PlayStation Announces an “All-New Playstation Plus” with Three Tiers, and Backwards Compatibility (Kind Of)

After three months of talk surrounding a new PlayStation subscription service codenamed “Spartacus”, PlayStation has revealed an “all-new PlayStation Plus” that will see PlayStation Now and PlayStation Plus combine into one subscription service with three tiers to choose from and up to 700 games (including games from PlayStation’s past) included at the highest tier. This new incarnation of PlayStation Plus will open for some markets in June and will be available on a roll-out bases region-by-region.

The new tiers of the service are PlayStation Plus Essential, PlayStation Plus Extra, and PlayStation Plus Premium. When the service launches, PlayStation Now will no longer be available as a standalone service, with currently existing subscribers being migrated to the PlayStation Plus Premium tier, with no change to what current subscribers are paying at launch.

PlayStation Plus Premium members will be offering more than 700 games for streaming or download (including streaming via PC). The library will be “regularly refreshed” for those who want everything the new service has to offer. PS3 games will only be available through cloud streaming, while PlayStation, PlayStation 2, and PSP games will offer download or streaming options.

No PlayStation Studios games will be offered the day they launch, but subscribers will have access to Death Stranding, God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Returnal as well as the WB Interactive title Mortal Kombat 11 when the service launches.

The new service will roll out regionally, beginning in “several markets in Asia”, then North America, Europe, and wherever else PlayStation Plus is currently being offered in June. By the “first half of 2022”, PlayStation is aiming to have the service launched in “most PlayStation Network territories”, with plans to expand in additional markets via could streaming, but those details will be provided “at a later date”.

Here are all the details.

PlayStation Plus Essential

Essential is the same PlayStation Plus service that currently exists, with no changes to the current pricing. It includes two monthly downloadable games, discounts, saved game cloud storage, and access to online multiplayer for most games.

PlayStation Plus Extra

The Extra tier includes all Essential benefits, and adds a catalog of around 400 PS4 and PS5 games that can be downloaded at any time while you're a member. It includes first-party and third-party games, but no new exclusives will launch into the service.

In the US, it will cost $14.99 monthly / $39.99 quarterly / $99.99 yearly, and in the UK, it will cost £10.99 monthly / £31.99 quarterly / £83.99 yearly. No Australian prices have been announced at the time of writing.

PlayStation Plus Premium

Premium includes all the Essential and Extra benefits, and adds 340 extra games to the catalog, including PS1, PS2 and PSP games for streaming and download. PS3 games will also be available, but only to stream. Streaming can be carried out on PS4, PS5, and PC. Premium members will also receive time-limited trials of some games.

In the US, it will cost $17.99 monthly / $49.99 quarterly / $119.99 yearly, and in the UK, it will cost £13.49 monthly / £39.99 quarterly / £99.99 yearly.

There is also a tier called PlayStation Plus Deluxe that will be offered in “markets without cloud streaming” and will cost less than PlayStation Plus Premium and will enable all games being offered in that tier for download.

While many will inevitably compare this to Xbox Game Pass, there are important differences to note. While Xbox Game Pass offers countless amounts of games that rotate out of the service, it also offers up its exclusives (and many third-party titles) on launch day. Not only that, but Xbox Cloud Gaming is available on iOS (through a web app), Android, PC, a web browser, and through every Xbox console since the Xbox One. Xbox Game Pass also offers monthly perks like free trials to streaming services, while there are no perks to be seen here, even through PlayStation’s services like PlayStation Video.

Will you be subscribing to a new tier of PlayStation Plus, and if so, what tier? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

Until next time!

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