A new report revealed how much Sony paid to bringArk: Survival Evolvedto PlayStation Plus as a free monthly game. Users who add these free monthly games to their accounts retain access until their subscription expires. This functions differently from the catalog of games available toPS Plus Extra and Premiummembers, as players lose access after the game leaves the service in this case.Ark: Survival Evolvedwas a part of the PlayStation Plus lineup for March 2022. That month, Sony offeredGhostrunner,Team Sonic Racing, andGhost of Tsushima: Legendsas the other free games. Beginning March 15, players could also download the PS5 version ofGrand Theft Auto Online, but users could only play it during a three-month window. Now, it’s revealed that Sony paid millions to addArk: Survival Evolvedto the PS Plus lineup.RELATED:PS Plus Extra and Premium Are Losing a Horror Game This MonthAs reported by IGN, a tweet by Ethan Gach reveals that Sony paid $3.5 million to putArk: Survival Evolvedon PlayStation Plus in March 2022. This information comes via a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission by the parent company ofArk’s developer Studio Wildcard. The same report reveals that Microsoft paid $2.5 million to add it to the Xbox Game Pass library for a period of six months. Additionally, Microsoft paid $2.3 million to add its sequelArk 2as a day-one Xbox Game Pass release.Ark 2was announced at The Game Awards in 2020 and is set to launch in 2023 on PC and Xbox Series X/S.
The amount Sony or Microsoft pay to add games to PS Plus or Xbox Game Pass rarely gets revealed. So, this news gives an insight into how much it costs to add games of similar stature to the respective subscription services. It’ll be interesting to see if more studios reveal the amount they received from either Sony or Microsoft to bring their games toPS Plus or Xbox Game Passin the future.
Ark: Survival Evolvedis available now for Mobile, PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
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