jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions

Anything to do with games at all.

How do you feel about online gaming passes/subscriptions?

Poll ended at Fri Oct 22, 2021 9:45 am

I will pay for online services across multiple platforms.
5
16%
I will pay for online services for two platforms.
10
31%
I will pay for online services for one platform.
7
22%
I will not pay for online services for my platform(s).
4
13%
Get real! Consoles suck and PC wins again (lol)!
6
19%
 
Total votes: 32
jawa_
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Postjawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by jawa_ » Sun Oct 17, 2021 9:45 am

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How do you feel about online gaming passes/subscriptions?

The days of "free" online console gaming are over*, with platform holders now taking in large amounts of money from online passes/subscriptions and trying to gradually up those fees by building more into the packages.

By "online gaming passes/subscriptions" I mean Xbox Live Gold (Xbox), PlayStation Plus (PlayStation) and Nintendo Switch Online (Nintendo). These services are becoming pretty important as various other functions and options (such as cloud game saves) get added in alongside the ability to play games online.

Does the cost of these services make you think about owning consoles on fewer differing platforms? Could the number of "multi-format" gaming players be impacted? Or maybe you're happy to pay for these services on different platforms?

Please vote for the option which is the closest match to your own thinking. And, as ever, feel free to jot down your thoughts and join in the chat.

* Unless you're still rocking on some older systems such as Wii U, 3DS or some PS3 games :-).

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Zilnad
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Zilnad » Sun Oct 17, 2021 9:57 am

I was only paying for PS+ as I get good use out of it. Renewed my Nintendo subscription last week after a year of not having it though and I instantly felt like I'd wasted £20.

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more heat than light
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by more heat than light » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:00 am

I know people joke about the terrible free games that are given away with Xbox Gold but I feel like I easily get £50 worth a year out of them. So I don't even feel like I pay for the online access.

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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by jawa_ » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:07 am

I picked the "pay for two" option because, right now, I am. I'd rather not, though. On PS4/5 I need PS Plus in order to play Fallout 76; and on Switch I need Online in order to play Animal Crossing; and, with two Switches, the cloud save function is pretty much essential. I'll stick with the cheaper "no expansion" cost for Nintendo, though.

These charges do impact my multiplatform gaming; no way would I consider getting an Xbox now as paying for two platforms feels too much, let alone three. I had a 360/PS3/Wii two gens back and I can't see that situation repeating; if others feel the same way then gaming spend could become more polarised with bigger winners and losers.

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Knoyleo
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Knoyleo » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:10 am

What option do I select if I pay for PC gamepass, but also think consoles suck?

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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by jawa_ » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:14 am

Knoyleo wrote:What option do I select if I pay for PC gamepass, but also think consoles suck?

I think Game Pass for PC is a game library service rather than an online gate? So... feel free to choose the latter option, Knoyleo!

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shy guy 64
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by shy guy 64 » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:30 am

well ive most been a one console per gen gamer cause that what i can afford so even if i had multiple consoles i couldnt pay for all the online subscriptions. not that they sound that enticing anyway. i tell ya this though what i pay monthly for nintendo, pokemon home and disney + combined is cheaper than what adobe was wanting monthly for photoshop. up your adobe

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Gemini73
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Gemini73 » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:32 am

I only have an Ultimate subscription, but that is currently inactive as I'm not using it enough at this time. I don't plan to sign up to any other subscriptions. (I no longer have any other non-gaming subs either. Netflix, Prime etc)

Last edited by Gemini73 on Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:33 am, edited 1 time in total.
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by OrangeRKN » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:32 am

The worst thing about these services is that you have no choice but to pay for a bundle of things you don't want just to play online. It's the worst part of a closed ecosystem.

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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by jawa_ » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:39 am

Gemini73 wrote:I only have an Ultimate subscription, but that is currently inactive as I'm not using it enough at this time. I don't plan to sign up to any other subscriptions. (I no longer have any other non-gaming subs either. Netflix, Prime etc)

I've kinda gone the opposite; I never used to like subscription services, Gemini, but now I find that I have PS Plus, Nintendo Online, Netflix and Disney+. It used to be the case that I'd rather get rid of the TV options than gaming... but now I find myself thinking the other way.

