The All-New PlayStation Plus Has Arrived

The revamped PlayStation Plus arrives in North America today, here's a look at how it works and what games are available within each service tier.

PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now have come together in an all-new PlayStation Plus subscription service. Earlier today I was able to check out and test a few of the classic games, under the "Premium Tier" more of my impressions later. Starting today gamers will now be able to choose between three membership tiers, here is the pricing and what each offers:

PlayStation Plus Essential

• Provides the same benefits that PlayStation Plus members are getting today, such as:

• 2x monthly downloadable games

• Exclusive discount

• Cloud storage for saved games

• Online multiplayer access

• There are no changes for existing PlayStation Plus members in this tier

The price for "PlayStation Plus Essential" remains the same as the current price for PlayStation Plus, here is how it breaks down across major international regions:

United States $9.99 monthly / $24.99 quarterly / $59.99 yearly

Europe €8.99 monthly / €24.99 quarterly / €59.99 yearly

United Kingdom £6.99 monthly / £19.99 quarterly / £49.99 yearly

Japan ¥850 monthly / ¥2,150 quarterly / ¥5,143 yearly

PlayStation Plus Extra

• Provides all the benefits from the Essential tier

• Adds a catalogue of up to 400 fan favourite PS4 and PS5 games - including blockbuster hits from PlayStation Studios catalog and third-party games. Games in the "Extra" tier are downloadable for play.

Here is how the price for "PlayStation Extra" breakdown internationally:

United States $14.99 monthly / $39.99 quarterly / $99.99 yearly

Europe €13.99 monthly / €39.99 quarterly / €99.99 yearly

United Kingdom £10.99 monthly / £31.99 quarterly / £83.99 yearly

Japan ¥1,300 monthly / ¥3,600 quarterly / ¥8,600 yearly

PlayStation Plus Premium

• This tier provides all the benefits from "Essential" and "Extra" tiers

• Adds up to 340 additional games, including: PS3 games available via cloud streaming

• A catalog of beloved classic games available in both streaming and download options, from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations.

• Offers cloud streaming access for original PlayStation, PS2, PSP and PS4 games offered in the "Extra" and "Premium" tiers in markets where PlayStation Now is currently available. Customers can stream games using PS4 and PS5 consoles, and PC.

• Time-limited game trials will also be offered in this tier, so gamers can try select games before they buy.

Here's the pricing plan for "PlayStation Premium" internationally:

United States $17.99 monthly / $49.99 quarterly / $119.99 yearly

Europe €16.99 monthly / €49.99 quarterly / €119.99 yearly

United Kingdom £13.49 monthly / £39.99 quarterly / £99.99 yearly

Japan ¥1,550 – monthly / ¥4,300 – quarterly / ¥10,250 yearly

PlayStation Plus Deluxe (Select Markets)

For markets without cloud streaming, PlayStation Plus Deluxe will be offered at a lower price compared to Premium, and includes a catalog of beloved classic games from the original PlayStation, PS2 and PSP generations to download and play, along with time-limited game trials. Benefits from Essential and Extra tiers are also included. Local pricing will vary by market. (PlayStation Blog)

Titles Included in the Higher Echelons of the Service

President and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment Jim Ryan went into a little more detail around the titles included with the new service: "The new Extra and Premium tiers represent a major evolution for PlayStation Plus. With these tiers, our key focus is to ensure that the hundreds of games we offer will include the best quality content that sets us apart. At launch, we plan to include titles such as Death Stranding, God of War, Marvel’s Spider-Man, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Mortal Kombat 11, and Returnal." Let's take a look at what the revamped service has to offer:

PlayStation Plus 2.0's Impressive Lineup

Here are the games that will be available today under each tier. PlayStation.com will be updated with the game list when it launches in your region, so stay tuned!

For now, here's how each breaks down in North America.

PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium subscribers will have access to the following titles:

PlayStation Studios Titles

• Alienation | Housemarque, PS4

• Bloodborne | FromSoftware, PS4

• Concrete Genie | Pixelopus, PS4

• Days Gone | Bend Studio, PS4

• Dead Nation Apocalypse Edition | Housemarque, PS4

• Death Stranding and Death Stranding Director’s Cut | Kojima Productions, PS4/PS5

• Demon’s Souls | Bluepoint Games, PS5

• Destruction AllStars | Lucid Games, PS5

• Everybody’s Golf | Japan Studio, PS4

• Ghost Of Tsushima Director’s Cut | Sucker Punch, PS4/ PS5

• God of War | Santa Monica Studio, PS4

• Gravity Rush 2 | Japan Studio, PS4

• Gravity Rush Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4

• Horizon Zero Dawn | Guerrilla, PS4

• Infamous First Light | Sucker Punch, PS4

• Infamous Second Son | Sucker Punch, PS4

• Knack | Japan Studio, PS4

• LittleBigPlanet 3 | Sumo Digital, PS4

• LocoRoco Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4

• LocoRoco 2 Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4

• Marvel’s Spider-Man | Insomniac Games, PS4

• Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales | Insomniac Games, PS4/PS5

