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PS Plus adds 2021’s ‘Game of the Year’ but loses Stray in July

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Sony confirmed the next batch of games coming to and leaving its PlayStation Plus Extra and PlayStation Plus Premium game catalogs. There are lots of great new additions, with The Game Awards’ 2021 Game of the Year, It Takes Two, headlining the batch, while two Twisted Metal games also arrive ahead of its Peacock TV show. That said, PlayStation Plus’ catalog will lose Stray, the viral cat game from July 2022, which was the first day one release on PlayStation Plus Extra.

Key art for July's PlayStation Plus game catalog additions.
Sony Interactive Entertainment

Here’s a complete list of PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium games coming to the service on July 18.

  • It Takes Two
  • Sniper Elite 5
  • Snowrunner
  • World War Z
  • The Ascent
  • Undertale
  • Spongebob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated
  • Melty Blood: Type Lumina
  • Dysmantle
  • Circus Electrique
  • Dynasty Warriors 9
  • Samurai Warriors 5
  • My Little Pony: A Maretime Bay Adventure
  • Fast & Furious: Spy Racers Rise of SH1FT3R
  • Gravity Crash Portable
  • Twisted Metal
  • Twisted Metal 2
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Overall, that’s an excellent game lineup. It Takes Two is a fantastic co-op game that garnered well-deserved acclaim for how it forces players to work together throughout an adventure starring two parents who plan to get a divorce. Sniper Elite 5 and World War Z are solid shooters, while Undertale is one of the best indie games of the past decade. The classics catalog was primarily used for a bit of brand synergy, as players can now try the first two games in the Twisted Metal series before watching the show on July 27.

The main cat from Stray looking into the foreground with cyberpunk buildings behind him
Annapurna Interactive

Unfortunately, several notable games will also leave the catalog on July 18. The most shocking is Stray, a PS5 exclusive starring a cat that was also the first game to release on PlayStation Plus Extra on day one. It leaves ahead of an Xbox port’s release next month. Marvel’s Avengers is also leaving the service ahead of its delisting in September. This is the full list of games leaving PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium this month.

  • Stray
  • Marvel’s Avengers
  • Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell
  • BioShock Remastered
  • BioShock 2 Remastered
  • BioShock Infinite: The Complete Edition
  • Borderlands: The Handsome Collection
  • Rogue Stormers
  • Fluster Cluck
  • Raiden V: Director’s Cut

Stray is a fairly significant loss for PlayStation Plus Extra players; thankfully, new additions like It Takes Two, Undertale, and the first two Twisted Metal games make its removal sting a lot less. All of these games come or leave the service on July 18.

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Tomas Franzese
Tomas Franzese
Gaming Staff Writer
Tomas Franzese is a Staff Writer at Digital Trends, where he reports on and reviews the latest releases and exciting…
The Last of Us Part I should launch on PlayStation Plus Premium
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The Last of Us Part I is one of the most notable PlayStation 5 games to launch this fall. It’s also one of the year’s most controversial titles.
Despite the acclaim associated with The Last of Us series, there is heated debate surrounding the remake’s $70 price tag, which is more than the original release and The Last of Us Remastered cost at release -- even though it's lacking the multiplayer mode that came with both. This situation turned what should be a certified slam dunk for Sony into a divisive release, and Sony could fix it with one key change: making The Last of Us Part I a day-one title on PlayStation Plus Extra or Premium.
This isn’t because The Last of Us Part I isn’t worth $70. In fact, its improved visuals and the vast amount of new accessibility features clearly warrant the price tag in the eyes of some. That said, even defenders of the heightened price can recognize the controversy arising from charging more than ever for a remake of a twice-released game. The Last of Us Part I is in a rough situation, and being a PS Plus game would ease some of those concerns.
Why being on PS Plus would work
As The Last of Us is one of Sony's most popular modern franchises and has a TV show on the way, it's understandable why Sony and developer Naughty Dog eagerly want a modernized version of The Last of Us Part I on store shelves at full price. Still, those who've already bought the game twice and aren't impressed by the visual and accessibility overhaul don't seem as compelled to pick up the game for the third time. Sony would remove this significant roadblock plaguing The Last of Us Part I by putting the game on a subscription service.
The Last of Us Part I Rebuilt for PS5 - Features and Gameplay Trailer | PS5 Games
There are plenty of examples showing why this would be a wise idea. The Age of Empire series' Definitive Edition games showed how well remakes work on subscription services. Several years after their original release, many players are still actively engaged with the first three Age of Empire games. While interested players can still purchase the remakes individually, putting those games on Game Pass for PC on day one ensured that the community didn't have to pay full price for a game they were already playing daily. Instead, they could just get the remake through their subscription and continue.
The Last of Us Part I is in a similar situation, even with the multiplayer content removed. This demonstrates why a subscription service release could lessen some of the negative stigmas around the game. The successful Stray, which was included in PS Plus at launch, shows that day one PlayStation Plus games can still generate plenty of positive buzz. The game's subscription service availability ensured that the conversation stayed on the game's cute cats, not the fact that it was a $30 game that only lasted about five hours.
Sony has recognized the power PS Plus can have on embattled games before. Destruction All-Stars was originally a $70 PS5 launch title, but ultimately launched as a PlayStation Plus game that was free to subscribers. Although The Last of Us Part I seems like it’ll be a better game than Destruction All-Stars, a day one game makes even more sense on PlayStation Plus Premium and Extra now than it did on PS Plus in February 2021.

Despite all of those factors, Jim Ryan made it clear that he does not want AAA PlayStation Studios games on PlayStation Plus Premium or Extra on day one during an interview with Games Industry.
“We feel like we are in a good virtuous cycle with the studios where the investment delivers success, which enables yet more investment, which delivers yet more success,” Ryan said. “We like that cycle and we think our gamers like that cycle … We feel if we were to do that with the games that we make at PlayStation Studios, that virtuous cycle will be broken. The level of investment that we need to make in our studios would not be possible, and we think the knock-on effect on the quality of the games that we make would not be something that gamers want."
His argument makes sense from a business standpoint, but data from Microsoft shows that people play more games (and games they might not have played initially) when they are available on a subscription service. Even if it seems unfair to judge, many people weigh the amount of new, entertaining content a game offers to its price tag. Sony's can't truly say whether The Last of Us Part I is worth $70, but it can shift the discussion in its favor with an act of goodwill.
The Last of Us Part I will be released for PS5 on September 2, 2022.

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PlayStation has revealed it will be adding all eight mainline Yakuza games to PlayStation Plus throughout the rest of the year, starting in August.

Yakuza 0, Yakuza Kiwami, Yakuza Kiwami 2, and Yakuza: Like a Dragon will be added first into the service next month. Later in the year, Yakuza 3 Remastered, Yakuza 4 Remastered, Yakuza 5 Remastered, and Yakuza 6: Song of Life will be included too.

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Final Fantasy 7: Remake Intergrade and the Intermission DLC are both part of July's PS Plus Extra offerings, but players who already own the base version of the game have discovered that they cannot upgrade to the PS5 bundle.

PS Plus recently expanded to consist of a three-tier structure that incorporates elements of the now-defunct PlayStation Now service. The Essential tier is no different than what PS + originally was, offering store discounts and three free games at the beginning of each month, while the Extra and Premium tiers offer more rewards. Extra members are entitled to download a library of PS4 and PS5 titles, with new games added every month, while Premium members get all those benefits, plus the option to download PSP, PS2, and PSP games, as well as stream PS3 titles.

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