PS Plus and PS Now members frustrated with duplicate PS4 games

Over the past six months or so, we’ve seen a change in mood when it comes to the announcements of PlayStation 4 games included with PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now subscriptions. Essentially, the thinking process is that if you sign up for both, you will start to lose out because Sony keeps offering the same titles every now and then. A big PS4 game might already be part of PS Now, but when it’s also confirmed as a free PS Plus add-on, those who subscribe to both don’t earn anything. Each service accesses its titles the moment you cancel your subscription so neither can guarantee playtime if your subscription expires. How often does this clash occur then? We’ve looked at the last six months of data to sort things out.

Of the 16 PS4 games offered through PS Plus since June 2020, five of them were already part of PS Now. These being PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Street Fighter V, Vampyr, Middle-Earth: Shadow of War, and Hollow Knight. In the opposite direction, Friday the 13th: The Game and Broforce became part of PlayStation Now after already being free PS Plus games for the past six months. That’s a success rate of just under a third when PlayStation Plus games already on PS Now are factored in.

In our opinion, it is not as well wrong. Sony is in a sticky position where it is unlikely to please everyone who subscribes to its services and so there will always be one or two unfortunate enough to find repeat titles in the offerings. However, it is likely that the complaint started due to the positioning of the PS4 games that members already have access to. In September, PUBG and Street Fighter V found themselves duplicated. Vampyr followed a month later, then Hollow Knight and Middle-Earth: Shadow of War were what subscribers got treated to last month. As a result, there was a three-month stint where PS Now and PS Plus members received the same titles. The streak was interrupted by the December training, thankfully.

So, can you say that there is a problem here? Up to a point, of course. Members of both services have received PS4 games that they already have access to for three consecutive months, and that’s probably not correct. If they had been stretched for a longer period of time, the complaints wouldn’t be so loud. Still, the fewer duplicates Sony has to offer, the better. Have you been frustrated with this situation? Share your opinion in the comments below.