Sony through its official Twitter account told the world about its three different service tiers for PlayStation Plus—Essential, Extra, and Premium—and pointed to a manual, but it was a yes and no situation in the gaming community. A large number of gamers are commenting negatively about the price, the fact that discounts are only for new subscribers, and the service value overall. The distance between Sony and the gaming community is enormous at present, and it is producing a real commotion on the Internet.
In a way, Sony’s tweet was like ‘Hello, we have these plans for you!’ and then enumerated the three alternatives. Essential allows online play and gives a few monthly games, Extra adds game catalog to it, and Premium lets even cloud streaming and classic games. All this, however, surprised everyone as the replies were nothing but angry. One user, @RealMrGrumps, made it worse and said it was ‘Not worth the money. I got two years premium when I switched from the OG PS5 to the slim one and I have never used it once. Even the essential is barely worth it.’ Generally speaking, that review seems very harsh, but it is not the only one.
The most complaints come from the discount pattern. Sony has said there are discounts available, but from what is being reported, they are exclusively for new customers or accounts that have been inactive for a while. Loyalty gets you nowhere. @Harley1Davids0n shared that he has been a steady subscriber since 2013—12 years—and never got any discounts while the new ones are always popping up. They made their point saying, ‘Well done @Sony @PlayStation. No more.’ That is a long time of being charged the full price and feeling overlooked. Another user @turkeyksa2222 was perplexed, ‘What nonsense is this, Sony? Why should only new customers enjoy these perks? I will not renew my subscription until I get the same discounts as they do.’ It is a problem that has already been brought up, but it is still very annoying to people.
The automatic renewal seemed to increase the drama around billing. @djseanconnery told a tale of his PS Plus auto-renewing without a discount, thus, charging him $79.99 instead of a planned Black Friday price. The user said ‘The refund says just cancel and keep but no refund. Sony support is closed today. Help?’ That is a difficult situation to be in, and it also illustrates how the system can be players’ enemy, especially for those trying to save a few dollars. You have to be very careful or you end up being charged the full price.
Some users have started to question the value of the higher tiers altogether. @Smardars remarked: ‘Essential all the way, the rest is just wasted fluff with the games they have available.’ So, even if people are paying, they are not necessarily happy with what they are getting. @thepowerfulgonz added: ‘Be nice if I could actually stream games on my ps5,’ pointing out that such a feature as cloud streaming might not even be working properly for everyone. And @ferdyitsme asked for cloud streaming being available in Singapore, showing that some areas still experience this problem with availability.
The nostalgia brigade is back in full swing; @FugitiveXXX reminding everyone, ‘Remember when you didn’t need plus to be online.’ That is right; PS3 days were free for online play, and many gamers have not forgotten that. To most of them, the current state where one has to pay just to access multiplayer feels like a money grab. @ThaIncredibleC put it simply: ‘The cheapest one that gives me online multiplayer capability.’ For many players, that is the only motive for subscribing—they feel coerced into it just to be able to play with friends.
And then comes the constant comparison with other platforms. @phuckdemlibs stated that he was eager to the new Steam console next year as it would mean ‘more games AND free multiplayer.’ That is a blunt criticism of Sony’s business model, and it shows that gamers are thinking about switching. With services like Xbox Game Pass and PC options available, the weight is on PlayStation Plus to substantiate its price.
Wait, what was I talking about? Oh yes, the discounts. @Heath_OKane ‘Make your 33% off Black Friday sale for all tiers instead of just the premium.’ Right now, the Black Friday deal seems to be targeted at Premium users, leaving Essential and Extra subscribers in the dark. And @Adri_Mul echoed similar feelings: ‘I need a discount on Essential as a recurring member!’ There is no doubt that gamers are demanding fairness in pricing throughout the entire process, not just for new sign-ups or the highest tier.
