson is ex-Editor-in-Chief of Review Geek and served as an Editorial Advisor for How-To Geek and LifeSavvy. He covered technology for a decade and wrote over 4,000 articles and hundreds of product reviews in that time. Hes been published in print magazines and quoted as a smartphone expert in the New York Times. Read more…
The nostalgia of playing old school PlayStation games is awesome for a lot of us, but without having every generation of console, it can be difficult to get in on some of the best titles of yesterday. PlayStation Now, Sonys online game streaming service, is the solution to that quandary. But man, is it really worth coughing up an Andrew Jackson every month just to play classic titles?
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Ps Plus Is More Useful But Ps Now Has More Games
Despite both being game subscription services provided by Sony, PS Plus and PS Now fill different needs.
PS Plus is a borderline necessity for a lot of players, walling off online play to all who dont buy it. The monthly games you can claim and PS Plus Collection are bonuses to sweeten to deal rather than the primary focus. Not an insane value if youre just looking for a ton of games to play without buying them individually, but non-optional if you want to play online.
On the other hand, PS Now is all about the games, and it has a lot to justify its price. Even if not all the games are winners, enough are to make it worth it . Streaming can be a downside for many that have weaker internet connections, not to mention it makes fast-paced games extremely difficult to play, but it still has some advantages like not needing to download games.
Either way, its the closest thing to a game subscription service Sony currently has, so if thats what youre after, its your only optionfor now anyway.
So Which Service Should You Choose
If you have the money to spend on both services, theyre both worth it. Both PS Plus and PS Now offer amazing perks so youll easily get your moneys worth throughout the year.
If you only have enough money to spend on one subscription service, heres what itll come down to: Do you want to play online multiplayer games with your friends or others around the world? Then purchase a PS Plus subscription. Sure, you get exclusive perks with a PS Plus subscription, but the real deciding factors are the free games and being able to play online.
Or would you rather have access to a large library of games that you can stream on your console or your PC? In that case, youll want to purchase a PS Now subscription. Having access to over 800 great games, with new games being added all the time, youll never run out of games to play.
Its also worth pointing out that, according to a recent rumor, Sony is working on merging the two services. The new service would allegedly maintain the Playstation Plus branding while phasing out PS Now, and there would likely be a price tier that comes with PS Now benefits. The service is rumored to be released this Spring.
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Playstation Now May Lineup Adds 3 More Games Ahead Of The Big Ps Plus Merger
The PlayStation Now May 2022 games lineup includes Soul Calibur 6, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4, and Blasphemous the last three games to come to PlayStation Now as we know it ahead of its merger with PlayStation Plus.
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 is the latest arena fighting game based on the Naruto franchise, and Soul Calibur 6, the latest mainline installment in one of the oldest arena fighting game franchises, is every bit as over-the-top and effervescently anime. Blasphemous, a gorgeously Gothic 2D action platformer, is the odd one out in this month’s games, but if anything it’s even more brutal than the fighting games accompanying it.
All three of these games will arrive tomorrow, May 3, for existing PlayStation Now subscribers. Beginning in June, PlayStation Now will be folded into the revamped PlayStation Plus Premium but continue to offer download and streaming access to a curated library of games.
Existing subscribers with pre-paid subscription time will retain their stacked membership, and they’ll also have access to the same services after PlayStation Now and PlayStation Plus are combined. It’s no surprise, then, that Sony has deactivated pre-paid PlayStation Plus cards and removed annual PlayStation Now subscriptions to prevent users from building up massive subscriptions before the prices change, though you can still get access on a monthly basis.
The Elephant In The Room
Before we can get to why PS Now is better than you might think, I do have to acknowledge the faults. Theres one thing that critics point to, and with good reason, as to why PS Now isnt all that great. PS3 games can only be streamed. Its a multilayered issue. First, this is a problem with all game streaming services. Its always going to be dependent on your individual internet connection based on whats available and where you live. Thats why I didnt sign up for PS Now when it only offered streaming. I tested it out, felt too much delay on my inputs, and didnt sign up.
Would it be possible to ever make PS3 games downloadable? I have no idea, but it doesnt seem like it will happen even if it could at this point in time. That being said, I will fully admit that if your primary reason for looking into PS Now is to only play PS3 titles, use the trial first to see how streaming works for you. I have moved since I first tested it, and with my new internet, which is only about 100Mbps down, by the way, most games actually play just fine. Am I playing fighting games or twitch shooters online? No, of course not, but platformers, third-person shooters, and especially JRGPs are either good enough or great.
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What’s The Difference Between Playstation Plus And Playstation Now
Sony’s PlayStation platform extends beyond the console itself, encompassing multiple services, including PlayStation Now and PlayStation Plus . Both of these services are optional and, because of the naming structure, it can be easy to mix them up. In reality, both are very different from each other, and there’s an easy way to quickly tell them apart.
Ps Plus Ps Now Merged Service Revealed Goes Live In June
After months of speculation and rumours, Sony has officially unveiled its plans for merging its PlayStation Plus and PS Now services under one roof. This new subscription service will retain the PS Plus branding but will be broken down into three tiers. Launching in June, we’ll have PS Plus Essential, PS Plus Extra, and PS Plus Premium. We’ve broken down all three tiers, detailing what each one will give you.
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Playstation Plus Vs Playstation Now Location Availability
PlayStation Plus is currently available in 73 different countries or regions around the world. Occasionally, the content will differ between different regions, but for the most part, its the same. You can check out the full list of regions PS Plus is available in to see if your area is listed.
PlayStation Now, on the other hand, is only available in 19 different countries. If you dont live in one of the following countries, you, unfortunately, wont have access to PS Now.
- Austria