PlayStation Home: What's new?

By Ellie Gibson Published 7 April, 2011

"You'll be pleasantly surprised."

The Game Developers Conference is perhaps where PlayStation Home's heart is. After all it was there, in 2007, that Phil Harrison unveiled Sony's vision of a networked virtual world for PlayStation 3.

As announced at last month's GDC, Home has since been downloaded 19 million times and has seen many evolutions. And now more changes are occurring with the launch of new tools designed to increase the options developers have when it comes to creating games for Home.

But what does this mean for the average PS3 owner? Will the changes be enough to make those who have left Home want to return? Eurogamer sat down with Jack Buser, director of Home for Sony Computer Entertainment America, to find out.

Eurogamer: What does the GDC Home announcement mean for gamers?

Jack Buser: These new tools will give our game development community the tools they need to build better games than you've ever seen before in Home. The new client will allow games to have better graphics, more robust physics and online, real-time multiplayer capability.

This will allow us to build game types like online multiplayer first-person shooters, racing games... All kinds of game types that maybe you haven't ever seen before in PlayStation Home.

Eurogamer: So you're saying they're going to be better looking than any games we've seen in Home - but how will they compare to regular PS3 games? Presumably they're not going to be right up there with, say, Killzone 3?

Jack Buser: One of the great things about PlayStation Home is that it's leveraging the power of the PlayStation 3 hardware to provide these 3D immersive experiences that normally you wouldn't be used to seeing in social games.

Also, the game types that we see in PlayStation Home cater much more towards the core PS3 demographic. So you're going to see things like shooters on the platform which, traditionally, social games don't necessarily support.

In terms of graphical capability per se, I wouldn't really draw an overarching comparison. I'd leave it up to the consumer to decide, when they're playing these game, how they feel about the graphical quality. Personally, I think some of them are absolutely beautiful.

Remember this? 'I'll just chill here on the deck.' Amazing.

Eurogamer: But there are already online racers and shooters with really great visuals available for PlayStation 3. If I already own Killzone 3 or MotorStorm, why would I bother booting up Home to play those other games?

Jack Buser: Well, there are a few big differentiators to playing games inside PlayStation Home rather than standalone retail games or our downloadable games. The first of these is that you're playing these games as part of a continuous world.

So as you're wandering around this world, you might just find a game and find yourself as part of that game without really knowing you've joined a game. Or you might just see a group of people huddled round a game, wonder what it is and wander over to check it out, in a very seamless way.

One of the most fun things in PlayStation Home is wandering around the world and finding all the great games there are to play, that maybe you wouldn't know about otherwise.

Secondly, I'd imagine a big differentiator is the business model. Many of these games, like Home itself, are free to play.

At conferences like GDC, we toss around the word freemium. [Home racing game] Sodium 2 you can play absolutely for free - boot up Home, we don't charge anything, go over to Sodium 2 and start racing. That is very differentiated from traditional retail or downloadable games where you'd have to pay.

So if you want to play with your friends on Sodium 2, you can just tell them to come on in , it's free and you don't have to buy anything.

2

The dream.

Eurogamer: What's in it for you, then?

Jack Buser: The freemium business model is a new business model in games that's gathering a lot of traction on social game platforms in general.

The core philosophy is that these games are free to play and you don't have to buy anything, but if you want that extra edge you can buy a special weapon or booster or some sort of special something, at a very low price point, generally via microtransactions, which gives you an edge in the game.

You don't have to but you can if you want to, and that's the core of the experience. You'll have some subset of the overall audience that will want that edge.

Eurogamer: But doesn't that mean gamers who do just want to play for free are at a disadvantage, compared to those willing to spend money?

Jack Buser: It depends on how the game is designed. A game like Sodium 2 is designed to be a balanced experience. You come in and race with your friends. If somebody wanted to purchase the booster using a microtransaction economy, then it's a matter of game balance.

There's a lot of talk about how to overcome the challenge and that's one of the more interesting things going on in game development right now - how do you incorporate this business model with game design? We're fortunate to have PlayStation Home developers who have really mastered this aspect of balance in their titles.

Eurogamer: You've just announced that Home has been downloaded 19 million times. Obviously that's a huge number, but it's still less than half the installed base of PS3. Considering Home is free, you're saying it's a great service with all these free games, why is it that less than half your userbase is interested in it?

Jack Buser: First off, I should say we're very excited about that number. For any service built into a piece of hardware, that's a very significant.

Eurogamer: I'm not saying it's rubbish...

Jack Buser: Right. There are a couple of things you have to do to get into PlayStation Home. First of all, you have to be connected to the internet - not everyone's PS3 is.

Second of all, you have to be connected to PlayStation Network. Some hardware is sold into territories where Home is not available. Then you have to come into Home.

So there is a process, and it is free, and we're extremey happy with the attach rate we do have, but you do have to register for PSN and be online.

3

Who would win in a fight between your Home, XBL and Wii avatars?

Eurogamer: So do you think there's a registration block? Basically people can't be bothered to go through the admin required to get into Home?

Jack Buser: I'm not so sure. I really think that in terms of getting people into Home, it's just a factor of how many people are playing games online, how many people are registering for PSN then coming into Home.

That said, to have that attach rate so high is really a testament to not just Home but also the PS3 userbase. That's a very, very high attach rate for a service on a piece of hardware.

Eurogamer: I know you're not saying what the number of active users is. But anecdotally, I know a lot of people who installed Home on their PS3s and have since lost interest in the service, and haven't been back. Is that a problem you're conscious of? Or do you think that's just the minority?

