Network now...NEWS
Confirmed: Home to Launch Dec. 11
Following our report earlier today that Sony’s Home is imminent for launch, Sony Computer Entertainment has issued a press release stating that the service will launch globally tomorrow.
“Sony Computer Entertainment Inc today announced that its highly anticipated PlayStation Home Beta service for PS3 will become available for all PS3 users around the world on December 11, 2008,” read the release.
“Following the successful completion of the closed beta service, PlayStation Home's open beta service will continue to evolve with new features and functionality.”
Sony went on to clarify that the service will remain free to download, and can launch directly from PlayStation Home icon placed in the PS3’s cross media bar (XMB).
"PlayStation Home is truly a promising network community service on the PlayStation platform, made possible with the powerful combination of PS3's overwhelming computational power and PlayStation Network that covers many countries around the globe," said Kazuo Hirai, CEO of Sony Computer Entertainment. "We are committed to providing PS3 users with exciting gaming experiences with PlayStation Home and together with our partners and users, expand the new world of interactive entertainment as we move forward."
US-bound PS3 owners will see the service launch with a number of virtual ‘spaces’ already included, promoting games such as Uncharted: Drake's Fortune and Far Cry 2. Virtual spaces for games such as Warhawk, Resistance 2, Guitar Hero and SOCOM are scheduled to arrive soon.
“In these environments, users will discuss specific games, plan strategies and access content and clues that will enhance their gaming experience. Through these virtual environments, publishers will be able to increase and extend consumer interest in their game titles via new mediums of game play,” read the release.
SCEA is currently working with Activision, Disney Eidos, Electronic Arts, Lucas Arts, THQ and Ubisoft, to extend Home’s virtual environments.
Specific details on the UK launch were not announced.
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I think there needs to be an in depth write up on this war by EDGE. Not just about the Pros and Cons of the systems, when did hardware really stand for gaming merit anyway, I'd like to see something written on the culture clashes of the Next Gen systems (N'gai Croal?). Maybe the only way to ease the pain between fanboys is to adhere to the time tested strategy 'if you have nothing nice(or constructive) to say don't say it at all' and no 'PS3 owns teh World, go blow Gates Xbots' does not count however much we (irrationally of course) feel like saying it. Or maybe they could stick to threads concerning their hardware, they're all preaching to the converted here anyway.
So it's December 11th, 9.30pm here in New Zealand and still no home. I still can't imagine Home stepping into the realms of Uncanny Valley which, because of its more realistic look compared the Wiis Miis and the Xboxs MiiToos, seems to be a term being thrown around a little. I've never had an uncanny valley problem with anything, and think of Homes Avatar animations being similar to Second Life, or the Sims, or even GTA IV. All of which are incredibly popular and don't seem to trigger UV. Guess I'll find out in a day or so...
Seems like nobody else got the memo about the launch. Dez.11th is here and no Home anywhere in the store. I bet they forgot that they only release new stuff on a Friday.
Wow cargo that was harsh Im all for Playstation and home but usually find Nicks posts intelligent and unbiased most of the time anyways so chill out . On another note Im pretty excited about home and think itll be a great way to interact and find friends with the same games and tastes to add to yur friends list from wut Ive heard from beta users and previews HOME is great . I dont understand how ppl can talk trash about things they havent even tried or read up on but I guess we will see how it pans out, but even if it isnt all thats expected its free so wuts the problem ? About Qore I dont see any problems w wut there doing its just like buying those magazines w the free exclusive demo discs inside you know the old ones back b4 everything was online its the same thing but cheaper so why are ppl bitching.
Again vs. threads? Anyhow since I been in the beta since launch IMO the application is great, if you dont like it, or think that is a waste, or sony has spent time ( which they had dedicated team work on it ) for nothing, then my friends you d o have a choice not to install it! Simple as that...
edit: meant as a reply.
Amen carg0. Every time there is any Sony news on this site, nick, grognard and a few others are the first out of the gate tearing it down or comparing it to the 360. That shit is getting really old, and more peeps are calling them out on it.
