PS4

Sony Announces New Tiers and Changes to PlayStation Plus

Following rumors of a big reveal this week and changes to PlayStation Plus, Sony has finally announced the new version of the program.

Instead of having a single tier of PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now, there will be multiple tiers with the two programs being merged. Those with PlayStation Plus will be changed to PlayStation Plus Essential, with PlayStation Now changing over to PlayStation Plus Premium.

To get a better idea of the upcoming changes, you can find Sony’s explanation below.

Our focus is on providing high-quality, curated content with a diverse portfolio of games*. Below is an overview of the three membership tiers:
PlayStation Plus Essential
Benefits:
Provides the same benefits that PlayStation Plus members are getting today, such as: Two monthly downloadable games. Exclusive discounts. Cloud storage for saved game. Online multiplayer access
There are no changes for existing PlayStation Plus members in this tier.
Price* for PlayStation Plus Essential remains the same as the current price for PlayStation Plus.
United States – $9.99 monthly / $24.99 quarterly / $59.99 yearly
Europe – €8.99 monthly / €24.99 quarterly / €59.99 yearly
United Kingdom – £6.99 monthly / £19.99 quarterly / £49.99 yearly
Japan – ¥850 monthly / ¥2,150 quarterly / ¥5,143 yearly
PlayStation Plus Extra
Benefits:
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.
Price:
United States – $14.99 monthly / $39.99 quarterly / $99.99 yearly
Europe – €13.99 monthly / €39.99 quarterly / €99.99 yearly
United Kingdom – £10.99 monthly / £31.99 quarterly / £83.99 yearly
Japan – ¥1,300 monthly / ¥3,600 quarterly / ¥8,600 yearly
PlayStation Plus Premium**
Benefits:
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.
Price:
United States – $17.99 monthly / $49.99 quarterly / $119.99 yearly
Europe – €16.99 monthly / €49.99 quarterly / €119.99 yearly
United Kingdom – £13.49 monthly / £39.99 quarterly / £99.99 yearly
Japan – ¥1,550 – monthly / ¥4,300 – quarterly / ¥10,250 yearly
PlayStation Plus Deluxe (Select Markets) For markets without cloud streaming, PlayStation Plus Deluxe will be offered at a lower price compared to Premium, and includes a catalog of beloved classic games from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations to download and play, along with time-limited game trials. Benefits from Essential and Extra tiers are also included. Local pricing will vary by market.
PlayStation Blog

Sony was also quick to note some of the benefits the upcoming higher tiers will offer.

The new Extra and Premium tiers represent a major evolution for PlayStation Plus. With these tiers, our key focus is to ensure that the hundreds of games we offer will include the best quality content that sets us apart. At launch, we plan to include titles such as Death Stranding, God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11, and Returnal. We’re working closely with our imaginative developers from PlayStation Studios and third-party partners to include some of the best gaming experiences available with a library that will be regularly refreshed. More details to come on the games we’ll have on our new PlayStation Plus service.
PlayStation Blog

Changes are expected to happen around June, starting with Japan, with everyone being converted hopefully by the first half of 2022.

As this is a massive launch effort, we’re rolling out the new PlayStation Plus offering in a phased regional approach. In the June timeframe, we’ll begin with an initial launch in several markets in Asia, followed by North America, Europe and the rest of the world where PlayStation Plus is offered. We aim to have most PlayStation Network territories live with our new PlayStation Plus game subscription service by the end of the first half of 2022. We also plan to expand our cloud streaming benefit to additional markets, and will provide more details at a later date.
PlayStation Blog

Grant Gaines

Hey, my name is Grant and I'm the Managing Editor, main reviewer and cover technology for Infinite Start. I've learned a lot over the years working for a variety of websites and reviewing literally hundreds of titles. I also have a background selling televisions, sound systems and more from my period at Best Buy, to the point where I was in the top 1 percent for sales and became Magnolia certified. I always look forward to sharing new and different information with our readers and hope they do as well. If you would like to contact me, my email is grant period gaines at Infinite Start.