We’ve received a lot of questions in regards to PlayStation Plus: How to use it, what content is available, and more. Today we’d like to present some answers to some of the common questions we’ve heard.
Q: What is PlayStation Plus?
A: PlayStation Plus is a subscription service offered to enhance your experience on the already free PlayStation Network. It offers you, the user, exclusive services for added convenience:
- Automatic downloads where select game demos and other content get delivered straight to your PS3 system, so you don’t have to think about it.
- Full game trials which allow you to play up to 60 consecutive minutes of a game. When you purchase the full game (or when you insert the Blu-ray disc of that game), you will get the PSN trophies that you earned during the trial.
- Special discounts on the PlayStation Store and exclusive opportunities like select betas and select early demos.
Our goal is to deliver a valuable enhancement to your gaming experience.
Currently, you can purchase a three-month subscription at $17.99 or an annual subscription at $49.99 with an additional three months free. Subscriptions can be downloaded from the PlayStation Store, or you can purchase PlayStation Network cards at a retailer near you now; dedicated PlayStation Plus cards are coming in October.
Q: How do I use PlayStation Plus?
A: After you purchase your three-month or one-year subscription, your account will be branded as a PlayStation Plus account with a Plus logo next to your PSN ID. There is a PlayStation Plus category in the PlayStation Store where you can see all the offerings available to you at that time, or you can peruse other parts of the PlayStation Store and you will be able to see discounts, exclusive content and games, themes and avatars that are available to you in each category.
Q: What is the PlayStation Plus release schedule?
A: PlayStation Plus has a monthly rotating schedule of content that we post on a bi-weekly basis or, to rephrase, we post new content every other Tuesday. We plan to feature PlayStation.Blog posts the following Wednesday so you will see what’s coming (and what’s being taken down) for the next PlayStation Plus update.
Some content that was posted will be removed from the Plus category but not from the PlayStation Store. As long as you have downloaded the content and are an active PlayStation Plus subscriber, you will be able to re-download your content, even if it is removed from the Plus rotation or if you have deleted the content.
Q: What happens when my PlayStation Plus subscription ends?
A: The content you have downloaded as part of your PlayStation Plus subscription at no charge is only accessible as long as you are an active subscriber. The exceptions are free themes and avatars, which you will continue to have access to, even if you are no longer a subscriber. Anything you have purchased (even if you purchased it at a discount) will remain available to you even if your subscription ends.
Q: My subscription expired, but I renewed it late. Will I get my content back?
A: Yes you will.
Q: What do I currently get with PlayStation Plus?
A: PlayStation Plus offers a variety of discounts, games and exclusive content. In general, you will have access to at least the following, which rotate monthly:
- 1 PSN game or PSone Classic game
- 2 minis
- A monthly Qore single episode
Currently, there are categories from our partners at Midway and Tik-Creat Games that offer 20% off PSN games and free add-ons.
We will continue to regulaly update PlayStation Plus with XMB themes and avatars, exclusive items, select game demos and additional discounts. We will also offer exclusive opportunities only made available to PlayStation Plus members such as our current Hulu Plus Preview and the discounted two-year PlayStation Protection Plan.
Q: Is Qore included in PlayStation Plus?
A: Yes, the current monthly single episode is included in PlayStation Plus — the same episode found on the PlayStation Store (regular price $2.99 per episode). Annual Qore subscribers still receive their monthly subscription including their additional downloadable content.
Q: What about those exclusive game betas?
A: Betas have limited invites and based on selection criteria not every PlayStation Plus member will get access to every beta; however, we’re working with game developers to make qualified PlayStation Plus members the first to gain access.
Many game betas are done to test certain parts of a game or certain functionality (like previous game add-on integration) so that when the final version of the game launches, it’s the best it can be. Oftentimes, betas are extremely limited as well. We need to ensure that members of Plus meet that individual beta’s requirement to be issued an exclusive invite.
There are two betas for PlayStation Plus members coming up shortly and more details will be announced soon.
Q: Why did X country get this and we didn’t?
A: Different countries have different rights, release schedules and, as many of you know, have different things available in their PlayStation Store for this reason. We are constantly working to align our content globally, but to also ensure that our North American audience gets the content that is available to them as some games are released globally on different schedules.
Q: What about Cross-Game Chat (or other functionality)?
A: We are constantly working on new services and features to enhance your PlayStation experience; however, Cross-Game Chat was not announced as a part of PlayStation Plus’ features. We know that Cross-Game Chat is a functionality our fans are extremely interested in and we are always striving to improve the PlayStation Network experience and services.
We invite you to send us your feedback and suggestions using the PlayStation.Blog Share tool (located to the right of this post) and stay up to date on what we are doing by signing up for newsletters, our forums, and following us on the PlayStation.Blog, Facebook, and Twitter.