1. “The PS3 may not be doing as well in its lifecycle as the PS2 did at the same point in its lifecycle, but I wouldn't say it’s done terribly either. I don't have hard numbers but from what I've gathered reading about Japan and Europe's numbers is that the PS3 may have had better annual console sales worldwide than the 360 has. It may be close, but if worldwide console sales are any indication, the PS3 isn't doing all that bad. Now, US sales, yeah, the 360 has about a 2:1 advantage over the PS3 and has added to their (360's) lead every year. Being smashed in the largest market of the 3 definitely is bad, but again, worldwide they seem to be doing fine. MS has claimed as of late that they are now beating the PS3 in Europe overall, I have yet to see any evidence as it seems hard numbers from Europe aren't easy to come by, but I'm sure MS wouldn't flat out lie like that either. Maybe embellish, but not lie.”
2. “Ok, back to the point since this is about Home, not XBL. So this isn't the launch then? It's just an opening of the closed beta?”
3. "I thought I was actually sticking up for them...guess not. My point was is that the PS3 isn't doing as bad as everyone says. I mentioned the 360 because that is Sony's direct and only competitor (the Wii is smashing everyone especially the PS3 so I opted not to mention Wii's numbers) so I was comparing numbers to show that the PS3 is actually doing just fine. That's not dumping bro. I didn't say "the PS3 is teh suxxors" at all.
And your numbers are wrong, 16.8 million PS3s, 25 million 360s, 24 months and 36 months respectively.
Just to further illustrate my initial point, as of last month’s worldwide numbers, 16.8 million PS3s in 24 months is 700k units exactly worldwide a month, 25 million 360s in 36 months is 694,444 units worldwide a month. So, again, the PS3 isn't doing as bad as everyone states."
@Jimmy
I can't speak for the other individuals you mention, but I do have to defend myself.
Those are posts from my last 3 Sony posts (I am allowed to post on Sony stories right?). They aren't the entire posts, but the parts that are the most pertinent. My first post was actually replying to kim who was knocking Sony more than he needs to (and I was sticking up for it) and the second post was reply to cargo who was the one who brought up Xbox and took a dig at it, I was just replying. The third post was me defending myself again to someone who said I was knocking Sony again (which I clearly was not). My point is, if you actually read what I've been saying (lately any way) I usually don't blatantly just knock Sony, or if I do have an opinion that is negative in nature toward Sony, I try to be as objective as possible usually including hard facts with links backing up my opinion. My last 3 posts on Sony stories have not been negative at all, and in some cases positive. I'm not denying that my system of choice is the 360, but doesn't mean I'm not allowed to defend it (especially when someone else brings Xbox up in a Sony story) So, I would appreciate it if some of you would stop unfairly labeling me as some ranting fan boy that doesn't know anything and is just on these forums to flame, because I would have better things to do if that were the case.
And your numbers are wrong, 16.8 million PS3s, 25 million 360s, 24 months and 36 months respectively.
Honestly, who cares? Gamers should just be concerned with the games! You can't go on any site these days without someone bickering shite about sales. It's pathetic.
The way users flaunt over sales numbers make you think they have personal stake in a company and it is vital that X company sells X consoles or have X users to keep their pockets fat. Yeah, it's all great that we see the numbers but ALL gamers should be rooting for ALL platforms. Each one brings something different to the table and each one forces the other to compete. In the end we win BUT we lose when we want another competitor to fail or exit the market!
Ugh, it never ends. You try to stick up for a console you don't have...you get shit, you criticize it, you get shit. I give up.
As gamers we can't talk about ANYTHING but the games themselves? We're not interested in the gaming market, the politics of it, retail information, developement issues, we can only talk about the games themselves? If that's the case, why are we even on this site, shouldn't we just be PLAYING games instead then? I'm going to make a rule right now, no one should ever go to gaming sites and talk, just stick the playing pathetic fools!
