Don't Fall for PlayStation Plus

PlayStation Plus shocked attendees when it was formally announced at Sony's E3 conference on Tuesday. Though PlayStation Network will continue to offer online gameplay and PlayStation Store access for free, Sony is offering its userbase a chance to pay a little more upfront in order to save more in the long run. At least that's what Sony would like you to think.

[ThatCanadianGuy]

God forbid Sony should try to make some extra cash by giving us the OPTION to have exclusive features.

I'm getting just for the guaranteed beta invites.Everything else is a nice bonus.

[sixaxis]

dont whine, the current situation is exactly as it is, PSN is free!, so no money, no upgrades, yes in june (when premium launches), things may change, but ya think it will change this year?hell no! maybe we hear something in nexts years GDC.

[voice_of_ reason]

You live a sad, lonely life, and I am truly for sorry that your existence on earth revolves around trolling n4g...

[GreenRingOfLife]

im definitely getting it

if it is anything like Xbox Live it will be totally worth it

im pumped

edit: 1.1.1 is an imposter

[maddhatter123]

greenringoflife and greenringsoflife really? -_-

[BWS1982]

now we have GROL with a schism in his personality, they're trying to call each other out. The narcissism is so much it boiled over and necessitated a new persona.

That said...I don't understand the argument, the author sounds like a butthurt fanboy, insisting all of this is Sony's obligation to the current free structure. NOTHING'S CHANGING WITH THAT STRUCTURE, it's still free and as convenient as before. Sure, you can argue the point IS nothing's changing and instead the changes go to premium, paying customers, but, if you want that stuff that bad, fork over the dough. If not, stop whining about it and be grateful that Sony still lets gamers have all they already had for the whopping bargain of ZERO dollars. There are no indications at all right now that Sony has abandoned the core base who sticks with the free PSN, they still have the better deal with online gaming.

The author is reaching, sorry.

[ReservoirDog316]

Something I wonder though is what happens to game sharing if your account has this playstation plus attached to it? Can you redownload the games they give you to your other PS3 or is it completely linked to that console? And if not the free ones they give, what about the stuff they give a discount for that you buy?

It's actually a serious question to those who have 2 PS3s. And I haven't heard anyone else ask it before me.

[Theonik]

Haha, now there is 2 of them. GreenRingofLife and GreenRingsoflife.
Notice the S.

[deadpoole]

you get to try game for one hour before you buy it ... total worth it ... I dont have to pay lovefilm.com pesky 10.00 quids every month. This is a effing awesome deal ... plus you are gettin LBP as well ... I say one year deal for Psn+ is already justified for the amount of content they are offering.

[Dr-ZOOM]

For real there's two of them now I'm confused :(

[shqype]

Except PS+ is NOTHING like Xbox Live!

The Playstation Network is more akin to Xbox Live, the main difference being that the PSN is FREE and XBL costs $50 a year. Their primary function is to allow gamers to play games online, and provide the other basic features we've come to expect in an online service.

PS+ is very different. In fact, the only similarity between PS+ and XBL is the cost of $50 a year.

What makes PS+ different is that it is almost like a customer rewards program of a sort. Being a subscriber nets you exclusive benefits and discounts on the PS Store. Examples include Qore access, early invitations to game betas and game demos, the full-hour demos that give you the option of purchasing the game and keeping any progress/unlocked trophies, discounts on things you purchase from the PS Store, and access to 4 new games every month. In some ways, it is like having a BJs Wholesale Club membership: yea, you may pay $100 each year to remain a member, but the exclusive club discounts make it worth your while.

PS+ gives value because of the content that it provides at a really low cost. Many people aren't happy that the four free games they receive every month are only theirs while they subscribe. Have those people ever rented any videogames? A Blockbuster rental may run you $7.99 each, and you get only 5 days to play the game. A GameFly rental costs you roughly $22 a month to have 2 games out at a time. PS+ costs you $50 a year to "rent" 48 different games ... except these rentals don't last for a few days, but the whole duration of your subscription: maybe one year, maybe five years.

So while the games they allow you to download are only accessible while you subscribe, the content you buy from the PS Store using the PS+ discounts is yours to keep. I'm unsure how big the discount will be, but I'm confident that it will pay for itself for a moderate PSN purchaser. Add in everything else that PS+ offers, and you've saved a lot of money.

Cross Game Chat is not a feature of PS+. It will be incorporated in a firmware update coming soon, as part of the original PSN service. PS+ is a way to give gamers more value for their money, and to have them more easily exposed to Playstation's content, and on the consoles, there's nothing else like it.

[ThatCanadianGuy]

Did i say the basic PSN was going to change? Perhaps i should space out the letters to make it stand out even more, it's a..

