Sony plans to introduce a new video game subscription service this summer in order to boost sales of its PlayStation consoles and compete with Microsoft’s comparable offering.

The business said on Tuesday that it will combine its existing PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now subscription services into a single PlayStation Plus subscription service.

The new PlayStation Plus will launch in June and will be available in three tiers: the base subscription, PS Plus Essential, will replace the original PlayStation Plus, which provided gamers with two free games per month and online multiplayer access. A monthly subscription costs $10, a quarterly subscription costs $25, and an annual subscription costs $60.

A step forward to the PS Plus Extra is available and it has all of the same benefits as Essential, but it also provides a selection of 400 downloadable PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 games. It costs $15 per month, $40 per quarter, or $100 per year.

PS Plus Premium is the most expensive package. This one has 340 more titles than Extra and allows users to stream a variety of PlayStation, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation 5 games via the internet. PS Plus Premium is available for $18 per month, $50 per quarter, or $120 per year.

Industry experts believe the move is a response to Microsoft’s Xbox Gaming Pass, a popular game subscription programme that allows customers to download and watch a variety of games.

Microsoft is investing heavily in Game Pass, acquiring major video game companies such as Activision Blizzard and Bethesda for a combined $76 billion in order to bring their popular titles to the platform.

Xbox Game Pass has been compared to “Netflix for gaming.” It lets gamers to play video games through the cloud on their phone, PC, or Xbox console, eliminating the need for costly gear.

Users of Sony’s PS Plus Premium subscription will be able to stream games to their PCs as well as their PS4 and PS5 consoles. Players will also get the opportunity to check out various games for a limited time before deciding whether or not to purchase them.

“The new Extra and Premium tiers represent a major evolution for PlayStation Plus,” Sony’s PlayStation boss, Jim Ryan, said in blog post Tuesday. “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.”

Death Stranding, Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, and Returnal will be among the games available at launch. Sony stated that it is “working closely” with third-party developers to provide more titles in the future.

(Adapted from TodayNewsNetwork.com)