Jack Buser: There are two big factors which go into an active userbase. The first of these is acquisition - getting new users to come in and try the service. One of the great things about Home is that it's built into the Cross-Media Bar, it's core to the PS3, so that acquisition is really efficient for us.

The second factor is retention. One of the things we've found to be the killer app for retention on the platform has been games.

A lot of users who are coming into Home now are presented with a new Home navigator which allows them to access content relevant to them. This allows them to to get into these games and see the kind of experience we're providing now.

4

Bear in mind Miis are at a disadvantage, due to lack of fingers for gouging.

We also see a lot of users returning to the service now they see these kinds of games are available on the platform, and that many of them are free to play.

So we're quite happy with the direction the platform's growing in right now. This focus on games has really treated us quite well.

Eurogamer: What would you say to someone who hasn't booted up Home since they first downloaded it? How would you persuade them come back to the service?

Jack Buser: First of all, just come back in and play some of the games. Sodium 1 is currently live, Sodium 2 is coming soon, try out the Midway, Novus Prime, Dragon's Green...

There are so many great games on the platform which are ready to play. If you haven't fired it up in a long time, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Jack Buser is director of PlayStation Home for Sony Computer Entertainment America.

Picture of Ellie.

About Ellie Gibson

Since joining Eurogamer in the mid 2000s, Ellie has written about subjects as diverse as the fall of Gizmondo, the rise of Hollyoaks actresses in Red Alert games and the noise a bear makes under NSFW circumstances.

Read more articles from Ellie by visiting the Ellie Gibson archive page.

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Comments (91) Latest comment 1 year ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • Titusballsac #1 1 year ago

    I logged on recently for the first time in over 2 years. Honestly? It's still a waste of hard disc space. Also, I flat out REFUSE to pay real money for virtual t-shirts. Sony would be better off scrapping this and pouring their resources in improving the PSN experience. Cross game party chat anyone?

  • super_monty #2 1 year ago

    I have downloaded Home 3 times and deleted it every time, I am no doing it again it will still suck. Why don't Sony spend the money on something worth while.

  • toa_boa #3 1 year ago

    The only pleasant surprise is that Sony still hasn't made the download mandatory by the lastest firmware revisions :-P

  • midnight_walker #4 1 year ago

    "You'll be pleasantly surprised"

    Has it been deleted?
    Edited by midnight_walker at 07/04/11 @ 08:26

  • bliprunner #5 1 year ago

    "but if you want that extra edge you can buy a special weapon or booster or some sort of special something""

    Playstation Home is definitely 'some sort of special something'.

  • Garwoofoo #6 1 year ago

    "One of the things we've found to be the killer app for retention on the platform has been games."

    Really? On a *games console*? Who would have thought it.

  • GamesConnoisseur #7 1 year ago

    My retentionality is borked, sorry but still not coming back.

    Main gripes is simply the hassles of loadings in each area, assets, avatars every time, i dont have patience in abudances and believe will afflicts many time poor PS3 owners.

    Maybe next gen, PS4 will be able to automagically flashes up all the assets and so able to retents more users?!

  • gerald #8 1 year ago

    The most fun i had in Home is trying to make the ugliest avatar you can possibly create and stalking others with it... for about 20 minutes. Then I deleted it.

    I can't get, why someone would spend more time in such an appalling, uninspired, boring, plastic world and even spend real money on it.

  • GamesProgrammer Verified Games Team Programmer, Eutechnyx Ltd. #9 1 year ago

    Ill give it a go again soon, see how much it has improved, Sony clearly make money on this otherwise it would of been scrapped along time ago through all there cost cutting measures they have made over the years. I mean you never see home advertised so its not like there using it as a loss leader on shifting hardware.

    Also despite what anyone says and even ive logged in less than a handful of times, whenever ive been in, its been jammed packed with other players.

    They put trophy support in there, id bet dollars to donuts they'd see a huge return in player numbers.

  • 3william56 #10 1 year ago

    It's not surprising that it's only a medium percentage of PS3 owners who sign up or use home - it's a bandwidth hog, and if you don't have a meaty pipe, forget it.

    Personally, I've looked in now and again, but most of the games I saw are the worst sort of freemium or demo mistake - little or no content before the payhammer comes down, and sh*tty attempts to fool you into committing to play and getting stopped just inside the doorway with a $$$ sign. That f**king carnival (Midway?) was appalling.

    Having to walk, wait to download, start, then get stopped after 30 seconds by a panhandling money screen is like Friday when all the bl**dy charity types hog the train station. Complete pain. Home needs to make very clear which areas/games are free and which need money BEFORE the download begins. Otherwise it's too much of a ball ache.

  • Shinetop #11 1 year ago

    That chilling on the deck thing will never get old.

  • SBfistfun #12 1 year ago

    One of the things we've found to be the killer app for retention on the platform has been games.
    This man is a genius

  • DavoTheDiv #13 1 year ago

    You feel that sting, Sony, huh? That's pride FUCKIN' with you! You gotta fight through that shit! Give Home up. Please.

  • Stoatboy #14 1 year ago

    Don't want it, and have never wanted it.

    "One of the great things about Home is that it's built into the Cross-Media Bar, it's core to the PS3, so that acquisition is really efficient for us."

    Yeah, that's great for those of us who don't want it at all - having a menu option to avoid every time we use the machine.

  • drxym #15 1 year ago

    Home is a complete waste of time. Perhaps there are people who want to decorate their homes with virtual IKEA furniture for 1.99 a pop, or buy a pair of shoes. I bet you there are vastly more people who would use Home if it offered decent games integration, games / mainstream content, ran quickly from the XMB, didn't have such a clunky UI and wasn't such a bloody bore once it was running.

