PlayStation Planning A Game Pass Competitor Subscription Service Called Spartacus - Report

PlayStation is reportedly planning a new subscription service to compete with Xbox Game Pass, with the ability to play original PlayStation, PlayStation 2, and PlayStation 3, and PlayStation Portable games. [Update: The new PS Plus subscription has been revealed.]

According to a new report from Bloomberg, this service is codenamed Spartacus. Owners will be able to pay a monthly fee to play classic and modern games from PlayStation's catalog. The service will most likely be available on PlayStation 4 as well as PlayStation 5.

Spartacus is reportedly expected to launch in Spring 2022 and will merge both existing subscription plans of PlayStation Plus and PlayStation Now together. However, the PlayStation Now name is going to be phased out while PlayStation Plus remains.

Details aren't finalized, but the service will reportedly have three tiers. The first tier will retain existing PlayStation Plus benefits and the second tier will allow players to access a large selection of PS4 titles, with PS5 ones eventually. The third and highest tier will include extended demos, game streaming, and a library of legacy content from PS1, PS2, PS3, and PSP games. Vita games are conspicuously absent from the reported lineup, although it's possible that's due to the difficulty of mapping touch controls to a PS4 or PS5 controller.

PlayStation Now is Sony's current game streaming service and includes titles such as The Last of Us Part 2, Fallout 76, and Final Fantasy VII Remastered. December's free PlayStation Plus titles were recently revealed too, such as Godfall: Challenger Edition and Mortal Shell.