Sony's ambitious game-streaming service, PlayStation Now, recently made its debut on PC, opening up a world of console gaming fun to anyone with an internet connection. But how does the service really stack up? We asked Agent Wort to put it through its paces – here's how he got on.
Sony recently announced that their game-streaming service, PlayStation Now, would be coming to PC – and I was excited to try it out for the first time.
I was exclusively an XBox gamer until I recently bought a gaming PC, and so I missed out on some of the fantastic gems that were only released on the PlayStation 3.
For those not familiar with PlayStation Now, the service started out in 2014, exclusively available on Sony's PS Vita and their Bravia line of smart TVs, and later being expanded to the PS4.
It is a game-streaming and rental service, not too dissimilar to the likes of Netflix and Sky Go – except that instead of getting TV shows and movies streamed to your device, you get to play games as if you had a PS3 plugged in right in front of you!
In theory, it's a great idea – but how does it work in practice? I went hands-on to find out.
Getting started
The process all starts with downloading the PlayStation Now app from Sony's website, and the initial installation is very simple.
After installation, you either sign in with your PlayStation Network account details, if you already have them – or you have the option of creating an account. I simply filled out the form, added a payment option and signed in in a matter of minutes.
As part of the sign in process, the software tested my internet connection, and advised me that I would need at least 5Mbps and a controller to play. From there, I simply plugged in my Xbox One Elite Controller and was led to the main home screen.
The games
I was initially impressed with the range of games on offer: there are classics like Crazy Taxi, epic blockbusters like The Last of Us and the Uncharted series, and a decent selection of games that also came to the Xbox 360 and PC.
Excited, I loaded up Ultra Street Fighter IV – a fast-paced 2D fighter with beautiful graphics. I started out playing the versus mode against the computer. The game played well, with a smooth frame rate and sharp graphics and virtually no problems.
After winning a couple of matches, I decided to test how much of my bandwidth was actually being used. During a match, my computer was using between 15 and 20 Mbps – way above what Sony actually recommends for decent performance.
Using a program on my PC, I limited the speed right down to 5 Mbps – which is the minimum Sony recommends for your internet speed. The results were, frankly, horrible: the game was completely unplayable! I had graphical and audio glitches, where the game would stutter or just completely freeze, and my character was reacting to my button presses a few seconds after I had actually pressed them.
OK then, fair enough – not that many people have internet as slow as that. In particular, very few gamers would have a speed as slow as that if they had the choice. With that in mind, I upped the limit to 12 Mbps – Sony's recommendation for the 'Best Experience'.
This time, the performance did improve enough for me to actually play the game – however, there was a significant graphical downgrade from my first experience, with noticeable pixelation and some serious de-sync of the game's audio from what was actually happening on the screen.
All told, then, the service is a little bit of a mixed bag. The selection of games is fantastic, and when it works well it's a great experience – but if your internet speed isn't up to scratch, it quickly becomes an exercise in frustation.
Agent's verdict
While I can personally can see a serious benefit to this service, playing through the great PlayStation-exclusive games that I've missed out on, I cannot recommend it to people who don't have a really good internet speed.
Ultimately, the quality just isn't worth the cost of the subscription when compared to simply buying a PS3. though they do have a free trial offer at the moment, so I would encourage people to use that to test how well it runs on their particular connection.
That's our verdict on Sony's game-streaming service – but what do you reckon? Be sure to share your thoughts with our readers in the comments below! And for more great articles from our Agents straight to your inbox each month, get your name down below for the Geek Squad newsletter!