I'll begin with Xbox and put the Playstation tutorial as the first comment.
I thought with Xbox Series S selling out that this would be a good time to give everyone a heads up on how to save heaps of cash by buying your digital games from overseas, mainly the Microsoft Brazil store.
Prices on there can be crazy low compared to NZ, I bought Assassins Creed Odyssey Ultimate on there around 5 months ago for $27 and the cheapest I've seen it on the NZ store is $63, plus things like Xbox Live Gold subscriptions are less than half the price of what they are in NZ (anywhere from $50nzd all the way down to $35, just keep an eye out for deals on sites and buy up when they're on special) so if you're a current Gamepass Ultimate subscriber you can get it for around $10/month instead of the $20 it costs in NZ by converting Live Gold to GPU (12 months Gold will convert to 4 months of GPU), and if you're not a GPU subscriber you can get 3 years of Gold for around $120nzd then convert it to 3 years of GPU using the $1 offer saving you a whopping $600! Currently in Nov 2020 the prices are quite high, around $58nzd, but bookmark the following link as they regularly have it down around $40nzd on special https://www.electronicfirst.com/12-month-xbox-live-gold-memb…
For a list of game prices on the Brazil store visit the following site (there's no NZD option so change the currency to Australian dollars) and you'll get an idea of just how much you'll be saving. https://xbox-store-checker.com/en/deals-with-gold?gamelistty…
If the following looks like too many words and you'd rather watch a video, here you go https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ga8RVMzUI_U
A quick guide for you first transaction
- buy gift card
-change address to Brazil on your MS account
-use Brazil VPN through private browser and go to MS Store in Brazil (this is only needed for your first purchase)
-buy game using gift card
-download game from NZ store
-profit
A more in depth guide
First I'll explain how your Microsoft account that you use on Xbox works. Accounts aren't region locked which means that you can switch between regions whenever you like and the things you purchase from those regions aren't locked to the region but to the account they were purchased on, for example if I buy Diablo from the Brazil store when I go to the game on the NZ store it will say that I already own it and do I want to download.
-Log into your Microsoft account via web browser and add a Brazilian address to your list of addresses then make it both your billing and shipping address. https://account.microsoft.com/account I used this site to create my address https://www.fakeaddressgenerator.com/World/Brazil_address_ge…
-Go to MTCGAME, CDkeys or whatever site you want that sells Brazilian Xbox gift cards and purchase the amount needed for what you want to buy. List of places that sell them https://xbox-store-checker.com/en/xbox-live-cards I use MTCGame because they're slightly cheaper than the others. WARNING that MTCGAME says instant delivery but can take a while to provide your codes sometimes, the first time it happened to me I thought I'd been ripped off but a quick word with their live chat and the codes arrived safely.
-Using a private/incognito page on your browser and a VPN set to Brazil log into your Microsoft account and visit the Brazil store then find the game you want. It's in Portugese so use a browser that can translate it for you. I used a free VPN called Hola. I find the easiest way to find the game you want is to search for it first on Xbox Store Checker and use the links there to take you directly to the games page on the Brazilian store. YOU ONLY NEED TO DO THIS FOR YOUR FIRST TRANSACTION, AFTER THAT YOU DON'T NEED A VPN OR PRIVATE BROWSER, personally I think it's a good idea to use a VPN but you don't have to.
-Hit the purchase button and when the payment options appear choose to pay by gift card and enter whatever your gift card code is.
-Once that is done you just need to confirm you want to buy the game and buy it.
-Leave the site, switch your address back to NZ if you want (it doesn't really matter), log into your console and when you go to the game in the store it will say that you already own it and do you want to download. (on very rare occasions I've had to go back to the Brazil store and start the download from the games page on there before it would show as owned on the NZ site, but very rarely this has happened I think it was one time and probably just a glitch)
I have read some people say that they needed to enter a CC as a secondary form of payment before their first purchase went through, but I never had to and none of my friends had to, it could be because our cards are already linked to our Microsoft accounts from when we made purchases from the NZ store. If it does ask for a CC you can enter your NZ one.
For your first purchase I recommend purchasing the lowest value gift card you can (around $4.20nzd for $15brl) and using the credit to buy the cheapest game you can find on the Brazil store just to make sure everything is working ok, there are games on there for less than $1. After you make your first successful purchase you'll see that under the payment options in your MS account it will have balances for both NZ and Brazil currency, you're good to go.
Questions
Q: I have a Gold subscription from NZ will I be able to buy games on special in the Deals With Gold from Brazil?
A: Yes
Q: I play Call of Duty, if I buy the game from Brazil will I still be able to play with my friends online?
A: Yes, you'll be paying for the game in Brazil but downloading the NZ version of the game.
Q: I don't trust these sites selling Xbox gift cards, can I use my CC or Paypal on the Brazil store to buy games?
A: No. There are definitely dodgy sites out there with people trying to scam you and sell stolen codes etc, so do your homework, a quick Google search to see what people are saying about the site before you use it can save you from being scammed. And use a site that takes PayPal if you're worried about buying cards, if they accept PayPal then they're probably legit plus if anything happens you can lodge a dispute with PayPal and get a refund.
Q: I already have Game Pass Ultimate. If I buy 12 months Gold for Brazil and then convert it to Game Pass Ultimate will it add onto my NZ subscription or will it be in Brazil?
