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Sony’s new PS Plus Tier system sees fans get a video game drop every two weeks or so, with the PS Plus free games becoming available at the start and the Premium games about halfway through. On the other weeks, Sony will typically announce the PS Plus free game selection and the Premium game selection, and this keeps the service on the tip of everyone’s tongue. Indeed, the hype for the PS Plus Extra and Premium games for November 2022 are palpable, but one of them sticks out like a sore thumb.
PS Plus Premium is adding five classic Ratchet and Clank games, while PS Plus Extra is adding Chorus, a couple of Earth Defense Force games, Ghost Recon Breakpoint, a handful of Kingdom Hearts games, Oddworld: Soulstorm, Onee Chanbara Origin, Rainbow Six Siege, The Division 2, Skyrim, The Gardens Between, and What Remains of Edith Finch. While perhaps it’s easy to look over, as the game tends to appear everywhere, Skyrim‘s presence on PS Plus Extra comes at a surprising time.
PS Plus Premium, Game Pass’ Competitor, is Adding a Microsoft-Owned Game
On the one hand, Skyrim turned 11 on November 11 (11 on 11/11), so the timing makes sense as far as the addition and anniversary go. However, many fans are aware that Microsoft acquired Bethesda some time ago, so Skyrim is technically a game owned by Microsoft (through Bethesda). Now, what happens behind closed doors between companies should stay there, but Sony, Bethesda, and Microsoft agreeing to put Skyrim on PS Plus Premium is unusual for so many reasons.
First off, PS Plus is more of a direct competitor to Xbox Game Pass following its restructuring, and providing a title as popular as Skyrim to a direct competitor is certainly a choice. It brings to mind when MLB The Show, a former PlayStation console exclusive developed by Sony San Diego, came to Xbox and Game Pass. Furthermore, Sony and Microsoft have had some very public and heated debates regarding Call of Duty‘s future, should Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard King go through.
If regulators are looking at what Microsoft’s acquisition could do, specifically in regard to Call of Duty, if Sony is insinuating it would lose Call of Duty and the acquisition would overall hurt its player base, and Microsoft is insisting that it has no problem sharing certain games that would lead to increased profits (like Minecraft and Call of Duty), this decision…however it was made…pretty heavily leans toward Microsoft. Therefore, Sony adding it to PS Plus Extra seems counterintuitive to its own arguments.
Skyrim on PS Plus Premium vs. Call of Duty on PlayStation Consoles
Of course, not everything made by Bethesda and Activision Blizzard (should the acquisition be approved) will be playable on PlayStation consoles. Starfield is an Xbox exclusive launching day one Game Pass. The Elder Scrolls 6 is likely to be an Xbox exclusive, while many of these titles being day one releases on Xbox Game Pass would sway many to Sony’s competitor (perhaps even in the case of Call of Duty). But for diehard PlayStation fans, Call of Duty seems to be another Minecraft under Microsoft’s umbrella. It’s going to share, even if it prioritizes its own platform in some ways.
Again, it’s hard to understand what happens between companies behind closed doors, but having Skyrim on PS Plus Extra now of all times is a weird sign of cooperation by Microsoft that many allege it is incapable of. Even if it was Bethesda and Sony’s decision alone, and it very well could be, that still shows Microsoft’s overall attitude here.
The whole situation is confusing and there is certainly some posturing going on between all sides. But if Skyrim can be on Xbox Game Pass’ most direct competitor, the debate around Call of Duty seems null and void.
PS Plus subscribers get a handful of games every month.
