PlayStation Plus Premium Review
Can Sony's membership compete with Xbox Game Pass?
Verdict
The stellar catalogue of titles and online functionality makes PlayStation Plus Premium one of the best when it strictly comes to games. It’s everything else that questions why this tier exists.
Pros
- A superb selection of games
- Classics catalogue spans every era of Sony’s consoles
- Two to three new PS4/PS5 games every month
- Near-flawless online multiplayer network
Cons
- Major PS5 releases won’t be available for years
- Cloud streaming is hit and miss
- No real need to upgrade from PS Plus Extra
Key Features
- Over 700 gamesFeatures both PS5 games, and those from older PlayStation consoles
- Game trialsAllows you to try a short section of a game before committing to a purchase.
- Cloud streaming for PS5 and PS3 gamesCloud technology allows you to play PlayStation games on PC.
Introduction
It’s hard to believe that a version of PlayStation Plus has been going for well over a decade.
Established in 2010 under the PlayStation Network, Sony overhauled its offerings in 2022 to compete with the likes of Xbox Game Pass, Nintendo Switch Online and such. With well over 700 games – including titles from every console generation – there is a treasure trove of top titles to enjoy.
Sure, it doesn’t include PlayStation Studios day-one releases, yet long-time fans and newcomers will find plenty here with exclusives, free monthly games and a lightning-fast network for online multiplayer.
PS Plus Classics is also a treat for those who appreciate Sony’s earlier days, though that inclusion, coupled with game trials and an unreliable cloud streaming service, do little to justify its upgrade from lower tiers.
Pricing
- Costs £13.49/$17.99 per month
- US pricing is more expensive than in UK
- Not much flexibility in upgrading tiers for just a month
To gain access to PlayStation Plus Premium, Sony offers a one-month subscription at £13.49, a three-month subscription at £39.99 as well as a 12-month subscription at £119.99. This is notably cheaper than those in the US who need to shell out $17.99 per month, $49.99 per quarter and $159.99 per year.
One annoying tidbit is that there is no way to switch subscriptions briefly if you’ve already paid out for another tier. So for instance, I had already paid out for one year of PS Plus Essential and wanted to upgrade to PS Plus Premium for a month to test the offering.
This wasn’t possible however, meaning I needed to invest more to top up my subscription for the remainder of my 12-month subscription. That flexibility is a disappointment and will likely push away some who may fancy giving one of the upgraded tiers a go.
Games
- Provides access to over 700 games
- Some major PS5 exclusives included
- Extensive catalogue of old PlayStation games
PlayStation Plus Premium has an extensive library of more than 700 games. Its main game catalogue features titles from the PS5 and PS4 era with its line-up frequently being updated.
Some of the highlights include Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, Demon’s Souls, Kena: Bridge of Spirits, Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Grand Theft Auto V, Horizon Forbidden West, God of War, Returnal, Sea of Stars, Sackboy: A Big Adventure, Fallout 4, Skyrim and Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection.
This is all made up of around 50 titles from the Ubisoft Plus Classics collection along with Sony’s own Classics Catalogue with games from the PS1, PS2, PSP and PS3 eras. In addition to this, every month two to three new games can be added to your own personal collection as well as the ability to trial a select few PS5 games before deciding whether to purchase.
Performance
- Online multiplayer experience is near flawless
- Cloud streaming suffers poor performance
- Virtually no queuing times
When it comes to online multiplayer, the PlayStation Network has come a long way from the days of the infamous PSN hack. Having used the service since the PS3 days, it’s near-flawless today and alongside Xbox, the gold standard for gaming. Its responsiveness is perfect for everything for a match of Rocket League or competing in fast FPS titles like Overwatch.
That same performance, sadly, doesn’t crossover to its cloud streaming capabilities. With an internet speed of 67.9Mbps, I tested streaming across Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Ghostrunner and Fortnite.
Sony lets you test your connection/speed to see if cloud streaming is possible, something I passed. However, when entering a game it would throw up notifications stating I did not have the requirement needed, so there’s certainly some mixed messaging.
Every game worked well for a good while, only to throw up a big freeze as it tried to catch up, happening on average every 15 to 20 minutes. Oddly, it occurred more often in cutscenes than gameplay for Spider-Man.
As Ghostrunner and Fortnite both require precision and vigilance at all times, this simply isn’t good enough. One match in the battle royale got down to the last two, only for the connection to freeze at the worst possible moment meaning I lost out.
It’s one of those instances where unless you live in Silicon Valley, the likelihood of your network being sufficient is still a way off. Two positives to note are the high-resolution options going up to 4K and the virtually no queuing times whatever time of the day I jumped on.
Software
- Filter options could be better
- Includes 1000GB of cloud storage
- Exclusive discounts and savings
Considering PS Plus Premium officially has 12 benefits as part of its overall package, I’m thankful Sony has a dedicated badge to the service where it’s relatively straightforward to traverse all of the offerings. There’s even handy information cards explaining how each benefit works. I just wish that there were better filter options and the ability to search when within the Game Catalogue itself.
Cloud streaming is easy to jump into, though the fact that a game will close in two minutes if you head off to the main menu briefly is a bit bizarre. I often instinctually press the PS button to pause the game, so I needed to adjust so as not to miss out.
Additional perks include 1000GB cloud storage, Share Play so that you can share your game screen with friends, Game Help guides and exclusive packs for certain games like Fortnite, Paladins, Fallout Shelter and Apex Legends. The exclusive discounts are pretty decent too, shaving off up to 50% from hundreds of games.
Latest deals
Should you buy it?
If you love PlayStation games, especially PS classics
The number of games on PlayStation Plus Premium will keep you busy for literal years, with Sony set to keep refreshing its selection so you never run out of things to play.
If you already have any other PS Plus tier
PlayStation Plus Premium is not worth the increase in price from PS Plus Essential and Extra with all the best perks available in the former two tiers.
Final Thoughts
Sony’s new PlayStation Plus Premium is a big step up with hundreds of superb games and a decent number of exclusives to keep you occupied for years to come.
While its cloud streaming service is not at the level it needs to be quite yet, its classics collection, first-rate online multiplayer experience and further perks do make for a rather well-rounded package. It’s just a shame the best ones can be claimed in its lower tiers.
How we test
We test every video game streaming service we review thoroughly over an extended period of time. We’ll always tell you what we find. We never, ever, accept money to review a product.
Played multiple games on the service.
Tested cloud streaming performance
Tested all available settings.
You might like…
FAQs
A PlayStation Plus Premium subscription costs £119.99 for 12 months in the UK.
Sony occasionally runs a seven-day free trial to various tiers of PlayStation Plus that will then roll into a full subscription once the initial period has elapsed. Keep an eye on the Sony website for all the latest offers.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