O-P-T-I-O-N.

[UnSelf]

how can u fall for it?

its totally optional (facepalm)

[Rainstorm81]

Cant wait to see what partners will be added for PSN+.....Best thing about it is if you are unsure ,dont get it, and enjoy PSN as you have been.

[vhero]

Or try the 3 month trial! I mean if your not sure at least try it there is nothing to lose and you get 3 months worth of games to play for free and get to keep all the themes and avatars you download.

[Wanyal]

Why does everyone assume you get a 3 month free trial? You don't Sony said that if you buy a year of Playstation Plus, you 3 months extra for free. It's not a trial at all.

Image was taken from http://blog.us.playstation....

[lordgodalming]

Tretton made it sound like there would be a general 3-month free trial for everyone, but as you pointed out, the PS Blog clearly shows you have to buy a year to get the free 3 months EXTRA. I'm confused.

[Omega6]

@GreenRingsOfLife

Did your dumbass really just say that? Does your butthurt so much that your brain is feeling the pain too? Next time, think before you type.

[badz149]

now we have Omega6 instead of 4!

[zireno]

I'm going to give it a shot and sign up for 1 year when it launches, if I don't like what I'm getting I simply won't renew my subscription and continue to play online for free :)

[Elwenil]

I'll give it a shot. I believe they said the first 3 months would be free, so that's a bit of a bonus. Hell at $18 for 3 months it's probably worth that just to give it a shot. If you find it's not a good value for how often and what you play or that the perks don't deliver as promised, then bump back down to the free service everyone has right now. No issues, no missing features, just the same great PSN we have enjoyed for years now. If you do like the added stuff, then it's probably worth it to support it. Those that subscribe to Core will note that the Core subscription is included so if you look at it that way, they are only paying $25 more for the PSN+ service and everything extra it gives you. Like I said, I'll give it a try just to check it out, if it sucks or I don't take advantage of the extras to justify it, I'll drop it when it runs out and go back to free. It's dirt simple and it amazes me how people try to spin it like it's some sort of cloud of doom on the horizon.

[ALFAxD_CENTAURO]

I've heard Sony will give a free PS+ to test for a while. Or something like that.

[Chicago8506]

not before Sony gives u 3 months Free...

Ya gotta love them even more for that...
Game on!

[zireno]

Yeah I know what you mean about the free 3 months, but I decided to try it for a year because 3 months is not that much time to see if they actually are telling the truth about adding more stuff and features, so I see it as trying the new service for 15 months (3 free months and 1 year after the free period) at 50 bucks, so it's actually a pretty sweet deal and like you guys and I think, if the new service fail to impress we can just go back to the free service and continue to enjoy what's really important which is free online gaming.

[JL]

LOL Did anybody else catch this: The reason this writer says not to "fall for it" pretty much for every feature is because he'd rather have it for free. So it's not that he doesn't like the features, just he'd rather have them for free instead of having them be optional perks. That's hardly a reason to make it out like we're getting duped or something.

I think I may try it out as well. The free games alone seems to be worth the price. Though I may wait for a few months just to see what kind of games they will be offering for free.

[tplarkin7]

Everything they are offering is already free, except for background downloads. Paying $50 a year for something that is free on Xbox Live Silver. Ok, you get some PSN games, and Wipeout. But, you can buy those right now for much less than $50! And, those games are only playable for the duration of the "subscription"!

Who knew that Home's address was located in Rip Off City?

[Pedobear Rocks]

Um...you get a PSN game, a PS1 game and 2 minis every month you are subscribed and you keep them while you have your sub (think of them as rentals)...so after 12 months you'll have 12 PSN, 12 PS1 and 24 minis that you can play (the PS1 and minis on your PSP too) for a total of $50.

Try harder.

[Heisenberg]

This article is absolute nonsense. "Don't fall for it, why? Because we should get it all for free!"
An optional subscription to a service that gives you free games, extra features, early or exclusive access to betas (which ARE sought after, people pay and preorder early or copies or special editions etc. for access to betas, why he thinks we should all just have these for free all of a sudden is beyond stupid.) and many other features seems more than worth the price when compared to the alternatives, and if you're not into the free content, you still have a completely free, fully functional online experience with many of it's own perks already.

[Dark_king]

You forgot the hour trial of full games and must important of all the hundreds of dollars you will save because of the discount prices.

[mastiffchild]

Geez tplarkin! Try a bit harder and one day you might fall over an argument with a little meat on it's bones rather than the straw skeleton you asked us to take seriously here.

You talk of rip off city but there's no gun at anyone's head unlike with Live where I simply cannot play AT ALL unless I pay up. Anyone who doesn't wish to partake can just ignore and continue getting their PSN online gaming gratis-where's the con? Seriously, where?