Stick to this Lex..stay the path. Feedback for the community is HUGE, good or bad. It really should be a feature request on share. (It may have been already lol) Not making any Plus comments in this thread though. Already did that elsewhere on this blog. But seeing some actual feedback (stares at Grace) is refreshing to see and a trend I hope to see continue.I could go into why this feedback is coming out now..but I’ll bite my lip. Just keep it up. :)
im confused i bought qore since the start of qore i bought ps plus since the start both with a year subscribtion and my qore just ran out. your telling me i dont have the full benifits of qore being that i have ps plus so i have to buy qore for the full year separately to get all downloadable stuff and betas for qore . ps i hope there is a gt5 demo thats in bestbuy stores for ps plus owners .
dam, where did u people learn to complain, when i complain, i already have a solution
This is probably a bit off topic but is there any chance of seeing Killzone 2 as a possible buy for Playstation Plus?
Here’s my problem, As a hardcore PSN faithful, every PSN game you guys have given has been something I’ve already purchased. Wipeout, CC, Zen pinball, I have already. And Im sure it’s like that for a lot of others. I understand it not possible to offer new games but games that have been out for 2-3 years most people own that would’ve wanted those games. So if you you want to better serve the hardcore fans, don’t screw the people that have loyally bought your games. I feel like you guys take all the best sellers and then offer them up, knowing that most people probably already have the game. As it is now, I’m definateley not re-subscribing, why re-subscribe when I own all the games you guys offer up? None of the other content you guys have provided has been of any value to me, the sales aren’t for very much and I feel like you guys are starting to tail off in the content you have been providing. You have a lot of work to make this successful, as it is now you guys aren’t doing a very good job. I do appreciate all of the replies though, as those are pretty rare on this blog nowadays.
@143 AMEN!.
The worst part of the service is how easy changed and adapted all your promises when the service started.
Costumers are no fools, especially when they trust you and get something else for what they pay for.
@lex Scheuble
can you please stop beating around the bush and just answer the question is 1 psn game or ps1 classic a typo or will there actually be a month that will not have a psn game i didnt sign up for treacherous lies and the old switch a roo acknoledge this immediately and dont feel sorry i feel this way and dont look into it just answer the freakin question
and dont tell me to waste my time posting top notch ideas on blog share
ps move looks like its gonna suck and all reviews for its launch titles scored low
also if cross game chat is never going to happen just tell us instead of leading us on
im a Playstation + subscriber and i own both systems ( PS3 and PSP ) and i would love to see more psp games being offered to the playstation + subscribers that own psps like myself because i have heard a lot of people complaining about the AWESOME God of War Ghost of Sparta demo , come on target the psp stuff to the psp playstation + subscribers , psp themes ? psp exclusive demos ? psp discounts ? man so many things you guys can offer us , please dont forget you have another system besides the ps3 on the market
i feel like i ordered a steak burger and after i started eating it the waitress comes by and switches it with a tofu classic
@155 freddy it’s now a PSN or a PSOne each month. Also no more monthly dynamic themes, premium avatars, premium game elements/DLC and one-hour trials.
i didnt pay 50 bucks to travel in time and play ps1 games if i want ps1 games ill play the ones i own on my fully functional ps1
@spydudefx so what are we left with
I don’t know about everyone else, but I love PlayStation Plus! It is always a good sign that a company keeps in touch with its fans. Bravo to Sony for creating and improving PS+.
1 PSN game or PSone Classic game?????
When I bought the psn plus I was told it would get 4 games a month, and now just decide to move all, this is absurd, three months have passed and the only good game was wipeout hd
Until now psn plus not given us any good ps1 game, at least give us a decent classic, perhaps no one complained about this sudden change. No one deserves to rally cross and 2xtreme. Where are metal gear solid, final fantasy, crash, legend of dragoon, among others?
I don’t care about betas, I just want GOOD full games
Um….Why does PSP have skype but PS3 doesn’t? I feel this should be used for our “cross game chat”. Maybe add it as a feature to “further enhance” our experiences for PS+ members. And maybe give PS+ members invites to events like the Uncharted 2 event I went to in Rosemont (outside Chicago). Where I won the Fortune Hunter Edition btw!!! Just some suggestions. Thanks alot though Sony. PS3 Fanboy 4 Life!
hi, i wanted to know more about the playstation plus card.Is it like a playstation network card but only for playstation plus or something else.
Thank you
@freddy what Lex is saying is that the bare minimum they have to offer is basically one PSN OR PSOne classic, 2 minis and Qore per month. They “could” offer 4 PSN games in one month or even a static theme or avatar but don’t have to. They just significantly reduced the minimum monthly content, and that’s bad news for Plus subscribers.
