Sony has kicked off the day following its September 2019 State of Play broadcast with yet another surprise announcement. Consumers can now purchase PlayStation 4 consoles, accessories, and games straight from PlayStation’s online storefront. The new buying options have been implemented on PlayStation.com, with a range of items already available to purchase exclusively in the United States. Currently, there’s no word on if and when the store will offer the same purchasing options in other territories around the globe.
The company announced the news in a brief trailer on its Twitter page, then elaborated further in a blog post.
Starting today, you can buy PS4 consoles, accessories, and games directly from PlayStation. Full details: https://t.co/AfAYs1eVhF pic.twitter.com/4Obx8ZK1nd
— PlayStation (@PlayStation) September 25, 2019
So far, the selection includes PS4 Pros, DualShock 4s, PlayStation 4 VR bundles and accessories, and headsets. At present, the list of physical copies of games on other is rather limited. However, the offerings will be expanded upon in the future. Right now, consumers can grab the following PS4 and PSVR titles on PlayStation’s new storefront:
- Astro Bot: Rescue Mission
- Blood & Truth
- Bloodborne
- Days Gone
- God of War 3 Remastered
- Horizon Zero Dawn
- Marvel’s Spider-Man: Game of the Year Edition
- MLB The Show 19
- Quantic Dream Collection
- Ratchet & Clank
- The Last of Us Remastered
- Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End
With regards to pricing, everything on PlayStation’s store will be identical to their retail prices. However, for a limited time only, there are a couple of bundles that can be purchased for less through PlayStation. The store’s launch promotion will end on October 31, 2019 and consists of the following two bundles:
- PlayStation 4 + a 12-month subscription of PS Plus for $339.99 USD (regularly $359.98 USD)
- PlayStation 4 Pro + a 12-month subscription of PS Plus for $429.99 USD (regularly $459.98 USD)
For PS Plus members who sign in to the online store, another interesting offer awaits–free 1-day express shipping. Whether this is permanent or another limited time offer has yet to receive clarification. It’s probably best to take advantage of it as soon as possible, though.
This is an intriguing move for the company, bold even. Most notably, it seems a way of easing out the middleman, including retail stores such as Best Buy and GameStop, the latter of which isn’t doing so well. With more people buying digitally than ever before, many are only inclined to enter brick and mortar stores for games when it’s time to purchase hardware. Getting fans used to the idea of buying hardware online and straight from the manufacturer, especially near the end of this console generation, seems a shrewd business move. Who knows, maybe we’ll all be scrambling to PlayStation’s online storefront when it’s time to preorder the PS5?
[Source: PlayStation Blog]