    Sony keep going on about how it's ad funded but if people are disinterested in the experience they're losing out on that revenue. Fix Home or get rid of it.
    Edited by drxym at 07/04/11 @ 09:24

  • RodHull #16 1 year ago

    The idea of Home is superb but only for those people who like the social gaming side of things such as Second Life. It might gain more appeal if it had fully integrated Facebook functionality where you can wander around with your friends and jump into games together.

    But as it stands the service remains far too clunky and sales orientated to get me excited. Had a wander around at the weekend and it was as if the online store had been transposed into the environment. And the majority of the games are mediocre to say the least. Until they make it a fun experience I can't see it becoming the success that Sony clearly want it to be. What they never tell us is how many of the 19 million users are active and actually spend hard cash in their virtual Tescos.

  • spongebob #17 1 year ago

    I like to buy virtual stuff for my Xbox Live Avatar but Home doesn't really do it for me. It's just too massive and it's not integrated with PSN in a similar fashion as Avatars and XBL are connected together.

  • jpj84 #18 1 year ago

    Can you delete it from the XMB?

    I occasionally go in by accident when I'm trying to go to the store. Cue minutes of loading before I can exit again.

    Thought it prevented me from deleting Home altogether last time I tried though...

  • Whitster #19 1 year ago

    @3william56

    Heh, heh, heh, meaty pipe, he, he.

  • Darren #20 1 year ago

    Home = Rubbish

    If Sony had invested the time into improving PSN instead of this, IMHO, pointless social centre then maybe Microsoft would have some serious competition to LIVE. As Home is I can't help but think they've wasted their time on it when those resources could have been better spent elsewhere. That's just my opinion though but Home just isn't for me; I got fed up of all the sloooooooow download/loading times between areas which just added to the tedium of the entire experience. My three times using Home revealed little of interest that you didn't have to pay for and there's the crunch as far as I'm concerned. I think it's a complete waste of 3 GB+ of hard drive space which is why I never installed it when I got my replacement PS3 18 months back.

  • Doctor_What #21 1 year ago

    Sony must be getting something from this project, so here are some justifications for it:

    It's profitable - despite people saying it's crap and not worth paying for, Sony say it is making money. Now the systems are established it's probably a reasonably low cost project to run. Even if it hasn't paid for itself yet, the current evidence suggests it will be profitable next time.

    R&D - this has got to be a major factor here. I can easily imagine that all costs are written off by future profitability from the technology that Sony are developing for Home. With this experience it will be significantly easier for them to establish an entirely open world gaming environment in the future. This prospect has got to be very appealing to Sony.

    Testing user behaviour and payment models - how far can free content be pushed to provide avenues into payment plans? Can consoles support micropayment financing models? Home gives Sony a huge amount of data to work with and analyse.

    Sony don't have to do so much work any more - content production is now being driven by developers, so Sony have made a space for other people to fill, and they just take a slice of the profit from there.

    All of these are reasons for Home to continue existing. Personally I've not returned there for many years, but I could see it eventually becoming something important in the future.

  • spliffhead #22 1 year ago

    Didn't the Specials write a song about the PS3 Home online experience?

  • CaptainQuint #23 1 year ago

    I uninstalled it, sorry.

  • Xboxfanuk #24 1 year ago

    I love MMO and games like the Sims and Test Drive Unlimited. So PSN Home is a big draw for me to get a PS3. But convincing the wife to let me buy one for over £200.00 has kept me away.

  • nuanimal #25 1 year ago

    Eurogamer:...why is it that less than half your userbase is interested in it?

    Jack Buser: First off, I should say we're very excited about that number. For any service built into a piece of hardware, that's a very significant.

    Eurogamer: I'm not saying it's rubbish...

    But we're all thinking it.

    I love Ellie. I really do :o)

  • davisorle #26 1 year ago

    Post deleted at 15:13:14 09-05-2012

  • Kanselier #27 1 year ago

    You are all invited on my Ghost Pirate Ship :D

  • TheEarlOfZinger #28 1 year ago

    I literally can't afford the hard drive space.

  • KrazyFace #29 1 year ago

    I think the problem here with most of the negative comments are because each one of you have stated that you "booted it up, went in, had a wander round, got bored then left" and right there is the problem; you're doing it on your own.

    Picture this: Your mate tells you he's just found the most amazing nightclub to hit the streets. It has the greatest DJ's around playing unique tunes, it has lounge areas for VIPs, and they even do a lap-dancer/foam party every friday night. Now imagine you went there, all on your lonesome. No mates, no money (or you personaly thought everything was too expencive to put your hand in your pocket) and you went dressed like a hobo. How much fun would you get from that place? Seriously, how much fun!?

    When you do get into Home and you know people there who have invested time in it too, it's really no different than meeting with friends at your local pub/club/hobby centre (whatever you want). You just chill out with em', maybe have a game of pool or whatever, just as you would out in the real world. All this talk of needing "meaty pipes" and being a "waste of resorses" is a pretty common veiw made by those who don't understand its purpose - or don't want it to have a purpose. I've mentioned before that I'm a Home user, and I've gotta say, I've cried with laughter at some of the stuff that happens in Home! I've also had a few good heart-to-hearts with people that would never have opened up in a face to face situation.

    Whether you guys like it or not, there are a huge number of people that gleen a large ammount of happiness from Home, either by interacting with friends (or strangers) or just getting a retail-hit by buying a new pair of shoes, that don't exist! But really guys, is 80p really worth that much to you, because you all don't mind spending £40 on the latest shoot-people-in-the-face-in-this-new-virtual-place every few months...

