Announced at E3, the £40/$50 Playstation+ subscription service has been released today along with the PS3 update 3.40.
At first look, it seems like Sony are following Microsoft down the pay to play route, but that’s not quite what it is. Playstation+ is entirely voluntary, all the current features of PSN will be available to non-subscribers. Playstation+ simply adds to that.
Promising £200 worth of free stuff over the year, Playstation+ seems to live up to the promise in the first month. There is around £30-40 of free stuff, including LittleBigPlanet and the Running Sackboy Dynamic Theme, and around another £10-20 in discounts.
So it seems that over the next 12 months Playstation+ subscribers will certainly get their moneys worth! Exclusive access to betas is also promised, and it’s probably safe to say that the much anticipated LittleBigPlanet 2 Beta will be available to Playstation+ users.
New features have also been promised, and the possibility of cross-game chat, something that the PS3 has been lacking, has been hinted at. Another new feature implemented is one which allows you to set up a certain time durign the day when your PS3 will turn itself on and download all new updates. This allows you to get home and play, without an update hampering your time.
And did I mention you get a free downloadable copy of LittleBigPlanet if you sign up for a year’s subscription now and live in the EU (WipEout HD if you live in the US)? And you guys and gals on the other side of the pond don’t worry, you get 3 extra months free! Seems like Playstation+ is well worth the money, wherever you live!
I’m signing up to this as soon as I can pull £40 together, planning on giving the free LBP to my Father for his work. So are you signing up? Post your opinions below!
Playstation EU blog post
Playstation US blog post
Playstation+ FAQ