After months of speculation and reports, Sony finally unveiled its new PS Plus subscription service — previously referred to as codename “Spartacus” — which falls in line with the likes of Xbox Game Pass. The new service aims to streamline Sony’s offerings, effectively combining PS Plus and PS Now, with various options and benefits across multiple tiers. Though the service is nowhere near as straightforward as Xbox Game Pass, it’s certainly a step in the right direction for Sony. But how does the new service work, and when does it launch? Here’s what you need to know about the new PlayStation Plus subscription model.
When is the new PS Plus release date?
On March 29, 2022, as reported by Bloomberg, Sony finally announced the new PlayStation Plus service, which will involve a major overhaul rolling out over late May and June. A May 16 PS Blog post confirms the staggered release:
- May 24 — Asia
- June 2 — Japan
- June 13 — North and South America
- June 23 — Australia and New Zealand
What are the new PS Plus prices and tiers?
As confirmed via Sony, the revamped service will feature three separate tiers, each with different offerings and prices.
PlayStation Plus Essential
$9.99 monthly / $24.99 quarterly / $59.99 yearly
- Provides the same benefits that PlayStation Plus members are getting today, such as:
- Two monthly downloadable games
- Exclusive discounts
- Cloud storage for saved games
- Online multiplayer access
PlayStation Plus Extra
$14.99 monthly / $39.99 quarterly / $99.99 yearly
- Provides all the benefits from the Essential tier
- Adds 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.
PlayStation Plus Premium
$17.99 monthly / $49.99 quarterly / $119.99 yearly
- Provides all the benefits from Essential and Extra tiers
- Adds up to 340 additional games, including 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
- 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.
Unfortunately, cloud streaming game access offered as part of the Extra and Premium tiers are only available in the US, Canada, Japan, UK, France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria, Switzerland, Ireland, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Sweden. In addition, PC streaming won’t be available in Japan at launch but will come at a later, unspecified date.
What is on the new PS Plus games list?
The overall lineup of games gets a bit confusing due to the subscription tiers. Most Ubisoft games, for example, are only available to PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium members as part of Ubisoft+ Classics. Sony has also indicated that this is an “early look at a selection of games,” so the library has plenty of room to grow. In fact, Sony promises growth: “A monthly refresh will occur on the first Tuesday of the month for the PlayStation Plus Essential plan (and both higher tiers), with new PS4 and PS5 games added to the service – same as what PlayStation Plus members get today.”
PS4 and PS5 Games
PlayStation Studios
- Alienation | Housemarque, PS4
- Bloodborne | FromSoftware, PS4
- Concrete Genie | Pixelopus, PS4
- Days Gone | Bend Studio, PS4
- Dead Nation Apocalypse Edition | Housemarque, PS4
- Death Stranding and Death Stranding Director’s Cut | Kojima Productions, PS4/PS5
- Demon’s Souls | Bluepoint Games, PS5
- Destruction AllStars | Lucid Games, PS5
- Everybody’s Golf | Japan Studio, PS4
- Ghost Of Tsushima Director’s Cut | Sucker Punch, PS4/ PS5
- God of War | Santa Monica Studio, PS4
- Gravity Rush 2 | Japan Studio, PS4
- Gravity Rush Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4
- Horizon Zero Dawn | Guerrilla, PS4
- Infamous First Light | Sucker Punch, PS4
- Infamous Second Son | Sucker Punch, PS4
- Knack | Japan Studio, PS4
- LittleBigPlanet 3 | Sumo Digital, PS4
- LocoRoco Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4
- LocoRoco 2 Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4
- Marvel’s Spider-Man | Insomniac Games, PS4
- Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Insomniac Games, PS4/PS5
- Matterfall |Housemarque, PS4
- MediEvil | Other Ocean, PS4
- Patapon Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4
- Patapon 2 Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4
- Resogun | Housemarque, PS4
- Returnal | Housemarque, PS5
- Shadow of the Colossus | Japan Studio, PS4
- Tearaway Unfolded |Media Molecule, PS4
- The Last Guardian | Japan Studio, PS4
- The Last of Us Remastered | Naughty Dog, PS4
- The Last of Us: Left Behind | Naughty Dog, PS4
- Until Dawn | Supermassive Games, PS4
- Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection |Naughty Dog, PS4
- Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End | Naughty Dog, PS4
- Uncharted: The Lost Legacy | Naughty Dog, PS4
- WipEout Omega Collection | Clever Beans & Creative Vault Studios, PS4
Third Party-Partners
- Ashen | Annapurna Interactive,PS4
- Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | Ubisoft, PS4/PS5
- Batman: Arkham Knight | WB Games, PS4
- Celeste | Maddy Makes Games, PS4
- Cities: Skylines | Paradox Interactive, PS4
- Control: Ultimate Edition | 505 Games, PS4/PS5
- Dead Cells | Motion Twin, PS4
- Far Cry 3 Remaster | Ubisoft, PS4
- Far Cry 4 | Ubisoft, PS4
- Final Fantasy XV Royal Edition | Square Enix Co. LTD, PS4
- For Honor | Ubisoft, PS4
- Hollow Knight | Team Cherry, PS4
- Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy | Square Enix Co. LTD., PS4/PS5
- Mortal Kombat 11 | WB Games, PS4/PS5
- Narutoshippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 | Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., PS4
