Summary
Sony has reportedly started distributing freePlayStation Storewallet credit to select customers. However, the exact size of the recipient pool might not be particularly large, as eligibility appears tied to a niche issue that affectedPlayStationservices around Christmas 2024.
Sony occasionally distributes PlayStation Store wallet creditfor multiple reasons, treating them as everything from random loyalty rewards to compensation for technical difficulties. Such moves aren’t always publicly communicated, especially when they only benefit a small subset of users.
The Japanese gaming giant is currently understood to be in the middle of one such giveaway.PlayStation Lifestylereports that the company recently began distributing wallet credit as an apology to users who found themselves unable to redeemPlayStation Store voucher codesin late 2024. Sony attributed this incident to an unspecified “systems error” that materialized on December 24 and was resolved by the end of the same day. The company’s compensation for the issue reportedly amounts to $10 in PS Store credit. According to a copy of Sony’s notification email shared by PlayStation Lifestyle, affected users are getting the compensation amount added to their accounts automatically.
Sony Is Even Compensating PlayStation Users Who Didn’t Lose Their Vouchers
Most of the vouchers offered as part of thelatest PlayStation holiday season dealshaven’t expired yet. Sony’s notification email highlights this fact, informing users that they are now able to redeem their vouchers, assuming they haven’t done so already. Therefore, this extra bit of PS Store wallet credit that’s currently being distributed isn’t meant to replace anything, but is merely compensation for any inconvenience stemming from the December 24 incident.
The exact size of the recipient pool for Sony’s compensation is unclear. The Christmas Eve issue cited as the reason for the bonus credit hadn’t been widely reported on at the time, suggesting that whatever system error caused it only affected a limited number of people. Whenever a truly global problem arises, user accounts testifying to its existence spread online like wildfire, as was the case with therecent PlayStation Network outage, which kept Sony’s PSN servers offline during a 24-hour period ending February 9.
Given this state of affairs, it’s plausible that not too many PlayStation users are eligible to receive the $10 credit that Sony is currently distributing. One’s wallet balance can be checked at any time by clicking the More icon in the top-right corner of any PS Store page on a PlayStation console. The balance will be visible below the user’s account name on the following screen. This figure can also be checked via the PlayStation app and website.
