What is PlayStation Plus Essential?
Sony has finally launched its new tier subscription service for PlayStation Plus, with PS Plus Essential coming in as the most affordable option.
Since this base tier doesn’t give players access to a game library like Xbox Game Pass, PlayStation Plus Essential is more of a rival to Xbox Live Gold.
To learn more about PS Plus Essential, including the release date and pricing, make sure you keep reading.
Price
There are three pricing options for the PS tier system, with the choice to become a member on a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis. Check out the prices below:
- Monthly: £6.99/$9.99/€8.99/¥850
- Quarterly: £19.99/$24.99/€24.99/¥2,150
- Yearly: £49.99/$59.99/€59.99/¥5,143
You’ve also got the option to spend more and upgrade to either PS Plus Extra or PS Plus Premium tiers.
Release date
Sony has confirmed that the new PlayStation Plus subscription service will launch sometime in June 2022, which will give prospective buyers some time to decide which tier suits them best.
We have reached out to Sony for market-specific details and will update this page when we get a response.
Features
Seeing as PS Plus Essential is, as the name implies, offering up only the essential features of PlayStation Plus, you are getting fewer benefits than the other two tiers.
PS Plus Essential members will be able to download two monthly games, receive various exclusive discounts, get access to online multiplayer and use cloud storage for saved game files.
If that sounds familiar to anyone, it’s because that’s what current PlayStation Plus members are already receiving, so anyone that’s already a member won’t see any changes. Plus, Sony has not increased the price of this service, as the current PS Plus service already comes in at £49.99 per year.
Make sure you stay tuned with Trusted Reviews, as we will be updating this article as soon as we know specific details on what the new PS Plus service will look like.
The Trusted Take
Seeing as I’m already a PlayStation Plus member, I’m very happy to see that Sony hasn’t inflated the price of the lowest tier, as it means anyone who’s happy with the previous PS Plus service can continue using it without needing to pay more for benefits they may not even want.
The PS Plus Extra and Premium tiers are a little more alluring seeing as they offer up more perks, like the ability to play PS2 games, but I’m sure many people will be happy to see the original PS Plus service alive and well.
Provided the launch of this new service works out, and everyone can still access what they’re used to, I can see more people turning to Sony for all their game streaming needs.