Earlier today, Sony announced a new way for gamers in its ecosystem to earn rewards known as PlayStation Stars. This new program is seemingly similar to the Sony Rewards program that used to be heavily integrated with PlayStation before being overhauled a few years ago. PlayStation Stars isn’t out just yet, but will be entering a phased rollout later this year.
On PlayStation Blog, Sony VP of Network Advertising, Loyalty & Licensed Merchandise Grace Chen laid out what players can expect once Stars launches. The loyalty program is free to join and allows anyone playing PlayStation games to earn points for completing campaigns and activities. These can include a simple monthly check-in playing any game, earning specific trophies, and even becoming the first person to earn a platinum trophy in a particular title, something that seemingly favors those who get pre-release copies of games.
Chen also laid out that purchases on the PlayStation Store would automatically earn players points. Whether achieved through a round of Fortnite or monetary investment, points are redeemable for PSN wallet funds and “select PlayStation Store products.” That last line isn’t specific to what those products could be, but it would likely be free downloadable games in the same vein as Nintendo’s rewards program.
The blog post also reveals that Sony will offer digital collectibles as an option for points redemption. Chen describes these as “digital representations of things that PlayStation fans enjoy, including figurines of beloved and iconic characters from games and other forms of entertainment, as well as cherished devices that tap into Sony’s history of innovation.”
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In a chat with the Washington Post, Chen clarified that these collectibles were not associated with NFTs or the blockchain. She also confirmed that there’d be no way to trade or sell them. Instead, these figurines will exist similar to the digital trading cards and Funko Pops offered via smartphone apps for years.
In that vein, Chen details in the blog post that there’d be “ultra rare” collectibles “to strive for.” In that way, it seems that Sony is cashing in on the same FOMO attitude that NFTs thrive on without delving into the technology’s worst aspects and trying to sell images of chimps wearing Blasto hoodies and Tomba wigs.
