DriveClub's upgrade program is anti-consumer and a slap in the face to PS4 fans | GimmeGames
DriveClub’s upgrade program is anti-consumer and a slap in the face to PS4 fans
Sony recently revealed their upgrade plan for consumers who download the free version of DriveClub with Playstation Plus but want to upgrade later to the full version of the game.
If you download the PS+ version first, you can upgrade to the full version of DriveClub for $49.99, $10 off the normal MSRP price. But here’s where things get very tricky and somewhat anti-consumer. As always, the devil is in the details.
If you’re an active PlayStation Plus subscriber and have been playing the PlayStation Plus Edition, but decide you want the full DRIVECLUB experience, you can purchase a one-time upgrade for $49.99. This will give you access to all five locations, 55 tracks, 50 cars and all 50 tour events, as long as your PlayStation Plus subscription remains active.
Is that wording too vague for you? Well Evolution Studios’s Chris Brown responded to concerns from fans on the Playstation Blog and responded with this:
Brown’s wording is very clear sadly and he seems to be avoiding the issue. Then again he repeatedly spells “lose” as “loose” so can we really trust him? Just kidding.
This means that even if you pay the $50 upgrade fee, if you PS+ subscription lapses you will no longer be able to play the $50 game you paid for. Unless Sony is wording this incredibly bad, this sounds like a major rip off.
I’ve always said that Sony has a habit of making comically bad moves in the wake of several good ones. Like all of the great games they released for PS3 in 2009 and the PS3 slim’s $299 price tag only to announce that the PSP Go would cost $250. Sometimes Sony drops the ball, just like every console/game maker.
This move sets a very bad precedent. Sony will be hiding a full game that you already paid for behind a paywall. It’s one thing to hide a service like online play behind a subscription fee or even games that were given away for no extra cost. But to hide a full game that you paid $50 for? That’s anti-consumer in just about every way.
I want to believe this is some sort of mistake by Sony but I doubt their PR team would put this information out there. This isn’t as bad as Microsoft’s countless Xbox One anti-consumer policies but its damn near close. In addition to paying $50 for the game you have to pay an extra $50 per year on Playstation Plus to have the privilege of playing a game you already paid for.
PS4 users can still purchase the full version of the game from PSN for $60 or the retail version. This only applies to individuals who download the free PS+ Edition and select the $49.99 upgrade path.
Its up to the gaming community to let Sony know how much they despise this policy. If Sony is trying to sneak this in now, there’s a good chance they plan to keep doing things like this in the future. If millions pay the upgrade fee for DriveClub and don’t protest the game being hidden behind a paywall Sony will only experiment further and try to repeat this with future games. We have to let Sony know that this isn’t something the gaming community will support and hopefully they’ll change this upgrade program before DriveClub releases in October.
It’s pretty clear what I think of this move from Sony. What do you think of this decision? Let us know in the comments below. Additionally if Sony revokes this policy or comes forward saying it was a mistake and isn’t the real thing we will update this post to reflect that and, you know take back all the anger! Until then, their wording (especially Brown’s) paints a pretty negative picture for Sony.
In this day and age, with the Internet, ignorance is a choice! And they're still choosing Ignorance! - Dr. Filthy Frank
