PlayStation Now - First impressions of the "new" service proposed by Sony

PlayStation Now - First impressions of the

With a few years delay compared to the rest of the world (in the USA the service has already been available since 2014), last 12 March PlayStation Now has opened its doors. The concept behind PS Now it is very similar to that of entertainment platforms such as Netflix and offers the user a vast catalog of titles to choose from and to play directly in streaming, without the need to download games on consoles. However, Sony's offer is not limited to the PlayStation 4 only, but also debuts on Windows PCs with the only limitation of the use of a Dual Shock 4 controller.



PlayStation Now - First impressions of the

First Steps on PlayStation Now

Log in to PlayStation Now it's really simple: just open the relevant application from the home of yours PlayStation 4 or, if you are on a Windows PC, download the app from the official website and log in with your own credentials PS Network account. At this point, just choose the subscription method: Sony offers us either a monthly subscription (at a cost of € 14,99) or an annual subscription (at € 99,99). Before deciding whether to subscribe or not, the system checks if our connection is able to support the service, and once the test is passed, it allows us to take advantage of a free trial 7 days, at the end of which the registration will pass directly to the monthly charge, unless we cancel.

Spoiled for choice

The first impression is decidedly positive: a really well-fed and varied list of titles appears on the screen. As announced by Sony we find titles dating back "to the time" PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3 up to the latest video games for PlayStation 4. In total, the catalog consists of more than 600 games: there is really plenty of choice, considering that every month the list will be updated with more titles. Along with more or less unknown titles, numerous classics appear (we immediately note the series of God of War e devil may cry, along with the first Red Dead Redemption and its Zombie-themed spin off). Our first choice ultimately falls on Star Wars: The Force Unleashed. Probably due to the traffic on the network, the system warns us that we will have to wait a few minutes before being able to play, so we are placed in a waiting queue. In reality we have to wait only a few moments, because shortly after we find ourselves already grappling with the adventures of Starkiller. PlayStation Now - First impressions of the



Having not yet paid the subscription, instead of downloading the game, we limit ourselves to using the streaming for the moment, but at first glance there do not seem to be any particular limitations. Our in-game session runs smoothly, without slowdowns or lag. The graphics quality is still that of the original game, but overall the first test is booming. So we decide to try something more "full-bodied", so we start Oblivion, also trying it on PC. Compared to the original platform there are no differences, and at the first test of the game in streaming on Windows, PlayStation Now receives our approval. Always on PC we are intrigued by Warriors: Legend of Troy, discovering a PS2 title that we did not know before and that gave us a few more hours of "old style" fun.

It's always the connection's fault

After a couple of days in which we have dusted off the "classics", we decide to test the service with something more "modern". Let's start a game at Mortal Kombat X, but for the first time we encounter some problems. While we're engaged in the traditional tower mode challenge, the connection starts to slow down, causing frame rate drops and drastic freezes to movement. In these cases the system warns us of connection problems, showing a warning in the upper right corner of the screen. Unfortunately, even though we were playing single player, we had to save our progress and interrupt the session. Similar problems in online multiplayer mode have made the gaming experience at times unbearable, but it is fair to point out that this depends on the user's connection and not on the service of the game. Sony. PlayStation Now - First impressions of the


An eye to the past ...

In our opinion, the strength of PlayStation Now consists not only in presenting an immense catalog, able to satisfy any range of player, but also in offering the possibility of recovering quality titles at an affordable price, as well as giving ample space to a selection of lesser-known games (among these the unmissable rail shooting game of the series resident evil), but still able to meet the user's tastes. In fact, as we choose the video games, the system will take into account our preferences by proposing those titles that are most suitable for us, so as not to get lost in the vastness of the over 600 titles present.


… Aiming for the future

The offer of PlayStation Now it is on balance very convincing, and can only prepare the ground for a new way of offering quality videogame entertainment products via streaming. Given what it is possible to offer via streaming at reasonable prices, we can assume that in the near future this way of playing video games will develop further (it is not surprising that these days Google announced Stadia, another platform that will offer the ability to play directly online without the need for physical copies or to download games). PlayStation Now it is not just a window into the "past" of PlayStation, but also a gateway to the future of online gaming.

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