PlayStation Now subscribers who own an old PlayStation 3 or PlayStation Vita will need to upgrade their consoles, because starting August 15, the game streaming service will no longer support them. Sony will also stop supporting its Blu-ray players and smart TVs, as it will give more attention to its PS4 and will focus on Windows PCs.
Six months – this is how long paying customers who own one of the aforementioned devices will have left to continue playing. After August 15, PlayStation Now will become exclusive to PS4 consoles and Windows PCs, while Bravia TVs will stop being supported earlier, on April 1.
“After thoughtful consideration, we decided to shift our focus and resources to PS4 and Windows PC to further develop and improve the user experience on these two devices,” said Brian Dunn, PlayStation Now’s senior marketing manager, on February 15, adding that “this move puts us in the best position to grow the service even further.”
The good new is that PlayStation Now subscribers will be able to retrieve their cloud saves on PS4 and PC, and continue their game saves on them after the service will die for their platforms. Sony has advised players to disable the auto-renewal, or else will be charged, and it’s wise to start using now a PS console or PC.
PlayStation Now was launched in 2014, being initially available for the PS4, then a few months later it was expanded to the PC platform. Subscribers pay a monthly fee of $20, but they can also opt for paying $45 every three months. For non-PlayStation devices it’s required a DualShock 3 or 4 so that users can obtain a 5 Mbps connection and enjoy a smooth experience.
It’s not sure exactly why the company has decided to pull the service away from PS3, Vita and its Smart TVs, or Samsung’s Smart TVs, but it’s pretty obvious that this move will make many customers angry.