Although Sony has done a lot to make the higher tiers attractive, it is worth investigating whether it has come at the cost of the Essential tier. When comparing the price of this year’s and last year’s PS Plus games, it becomes evident that there is not much dollar difference. Hence, gamers should not worry about the quality of PS Plus Essential dropping with the introduction of the higher tiers.

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PlayStation Plus in 2021

Last year was a relatively good year when it comes to PS Plus games. Sony offered a great spread of games across several genres, and there was a good serving of AAA and indie titles that deserved the attention. The year started off with a bang, and in January 2021, subscribers received GreedFall, Maneater, and Shadow of the Tomb Raider. February was even more impressive, as the games offered were Concrete Genie, Destruction AllStars, and Control: Ultimate Edition. It was a noteworthy month, as Destruction AllStars and Control: Ultimate Edition were recently released titles. March was another good month, as Sony gave away Farpoint, Final Fantasy 7 Remake, Maquette, and Remnant: From the Ashes.

April was an interesting month. The games given away were Oddworld: SoulStorm, Days Gone, and Zombie Army 4: Dead War. Oddworld debuted on PS Plus, which was a nice surprise for subscribers. However, Days Gone was already in the PS Plus Collection which is available to all PS5 owners subscribed to PS Plus. In May, Sony offered Battlefield 5, Stranded Deep, and Wreckfest, which is a fun game where players can race and wreck derby cars and even lawnmowers. June brought Operation: Tango, Star Wars: Squadrons, and Virtua Fighter 5: Ultimate Showdown. Finally, with July, came Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, WWE 2K: Battlegrounds, and A Plague Tale: Innocence, which had received a PS5 upgrade.

When comparing this year’s and last year’s games, using their current prices may be unfair, as a game may happen to be on sale at this moment. Hence, using PSdeals to track each game’s lowest price ever on the PS Store gives a more even playing field. Using this method, the PS Plus games of January add up to $43.67, February adds up to $43.97, March adds up to $59.17, April adds up to $49.77, and May is the priciest month, as it adds up to $61.97. June adds up to $33.97, and lastly, July adds up to $44.57. The grand total for all the games is $337.09.

PlayStation Plus in 2022

Although higher tiers of PS Plus became available in 2022, plenty of gamers will stick to PS Plus Essential if all they need is access to online multiplayer functionality. The free monthly games are a nice perk, and in 2022, Sony has continued to serve both PS4 and PS5 gamers. In January, subscribers got Dirt 5, Deep Rock Galactic, and Persona 5 Strikers, while in February, they got Planet Coaster, UFC 4, and Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep: A Wonderlands One-Shot Adventure. March was a very impressive month, as it brought Team Sonic Racing, Ark: Survival Evolved, Ghost of Tsushima Legends, and as a bonus, Ghostrunner and GTA: Online.

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In April, subscribers received Slay the Spire, Hood: Outlaws & Legends, and, as a nice surprise, SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom Rehydrated. May brought with it FIFA 22, Tribes of Midgard, and Curse of the Dead Gods, while June featured Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl, Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker, and God of War (2018), which was likely included to drum up excitement for God of War Ragnarok’s imminent release. Lastly, in July, Sony offered Arcadegeddon, The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan, and Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time.

It has been a good year so far, and while it is impossible to please all gamers every month, Sony has done a fair job of spreading its games across different genres for its PS Plus subscribers. January’s games add up to $59.97, February’s add up to $32.67, March’s add up to $75.35, April’s add up to $30.27, May’s add up to $54.97, June’s add up to $30.97, and lastly, July’s add up to $51.97. In total, the games cost $336.17.

How Does 2021 Compare to 2022?

Based on pure numbers, 2021 inches ahead of 2022 by a few cents. However, $0.92 is a negligible amount, and for most gamers, the difference is so small that it might as well be ignored. It is also worth paying attention to the quality of the games, and personal preference, which no external scale can measure. During both years, Sony supported both PS4 and PS5 players, and there were occasional surprises thrown in by way of extra games and new games launching on the subscription service. What can be learned is that while Sony has spent a lot of time building up its higher tiers, PS Plus Essential subscribers are not getting cheaper games this year compared to last year.

The revamp of Sony’s subscription services is very welcome, as it gives players more options and opens vast libraries of new and old games. It also provides a solution to the problem of preserving Sony’s archive of games, which can be difficult to access at times. However, for those players who do not wish to upgrade their PS Plus subscription, the quality of games offered in the Essential tier has not changed.

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