Sony: EA Access isn't 'good value'

The company takes a pass on what is now an exclusive Xbox One program.

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Electronic Arts announced a new EA Access program for Xbox One yesterday, enabling gamers to sign up for a subscription and earn discounts on forthcoming games, as well as check out select free titles on a monthly basis. The new service was notably absent from PlayStation 4, however, and Sony has shed light on why.

The company confirmed that it passed on the opportunity to provide EA Access on its PlayStation 4 console.

"We evaluated the EA Access subscription offering and decided that it does not bring the kind of value PlayStation customers have come to expect," Sony told Game Informer. "PlayStation Plus memberships are up more than 200 percent since the launch of PlayStation 4, which shows that gamers are looking for memberships that offer a multitude of services, across various devices, for one low price. We don't think asking our fans to pay an additional $5 a month for this EA-specific program represents good value for the PlayStation gamer."

EA Access is currently in beta on Xbox One, and will launch sometime in the next few weeks.

Robert Workman was previously a games journalist creating content at Shacknews.

From The Chatty
  • reply
    July 30, 2014 9:15 AM

    Robert Workman posted a new article, Sony: EA Access isn't "e;good value"e;.

    The company takes a pass on what is now an exclusive Xbox One program.

    • reply
      July 30, 2014 9:16 AM

      Isn't a good value for them. I mean, it'd cut into selling those 4 hour rentals for $4.99.

    • reply
      July 30, 2014 9:20 AM

      I'll save judgement on it until we see what the full library looks like. I think its a pretty cool deal for people like me that go through phases throughout the year where I may want to play madden or something, but only for a week or two. So even if it doesnt pop up in the library for a few months post-release, I'd still be ok with it.

      • reply
        July 30, 2014 9:23 AM

        I'll probably sign up for a year. I was going to last night, but they wanted to charge my card instead of taking my Microsoft account balance, so I've not pulled the trigger just yet.

        • reply
          July 30, 2014 9:24 AM

          I don't know if I would do a year right now. I mean, its only 30 bucks, but the XB1 library is so small right now, what are they really going to offer in the near future?

          • reply
            July 30, 2014 9:34 AM

            NFS, UFC, the basketball game, PvZ: GW.... It's interesting to see if they are willing to go on a subscription model over base sales, kind of like the WWE network.

            • reply
              July 30, 2014 10:00 AM

              hmm, this is all true. I'll give it a shot!

              I'm mostly interested in PvZ, hopefully that comes up soon.

      • reply
        July 30, 2014 10:38 AM

        when will the newest Madden/FIFA/etc end up there? 6 months after release? 9? 12?

    • reply
      July 30, 2014 9:32 AM

      The intro games didn't blow me away, because I owned the 2 I cared about already. However, $2.50 a month for the year sub is a steal for 4 games less than a year old. The entire year's sub is cheaper than most of the games offered, plus the discount plus the early access. EA sucks like 90% of the time, but this is a pretty good value. Imagine some kid of a single mom who scrimped to get them a new Xbox. Now for $30 she can get that little fucker some hot Madden and BF4 action.


      The thing that I can't seem to get a clear answer on is how often do the games rotate and is it a PS+/Live situation where you keep the games as long as you subscribe or is like Netflix, where a sub gives you the current library access with no guarantees.

      • reply
        July 30, 2014 9:55 AM

        It at least appears you are downloading a license for the digital copy of the game, so I'm thinking as long as you have a sub it'll work.

        • reply
          July 30, 2014 9:58 AM

          Then that's totally worth it. I may subscribe this weekend and play some Soccerballs or Battlefield on the One to compare it to the PS4.

    • reply
      July 30, 2014 10:23 AM

      Controllers don't need rumble.

    • reply
      July 31, 2014 2:56 AM

      I do not think it will be worth the money till quite late next year as there is nothing to play other than a few crappy sports games and battlefield is the only good EA game out so far.

      I am fairly sure late 2015 Sony will change there mind once EA shove out a ton of games and it becomes worth it.

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