PlayStation Stands Firm on PS Plus Strategy as PS5 Game Streaming Looms

Sony is currently testing cloud streaming for PS5 games, which will be available to PS Plus Premium subscribers. This service will feature PS5 titles from the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog and Game Trials, as well as supported digital PS5 games that players already own. For now, these games can only be streamed to PS5 consoles. Nick Maguire, the company's vice president and global head of subscriptions, expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming feature but declined to provide further details, citing the testing phase. In addition to PS5 game streaming, Sony has announced the addition of several games to the service this month, including Far Cry 6, Shredder's Revenge, and Rogue Legacy 2 on PS4 and PS5. The company has also added Soulstice on PS5, as well as Deus Ex: Mankind Divided and Killing Floor on PS4. WWE 2K23 on PS4 is launching within Game Trials, and the PSP game Killzone Liberation is joining the firm's Classics range. Maguire highlighted the service's success, citing over a billion hours of gameplay since its launch and an average user engagement seven times higher than that of PlayStation Now. He attributed this success to the quality and diversity of the game portfolio, which makes the service attractive to a wide range of players. Maguire also noted that four of the top ten most popular games on the service are PS Studios titles, including Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Horizon Forbidden West, and Ratchet and Clank Rift Apart. The PS5 is the largest platform for the Plus service, and Maguire expressed confidence in the company's strategy of releasing first-party games outside of the service first. While the company may consider launching some titles day-and-date, Maguire stated that this will not be the standard approach. When asked about the potential for service-based games to launch day-and-date into PS Plus, Maguire replied that the company is constantly evaluating its strategy and considering how player habits may evolve. The service has seen a few surprises, including the popularity of the Premium tier and the similarity of player preferences across different countries. Despite an initial drop in subscriber numbers following the post-pandemic dip in the games industry, Maguire reported that the service has returned to growth and that there is no need to change course. Instead, the focus is on adding new features, games, and benefits to keep the service relevant and appealing to players.