Sony’s recent Corporate Strategy Meeting revealed that the company’s PlayStation Network (PSN) is raking in revenue thanks to its over 100 million active users. This latest development comes on the heels of the recently announced revamp to the PlayStation Plus subscription. The revamp will feature three new tiers, instead of the usual ones, that will allow the gaming company to offer more benefits and features to its subscribers. This revamp will also strengthen further the PSN and provide added benefits to its millions of active users.
PlayStation Network Achievement
The PSN has currently achieved $14 billion in sales per year. It’s a huge increase from the $6.27 billion it generated in 2021. The eye-popping number is greatly due to the more than 100 million active users that the company currently has. The PSN is the digital media entertainment service of Sony Interactive Entertainment. It began as an online gaming service for the PlayStation console but the company soon expanded it to include content for smartphones, tablets, Blu-ray players, and high-definition televisions. Therefore, people who have accounts can store games and other content.
Creating an account with PSN will also give you access to the company’s subscription services, the PlayStation Store, and the PlayStation Plus. This recent achievement will be boosted even further once the revamped PlayStation Plus launches in June.
The New PlayStation Plus
PlayStation Plus will get a revamp and the new subscription service will be launched on June 13, 2022, in the U.S. The revamped services will feature new benefits, including expansion to three tiers. The current service has just one tier and the company plans to retain that. For the new subscription service, two more tiers are added to provide more features to subscribers. Let’s discuss further the new tiers that you can expect.
The Three PlayStation Plus Tiers Explained
The current subscription service features the PS Plus Essential and subscribers can just continue their subscription here once the new service is launched. The two new tiers introduced are PS Plus Extra and PS Plus Premium.
PS Plus Essential
The PS Plus Essential is just a rebranding of the current PS Plus. The features and benefits that this tier offers are the same as the one being offered currently. So if you keep this subscription, you’ll still get one PS5 game and two PS4 games each month. You will still also get access to the online multiplayer, exclusive discounts, and cloud storage. In terms of subscription prices, this tier will retain the current prices.
The monthly subscription is still $9.99. If you want to pay less, you can opt for the quarterly subscription at $24.99 or the yearly subscription at $59.99.
PS Plus Extra
If you’re looking for more features and benefits, then you can give the PS Plus Extra a try. This tier contains all of the features of the PS Plus Essential and is added to the features of the PS Now. The PS Now is the company’s subscription service that offers cloud gaming for PS4 games that can be played on PS4 and PS5. The bonus here is that this subscription will now include PS5 titles. The total number of PS4 and PS5 games available will be up to 400 titles and all of them are downloadable.
Once the new subscription service launches, it will include popular titles like Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11, and many more. In terms of subscription, the PS Plus Extra will cost more as its monthly subscription is $14.99. If you opt for the quarterly, you’ll only pay $39.99 per quarter while the annual subscription will only cost you $99.99.
PS Plus Premium
The tier with the most features and benefits available in the PS Plus Premium. This tier will offer all of the benefits that PS Plus Essential and PS Plus Extra offer. The added benefit here is that you can now stream PS3 games on your console. Keep in mind that the streaming option is only available and you can’t download it. However, another bonus is that this tier also extends to PS1, PS2, and PSP titles. This gives you a total of 740 titles (for all PS games) that you can stream and download (minus the PS3 titles).
An added feature here is that PS1 and PS2 titles will also include the save state and rewind function. Furthermore, expect improved resolutions and frame rate per second (FPS). Lastly, Sony will also provide PS Plus Premium subscribers with access to newer titles at time-limited game trials. It’s a great bonus since it allows you to test out new game titles, even before they become available.
Since this is the premium option, the subscription price is also a premium. The monthly subscription is $17.99. If you prefer to save some money, you can go for the quarterly subscription at $49.99 per quarter or the yearly subscription at $119.99. If you happen to live in the region without access to PS3 streaming, the premium version will be PS Plus Deluxe. The feature is the same, except it doesn’t have the PS3 streaming available. Prices are also lower than PS Premium Plus, but they will likely be revealed during launch.
How PlayStation Plus will Benefit PSN
The latest tiers will provide subscribers with more features and benefits, as well as access to PlayStation titles. It includes classic titles from the original console up to PS3. These added features and benefits will make the company’s PSN account more enticing for its user, further keeping their current users active and likely attracting new users as well. Though there’s no telling how the new PS Plus will affect PSN, the added features are too enticing not to have an impact.
So that’s it for the new PlayStation Plus tiers. If you want to know more news and updates, make sure to keep a lookout here in PlayPC.
