After Helldivers 2 controversy, Sony overhauls PSN account linking for PC games

Helldivers 2 faced controversy in 2024 over a requirement that PC users link to PSN, but now similar regulations are being removed by Sony.

Spider-Man 2. The Last of Us. God of War. Horizon Zero Dawn. There are a lot of Sony-published games that you want to play on PC and Steam, but in some cases, logging in means linking your existing player accounts to the PlayStation maker’s very own PSN. Last year, Helldivers 2 became mired in controversy after Sony announced, months after launch, that players would eventually need to wed their Steam accounts to the PlayStation Network. While that decision was rolled back, other Sony games, including Horizon and the remake of Until Dawn, still demand account linking. But the whole system is about to be partially transformed.

On Thursday January 30, to coincide with the launch of Spider-Man 2 on PC, Sony will make PSN account linking optional – but only for a small number of titles. If you want to play God of War Ragnarok, The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered, Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered, and Spider-Man 2 itself without linking to PSN, you will be able to do just that. Other Sony multiplayer and single-player games will require that your account is linked. However, there is another change.

If you decide to link your account when playing God of War Ragnarok, The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered, Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered, and Spider-Man 2, Sony will give you in-game rewards. These are listed below:

• Spider-Man 2: Early unlock for the Spider-Man 2099 Black Suit and the Miles Morales 2099 Suit.
• God of War Ragnarok: Access to the Armor of the Black Bear set for Kratos at the first Lost Items chest in the Realm Between Realms. This was previously only accessible in new game plus. You will also get a resource bundle containing 500 Hacksilver and 250 XP.
• Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered: The Nora Valiant outfit.
• The Last of Us Part 2 Remastered: Get 50 points to activate bonus features and extras. You also get Jordan’s Jacket from Naughty Dog’s upcoming game Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet as a skin for Ellie.

“Game creators at PlayStation Studios will continue to work on bringing more benefits to players who sign up for a PlayStation Network account,” Sony says.

You might want to try some of the best new PC games, or maybe the best upcoming PC games on their way in 2025.

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