The PlayStation 4 is without a doubt one of the best video game consoles ever made. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that games for it are priced equally everywhere. Unlike Valve’s Steam store, Sony’s PlayStation Network store (PSN) does not have proper regional pricing.
PS4 games sold in India are very expensive than the same in the US. For example: UNCHARTED: The Nathan Drake Collection for PS4, normally costs Rs.2750 in India, and goes on sale sometimes for Rs.2375. That translates to $42 normal price and $37 sale price. In the US PSN and Amazon.com US websites, the same game costs $20 (Rs. 1283) which is nearly 50% cheaper than the Indian price. If you wait for a sale, you can get it for even cheaper like $8.
This example applies to most games, except recently launched games. Fortunately, you can buy games from any PSN Country, where the game is cheaper and play it on your PS4.
How to buy PlayStation digital games from Amazon US or US PSN:
1. Boot up your PS4.
2. Select the “+ New User” option.
3. Choose the sign up for PSN option, then sign up now, and select your Country as US.
4. Fill up the rest of the form such as your language of choice, date of birth, etc.
5. On the enter zip code screen, you will need to enter the zip code (pin code) of the US City, the City Name and State. Google for a random code, but make sure that the zip code matches the city and state’s info. We went with 98004 Bellevue, Washington.
6. Choose a sign-in email address (should not be the same as your regular PSN email id), and a password.
7. Complete the sign up process, and verify the account using the mail which will land in your email’s inbox.
8. Now, it is time to decide where to buy the game you want from. Visit the Amazon.com PS4 Digital Codes Game Store and browse their catalogue and compare the prices of the games with that on the US PSN Store (which you can now browse from your PS4).
9. Use the same zip code, city, state, and add a fake US address as your billing address.
10. Purchase the game using your real name, and debit card or credit card.
How to redeem PS4 digital game codes:
1. If you buy the game from Amazon, you will get a game voucher on the screen and in your email.
2. Open the PSN store on the PS4, and scroll down to redeem codes.
3. Select it and enter the 12-digit game code and hit X.
4. It will display a confirmation message.
That’s all there is to it. Congratulations, you have successfully redeemed a US game code on your PS4, and saved a lot of money by doing so. You can download the game anytime you want by selecting the account which has the game tied to it.
I got the Nathan Drake Collection for $21 (including $2 tax, totaling to Rs. 1400 approximately). I was able to save about Rs.700 by this method, as the same game collection now costs Rs.2100 (during the summer sale + a PS Plus subscription).
This process was tested on a PS4 Slim. But it should be the same for PS3 too. You don’t need any VPN to buy games from PSN. There are no regional locks for games which you buy from PSN. But DLCs are locked to regions, so if you buy a game from US PSN, get the DLC from the same country.
Make sure your debit/credit card is enabled for International transactions. I use a HDFC Platinum card and can enable or disable International usage, from the bank’s official netbanking website.