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I find PS Now a great service, why it's not talked of more?
- Thread starter Deleted member 49319
- Start date
Don't forget that if you decide you like a title on PS Now, you must allow your subscription to PS Now to lapse before you can purchase said title to keep permanently. This is also true of PlayStation Plus games, but there are only 2-3 of those per month as opposed to the entire PS Now catalog. Sony's store and digital entitlements system is...well, it's bad. It's utterly baffling when going between platforms. I legitimately have refrained from subscribing just to be able to...buy games.
I've considered subscribing a few times but it just doesn't have the library compared to Gamepass which I'm already paying for. It's got a bunch of great ps3 classics but I would rather just play my discs on my ps3 than stream them on ps5.
I think if Sony invested more in the service it would be talked about a lot more.
I think if Sony invested more in the service it would be talked about a lot more.
It's still growing, but for me it's been a great service since I started heavily using it on PC/PS4.
My personal pro/con list..
PROS
- TONS of games (700-800+ I think?)... more than I could ever play lol
- It works really well (I have a 1gb fiber connection, and great WiFi MESH in my house)
- It is super affordable ($60 for a year? Less if I get it on sale!)
CONS
- Could use more mainstream/popular Indie titles
- The PC interface is in desperate need of an overhaul
OTHER
I think it really appeals to me because I am not a "day one" gamer. I still have tons of games to play. They get added to the service and people scream "man that shit is OLD" and I think "Oh cool I never played that!"
If you like day ones, super new popular games, probably should stick with something else. If you are hyper-casual and like a huge selection with tons of variety that you can be in no rush to play (unless it is timing out on service of course!)... then PSNow is great.
EDIT: I use it probably every few days and on weekends in case anyone wonders. I use it more than I use my PS4, and between this and Stadia I will not be getting a PS5 anytime soon.
My personal pro/con list..
PROS
- TONS of games (700-800+ I think?)... more than I could ever play lol
- It works really well (I have a 1gb fiber connection, and great WiFi MESH in my house)
- It is super affordable ($60 for a year? Less if I get it on sale!)
CONS
- Could use more mainstream/popular Indie titles
- The PC interface is in desperate need of an overhaul
OTHER
I think it really appeals to me because I am not a "day one" gamer. I still have tons of games to play. They get added to the service and people scream "man that shit is OLD" and I think "Oh cool I never played that!"
If you like day ones, super new popular games, probably should stick with something else. If you are hyper-casual and like a huge selection with tons of variety that you can be in no rush to play (unless it is timing out on service of course!)... then PSNow is great.
EDIT: I use it probably every few days and on weekends in case anyone wonders. I use it more than I use my PS4, and between this and Stadia I will not be getting a PS5 anytime soon.
We're talking about why it isn't as popular. The average person isn't gonna do all of that
It's not as highly marketed as Gamepass is, plus it's not available in many regions. However, it's a great service. And they've started to update it with more AAA titles, even if some are on a timed release. Just wish it was in more regions, however think it's rumoured that Sony are looking at their own version of Gamepass, which could mean PSNow being invested into further.
I meant native XSX games, not patched ones. Since there is no native XSX games yet on GP and if patched ones are accountable, then yes, PS5 has on PS Now PS5 games. Only 1 exactly, and that's Days Gone.
I got Game Pass and PS Now recently, and I honestly use PS Now more than Game Pass. I use streaming more than I had anticipated it works really well for me. I've been playing mostly PS3 games but even to get a quick look at a PS4 game it's a great option.
Newer games will get more buzz regardless of "quality" or quantity. I feel like games gets on PS Now mostly when they have stopped selling, even if they are great there is a reason they stopped selling. "I was just about to buy that" is very rarely used about games added to PS Now but is said by multiple people every time Game Pass games gets announced.
An enthusiast website, yet you keep talking about PSNow as if it were a sreaming-only service.
I guess the value of downloading PS4 and PS2 games doesn't exist for you 🤷🏻‍♂️
I bought a years sub near the start of lockdown and been extremely underwhelmed by it. Its like subscribing to a bargain bin.
The PS3 streaming tech works extremely well for me, but i already have a ps3 and have already played most of the games i would want to play. Streaming PS4 games though has been incredibly hit and miss, also the pc client is pretty rubbish.
The PS3 streaming tech works extremely well for me, but i already have a ps3 and have already played most of the games i would want to play. Streaming PS4 games though has been incredibly hit and miss, also the pc client is pretty rubbish.
