PlayStation Plus Has Me Questioning Why I Didn’t Switch Sooner

Rich Drummond of Richie D Rants says:

"PlayStation’s online service PlayStation Plus was one that I always questioned. It wasn’t really necessary in the previous generation, yet those who had it loved it unconditionally. When I made the jump to Sony’s side of the next generation, I also purchased PlayStation Plus so that I could play online multiplayer on my PlayStation 4. The more and more I dug into the service, the more I enjoyed it and reaped it’s benefits. In this video, I’ll discuss why I enjoy it so much and more importantly, why it has me questioning why I didn’t jump on board sooner.
"

[Mikey32230]

Congrats.. Welcome to the PS+ club :)

[xHeavYx]

PS+ is a great service, especially for the amount of games and discounts you get monthly

[NinjaRichParty]

I completely agree. Since I've joined, I've scored a number of great deals! :)

And thank you Mikey!

[blackbeld]

Yep welcome to the PS+ club.

PS+ is the best deal you can get.

[ZodTheRipper]

"B-b-but you don't own these gamez!!1"

Well I might not technically "own" my ~90 PS3, PSV & PS4 games but I sure as hell enjoyed them ;D

This is a great, honest video btw. Good decision.

[Bowzabub]

I see it essentially as the cable company of gaming. And hopefully PSNow will be it's Netflix of gaming counterpart.

[ABizzel1]

He's speaking the Gospel right now.

PS+ is the greatest service on consoles. PERIOD. XBL is great, Games 4 Gold are average at best, but PS+ is in a league of it's own.

I compare it even to my Gamefly subscription.

[darthv72]

i never thought about it until recently but why hasnt sony added in movies to the mix for + members? Like once a month there would be a free rental of a movie from sony's catalog or any of the studios that offer their movies and tv shows in the PS store.

PS+ is more than just games and that would be a great angle to play off of if they added in a movie or two.

[guitarded77]

I've been PS+ since day 1. The service was great from the beginning, but Sony's improvements have made it even better. They would send out surveys from time to time asking what we liked and didn't like about the service, and people said they wanted more games, so Sony switched it up by adding more games.

I snagged a couple years worth for $30 each on Black Friday, and at that price it's even more amazing.

[ABizzel1]

@RDR

When a fellow gamer tells you something is a great deal, you owe it to them and yourself to at least hear them out :D PS+ is the best service on consoles hands down. I have over 200 games on my PS3's 1TB HDD, and a good portion of them are from PS+.

DmC, Tomb Raider, Bioshock InFinite, Uncharted 3, Saint's Row 2 & 3, Metro, and the list goes on, and on, and on, and on. The PS3 PS+ is hands down mindblowingly awesome.

The PS Vita is almost as awesome as the PS3 PS+, and truthfully I buy maybe 4 games a year on Vita (outside of PSN / PSN sales) simply because PS+ takes care of my gaming needs on Vita. My 32GB memory card is already full.

The PS4 PS+ games are solid, but it's just starting out, so we'll have good indie titles for the first 12 months. But once we've been through the first full year I'm sure we'll start seeing huge games like Knack, Killzone (single player / multiplayer), Assassin's Creed 4, Need for Speed Rivals, Tomb Raider, Injustice, and more come to the service for the 2014 - 2015 game year (6 retail / 6 indie).

@Bowzabub

If PSNow is like Gaikai, then it'll be more like the Amazon Prime Video gaming counterpart. You can stream some games for free, 1 hour game trails will probably be done with every game on the service, but you can also buy access to some of the games at a reduced price.

[liquidhalos]

I made the switch to PS+ from Live in December and i could honestly kick myself for not doing it sooner. The best part about it for me is that they have given me a load of free games that i would never have picked up on my own accord, and all of them have been fantastic.

[Gamer1982]

He speaks a lot of sense and I bought a vita myself thanks to PS+. I built up a library since launch (Ps+) of vita games then got it with a 32gb memory card and had a nice collection of awesome games to play without paying any extra. The value of the games actually exceeded the price of the handheld!

[showtimefolks]

its best service period. Phil Spencer said at xbox live we let you keep games even after your subscription has expired, but who the heck wants to keep an 5 years old game

psn-Plus needs to be experienced by more gamers

[NeoTribe]

Plus, as long as you own a sony console your not going to NOT have ps plus, so who cares if its rented via subscription.

