Sony has finally revealed the information on what was Project Spartacus. What we get is a tiered PlayStation Plus on probably the most drastic change since its launch all the way back in 2010. The information leaked by Bloomberg is all posted in the recent PlayStation Blog.
Sony confirmed the rumors in their post by announcing one of the worst-kept secrets. This is what they had to say:
Since launching PlayStation Plus in 2010, SIE has been at the forefront of innovation with game subscription services. We were thrilled to be the first console membership service that included a refreshed library of games through PlayStation Plus, and also launched the first console game streaming service with PlayStation Now.
Today, we are pleased to share with you official news about changes coming to our subscription services. This June, we’re bringing together PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now in an all-new PlayStation Plus subscription service that provides more choice to customers across three membership tiers globally.
What The New System Offers
As of June PlayStation Plus will offer three membership tiers.
PlayStation Plus Essential
This will provide similar benefits to what members see at the moment and there are no changes for existing PlayStation Plus members in this tier. The new Extra and Premium tiers are where the changes take place.
PlayStation Plus Extra
Benefits are the same as the essential tier and it provides all the benefits from the Essential tier as well as the addition of 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 are the same as the previous two tiers as well as the addition of up to 340 additional games. And these include
- 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
We also see additional benefits which are
- 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
If a certain region has no streaming available things change price-wise. This was what Sony said on this
For markets without cloud streaming, PlayStation Plus Deluxe will be offered at a lower price compared to Premium, and includes a catalog of beloved classic games from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations to download and play, along with time-limited game trials. Benefits from Essential and Extra tiers are also included. Local pricing will vary by market.
It seems some games are coming at launch for the top two tiers for the new PlayStation Plus setup. Sony advertises the following:
At launch, we plan to include titles such as Death Stranding, God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11, and Returnal. We’re working closely with our imaginative developers from PlayStation Studios and third-party partners to include some of the best gaming experiences available with a library that will be regularly refreshed. More details to come on the games we’ll have on our new PlayStation Plus service.
And for PlayStation Now subscribers you get put in the Premium Tier as confirmed by Sony
When the new PlayStation Plus service launches, PlayStation Now will transition into the new PlayStation Plus offering and will no longer be available as a standalone service. PlayStation Now customers will migrate over to PlayStation Plus Premium with no increase to their current subscription fees at launch.
Exciting times are ahead for PlayStation owners.
