[quote name='Rocko']So do I actually need Playstation Plus?
Also, for anyone why plays PS3 online, my tag is Rokk_0[/QUOTE]
No.
Playstation Plus gives you additional discounts, free games on a month basis, cloud storage, and automatic patches/updates for games and the system (maybe some other stuff, but those are the benefits I'm familiar with).
For December, for example, in addition to whatever Minis and PSX classics they gave out (I'm forgetting what they were because I don't play those, really), they gave out free copies of Tomb Raider Underworld and Marvel Pinball.
If you just want to play something online occasionally or watch netflix/hulu plus/etc., you don't need a subscription. (Well, you need a sub for netflix or hulu plus, of course, but you don't need the service subscription & PS+ to watch on your PS3.)
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The best reason to join usually ends up being "whoa, holy shit, they're giving away a $15 game I wanted anyway". By the time you're done with the 3 months or year your purchased, you're dependent upon the auto-updates and cloud storage (though they need to expand the size now that MS is offering 4x the size to Gold subscribers). :lol:
The one catch is that if you let your membership lapse any of the free games lock themselves out. Once you renew, they become available again. I think cloud saves are maintained for 60 days or so after your membership expires before they're deleted.