[medman]

Yeah, and ol' devious Phil Spencer failed to mention that dat bone is pretty much just a toaster oven if you're not online, because unlike the PS4 you can't get access to any apps or services without live gold. So his point is completely irrelevant. What a toolbag.

[Picnic]

And that's only an 'advantage' of the Xbox if you only intend to pay for short periods of online passes.

As soon as you have an active online pass, the Playstation game you once downloaded is there anyway- or ready to be redownloaded.

Xbox just loses every argument on online charges. Playstation - whether Plus or not - has been by far the best deal not least for Sony's exclusive indie games as well as some of the top AAA games.

[Eddie20101]

Best value in video games period, everyone who owns a PS4, PS3, PSVita should subscribe to PS+ just for the free games and game discounts not to mention great online play that matches any other service.

[MannGamer]

I own all three systems and now I have no time to play all those free games :-)

[Gamer1982]

LOL @above. I own all three and i'm the same..

[AO1JMM]

I'll keep both.

[ITPython]

PS+ definitely pays for itself very quickly. Even if you don't utilize all the major discounts you get with it, the free games alone make up for the price within a month or two (or instantly if there is already multiple games you want that PS+ has for free).

And Sony manages to get a lot of AAA games that were released within the year and offer them for free. Which is absolutely amazing! It's one thing if the games are 2 or 3 years old and have no market demand... but to offer games that are still selling for $30+ at major retailers is just flat out crazy!

I recently downloaded Bioshock Infinite and Tomb Raider absolutely free on PS+. I checked Amazon and both games combined in price is just about $60 new... which means my PS+ is already paid for itself with JUST those two games! Not to mention everything else I have downloaded free since I re-upped my subscription when I got my PS4.

[Thatguy-310]

Making PS+ mandatory on the ps4 has given it more exposure since most people didnt bother with it last generation. It's great that the membership crosses over to the other devices. Great games are available to grab from every corner. I'm sure pleased with the service.

[leemo19]

Ps+ is one of the best things Sony thought of doing. Sub price is worth it in ever-way. Living off Ps+ alone could have you set for most of the whole year.

[diehardmetallicafan]

the only ps4 game i bought was killzone sf. and im loving my free ps+ games

[Software_Lover]

Why do people feel as if they always have to "switch" or choose a side. Why not just enjoy the games on both, or all 3?

[xHeavYx]

Maybe some people can't afford both? Not everyone is made of money *jumps in on Lambo made of gold and leaves*

[Software_Lover]

I understand that. But most of the people on the internet arguing are "grown @$$ men".

They talk about how they go out and buy a 400.00 or 500.00 console day one. How they buy every game, especially exclusives DAY ONE. They brag about their high end PC's or how they have a 10k television (exaggerating) and how they expect every game to be at that resolution or it sucks.

You mean to tell me these same people can't afford to skip a few games, just for a little while, and buy the other console to enjoy those games also? So they can spend 400-500 on a console. 60+ dollars a month in game purchases, and can't afford another console?

[Major_Glitch]

@Software The reason us "grown @$$ men" can afford to spend $400 on a console is because we have a thing called a "budget". When you have a "budget" you often have to consider what your spending your money on and why your spending it on that. That fact that I had to spell that out for you really tells me a lot about you. Don't worry though, once you move out on your own and you stay paying your own bills, you'll understand.

[Software_Lover]

@Major_Glitch

.......... You are one of those that are so quick to post what you think is a "witty response" that you missed the entire meaning of the post you are responding to. Read my post again, and then explain to me where a "budget" has anything to do with what I posted.

I've been paying bills since I was 16 (helping my mom). Got through college, UF, by paying bills. Of course you knew that already though because you are so smart and keep a great budget.

[Sayai jin]

Because of hits.

On topic, good for him if he likes it more. Why does it have to be one or the other ...a competition. There was a guy in line last night at the Titanfall launch and he saw me pick up a PS4 game. He said I am glad I switched to the XB1 because of Titanfall.I told him thats cool, but you will be missing out on Second Son. I told him I'll be playing both Titanfall and SS.

@Heavy - I agree with you if people can't afford both. but to me if you are a gamer and gaming is a expensive hobby. One game is the price of one of the online services.