If you think of it as a rental service with added bonuses then you might well think it's worth it's price too. how many minis or PSN games are we likely to be that bothered about keeping forever anyway? not many so even if you do end your sub you aren't badly off considering the savings you can make on extra purchases, more chance of entry into betas(and though folk are saying you shouldn't be paying to play test I think that is a moot point when both Activision and Bethesda regularly release full games without enough testing meaning we pay FULL RETAIL to test theirs for them!)and a host of othetr cool options.

There's no real comparison to Live whatsoever as the core appeal of the two services(paid for) is totally different. With MS you're paying to play online first and foremost but that never comes into it with PSN+ as that remains free for ebveryone. If anyone is holding a gun to our heads it's MS as people are WAY,WAY more likely to feel pressured into paying for a year if they cannot play online without doing so.

Where PSN+ is a bit daft is offering the game trials only on that service=-surey their partners would want as many gamers as possible doing this, no? Demos are terribly hit and miss(Sonic Unleashed's demo made you think the game was AL the good bits with NO Werehog while VC's made a great game seem boring as hell)and the trial would benefit devs and pubs way more than any demo ever could and I fail to see the wisdom in making it subscription based. Otherwise it's fair enough-the background updates would be nice for everyone to have but Sony need SOMETHING to tempt people and as it stands there's simply nothing to whine about-just don't subscribe if it doesn't look like suiting you as you'll still see and play any game you like with who you like playing on line anyway.

How is there ANY kind of con going on?

[TheDeadMetalhead]

Don't you get one free game a month with it?

So let's say you pay $50 for a year subscription. You get one free game a month from a choice of about 4 PSN/PS1 games (at least I think that's how it works: every single article I read says something different). These PSN games can be anywhere from $5-...Let's say $20, because I seriously doubt Sony's going to give out Agarest War for free. Multiply that and you have anywhere between $60-$240 worth of free games as long as you stay subscribed.

Looks like PSN+ just payed for itself. And that's not even taking into account the free DLC and discounts off of some PSN games.

[shqype]

No, you get FOUR free games a month: 1 PSN game, 2 PS Minis, and 1 PS Classic. That is 48 games a year, for a $50 subscription. True, you only get to play those games while you are a member, but with all the great games out, and all the great content that is coming out, why wouldn't you be a member for the life of your PS3? If you look at it that way, those games will never expire.

Not to mention the discounts you get on the PS Store will allow you to purchase (and own) games you want for less money. See my post above for a better run down :)

[jack_burt0n]

All its doing wrong is not giving me a free movie rental a week, or 2 :P that would be nice

[edhe]

You know that's a very good point - especially if they want to branch their network across all of their devices.

Imagine having a sony networked tv in another and benefitting from streamed content from the network for free because you've bought this sub.

[tplarkin7]

Sony should have just kept the free service "as-is" until next gen. Or, revamp PSN and compete with Xbox Live Gold at the same level.

[zireno]

what are you talking about?! Sony should have just kept the free service "as-is" ??! THEY ARE. What they are doing is giving you the o-p-t-i-o-n to get a bit more and if you don't like it you can go back to the free service which will remain the same, do some research.

[God_Of_Epicness]

Guys, I have a PS3 and it has 2 accounts. So what if i buy the PSN plus on 1 account? I mean does the other also get the feature? Cos it is an account from a diff. region. I'm just wondering...but anyway, I'll still subscribe regardless.

[sbizarre]

If you have 2 accounts and use the one ps3.. when you DL things on one account it is saved to your ps3 which is accessible from multiple accounts. Only problem is you will have to use the one account all the time when you want to DL.

[ravinash]

What about the people in Europe?
If we're paying a similar amount too the US/Japan for this service, are we going to get the same beta testing invites, games and demos?

Europe has always been behind with the content with things either being late or never appearing. Thats why I set up a US account.
I am tempted by this deal, but if I'm paying for it I want access to EVERYTHING.

[Red-Dead-Roar]

qore betas worked for europeans at least...

[shqype]

You do know that Playstation Move is releasing September 15 in Europe, and September 19 in the US, right?

Anyway, the reason for delays in Europe is usually a result of a) localization issues, and b) getting content approved. There are different laws that must be adhered to, so it usually takes longer.

[darkdoom3000]

I just hope they dont add features that would otherwise be added in firmware updates. Just give out free games and whatnot. 1 PS3 game, 2 minis, 1 PS1 game each month.

[Syronicus]

The primary purpose of the psn is still free adding value to every game purchased for the ps3 so any of this extra content is just that, extra. Heck, at least Sony is not greedy enough to charge for gaming online.