- NBA 2K22 | 2K Games, PS4/PS5
- Outer Wilds | Annapurna Interactive, PS4
- Red Dead Redemption 2 | Rockstar Games, PS4
- Resident Evil | Capcom Co., Ltd, PS4
- Soulcalibur VI | Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., PS4
- South Park: The Fractured but Whole | Ubisoft, PS4
- The Artful Escape | Annapurna Interactive, PS4/PS5
- The Crew 2 | Ubisoft, PS4
- Tom Clancy’s The Division | Ubisoft, PS4
Classic Games
Original PlayStation and PSP — PlayStation Studios
- Ape Escape | Japan Studio, Original PlayStation
- Hot Shots Golf | Japan Studio, Original PlayStation
- I.Q. Intelligent Qube | Japan Studio, Original PlayStation
- Jumping Flash! | Japan Studio, Original PlayStation
- Syphon Filter | Bend Studio, Original PlayStation
- Super Stardust Portable | Housemarque, PSP
Original PlayStation and PSP — Third Party Partners
- Mr. Driller | Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., Original PlayStation
- Tekken 2 | Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., Original PlayStation
- Worms World Party | Team 17, Original PlayStation
- Worms Armageddon | Team17, Original PlayStation
Remasters — PlayStation Studios
- Ape Escape 2 | Japan Studio, PS4
- Arc The Lad: Twilight of the Spirits | Japan Studio, PS4
- Dark Cloud | Japan Studio, PS4
- Dark Cloud 2 | Japan Studio, PS4
- FantaVision | SIE, PS4
- Hot Shots Tennis | Japan Studio, PS4
- Jak II | Naughty Dog, PS4
- Jak 3 | Naughty Dog, PS4
- Jak X: Combat Racing | Naughty Dog, PS4
- Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy | Naughty Dog, PS4
- Rogue Galaxy | Japan Studio, PS4
- Siren | Japan Studio, PS4
- Wild Arms 3 | SIE, PS4
Remasters — Third-Party Partners
- Bioshock Remastered | 2K Games, PS4
- Borderlands The Handsome Collection | 2K Games, PS4
- Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition | Gearbox Publishing, PS4
- Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning | THQ Nordic, PS4
- LEGO Harry Potter Collection | WB Games, PS4
Original PS3 Games
(Note: Exclusive to PS Plus Premium where cloud streaming is available)
PlayStation Studios
- Crash Commando | Creative Vault Studios, PS3
- Demon’s Souls | From Software, PS3
- echochrome | Japan Studio, PS3
- Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds | Japan Studio, PS3
- Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational | Japan Studio, PS3
- Ico | Japan Studio, PS3
- Infamous | Sucker Punch, PS3
- Infamous 2 | Sucker Punch, PS3
- Infamous: Festival of Blood | Sucker Punch, PS3
- LocoRoco Cocoreccho! | Japan Studio, PS3
- MotorStorm Apocalypse | Evolution Studios, PS3
- MotorStorm RC | Evolution Studios, PS3
- Puppeteer | Japan Studio, PS3
- rain | Japan Studio, PS3
- Ratchet & Clank: Quest For Booty | Insomniac Games, PS3
- Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time |Insomniac Games, PS3
- Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus | Insomniac Games, PS3
- Resistance 3 | Insomniac Games, PS3
- Super Stardust HD | Housemarque, PS3
- Tokyo Jungle | Japan Studio, PS3
- When Vikings Attack | Clever Beans, PS3
Third-Party Partners
- Asura’s Wrath | Capcom Co., Ltd., PS3
- Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 | Konami, PS3
- Devil May Cry HD Collection | Capcom Co., Ltd., PS3
- Enslaved: Odyssey to the West | Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc., PS3
- F.E.A.R. | WB Games, PS3
- Lost Planet 2 | Capcom Co., Ltd., PS3
- Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 | Koei Tecmo, PS3
- Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare | Rockstar Games, PS3
Time-Limited Game Trials
Sony will also let gamers download a trial version of the following full games, through which they can sample two hours of gameplay.
PlayStation Studios
- Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection | Naughty Dog, PS5
- Horizon Forbidden West | Guerrilla, PS4/PS5
Third Party Partners
- Cyberpunk 2077 | CD Projekt, PS5
- Farming Simulator 22 | Giants Software GmBH, PS4/PS5
- Tiny Tina’s Wonderland | 2K Games, PS4/PS5
- WWE 2K22 | 2K Games, PS4/PS5
Will the new PS Plus service have backward compatibility?
The new PlayStation Plus service will incorporate older games from Sony’s back catalog across the original PlayStation, PS2, PS3, PSP, and PS4, though there are caveats. Most egregiously, PS3 games are only streamable, just as they were on PS Now. Thankfully, you will be able to download original PlayStation, PS2, PSP, PS4, and PS5 games to your device.
In addition, the list won’t incorporate every game released across each PlayStation console, but rather a selection from the company’s catalog that will be “regularly refreshed,” according to Sony.
Will the new PlayStation Plus service include Sony-published games on day one?
One of the best things about Xbox Game Pass is that several games are already on the service on launch day. Specifically, Microsoft launches all of its first-party games on the service day one. That paid off in 2021 as Microsoft released a strong lineup of games like Psychonauts 2, Forza Horizon 5, and Halo Infinite.
As part of an interview with GamesIndustry, PlayStation CEO Jim Ryan confirmed that first-party Sony games would not launch on the new service on day one. “The way our publishing model works right now [putting new games straight into PS Plus] doesn't make any sense,” Ryan told the publication. “But things can change very quickly in this industry.”
So, it’s clear the new version of PS Plus won’t necessarily compete with Microsoft’s Game Pass model, at least when it comes to offering first-party games on day one.