[xHeavYx]

Gaming is not always expensive, especially when you pay $50 a year to get at least 30 free games + discounts

[Sayai jin]

The free games is a plus, but gaming in general is expensive. Online subscriptions, $60 USD per game, controllers, etc. If you get games out of the bargain bins and mainly play the free games then no it's not that expensive, but then again $400 to $500 for a console is nothing to sneeze at for those who are on a budget.

[SamPao]

Because its damn expensive?

[FunAndGun]

Money and Time

[NinjaRichParty]

Just so you know, I actually do own a Wii U as well. I would have picked up the One, but the exclusives as of now haven't enticed me enough to put out the extra cash.

[sAVAge_bEaST]

You can only invest time, and progress,.. Into one console, when playing multi-player. Other wise, it's kind of pointless.

[Hicken]

Most of that is trash talking. The vast majority of the people around here talking about the games and consoles they bought day 1 are either lying or not living on their own.

That said, what's it to you if somebody DOES do all that bragging, but only decides on one console? Even if they have the money, they may not have the TIME. In that case, it's prudent to pick one console, rather than having them all, since you won't be able to play them all regardless.

Not everybody feels they HAVE to switch, but sometimes it makes more sense than buying all available products.

[BitbyDeath]

I don't have enough time to play on more than one.
I sometimes play on PC as well, (just about to start Stick of Truth). But that is just out of convenience since I already need it for internet and work and stuff.

Usually I only get time to play on weekends due to work and kids.

[Knushwood Butt]

Yeah, this is my situation now too, although I only bought one last gen too.

On topic, PS+ is great, and is highly recommended even if you don't have a PS4. I was getting tons of benefit from it when I only had a PS3 and Vita. More games that I can possibly play.

[MightyNoX]

My guess is that you're still living with your parents, hence being so callous with money. No wonder you can afford all three services and being having a sociopathic reaction to people who can only afford one service. Arrested development can truly skew one's perception.

[No1up]

Articles like this has me wondering what happened to quality journalism...

[AceBlazer13]

Dude welcome to ps+ , if you want even more value get the ps3. Used new it doesn't matter get on that ps3, it reaps the best of ps+. Also the titles leave rotation so even if you don't have a vita or ps3 add them too your download queue so you can get them if u ever by the consoles.

[Grave]

I've said it before. I've had Live and Plus. Live had me wondering what exactly I was paying for. With Plus I wonder how does Sony makes any money.

[Major_Glitch]

Agreed. The only reason I'm keeping my Live account is so I can watch Xfinity and Netflix in the 360 in the living room. However, if psn ever got an xfinity app, I would cancel my Live account in a heartbeat.

[FITgamer]

You were paying for Live to increase profits and no other reason. It even states in the Xbox privacy statement that Xbox services are supported by advertisements.

[jb1rd90]

Every one goes quite.

[cell989]

"With Plus I wonder how does Sony makes any money"

Ive questioned my self that too. I mean how the heck do they pay the publishers for millions of users to get access to their games for free?

[BitbyDeath]

Well even if they paid 50c per user for a game and the PS3 subscription base was somewhere around a million that would generate $500,000 for that game.

Now that we have a 6 million install base and PS+ is needed for multiplayer boosting those numbers to ??? 4 million ??? Probably more, but that is now generating $2,000,000 per game.

Sony must be paying them less than 50c these days cause 2 million for a game just sounds like way too much money.

That said as the numbers continue to go up the more the service should continue to improve.

[MSpence516]

As a whole, Sony isn't doing very well. I can't speak for the Playstation side of things because I have not looked into it.

[bmx_bandit]

omg, this whole discussion is so 2007 and clickbaiting....

[Major_Glitch]

If you don't like the conversation, don't participate. Derp!

[bmx_bandit]

What "conversation"?

Its the usual Pro-SONY-Stuff on here and on the clickbaiting Websites...nothing more haha

[DigitalRaptor]

"I kinda feel dumb, I wish I'd switched sooner".

Takes a wise person to admit their mistakes, switch and receive what is called 'value'.

This wise man is the prime example of someone who has been switched on, so to speak. Like this dude, I was enticed to buy Vita - about 80% of the Vita games I have (which is about 40), have come from either PS+ or a cross-buy offer. The PS ecosystem is fantastic.

PS+ is unparalleled except perhaps by Steam and their wonderful sales. You get that feeling of "your money's worth" almost immediately. The alternative is paying to access free apps and free-to-play games that are available on every single other platform for free. It continually makes me wonder why people didn't switch sooner.

