PlayStation Plus vs Xbox Game Pass: Which service trumps the other
Sony has finally announced its new PlayStation Plus service, which combines PS Plus and PS Now along with some extra benefits. This revamped service will take on Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass. While the new PS Plus service will launch in June, the company has already announced its key details. Here we will be taking a look at how the revamped PS Plus service compares to Xbox Game Pass.
Price
The revamped PS Plus has been divided into three categories: Essential, Extra and Premium. The Essential tier is priced at $10 (approximately Rs 758) per month, $25 (approximately Rs 1896) per quarter, and at $60 (approximately Rs 4,551) per year. The Extra tier is priced at $15 (approximately Rs 1,137) per month, at $40 (approximately Rs 3,034) per quarter, and at $100 (approximately Rs 7,586) per year. Lastly, the Premium service is priced at $18 (approximately Rs 1,365) per month, at $50 (approximately Rs 3,793) per quarter and at $120 (approximately Rs 9,104) per year.
Xbox Game Pass is also offered in three different tiers PC Game Pass, Xbox Game Pass, and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass are priced at $10 (approximately Rs 758) per month, $30 (approximately Rs 2,276) per quarter, and at $120 (approximately Rs 9,104) per year. Xbox Game Pass Ultimate is priced at $15 (approximately Rs 1,137) per month, at $45 (approximately Rs 3,414) per quarter and at $180 (approximately Rs 13,656) per year.
Microsoft’s Game Pass service is also available in India, with the PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass starting at Rs 489 per month, and the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate starting at Rs 699 per month. New users in India will get the Game Pass subscription for eight months initially.
PS Plus
The PS Plus Essential plan will include all of the benefits of the existing PS Plus subscription, like free games each month, discounts on games and other content, cloud storage for saved games, and access to online multiplayer.
Under the Extra tier, players will get access to a catalogue of up to 400 PS4 and PS5 games, including “blockbuster hits” from PlayStation Studios and third-party publishers. This tier will include all benefits of the Essential tiers.
Under the Premium subscription, players will get access to all benefits of the Essential and Extra tiers, along with access to up to 340 additional games. These additional games will include select PS3, PS2, PS1 and PSP titles. Players will also get access to cloud streaming support for some PS4 games, and access to time-limited trials.
The company has stated that it will also host a Deluxe tier, which will be made available in select markets that do not support cloud streaming. It will be placed under the Premium tier. The Deluxe tier just like the Premium tier will support PS1, PS2, and PSP games along with time-limited game trials and all other benefits from the Essential and Extra tiers.
After the launch of the revamped PS Plus service, the company will discontinue its PS Now subscription. All existing users will be migrated to PS Plus Premium at no extra monthly cost.
Xbox Game Pass
Xbox Game Pass from what we know seems much superior compared to the revamped PS Plus service. One of the biggest upper hand it has is that all first-party games and select third-party titles all are made available to subscribers on day one. Apart from this, various new titles are added to the service each month. Microsoft keeps expanding its gaming portfolio by acquiring major studios, one of the biggest acquisitions being Activision Blizzard, with which we expect all games from the studio to be made available on the platform.
Other benefits include discounts on games and content, along with free monthly perks like bonuses for Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5 and more.
Xbox Game Pass Ultimate takes it to the next step, by bundling a complimentary subscription to EA Play, which allows users to gain access to EA’s massive game catalogue. This tier also includes complimentary Xbox Live Gold, which provides users with features like online play, cloud game streaming and free Games With Gold titles each month.
Games
No service is worth its value without good content, the same goes for game streaming services.
Sony with its PS Plus Premium tier is offering users access to over 700 games including older-gen titles. However, it is yet to provide clarity on the list of games. But it has assured players that Death Stranding, God of War, Spider-Man, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11, and Returnal will be present at the time of launch. Additionally, the service will also bring in titles available through the PlayStation Now streaming service and monthly free games that PS Plus subscribers currently get.
Xbox Game Pass is already filled with a list of over 100 titles. New titles keep on coming, with old titles leaving the service. Game Pass Ultimate subscribers also get monthly freebies with access to a huge catalogue of backwards compatible titles. Not to forget the access to EA Play, which adds titles like FIFA, Battlefield and more. Moreover, the service recently also got a few Ubisoft titles for its subscribers to play.
Day 1
One of the major differences between the platforms is access to day one releases. Microsoft offers its Game Pass subscribers access to its own games and some third-party titles on the launch day at no extra cost to members. These include titles like Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Extraction, Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5. The company plans to keep this going.
Sony is taking a different route and will be cycling in games at a much later date when they are a bit older.
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