How did you bold that text?
It is bolded using html tags. Look under the comment box and there will be a list of allowed html tags. Just make sure you close them. the strong tag bolds, the em tag italicizes.
Same question here.
Btw, reply of the month, Kenology. ^^
It seems to me that Nick simply questioned Carg0s view of (xbox) live and then Carg0 started being offensive for no reason, so why you're defending him is beyond me. At least Nick gives a reasoned point of view without resorting to insults. Try looking at any of the 360 related threads on this site to see how well thought out most PS3 owners responses are , with the exception of savagehenry and Gyak they are mostly fanboy rants, so consider yourself lucky.
"with the exception of savagehenry and Gyak they are mostly fanboy rants"
Yay, I knew that someone would notice our efforts!
Seriously, I think (however offensive he/she is) Carg0 is right about something. MS and Sony are here for the money, and they definitely work on the nickel-and-diming bullshit model (think about the Sackboy costumes etc.).
Peter_Pesic is right too, third party companies (like EA and Namco Bandai) are the worst in this regard. But MS's / Sony's microtransactions are also pretty disgusting.
Dear Companies. Just bring us meaningful DLC -- add-ons, levels, content patches, anything -- and we'll buy them happyly. Otherwise, shove them up. I won't pay for my LBP costumes or my SC IV "Customization Equipments", thanks.
Sounds interesting. It can't be any worse than NXE, that's for sure.
This should put up huge numbers initially (through the Holidays) just from the curiosity factor and then become a virtual ghost town by the end of January. It may have stood a chance if it was ready at launch, but coming out in the PS3's third year is simply too late.
It's an application in search of a purpose and will end up sputtering along like Qore as nothing more than a glorified marketing vehicle.
I hope Sony spends future resources on simply improving XMB online features and mandating standard features for at least all future games (what should have been done at launch) like a standard interface that includes quick play, voicechat, cross-game chat, website integration (sending/receiving messages, ordering/queuing up content for download from your computer, etc.). If they really want online and/or Home to succeed they'll also have to start bundling headsets in with the console (something else they should have been doing since launch)..
XMB features have been improved, and are improving all the time...
XMB features have been improved, and are improving all the time...
Home has it's own development team as the XMB/OS has it's own development team. Resources are not being taken from either to work on the other.
The application isn't searching for a purpose because it already has one: Unite the PlayStation community in a 3d environment so they can discuss, play and launch games together. How is that difficult to understand?
Since I haven't been part of the Beta phase of this, I am wondering... how big is the download?
The service reserves 3gb although the intial download is only a few mb. The space is reserved for future downloads, etc.
I don't recall the exact size of the initial download, but I don't remember it being overly large. Each new area you go to needs to be downloaded the first time you go there though.
As grognard66 put it, this is "an application in search of a purpose" He's spot-on about the mis-allocation of resources as well. The whole things seems fairly pointless to me.
Good news for Sony, Just one more thing to make the PS3 package more appealling to a wider audience and looking forward to having a look myself. Would be interesting in terms of tie-in's. If this was to go the way of Second Life it would be awesome.
Having said that, personally speaking, I'd probably spend more time gaming that social networking.
awesome. even though i dont have a ps3 im hoping this virtual world kicks ass.
if they can get enough partners from all kinds of mediums (movies, tv, music, comics) and avoid the nickel-and-diming bullshit that continues to plague xbox live, this coud be big.
It's amazing how easily we can cast flamebait into the choppy waters, eh? Well played.
If you're talking about nickel and diming DLC, you should direct that at EA and Namco Bandai, who both I believe offer up their shady DLC on PSN (minus of course games like Ace Combat 6 which are 360 exclusive).
You must also not know a lot about the virtual worlds/social networks Home is influenced by and emulates to a certain extent. Those worlds are built on nickel and diming the users who want any sort of customization for their avatars or virtual spaces.