[Gamer666]

"Value" is a matter of perception and circumstance.

I have both PS+ and XBL...

I buy all multiplatform games on XB because my PERCEPTION is that Live always works... I have never experienced an outage with Live. But, on PSN where I only play exclusives, I have experienced many outages and issues.

Also, I buy a lot of games on release day, so my CIRCUMSTANCE is that free games don't add any value when I already have them.

Finally, for the games I don't buy right away, I kept track of XBL sales and PS+ sales for six months. In the end I found that XB sales saved me $150 more in purchasing for the six month time frame.

I can understand that most people find "value" in PS+ because of the free games... But, that does not apply to everyone.

[XabiDaChosenOne]

Sure not everyone will see value in PS+ and value is subject, but what is not subjective is the amount of money you save playing a huge amount of recent critical acclaimed games for "free" compared to the competition. That is not subjective and is cold hard facts. Now whether one sees more value paying 60 dollars a year to access services that are free else where is up to the individual.

[RebelWAC]

Out of all of the things you could pick to hate on this is the best you could come up with...Unbereivabable,

[Gamer666]

@Kobe357..

Like I said, if I have the games already then getting the same game free does not have any value. There has not yet been one game on PS+ that I didn't already own.

As for the services being free that is now BS on PSN. You must buy PS+ to play most games online with PS4. So it is not a free service. That is the primary reason I have PS+... I can't play most games online without it.

@RebelWAC
I'm not hating on PS+. Everyone always brags about the free games... To some people this does not have any value. I know I am in the minority (very tiny minority) but to me it is about the online services because I have the games. And Sony's online service pales in comparison to MSs' (Although I see people are having issues today with Titanfall! Lucky I didn't buy it today!).

[XabiDaChosenOne]

"Like I said, if I have the games already then getting the same game free does not have any value."
Well that doesn't really detract from the amount your getting for only 50 dollars a year just means you buy all your games at launch.
"As for the services being free that is now BS on PSN."
Actually no its not since you can use netflix and play MMOS for free on PSN.

[Gamer666]

@Kobe357

You must be drinking the Sony Kool-Aid pretty heavily.

If you have the games already they have zero value to you. Especially since they are digital. You cant resell them.

I play online games like Shadowfall, therefore I have to pay for PS+. I have no other reason to buy that subscription.

You seem to think I am saying PS+ is bad... I am not... What I am saying is that things that people think add "value" do not for some people. I would rather them improve overall PSN stability then give me free games that I already own.

[Gremdude]

Wasn't LIVE down today? Just saying.

[XabiDaChosenOne]

"If you have the games already they have zero value to you."
-_-....I'm pretty sure I left the subjective portion of value alone in my first comment. I am purely talking economics right now. PSplus economically is better than anything on opposing consoles right now #fact.

[PaperMan]

The free games you get from being a PSN+ member are really great and Sony have done well to give that to customers. I've played a lot of games I wouldn't because of that.

With Live it's not just access to free apps which people should look at always. It is stupid that MS do that and I agree. But I think the community to play multiplayer games has mostly been better and more competitive on Xbox (My opinion from experience). Also the maintenance isn't as prominent. I guess it also seems that MS brings more to online gaming with innovative features (Party chat many years ago, cross game invites, voice messages, etc). So they add value in that way which is what keeps me hooked.

But overall both services are good and luckily I get to use both.

[troylazlow]

It's $5 a month! Less than that if you get it on sale

[RosweeSon]

Well when someone can show me the Appeal on xbox live over ps+ even nintendo are doing better deals then I may check out the new xbox box, as it's stands ps+ is far too appealing ;)

[cell989]

I have yet to meet a REAL PS+ user who regrets subscribing to the service. Dont come in here saying "I tried it and hated it" cause then Ill know youre full of $#!+ and you have yet to try it. There is absolutely no reason to hate on the service thats how superb it is.

You loose everything when you stop paying? Im sure after a year I wont want to play Bioshock and Remember Me, one year is more than enough to enjoy these and other games. Games you buy at a discount are permanently yours. The free early beta access pays for the service on its own along with online play.

Good thing is IF and thats a big IF I was to stop using PS+, all my data is saved on my user account so whenever I decide to renew the service everything is still accessible, better yet if I dont have PS+ I can still use my Hulu, Netflix, PS3 online play, at no additional charge

[BABY-JEDI]

PS+ = bargain of the year.

