Technologies

Best Game Subscription Services

Every gaming platform has monthly game subscriptions, from Xbox Game Pass to PlayStation Plus.

Gaming subscriptions are here to stay, and there’s no denying it. Every gaming platform has at least one, with Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo building their gaming subscription servicesaround basic features like online multiplayer.

That’s right, even if you’re not interested in a digital gaming library, it might be more cost-effective to subscribe to one just to access things like multiplayer — and you might even find a new favorite game along the way.

With cloud gaming and the PC version of Xbox Game Pass, subscriptions are a big part of PC gaming, but not yet the default. It helps that PC gamers can buy games a la carte from a variety of shops (Steam, GOG and so on), which means that individual games are often discounted.

And if content subscriptions are the future of gaming, then cloud gaming subscriptions are the future of that future, as they require almost no specialized hardware, and generally work anywhere from an iPad to a cheap Chromebook. For this roundup, we’re including both download and cloud-based subscription services.

That said, the road to cloud gaming is not always a smooth one. Google just announced that its Stadia service is going to end this month. Similarly, the very first cloud-gaming service, On Live, started in 2010 and shut down in 2015.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate remains the gold standard, offering a catalog of games across console, PC and cloud (which works on practically any device). But Sony has revamped its PlayStation Plus service to be much closer to what Microsoft offers.

The top tier of services includes:

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate
PlayStation Plus
Nintendo Switch Online
GeForce Now
Apple Arcade

Other players include:

EA Play
Ubisoft Plus
Google Play Pass
Amazon Luna
Amazon Prime Gaming

Also tested

EA Play

For $5 to $15 a month, you get access to a catalog of EA games, but EA Play is also included in Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.

Ubisoft Plus

For $15 a month, you get access to Ubisoft games as a stand-alone PC subscription, or as a paid add-on to Stadia or Luna, and eventually Xbox.

Google Play Pass

Like Apple Arcade, the Google version for Android phones includes lots of games, but also other apps. It works on Android devices only.

Amazon Luna/Prime Gaming

Luna is Amazon’s cloud-based service, like Stadia, that offers different catalogs for between $5 and $18 a month. Prime members can stream some games at no additional cost, and also get access to «a rotating selection» of full downloadable games. Amazon also owns Twitch, so there’s deep built-in integration for streamers.

Stadia

Google’s cloud-based service is shutting down later this month, but you can still go back and read our launch review of Google Stadia.

Technologies

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for May 20, #443

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 443 for May 20.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle reminds me that I haven’t had a meal in a fancy restaurant in some time. Maybe it’s time to make a reservation. If you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Oh, of course!

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Elegant eats.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

SITE, FINE, SINE, DINE, PEAS, TEEN, PEER, STEEP, DEER, SEED, SEEN, POET, TREE, NOPE, SEES.

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

SOUP, SALAD, CHEESE, ENTREE, DESSERT, APPETIZERS

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is FINEDINING. To find it, start with the F that’s three letters down on the farthest row to the left, and wind across.

Toughest Strands puzzles

Here are some of the Strands topics I’ve found to be the toughest in recent weeks.

#1: Dated slang, Jan. 21. Maybe you didn’t even use this lingo when it was cool. Toughest word: PHAT.

#2: Thar she blows! Jan.15. I guess marine biologists might ace this one. Toughest word: BALEEN or RIGHT.

#3: Off the hook, Jan. 9. Similar to the Jan. 15 puzzle in that it helps to know a lot about sea creatures. Sorry, Charlie. Toughest word: BIGEYE or SKIPJACK

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for May 24, #713

Hints and answers for Connections for May 24, #713.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections puzzle has a fun variety of categories. The purple one appeals to my English major heart. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Goo-goo.

Green group hint: Not shirts.

Blue group hint: City that never sleeps.

Purple group hint: Acclaimed writers.