Stray Successful For PS Plus Extra, Sony Still Experimenting With Day One Releases

Stray turned out to be a success for PS Plus Extra, though Sony is still experimenting with day one releases.

Speaking at GI Live: London today, head of PlayStation Indies Shuhei Yoshida discussed how launching PS Plus Extra with a day one release in the form of Stray proved to be a big success for both the higher tier service and the game. Though, he admitted that Sony is still in the process of experimenting with subscription services at this point.

According to Yoshida, the new PS Plus has tiers, and it’s essentially like the old PS Plus. Sony is still release two or three new games every month and a new tier, Extra, has a catalogue of hundreds of games for people to play. For Extra, the console maker’s approach is to help the publishers with managing the lifecycle of their games. He stated that he was previously managing PlayStation’s first-party studios, and he compared the situation to movies, where a big release is only available at theaters first, then goes to pay per view or a subscription service, or free TV, every time generating new revenue and reaching out to a broader audience.

Yoshida stated that Sony believes in the premium release of a title at launch, and, after the game’s sales have dropped, adding it o the  service. In this manner, PS Plus Extra can help introduce these games to new, broader audiences. Some people might have missed these games when they were originally released, and it’s a great opportunity for them to play and generate word-of-mouth. Similarly, if there’s DLC or a sequel close to release, the service can help elevate interest towards the franchise to a broader audience. Thus, Sony is encouraging publishers to make use of these services in managing the lifecycle their games, said Yoshida.