AfterDawn: News

PS4 requiring Plus subscription for Online play is down to investment cost

Sony's Shuhei Yoshida has told Japanese daily Famitsu that PS4 gamers will need to pay to play PS3 games online due to the resource investment in the service.

Currently, PS3 owners can play games online for free and smile smugly at Xbox 360 owners who need an Xbox LIVE Gold Membership to do the same. However, when the PS4 was unveiled, it quickly became apparent that the days of free Online Play were coming to an end.



"The main pillar for the PS4 will be online play. We're developing many new ways to play and connect which requires a large investment of resources," Yoshida said, translated by Kotaku.

"Considering the cost, to try to keep such a service free and consequently lower the quality would be absurd. We decided that if that's the case, then it would be better to receive proper payment and continue to offer a good service."

Written by: James Delahunty @ 28 Jun 2013 7:15

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• 23 comments

• Mysttic

  I myself got no issue with that considering I find value in PS+ and have had it for 2 years. I'm happy with continuing support into is so long as they keep producing the extra valued incentives. When that stops, so does my subscription.

  28.6.2013 08:11 #1

• KillerBug

  Investment? They are charging $400 for $300 worth of hardware and $60-$80 for $30-$40 games...and they have to charge for the same services provided for free on PC?
  
  Microsoft wants online access for offline games and they want to put a camera and microphone in the system that stays on when it is turned off. Now Sony pulls this s**t. After reading this I just placed an order for a new video card...my PC will be far ahead of either console, with none of the anti-consumer BS.
  

  
  

  28.6.2013 09:50 #2

• GryphB

  Hopefully they will be smart this time and invest into some security for their network.

  28.6.2013 13:01 #3

• adre02

  Originally posted by KillerBug: Investment? They are charging $400 for $300 worth of hardware and $60-$80 for $30-$40 games...and they have to charge for the same services provided for free on PC?
  
  Microsoft wants online access for offline games and they want to put a camera and microphone in the system that stays on when it is turned off. Now Sony pulls this s**t. After reading this I just placed an order for a new video card...my PC will be far ahead of either console, with none of the anti-consumer BS.
  It says pay to play ps3 games not ps4 games...wth are you crying about?
  
  

  This is superman

  28.6.2013 13:57 #4

• akuma96

  Well the fact is the ps+ you get free games every month .For you PS3, PSP and the vita . IT not that bad of a deal and Xbox is now getting on the bandwagon ... I have 15 games that I got for being a member.

  28.6.2013 14:01 #5

• deak91

  not worried too much its a pc standard built system im sure there will be a work around to use a pc system to act like a server for off the sony grid networking play

  28.6.2013 17:56 #6

• dodger5

  Originally posted by KillerBug: Investment? They are charging $400 for $300 worth of hardware and $60-$80 for $30-$40 games...and they have to charge for the same services provided for free on PC?
  
  Microsoft wants online access for offline games and they want to put a camera and microphone in the system that stays on when it is turned off. Now Sony pulls this s**t. After reading this I just placed an order for a new video card...my PC will be far ahead of either console, with none of the anti-consumer BS. Amen

  28.6.2013 19:46 #7

• megadunderhead

  Can i say something..
  
  i am a playstation plus subscriber i am happy with the service and glad they give us free games that sometimes would cost 20.00 to even 50.00 used from gamestop and they even give some titles you kinda wish you had payed for when they came out so developers could get money for there most wonderful creations i have nearly 1,000 worth of free games on my ps3 from playstation plus including several beta invites i ran and tested in all due honesty pay up or shut up and the same can be said about pc sorry pay up or get out or dont you use steam and pay for good quality games from steam huh!!!
  
  

  28.6.2013 20:37 #8

• xnonsuchx

  It's understandable to require fees for online multiplayer, but at least they're keeping basic access free.

  29.6.2013 03:03 #9

• SAW_FIEND

  I'm all for it as I'm a PS+ member anyways. So no biggie for me.
  

  OH YES ... THERE WILL BE BLOOD.

  29.6.2013 03:37 #10

• buddyleem

  all these people crying about 5 fucking dollars a month need to look at their phone bill or cable bill and realize its a fair price
  

  Hack a bit, invest a bit, work a bit, jerk a bit

  29.6.2013 09:11 #11

• Jemborg

  Originally posted by dodger5: Originally posted by KillerBug: Investment? They are charging $400 for $300 worth of hardware and $60-$80 for $30-$40 games...and they have to charge for the same services provided for free on PC?
  
