Was Sony Right to Resist Adding PS5 Exclusives to PS Plus Day One? | Push Square
One of the major plot points from the opening exchanges of this generation was Sony’s resistance to adding first-party PS5 titles to PS Plus on day one. Whatever your personal opinion of the strategy, the Japanese giant was heckled and harried by both media and fans, repeatedly accused of ripping off its consumers by not following in the footsteps of Xbox’s acclaimed Game Pass proposition.
All PS5, PS4 games lists for PS Plus Essential, Extra, and Premium
«It doesn't make sense for us»
Despite question marks over its profitability, Microsoft repeatedly assured journalists and consumers alike that the business model was sound, and wasn’t being propped up by its parent company’s obscene riches. This is despite it switching to a financial reporting strategy that obscured the true nature of its numbers, focusing on revenue rather than cold hard profits.
PlayStation, on the occasions it was asked, said that the strategy was simply not “sustainable” – a line it would go on to repeat multiple times. “We are not going to go down the road of putting new releases titles into a subscription model,” then boss Jim Ryan told Games Industry.biz. “These games cost many millions of dollars, well over $100 million, to develop. We just don't see that as sustainable.”
He was, of course, accused of being a profiteering liar – and it became another arrow in the quiver of Ryan’s biggest detractors, many of whom felt he was poor fit for leading PlayStation despite his unprecedented business success.
Sony did go on to reinvent its subscription offerings, combining PS Plus with PS Now to create a more compelling trio of tiers that included a wider selection of PS5 and PS4 games. And it would later experiment with adding smaller, day one titles to its offering, like Tchia, Humanity, and more recently Animal Well. While there are still question marks over the more expensive PS Plus Premium, the value of PS Plus Extra has largely been applauded.
Still, while the experiment has proven a success
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