I hope they don’t believe that plus would be successful with these kind of updates. People have already started regretting getting plus service, and instead of rewarding members, and trying to get new members, they give us a big piece of poop. It seems they spent a lot of time designing their logo and marketing before launch, and now they don’t care. It isn’t the fact that I paid $50, but a lot of people paid $50.
It would be different if you can promise new psn games every other month, but they are giving away stuff no one is paying for.
I will be a fan of plus if they can maintain one psn game a month, but will lose faith and my happiness in Sony if they believe that I will be happy with a ps1 game as the feature game.
A lot of this is stuff we would have liked to know before we paid $50 on the service, like that bit about the betas and not every PS+ member getting in, which means the quality of service can vary; that coupled with the fact that you don’t know whether or not next month’s free game is one you already own makes PS+ a quite a gamble on whether or not you get your money’s worth.
And we would really appreciate some actual info on features we care about, we’ve been told since 2008 that you know we want cross game chat but I think we deserve an update on what actual progress has been made to add that and other new features. Hearing the same old company line for 2 years isn’t very reassuring and it’s really kind of patronizing. You guys do a fantastic job on the games front but you really need to step up your game as far as community oriented features go. You give us features like blog.share but you don’t show us that you’re actually doing anything with it, at the very least SHOW us that you’re working hard on that front instead of just telling us like you have been for 2-3 years now.
PS+ needs to evolve and expand. What is the Blog.Share for, if not to implantation those ideas.
If to rise the bar on VIP Status in the Gaming Consoles, PS+ should at least include with the addition to Music Store; Free Monthly Music and Free Monthly Video Content. (ex. SuperPass)
If PS+ is downgraded to basic features and bland selections, it would be a shame.
By the way I don’t mean to come off like I’m complaining for the sake of complaining, I’m just giving honest feedback. With the 1250 character limit I don’t have a lot of room to sugar coat it.
@edd good comment
if this was mentioned already i appoligize but i didnt read through all the comments but i was wondering what exactly quilifies you for a beta what are they looking for when they send out the exclusive invites?
Now that’s some replying “Lex” 5 out of 5… 10 out of 5 just for for replying to some of the harsh comments. Keep up the good work.
@freddyrivas thanks nice to know SOMEONE saw it
I love PS+ from week one i have enjoyed it, That said i see a few ways to improve it. I was thinking on this the other day and realized not everyone is going to want the same PS-one classics or even PSN games so on that front it may be better to give a voucher for a PS-one game or a fixed amount of credit to your account each month for PSN titles that way you are sure people are getting content they want.
As for additional content i think Cross game chat needs to be available to all users otherwise it shouldn’t be implemented that’s like buying a phone that cant call off its own network, no one wants that. MORE importantly i think a good thing for + users would be cloud support for saves would free up a ton of HDD space and i can see a lot of people who would get + for that alone.
That’s all i got for now keep up the good work. Oh and personally I’d like to see some Dragon age Themas Avatars and home items. Thanks again.
I can’t believe they are further reducing the amount of promised content.
**https://blog.playstation.com/2010/06/24/playstation-plus-your-questions-answered/
“Each month there will be dynamic themes, premium avatars and premium game elements/add-ons”
^^^We are still waiting on last month dynamic theme and premium avatars
“we’ll be making sure that members are included in selected demos and beta trials before they go live to everyone else”
^^^I don’t see the word “selected few PlayStation Plus Members ONLY”
Oh and the big F U from SONY to the PSN Plus Subscribers below
“As a subscriber, you can expect to get your hands on free monthly PSN games, minis and PS One Classics from the PSN Store.”
^^^I am pretty sure that read FREE MONTHLY PSN GAMES, MINIS, AND PS ONE CLASSICS and not FREE MINIS, PS ONE CLASSIC OR PSN GAMES.
Ok so I have had a Qore subscription since it has come out (just about)and I got an e-mail about renewing my subscription. I subscribed to PSN+ the day it came out. My question is what is in my best intrest? Should I renew Qore and keep my annual subscriber status or not renew on account of PSN+. Budget won’t allow for both right now…unless Sony is hiring, lol
I would like for the ANNUAL subscription of Qore to be included with PSN+. Paying for PSN+ is a yearly subscription why not include the ANNUAL subscription of Qore?
Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a minute here. Now it’s 1 PSN or PSOne game per month? Now it’s only discounted, not free, dynamic themes? This isn’t exactly what I signed up for, you’re taking back what you guys promised us. Are you going to give us something in exchange for these losses at least? At least then it would be more justified.
so now everything seem more and more confusing!?!?!
1) I’m impressed that Lex answered so many comments. I wish this was the norm for the PS Blog, since users often make good points that seem to be ignored. Kudos, Lex, and encourage others at Sony to do the same!
2) I, for one, have enjoyed PS Plus so far, though I will admit that it’s discouraging me from buying PSN games since I don’t want to be caught in the lurch down the road getting a “free” game that I’ve already paid for.
