Sony recently denied a new service by EA for the PS4 called EA Access. Microsoft announced that they would be partnering up with EA to bring this service to those who may want it on their Xbox One. In short, EA Access is supposed to bring discounts, online features, game demos and full games to its subscribers. Sony's action sparked an instant outcry amongst gamers. I've seen comments both for and against the service, and after having reflected a bit upon it myself, I will share my views on the matter.
Let me just start off by applauding Sony for taking this stance. I was never going to make it ambiguous to you about which side I'm on. Be it a business reason or actually trying to protect their consumers, denying the service outright is the best case scenario for everyone except EA.
Well, what is actually EA Access? Is it Sony's competitor? Why should Sony decide whether I want it or not?
Some people are comparing it to PlayStation Now, a video game streaming service that allows you to pay to rent games. PS Now is nothing like EAA, being a streaming service and all. PS Now requires no download after you rent a game, and you have full control over what games you get at any given time. I am not endorsing PS Now until I see how well it works, and I would be happy to see more of a subscription-based system like Netflix rather than the current pricing scheme, but it's still a system in beta.
The most correct parallel is PlayStation Plus. A subscription-based service that offers discounts of up to 75% in the PlayStation Store, free games for download on rotation, and access to online services. It also works across PlayStation systems and has cloud saving. Everything you buy on your PS Plus account is available only while you pay the subscription fee, so if you cancel your subscription, you'll lose all your paid games until you subscribe again. However, any game you "buy", whether it's free or 10-75% off, will stay on your PS Plus account forever.
Comparing EA Access, they want you to pay through the Xbox Marketplace for additional access to their services, and Xbox Live Gold is required on top of that if you want to play online. Anything you "buy" on a discount is only available for as long as you subscribe, like PS Plus, and it is still unclear as to how "The Vault" of free games functions. It is not currently known if there will only be a few games or if it will build up a larger library more akin to Netflix' system. A Twitter post ( https://twitter.com/EAAcces... ) suggests that the games are there to stay, though.
Now, if it's all so similar to PS Plus, why can't EA just offer their titles through PS Plus? Why should we pay for the same thing twice when playing EA games? You're basically paying fees to an additional company for an overlapping service of select titles, you get imposed with additional DRM, and for any overlapping issues, you now have two companies to relate to when trying out customer service. All of EAA's value lies in "The Vault", and while I do agree that it's good value to have a selection of premium subscription-based games at hand, what happens when Ubisoft and Activision also wants you to pay subscription fees for their games? After it is implemented, it's not going away easily. It would be much better if this service was provided by the 1st party of the console (PS Plus), or a third party that can license a broader spectrum of games (akin to Netflix and Spotify).
You want to decide for yourself, right? Well, if EA launched their own system, they could do whatever they wanted with it. I don't see them offering anything like this on EA Origin, but there's no outcry there ( https://twitter.com/EAAcces... ). You could argue for Origin On the House and Game Time, but these seem more like competitors to Steam equivalents. Sony decided against EAA on their own system, and I hope they stick to their guns, simply because of my fear of seeing how this could evolve as a standard when it gets a foothold. EA is notorious for milking their franchise for all it's worth, and I'm seeing the possibility of exclusives and required subscription for certain games. Launching this system on their PlayStation brand would tie it into their company with both the good and bad. I believe Sony decided against it because they would give up a part of their control to EA, and this is not in the best interest of the PlayStation or its brand, nor is it in the best interest of the consumers. Sony decides what kind of marketing models they want on their service. After that, you may decide if you want to buy in on it. Or rather, since it's on Xbox Live Marketplace, you can decide to go get an Xbox One with EA Access.
In the bottom paragraph, I want to say that I think it's great to see the markets evolving towards future models. This does, however, require some moderation and criticism around what is happening, so that we don't start off in the wrong direction. History has shown several examples of better designs losing out because of arbitrary reasons, often because something "almost as good" came first. Just look at your own keyboard, for instance. I think EA mainly wants to recoup used games sales and second hand trading, which is perfect after Microsoft's intended daily DRM check had to be removed from the Xbox One. They "might" not have the worst intentions with the whole ordeal, but their past points to them just wanting to maximise profits. Damage control comes later. Thus I am greatly sceptical to EA Access and its future, and with PlayStation Plus offering much of the same features I can easily see why Sony would not want it on their system.
