Sony reveals its Game Pass alternative… and Microsoft has nothing to worry about

PlayStation Plus is still heavily invested in console hardware.

- MICHAEL CRIDER

It’s been three years since Microsoft started releasing first-run Xbox and PC games on the all-in-one Xbox Game Pass service, and started an innovative platform-agnostic approach to publishing games. While Game Pass hasn’t conquered the game industry, it’s definitely making waves. Perennial console rival Sony has taken notice, and is now revamping its own subscription and streaming services for the PlayStation brand.

But if you were hoping that the newly rechristened PlayStation Plus (fave. co/3rzOIGd) would be a true rival to Microsoft’s excellent Xbox Game Pass on the PC (fave.co/3vohwCJ), well, keep hoping. The upcoming reboot of PlayStation Plus makes a lot of sense if you’re heavily invested in the PlayStation brand. If you primarily game on the PC, it just doesn’t offer anywhere near the same kind of value.

Here’s a quick breakdown of the tiers that will be available on the upcoming PlayStation Plus service:

Essential — $10 a month

• Online multiplayer for PlayStation consoles

• Two free PlayStation games a month

• Cloud storage for game saves

• PlayStation digital store discounts

Extra — $15 a month

• Everything above, plus:

• “Up to 400” PS4 and PS5 games available for console download only