• Matterfall |Housemarque, PS4

• MediEvil | Other Ocean, PS4

• Patapon Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4

• Patapon 2 Remastered | Japan Studio, PS4

• Resogun | Housemarque, PS4

• Returnal | Housemarque, PS5

• Shadow of the Colossus | Japan Studio, PS4

• Tearaway Unfolded |Media Molecule, PS4

• The Last Guardian | Japan Studio, PS4

• The Last of Us Remastered | Naughty Dog, PS4

• The Last of Us: Left Behind | Naughty Dog, PS4

• Until Dawn | Supermassive Games, PS4

• Uncharted The Nathan Drake Collection |Naughty Dog, PS4

• Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End | Naughty Dog, PS4

• Uncharted: The Lost Legacy | Naughty Dog, PS4

• WipEout Omega Collection | Clever Beans & Creative Vault Studios, PS4

Third Party Games

• Ashen | Annapurna Interactive, PS4

• Assassin’s Creed Valhalla | Ubisoft, PS4/PS5

• Batman: Arkham Knight | WB Games, PS4

• Celeste | Maddy Makes Games, PS4

• Cities: Skylines | Paradox Interactive, PS4

• Control: Ultimate Edition | 505 Games, PS4/PS5

• Dead Cells| Motion Twin, PS4

• Far Cry 3 Remaster | Ubisoft, PS4

• Far Cry 4 | Ubisoft, PS4

• Final Fantasy XV Royal Edition | Square Enix Co. LTD, PS4

• For Honor | Ubisoft, PS4

• Hollow Knight | Team Cherry, PS4

• Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy | Square Enix Co. LTD., PS4/PS5

• Mortal Kombat 11 | WB Games, PS4/PS5

• Narutoshippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4 | Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., PS4

• NBA 2K22 | 2K Games, PS4/PS5

• Outer Wilds | Annapurna Interactive, PS4

• Red Dead Redemption 2 | Rockstar Games, PS4

• Resident Evil | Capcom Co., Ltd, PS4

• Soulcalibur VI | Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., PS4

• South Park: The Fractured but Whole*** | Ubisoft, PS4

• The Artful Escape | Annapurna Interactive, PS4/PS5

• The Crew 2 | Ubisoft, PS4

• Tom Clancy’s The Division | Ubisoft, PS4

Classic Games Catalog

For PlayStation Plus Premium / Deluxe subscribers a selection of original PlayStation and PSP classic games will available. Some of these games will see, "improved frame rates and higher-quality resolution compared to their original launch versions." Which is a pretty exciting development in the name of video game preservation. In addition, Sony has added a new user interface with menus that allow you to save your game at any time, or even rewind it if you wish.

The "Classic Games lineup" offers some personal favourites like Ape Escape and Syphon Filter. Sony is promising more retro titles are on the way, I am really hoping for classics like Metal Gear Solid to join the lineup. Here's is what will be on offer day one:

PlayStation Studios

• Ape Escape | Japan Studio, Original PlayStation

• Hot Shots Golf | Japan Studio, Original PlayStation

• I.Q. Intelligent Qube | Japan Studio, Original PlayStation

• Jumping Flash! | Japan Studio, Original PlayStation

• Syphon Filter | Bend Studio, Original PlayStation

• Super Stardust Portable | Housemarque, PSP

Third-Party Partners

• Mr. Driller | Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., Original PlayStation

• Tekken 2 | Bandai Namco Entertainment Inc., Original PlayStation

• Worms World Party | Team 17, Original PlayStation

• Worms Armageddon | Team17, Original PlayStation

Classic Games Catalog – Remasters

PlayStation Studios

• Ape Escape 2 | Japan Studio, PS4

• Arc The Lad: Twilight of the Spirits | Japan Studio, PS4

• Dark Cloud | Japan Studio, PS4

• Dark Cloud 2 | Japan Studio, PS4

• FantaVision | SIE, PS4

• Hot Shots Tennis | Japan Studio, PS4

• Jak II | Naughty Dog, PS4

• Jak 3| Naughty Dog, PS4

• Jak X: Combat Racing | Naughty Dog, PS4

• Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy | Naughty Dog, PS4

• Rogue Galaxy | Japan Studio, PS4

• Siren | Japan Studio, PS4

• Wild Arms 3 | SIE, PS4

Third-Party Games

• Baja: Edge of Control HD | THQ Nordic, PS4

• Bioshock Remastered | 2K Games, PS4

• Borderlands The Handsome Collection | 2K Games, PS4

• Bulletstorm: Full Clip Edition | Gearbox Publishing, PS4

• Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning | THQ Nordic, PS4

• LEGO Harry Potter Collection | WB Games, PS4

Original PS3 Games (via streaming)

PlayStation Plus Premium** Plan

The new PlayStation Plus will also offer PS3 games to stream and play on PS4, PS5 and PC. These are original, non-remastered versions of PS3 games and are available to PlayStation Plus Premium members where cloud streaming is available. Here is an early look at the selection of original PS3 games available:

PlayStation Studios

• Crash Commando | Creative Vault Studios, PS3

• Demon’s Souls | From Software, PS3

• echochrome | Japan Studio, PS3

• Hot Shots Golf: Out of Bounds | Japan Studio, PS3

• Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational | Japan Studio, PS3