Dear team,
Xbox has always been different.
We started with a simple idea. Games should bring people together through shared experiences. That led to the first Xbox in 2001, Xbox Live in 2002, and new ways to connect, from friends lists and achievements to parties and play across devices. Today, Xbox reaches over 500 million players around the world, with some of the most important franchises in entertainment.
re-evaluating exclusivity 💀
PS players will need to go back to pretending to dislike Xbox games
Or meaning since it’s doing so good they might just do everything day 1.
They didnt say re-evaluating their multiplatform approach.
🤣🤣🤣 Xbox is so dead. I know you scared🤣🫵ӿ 97;
Even when the topic is strictly Xbox he can't stop talking about PlayStation. Xbox has basically become the hate of PlayStation... and not much else.
Hurt over video games 🤣🤣
Lmao we all grew and got jobs but apparently you stayed home broke 🤣🤣.
Man I love loyal dogs like you. MS kicked Spit and slapped you around but you still come back on all 4s.
Good little boy 🤣🤣
My only question is what games are PlayStation gamers gonna play now? They don’t really come out with new games anymore. I’m looking forward to wolverine, but after that then what?
Lmao
There’s no way after everything it’s going back, the damage is done
What you are seeing now is the new management telling what the core fanbase (aka…you) want to hear so they are pumped full of hope and are more likely to invest in the next Xbox console
When Phil took over after the awful Xbox One reveal he did the same thing, he told people what they wanted to hear for damage control.
It’s crazy people are getting suckered into this again.
And you'll now go back to again thinking exclusives suddenly matter, that multiplatform is no longer the future, or that revenue from multiplatforms doesn't matter, like all you flop flopping xbox grifters lol.
The whole post just sounds like the previous phil corpo slop talk to me, whole thing reads like a nothing burger lol.
“re-evaluating exclusivity”
She also said this.
“The model that got us here won’t be the one that takes us forward.”
I don't know if they have a model anymore it's flipped so many times since the xbox one reveal
There's a bunch just like him but that's what happens when some rely on dreams, hope and wishful thinking. lol
"pretending"? Bro gears hasnt broke 1mil on ps5, and starfield hasn't passed 200k, Hellblade 2 was even stated to be a financial disappointment in sales on its own console, let alone ps5. Im not saying people don't like them, but they certainly aren't setting the community on fire, Forza may be different tho
Xbawx is ''re-evaluating exclusivity''... Translation: After throwing all sort of crap to the wall to see if something sticks but clearly nothing worked, we, including our lord ''in charge'' Phil came to the conclusion that exclusives indeed do matter so please forget if we ever said otherwise.
Yup, I feel it in my gut, next gen belongs to xbox, PS6 is cooked...
Someone can’t sleep after those 5 million forza games PURCHASED by PlayStation owners🤣 🧌 💥
Well with the decreased price of gamespass even with cod off it there is no way it is profitable given the cost of making their 1st party games (not if you actually include that cost in gamespass costs which they typically dont but should) they will just make a loss without the sales on
If they go back to exclusive games it at least shows that they are finally getting it. They would be turning down immediate money for something that will potentially workout in the long term.
Only issue is they've already opened Pandora's box. A lot of their base has moved to PC or jumped to PS. So will be a long road to get back on track.
We have been saying this from day one exclusives are a must if you are going to be selling hardware look at Nintendo and Sony before Jim Ryan. That's the proven formula. You had some that were deluded and blinded by loyalty accepting that multiplat was the future and that MS was merely getting ahead of where the industry was headed, but at least they can finally see the light and agree with what everyone has been saying for a decade+
True, blame it on the rabid fanboys. MS can do no wrong and spinner this multiplatform move. While the actual fans moved on.
I feel like with the new Xbox coming they are hoping to bring back those old fans and then if it goes well. Bring back exclusives.
If the new console is performing like series x and one. Naw they staying multiplatform.
Funny world where Sony is pro consumer and Xbox is not? At least according to what you loyalists have been saying all this time 🤭
@itveds For how many years have you been doing this sad stuff? For how many years have you been creating fake accounts to troll? For how many years have you always been cl vnn
Pathetic incels with nothing better to do than argue over a box... Because they don't have any good games to play on theirs, obviously. If your precious box is so special, why don't you shut the fuck up and go play it?
