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February’s PlayStation Plus games features beautiful indies Transistor and Apotheon

grab transistor rogue legacy playstation plus february
Image used with permission by copyright holder
PlayStation Plus subscribers have a new selection of free games to choose from in February 2015, matching a range of tastes across all of Sony’s platforms.

Transistor (PS4)

This sci-fi action RPG utilizes a unique system of recombinable combat upgrades and tactical pausing and planning. What makes this follow-up from the creator’s of Bastion really stand out, though, is its gorgeous visuals and soundtrack, immersing you in a lush, Art Deco future.

Apotheon (PS4)

Take on the gods themselves in this Mythological Greek sidescrolling platformer. The visuals are based on the iconic style of ancient, black form Greek vases, giving this game a compelling and graphic aesthetic.

Yakuza 4 (PS3)

Brawl your way to the top of Japan’s criminal underworld in this action adventure GTA-like. Various minigames such as pachinko, training boxers, or scouting girls for the cabaret fill out the edges around this story of crime and revenge.

Thief (PS3)

Rule the night as Garrett, master thief in this reboot of the 1998 first-person stealth classic from Looking Glass Studios. Sneak, stab, and swipe your way through a shadowy, steampunk city in a quest for the most valuable loot.

Rogue Legacy (PS Vita/PS4/PS3)

You will die a lot in this procedurally generated platformer, but that’s ok, because your descendants will carry on your legacy. Every run through the castle is different, but the loot and gold you manage to snag before almost inevitably dying gets passed on to your children, who will hopefully make it a little further than you.

Kick & Fennick (PS Vita)

A young boy and a friendly robot team up to survive in a desolate world filled with not-so-friendly robots. This sci-fi adventure is an easy-going and family-friendly platformer.

Will Fulton
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Will Fulton is a New York-based writer and theater-maker. In 2011 he co-founded mythic theater company AntiMatter Collective…
PlayStation Plus is getting a major price hike following Game Pass changes
PlayStation Plus art highlighting the essential, extra, and premium tiers.

Sony confirmed that 12-month subscriptions for PlayStation Plus Essential, Extra, and Premium will all see price increases alongside the reveal of September's new Essential games on the PlayStation Blog.
Starting on September 6, 12 months of PS Plus Essential goes up in price from $60 to $80, PS Plus Extra's yearly price increases from $100 to $135, and an annual subscription to PS Plus Premium will rise from $120 to $160. 

Sony says it needs to increase the price of all three versions of PlayStation Plus "to continue bringing high-quality games and value-added benefits to your PlayStation Plus subscription service" and that buying a 12-month subscription is still cheaper than subscribing to any of the shorter-term plans over the same period of time. The price hikes comes just a couple of months after Microsoft raised the price of Xbox Game Pass. 
When it comes to the games PS Plus Essential subscribers can expect this month, first up is Saints Row, a 2022 reboot of an open-world crime franchise that garnered mixed reviews upon its release. Next is Generation Zero, an open-world sci-fi shooter where players fight evil machines. Finally, those who have not already purchased a version of the MMO Black Desert on PS4 can redeem Black Desert - Traveler Edition, which comes with some additional items; if you have bought a version of Black Desert, you can just redeem the Traveler Item Pack.

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Sony’s cloud handheld, the PlayStation Portal, will only stream certain games
Astro's Playroom booting up on the PlayStation Portal.

Sony has unveiled the price for its upcoming cloud gaming handheld, as well as an official name for the device: PlayStation Portal. However, one significant caveat to its functionality might sour people's interest in the handheld: It only supports PS4 and PS5 native games that the owner purchased.
PlayStation VR2 games can't be streamed to PlayStation Portal, which does make sense. More bafflingly, though, is the fact that the PlayStation Blog post states that "games that are streamed through PlayStation Plus Premium’s cloud streaming are not supported." That means you shouldn't pick up PlayStation Portal expecting to stream some PS3 and PS4 games available through PlayStation Plus Premium to the device. That's certainly an odd omission when it's currently PlayStation's most notable cloud gaming effort.
Although Microsoft is more closely associated with cloud gaming, Sony beat it to releasing a dedicated cloud gaming device. PlayStation Portal was first teased as Project Q during May's PlayStation showcase, but now, a PlayStation Blog post more clearly explains what we can actually expect from the handheld. Most importantly, we learned that PlayStation Portal will cost $200, which puts it underneath the cost of a Nintendo Switch, Xbox Series S, and other cloud gaming devices like the Logitech G Cloud Handheld.
As for what you're getting for that price tag, it's essentially a decent screen attached to two halves of a DualSense controller. The controllers on each side share all the functionality of the DualSense, including things like haptic feedback and adaptive triggers. In-between is an 8-inch LCD screen that streams games over Wi-Fi at up to a 1080p resolution and 60 frames per second. All in all, that's fairly solid for a cloud gaming handheld that is this cheap.
Sony confirmed that the PlayStation Portal will have a 3.5mm audio jack, but also used the same blog post to unveil two new wireless audio options. There's the Pulse Elite wireless headset that features a retractable boom mic and a charging hanger and Pulse Explore wireless earbuds that offer similar audio quality in earbud form.
None of these products are available for preorder or have a specific release date just yet, but they are all expected to launch before the end of the year.

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PS Plus is getting PS5 cloud streaming and a big library update
Anton and Diego from Far Cry 6.

Sony has revealed the next batch of games coming to PlayStation Plus Premium and Extra in June, and the highlight is Far Cry 6. Sony also teased that it is starting to test cloud streaming for PS5 games, with plans to add that feature to PlayStation Plus in the future. A free game trial for WWE 2K23 and free avatars and wallpapers for PS Plus members will also become available next week. 
When it comes to new titles, Sony revealed a nice batch of older AAA titles and more recent hit indies for June. On the AAA side of things, Far Cry 6 and Deus Ex: Mankind Divided are very enjoyable, while, indie games like Rogue Legacy 2 and Inscryption are also worth checking out. A PlayStation UK Facebook post confirms that these are titles coming to the service on June 20.

Far Cry 6
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge
Rogue Legacy 2
Inscryption
Soulstice
Tacoma
Dues Ex: Mankind Divided
Killing Floor 2
Lonely Mountains: Downhill
Vampire: The Masquerade - Coteries of New York
Hundred Days: Winemaking Simulator
A Hat in Time
Carto
Forager
Dodgeball Academia
The Wild at Heart
Redout 2
Thief
MX vs ATV Legends
PAW Patrol Might Pups: Save Adventure Bay!
My Friend Peppa Pig
DC League of Super-Pets: The Adventures of Krypto and Ace
The Talos Principle: Deluxe Edition
Elex 2
Killzone: Liberation (PSP)
Worms (PS1)
Herc's Adventures (PS1)

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