Do you think video game subscription services are worthwhile?

Agusto101 · Apr 17, 2021

Obviously the best one is xbox game 0ass if you thing otherwise, good luck with that buddy haha, that's all I'm gonna say.

D34DL1N3R · Apr 17, 2021

Ericzander said:
My favorite is PS+. Not because it's better than Game Pass (it's certainly not) but because it's what I have and I'm a corporate shill.

PS+ is not a competitor to Game Pass. PS Now is.

Foxi4 said:
On the PS side, Plus basically equals at least 24 games every year for the price of one

Keep in mind there are deals on a pretty much monthly to bi-monthly basis. Recently as low as $25 for a year, stackable. I'm good through March 7, 2024.

Xzi · Apr 17, 2021

Agusto101 said:
Obviously the best one is xbox game 0ass if you thing otherwise, good luck with that buddy haha, that's all I'm gonna say.

I'd agree, though it does have its flaws. The way game files are encrypted on PC is a bit over the top for one. I'm not saying they should have no DRM, but it makes it hard to access config and save files for some games. The Xbox App also isn't the best piece of software in the world, but it's at least far better than Epic's pathetic effort at a launcher.

Agusto101 · Apr 17, 2021

Xzi said:
I'd agree, though it does have its flaws. The way game files are encrypted on PC is a bit over the top for one. I'm not saying they should have no DRM, but it makes it hard to access config and save files for some games. The Xbox App also isn't the best piece of software in the world, but it's at least far better than Epic's pathetic effort at a launcher.

Of Course is not Perfect But compared to the Others is the best one to be honest.

pedro702 · Apr 17, 2021

no one should have to pay to play online, that is just sad imo, xbox started this and then the competition was like , hey if they get away with it why cant we? and here we are now. i never payed for a subscription and i dont play online because of that, my last games played online were on ps3/wiiu after that im fine with offline only, its not because of the cost but because of the principle i have to pay for the service, specially on switch where its still p2p on most games so they dont even have dedicated servers, paying to do p2p is just stupid.

PatrickD85 · Apr 17, 2021

As a physical Nintendo Switch collector, the Nintendo Switch Online is ok, but I would never go all digital with Nintendo.
As a Xbox Series X owner, Game Pass Ultimate is insane when looking at cost / reward. In fact it made me decide to go all digital with Xbox (keep note this was my first ever Xbox).

So it depends really. But when done like Game Pass, it's a no brainer really.

Raylight · Apr 17, 2021

I think its alright as long as it doesnt replace outright buying a game you like. it can save you money on buying games you may never touch again and leave you with more to spend on actual good games.

tpax · Apr 17, 2021

The best subscription service is to pirate games. You pay nothing and get everything, and that's a lot of value.
I know, I know, we need to financially support the game developers. But on the other hand, when did the game developers ever support me financially?

Aside from that, I don't really see the value of a subscription service, at least regarding my gaming habits. I love to play games that were just released and are hot shit right now. I rarely touch games that are as old as they are when they're releasing on Game Pass (aside from MS 1st party, but they are all shit, so that doesn't matter). So no, I don't see any value in the subscription services right now.

subcon959 · Apr 17, 2021

I wrote this somewhere else the other day but I'm not particularly fond of the 'games as a service' model. It may well be a generational thing though since I also prefer physical media for movies and music. I still use digital for portability of course (Sony never made a vinyl Walkman sadly).

pietempgba · Apr 17, 2021

Only PS+ and xbox game pass

mrjelly · Apr 17, 2021

Subscriptions cheapen games, they seem good value but just like film subscriptions there's way too many for one person. You'll flit between games and when one shows a bit of resistance then it's quit and the next is tried. 300+ games for £10 (or whatever it is) is a useless premise. Also then game developers have to get in with the service owner and have their game put on the service to stand a chance, as everyone will buy into it and pressure others to use it.
It gives a second rate experience a lot of the time in my experience. There may be a shooter you really want but that's not on the subscription so you choose one you're less bothered about that is included.

then as someone else said here, poof, it's turned off one day, or your best game is removed due to copyright disputes.