OrangeMKN wrote:The worst thing about these services is that you have no choice but to pay for a bundle of things you don't want just to play online...

Totes agree, Orange, and I can see that the gaming platforms will try and add more in to increase the price. They don't want fifty quid a year; they want twenty quid a month.

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Gemini73
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Gemini73 » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:46 am

jawa_ wrote:
Gemini73 wrote:I only have an Ultimate subscription, but that is currently inactive as I'm not using it enough at this time. I don't plan to sign up to any other subscriptions. (I no longer have any other non-gaming subs either. Netflix, Prime etc)

I've kinda gone the opposite; I never used to like subscription services, Gemini, but now I find that I have PS Plus, Nintendo Online, Netflix and Disney+. It used to be the case that I'd rather get rid of the TV options than gaming... but now I find myself thinking the other way.


I'm now in the mindset of paying for a sub only when I want to play something particular on the Series S and so have turned off the recurring bill. Stumping up £10.99 for one months sub so I can play the new Halo campaign, for example, is where I'm at.

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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by jawa_ » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:48 am

shy guy 64 wrote:...i tell ya this though what i pay monthly for nintendo, pokemon home and disney + combined is cheaper than what adobe was wanting monthly for photoshop. up your adobe

Yes, shy guy, it can be surprising to see what some companies charge for these subs. I guess it's okay *if* you're getting value from them; I pay out for a Fallout 76 sub but I play that loads whereas my current online Nintendo sub has been barely used.

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Knoyleo
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Knoyleo » Sun Oct 17, 2021 10:51 am

jawa_ wrote:
Knoyleo wrote:What option do I select if I pay for PC gamepass, but also think consoles suck?

I think Game Pass for PC is a game library service rather than an online gate? So... feel free to choose the latter option, Knoyleo!

For whatever reason, I thought you were talking about those as well, but in reading your op again, clearly not. :lol:

It's definitely one of the things that has put me off picking up a console in this or the previous generation. I spend much less time gaming these days than I used to, especially online multiplayer, and would really resent having to pay a monthly fee to use the service for probably a handful of hours. I could always just play offline, but then I'd feel like I'm missing out on games that do need online interaction. Tetris 99 looks like a fun game, for example, but useless without online, but then, it's also probably the game of only ever want to play in small busts every now and again, so would need me to pay for and online pass for a while month just to pick it up for 20 minutes.

pjbetman wrote:That's the stupidest thing ive ever read on here i think.
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kerr9000
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by kerr9000 » Sun Oct 17, 2021 11:00 am

I pay for a Nintendo family pass/plan and Xbox GamePass Ultimate

I am all about trying to get stuff like this the cheapest possible, ive kept the gamepass stocked up with every trick going for example.

I am for the services but also for using them in the way that benefits you the most and trying to find the most cost effective solution... If I hadnt bulked my Gamepass up to the highest number of years using deals then I might do what an other user suggested and just sub during months where theres a full price title on it that I can play and blast through in a month like a halo campaign. What you dont want to see is money flying out the bank and you having not really used the service thats why I cancelled netflix as I had that Amazon and Disney and it was netflix not getting used.

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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Jenuall » Sun Oct 17, 2021 11:23 am

I'm bought into two services at the moment: PS Plus and Nintendo Switch Online, neither are exactly an amazing package but at the same time with discounts I pay less than £5 a month for both together so it balances out okay in my book.

NSO is only really there to let me play Mario Maker and the occasional bit of Mario Kart online. Likewise PS Plus is just there for the "free" games each month, I don't think I've ever played any online games using it!

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Victor Mildew
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Victor Mildew » Sun Oct 17, 2021 11:36 am

I pay for ps+ and have had some great experiences out of it in the past year, most of which will end up being in my games of the year (days gone, control, hitman + hitman 2, all free with plus).

