PS5 Could Get An Xbox Game Pass Rival After All

It isn't exactly a secret that the PlayStation 4 took the crown in the previous generation, with the Xbox One playing second fiddle to it throughout. Microsoft had a hard time pulling together the sales to compete with Sony in the previous generation, but the fact that the Xbox One lagged behind the PlayStation 4 led to the launch of Xbox Game Pass, a subscription-based gaming service that has been warmly received by gamers across Xbox One and PC.

Xbox Game Pass is an example of Microsoft making the best of a bad generation, and as we head into a new era for gaming, it's going to be a major focus for Microsoft. Sony has long suggested that it believes PlayStation Now is a suitable competitor to Xbox Game Pass, but now it seems that it might be changing course.

In an interview with Russia's TASS, PlayStation boss Jim Ryan suggested that Sony is cooking up its own take on Xbox Game. Ryan was asked flat out how Sony intends to to respond to Xbox Game Pass, and said in response, "There is actually news to come, but just not today. We have PlayStation Now which is our subscription service, and that is available in a number of markets."

So, it seems that Sony might be looking to counter Game Pass in one way or another. Though Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Now are similar services in that they both allow access to a library of games in return for a monthly subscription fee, they aren't entirely alike. Obviously, the biggest difference is the fact that on Xbox Game Pass, you need to download the Xbox and PC games you want to play to your machine, while PlayStation Now is more focused on game streaming (though Xbox Game Pass does allow you to stream select titles to Android phones as well).

With the launch of the PlayStation 5, we've also seen Sony roll out the PlayStation Plus Collection, which is a selection of 20 first and third-party PlayStation 4 games available to PS5 owners, and there are certainly some Game Pass undertones there. We'll see what Sony does from here, so stay tuned for more.