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Stretched Multiplayer Playerbases
However, having two multiplayer games arrive on PS Plus at the same time will likely dilute the potential beneficial effects that bothFirst Class TroubleandKnockout Citycould have experienced if they’d arrived separate from one another. There’s only so many hours in a day or a single play session that players will be able to dedicate to either game. That becomes even more apparent when factoring in the other new games players will also have access to, if they’ve invested in Sony’s VR headset.
What could’ve been a concentrated month-long boost in the spotlight for one or the other, is now going to be stretched somewhat between the two. For a game likeKnockout Citythat launched to positive reviewsand reception earlier this year, it’s possible that its status as the slightly older title of the pair could see it left out in the cold in comparison.
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PS Plus Multiplayer Fatigue
Even though the multiplayer games on PS Plus are unique from one another in their own right, the fact that they all embody the same principles of sociable gaming, ensures that each subsequent launch likely adds to an overload of games amongst players. Getting a developer or publisher onboard tolaunch their game on PS Plusis obviously a difficult task to coordinate at the best of times, even without factoring in the idea of a simultaneous launch. Yet, it feels as though spacing out these types of games throughout the year in the future might help all parties involved.
At the start of 2021 for example, only one game that didn’t feature primarily singleplayer focused content,Sony’s ownDestruction AllStars, arrived on the service before June. Launching a game likePredators: Hunting Groundduring that time instead of later in the year could’ve helped the games arriving this month to stand out that much more from each other.
PS Plus Diversity Potential
Balancing out different tastes is an almost impossible task for a publisher like Sony to do when it’s building up PS Plus' monthly lineup. Considering the diverse array of games, players, platforms, and sensibilities that exist within the PlayStation ecosystem, there’s sadly always going to be a strong chance that someone feels left out by what ultimately hits the service. To the publisher’s credit, the multiplayer-centric offerings that are available throughout the next month have at least been balanced out to an extent by the three VR games, and the substantial singleplayer experience that isTHQ Nordic’sKingdoms of Amalur Re-Reckoning.
In an ever changing digital focused marketplace, there’s a chance that continuing to overload PS Plus with more and more multiplayer experiences, may eventually sour opinions on the subscription service in the long-run. Giving each multiplayer title more room to breathe on its own, without direct competition, could be a solution that prevents this, and helps keep players more engaged. It would also allow developers big and small that rely on the service to get the time in the spotlight that they deserve, which has often historically been afforded to similar titles in the past.
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