[sikbeta]

Totally nonsense article, they don't even know all the Features Sony can implement in PS+

"The full features of PlayStation Plus, which will vary region by region:

* Full game trial- Members will have access to full versions of designated PS3® and PlayStation Network titles including PS one® Archives (PS one® Classics). The titles on offer will be available for download on PlayStation Store for a stated period and change every month. Members will be able to play the full version of the game for a designated period and even after the trial period expires, users will be able to continue playing the game by purchasing the game on-line.
* Games - Member will be able to play the full version of designated PS3 downloadable and PlayStation Network titles including PS one Archives (PS one Classics) and minis with no limit of time as long as membership is effective. These games will become available exclusively for PlayStation Plus members at no extra cost.
* Special content - Content such as avatars and custom themes many of which are exclusive will become available for PlayStation Plus members at no extra cost.
* Discounts - Members will have access to exclusive discounts on designated PS3 and PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) titles. Titles will vary every month on PlayStation Store.
* Early access - Members will have early access to designated new game beta trials, game demos and video content prior to public distribution.
* Automatic content downloads and updates - PS3 will automatically download and install designated game demos and game updates and also download the system software update data. PS3 will automatically start up at a designated time to download content and will turn off after the download has completed."

And JT said they are going to put more features into it, PS+ really worth the money you will pay ....

[Tomdc]

i wanna know how it works exactly. I know if I stop paying for subscription I can no longer play the games the service offered me. Completely fair, but what if I stop and start does each new start whipe the slate clean in terms of what Games i can have access to?

[GMWPS3]

that someone could even think to write such an article.

Just to put it straight...the normal PSN we all know and love is still there in all its glory! This is a new option as in shall I have the standard 17inch wheels or pay a bit more and go for the 18's. Either way you'll be rolling.

Sony have only given us all the option for a paying service which can save some people a lot of money (those who want tons of PSN games etc) as well as some special features. Remember this is still an option. You can choose between Free PSN (still the same) and paying PSN (PSN plus) all you have to do is decide which one you want.

No one is forcing you to do anything and they are not taking anything away from you. Remember it is an OPTION.

[Silly gameAr]

To late.

[RememberThe357]

Yeah, and he claims Sony is being unreasonable...

[Nike]

"Wah."

[CSGrey-Fox]

He makes it sound like guaranteed early beta access is a bad thing, yet I've gone and pre-ordered Medal of Honor in order to play the beta in the first place. In the end, I'm hoping that I'll end up really enjoying it and will still buy it. However, I still don't think I'd pay $50 to do so, although I can imagine that some people would, so everyone's happy I s'pose.

I'm just glad they aren't charging me to play my games online :)

[JL]

LOL Exactly. Just read your post Remember after I posted mine above. That's EXACTLY what I got from this "article". His entire basis is that he wants them for free, so we shouldn't pay for them. lol great logic /s

[KILLERAPP]

We will have PSN+ for three whole months for free then we can all decide if it is worth it or not, those that like it will pay up those that don’t won’t no one will force you to pay and besides online play will remind free unlike some other service…

[ATLRoAcH]

There isn't going to be a three month trail. I thought that to when it was announced. Instead you get three months free when you buy a one year subscription so you get 15 months.

[KILLERAPP]

That sucks then, stupid move then they should have gave us a free trail…

[shqype]

That is being silly.

Does Blockbuster give you a "trial" on a PS3 game rental? Does BJ's Wholesale / Sam's Club give you a "trial" on their membership discounts to evaluate the service? No.

You need to think about if this service will work for you or not. Do you like to play PS1 games? PSN games? PS Minis? If so, you get access to 48 such games a year with your subscription. 48 games for $50 is worth the price itself. Then, you get the other features PS+ gives, such as discounts on the Playstation Store (which may also make it worthwhile depending on the discount and how often you purchase content). The early access to betas, full-hour demos, and automatic installs are just icing on the cake. If you are interested in Qore, that's roughly half the price of the full year PS+ subscription, so it is especially worth your while.

[justGAMES]

What do you do with DLC you downloaded 2 years ago?? You don't use it anymore so why pay for it when you can get it for free with the PLUS. Plus you get betas, bonuses and what not.

[BiggCMan]

DONT FALL FOR SKITTLES!

[AbyssGravelord]

RAWR!

[Calm Down Sunshine]

Too late... i'm in love ;_;

[TheDeadMetalhead]

Don't worry. I already have a real cat.

[Viper7]

As "somewhat" regular customer in psn usualy a thing or 2 every other month or so . I find this offer pretty tempting.
1 Psn game, 2 minis and 1 classic sounds pretty good, even if I don't get to choose the game. Beta access privileges also sound quite tempting.