  • FogHeart #30 1 year ago

    Well, maybe they should find a way to cater for the person who walks in on his own then.

    Really, I tell you where I've enjoyed being in a virtual world? Jetpacking around that mini-USA in Pilotwings 64. Romping through fields and forests in Oblivion. Driving off-road in Far Cry 2, avoiding the wildlife, or when I can, hang-gliding over them.

    All of which doesn't involve...people. Home isn't an escape from everyday life because it's populated by everyday people, and by 6pm weekdays I've had enough of them. I need an outlet for my misanthropy. An antisocial network.

  • uknortherner2000 #31 1 year ago

    There seems to be a lot of comments from the "I don't use Home, so it's officially shit" crowd.

    If Sony listened to the so-called "core" gamer, we'd be left with nothing but generic shooters with 5-second single-player campaigns and overpriced map packs, because after all, that's what sells, right?

  • ZippyNL #32 1 year ago

    Actaully KrazyFace's post has done more to coinvince me that Mr Buser's interview. Will give it another go, this time with a mate.

  • drxym #33 1 year ago

    @KrazyFace, now imagine this disco of yours felt like a coldly lit exhibition created by an EU agronomics steering committee. That's Home. It's a fun vacuum. It's boring. The client is crap. The UI is clunky. The surroundings are sterile. There is precious little interactive content and most of it is of poor quality. There is a dearth of (long promised) gaming features. I reckon if there were a Samaritans zone it would be the most popular place in the whole service.

    I remember having really high hopes for it and then feeling so let down by the experience. Home commits the cardinal sin of being boring, slow and sterile.

    With Free Realms appearing (one with lots of fun minigames, micropayments, and actual content) it's also easy to see how Sony might look at the one and then the other and let the axe fall on Home. They really need to get their act together.
    Edited by drxym at 07/04/11 @ 10:53

  • uknortherner2000 #34 1 year ago

    @drxym: "With Free Realms appearing (one with lots of fun minigames, micropayments, and actual content) it's also easy to see how Sony might look at the one and then the other and let the axe fall on Home. They really need to get their act together."

    Actually, I'm more hoping that Sony introduce some elements from Free Realms over to Home, like those minigames for example. You are right when you say Home is sterile though.

  • nickthegun #35 1 year ago

    "So whats new?"

    "Well, we are *very* excited to announce 4 new, totally different pelvic thrust animations for crowds of teenagers to aim at lone female avatars. I think you guys are going to love them"

  • ithis #36 1 year ago

    It's obvious that the resources that go into PS Home are not the cause of you particular PSN need not being fulfilled.
    It is also obvious that while not posting on these pages, lots of people do play these things and, yes, weirdly, they spend real money for virtual things, that is, Sony is not doing it out of pride.
    It is mostly very obvious that this is a service that in no way affects those who don't want to use or hear about it. If you see an article title with PS Home in it, skip it. It's simple.

  • Mister-Wario #37 1 year ago

    I go on Playstation Home sometimes and I actually quite like it. I like wandering around the environments. I like watching the film trailers. I like trying out the games, even if they aren't always brilliant. It's a marketing tool/chatroom primarily, sure, but it's one I find pretty intriguing.

    To all the people saying the environments are sterile and bland, fine. Just out of interest, what sort of environment would you make?

    Fogheart: as I understand it all your examples are single-player experiences. That means it's a different kettle of fish from something like Home: it's something designed to be enjoyed with more than one person. You can't really compare the two because they're striving for different things.

  • guernican #38 1 year ago

    In some countries, use of the word "freemium" is a capital offence.

  • guernican #39 1 year ago

    "No mates, no money (or you personaly thought everything was too expencive to put your hand in your pocket) and you went dressed like a hobo. How much fun would you get from that place? Seriously, how much fun!? "

    That depends entirely on whether you like the idea of doing something appalliing that will probably end with you getting thrown out.

  • KrazyFace #40 1 year ago

    @ drxym: I think you might have missed my point. Also, do you mean "sterile" as in "clean" because as far as I'm aware the Dead Nation space isn't very "sterile" and the inFamous, Motorstorm, Resident Evil, Siren: Blood Curse, Resistance 2 or Red Bull spaces are pretty un-sterile looking to me, what with all the blood, sand and motor oil strewn around.

  • Porcupine_I #41 1 year ago

    i like this, nobody plays it because it's a "waste of time", but everyone has time to come in here and complain about it :-D

  • slickster #42 1 year ago

    What is rong with all of you home is FREE and its better then having a avatar just stood there doing fuck all like the 360.

  • Bearillusion #43 1 year ago

    Home's ok. I've downloaded it about 7 or 8 times since its release. Each time I get sick of it I delete it.

  • captain_Carl #44 1 year ago

    I enjoy Home. I've spent quite a bit of time with it, since the very early beta was first emailed to me. Back then, i would agree with you. It really WAS pretty terrible. There were about 5 spaces and most of them were pretty terrible. If Home was still like that, i would agree that they'd be better off scrapping it.

    However, it's not. It's improved massively. There's so much to do and so many games to play, it's almost like a totally different thing to what it was way back at the beginning. Some of the games are great (the Aurora space is simple but beautiful and good fun, and Novus Prime is pretty good too). I saw an interview recently where the guy said there were hundreds of studios working on content entirely for Home. These companies make their living off it. Look at nDreams (Xi, Aurora) and Mass Media (Midwya spaces) as two examples. Two studios that work mainly (solely?) for Home. If it was shut down, it would be very inconvenient for those companies, no?