A: It will add onto your NZ subscription.
Q: I can't read Portugese are the games in English?
A: Yes, you're paying for the game in Brazil and downloading the NZ version from NZ.
Q: What about other stores from other countries are they worth keeping an eye on?
A: Turkey and Brazil are the 2 cheapest places to buy from but unfortunately there's no way for us here in NZ to pay for games from the Turkish store because you can't buy gift cards for that region. Other countries can be cheaper, but 99% of the time we're only talking a couple of bucks and I've never felt the need to try.
Q: What if the game I purchase isn't available on the NZ store?
A: Go to the page on the Brazil store and hit download, once you've done that it will be added to your library of downloadable games on your console.
Q: Are you as good looking as the sultry tone of your typing suggests?
A: My Mum thinks so.
Buying games from overseas to play on your NZ Playstation.
First off let's talk about how the accounts work on Playstation. They are region locked, meaning that once you create your account and select your country you can only purchase digital content from that regions store. Damn! But don't worry, keep reading.
On my PS4 I have multiple accounts, each one set to a different country, I have Hong Kong, India, USA, Canada and UK as well as my main NZ account.
Ok, so creating PSN accounts for other countries. All you need is an email address not already linked to a PSN account and an address in that country. Be aware that some countries will add tax onto the sale depending on what part of the country you choose, in America I suggest choosing an address in Oregon as they add no tax and NZ Post Youshop can provide you with an address and phone number for the state free of charge.
Once you've created your new account then log onto your Playstation and add the new user, then in settings you want to set the console as your primary for that account, you want to do that for all accounts on your console I'll explain why later.
Then it's as simple as using a web browser to visit the store in the country you want to purchase from and adding credit to your account using gift cards. You don't even need a VPN. For USA you can buy gift cards directly from Amazon for instant delivery, for other countries you'll need to use sites like CDKeys, ElectronicFirst and other resellers.
India and US are the two best stores available to us, there are cheaper ones but unfortunately we have no way of purchasing games from them in NZ because they don't do gift cards.
Once you've purchased your game you simply go back to your console, log into the user account you purchased the game on and download the game from your library.
Now remember how I said to set your console as your primary for every account on your console? The reason you do this is because it allows games to be shared between profiles on the console, so you buy the game from the US on your US account, download through your US account, but play it as you normally would on your usual NZ account.
Like I said I have half a dozen different accounts on my Playstation, but I only play games on my original main NZ account.
THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW
You need to purchase DLC and Add-ons for games from the same store you purchased the game from, this may have changed with PS5 games because they're all now region free but for PS4 you must do it or else it won't work (different SKU's or whatever they call them)
Because you're buying and downloading the overseas versions of games then there may be differences between your version and the NZ version, things like censorship, music and other local variations.
If buying from the India or Hong Kong stores especially you need to make sure you're buying the English version of the game as they tend to offer multiple language versions of the games in those regions.
If you purchase PS+ from an overseas store it will be locked to that account BUT some benefits will be passed onto the other profiles on your console. Things like they'll get access to any PS+ monthly games you download and they'll be able to play all their games online as well. They won't get the extended online storage, and if your PS+ is tied to an overseas account then you'll only be able to access PS+ discounts and special offers on games on that countries PSN store, and PS+ perks will only be available to use on the account with the PS+ subscription. And remember that if you have a library of NZ PS+ monthly games that you've collected then you decide to buy PS+ from Hong Kong because it's cheaper then you will lose access to those games from NZ until you start up your NZ PS+ subscription again.
So why would anyone want PS+ from overseas? Pretty much for the discounts, the US store offers some of the best PS+ exclusive discounts on games. Personally I have NZ PS+, it's easier I like the extended online storage and I feel I'm saving enough on my games already, but if I was going to switch I would go for the US.
(This has happened to me, so annoying) If you preorder a game from overseas, say the latest Destiny expansion, then it will only be playable when it unlocks in America not when it unlocks in NZ and in NZ our games unlock around 8 hours before they do in the US so you'll be sitting there in chat listening to all your mates having a fun time and probably laughing at you as well.
Links I use
PSDeals - tracks latest discounts and you can search and compare prices across different PSN's by changing the region in the top left box https://psdeals.net/nz-store/discounts
Amazon for US gift cards https://www.amazon.com/s?k=psn+cards&ref=nb_sb_noss_2
MTCGame for India gift cards https://www.mtcgame.com/en-NZ/playstation-network/psn-card-i…
Eneba for India gift cards
Youshop for US address https://www.nzpost.co.nz/tools/youshop
Questions
Q: So if I do this I'll be able to buy the games from overseas stores but play them on my normal account and get trophies and everything?
A: Yes
Q: I play Destiny, if I buy the US version will I still be able to play online with my friends in NZ?
A: Yes
Q: Can I use a CC or Paypal to buy games from overseas PSN stores?
A: You used to be able to but not any more, gift cards only.
Q: Can my console be banned from PSN for doing this? I've heard rumours.
A: I've never heard of anyone ever getting banned for doing this.
Q: Digital currency for Fortnite is cheaper on the US store, can I buy it from there to use on my main NZ account?
A: No, things like currency, skins and preorder bonuses are locked to the account they are purchased on.
Q: Why are clouds fluffy?
A: They're made of cotton candy that has lost its color.