Not to mention that I also have a psp in my possession which I would love to use for playing some classics and minis.

[BannedForNineYears]

Don't fall for xbox Live......
You have to pay......TO PLAY ONLINE!!! WTF/!?!??!?!1

[The_Firestarter]

That's easily the BIGGEST flaw I see with Live. Pay to play online = instant fail

[Action GO FIGURE]

Would have gotten a 360 if that wasn't the case.

[The_Firestarter]

same here

[BaSeBaLlKiD721]

They need to do it like Xbox Live. What I mean by this is when a new PS3 owner signs up for PSN, he/she should get 1 month free of PSN+. That will be a good way for Sony to showcase PSN+ for newcomers who most likely will have no idea what PSN+ is.

I'll get PSN+ because I need some more games for my PSPgo, beta access and background patching is enough for me to shell out the $50. Chances are that I will have the PSN games that they will offer for free...

[SilverSlug]

3 Months free.

[BaSeBaLlKiD721]

No, you get 3 months free when you buy PSN+ for an year so instead of 12 months, you would get 15 months for $50. I'm talking about when you first sign up for PSN as in when you first buy a PS3. The user should get a 1 month trial when they sign up on PSN for the first time.

[farrelljade]

why are people calling it PSN+?

[Hypnotic]

I wonder why that author feels so entitled?

[PRHB HYBRiiD]

pff sounds 3 times better than xbox live when i get my ps3 back from repair im surely buying psn +

[zerocool3397]

such a good start "when i get my ps3 back from repair" lol

TBH its pretty much what xbox live has been getting (except the free games). I'm surprised that Sony haven't added cross game chat (party chat). TBH £40 (aprox) for the features that you are getting does seem like PS3ers have been ripped off, if you want to get benefits like background downloads and stuff you have to pay? you get that for free as a silver member on live. Access to all beta's, most betas are limited and FREE if you sign up on the company site, so why should you pay to do that. Sorry to say but the only real benefit is the free games but even then its probably cheaper to buy the games you actually want when you want. If there isn't a game in the list that you wanna play then you are basically getting ripped off. Or would you fill up your HDD just cause its free?

This is just my opinion. I do agree with paying for online play, but sony need to offer more services for your money IMO.

What's amusing is that most PS3 fanboys have been calling xbox gold members mugs for paying for live. Now this will just prove that people will pay for anything the comments here from people saying that they will get it just proves that.

[Redrum059]

IF the "qriocity" streaming is true, then I'll get psn+. if not, then I might hav to realy look into wat features one gets for paying a fee.

[PRHB HYBRiiD]

i pay 50 a year for xbox and i dont think im getting what i pay for at least 1 psn title a month is fair

[mastiffchild]

zerocool-how is this a rip off? You don't HAVE to pay to play online and thus this isn't essential in any damn way. MS force you into their Live sub by making it impossible to game online without doing so. Sony will see this live or die by it's own merits(and I won'tbe biting until there's much more content for your buck but I'll STILL be playing online which I won't on my 360 as I was sick to death of paying to play games I could play elsewhere for free and more games on PSN have dedicated servers too)and the same isn't true of your Gold sub which is forced on anyone wanting to play online-these aren't remotely similar and to make out Sony are somehow being less consumer friendly is the biggest joke i've read, even on here, in a long, long time!

Seriously, you think we SHOULD have to pay Sony and MS to play online when we can play on PC,DS,Wii,PSP for free? when we already pay for our broadband?? Christ, MS must love you, you crazy munter!? I suppose it's you telling Bobby Kotick he should charge more for games as well. Sony aren't forcing this on us and it's easier NOT to subscribe as you won't lose anything by just sitting on your hands anyway. Prefer your 360 and prefer Live if you want, that's fine, but you can't make out this is unfaior to anone when it's just not something anyone HAS to buy into. PSN is still free, what the hell is this about?

[FantasyStar]

If PSN+ gave me back Linux, I might consider it...

[BABY-JEDI]

I got a free 3D TV, but the BETA invites do sound awesome. Free on-line for life ; )

[dredgewalker]

Sony can rape my wallet anytime as long as they keep delivering those promises. PSN+ is optional and not forced down upon my throat.

[mastiffchild]

Dredge-someone disagreess! Can you tell me how you didn't notice Sony forcing this down your neck when this fella did?/S

Seriously, HOW are Sony in the wrong here? We keep what we already have and sign up for this IF we like the option and lose anything by saying "no thanks". It's not like you have to pay it to play online when you already pay your broadband fees or anything ridiculous like that, now is it?

MS could be said to force Live subs on us but Sony are NOT doing something remotely similar here, they just aren't no matter how much some folk want to pretend they are. I'm not buying into it myself but that's only because I don't HAVE to and don't want the extras.

