Sony’s PlayStation division today revealed its ambitions to expand the PlayStation Plus premium service to provide users with an unparalleled cloud gaming experience. Nick Maguire, PlayStation’s Vice President and Head of Global Subscriptions, revealed some staggering figures for the PlayStation Plus program.
Last year alone, PlayStation Plus racked up a staggering 1 billion hours of game play, demonstrating the platform’s massive appeal and engagement. Users also spent seven times more time on PlayStation Plus than on PlayStation Now, underlining its appeal and value to gamers. Among the various games available, cat simulator Stray was the most popular game in the PlayStation Plus library. In addition, Soul of Tsushima has the longest total play time of any title available.
Sony also revealed cloud support for PS5 games, which is a significant improvement for PlayStation Plus Premium customers. This means that cloud access will be available for compatible PS5 games, including those in the existing PlayStation Plus games catalogue and game trials, as well as PS5 downloadable titles purchased by players. This change is designed to give gamers more freedom and convenience by allowing them to play PS5 games on multiple devices.
Xbox Cloud Gaming, on the other hand, currently only allows you to play titles from the Xbox Game Pass catalogue. Once a game is removed from the library, it can no longer be played via cloud streaming, even if the player has previously purchased it. Sony’s move to extend cloud support to PS5 games is a big advantage in terms of retaining access to previously purchased titles.
The PlayStation Plus Premium service costs around £15 per month (prices may vary by market). One of its key features is that it gives customers access to a large selection of back catalogue PlayStation titles, adding even more value to an already extensive portfolio.
Sony’s expansion of the PlayStation Plus premium service underlines the company’s commitment to delivering a great gaming experience while embracing the growing popularity of cloud gaming. PlayStation is committed to meeting the diverse interests and expectations of gamers around the world by offering greater accessibility and a richer library of games.