The Last of Us Part II Remastered is finally coming to PC this year. However, a small requirement on the game’s page on Steam may stop many players from trying it out. Since it is one of Sony’s most prized franchises, the studio might impose the same policy on PC players that ruined Helldivers 2 last year. The game is available to wishlist on Steam and the Epic Games Store. However, the Steam page states that players will require a PSN account in order to play the game.
Sony constantly forces PC players to link PSN accounts, which makes no sense, particularly because PSN is unavailable in many countries. This will stop many players from trying it out and as a result, and Sony will lose a lot of revenue. When Sony tried to impose this policy on Helldivers 2 players on PC, the game’s Steam page was bombarded with negative reviews and ultimately, the policy was revoked.
Sony hints that PC players will need a PSN account to play The Last of Us Part II Remastered
Currently, The Last of Us Part II Remastered is available to wishlist on Steam and the Epic Games Store. As many players rushed to pre-purchase the game, they noticed on Steam that the game requires a PlayStation Network account.
This is not the first game to have this requirement as games like God of War Ragnarök, Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut, and Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered, all force PC players to link a PSN account to their Steam account in order to play the game.
The issue is that PSN is available in just 73 countries, and players who don’t reside in those countries often have to risk their accounts by creating a PSN account in a supported region. Sony’s strategy has been criticized by many PC players. In fact, a mod was created for God of War Ragnarök to bypass this issue, but it was removed as the creator was concerned Sony would take legal action.
The PSN account linking policy destroyed Helldivers 2‘s popularity
It seems like Sony has not learned its lesson as this PSN account linking policy ruined Helldivers 2‘s popularity last year. The policy stopped many players from playing the game and as a result, the game’s Steam page was bombarded with negative reviews, damaging the game’s perfect reputation. At that point, Helldivers 2 was on the verge of dying. When the policy was criticized, Sony issued a statement saying,
To turn things around, the policy was revoked but the damage was already done. Players believe that Sony will once again get rid of this policy after the release of The Last of Us Part II Remastered in April 2025.
Arrowhead Game Studios had to come up with a fresh strategy to save the game and fortunately, it worked out. The game’s active player count is looking once again but there is no doubt that the PSN account linking policy was a horrible move. Now, once again, Sony might cut The Last of Us Part II Remastered‘s sales figures with this move.