The new partnership that Sony will have with Bungie following its acquisition is full of opportunities. For Sony, this means another studio it can tap for important PlayStation titles, and for Bungie there’s a lot more money available to back its future endeavors. While the what-ifs about new Bungie games currently point to a future without console exclusives, Sony and PlayStation still have a chance to leverage Bungie and its properties in order to make the PS Plus service more enticing.
Previously, Bungie’s Destiny 2 expansions were available through the Xbox Game Pass service, allowing subscribers to enjoy the best parts of the game without having to pay extra. This was a major perk for Xbox users who wanted to check out Destiny 2, or those already familiar with the series. New expansions cost money and for many, this deal through Xbox Game Pass was an inexpensive workaround. While PS Plus doesn’t have all the same benefits as Xbox Game Pass, the service could start to use Destiny 2 to its advantage.
Destiny 2 Expansions With PS Plus
By offering Destiny 2 expansions and seasons to PS Plus subscribers, PlayStation would have a major draw for new customers. While the service primarily opens online multiplayer on PlayStation consoles, it doesn’t seem to offer too much more compared to Xbox Game Pass. PS Plus does offer free games every month, but the overall value can fluctuate wildly. To some, free games can be great deals, as shown with many of the major AAA titles that have been featured. For other subscribers, their inclusion can be negligible.
This is something that leveraging Destiny 2 could help improve. While not every PS Plus subscriber is going to be a Destiny player, it would open new doors for future fans and increase the value of the subscription. If PlayStation were to mirror the approach used by Xbox Game Pass, it could offer DLC like The Witch Queen expansion, and add seasons. This would be a major move, and for fans of the series with access to multiple consoles, it could mean switching from Xbox to PlayStation.
Regarding a PlayStation Game Pass service, this is a small first step and by no means revolutionizes the way PS Plus is currently implemented. With how many products have adopted a subscription model in recent years, staying up to date in gaming and other areas can become expensive, especially with live-service games like Destiny 2. PlayStation leveraging Bungie with PS Plus and, in turn, rewarding customer loyalty would benefit its playerbase and further solidify its new partnership.
Future Bungie Game on PS Plus
A move like this would demonstrate that Sony wants to keep Bungie games closely connected to PlayStation. While Bungie has a commitment to multiplatform games, there’s no hiding that finding ways to leverage these titles is what will serve PlayStation best. Until the rumored Project Spartacus possibly sees a more public, realized version of a Game Pass rival, Sony should look at Bungie as an opportunity to show fans what they can get by buying PlayStation consoles.
The God of War and Marvel’s Spider-Man series are already major successes with PlayStation fans, but for consumers debating between the two major consoles thanks to the ongoing PS5 shortages, deals on current and future Bungie titles could be a deciding factor. If games are offered in better deals through PS Plus, players might be more inclined to invest their money in a console. This wouldn’t necessarily make PS Plus a direct or effective competitor against Xbox Game Pass, but it would make it a more viable option for many people still on the fence.
Sony already sees the value that Bungie brings to its company. Sony and Bungie both have interest in Destiny movies and connecting the series, as well as future Bungie titles, to PlayStation. As both Sony and Xbox continue to move forward with their major acquisitions, each is likely to look for ways to stand out. This could also tie into plans like Bungie’s next IP, Matter, and help to build a stronger base for Bungie projects. Using PS Plus to lay the foundations by offering Bungie games for free could offer a certain guarantee of players at launch. With multi-platform games, there's still money to be made through players on other consoles, but player populations at launch could be bolstered with PS Plus.
With Sony’s plans to release 10 live-service games by 2026, using Bungie titles as a litmus test for how effective this is could be a solid option. It could open the floodgates, or show that overall player retention doesn’t change. Either way, leveraging the acquisition of Bungie to better serve PS Plus is something Sony and PlayStation should explore.