    Just because YOU don't use it, it doesn't mean it should be scrapped. If you ever decide to boot up Home, check out one of the Midway spaces. Even at 2, 3 even 4am i can guarantee there will be people in there. Check out Novus Prime. The space will probably be full of people. And most of the people you come across are wearing (yep) premium items. Which they paid for. With real money.

    tl;dr: Shut the fuck up

  • Ryze #45 1 year ago

    There's way too much use of the word 'seamless' by Jack Buser. I've used - or tried using PSHome on many occasions. The last word I'd use when describing my experience, is 'seamless'.

  • muttler #46 1 year ago

    I quite like Home. I dont spend hardly any time there (maybe I'll log on for an hour or two once a week), but I think it has alot of potential. When Xi first arrived I felt it was quite exciting and new. Also (ages ago), when in the Motorstorm area I got chatting to these randoms who also had Motorstorm: PR, and we were able to boot up to a game of PR with us all in the mp lobby. It was actually very cool. And that's the way I feel about Home- it has alot of potential, but Sony seems to be treading water with it, not getting on with providing features that people might actually go for and instead just providing a world to create a customer base for the 'virtual clothing' etc (which have very high profit margins).
    Edited by muttler at 07/04/11 @ 12:26

  • Lord_BeeJee #47 1 year ago

    How did that guy manage to give absolutely no info at all? I should have know by the lack of newsbytes extracted from the interview heh

  • SimonM7 #48 1 year ago

    Never before have I seen such determination to force a square peg in a round hole.

  • aphexstwin #49 1 year ago

    i think all the naysayers forget its not mandatory to play home. but having the fucking horrible avatar system on live is. i know what i prefer, the choice to have or do something. and lets be honest, if all you home haters have a 360 how many of you have bought something for you mii-clone?

    and dont get started with the 'pump the funds into improving psn' stuff, home is returning a revenue to sony and thats probably what will keep psn free. if sony honestly could put cross game voip dont you think theyd have done it by now? do you think sony keep this stuff away from us on purpose? or has it got something to do with ms' 5000+ patents for xbl?

  • Ryze #50 1 year ago

    @captain_Carl

    We're still bored - due to the MANNER in which these things have been implemented.

    There's nothing pulling us into home. Poor execution on their part.

    @KrazyFace

    Like the rest of the broken social PSN tools, it's so clunky and awkward to communicate and join others in Home (& PSN), that it's often not worth bothering with.

    I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND that some of the people here have loads of tolerance for broken interfaces, have loads of 'sat on their arse' time on their hands, and have a high tolerance of poorly designed software and services.

    You just work around the issues, and spend the time necessary to hunt down and find the wheat amongst the reams of chaff. Therefore - I'm glad that you all are enjoying using Home.

    I don't spend my leisure time navigating broken, clunky interfaces, and searching for needles in haystacks. If Home worked properly - if the interface worked as well as it would if Apple made it instead of typical Sony software, then it'd be a wonderful concept.

    No doubt there will be a time when Home, or a similar service meets the expectations of us that understand how this type of software COULD work. Until then, we WILL express our opinions on another shoddy Sony service that we're being encouraged to use, and have wasted hours of our lives (and our own console leisure time) downloading and testing/trying out.

    We USE this website, because it's USABLE - so we'll comment. If any part of the site was broken, then we'd comment on that too.

    edit: @aphexstwin

    I personally find Xbox avatars a pointless waste of fucking time. I especially hate the Avatar store. Some people love it though - so each to their own.

    Regardless - who was even bothered about the Xbox's features? They have no Home equivalent.
    Edited by Ryze at 07/04/11 @ 13:32

  • Kaminari #51 1 year ago

    Obvious sales pitch is obvious.

  • BluShock #52 1 year ago

    My main gripe with Home was having to fight to get into games, playing pool or bowling was practically impossible.

    Have things improved in that regard?

  • KrazyFace #53 1 year ago

    @Ryze: "Like the rest of the broken social PSN tools, it's so clunky and awkward to communicate and join others in Home (& PSN), that it's often not worth bothering with"

    You know this for a fact, do you? You have experience of this, do you?

    Look, I've seen you in EVERY other thread concerning anything Sony, calling them this and calling them that... You clearly don't like them. Which is also pretty obvious from all the games you play ONLY ON 360, fanboy much? Do me a favour and leave me the fuck alone. If you wanna go around bashing Sony for whatever reason you think fits the bill everyday then fine, go for it. But don't call me out looking to get a reaction from me, I'm not going to participate in your stupid "my cock's bigger than yours" console war.

  • Ryze #54 1 year ago

    ^ Fool.

    The issue is with QUALITY. I applaud QUALITY.

    "You know this for a fact, do you? You have experience of this, do you? "

    Er... YES - with the PS3 that I turn on every evening when I head home, and no longer bother wrestling with the social features, on.

    I've applauded examples of QUALITY on a regular basis, and bash SEGA more than Sony for not having a clue in recent years.

    Give up boy, as I'm not interested in your fantard crap. Pay attention more, and read more than just Sony articles, and you'll have a more balanced view.

    Cock.
    Edited by Ryze at 07/04/11 @ 14:01

  • Lemming81 #55 1 year ago

    I've said it before but it bears repeating when a Home article turns up:

    I love my ps3, but Home needs doing from the ground up. Little Big Planet should have been the Home experience. He'll they are talking about Free Realms coming to ps3, and that is at least proven itself, why not replace it with that? Anything is better than this uncanny valley bullshit.

  • Weezer #56 1 year ago

    So there you go: 58 posts, about three people who like Home. Personally I will never, ever pay real money for virtual items. Shit that makes my avatar or world look nice? The words Fuck and Off spring readily to mind.

