Though games at or above $34 will apparently require time trials for PlayStation Plus Premium members in the future, Sony will reportedly be taking care of producing these on its own–meaning developers shouldn’t have any extra pre-launch work on their end.
This is according to Kotaku’s Ethan Gach, who was told that the PlayStation Store team will be responsible for creating these two-hour trials.
Source tells me PlayStation Store team will create the 2 hour timed trials for developers, so it shouldn’t be extra work, though I’ve heard concerns from others about Sony monetizing a perk and not sharing that revenue with studios https://t.co/0fYZZSVQxq
— AmericanTruckSongs8 (@ethangach) April 27, 2022
The policy, which leaked yesterday after apparently popping up on a developer portal meant for PlayStation partners, states that games priced at $34 and up will need a two-hour time trial version, which must be available for at least a year to PlayStation Plus Premium members. This is separate from a game demo; it’s a chance for players to do whatever they want in a game in that limited window. However, the time trial does not have to be ready at launch–it can be released up to three months after the game has released.
There’s the risk that certain games, particularly short, linear games that may still carry a higher price tag, could be completed during this window. It’s something we’ve seen with the even less restrictive Steam refund program, giving players a chance to try a game for two hours and return it, regardless of its price.
For more information on the revamped PlayStation Plus that launches this summer, check out our PS Plus guide. It includes information on all three tiers, including the Premium tier that will include the time trials.
