Sony reportedly requiring some developers to create timed trials for PlayStation Plus Premium

The PlayStation Plus Premium plans will need some trials

Sony is set to launch its new plans for PlayStation Plus in June. Ahead of that, it sounds like gears are turning to get one portion of its renewed subscription service online: timed game trials.

A new report from GameDeveloper, Sony has been rolling out its plans for timed trials. The site’s sources indicate games that are expected to retail for $34 or more are required to create limited trials.

This was noted by developers through an update to Sony’s developer portal. GameDeveloper’s sources say they haven’t received further communication about the change.

These time trials would be expected to be at least two hours long, and devs have up to three months after launch to release them. The report also states trials would only be required to stay up for PlayStation Plus Premium users for at least 12 months.

Sony is reportedly open to custom game demos rather than trials. Free weekends, game trials, and custom demos for all PlayStation owners (not just Premium subs) are still on the table too.

Plans for the Premium

The new set-up for PlayStation Plus is rolling out soon, with the update targeting June 13 in the Americas. It’s set to revamp all of PlayStation Plus, moving from one subscription option to three.

Here’s the rundown, if you need a quick refresher:

• PlayStation Plus Essential: $60 a year with two monthly games, discounts, cloud saves, and online multiplayer. It is PlayStation Plus.
• PlayStation Plus Extra: $100 a year, with all of the above as well as access to “up to 400” PS4 and PS5 games.
• PlayStation Plus Premium: $120 a year, all of the above, 340 additional games from the PlayStation vault (PS1, PS2, PSP, and cloud-streamed PS3), cloud streaming, and game trials.

It’s a pretty steep price bump, going from Essential to Premium. It makes sense that Sony would want to get plenty of trials and reasons to subscribe built-in. It also seems like a heavy cost for developers though, if the report holds true. GameDeveloper did not receive comment from Sony as of the time of this writing.