Sony launches loyalty program with digital collectibles

Sony has announced a free fan loyalty program called PlayStation Stars, which will offer rewards including PS Store wallet funds and games.

Sony presented on Thursday his PlayStation Stars loyalty program for PS5 and PS4 players. This initiative, which is expected to start later this year, can earn rewards by participating in campaigns and playing specific games.

Players can choose from a catalog of options to redeem their points, including credits from the PlayStation Network wallet and select PlayStation Store products. Perhaps the most important aspect of this new initiative is the fact that: it’s free and you don’t have to pay extra. It will be a breath of fresh air for new PlayStation Plus subscribers who are already paying to access everything from the full catalog of games to cloud gaming for the new PlayStation Plus Premium subscription.

How does the new PlayStation Stars program work?

Campaigns include PlayStation’s “Monthly Check-In” campaign, where you can earn points just by playing a game on your console. Other activities require you to win tournaments or unlock trophies to earn points, or even be the first player in your local time zone to reach platinum for a blockbuster title i.e. 100% game completion. As an added bonus, Sony says PlayStation Plus members who sign up for the PlayStation Stars program automatically earn points by purchasing items (probably some games and DLC, but that’s not quite clear yet) on the PlayStation Store.

Sony will even “collect digital items of what PlayStation fans appreciate, including figurines of iconic and beloved characters from games and other forms of entertainment, as well as valuable devices that build on the story.” of Sony’s innovation.

Sony says there will always be new digital collectibles, including extremely rare items, as well as “surprising items to collect just for fun”, but it doesn’t seem possible at this time to sell or trade them. So we are fortunately quite far from the traditional NFT system for the time being.