Speaking to CVG, SCEA marketing head John Koller has said that access to PlayStation Plus will not be free for PS3 gamers who already own the games on offer for rent or subscription as part of the service.
"We're saying no to that right now," Koller commented adding, "initially" suggesting that while it's unlikely, free access to Now games when you already own a downloaded or disc based version of the titles available may come eventually. Koller confirmed that the option was not currently being investigated.
The news means that PlayStation Now users will need to rent or subscribe games in order to access the streaming version of titles they already own.
Koller also revealed that Now users will need a DualShock 3 controller for supported phones, tablets, and Bravia TVs. PS4 owners will be able to use a DualShock while Vita owners can use that device's inputs.
PlayStation Now was announced at the Consumer Electronics Show last night and allows for PlayStation games from the original console onwards to be streamed to PS3, PS Vita, PS4, phones, tablets, and TVs. The service is entering closed beta this month and Sony plans to launch it in the US this summer.
The Verge had a hands on with Now running on a Bravia and this is what they said about its performance:
"For our demo, we first booted up God of War. The game's loading time left a bit to be desired, but once it was running, things went on without a hitch. Yes, there's a slightly perceptible lag between button presses and the corresponding action onscreen, but we still managed to slay numerous enemies in God of War's brutal style without it being a problem."
Also available to play was The Last of Us and The Verge says that while the graphics on offer were not quite as good as those you might find on the PS3 the quality of Now will depend on your bandwidth. You can check out the latency here which can hopefully be reduced over time.
Upon starting Now the service will check your internet connection and issue a warning if your experience will be hampered by slow data speeds. Sony said.
