PS4: 7 Simple Changes That Would Have Improved Its Launch

3. Bring Back Free Online Play

What helped to define PlayStation as a major brand in the console industry was their step into the online play territory which occurred during PlayStation 2 era back in the sixth generation. While it was SEGA who ushered in online play for consoles with their doomed Dreamcast console before then, Sony would take things to a whole new level with the introduction of a PlayStation Network, a unified online service that included system wide achievements, digital distribution and chat during gameplay. PSN was a great service especially given its free model that easily rivaled its competitor Xbox Live's monetized monthly subscription model, though Sony later created PlayStation Plus, a premium model that provided better content (free games, early beta access, etc). And upon entering this generation, PS gamers were expecting things to remain the same on the PlayStation 4. However, Sony would pull a trick out of Microsoft's hat by forcing gamers into subscribing to a PS+ account in order to play each other online from now on. While it was only just five bucks a month and provided many bonuses, it meant that the PlayStation community would no longer be able to enjoy free online play albeit the option of playing free-to-play games instead. And although Sony provided a logical excuse in the form of covering expensive server costs, it doesn't take a genius to realize that the company is still gambling with the long relationship it shared with its loyal community. Obviously, there is a simple solution for this problem: pull a complete 180 like Microsoft did with its policies for the Xbox One. Although it may seem a little too late, Sony can still do it and they might not suffer huge losses over it since the PS+ service was a huge success while remaining optional in the last generation. It's the freedom of choice that made the PSN what it is today and it should remain that way for generations to come.