Deleted User · Apr 17, 2021

It comes back to what it is being compared to and what Generation one happens to be part of.

If one is accustomed to Mobile Games where Gacha and Currency are routinely bought to continue playing optimally, then the concept of Subscription is just a short hop, step and jump away from that norm. Similarly, MMORPG Players shouldn't be too unfamiliar with paying for something they inherently do not own.

From that standpoint, paying a Subscription to play several games that might be worth more in total does seem reasonable and is a sight better than paying for one Digital Game that is bound to one Account, without any Physical Copy.

But compared to an actual Physical Copy that can be used by multiple people interchangeably, it is definitely several steps down in quality. Personally, I would balance the cost with quality of said Game and whether owning it indefinitely is worth it. Some Games in my Gaming History are just seasonal whims, not worth looking back on.

Some, however, are those I still sought after and try to get working on newer systems and OSes, despite what little support they have on GOG ...

Blaze163 · Apr 17, 2021

I have experience with a lot of kinds of gaming subscription. I pay, albeit grudgingly, for PS+ every year. Nasty chunk of the February budget just to have 11 year old morons swear at me. I'm not keen on this one. Truth be told I'm not even sure if I'll renew it next year.

I also play FF14 but to be fair I added up how much that's cost me over the last 2 years in terms of pounds per hour and it's been an absolute steal, about 4p per hour as opposed to the usual £1 an hour for a 40 hour game. It's a blast so yeah, my £9 a month isn't a big deal. Especially since I'll now be going into Endwalker as part of an FC, making friends and helping to overcome my usual anti-social tendencies.

And I used to use Boomerang, essentially the UK version of GameFly, they send games through the mail, you play, send back, repeat. It's actually a pretty solid rental service. Bit luck based unfortunately as to whether or not you get the new releases unless you pay for premium membership. But if you play a lot of games, get bored easily or are just broke AF, about £14 a month for all the games you can play (2 at a time) is a steal.

Honestly of them all only PS+ irritates me, because it feels like I'm being strong-armed into it as opposed to making the choice because I see value in it. Occasionally the PS+ games justify the cost but a lot of the time they're crap or stuff I already own. But then it only takes one good drop out of 24 or so a year to make it worthwhile. It just leaves a bad taste in my mouth paying for it because of how they ditched PS3 and Vita support, jacked up the price and then fobbed us off with a bunch of junk and expanded storage I can't see how anyone could ever use. Maybe once I get a PS5 (or more accurately some money) it won't seem so bad.

Ethelmord · Apr 17, 2021

xdarkmario said:
is this bait? lol
for me HELLL NO! i hate subscriptions MORE than paying taxes (or a local panhandler) I wouldn't touch it with a Deca-septillion mile Pole. I would rather play jump rope with my intestines on a salt pit. But I digress...

but in all seriously i Strongly dislike subscription services for one of many reasons being paying for something you MIGHT use.
if i pay a subscription im paying a tallied price for DAILY use. what if i decide or am incapable of using the service for while? You still paying for it. that's wasting money ( i even use prepaid phone plan) and in the world of gaming your not paying for a premium, you are just paying for something that WAS free without any improvements (im looking at you nintendo online MP servers) those "Deals" are only there to entice you to sign up.

Strongly agree with that. I think it's become a flexing contest more than anything now too, people are bragging about what games they have and can play with said subscription services. Yeah there's several hundred games to choose from but how many people have actually played and finished anything on them?