I think the app definitely needs an overhaul on PC.
Overall, it's not bad and after the new price point (it got like a nearly 40% permanent reduction over here in Switzerland for a yearly subscription) I think it's good value for someone that wants to access a lot of titles from the PS3/PS4 era. The library itself is also quite vast and varied.
I wouldn't mind if we could access even more from the PS2 (or even PS1) era, though. The streaming works for the most part and the option to download PS2/PS4 titles makes the service a lot better than it initially launched at here. There's still some work to do here from Sony and I do think it'll change significantly in the new PS5 generation. But the foundation isn't bad and with the transfer to MS Azure, I'm curious to see to what's next for PS Now.
Overall, it's not bad and after the new price point (it got like a nearly 40% permanent reduction over here in Switzerland for a yearly subscription) I think it's good value for someone that wants to access a lot of titles from the PS3/PS4 era. The library itself is also quite vast and varied.
I wouldn't mind if we could access even more from the PS2 (or even PS1) era, though. The streaming works for the most part and the option to download PS2/PS4 titles makes the service a lot better than it initially launched at here. There's still some work to do here from Sony and I do think it'll change significantly in the new PS5 generation. But the foundation isn't bad and with the transfer to MS Azure, I'm curious to see to what's next for PS Now.
I think its that few ,if any new games don't come to the service that makes it not talked about as much. Ppl are infatuated with new .
It's definitely good value for money, it's just not been marketed that heavily, presumably because it's not available in all the regions Sony sells consoles in. I think we're going to see a lot of growth and changes to both PS Now and PS Plus this gen, and I'm excited to see where they go with all this stuff.
I think the big bullet point that makes Game Pass much more marketable is that it gets games (Microsoft first party, but also some smaller games that they sign deals with) on Day 1. I repeatedly bring up the example that on Game Pass two years ago, I got to play Ashen the day it was released instead of spending $40 for it. Since then, I've done the same thing with Gears 5, Outer Worlds, and Ori. When you are not only playing games you missed but also the hot new titles everyone is talking about on here or on podcasts, it definitely leaves a strong positive impression.
I don't think it is just marketing. I did a comparison of the library of Game Pass and PS Now a while ago, and GP had twice as many games I was interested in playing. It also has more indie, first and third party games releasing day one (just last month it had Destiny Beyond Light and Planet Coaster). First party games also stay forever. They cost the same in my area, 10 euros a month. To me, the only appeal of PS Now is that it has the newer F1 game. This is why I ended up buying an Xbox and not bothering with PS Now on my pro.
While not as good as Gamepass it's a great service, yes, but the marketing has not been good.
They really should push this a bit more in 2021.
They really should push this a bit more in 2021.
There is nothing really for people to write articles about with Now. The conversation was never there to begin with. It's something that could be fixed with actually talking about the service and trying to make it competitive with Gamepass. They just don't have the interest to do it.
essentially it needs a rebranding and a relaunch.
essentially it needs a rebranding and a relaunch.
PS Now isn't talked about more, for the simple reason that 1) Sony promote it poorly, 2) it languished for years as a more underwhelming service than it is now, and 3) it... simply isn't as good as Game Pass, it's chief competitor.
That isn't even really a criticism of PS Now as it exists today - it's a good service, at an attractive price for what it offers. But what it offers is still chiefly a large back catalogue of older games, that Sony have tried to sweeten by bringing their first-party games to it a bit faster than they used to.
Game Pass (and especially Game Pass Ultimate) includes XBL Gold, games from over 23 first party teams on their release dates, a bunch of mid-and-indie tier games on their release dates as well, EA Play, xCloud access, and a smaller but more cultivated list of third-party titles that tend to be a bit higher quality overall. And contrary to Sony. Microsoft promote the everloving shit out of it.
Game Pass is such an absurd monetary value that we have 42 threads a week here wondering if it's even profitable. If you subscribed to Game Pass January 1st 2020, and only played games released IN 2020, this is an incomplete list of the games you got WHEN THEY RELEASED this year (I can't be bothered to find a definitive list):
- Microsoft Flight Simulator
- Spiritfarer
- Wasteland 3
- Minecraft Dungeons
- Tell Me Why
- Battletoads
- Crusader Kings 3
- Age of Empires 3 DE
- Tetris Effect Connected
- Ori and the Will of the Wisps
- Destiny 2: Beyond Light
- Grounded
- Gears Tactics
- Call of the Sea
- Streets of Rage 4
- Haven
- The Master Chief Collection on PC
And again, that's an incomplete list, of only games that RELEASED day-and-date into Game Pass. It doesn't include stuff like Doom Eternal, that came mere months after releasing, and make up another large chunk of GP's offering. Or new release games from 2019 that are still available on the service as well. It's also obviously missing stuff like Halo Infinite, Psychonauts 2 and The Medium, that were scheduled for this year but got delayed into 2021.
