EA’s game subscription service EA Access will launch on PlayStation 4 in July, after years as an Xbox One console exclusive. On PC, EA runs a similar program, Origin Access.
EA Access on PS4 will offer a similar big back catalogue of EA games as on Xbox, along with the same 10 hours of early access to new titles, and discounts on game or DLC purchases.
The subscription service will cost the same as on Xbox, too – either £4/$5 a month or £20/$30 a year. Presumably you’ll have to buy a separate subscription for your PS4 to your Xbox, though.
It’s a big U-turn for Sony. Five years ago, PlayStation poo-pooed EA Access for its console, and said it had decided the subscription was not “good value”.
“We evaluated the EA Access subscription offering and decided that it does not bring the kind of value PlayStation customers have come to expect,” Sony told Eurogamer at the time. “PlayStation Plus memberships are up more than 200 per cent since the launch of PlayStation 4, which shows that gamers are looking for memberships that offer a multitude of services, across various devices, for one low price.”
Since then, the rise of Microsoft’s excellent value for money Xbox Game Pass has made game subscription services far more the norm. And Sony has its own version of this, PlayStation Now.
“With the addition of the PlayStation 4 console to the already existing membership services on Xbox One and PC via Origin, EA now offers its subscription services on more platforms than any other publisher,” EA noted.