Summer Sale PS4 PlayStation 4 Discounts Sale Sony 1

Do you remember what PlayStation Store sales used to be like? They were embarrassing. Sony would trot out a procession of titles, and the PlayStation Blog comments would promptly point out that the same software could be had cheaper undiscounted from superior retailers. It was a joke – especially at a time when the vaunted "Steam sale” was at the peak of its popularity.

But one of 2017’s more overlooked stories is just how good the platform holder’s got at this whole “digital discounts” malarkey. There’s rarely a week goes by where you can’t find an amazing price promotion on the PlayStation Store, and while there’s still a lot of variety between regions, the deals tend to be decent in both North America and Europe.

It’s all understandable, of course: you only need take a swift glance at the Japanese giant’s financials to learn that it’s earning an absolute packet from its virtual storefront and services. Like it or not, the digital future is coming, and the PlayStation Store increasingly finds itself in a powerful position for when that transition truly takes hold.

Ecosystem is now hugely important not just to companies like PlayStation, but also Microsoft and Apple and Amazon and Google. Sony wants you to have a gigantic library of content attached to your PlayStation Network account. Why? Because the more you spend, the harder it will be for you to leave all of that software behind – assuming the forthcoming PlayStation 5 is backwards compatible, of course. It will be.

What’s good for consumers may not be quite so healthy for the industry, however. There’s definitely a “wait and see” mentality forming around many products these days: will Game X be on PlayStation Plus? How long will it take for Game Y to be discounted? (The answer, by the way, is typically "not long".) It’s understandable, but with the budgets of AAA titles soaring and the indie market becoming increasingly crowded, is it sustainable?

To be honest, as long as the games keep coming (and looking at our review docket, there are unlikely to be any shortages any time soon), it’s exciting to see the platform holder really start to embrace the concept of PlayStation Store sales, as it’s a certainly a victory for consumers. We’re spending more than we’ve ever spent on Sony’s plaza – but we’re also saving more, too. Win-win?

Have you been impressed by recent PlayStation Store sales? Do you feel the games being flogged are still too pricey? Are you concerned by the impact the digital discount culture could have on the industry, or are you just happy getting low-priced software? Knock 50 per cent off in the comments section below.

Have you been impressed by recent PlayStation Store sales? (127 votes)

  1. Yes, I’ve been buying a lot of discounted games72%
  2. They’re okay, but there’s still room for improvement21%
  3. No, the deals suck and I don’t like buying digital6%

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