That isn't even really a criticism of PS Now as it exists today - it's a good service, at an attractive price for what it offers. But what it offers is still chiefly a large back catalogue of older games, that Sony have tried to sweeten by bringing their first-party games to it a bit faster than they used to.
Game Pass (and especially Game Pass Ultimate) includes XBL Gold, games from over 23 first party teams on their release dates, a bunch of mid-and-indie tier games on their release dates as well, EA Play, xCloud access, and a smaller but more cultivated list of third-party titles that tend to be a bit higher quality overall. And contrary to Sony. Microsoft promote the everloving shit out of it.
Game Pass is such an absurd monetary value that we have 42 threads a week here wondering if it's even profitable. If you subscribed to Game Pass January 1st 2020, and only played games released IN 2020, this is an incomplete list of the games you got WHEN THEY RELEASED this year (I can't be bothered to find a definitive list):
- Microsoft Flight Simulator
- Spiritfarer
- Wasteland 3
- Minecraft Dungeons
- Tell Me Why
- Battletoads
- Crusader Kings 3
- Age of Empires 3 DE
- Tetris Effect Connected
- Ori and the Will of the Wisps
- Destiny 2: Beyond Light
- Grounded
- Gears Tactics
- Call of the Sea
- Streets of Rage 4
- Haven
- The Master Chief Collection on PC
And again, that's an incomplete list, of only games that RELEASED day-and-date into Game Pass. It doesn't include stuff like Doom Eternal, that came mere months after releasing, and make up another large chunk of GP's offering. Or new release games from 2019 that are still available on the service as well. It's also obviously missing stuff like Halo Infinite, Psychonauts 2 and The Medium, that were scheduled for this year but got delayed into 2021.
I love the service. I'm lucky that the streaming works well for me. I tried streaming was Bloodborne, and it worked well. I was surprised. I know I can download it, but I had to try streaming that game lol.
I like the PSNow library. It has the more Japanese games that I really like. And my kids love streaming those Disney and LEGO games too.
Sony really needs to add more PS1-PS3 era games on the service though imo. Some absolute gems being abandoned on older systems. And add older PS4 first party titles permanently.
I don't really mind cycling out the newer stuff, but I'd rather Sony simply add all of their first party games to PSnow 6 months to a year later permanently and call it a day.
Throwing in EA Access like on GamePass wouldn't hurt either, Sony. Just saying.
But for $60 or less a year, with like 900 games, it's been an amazing value for me.
I like the PSNow library. It has the more Japanese games that I really like. And my kids love streaming those Disney and LEGO games too.
Sony really needs to add more PS1-PS3 era games on the service though imo. Some absolute gems being abandoned on older systems. And add older PS4 first party titles permanently.
I don't really mind cycling out the newer stuff, but I'd rather Sony simply add all of their first party games to PSnow 6 months to a year later permanently and call it a day.
Throwing in EA Access like on GamePass wouldn't hurt either, Sony. Just saying.
But for $60 or less a year, with like 900 games, it's been an amazing value for me.
It's not like it has a lack of selection, there's a good deal of games on it. However I think a good summary for me is that Xbox had that show where everything shown was a GamePass addition, whereas I'm not sure I heard a word about PS Now in the Playstation events leading up to PS5. It was a bit telling that the PS+ Collection took the front stage instead.
Marketing and overall strategy is very different for the two services. I always have something to be excited about for GamePass pretty much every month, especially with 1st party day one launches, whereas PS Now is struggling to make me feel the same for it.
Marketing and overall strategy is very different for the two services. I always have something to be excited about for GamePass pretty much every month, especially with 1st party day one launches, whereas PS Now is struggling to make me feel the same for it.
Sony doesn't need to spend money playing Microsofts game yet. They can quietly invest in the service and continue offering it they way it is (older titles). If and when they need to they will add their first party ps4 games and ps5 games day 1 on there and start making deals for day 1 indies too. Im sure it will happen some time this gen but until then they don't need to compete or market at that level.