    If they want to drive interest, why not reward players with virtual money by getting Trophies (or Achievements, as Sony would love to call it if MS hadn't beaten them to it by two years). You'd need to buy new (full-price) games to earn virtu-cash; then you could buy games – or a nice pink leotard for your pretend mini-me, if you're fucking mental.
    Edited by Weezer at 07/04/11 @ 14:31

  • KrazyFace #57 1 year ago

    @Ryze

    "the PS3 that I turn on every evening when I head home, and no longer bother wrestling with the social features, on."

    I'm not sure I know what you mean by "westling with the social features, on", so you mean you never sign into PSN then... that's convenient.
    Anyway... "I bash SEGA more than Sony for not having a clue" which is followed by "I'm not interested in your fantard crap". A bit confused there mate? I already told you, I'm not a fanboy, and rather than listing all the consoles I own I'll spare you the time and gently ask how you know which articles I read instead?

    Infact, don't bother with a reply coz I really don't care what you think anymore. I asked you not to pick me out and you have, I asked you not to involve me in your dumb-ass console war and you have. Why, Need to vent some steam? Then take it out on a shooter you poisonous, unrelenting, fuk-nut and leave me alone. Buh-bye.

  • jefranklin18 #58 1 year ago

    I don't mind home at all, but one feature they should consider adding is the ability to export your avatar to different games. My home avatar is a lot better looking than my ME2 one and would have been a lot more successful with the women in that game. Er...

    Of course this is not trivialise the undertaking that such a feature would require.

  • kwospecialk #59 1 year ago

    I played Home recently and the main reason why I think its bad is the slow pace of it and the stupid amount of downloading needed for it. Plus you can't put your character into your games which is weird considering Microsoft and Nintendo allow you to do it with their ones on certain games.

  • man.the.king #60 1 year ago

    Over here in the US, Home has evolved quite a bit, and there's a LOT of content to go through.

    The single biggest gripe I have about the Home experience is that things aren't seamless. Do you want to go into the Cineplex from the Plaza - endure a loading screen. Go back outside? Look at another loading screen. This kind of thing tends to temper the enjoyment somewhat.

    Still a quite nice freebie though, considering the amount of things available to see and do.
    Edited by man.the.king at 07/04/11 @ 15:53

  • drxym #61 1 year ago

    @KrazyFace I mean sterile as in sterile. Each zone is like walking around a small diorama of largely static content. Typical zones have a bit of scenery, a few 3D models that are roped off, a few minigames, a circular route around the exhibits and that's about it. There's more fun to be had in a game / movie's promo website and that isn't saying much. It's just boring.

    Compare it to any MMO to see the things that could be done to improve it. Compare it to any game match making site to see the things that could be done to improve it.

  • DrDean #62 1 year ago

    it would be interesting to know how much money sony have burned on home. Or maybe better to say how many God of War's or Uncharted's.

    I liked the idea of home, meeting new spods, doing silly stuff and then being able to go into a game together, but the execution was really not good and I haven't been back for a long time.

  • Ryze #63 1 year ago

    @KrazyFace

    [link url=http://gamers.eurogamer.net/user_profile.php?user_id=323560&tab=forum
    ]http://gamers.eurogamer.net/user_profile...[/link]

    'nuff said. This site has some interesting and USABLE social features.

  • Machiavellian #64 1 year ago

    I believe home is great, for the people that like that type of stuff. I commend Sony for improving the service and getting paid. As has been said many times, Home seems to have a nice population and as long as people are using it, enjoying it and Sony is getting paid then it's not a waste of their resources. I believe the key to Home is that Sony gains a lot of experience in this type of social space which neither MS or Nintendo has. For all I know, Sony could provide the perfect tweak to even get me to download it (doubt it but never know).

    My only gripe is that Sony is forgetting the people who do not want or need Home. I would want Sony to provide something like the party system within XBL. When I log into my console, I like a easy way to meet up and play games with my friends. I do not need a totally virtual layer for this type of functionality. I want to see the social aspect that Sony is attempting to do with Home within the XMB.

  • jimmyjimbob #65 1 year ago

    So, still a waste of HDD space and bandwidth then. Got it. Thanks, but no thanks Sony

  • Widge #66 1 year ago

    To be fair drxym, the guy is saying that they are wanting to roll out more advanced physics and graphical prowess to give the place a bit of a lift and to let the games rolled out to it be a bit more sophisticated.

    I've not been on to check out the newer games, but looking at the comments on here, neither have a lot of people otherwise there would be a lot more to talk about than paid for apartment items, pool and bowling. That just smacks of someone who has downloaded the initial launch and has left their opinion at the door there.

    I'm not saying anything until I have a look though, its clear things change though. Look at launch Vidzone to current Vidzone as an example.

  • knightmt #67 1 year ago

    I am not that bothered by the social aspects of psn, it is the time involved that annoys me. I would much prefer home was a messaging service like skype or a social network hub like FaceBook, as apposed to a virtual gaming world. Home will probably remain irrelevant until a standard camera and mic are issued with PS4? There are a lot of games that incorporate the multiverse more effectively.

    P.s. the figures are bollocks, how many versions have they released and how long do people spend on it on average?

  • MeBrains #68 1 year ago

    woaaahhh... quite a lot of times in the past 1 or 2 years I have requested Eurogamer to inquire about home whenever they had an interview with a big honcho of SCE, since, after the initial buzz, we were void of news about it. This answers to my personal call only partially. I would have loved to read up on answers when everything was quiet from the Home front. It looks like SCE now decided to re-up MKT efforts around it. That's not quite the same... but anyhows. Surprised they are marketing it again...

