PlayStation Stars is being shut down after having been live for three years. The program included a host of features, including allowing players to earn rewards like digital collectibles just by playing games. Loyalty Points earned by players through PlayStation Stars could also be redeemed for PlayStation Network wallet funds.

“Since launching the program, we’ve learned a lot from evaluating the types of activities our players respond best to, and as a company, we are always evolving with player and industry trends,” wrote Chen. “Through this evaluation, we have decided to refocus our efforts and will be winding down the current version of PlayStation Stars. We will continue to evaluate our key findings from this program, and are looking into ways to build upon these learnings.”

As part of this new move, PlayStation Stars will stop accepting new members. Players that are currently members of the program will still be able to earn digital collectibles and Loyalty Points until July 23, 2025. After this date, there will no longer be any more rewards. Those that decide to cancel their PlayStation Stars membership earlier will also not be able to sign up again.

The current form of PlayStation Stars is slated to end on November 2, 2026. This gives members of the loyalty program plenty of time to use up their Loyalty Points as long as they aren’t due to expire before the shut down.

“We want to thank all of our players for supporting PlayStation Stars since the launch in 2022,” wrote Chen. “As we explore new ways to evolve our loyalty program efforts for the future, we’ll continue to celebrate all of our players through the various community activities we have planned.“

It is worth noting that since its launch back in 2022, PlayStation Stars hasn’t been without controversy. In September 2022, some discovered that one of the highest tiered rewards as part of the loyalty program was enhanced customer service. This caused an outrage, especially in Japan where the loyalty program had been live for longer. Japanese players had also spoken out about how customer service shouldn’t be part of a loyalty program.

PlayStation Stars essentially has four tiers. All players start at tier 1, and go up the tier over time by buying and playing games, and earning trophies. The fourth tier, which needs players to buy four full-priced games on the PS Store and earn 128 rare trophies to reach, rewards players with priority customer support.

Japanese players took to Twitter to criticise this fact, stating that customer care shouldn’t be something that has to be earned. Several Japanese players have taken to Twitter after Automaton revealed the tier 4 reward on Twitter.

Sony is yet to make a statement on these criticisms, and hasn’t yet revealed the rewards details for PlayStation Stars’ western release.

【ニュース】PS4/PS5向け特典プログラムPlayStation Stars国内でスタート。ポイントがもらえ、レベルを上げればカスタマーサポートも優先順位上がるhttps://t.co/R5hjUYK0oW pic.twitter.com/HnecYI4Ur1

— AUTOMATON（オートマトン） (@AUTOMATONJapan) September 29, 2022

In addition to redeeming Loyalty Points for PSN funds and specific items on the PlayStation Store, Sony also revealed “digital collectibles” that could be earned. They were described as “digital representations of things that PlayStation fans enjoy, including figurines of beloved and iconic characters from games and other forms of entertainment, as well as cherished devices that tap into Sony’s history of innovation.”

Of course, one could easily assume these to be equivalent to non-fungible tokens or NFTs, which have generated a fair amount of controversy in the past several months. Speaking to The Washington Post, VP of network advertising, loyalty and licensed merchandise Grace Chen said these are “definitely not NFTs.”

“It’s definitely not NFTs. Definitely not. You can’t trade them or sell them. It is not leveraging any blockchain technologies and definitely not NFTs.” That’s three uses of the word “definitely”, which should be good enough. For now, the digital collectibles sound like a fun little side activity and Sony promises “a new collectible to earn, an ultra-rare collectible to strive for, or something surprising to collect just for fun.”

All of this is “just the beginning.” PlayStation Stars is slated to evolve with time. It will roll out regionally in different phases this year so stay tuned for more details.

Players will essentially earn Loyalty Points that are redeemable for PSN wallet funds and certain products from the PlayStation Store. PlayStation Plus subscribers enrolled in the program can even earn points from purchasing things in the store. There are also new “digital collectibles” which are “digital representations of things that PlayStation fans enjoy, including figurines of beloved and iconic characters from games and other forms of entertainment, as well as cherished devices that tap into Sony’s history of innovation.”

Members can always look forward to new collectibles, both of the ultra-rare variety or “something surprising to collect just for fun.” Sony notes that these aspects only represent the beginning of the program, which will evolve with time. It’s currently in early testing and will roll out regionally in phases later this year. Stay tuned for more details in the coming months.