3) Also, the PSX releases have been pretty subpar (2Xtreme, Rally Cross and Syphon Filter are all incredibly dated titles) — it’d be nice if Sony could release a “killer app” for the service that makes people rave about PS Plus. Twisted Metal, Legend of Dragoon, Intelligent Qube or PaRappa the Rapper would all be great PSX releases that wouldn’t seem so trivial.
(continued)
4) As for PSN releases, how about Flower, fl0w, echoChrome, Crash Commando, Super Stardust HD or Lumines Supernova? These would all be great PS+ games that would add value to the service.
5) While I’ve enjoyed the free PS+ games thus far (Mushroom Wars, in particular, was very fun!), the minis have all been pretty crummy. Not having ever purchased a mini title, it may be that I’m just not aware of the low quality of the minis. Regardless, I’ve found all of them to be about 5 minutes of fun and then quickly forgotten.
6) The game previews are a waste because of the time restriction. 1 hour is not sufficient time to get you into a game like inFamous or Warhawk — you really need a few hours to get into the game, especially when there are cutscenes or training missions at the beginning. I would recommend bumping the 1 hour restriction up to 5 or 10 hours. That way, gamers are much more likely to play their way into the game and get hooked. 1 hour isn’t worth the effort.
I’m almost certain that I heard Crossgame chat was to be included as a feature, and was removed from the feature list right as PS+ came out… and to those who wonder if it’s useful? Yes, it is very. Much easier being able to chat with voice while playing multiplayer (which you cant pause) than having to go into the messages and reply (which isn’t quick enough to load.)
PS @ BloodyCow
We’ve already has 3 early access. Kane and Lynch Demo, Pixel 2nd Lap, and GOW for PSP. If they said beta or demo access, we have gotten exactly that. I’m with you on the PSN titles however. Shank or Terrover at a discount would have been great. I’ve been unhappy at times too because I drop a ton of money on retail every month…about 300 bucks monthly (a ton for me). But this is new and early and if we’re gonna complain we also must be fair and give credit where it’s due. If we blanket our statements we lose credibility and the argument for better access. Just one man’s opinion…
i wonder if sony can stop grabbing their ass. Its been something like 4yrs now that ppl ask for cross game chat and we still have nothing…
But when the ps3 is jailbreaked it only take 1 week for a patch…
48 – 50
no its not, it ruins more then helps
I personally think PS+ is a waste of money. PSN already doesn’t have much to offer. Only thing good about it is that the online is free, because I’m already paying for my XBL.
A poll only for PS+ members over the content that we would like every 2 week would be a nice idea
I have PS+ and I wish it would auto download the free content that being a PS+ subscriber offers. That would be cool.
It’s unacceptable to be changing terms midway through the service. We were informed that our subscription would include one PSone title AND one PSN title each month. This is a significant change.
As for this service being for the core audience, I think others have articulated very well how PS+ has not really satisfied this market. PS+ works well for those new to PSN or who haven’t purchased much content up till now. I’d suggest including more day and date discounts/bonuses on new content. Perhaps a nominal 10% discount a la Steam.
!@#$%^&*()POIUYTREEWQASDFGHJKLL:”?><MNBVCXZ
I'll eventually upgrade.
I’ve had the PS3 fat, I bought a slim, I have the Official PS3 headset. I’ve had a PS3 since close to launch. I bought an Xbox Slim for the first time four weeks ago vie been a Sony fanboy for too long, once you get cross game chat, party system, voice messages, four private chartrooms, Sony are going to have to step up their there game.
It takes so long to arrange a game on the PS3 compared to the 360. I want to spend my time playing games with friends and gaming, I do more gaming on the 360 because it takes me less time to arrange a game with a buddy on that system then it does on the PS3.
I don’t want a generic response like “we are trying to improve the PSN all the time” of course you are that’s your job but it seems like your letting this one slip away from you the longer you leave it. I won’t be back on the PS3 till I can use these features to make gaming more about playing the games and less about going in and out of the XMB. I’ve played more XMB on the PS3 and should have a XMB Platinum by now.
If you’ve taken the ti e to read this comment thence you.
Cross game chat’s only use would be showing off to 360 people that they have nothing better than us… I don’t see what good it brings. Why would I want to chat with a guy in some other game?!
i am Plus subscriber since day one…i find it is ok so far, but definitely not worth the $50 yet.
I really couldn’t care less about in game chat or multi players…
i tend to play game on my own….for relaxation…maybe i am still living in the stone age?
I still wish LBP came to us American PSN+ buyers :(
Maybe this is a little late but we really need it to where when in a game when we get a message. If we hit the PS button it brings up the message. I should have to spend time going to that section while in a game to read a quick sentence.
PLEASE give us a Cloud Back-up System for Save Files!
It’s what I would want the most from a premium service.