  • Lucien21 #69 1 year ago

    Count me into the "Tried it once never went back" crowd.

    My only question...

    WHERE'S MY TROPHY ROOM?

    I was promised one way back when Home was announced.

  • gandhimaster #70 1 year ago

    I'm gonna jump into the user interface arguments etc.

    Firstly tho, before i get accused of being a fanboy, i'd like to stress that i own both PS3 and 360, and i'm speaking from experiences of mine.

    Seriously, the PSN UI is, for the most part, crap. I'm not saying crap compared to such-and-such, just crap in general.

    Hardware is amazing, but loading up home and having to update. Again. Go into a newly created space. Download. Exit that space. Load. etc etc it just stops the immersion that sony are clearly trying to implement.

    The 360 avatar being mandatory vs Home being optional is fair enough, but like it or not, the 360 interface is on a different level to PS3. Its all integrated, seemless, logically organised and easy to navigate. Theres no cross game chat on psn because the network infrastructure isnt built into the hardware etc but a layer on top and unless Sony want to completely re-write the system its almost impossible for them to add it.

    If thats not the case, which i've read a few times from articles trying to reason why Sony have not enabled it, then they should have done it by now as its been 5 years and its what us users have been requesting. Social gaming is what seperates 360 from PS3, Sony dont seem to get it, but they definately get the importance of exclusives. If they sort the PSN integration, even if they add a charge for it like LIVE, PSN will rule the roost.

  • MARKIV #71 1 year ago

    They need to sort out the downloading issue, you should be able to download Home all upfront in the background like any other software in the playstation store, instead they've made it download room to room, that makes for a totally crap experience - enough said!

  • Murton #72 1 year ago

    I kinda feel sorry for the suit in this one. He agrees to an interview in the hopes he can promote a massively underrated piece of software and the person doing the interview is constantly rubbishing said software and asking pretty meaningless questions too.

    HOME isn't as big a draw as Sony originally set it out to be, much like any other persistent online experience like I don't know, an MMO. The difference being that when EG interviews an MMO dev a couple of years later they don't spend the entire interview saying "it's crap, admit it"

    I'm not a regular user of HOME by any means, I check it out every couple of months to see what's new, but every time I do "visit" I have a good wander around, check out the vids and games and really enjoy myself, then I realise it's been over two hours. It's not something I'd bother with every day but it's certainly not bad, especially for a free service that can be accessed 24/7.

  • Killerbee #73 1 year ago

    I downloaded it when it first launched in Beta, wasn't impressed and haven't been back since. Maybe I should give it another chance, but the problem is (shocking as this sounds), whenever I turn my PS3 on I'm usually more tempted to play an actual game on it, you know?

  • Mister-Wario #74 1 year ago

    Murton: I agree. It's not perfect, but it's pretty fun to wander around. Ultimately, it's still in beta. I think we'll eventually get a great product at the end, but we're still ironing out the (extensive) number of wrinkles.

    MARKIV: I imagine you download each room individually because it would take AGES otherwise, and in any case you might not want to visit every room: I'm not going to visit a room for a game I have no interest in, for instance.

  • Vivid #75 1 year ago

    I think that this update pretty much set the tone:

    http://www.ukresistance.co.uk/2009/01/so...

  • Widge #76 1 year ago

    Not sure why Home is getting compared to the 360 dash a few posts up, both different types of software doing different things.

  • aphexstwin #77 1 year ago

    markiv, if room needs downloading you can background download

    gandhimaster, my gripe was aimed at the fact the perfectly usable dash pre NXE was superb (the blades) and we werent given the choice when nxe rolled out, it even made us design an avatar after the download. then there was that fucking horrible, i want to hijack planes jingle when finishing adjusting said avatar. it was atrocious. i'd take home, the beautiful xmb and free psn gaming all day over nxe

  • Smugglarn #78 1 year ago

    What Sony should do:

    Make PSN like Steam - you know a proper online service.

    ...but I guess seppuku is always an option.

  • busboy33 #79 1 year ago

    @Widge:

    "To be fair drxym, the guy is saying that they are wanting to roll out more advanced physics and graphical prowess to give the place a bit of a lift and to let the games rolled out to it be a bit more sophisticated."

    Well, of course they "want" to. I want to live in a mansion . . . but when I open my eyes, I'm still in this apartment. Don't get me wrong -- I applaud their intent to make it "better". But lots of companies promise lots of stuff that never materializes, or they promise the moon but when it finally appears all you get is a bit of green cheese. "It'll be totally awesome later!" is hardly a reason to jump on board (see the Kinect). When it gets better, then it will be better. But a promise to be better in the future doesn't translate into being considered better now (also see Kinect).

    Don't get me wrong -- I'm not slagging on Home. If people like it, its free and God bless them. I don't play Farmville, but if that's your thing knock yourself out. But he's pitching Home to the non-users, inviting them to get on board . . . and I didn't see anything in that interview that didn't sound like very vague plugs, and I have to assume if they had something concrete they'd be dropping it out in the open like a cement brick.

  • busboy33 #80 1 year ago

    @aphextwin:

    You're aware that the blades are still 95% there under the Guide button, right?

    You didn't have to monkey with the Avatar. Choose "give me random Avatar" and you're done. All of 10 seconds . . . and I'm not aware of any instances that require you to interact with the Avatar at any point in using your 360 if you don't want to. Correction: if you got the latest poker game on the Arcade, it requires you to play with your Avatar, but you don't have to "do" anything -- its just your Avatar playing rather than a pre-set character. Not sure how any of that puts you out if you don't like dealing with Avatars.