• Ico | Japan Studio, PS3

• Infamous | Sucker Punch, PS3

• Infamous 2 | Sucker Punch, PS3

• Infamous: Festival of Blood | Sucker Punch, PS3

• LocoRoco Cocoreccho! | Japan Studio, PS3

• MotorStorm Apocalypse | Evolution Studios, PS3

• MotorStorm RC | Evolution Studios, PS3

• Puppeteer | Japan Studio, PS3

• rain | Japan Studio, PS3

• Ratchet & Clank: Quest For Booty | Insomniac Games, PS3

• Ratchet & Clank: A Crack in Time |Insomniac Games, PS3

• Ratchet & Clank: Into the Nexus | Insomniac Games, PS3

• Resistance 3 | Insomniac Games, PS3

• Super Stardust HD | Housemarque, PS3

• Tokyo Jungle | Japan Studio, PS3

• When Vikings Attack | Clever Beans, PS3

Third Party Partners

• Asura’s Wrath | Capcom Co., Ltd., PS3

• Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 | Konami, PS3

• Devil May Cry HD Collection | Capcom Co., Ltd., PS3

• Enslaved: Odyssey to the West | Bandai Namco Entertainment America Inc., PS3

• F.E.A.R. | WB Games, PS3

• Lost Planet 2 | Capcom Co., Ltd., PS3

• Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 | Koei Tecmo, PS3

• Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare |Rockstar Games, PS3

Time-Limited Game Trials

(PlayStation Plus Premium/Deluxe Plan)

Time-limited game trials will be available to PlayStation Plus Premium and Deluxe members. Sony brings the "try before you buy" feature to select titles for Premium/Deluxe subscribers. What this means is you will get a two-hour demo of select games before you decided to fully purchase the title. The 2 hour counter only kicks in during playtime and all save progress will carry-forward if you purchase the game.

PlayStation Studios

• Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection | Naughty Dog, PS5

• Horizon Forbidden West | Guerrilla, PS4/PS5

Third-Party Partners

• Cyberpunk 2077 | CD Projekt, PS5

• Farming Simulator 22 | Giants Software GmBH, PS4/PS5

• Tiny Tina’s Wonderland | 2K Games, PS4/PS5

• WWE 2K22 | 2K Games, PS4/PS5

New Games Added Monthly

Along with the titles outlined above Sony has also promised the following timeline for titles in each tier:

PlayStation Plus Essential

• A monthly refresh will occur on the first Tuesday of the month for the PlayStation Plus Essential plan (and both higher tiers), with new PS4 and PS5 games added to the service – same as what PlayStation Plus members get today.

PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium/Deluxe

• An additional monthly refresh will occur in the middle of each month with new games across the PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium/Deluxe plans. The number of games refreshed will vary per month.

Ubisoft+ Coming to PlayStation

Along with all the first and third party titles announced for PlayStation Plus, Ubisoft also got in on the action. The publisher revealed that Ubisoft+ is coming to the PlayStation platform along with Ubisoft+ Classics. Classic will further bolster the new PlayStation Plus lineup with 27 Ubisoft games added to the service with more than 50 coming by the end of the year.

Here are the confirmed Ubisoft+ Classics titles so far:

• Assassin's Creed Valhalla

• For Honor

• The Crew 2

• Child of Light

• Eagle Flight

• Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon

• Far Cry 3 Remaster

• Far Cry 4

• Legendary Fishing

• Risk: Urban Assault

• South Park: The Fractured but Whole

• South Park: The Stick of Truth

• Space Junkies

• Star Trek: Bridge Crew

• Starlink: Battle for Atlas

• STEEP

• The Crew

• The Division

• Trackmania Turbo

• Transference

• Trials Fusion

• Trials of the Blood Dragon Game

• Trials Rising

• Valiant Hearts: The Great War

• Watch Dogs

• Werewolves Within

• ZOMBI

The New PlayStation Plus: Coming to a PlayStation/PC Near You

The rollout of the new PlayStation Plus is coming in different stages to different regions. To start the service will will hit Asia on May 24th followed by Japan on June 2nd. North and South America will see the new service go live on June 13th, followed by Europe, Australia, and New Zealand on June 23rd.

Building greater value

This new restructuring of PlayStation's subscription services comes as Sony looks to compete with Microsoft's Xbox Game Pass and EA's Origin Access. While both of those services offer access to a library of games. Existing PlayStation Plus members will automatically be upgraded to the new service's "PlayStation Plus Essential" tier.

Classic Video Game Preservation

With this announcement, it is clear that Sony is committed to making PlayStation the best place to game. These changes to their subscription services give gamers more value for their money and provide more options for how they want to game. What's more is the fact that Sony is bringing classic titles from multiple eras of PlayStation gaming. It's exciting to see the return of original PlayStation, PS2, PS3 and PSP titles coming to the PS4, PS5 and PC. Whether you're a fan of multiplayer games, want access to a library of games to play on demand, Sony has you covered.

What are your thoughts on the new PlayStation Plus, will you be upgrading today? Let me know in the comments below!