Today saw the launch of the new PlayStation Plus tiers in Australia with the service being rolled out across the world over the last week. Already, there's been a lot of negativity about it with people comparing it to Game Pass in its current state, which I think is an unfair comparison to make for a few reasons....
Here are the new PlayStation Plus Tiers:
PlayStation Plus Deluxe costs $154.95 per year compared to Game pass ultimate being approximately $190 a year.
Now one of the complaints I've heard from people is the fact that there are tiers on PS Plus where as Game pass only has 1 level so its easy.... Well, aside from that not being even remotely true with Xbox having Xbox Live, Xbox Game pass for Console, Xbox Game pass for PC and Xbox Game pass Ultimate. I'd say that the tiers on the PlayStation Plus service are much more consumer friendly... For example, if you just want to play online without the benefits of the game catalogues etc; then you can pay just $79.95 a year for the essential tier instead of the approximately $120 a year through Xbox who have Xbox Live only subscriptions but are about the same price as Game Pass itself which includes Xbox live.
However my biggest gripe with all the complainers is that they are comparing PS Plus on launch to a Game pass that is over 5 years old. Meaning they have had 5 years of adding games and content to get it to its current state and in fact on launch, Game pass looked very, very different. Here's a full list of launch games for Xbox Game Pass back in 2017:
Game Pass Launch Titles:
Hardly a reflection of Game pass 5 years on is it? Now compare that to the list of games you get with PlayStation's Extra Tier, which offers a catalogue of over 400 PS4 and PS5 games
PS5 Games Available on launch:
PS4 Games Available on launch:
Comparatively, at launch PlayStation Plus offers significantly more value than Game pass did when it launched in 2017. This isn't me telling you that either service is better than the other. Its simply a comparison and suggestion that rather than comparing a day 1 service to a 5 year old one that we give PlayStation Plus a little time to find its feet and see what else is added over the next 12 months before judging it. There's no doubt that both services have something to offer and both are great value to the right person. I personally have PS Plus Deluxe and Xbox Game pass Ultimate and find excellent value in both as if even 2 games a year that I'd usually pay anywhere from $79 - $120 each come to each service, means I come out on top.
You make up your own mind...