[dale1]

if you don,t want it don,t get it,i don,t want any one who writes an article telling me what to do.i have a brain to work that out for meeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[keysy420]

there giving you free games and people are complaing morons some people you just can tmake happy at all. and god forbid sony try to make some money for running constant servers.

[Calm Down Sunshine]

I think your definition of free is a little bit warped.

[despair]

This article is stupid, first the firmware updates will not be done in the background, if he understood how sony updates worked he would know that you have to download and reinstall the entire OS which is about 150MB i believe, it sux that its that much each time but its how the xmb was set up. So that means that downloading and installing the firmware update while using the system is impossible with or without PS+

How it will work is to allow for scheduled times for your ps3 to wake up and check for the latest stuff and dl it for you while you are not on it, at least thats how i see it.

And his beta access rant makes me even wonder if he understands what a beta is, sure its a great way to test your game for bugs etc. but the access to a game early has great appeal and the fact that its limited also makes it great when you get chosen.

Hell even without those 2 features the PS+ has some amazing features and I'm not even going near his ridiculous argument on full game trials, these sore loser fanboys really need to be banned from writing on the web (yes I see the irony but I'm not really a fanboy, I just hate ignorant idiots)

[SolidSystem]

he might have been refering to game firmware.
its called firmware as well correct?

[Lumbo]

No, it is called gamecode. Firmware is the basic drivers for a HARDWARE. Games are just software.

[Jrome]

Don't fall for playstation plus?...Where are these articles for xbox live...paying for online play(yes among other things) but online play!??...gtf outta here.

[jack_burt0n]

Its a PSN game rental service with some other bonuses for $4 a month, its not rocket science u turds.

BUT it should include a couple movie rentals a week!!! or movie offers.

[Threesix]

Still no party chat? No thanks, not interested.

[djfullshred]

Seems to me it is not a matter of "falling for it", but a question of value. Do you buy a lot of games on the PSN store? If you say yes, this service may save you money. If you don't, then it might not be worth paying for.

[Bolts]

Bingo.

The missing hook in the PSN+ is the lack of new PSN exclusive tittles. There's really no point in buying a bunch of low budget games at a discount and the games that you do get for free will probably be crap like Calling All Cars or Pain.

[Kick The Ass]

Well, I'm not even very familiar with PSN (got a PS3, just bought anything over PSN), but even I know we got Flower, flOw, the newly released (and critically acclaimed) Joe Danger and other stuff too.

Also, games like Echochrome are exclusive too, right? And we even got a sequel for that one coming.
Lastly, Dead Nation is exclusive, isn't it? (actual question)

There are prolly lots more exclusives out there for PSN (maybe not all good though), so I don't really see your point Fanboi :)

[kasasensei]

Don't fall in empty site created for buzz hits and bash.

[ravenl0rd]

"A small minority will definitely benefit from the ability to download 12 PSN titles a year for $50"

How would that be a small minority? If you buy Plus, only a small minority will appreciate four free games a month? Really?

[madpuppy]

IS that the free games and dlc you get are free as long as you are subscribed, when your subscription runs out or you cancel it, the games and dlc apparently won't play or just disappear.

[djfullshred]

Really? Aha, so really it is free rental of those games as long as you have a subscription, and not really owning them with no strings attached. Not so good then.

[HurstDarkStar]

the service is "optional" its not like you need it to play games already out. plus it gives you a whole list of games to play once you have it.

[SolidSystem]

I agree with the author that things like the background updating should be to all users, not just PSN plus.

offering beta, free games as long as you are a member of plus, and other things are a great deal. nothing big enough to win over my dollar. I hate renting and those "free titles" i get every month are basically yearly rentals. its like netflix, i have access to the content but i dont own it.

i just dont think such major software enhancements to the system as a whole should be pay to use.

PC doesnt charge me to multitask, and I'm already mad at XBOX for making me PAY to play my games.

[iPirates]

Really expensive to maintain online services.

Also expensive to put research and development into expanding online services. Where as the direct competition makes millions per day on virtually the exact same service?

This is definitely better than the alternative: which is forcing everybody to pay for online.

[SolidSystem]

I dont dissagree with that, however did you forget Sony also sells things? Royalties off games, god knows how much off the PSN, and Sony also has 3rd party developers handle their servers as well.

yes sony has lots of servers, yes they are a blackhole for money,

but that doesnt change the fact i think OS changes should be for everyone. if PS3 was like Valves Steam service where it looked at my game installs, checked if they were up to date and if not updated them in the background so my games were 98% of the time ready to go, I would be in love.

