Yeah it's been that way since the PS3. and it's just as well because during the time of the PS3 their online infrastructure was awful. They did have PS+ towards the end of PS3 but it was optional and not required for online play. It was a system to get two games free every month from a selection. Something that Microsoft eventually copied as a perk into XBLG. They would have had some nerve charging for online access with how unstable it was. They didn't start charging for online play until it improved at the begining if the PS4 generation. However party chat and F2P game access always remained free.

The cloud save thing though is charged for and hopefully they might match Microsoft in that regard and offer it outside of the subscription model. They removed the ability to backup saves to USB on PS5. A stupid and bizarre decision that they have been called out on.

During my time on Xbox I wasn't happy that I was being charged £50 per year for XBLG to access my own netflix account. As you read that has now stopped and rightly so. I thought MS had a nerve charging you for access to something they have no affiliation with that you are already paying for.

I'm afraid the fellow above is wrong regarding playstation games requiring a subscription for free to play games and it was in fact the other way around. Microsoft was charging people for Xbox Live Gold to access free to play games, party chat and even your own netflix account which they were called out for two years ago and stopped it due to Sony not requiring this practice. I provided a source here. https://www.theverge.com/2021/4/21/22395433/microsoft-xbox-live-gold-free-multiplayer-games-party-chat

Also PlayStation has been the leading platform for Destiny and Call of Duty for the duration of the PS4 generation. It is known that around twice as many players are playing these games on PlayStation. Sony now own the Destiny IP and the Call of Duty situation may change if Microsoft succeeds in acquiring Activision Blizzard.

Actually that's false I'm afraid. Free to play games have always been free to play on PlayStation without the PS+ requirements. And party chat has also always been free. Cloud saves are not you are correct there.

It was in fact Microsoft who were charging people and required Xbox Live Gold to play free to play games online, access party chat and even access your own netflix account. They were called out for this two years ago because Sony wasn't doing that and it got changed as a result.

Source. https://www.theverge.com/2021/4/21/22395433/microsoft-xbox-live-gold-free-multiplayer-games-party-chat

Yeah that's one thing to note to differentiate. Games are expensive right now and all publishers are jumping on the bandwagon putting prices up. That said there are often sales and deals. As someone else said below about storage the PS5 is HUGE lol. The first thing I said, or rather yelled when I took it out if the box was "it's f**king huge!" lol. And I personally think it's hideous where others like it. I'll definitely go for a slim if they ever release one.

As for game prices I still buy physical because I'm old fashioned, like to own my games and deals happen faster lol. Plus they have trade in value if you don't want to keep them because discounts on digital stores don't come around very often. It's hard to say what's best for you really, in the end it's your choice that matters. All I or we can do is give you our opinions.

I've just finished my first run on Hogwarts Legacy and I loved it! Just three trophies away from the platinum. (Yeah I'm one of 'those') lol.

Edit. Oh and Sony still haven't nailed how to make a great controller. I mean the dualsense is good but that's something I have to give Xbox credit for, I like their controllers more. I turned off the haptic feedback because it weakened one of the triggers on my launch controller. Sony replaced it for free and have apparently redesigned the triggers but I'm not turning them back on just in case. Don't care for it anyway. Something to note in my experience.

No problem. I doubt any of the Marvel stuff will be coming out on Xbox honestly since Sony seem to be working closely with Disney to produce games from Marvel. Xbox was offered Spider-Man but turned it down. Contrary to those who believe it's being blocked which it isn't. Sony published it, funded it and insomniac developed it. PlayStation now has its own service in which many of its PS4 first party titles are either on it or starting to show up so a way to access them and try them without shelling out a ton of money. But if Marvel is your primary concern then it's safe to say that PlayStation might be the way to go for you.

If you can afford to do it maybe a PS5 and the Series S (a cheaper entry point) might give you the best of both worlds.

It primarily comes down to the games over the box. Evaluate what they each have and what you're likely to play. You say you have an Xbox One? Do you also have a PS4? as of right now there isn't much on the Xbox side to play that isn't on the Xbox One. Likewise there a few PS exclusives but if you also have a PS4 you've likely played a lot of them.

Spider-Man is out this fall. Wolverine is currently unknown. Personally I have the PS5 and skipped the Xbox this time around. For me Sony's first party exclusives are incredible and Xbox has nothing for me personally anymore to match it. They have their GamePass service but honestly in my experience 90% of it is filler content I've already played last gen.

After playing several Sony first party games like The Last of Us, Ghost of Tsushima, Bloodborne, Demon Souls, GoW, Horizon Zero Dawn/Forbidden West (incredible games), MediEvil, Ratchet and Clank, Heavy Rain, Detroit Become Human, Uncharted,

I feel currently Xbox even with their service has nothing to compete with these titles. But these games I've played might not even be to your taste. As cliche as it may sound, in my experience it's quantity (Xbox) over quality (PS). StarField is coming for Xbox soon and I've watched the showcase. Honestly, to me it looks boring. Bethesda just isn't all that anymore (personal opinion)

Sure I like Halo but it's gotten stale and since Bungie left lost its way. I love gears but that hasn't been the same since it moved from Epic Games. Xbox are making acquisitions in the form of Activision for CoD and Bethesda for Fallout but I feel I won't be missing much. I stopped playing competitive multiplayer and there are more and better RPG's these days than Fallout. Immortals Fenyx Rising and the Witcher for example. Plus Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic Remake, a classic is on the way exclusively (at present) for PlayStation.

I feel the only things that can compete with Sony's Library is The Legend of Zelda (huge fan) from Nintendo, and Persona from Sega/Atlus (that is on PlayStation anyway. And bear in mind they both get all the third party games so the exclusives are the driving factor.

These are just my personal thoughts and subjective. To me these days, the Xbox feels seriously lacking to games like these. I hope you make the right choice for YOU.

If you already have a playstation then go with Nintendo. 90% of what Xbox has is already on playstation despite a few exclusive titles that are, in my personal experience, not good enough. Nintendo has a very unique library and playstation exclusives are not far behind. 3rd party games a PS console will have you covered.

Not a fanboy, or a hater. But this is my personal opinion.