Publishers Pitch Sony on Adding Retro Classics to PS Plus

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How is it decided which old-school games become part of the PS Plus Premium collection? This is something that’s been on our minds for quite some time now, especially given the varied response to the service since its launch a few years back.

Even though popular exclusive games such as Sly Cooper and Ape Escape have been included in the service, it’s surprising to find many classic titles still absent from it, especially considering that Sony’s emulator currently supports PlayStation 1, PlayStation 2, and even PlayStation Portable games.

It sounds like, in some cases, publishers are pitching their portfolio to the Japanese giant.

Consider the case of Battle Engine Aquila, introduced to Ziggurat more recently. This is a less well-known game in the mech-style shooter genre, initially released back in 2003. Despite being generally well-received, its appearance on Sony’s subscription service felt unusual given the absence of many familiar, popular titles.

Here’s what producer Alex Lotz told us when we asked how it ended up added to the service:

Ziggurat proposed to Sony the idea of including their game in the PlayStation Classic library. The internal emulation team at PlayStation was responsible for the main development, with Ziggurat given the chance to review and approve the builds, promotional materials, and network aspects such as Trophies.

Lotz shared that it was Sony who first created the initial list of Trophies, but Ziggurat had a chance to contribute and approve the final version. He mentioned that, for now, there’s no news to share, but his company is considering expanding their retro game collection on PS Plus Premium in the future.

It’s likely that the company behind PlayStation frequently discusses with publishers the possibility of incorporating games from their libraries. However, when it comes to notable publishers such as Square Enix and iconic games like Chrono Trigger, they might be planning to create their own remastered versions.

Currently, we’re particularly fond of the retro classics with PS Plus Premium, but the pace at which they’re being released is frustratingly slow.

As a dedicated gamer, I can’t help but marvel at the wealth of timeless games that Sony’s PlayStation platform offers. However, with only a handful of new releases each month, it feels like waiting an eternity for them to compile a substantial library of true classics.

We’re hoping the company won’t shut down the entire project before it can fully flourish.

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2025-07-07 17:36