I feel thats a feature all ps3 owners should get.

all the free games, access to content first, betas, qore are all fine give it to PSN plus. it should be their network stuff, not os stuff.

[iPirates]

You never know what they'll roll into the OS for everybody eventually...

Maybe some features that are exclusive to Plus members will be rolled out to everybody as more prominent Plus features are developed. I think it's a positive direction anyway.

Yeah, I wish it were a little more like Steam as well. But it's progress.

[iPirates]

It's really expensive to maintain their servers to allow for free online pay. You don't think it's not tempting seeing the competition make millions of dollars a day on virtually the same service?

I think this is a good alternative to forcing players to pay for it. And the added bonuses make it definitely worth the while, I'm down with it.

[Tomkar]

I am definetly getting PSN+, I don't see why people dont like it's feutures for 50$ a year? It's an awesome deal and you do actually save money on it in the long rund, I have bought a lot of games that I did not like. We can also expect other unannounced feutures to come later to PSN+, and besides you are not forced to pay for it!

[BYE]

Obviously like every service PSN+ is not for everybody. But making it seem like a ripoff is stupid. There will be a lot of people that gladly pay for and be happy with it.

[washingmachine]

to be honest who really cares if they are giving away a free game here and there,those are the ones that prob aint selling to great or arnt any good anyway. how much of a discount will there be 2$ 4$ if gamers want a game they will buy it regardless. there isnt really anything that makes me want to pay a yearly fee, its free to play onine and thats wot people care about.

even if i did ever pay any subscription fee it would be something that has to do with movies or apps etc

sony need to think outside the box

[ALFAxD_CENTAURO]

''those are the ones that prob aint selling to great or arnt any good anyway. how much of a discount will there be 2$ 4$ ''

You are making speculations.

[nunley33]

There could be some features about this SONY isn't talking about yet that will come with this to be a surprise!Not to mention future PSN+ enhancements AND XCROSS GAME CHAT(PARTY CHAT SYSTEM) is coming too on tuesday the 22nd i believe and people have been crying forever for that,i could care less about this but i'll probably use though sometimes. People who use STEAM love it and PSN+ looks to be STEAM POWERED,if tghis is true, that's enough to get people to sign up for it with just that!

[barakiu]

duh

[Chrissy]

MS makes a load of money from Live, sony gets bitter since they missed the boat , are now flat broke so they make a desperate attempt to charge money for a service thats exactly the same as the slow and deserted free one yet makes you download a bunch of patches automatically?

Christ, this is almost as bad as exploiting some stereotype black kid to bash iPhone apps in a desperate attempt to revive the already buried PSP. Lol @ sony

[TurboBlevi]

Nothing you said held any meaning whatsoever.
MS is asking you to pay to play games you already own, otherwise you're paying $60 and only using $20 of what you paid.

Sony lets you use the entire $60 you paid for.

Now you tell me who's fucking people over.
Atleast Sony is giving content away for free if you get in on this service.

[hot4play]

...for this lame article. :/

[TurboBlevi]

I think this article is stupid and the service is totally worth it.
When do people ever NOT complain about something costing money? Do any other services offer ANY of those extra perks for free? No. Then why should Sony have to do it? You can't download title updates, or firmware updates in the background on Xbox360 or Wii, so no, you won't find that ability any where other than the PS+ service.

Which, in the long run, for any gamer, is an incredibly good deal.
Maybe some people don't have many games bought from the PSN because they don't want to spend the money on it. So this "Free game" option will now give those people a chance to play some amazing PSN titles they wouldn't of given a second look.

Not to mention they are going to be bringing Cross Game Chat out for free, when they could have just as easily put it in the PS+ service. So no, Sony isn't doing anything wrong by this, and if anyone thinks otherwise, they need to remember nothing in this world is free. And Sony has been doing us a service by letting us play online games for free as it is.

[xAlmostPro]

it does sound good.. i wonder if DLC will be able to be downloaded for free as your 1 PSN title a month, and say i dont download a psn title, will i be able to download 2 the next month?..

also what happened to cloud storage & token wagering? :( i guess steamworks is coming but that only lets game saves be saved via cloud storage

[Corrwin]

You mean 2?

Silent Updating would be lovely, but can you imagine the server lag? Patches go pretty slowly on the first day of release when everybody is downloading them - but that's negated when the user has to start the game first. Having every patch automatically get downloaded by every user would shut down most servers. I'd love the feature to be free, but it's not feasible.

Private Beta Access. Why would you presume to think you would have access to a private beta? Aren't private beta's subject to filtering and conditions anyway? If everybody had access to private betas that would make them public betas. Get over it.

