Sony has launched the PlayStation Now open beta in the US and Canada, offering PS4 gamers a chance to try out the subscription service.
PlayStation Now lets you stream PS3 games directly to your PS4 and the open beta service has just been made available to those in the US and Canada.
The service is offered on a rental fee basis, on top of what you no doubt already pay for a PlayStation Plus subscription, but offers a huge back catalogue of PS3 games to play on your PS4.
PlayStation Now isn’t expected to launch in the UK and Europe until 2015, but we can get a glimpse of what to expect by a new walkthrough trailer Sony has released to mark the occasion.
“It’s a game streaming service. We’re going to start on PlayStation 4. From there we’re going to deploy on other devices later like PlayStation 3, Vita, PlayStation TV. So we really encourage everyone to come in, try out the service. Please, give us your feedback and let us know how it’s going,” said Jack Buser, Senior Director for PlayStation Now.
For those in the US and Canada, PlayStation Now is integrated into the PlayStation Store. You’ll be able to see what’s new on PlayStation Now, all the currently available games and those you’re currently renting.
The service is starting out with over 100 PS3 titles, but Sony says that figure will added to “all the time”.
Before getting into those though, you might want to head to the Connection Test section.
“We recommend having a 5mbps or above connection. PS Now supports both wired and Wi-Fi but wired connections give you the most stable broadband access.”
For some games you can get four different rental options, ranging from 4 hours if you’re just looking to trial a title, through 7 and 30 day rentals all the way up to 90 days.
If you only opt for the 4 hour rental, you can store your game save in the PlayStation Cloud servers to pick up later if you opt for one of the longer rental schemes.
“We’ve had a lot of feedback in the private beta, and we talked about rentals today, but I should say that subscription is something that’s been asked for quite a bit. It’s definitely something in the works, so look out for that.”
Read more: Xbox One vs PS4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MCyAT9PBgEc
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