Deleted User · Apr 17, 2021

I dunno about you, but I like the consoles that I buy for $500 to be fully featured right out of the gate, instead of forcing me to purchase external... things. If you bought a Dreamcast, you BOUGHT a Dreamcast. You can play your video games, just like that. You can hook it up with a phone cable or the broadband adapter and play online, just like that. Unless the game utilized an add-on, which likely came with the game that requires it to begin with, you were set. You don't come home from a long day at school or work and have to fuck around on your phone for an hour while all your games update, because video games can't just be complete when they release now. There was a time when games would have to be completely reprinted to fix minor issues, so developers would try to avoid making games that required fixing. Now, who gives a shit? You didn't have to get your friends to sign-in with their fucking Microsoft accounts if you want to play a round of the shooty-shoots, or use a guest account for the games that allow you to. You could just play the game. When I say this, I'm not shitting on Game Pass, but instead the online services that give you shit that you should have in the first place. Switch Online pisses me off because everyone says that with all the NES and SNES games it justifies the $20. And yes, Donkey Kong Country 2 is worth well over $20, but does that mean this is a good service? Hell no! This isn't a considered, thoughtful way to preserve the relatively few games it offers, but instead a band-aid on their shitshow of an online service. Microsoft and Sony may do no maintenance on their servers, but at least they were somewhat competent in the first place.

Silent_Gunner · Apr 17, 2021

HylianBran said:
I dunno about you, but I like the consoles that I buy for $500 to be fully featured right out of the gate, instead of forcing me to purchase external... things. If you bought a Dreamcast, you BOUGHT a Dreamcast. You can play your video games, just like that. You can hook it up with a phone cable or the broadband adapter and play online, just like that. Unless the game utilized an add-on, which likely came with the game that requires it to begin with, you were set. You don't come home from a long day at school or work and have to fuck around on your phone for an hour while all your games update, because video games can't just be complete when they release now. There was a time when games would have to be completely reprinted to fix minor issues, so developers would try to avoid making games that required fixing. Now, who gives a shit? You didn't have to get your friends to sign-in with their fucking Microsoft accounts if you want to play a round of the shooty-shoots, or use a guest account for the games that allow you to. You could just play the game. When I say this, I'm not shitting on Game Pass, but instead the online services that give you shit that you should have in the first place. Switch Online pisses me off because everyone says that with all the NES and SNES games it justifies the $20. And yes, Donkey Kong Country 2 is worth well over $20, but does that mean this is a good service? Hell no! This isn't a considered, thoughtful way to preserve the relatively few games it offers, but instead a band-aid on their shitshow of an online service. Microsoft and Sony may do no maintenance on their servers, but at least they were somewhat competent in the first place.

I learned a few weeks ago that Mortal Kombat 11, on anything other than the Switch or PC, doesn't let characters share variations. So if you spent, like some idiots on here did *looks in the mirror* 500+ hours unlocking character intros/outros, fighting through not-so-fun tower challenges to unlock every skin, gear piece, brutality because you can't just do it and unlock it like with the fatalities, etc., and you wanted to play a few rounds with your older brother, guess what? He won't have everything you do on the Xbox One/Series X/S or the PS4/PS5 on his side of the screen, while you'll have it all on yours because how dare the guest account (if it even allows that) be able to just mirror the first player's screen.

And I fear now that, with COVID, devs will have even more of an excuse to just not let us play games locally the way we used to because "social distancing" and all that. It's like the days of being able to just sit down and play a game with friends and family with no BS died with the 6th generation of consoles with some holdouts in the 7th generation, but otherwise, I fear that the future of the gaming industry when it comes to big budget games will just be littered with every not-fun thing in games that we're experiencing today, but worse. Sure, there's indie games, but even a lot of those have similar premises: AI-generated levels, rougelike/roguelite, Metroidvanias, some influence from Dark Souls, 8-bit/16-bit graphics/music (which isn't bad on its own), and add developer drama on top of that in a post-Phil Fish-cancelling-Fez-2 and the-entire-dev-team-quitting-on-Skullgirls world.

nikeymikey · Apr 17, 2021

Although I've always been one for physical media in the past i can see myself jumping in to Game Pass this gen. I haven't got hold of either new console yet and hadn't really decided which one i would end up getting but the value of Xbox All Access is looking like to much to pass up.
I do agree that overall subscription services will only hurt us the consumer in the very long run, as they are a very big step towards the extinction of physical media and we all know what happens when servers are shutdown and storefronts are closed. No one knows how MS or any of the companies offering subs will keep the service running for or anything like that. One major difference is that if they announce closure of a service we wont be able to go and redownload all purchases as we will not own a single game on the service.
That alone could make retro gaming very difficult in the future and i cant see people still playing on a PS5 or XBX in 30 years time, like people still use NES consoles today for example.
The more people subscribe to a service the less physical games are bought, so less are produced, so in 30 years time game copies will not be as common as they are with most older consoles entire back catalogue save those handful of really rare games that each has.