This is no longer the case. A few months ago, they began allowing users to outright purchase games that they previously claimed on PS Now or PS Plus.
I agree with these points.
I'd love to see Sony bring in more PS3 and PS2 games, and start adding PS1 games. There are just so many great games from those systems, which should be exposed to new audiences.
Sony should also be quicker in adding their first-party games to PS Now. They don't have to be on the day of release, but I think they should set a schedule of 6-12 months and stick to it consistently, so that user can manage their expectations.
They should rebrand it away from PS Now, not a good name and has negative connotations from when it first launched it was eh
Give it a new name and new marketing
Give it a new name and new marketing
I had PS Now for PC for 2 months earlier this year so that I could play Bloodborne. I really liked the service, but the PC app is embarrassingly bad.
I don't think it's a great service at all. The games selection is pitiful and the cloud play is a bit of joke. I regret getting it though I have 6 months left so maybe it'll improve before it's time to resub.
They're not gonna cut their own legs. Their games have become evergreens. Not at full price like Nintendo, but they don't stop selling after a few months like 99% of other games
It could be better, but I think the reason they don't push it is because they are in the business of selling games.
isn't it....cheaper than gamepass and has like 5 times the library though?
I was arguing about this with my brother the other day. I guess the 'value' is that you can download all the games with gamepass even though the number of games you can download through ps now is more than the total library of gamepass?
or is it that gamepass gets some new games upon release where as new games sometimes appear after a 1-4 months on ps now?
I mean, sounds like a tradeoff to me rather than a clear cut case of gamepass having more value
Did not know it was 5 bucks a month. When I first tried it, it was $20 a month and I didn't see the value.
If they bundled it with psplus and gave a small discount, that would be something.
If they bundled it with psplus and gave a small discount, that would be something.
Its just not worth it.
A lot of the games get on the service very late and go way sooner than gamepass.
Like horizon is the big game of this month. you can literally buy the complete edition for less than 10 bucks. (Heck I got the complete edition for less 10 bucks like a year ago.)
If they add ps3 game downloads now that would really make it worth it to me.
A lot of the games get on the service very late and go way sooner than gamepass.
Like horizon is the big game of this month. you can literally buy the complete edition for less than 10 bucks. (Heck I got the complete edition for less 10 bucks like a year ago.)
If they add ps3 game downloads now that would really make it worth it to me.
It's just not comparable to game pass
Most titles are streaming and the latency is just horrendous
Most titles are streaming and the latency is just horrendous
OP
OP
Naaah. A little more than a half are streaming games. Rest are for download
Because its great for a few months once you played everything you want to play on the service and then there isn't much incentive to keep your membership as the 12$/month subscription fee doesn't justify the legacy games (that can often be owned outright for ~ the subscription price) they add to the service.
I think it not being available in more countries - and not being usable as a streaming service in more countries, even if you manage to subscribe and download the offline games that do work just fine - is a mark against the service. Whenever they do expand it, maybe it will become a bit more popular?
Yea, this is true too. The "I'll buy for one month and play what I want to play and then cancel" that gets brought up for Game Pass a lot is much more relevant for PS Now since it relies a lot more on having a large library of older content rather than adding new releases frequently.
Gamepass having day one 1st party titles which can cannibalize their sales but Microsoft really doesn't care and has AA and indie games come onto the service as their release date. It is broken down in to tiers
Gamepass for console , Gamepass for PC, and Gamepass Ultimate which includes the previous two but also includes Gold and despite what people on the forum say not a lot people use the $1 deal so some pay the full amount
Gamepass for console , Gamepass for PC, and Gamepass Ultimate which includes the previous two but also includes Gold and despite what people on the forum say not a lot people use the $1 deal so some pay the full amount
By the time a game I would be interested in goes on PS Now, I've already bought it on deep, deep digital discount or it's been on PS+ already.
It's a crap service that offers precious little. This is in stark contrast to PS+ which is a cracking deal given it offers new games and the excellent PS+ Collection promotion right now. Whether you've been on PSN since 2006 or are just joining now with the PS5, PS+ has something for everybody. I have no idea who PS Now is even for.
It's a crap service that offers precious little. This is in stark contrast to PS+ which is a cracking deal given it offers new games and the excellent PS+ Collection promotion right now. Whether you've been on PSN since 2006 or are just joining now with the PS5, PS+ has something for everybody. I have no idea who PS Now is even for.