I think it's too late, xbox sales were diving even before ABK, they got even worse since then even long before the full multiplatform push. I'd be surprised if they even went back to timed exclusivity at this point, Helix is basically a PC and is going to be expensive, they already struggle to sell cheaper xbox consoles, it will be low volume and they'll have a very small 'console' base to sell to, which has already been conditioned to just play via gamepass anyway.
I don't see them removing PC from the equation. Considering MS has a heavy enough investment in the PC market, it would be foolish to abandon them. I could see them taking away games from PlayStation or ensuring they are timed exclusives at the very least. Say what you will but if Call of Duty ends up becoming a timed exclusive to Xbox machines, that would hurt PlayStation, don't pretend like those games don't sell millions.
Their lifeline of solely the Xbox consoles is dry. Good-Great games on a 1st party scale can't be made at a loss so willingly - sent to the Xbox to only sell limited copies.
They invested billions scooping up studios and need to start making returns.
Sucks that nearly every company is publicly traded and have to be so shareholder biased but that's how it is.
Their words are strong but it'll take time to see what their actions accomplish. Lowering the cost of Game Pass and taking CoD off of it was a good clear start.
Despite all of that, it's clear that Microsoft's Xbox division is broken beyond repair.
PlayStation is currently draining money on flop after flop. It's Sony that needs to re-evaluate their strategy
Wonder how much money was lost on perfect dark, hellbalde 2, 300 million lost revenue
by putting cod on gamepass. The recent Jason schrier news that Xbox has cancelled dozens of projects, spent 70 billion just to see Xbox sales further collapse and gamepass see little growth.
The fact is this has been PlayStation's most profitable generation and they are making loads of money and selling plenty of consoles and games. While MS won't give you any sales figures or profit numbers for Xbox, says it all really.
It isnt. But I dont think they mean in 'games', rather, footprint.
They own the OS but as far as gaming is concerned, Steam dominate. I imagine the VAST majority of people who use the Xbox app/launcher are PC gamepass subs. No ones buying their 3rd party PC games through Xbox PC.
Insider Gaming writes: "Marathon was one of the best-selling video games in March 2026 in the United States. On Wednesday, Circna released the best-selling games of the month, and it featured six new releases along with two games returning to the top 20 after previously falling out."
Is it April fools day again?
The game is dead.
EDIT: the numbers are fudged. “digital sales on Nintendo and Xbox weren’t included in the data”
well it's not on Switch / Switch 2.. so their number would be zero.
The game had a decent launch however the userbase numbers are dwindling on Steam.
“ Is it April fools day again?
The game is dead.
EDIT: the numbers are fudged. “digital sales on Nintendo and Xbox weren’t included in the data”
Does it hurt you to hear a SONY game was BEST selling ?
You gotta let go of those OBCURED feelings 🤷🏿
I mean the only reason MLB was the best selling title was because it was multi-platform. Likewise with Marathon. Will ring true for MS games. Only Nintendo titles are truly flexing their muscles when they chart as they are only to be found there.
It's kinda funny how this Obscure guy lives rent-free in your head. lol
Does Phil also live there?
Yeah sure, yet the player count is no where near what they want for a AAA game with so much money behind it
Why people are trying to spin this game like it’s done overly amazing is baffling to me.
It won’t even be a blip on peoples radars by the end of the year .
You must me typically wrong cuz those Steam chart numbers (AKA where the game sold the MOST) is less than what Hunt has, and Hunt didn't cost $500 million to make lol
The release on Steam of the anime-style gacha-less open-world RPG DragonSword: Awakening is facing a legal challenge from its gacha publisher.
Very interesting read indeed, great blog i especially like the line "PS Now is nothing like EAA, being a streaming service and all. PS Now requires no download after you rent a game, and you have full control over what games you get at any given time"
some gamers are quick to relinquish their control over some marketing talk of "cheaper options for gamers" without fully understanding what they are giving up.
with the way the industry is going i can see my self finding a new hobby as gaming is becoming more and more about screwing gamers at every turn