[ginsunuva]

We warned you. Like back in 2008.

[S2Killinit]

its a great value thats for sure. Its been the best service for a long time.

[Purpleeyeblack]

Ps plus is a must-have now. Great value!

[JuJuRMJ]

I'm going mad with the amount of games PS+ offers! I was going to give away my PS3 at one point since I got my PS4, but that would have been a crime with the crazy amount of games available. There's not enough time for me to play all the games I have accumulated with PS+ (I am trying!) and feel for those with a Vita. I don't think I will be able to ever part with PS+, if you love games it would be foolish!

[RiPPn]

Glad to see people waking up to what is the best value in console gaming. PS4 is cheaper and more powerful with a service that is cheaper and offers more value. Really is a no brainer.

[RebelWAC]

I purchased the ps3 slim one month before TLOU was realesed with a one year ps+ subscription. As far as console gaming goes...that´s the best investment I´ve ever made so far.

[nix]

True.

[A LIVING LEGEND]

I'm sure this is an isolated incident.... :)

[mochachino]

ME TOO!

I was on Live Gold for 5 years, I was such a moron.

[koolaid251]

I hate psn servers though the lag when are they gonna cut on dedicated servers for games?

[meday354]

I signed up for 3 months and my subscription ends in 30 days and after that i will be subscribing for a year, why? Cause its worth every penny, i nearly beat my self for not joined sooner. To all those doubting PSplus trust me its wonderful.

[hkgamer]

I've been a subscriber since the Vita PS+ came out.

I actually bought the PS4 with the PS+ year subscription with it because I knew that it was the only thing that would actually inflate over time.

I could have chosen anothter game i suppose, but nothing on PS4 seems any good for me.

[RamboRabbi]

Steam sales are better imo, in order to get all of what ps+ has to offer you have to own all the consoles that use the service. Steam on the other hand has sales with £40 games on console for like £5 with all dlc. My steam account is worth over £500 but I've only spent about £70-£80. I have a ps4 and have enjoyed the content that the subscription has provided but ps+ is no match for steam sales IMO.

[hkgamer]

First of all, not going to comment on XBL because I don't really use that or even play on my 360.

PS+ sounded attractive, but I was thinking that it maybe pointless since I wouldn't know how long I would keep my subscription and it owuld have felt that all the games I had downloaded from the service would be gone once I cancelled it.

I finally got it when it came out for the vita and I would definitely not end my subscription. I knew I was invested in it once I started and if I cancelled the subscription it would feel that I would have lost a bunch of games.

Now that the PS4 is out and it needs it for MP, I think I have no choice but to keep the subscription. However I am not convinced that Sony will keep up with the great content that they have been.

[BladerunnerZX]

Welcome to the New World !

Along with all the games you get with the instant games collection PSplus offers huge discounts on all types of games every month.

Plus free betas, themes and avatars etc.

[shotime97]

it's a nice rental service for ps3 not so mush on the ps4 (YET)

[tnsrocks]

Greatest gaming decision i've ever made

[Azzanation]

Paying for subscriptions? lol

[jb1rd90]

If xbox had a service exactly like the ps pluse... I would have a xbox one and not a ps4. Truth.

[DualWielding]

this is what hurts me you had such an awesome service on PS3 and only small percentage of ps3 owners subscribed, then you just made it mandatory with online and now everyone subscribed, its consumers own fault that now we have to pay for online

[Azzanation]

Why would you consider going Live or PSN. Both paid subscriptions where they say there games are free when there not, your paying a sub. Go Steam where the games you buy are yours and that there Sales are of the best sales you will find on any platform.

[Father Murder X]

Here we go again with the same shit. If you have an xbox/xbox one you have to have live. If you own a ps3/ps4 you need Psn+.

What is the point of these stupid ass articles all the time. Its not like if I have a Xbox one I can choose psn+ or vice versa.

You dummies fall for the same shit every single day. Bunch of sony fanboys high fiving each other.

[Smootherkuzz]

This way I switched? WHO gives a flyin ****? And why is this on a Xbox One blade is this suppose to recurit more people to switch over or what? You know they call this a war between consoles when it is only a war between knuckle heads. Give it break. Just have fun with whatever console you choose!

[jules]

just don't link a credit card to it... but for the most part it's a good service... never really got into the multiplayer stuff on ps3... but the free games is a win...