PlayStation’s Project Spartacus needs an overhaul to compete with Xbox Game Pass

Opinion: Sony needs to catch up, and fast

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Regardless of where you stand in the so-called “console war”, it’s hard to deny thatXbox Game Passhas revolutionized what we’ve come to expect from gaming.

Sonyhas been more successful thanMicrosoftin terms of gaming hardware, with thePS5outselling theXbox Series XandSeries S. However, so far PlayStation has offered little-to-no resistance when it comes to software.

While there have beenrumorsfloating around that the company is readying to announce its ownXbox Game Passrival, nothing yet has been officially confirmed yet. And the gap between the two brands is only set to widen now that Microsoft has agreed tobuy Activision Blizzard for $68.7 billion.

There’s no point sugarcoating it - it’s no longer enough for Sony to announce a straightforward service that allows users to download from an extended catalog of PlayStation games and be done with it. As Xbox’s collection of gaming brands continues to grow, I firmly believe that the only way that Sony can come close to competing with Xbox Game Pass is if it includes PC support as part of its platform.

What is Project Spartacus?

Back in December 2021,Bloomberg’s Jason Schreierreported that Sony was developing a new service that could take on Xbox Game Pass. Codenamed ‘Project Spartacus’, the upcoming platform is reportedly due to launch in Spring 2022 and will give PlayStation users access to “a catalog of modern and classic games” for a monthly subscription fee. Even Xbox boss Phil Spencer recentlysaidthat it was “inevitable” that PlayStation will release its own Game Pass equivalent in the near future.

According to Schreier, Sony’s gaming service could be split into three tiers, with the base level expected to give users essentially the same benefits asPlayStation Plus, namely access to multiplayer online gaming as well as several free downloadable games a month.

The second tier is suggested to be the one that’s most similar to Xbox Game Pass, grantingPS4and PS5 owners the ability to download as much as they wish from an extensive library of PlayStation games. Meanwhile, the third and most expensive tier would grant access to all of the above, as well as a selection of classic PS1, PS2 and PSP games.

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What Project Spartacus will need to compete with

Although Xbox Game Pass first launched back in 2017, the platform grew significantly throughout the pandemic as Microsoft began to place a larger emphasis on the gaming side of its business. According to Microsoft, the number of Game Pass subscribers hasrecently passed 25 million subscribers- though interestingly, this growth still managed to fall beneath the company’sexpectations.

It’s easy to see how Microsoft’s subscription service has managed to build a good reputation within the gaming community in just a few short years. For $9.99 / £7.99 to $14.99 / £10.99 a month, users receive unlimited access to animpressive list of gaming titles, including some of thebest Xbox Series X/S gamesavailable.

The list of games available on Xbox Game Pass is updated fairly frequently, with a recent estimate suggesting thatMicrosoft added over $6,300 worth of gamesto Game Pass in 2021. Considering the number of gaming brands that now sit underneath the Microsoft umbrella, Sony may have a difficult time competing with the selection available on Xbox Game Pass given thatfuture Bethesda projectslikeStarfieldwill be exclusive to Xbox and PC afterMicrosoft acquired ZeniMax Medialast year for $7.5 billion.

It also remains to be seen whether any upcoming ActivisionBlizzardtitles likeOverwatch 2could become Xbox exclusives once the deal closes in 2023. However, as it stands, Xbox has highlighted itscommitmentto continuing to support the PlayStation community in the future.

So how likely is PC support for Project Spartacus?

One of the biggest selling points for the Xbox Game Pass is that it grants its users access to highly anticipated releases such asForza Horizon 5andHalo Infiniteimmediately from day one.

According to initial rumors regarding Sony’s Game Pass rival, it seemed unlikely that the Japanese company would offer its subscribers day one access to the biggest PlayStation releases. However, Microsoft has since announced its intention to purchase Activision Blizzard, which likely threw a wrench in Sony’s plans.

In addition to day one access to new releases, Project Spartacus will still likely need to include PC support as part of its offering in order to compensate for a less impressive gaming library compared to Xbox Game Pass.

It’s difficult to gauge just how likely Sony is to make its games accessible on PC. Still, it wouldn’t be completely unexpected given how big-name PlayStation titles such asGod of War,Horizon Zero Dawn, andDays Gonehave already made their way to PC and how many more are expected to follow suit, includingUncharted: Legacy of Thieves CollectionandDeath Stranding: Director’s Cut. But even with that in mind, PlayStation’s monumental task of catching up to Xbox Game Pass will be no easy feat.

Ilyas is a freelance writer and technology communications specialist based in London, United Kingdom. On the rare occasion that he’s not working, you can find him either binge-watching the Marvel Cinematic Universe or doom-scrolling on Twitter. You can reach him anytime atilyas@snackable.tech.

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