PS4 update 5.0 beta registration went live Wednesday, and just a few hours later, the rumor reports are already piling up. With new perspective on recent tweets from PlayStation insider Tidux, conversations have begun about a merger between PlayStation Now and PlayStation Plus.
The speculation began when Tidux tweeted the following in a series of three unsubstantiated rumors:
“PS Now will be released worldwide and be a part of a new PS Plus plan.”
To make that concept even sweeter, hopeful testers discovered soon after that the 5.0 beta registration page initially asked users if they were PlayStation Now subscribers. While it’s since been fixed, the only option on the first version of the form was “yes.” Page creation foibles aside, the fact that PlayStation Now is discussed for this beta may offer a hint that the service is tied to the upcoming firmware. To take that idea one step further, it’s not outside the realm of possibility that the initial PS Now requirement was intentional. In a bid to hide its hand in terms of features, maybe Sony removed it.
A link between PlayStation Now and PlayStation Plus an intriguing topic of discussion since the game streaming service first launched in 2014, but we’ve never seen it come to pass. As two associated subscription platforms on the PS4, it’d make sense to bundle them together. After all, why not entice the millions of existing Plus subscribers with a little more content?
Should this rumor prove true, the most interesting question to ask is how such a merger will take shape. Will there be a new $65 or $70 monthly tier that includes a Now subscription? Will PlayStation Now be leveraged to play all PlayStation Plus PS3 games on PS4? Will there be one free PlayStation Now game each month? Considering the vast majority of PlayStation owners have probably never tried Now before, any idea like that would be a great way to get new customers in the door.
All that being said, we’d be remiss if we didn’t reiterate that even Tidux himself has doubts about the source of this rumor. He followed up the tweet by saying he has “no idea if there is any substance” to the claims being made. Tidux does have a mixed track record with rumors in the past, but he’s proven to have some industry-level association despite not getting everything right. He also mentions a possible Robotech game in development at Level 5 and PS5’s alleged release window in late 2019. Again, take all of these assertions with a grain of salt.
If past PS4 firmware betas are any indication, update 5.0 could be released a month from the date of publish. In other words, regardless of features, its arrival might make for a nice announcement during Gamescom.
What would you like to see from PS4 update 5.0? Will a bundle with PlayStation Now and PlayStation Plus ever exist? Tell us in the comments section!
