Using one PlayStation Plus membership on two consoles

One of the most disappointing revelations during the Sony’s 2013 E3 press conference was the confirmation of paying for online multiplayer. I didn’t want to pay for online multiplayer but in the end I decided $49.99 for online player along with the offerings of PlayStation Plus was worth it.

My brother and I were all set to activate our own PlayStation Plus memberships when I recalled a few salient points made by Sony:

• Games you download can be played by users who share your PS4™ system, such as your family and friends. You do not have to log in to the system for other users to play these games.
• If you join PlayStation®Plus, benefits such as online multiplayer features that come with that membership can be enjoyed by users who share your PS4™ system. You do not have to log in to the system for other users to enjoy these benefits.
• Games you purchase can be downloaded and played on any PS4™ system if you sign in to PSN. There is no limit on the number of systems you can use. * Only you can start games that you download.
• If you join PlayStation®Plus, you can sign in to PSN from any PS4™ system and enjoy your membership benefits.

With those facts in mind, it was certainly possible that my brother and I could share a single PlayStation Plus membership. This is how we set it up:

1. My brother redeemed a 7 day PlayStation Plus membership and activated my PlayStation 4 as his primary console.
2. He initiated downloads of Resogun and Contrast and logged off my console.
3. I logged onto my PlayStation 4 with my own PSN account and was able to access the games he downloaded for me and online multiplayer.
4. My brother logged onto his own PlayStation 4 and accessed all of his PlayStation Plus benefits as per usual.

The pros and cons of this arrangement are:

Pros

• We save $49.99 between the two of us
• Both players have access to online multiplayer
• Both players have access to content purchased or acquired by the PlayStation Plus account holder

Cons

• My brother’s “primary console” is now my console which includes the following limitations:
  • Content he purchases on the PSN web store will be automatically downloaded on my console
  • Using Remote Play via the Internet will connect to my console
• I do not have access PlayStation Plus cloud saves

If you are okay with those setbacks, this is a viable solution to save some money. I’ll continue to test and jot down impressions and caveats as I encounter them.