In general I agree with the replies stating that Sony probably should have invested in the foundations of the online gaming service, rather than pour resources into a virtual (marketing) world. Me personally I'd rather play games, and if I'm going to chat with my friends on my gaming console, I'd rather be playing a game or watching a movie.
I think Home could potentially be huge for pre-teens/teens, which is a demographic who probably spends the most time in the current virtual worlds out there. They're like the BBSes and chat rooms for the new generation.
"nickel-and-diming bullshit that continues to plague xbox live"
What the hell are you talking about? Most games that offer content for sale on xbox live offer it on PSN for the same price. And plague is the word you use? The live marketplace is a huge success for MS and its partners, how can that be conceived as a plague? And obviously users of live enjoy the content weather it'd be games or movies and have been now for a very long time. The worst of the DLC for live was at the beginning when publishers were getting a feel for DLC and what kind of pricing would be acceptable (Horse armour anyone?).
I get the feeling cargo that you don't know what you're talking about.
Ok, back to the point since this is about Home, not XBL. So this isn't the launch then? It's just an opening of the closed beta?
nick, were you born fuckin' stupid or do you really believe you sound intelligent, with that "I get the feeling " nonsense?
you think game dlc is the only thing they sell on Live and, coincidentally, the sole aspect i was referring to? what am i talking talking about, of course you did. like a schmuck without a compass (or a 5 year-old eager to look smart) you plowed straight ahead in the wrong direction. and you even took a word i used (plague) and gave it it's own subtext, despite the fact that i was using it to...oh, never mind...made for a good laugh, though, your little diatribe did. i especially liked that "but--but--the PSN--*sniff* charges the same for DLC"! uh-oh, ya got me there! lol.
the fact that you dont even know what i was alluding to means i get to leave you twisting in your own blatent stupidity which you *laughing* had no trouble pronouncing. but im not cruel, i'll throw you a bone. ever hear the name Major Nelson? have you ever been to his website? actually read the boards? of course you have...
no...you're the kind of wunderkind who forms thoughts and opinions completely oblivious to what other, smarter people, have said or done prior, aren't you. child who likes the sound of his own words.
it's ok. believe it or not ive encountered such ignorance before.
I'm kind of curious what the nickel-and-dimeing is on XBL myself. Aside from the service itself (1 yearly fee, the single price of admission, so I don't think that qualifies). I''ve bought 1 gamerpic (because getting fragged by a pink kitten makes jerks cry), 2 custom themes (Family Guy and GeoW2 -- all other themes and gamerpics have been freebies), and games themselves from XBL since the service began. Given how humiliated Nick apparently should be for not seeing what Cargo was talking about, it must be fairly obvious and widespread.
To me, "nickel-and-dime" implies that you micro-transaction essential steps or actions to force the consumer to slowly bleed money. The only thing I "have" to pay for is the Gold service . . . and I assume you're not referring to that as "n-and-d". I don't think you mean charging for XBL games or content like shows or movies either . . . or let me say I hope you aren't, as in that case "this phrase you used . . . I do not think it means what you think it means."
Guess I'm as stupid as Nick, so please educate me. If I'm getting ripped off or bled for some coin, let me know so I can stop it. Cash is tight right now.
I could reply like an obviously more intelligent individual did with a bunch of insults but I'm going to go ahead and not. Ok,
I obviously sparked your interest by saying you may not know what you're talking about and I can understand why someone would get a bit heated after that so for that I'm sorry.
"if they can get enough partners from all kinds of mediums (movies, tv, music, comics) and avoid the nickel-and-diming bullshit that continues to plague Xbox live, this coud be big."
I had a big detailed explanation typed up to why I didn't understand what you meant by nickel-and-diming (cost of live itself, cost of optional wifi adapter?) but I decided to do the more simple thing and ask. If you weren't referring to movies/music/TV/comics' prices (I hope you don't think you're going to get that for free with Home, at least not the movies/music/etc themselves) then what were you referring to? MS offers quite a bit of stuff for free, and frequent promotions offering some movies for free and monthly music videos for free.