Sony Group Corp. has suggested in the past that it may be looking at a new service to compete with Xbox Game Pass, and a recent retail change is causing further speculation. According to some United Kingdom retailers, Sony is pullingPlayStation Nowcards from store shelves and will pause selling them.
British retailer Game has confirmed that Wednesday, January 19, will mark the last day that UK gamers can purchase aPlayStation Nowcard before they’re taken away. The retailer has stated that point-of-sale PlayStation Now cards will be removed from customer-facing areas in all Game stores and ESD will be altered to prohibit the sale of the product. Digital bays will also be altered in the same way as part of this week’s “commercial update,” with January 21 being the last official day that gamers in the UK can purchase PlayStation Now cards.
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A recent report from Bloomberg suggests that PlayStation is looking to rival Xbox Game Pass with a service currently under the codename “Spartacus.” Similar toXbox Game Passand Game Pass Ultimate, this new service will seemingly include multiple tiers to allow PlayStation fans to optimize their experience. PlayStation Plus currently exists as the primary method for PlayStation fans to connect their games online, while PlayStation Now is the games subscription service offered on Sony platforms.
PlayStation Now’s current library offers many major titles such asDetroit: Become Human,God of War, andHorizon Zero Dawn. One thing missing on PlayStation Now that’s offered by Xbox Game Pass is the release of first-party titles likeForza Horizon 5,Halo Infinite, andMicrosoft Flight Simulatoron day one. If a new service replaces PlayStation Now after these major retail changes, it remains unclear if the replacement will offer upcoming PlayStation exclusives likeGran Turismo 7,Final Fantasy 16, orMarvel’s Wolverineday-one.
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