Konami says removing Pro Evolution Soccer 2019 from the July PlayStation Plus lineup was Sony‘s decision. Sony’s last-minute PES 2019 PS Plus change to Detroit Become Human Digital Deluxe Edition came as a surprise to PES‘ European brand manager, Lennart Bobzien.
Speaking to GameSpot, who reached out to Bobzien, Konami, and Sony for statements after the PS Plus change, Bobzien said, “I cannot really tell you what happened because I just found out today, in the morning when I opened my laptop.”
Konami, publisher of the PES series, told GameSpot simply, “The decision was made by Sony” and did not comment further. Sony, meanwhile, offered little more explanation, stating only that the PS Plus change was “a decision [Sony] decided to make as a company.”
ALSO: Yogscast member Caffcast accused of abusing power to ‘pursue sexual relationships’ with women
In the original announcement of the change in a PlayStation Blog post, Sony stated only that the PS Plus change was happening and that the company apologized for any inconvenience, leaving the reasoning for the swap a mystery. Bobzien’s, Konami’s, and Sony’s statements to GameSpot do little to clarify the event, but at least we know who made the call.
On July 2, the same day Sony announced the PS Plus change, PES announced a partnership with English football club Manchester United for the upcoming eFootball PES 2020. Konami recently confirmed that there will be no women’s football in eFootball PES 2020, despite the growing popularity of the sport and the inclusion of women’s football in the FIFA series since FIFA 16.
Detroit Become Human Digital Deluxe Edition, the game included in the July PS Plus lineup in PES 2019‘s stead, includes both Quantic Dream‘s 2018 adventure game about androids and the developer’s 2010 thriller, Heavy Rain. The July PS Plus games, Detroit Become Human Digital Deluxe Edition and Horizon Chase Turbo are available free for PS Plus members until August 5.