Sony has announced that it is revamping its PlayStation Plus service later in 2022, merging it and PS Now into a single, three-tiered service. Although the majority of the changes are aimed at the company’s console user base, PS Now remains the only official route of playing quite a few of the company’s console exclusives on PC, via cloud streaming.
Starting with June 2022, when the changes will be implemented using a phased regional approach, PS Now will no longer be available as a separate subscription. Instead, those seeking to play console and third-party PlayStation exclusives on PC will have to opt into the PlayStation Plus Premium Tier.
PlayStation Plus on PC
To get a better sense of where it’s situated in the grand scheme of things, here’s how the service’s three new tiers look:
PlayStation Plus Essential
Benefits:
- Provides the same benefits that PlayStation Plus members are getting today, such as:
- Two monthly downloadable games
- Exclusive discounts
- Cloud storage for saved games
- Online multiplayer access
- There are no changes for existing PlayStation Plus members in this tier.
Price for PlayStation Plus Essential remains the same as the current price for PlayStation Plus.
- United States
- $9.99 monthly / $24.99 quarterly / $59.99 yearly
- Europe
- €8.99 monthly / €24.99 quarterly / €59.99 yearly
- United Kingdom
- £6.99 monthly / £19.99 quarterly / £49.99 yearly
- Japan
- ¥850 monthly / ¥2,150 quarterly / ¥5,143 yearly
PlayStation Plus Extra
Benefits:
- Provides all the benefits from the Essential tier
- Adds a catalog of up to 400 of the most enjoyable PS4 and PS5 games – including blockbuster hits from our PlayStation Studios catalog and third-party partners. Games in the Extra tier are downloadable for play.
Price:
- United States
- $14.99 monthly / $39.99 quarterly / $99.99 yearly
- Europe
- €13.99 monthly / €39.99 quarterly / €99.99 yearly
- United Kingdom
- £10.99 monthly / £31.99 quarterly / £83.99 yearly
- Japan
- ¥1,300 monthly / ¥3,600 quarterly / ¥8,600 yearly
PlayStation Plus Premium
Benefits:
- Provides all the benefits from Essential and Extra tiers
- Adds up to 340 additional games, including:
- PS3 games available via cloud streaming
- A catalog of beloved classic games available in both streaming and download options from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations
- Offers cloud streaming access for original PlayStation, PS2, PSP and PS4 games offered in the Extra and Premium tiers in markets where PlayStation Now is currently available. Customers can stream games using PS4 and PS5 consoles, and PC.
- Time-limited game trials will also be offered in this tier, so customers can try select games before they buy.
Price:
- United States
- $17.99 monthly / $49.99 quarterly / $119.99 yearly
- Europe
- €16.99 monthly / €49.99 quarterly / €119.99 yearly
- United Kingdom
- £13.49 monthly / £39.99 quarterly / £99.99 yearly
- Japan
- ¥1,550 – monthly / ¥4,300 – quarterly / ¥10,250 yearly
As you can see, the PlayStation Plus Premium Tier is the only one that will let you stream games from a variety of PlayStation console generations.
Even with PS4 exclusives slowly making their way to PC, the list of available games could be fairly sizeable, making the service rather appealing even at its higher cost, especially if you’re also looking to easily catch up on older games.
Currently, subscribing to PS Now sets you back $9.99/€9.99 for a monthly subscription while its yearly option asks for $59.99/€59.99.
Sony has confirmed that existing “PlayStation Now customers will migrate over to PlayStation Plus Premium with no increase to their current subscription fees at launch.”
There’s no word on how the full list of available games will look at launch. The nature of subscription services sees games coming and going, but it’s possible that quite a few of the existing PS Now titles will make the transition.
PlayStation Plus on PC will grant access both to games developed by first-party and third-party studios, including Death Stranding, God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11, and Returnal.
The revamped service will not replicate Microsoft’s approach with Xbox Game Pass’ as far as new first-party games go, so they won’t be available on it at launch.
PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan confirmed this in an interview with GamesIndustry.biz, noting that doing so would mean that the “level of investment that we need to make in our studios would not be possible, and we think the knock-on effect on the quality of the games that we make would not be something that gamers want.”
To recap, getting Playstation Plus on PC after its revamp goes live starting with June 2022 will be more expensive than subscribing to PS Now currently is.
The only way to pay less for PlayStation Plus Premium is to already be subscribed to PS Now as the revamp happens, which means that you’ll have access to the service’s most expensive tier (and the ability to stream its games on PC) at the same price of $9.99/€9.99 per month.
It’s also worth keeping in mind that you’ll likely still need a PlayStation controller to access those games and, as is the case with any cloud streaming service, a good internet connection is a must to ensure you get as smooth an experience as possible.
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