Switch online is a begrudged purchase. I've only used it for AYAMMM but for nothing else, so is a total waste of money at this point.

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shy guy 64
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by shy guy 64 » Sun Oct 17, 2021 12:01 pm

jawa_ wrote:
shy guy 64 wrote:...i tell ya this though what i pay monthly for nintendo, pokemon home and disney + combined is cheaper than what adobe was wanting monthly for photoshop. up your adobe

Yes, shy guy, it can be surprising to see what some companies charge for these subs. I guess it's okay *if* you're getting value from them; I pay out for a Fallout 76 sub but I play that loads whereas my current online Nintendo sub has been barely used.


well i certainly wasnt getting value for money from adobe as the subscription fee was for an online community i wasnt part of. home and + sure, nso not so sure. though it has been convenient to trade pokemon with my friends online

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Abacus
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Abacus » Sun Oct 17, 2021 12:03 pm

I used to subscribe to NSO, played some of the 'free' NES games for about an hour or two, played Mario Kart online about twice. But I did get hooked on Tetris 99 for a while, so I felt that paid for it for that year. But since then, haven't missed it, and wouldn't re-subscribe.

Never subscribed to any PlayStation subscription, so less well placed to comment. What I would say is that I have no desire to. For me, the PS has always been about story driven single player games, so online play has no appeal, and I've already got a backlog to play, so more new 'free' games have no appeal.

Stadia is an odd one. I like how easy it is to switch your sub on and off, so every now and again I'll do that if something interesting comes along. I do the same with Disney Plus - wait till a series I like or a film I want to watch is on there, binge it, unsubscribe again. I feel paying less than a tenner in either case for a month's worth of entertainment is worthwhile.

Gamepass Ultimate is the real monster here, making any other permanent subscription not worthwhile. You could legitimately use only this, whether by Xbox or PC etc, and own nothing else and still have too much to play. I don't even play online, but that would be another time sink if you were into that. If you use one of the introductory deals, there is no better bargain in gaming.

I'll need to re-evaluate what it's like when it comes up for renewal, but right now, it crowds out every other subscription service, as I'm sure it was intended to do. It just doesn't make sense to me to subscribe to anything else if you've got this. It barely makes sense to buy games at all either. So, one and a quarter is my answer.

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Drumstick
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by Drumstick » Sun Oct 17, 2021 12:09 pm

One of the reasons I'm very picky about what I buy is to prevent getting drawn into all of this nonsense.

I don't do DLC, I don't do online passes. I buy the base game and that's it, so therefore that needs to be worthwhile.

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jawa_
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PostRe: jawa asks... about online gaming passes/subscriptions
by jawa_ » Sun Oct 17, 2021 12:42 pm

Jenuall wrote:...NSO is only really there to let me play Mario Maker and the occasional bit of Mario Kart online...

Yeah, I used to really enjoy playing Kart, Rocket League and a dash of Splatoon online with folk here in GRcade but, after a fairly decent run, those sessions just seemed to stop in the end. Back in the Wii U days we played set games on set days month after month but, alas, it never really lasted on Switch in quite the same way.

Jenuall wrote:...PS Plus is just there for the "free" games each month, I don't think I've ever played any online games using it!

I just can't get into the idea of effectively "renting" games; especially when someone else is picking the games that I'm paying for. I don't doubt the overall value and I know that some folk love it, but it's not for me. I'm paying purely for online play and, outside of F76, I haven't done much of that these past couple of years. However... PS Plus does offer some excellent game pricing in sales; sometimes granting double the "non-PS Plus saving" and I do take advantage of this.

Drumstick wrote:One of the reasons I'm very picky about what I buy is to prevent getting drawn into all of this nonsense.

I don't do DLC, I don't do online passes. I buy the base game and that's it, so therefore that needs to be worthwhile.

I admire your rectitude, Drum! I kind of used to be the same although it's very tough to do nowdays as "AAA" gaming is focused so much around additional expenditure. I avoid it for some games but do pay out for others; it's so hard to ignore it.


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