The era of simply handing a physical game disc or cartridge to a mate is effectively behind us. As the industry pivots aggressively towards digital downloads, the old ritual of swapping games has had to evolve. Fortunately, Sony has streamlined this process for the digital age, allowing you to grant friends access to your library remotely. Coupled with the current holiday sales, there has never been a better moment to expand your collection without breaking the bank.
Unlocking Digital Lending
For those uninitiated, the PlayStation 5’s ‘Console Sharing and Offline Play’ feature is the modern equivalent of lending a disc. When enabled, it permits anyone signed into your console to access your media and games. Crucially, this system allows you to access a friend’s library on your own machine, even if their console is offline. It is a reciprocal arrangement that effectively doubles your available titles for free.
Setting this up is fairly straightforward. You’ll need to navigate to the Settings menu, head to ‘Users and Accounts’, and scroll down to ‘Other’. From there, select ‘Console Sharing and Offline Play’ to switch the feature on. Once your friend logs into your console with their PlayStation Network credentials, they can download and play compatible titles from your collection on their own hardware.
The Mechanics of Sharing
It is worth noting that while this feature is incredibly generous, it does come with stipulations. Gamesharing generally works best with one other trusted person at a time. You cannot play the same licence simultaneously in some configurations, but with a bit of coordination, you and a friend can effectively split the cost of new releases, securing twice the games for half the price. It is an ideal workaround for new PS5 owners looking to bolster their library without investing significant time or money immediately.
A Seasonal Steal: It Takes Two
Speaking of bolstering libraries, the timing for setting up gamesharing could not be more fortuitous. Christmas is not just about family gatherings; it is the season of aggressive retail therapy, and the PlayStation Store is currently awash with discounts. While one could easily lose hours trawling through thousands of offers, one particular title stands out as an unmissable bargain for co-op enthusiasts.
It Takes Two, the acclaimed adventure from Hazelight Studios, has dropped to a historical low price. Until early January, the title is available for just €7.99—an 80 per cent discount from its standard pricing. To put that into perspective, this award-winning experience currently costs roughly the same as a mug of Glühwein at a Christmas market.
Why It Is Worth Your Time
For those unfamiliar with the title, It Takes Two is widely regarded as a masterpiece of the genre. The PS5 version holds a commanding Metacritic score of 88 per cent, while the PS4 iteration scores even higher. It has been described as a “passionate love letter to the medium of video games,” and for good reason. The game eschews repetitive loops in favour of constantly shifting mechanics, blending clever minigames, platforming, and genuine humour into a cohesive narrative that never outstays its welcome.
The Ultimate Co-op Experience
What makes this particular offer even more enticing is the inclusion of the ‘Friends Pass’. This mechanic means that only one player needs to own the full version of the game; the second player can join the session entirely for free. Whether you are sitting on the sofa together or playing via online co-op, the barrier to entry is non-existent.
If you find yourself enamoured with the studio’s work, the source material suggests their subsequent output, such as Split Fiction, is equally worthy of attention. However, right now, It Takes Two represents the absolute gold standard for cooperative play. With the current price drop and the ability to share the experience so easily, there is little excuse not to dive in before the festive sales conclude.