There's almost nothing worse than buying something just to see it discounted or given away for free later. Unfortunately, this is a relatively common occurrence in the gaming world, as there are plenty of subscription services like PS Plus that take great games and either discount them or give them away for free. For January 2021, PS Plus subscribers are getting access to Shadow of the Tomb Raider, GreedFall, and a PS5 version of Maneater, meaning anyone who may have bought those recently could have waited.
Notably, Greedfall was 2019's honorary Dragon Age title, while Shadow of the Tomb Raider is the latest adventure of Lara Croft. It's unlikely many invested in these games lately, if only due to their age and/or relative popularity, but Maneater is a bit newer. And as it turns out, Sony issued automatic refunds to those who purchased Maneater on PS5 before it became a PS Plus game. This begs the question: Will Sony continue to issue refunds in this matter, and will it resolve the problem described above? The answer is a probably not.
PS Plus, Free Games, Refunds, and Sharks, Oh My!
First, there's a couple of things worth mentioning. It doesn't seem refunds for GreedFall or Shadow of the Tomb Raider were issued, meaning this was directly tied to the PS5, not PS4. Really, thinking about the money that would be lost if issuing refunds for Maneater, Greedfall, and Shadow of the Tomb Raider makes even the one refund that did happen seem super unlikely, but the PS5 is the answer.
These PS Plus Maneater refunds went back a full month in some cases (at least, so it seems), which makes sense. The PS5 was is almost two months old, that's all; chances are, Sony didn't want fans who just purchased a PS5 and purchased Maneater to play on it to feel as if they had been duped. It's one thing when playing on a PS4, a 7-year-old console, having a ton of time to buy games, and then coincidentally and accidentally buying a game before it goes on sale or is made free. However, when recently buying a brand new console and selecting a few games to play on it just after release, then that game become free just a month later is another story altogether.
Depending on other PS Plus games in 2021, this may be a one-off occurrence. Destruction AllStars is coming to PS Plus next month, launching on the service so not one will have bought it, and it'll be interesting to see if it goes from there. More PS5 games on PS Plus are certainly welcome, but regardless, fans shouldn't be expecting refunds every time a game is made free.
PS Plus subscribers get access to free games every month.