I can see piracy being the only way to play most games in the future as and when they become retro.... and that's only going to be possible if hacks are developed that allow it.

That itself if more and more difficult with each gen as security gets better and stronger, Xbox One in fact hasn't been have for the entire of its lifetime and i think that's a first!

Osakasan · Apr 17, 2021

If they give me an extra service? Yes, they do

I pay PS plus, and i get two to four games per month. I almost don't need to buy games for my PS4

I pay Nintendo Switch online, and i get to play NES and SNES games, a few neat battle royale retro games and some extras.

The extra services are proportional to the price, too. I'm paying less than 5 € for NSO by having a familiar plan. I have no complaints whatsoever.

Spider_Man · Apr 17, 2021

Dust2dust said:
You seem to consider buying games as an investment. That's ok, but there are much more interesting ways of investing your money, like real estate, for example. I also own some valued games, like Panzer Dragoon Saga on the Saturn, but I never bought it with the intention of making money some day. I just wanted to play it. I'll probably sell it some day to let someone else enjoy it, as, let's face it, I won't live forever. Games should be bought to play them, not as investments. That's just my opinion.

of course there is, items are bought to do as you wish.

not something you get the option with digital, holds no value what so ever.

you might as well throw your money down the drain, when the next consoles come out most people used to trade in their old console and games, well thats going to end soon.

i remember last gen when ms tried forcing digital only, everyone was like hell no, i like to own my shit, now seems everyones getting brainwashed into loving digital..... this is only going to see future consoles make the excuse of increase digital users only then force consoles as digital only.

SonicMC · Apr 17, 2021

Lots of options for gaming subscriptions now... Mostly not for me.

PlayStation Plus: a few games per month on PS4. Keep the ones they give you as long as you unlock them and keep the subscription. Required for online. Tried for a few years near end of ps3 era then stopped; wasn't playing the games they gave me; nor was I playing online.
PlayStation Now. Looks a bit like gamepass but with PS4/PS3/PS2. When my PS3 was working. I thought about getting the service to try out some PS4 games from the PS3... Then I realized they wouldn't let me stream to my Vita/PS3 anymore even if I signed up... Now my PS3 is broken. I don't own a PS4. I kind of feel like for games they can get on PSNOW if I own the PS3 license for the Game they should just give me access to that specific game without subscription (for as long as the game publisher has it on PSNOW). I hear the PC App is less than stellar. If a game that I really want to try shows up. I might try the PC app and any free trial they offer. Until then.... Nope
Xbox Live Gold. Not ever tried.
Microsoft Game Pass. Tried it on PC was fun to play a few games. Bought one of them I tried and liked on steam sale. But I don't play though enough games for it to be worth it to me. Store was awkward. Needs a steam big picture version. So I can just use my controller to easily control.
Humble Bundle Choice. subscription to random games; but you get to keep the ones you choose. I have done this on and off. I find when I quit the subscription; the next month or two they add games that I like. When I sign up for the subscription then they give me choices I don't like that much.... Used to have better store discounts with the subscription as well. Will likely cancel again soon.
Android/Iphone gaming subscriptions. Nope I like my controllers and my phone is not high end and my ipad is so old that neither option would work great with these services anyway.
Stadia-- Staying away from that for a least 5-10 years. I don't have the best internet and Google is not great at keeping products around.
Nintendo switch online: I already own many of the NES/SNES on the original system/Virtual Console(wii or wii u) or other game collections. The online behind the paywall is annoying... Since I really don't feel it is any better than what was offered for free on the Wii/Wii U. The NES/SNES controllers behind a paywall was equally annoying. Wish the controllers worked on my Wii/Wii U. So I honestly don't like it. I did like Mario 35. That was fun for bit.

I'm sure there are more.

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