Trailing game for an hour? For free? No, sorry. Statistically a game will sell less if there is a demo availiable. How much less would people buy if they could already get their fix for an hour? never mind the bandwidth cost of downloading up to 50GB games, why would developers want to give this away for free?

tl;dr: The "Journalist" has no idea how much this stuff costs, but he is right about one thing: If you don't already spent $50 a year on PSN content, don't bother. But $50 isn't much over a year when you get 12 free games out of it, regardless of how often you have to keep up the subscription.

[Maciariello]

His argument is "instead of paying for additional stuff, I want it for free because that's better." No kidding, buddy! And online play is still free. It's purely supplemental, not required. You're getting bonus material for a fee.

The downloadable games would be worth it alone. He stated in the article that you get one PSN game, two Minis and one PSOne classic each month. Then he says at the end that it's not worth "12 PSN titles a year" to the majority. Apparently he can't do math, because that's really 12 PSN games, 24 Minis and 12 PSOne classics for $50. Seriously, how is this not a good deal?

And he also said people without a lot of downloaded PSN games probably won't be interested in this service. Maybe if they're getting a deal like this for 12 PSN games, 24 Minis and 12 PSOne classics for $50 then they might be playing more downloadable games.

[AssassinHD]

I am going to subscribe to it. That is all I am going to say on the matter.

[DarkEdson]

I think sony wants to make this service great however due to the economic problems today i see this is a way to ask your customers for an investment in their entertainment futures. However ps+ turns out it will be decided by the customers and how much is invested into it. So if sony sees even 2 million people buy, that will be 100 million dollars to invest back into it. Allowing sony to hire more staff to make more apps and games as well as provide enough money to keep frequently updating the service. These jobs will also be in america which we need in america.

[divideby0]

the single MOST important feature REAL gamers want is FREE online gameplay..
take all that other crap and charge for it (you will see how few really want it)
Sony's model is great. I play online for free and if I want creature features I can buy them
the only reason I have been a charter gold member of live is because its the only way to play games online with my 360

If MS had the gutz and I do mean gutz to make online gaming free, as it should be and is on other platforms, so many of their gold subscribers would bail. MS knows it so they use online gaming to make us pony up.
MS give us free gaming with Silver and give all those creature features to those who want to pay for it.. Will NEVER happen we all know why

[PS3and4_HAS_GAMES]

this guy must of spent hours at home trying to figure out how many negative things he can come up with about psn plus.....as long as online is still free which it will be than i dont see anything wrong with this...theres always someone ready to nitpick at everything sony does

[Captain Tuttle]

I love pieces like this where the writer tells you how to think. If you think PSN + is a good value or just something that you'd like to have then go for it.

[LiquifiedArt]

Having a layer of additional Content-Driven services is a good choice. I know many of the "kids" in the room don't understand that, but charging to unlock 1/2 of a game (ability to play online) and charging for premium featurs such as free games etc... are two completely different perspectives on how each company views its customers.

One could give a S#$t less and the other wants its customers to have a more content-rich experience (think netflix for movies)and keep in mind, these are only the launch features. I assume a game rental service is on its way and hopefully HOPEFULLY ps2 downloads!

[rmedtx888]

I will for sure subscribe. I have been paying $50 for Qore. If you cannot afford PSN+ just don't subscribe to it. Bitching about it will not change anything.

[bjornbear]

its a scam! they'll take your money and run!!

/s

ffs, its an optional service with perks, there's no downside if you are willing to pay for it -_-

im not going to get it, but im not going around telling people not to get it either.

if they ought not pay for this 360 owners might as well not pay for Live either eh? stupid logic

[OSU_Gamer]

You PS3 fanboy may not like paying for internet gaming, but for me, there is no reason to buy PSN+ when I am paying $50 for what I am getting on XBL.

If PSN was as good as XBL then I would be happy to pay $50 dollars a year. But because its not, fanboys use it as a argument for having only one system.

[HDgamer]

lol You're the fanboy talking about XBL in a ps3 article. Really that's not only pathetic but stupid as well.

[OSU_Gamer]

Sorry brohan, Im not a fanboy, I think PS3 is the best system. But that doesn't mean that PSN is better.

I'm also sorry for talking about the direct competitor to the subject of this article. I'm sure you would never bring up anything that is not related to the article you are commenting on...right?

[Phish]

So I have a question about this. I thought I heard him say that this would also include Qore. If that is the case will current Qore subscribers get a PSN+ discount? Seems stupid to pay for Qore twice.

[Captain Tuttle]

I would guess that they'd just refund you the difference? It should be easy to figure out since PSN doesn't use space bucks.

Who knows though. It's a good question.

[HDgamer]

The author pays for xbox live but yet want to cry foul over psn plus an optional feature. Lol pure comedy