  Microsoft wants online access for offline games and they want to put a camera and microphone in the system that stays on when it is turned off. Now Sony pulls this s**t. After reading this I just placed an order for a new video card...my PC will be far ahead of either console, with none of the anti-consumer BS. Amen I know a number of people who feel like you guys.
  
  I agree with others that PS+ is not unreasonable to pay for if you accepted Xbox's fees for Gold. It's a fait accompli anyway. But I in no way accept Sony's reasons... they are copying MS full stop. So I just hope they keep quality freebies coming now that it's compulsory for PS4 multiplayer.
  
  
  
  -----------------------------------------------------------------------
  

  Its a lot easier being righteous than right.
  
  
  

  29.6.2013 09:19 #12

• 1nsan3

  I don't mind paying a small fee, per year, like xbox live.
  I knew Playstation wouldnt keep it free forever.
  But paying for online access, then pay for the Plus access is stupid... pay a little more get it early. or whatever... we all pay our hard earned money to YOU guys, that should be enough!!! lol

  29.6.2013 20:01 #13

• Cyprien

  Originally posted by 1nsan3: I don't mind paying a small fee, per year, like xbox live.
  I knew Playstation wouldnt keep it free forever.
  But paying for online access, then pay for the Plus access is stupid... pay a little more get it early. or whatever... we all pay our hard earned money to YOU guys, that should be enough!!! lol im sorry but what?.... if you have ps3 now with plus you can use the same account on ps4 and vita and get all the benefits across the platforms plus online play on ps4... you pay to play online... microsoft did it years ago... PS+ gives you plenty of things(themes/games/betas/trials/minis/discounts) unlike gold on xbox... only this time they added online to PS+ on ps4... i myself use plus and im not complaining....
  

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  30.6.2013 07:21 #14

• KillerBug

  Originally posted by adre02: It says pay to play ps3 games not ps4 games...wth are you crying about?
  That was an AD misprint...read the source article.
  
  Originally posted by akuma96: Well the fact is the ps+ you get free games every month .For you PS3, PSP and the vita . IT not that bad of a deal and Xbox is now getting on the bandwagon ... I have 15 games that I got for being a member. It is a bad deal if you don't think the games they offer are worth playing for free.
  
  Originally posted by deak91: not worried too much its a pc standard built system im sure there will be a work around to use a pc system to act like a server for off the sony grid networking play Personally I'd like to see PC emulation platforms for the xbox next AND the PS4...but we will have to see about those.
  
  Originally posted by megadunderhead: Can i say something..
  
  i am a playstation plus subscriber i am happy with the service and glad they give us free games that sometimes would cost 20.00 to even 50.00 used from gamestop and they even give some titles you kinda wish you had payed for when they came out so developers could get money for there most wonderful creations i have nearly 1,000 worth of free games on my ps3 from playstation plus including several beta invites i ran and tested in all due honesty pay up or shut up and the same can be said about pc sorry pay up or get out or dont you use steam and pay for good quality games from steam huh!!!
  If PS plus let you select any game you wanted for free it might be a good deal...but when they limit you to the games that no one wants it sucks. With the exception of a handful of titles like WoW, online play is free on PC...even when it comes to Steam titles. Yes, you can buy games from steam...but it is essentially the same as buying games at a store. The only difference (which is the reason I've only bought one game from Steam) is you need to connect to steam about once a week to keep offline games working.
  
  Originally posted by xnonsuchx: It's understandable to require fees for online multiplayer, but at least they're keeping basic access free. With the markups put on console titles, it is not understandable to require fees for online play. They add $30 to the price of a game just for the honor of being able to play it on a proprietary console...if you then have to pay for online play, can we assume that the markup is actually $40, the last $10 being the online play included in the PC version? Why would you pay $400 for a console that is equal in gaming to a $400 PC and well behind in every other task (other than BluRay...but you already have a BluRay player anyway)...only to get charged a massive additional fee on every game you buy...and then have to pay for what would have been free on PC???
  