    You like the XMB, fine. Personally I think its more difficult to use than the 360 dashboard, but to each their own.

  • muttler #81 1 year ago

    I agree with aphextwin, xmb with a dynamic theme in the background looks much better than the 360 menu, and is just as easy to navigate. The Store is still crap though, Sony really need to sort that. On topic, there needs to be more integration with Home and the other Playstation functions- eg a trophy room, a room to listen to music on your hdd, put photos on your apartment wall, watch actual tv and vids / trailers in your apartment. And definitely more games that you can lobby up in Home. Having a party system generally on PSN would be nice, in fact.

  • TheEarlOfZinger #82 1 year ago

    Put in a 'slap face' action and I'll go back for sure.

  • stepleftstepright #83 1 year ago

    it sucks soap scum.

  • curtlikesmeat #84 1 year ago

    I wouldn't get too excited about that number Jack; I, like I imagine a lot of people downloaded it once when I first got my PS3 and have never looked at it in the years since.

  • mkreku #85 1 year ago

    Sometimes I turn on my Xbox 360 (with a silver account) without the desire to play a game and just muck about. 30 seconds later, after scrolling through the ads of Microsoft wanting money for even using Twitter (wtf?), I turn it off again. These are the times when Home doesn't sound like such a bad idea after all.

  • EvilPenguin #86 1 year ago

    English isn't my first language so try to go through any grammar mistake.

    I actually like Home. I have to say that some of its features feel a bit clunky and not completely polished, but since 2008 it evolved quite a bit.

    First of all, if you log into Home expecting fun to be delivered to you on a gold plate, you didn't quite understand what's the point of it. Think of a big chatroom divided in large interactive rooms with avatars. It can be boring as much as a chat can be, or as much as a forum can be dull or boring.

    You can log into it, create your alter ego, and simply visit one of the many game related rooms, trying to chat with some other person, comparing your trophies while at it (via the integrated menu) and then maybe find some new gaming friend to play on a certain game.

    Home minigames are gradually becoming better, but i still think the social part is the one that needs more polish and new features (trophies room, more social interaction and games connection).

    Still, i dont really get the hate. It is NOT mandatory, and you don't have to pay to enjoy it. It will be downright boring, of course, if you are boring yourself and not able to go into it with friends or with the mindset to find a gaming partner for some real game, or just an environment to chat in.

    Also, i find that hating on people that spend real money to decorate their house or improve their avatars ( items quality really evolved in a positive way through the last year) is a bit childish.
    I'm sure everyone of you spent at least few dollars on games DLCs, maybe to play 3 new maps over and over again. Well, what's different? Please.

  • a.monteiro #87 1 year ago

    It's been a long time since i logged at Home and while I'm not a social gaming person, it was cool to check for free prizes and look at the evolution of the service, my old 60GB YLODed and when I got another PS3, downloading everything again was a chore and I ended up giving up. The game I've spent more time at Home was the BUZZ space _ it was quite well made actually, and it allowed for like.. 30 people at the same time, so the wait for a game was brief _ I rather play actual retail games since i like action-adventure titles, Home lacks an MMO RPG type game which would probably draw me back in, but not hating at Home here.

  • KrazyFace #88 1 year ago

    @Ryze

    Wow. Mate, you just don't know when to stop do you? Well, that last post directed at me wins you my "stalker of the year" award for doing an "Anonymous" on me and pointing people in the direction of my personal profile. Well done you, you creepy bastard.

    On a side note, I'd just like to point out that being a PS3 owner would mean (surprise, surprise) I read mostly Sony articles. I know, it's a big shock, but since I don't own a 360 or feel the need to bash anyone who ownes one publicly, you're not likely to find me reading any 360 articles very often.

    Maybe you should change you're name to "Anon" or something mate...

  • bosseye #89 1 year ago

    The main problem for me with Home, and indeed with the PS3 online in general is its continually demanding software updates and downloads. It seems like everytime I try and go on PSN I have to endure a good 10 minute delay whilst something is downloaded. Home was like this x10, spent most of the time downloading bits and bobs, just to get going. Once in (this was a couple of years ago mind) I made the fattest ugliest bloke I could and wandered around dancing at people and slowly typing things to various people.Got bored fairly quickly and the last time I logged in about 6 months ago it was a ghost town.

  • Murton #90 1 year ago

    "last time I logged in about 6 months ago it was a ghost town."

    Where did you go? I've logged in at all sorts of times and there's always loads of people there. Some areas are more popular than others, if you head to Sodium or Novus Prime there's dozens of people around, same goes for the Mall, the EA Sports Centre and the Bowling Alley.

    @ muttler - the ability to put our photos on our walls and play music/video from our HDD is a much requested feature for HOME, possibly the most requested. I seem to remember that Sony answered this as a no can do. Something to do with licensing for media content, photos were a no go for similar reasons but also because HOME has no way of vetting that content so if someone creates posters that are inappropriate there's going to be a problem there.

    I think Sony are really missing tricks with HOME to be honest, there's great potential there for doing all sorts of cool stuff. Sony should really be looking to use it to promote it's other brands, create a digital concert of Sony signed artists for us to visit, maybe show an actual film in the cinema or partner with a major sports event or broadcaster to build a space dedicated to that. Imagine having a sports bar with TVs showing Premier League goals in conjunction with Sky Sports, or highlights from the F1 or WRC, there's potential there and it seems to be getting overlooked to change HOME into a gaming platform rather than what it was designed to do.

  • novamegalith #91 1 year ago

    I have always liked Home