  Originally posted by buddyleem: all these people crying about 5 fucking dollars a month need to look at their phone bill or cable bill and realize its a fair price Well then, just send me $5 a month for nothing...obviously you don't mind doing it for sony...and it is much less than what you pay in rent.
  

  
  

  2.7.2013 21:32 #15

• adre02

  No killerbug really it doesn't cost that much. If I send you 5 bucks a month, what benefits are you going to give me? The ps4 that is.
  
  I could think of many many other ways that people can burn 5-10 a month on much more worthless things.
  
  But I digress.
  

  This is superman

  3.7.2013 01:12 #16

• xboxdvl2

  the point is ps owners have always had free online play and now we gonna be charged for something that was previously free.
  doesn't matter that its only $5 a month, we can afford it but we shouldnt have to pay for something that was free.
  

  i have the big screen tv,a ps3 and 5.1 channel surround sound.car still runs smooth and computer still works but its a bit outdated.

  3.7.2013 04:03 #17

• Jemborg

  Originally posted by xboxdvl2: the point is ps owners have always had free online play and now we gonna be charged for something that was previously free.
  doesn't matter that its only $5 a month, we can afford it but we shouldn't have to pay for something that was free. It's a very good point.
  
  This pretending to need to do it for "resource investment" is laughable. An obvious lie... I'm rather disgusted by it. They are just counting on their fanboys to lap it up. And Xbox deserters will not care.
  
  They are still making a profit with PS+ on PS3 even with the "freebies". (Some of which I think are ok but I'm not impressed with the paltry 5% discounts.)
  

  Its a lot easier being righteous than right.
  
  
  

  4.7.2013 00:32 #18

• raunchynm

  Well so much for the bitching that has been going on about Microsoft's Xbox and its fees.

  5.7.2013 08:30 #19

• Jemborg

  Originally posted by raunchynm: Well so much for the bitching that has been going on about Microsoft's Xbox and its fees. +1
  

  Its a lot easier being righteous than right.
  
  
  

  5.7.2013 10:40 #20

• A5J4DX

  gah
  

  5.7.2013 12:43 #21

• omegaman7

  Originally posted by KillerBug: Investment? They are charging $400 for $300 worth of hardware and $60-$80 for $30-$40 games...and they have to charge for the same services provided for free on PC?
  
  Microsoft wants online access for offline games and they want to put a camera and microphone in the system that stays on when it is turned off. Now Sony pulls this s**t. After reading this I just placed an order for a new video card...my PC will be far ahead of either console, with none of the anti-consumer BS. Yeppers! I'll stick with my PC, $ony! You only have a single game that intrigues me anyway. While it will probably never be available for PC, I'm willing to live with this decision, since my brother will likely own a PS4.
  

  
  
  Star Trek High Definition is only possible while theyre receiving return for their efforts. Pirate Star Trek, and their efforts will have no choice but to cease :(

  5.7.2013 14:03 #22

• damncrap

  Originally posted by Cyprien: Originally posted by 1nsan3: I don't mind paying a small fee, per year, like xbox live.
  I knew Playstation wouldnt keep it free forever.
  But paying for online access, then pay for the Plus access is stupid... pay a little more get it early. or whatever... we all pay our hard earned money to YOU guys, that should be enough!!! lol im sorry but what?.... if you have ps3 now with plus you can use the same account on ps4 and vita and get all the benefits across the platforms plus online play on ps4... you pay to play online... microsoft did it years ago... PS+ gives you plenty of things(themes/games/betas/trials/minis/discounts) unlike gold on xbox... only this time they added online to PS+ on ps4... i myself use plus and im not complaining.... Xbox live has always been giving themes/betas/trials/minis/discounts too, not sure why you guys think otherwise, granted they just started the free full games part but we do get major discounts quite often. Mentioning trials doesnt make much sense since the majority of the game on Xbox live have the option to download the trial of it.
  
  Theres one major thing about your PS+ subscription that nobody seems to mention, yes you get those games free to play but not to keep. When you dont renew or dont have your subscription anymore you lose the ability to play those games. Xbox live, once you download a free game or discounted game its free for life. You dont need a gold account to play them once you have installed it. You then can proceed to delete it if you need the space and redownload the game whenever you feel like. Once you get that check mark that you own the game, its yours for life.
  
  PS+ it's more like a gamely account, your'e renting, not owning.

  5.7.2013 15:08 #23