Home is Where the (PlayStation 3) Heart is

Home is Where the (PlayStation 3) Heart is

Posted: 03-21-2007, 01:41 PM

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Nintendo has been quick off the mark with the creation of very rudimentary characters on its Wii system, with these ‘Mii’ caricatures acting as avatars that can be sent to
other people’s Wii consoles or even be featured in certain new game releases. But now Sony has hit back with its own take on the theme in the form of ‘Home’, a new integrated network for owners all over the world to get together, interact and basically ‘live’ in the newly formed space. However, with this feature only being fully unveiled at the recent Game Developers’ Conference in San Francisco, there are many people out there with questions galore. So, for their benefit, here is an overview of what will be on offer…

First things first, Sony is keen to make Home the first of its kind to feature on any videogame console; one that provides a unique blend of community, user-generated contact, collaboration and commerce that will supposedly become the future of computer entertainment. Straight away you get a small idea as to how ‘grand scale’ Sony is going with this idea. The aim is to build upon the strong foundation of the PlayStation brand in order to broaden the online community, encapsulating those that may never have thought to partake in such a seemingly scary environment. But Home will remove the mystery and elitist nature of the current online world and make it all as simple as picking up a mobile phone to text message or making a call to a friend or family member. Sony hopes to open its arms and welcome one and all into its brand new, exciting domain, guiding newcomers by the hand and providing deep content for veterans in this all-inclusive project. And this is only the start!

But when can we expect this ambitious move to take place? Well, the company plans on rolling it all out as soon as October, 2007, with the initial download set to weigh in at slightly less than 500MB and subsequent patches and updates due to be streamed onto the system and integrated without hassle or much difference to the already hefty file size. For those in the Industry, a closed beta testing period will commence in April and continue until August of this year, with roughly 15,000 invites available, whilst between August and October there will be open beta testing for approximately 50,000 users involved before the service finally goes live.

The simple definition of Home is ‘a real-time 3D, networked community that serves as a meeting place for PlayStation 3 users from around the world’. Here they can then interact, communicate, join online games, shop, share content and even build and show off their own personal spaces (similar to what you can do with your MySpace website or house in the likes of Animal Crossing). And the most impressive aspect is that it all comes completely free of charge from the PlayStation Store and is launched directly from the PS3’s XMB (Cross Media Bar).

Aimed at absolutely everyone, this global platform and new experience in social networking is a way to chill out in the online space with friends, family and newcomers alike. You will be able to wander around the new world, communicating between users, whilst creating and customising your very own adult avatar and then working on the building-up on your personal space, where others can come and visit you if that is what you desire. Meetings with other Home users will take place in a Central Lounge, although currently specific lobby areas are only able to hold up to 64 people at a time. However, multiple lobbies can co-exist to deal with larger numbers. There will also be other future locations on offer for users to visit. And then, when you are ready, you will be able to move to your personal space and share media with friends and experience new media from various publishers. In order to get in touch with people or find specific content with ease, there is a game matchmaking function and search facilities. Then should you wish to drop out of Home, the transition to a new game is seamless.

Of interest are some of the features included within the world, such as the Hall of Fame, which is basically a trophy room where you can show off your gaming accomplishments. Certain games will be compatible with the Home Trophy system and these can then be won and transferred across to Home so everyone can see just how good you really are; rather like a more illustrative version of a high score leader board. On top of this, you can even use the Sony Wallet from the PSN Store to purchase goods that would normally be found in real life. Whilst for the moment this is actually a clunky system, having to switch between two places, eventually the plan is to smoothly implement it so transactions can take place from within Home. Sadly, though, people will not be able to watch their Blu-ray DVD movies whilst in Home. They can be ‘launched’ from the online world, but you will then be exited promptly and transferred to normality to watch the content.

Lazy folk will be pleased to hear that you do not need to create a whole new account for Home, with your current PlayStation Network ID being exactly the same. Also, whilst the option is there to slowly wander around the world on foot, the snappier choice of instantly travelling to the desired location is thankfully present. And if you were worried that back-tracking to places would be necessary if leaving and then re-entering Home, worry not as your avatar will be dumped in the same place you were last visiting. What seems a little frustrating for the moment, though, is that Home is not a ‘persistent world’, meaning that everything you possess leaves when you do. This leads to people not being able to visit you whilst you are offline (meaning the people on your friends list, which can be up to a maximum of fifty people, will simply have to wait for you to come back online and then search for them). Fortunately Sony is working on changing this aspect and plans to implement a solution for the long-term.

Eventually gamers will be able to not just design and build their own apartments, but even a house or whole neighbourhood by purchasing new landscapes, apartment structures and furniture. And once that side is sorted it is time to populate your living space and customise your avatar (since you can only have the one per account), buying new clothes, pets and accessories for your character and abode. Once all set, although interactivity between the PC and PS3 for the transfer of media is not possible, you will be able to receive prizes from other users, attend paid-for special events, share content from your PS3’s hard-drive and, most importantly to some, meet in game specific lobbies to discuss certain titles, grab hold of exclusive new content and even team up with others to take part in online gaming!

But for the main world to be free, something has to give, right? Where is the catch? Well, Sony’s business model is based on a combination of e-commerce and advertising revenue. This really does set alarm bells ringing; yet Sony knew that would be the case and has reassured us all that we will not be bombarded with advertisements. However, it is hard to see how Sony can say this when it turns around and states that the way Third Party publishers will make money from the system is by selling special content to users and advertising through whatever medium they choose. The opportunities available for promotion and advertising are countless, so it seems it will be up to the user to just ignore whichever areas you presume to be most littered with adverts. What is good for publishers is how they can create their own lobbies in a sort of store showroom fashion to show off their products. No doubt we will end up seeing the likes of GAME, Amazon UK et al make some sort of appearance in order to capture more money from consumers (there are no region based restrictions, but there is the option to have region specific promotions, which would be ideal for those two example stores mentioned). With Sony offering support hand over fist to Third Parties we may even see lots of support from both Indie developers and smaller stores making an appearance. Demo versions of games are something Sony appears keen to push via Home, for instance, so depending on how much of a success it all becomes, old games may be re-published or new samples of current games could be launched through the online environment.

Covering all bases is what will make or break Home, though, and Sony is covering two of the major areas by doing its best to ensure it is as safe and accessible as possible. Age stipulations will be firmly in place, Parental Controls are advised to be used wisely, there is a hard-line complaints process that can be used in extreme circumstances to avoid future issues and Sony has even included a basic profanity filter! In terms of how it will expand in the future, there are plans to allow people to access Home via other networked devices, like the PlayStation Portable and even mobile phones. Other aspects recently revealed include how content in Home will be updated on a weekly basis, development overhead is minimal to make it easy to create stuff for it and help is always at hand from Sony’s team, users will eventually be able to create their own items and content, and special events such as Halloween and Christmas will be celebrated with special events and limited release content (such as decorations for your Home-space or appropriate clothing).

As for the tricky issue of sharing media with your friends, clearly Piracy is something every company worries about, especially in the online world where it is strife. Therefore, certain features are currently not available, but are being worked on as we speak. For instance, you cannot give a purchased or earned item to another user, nor can you broadcast media outside your private space (meaning only special invited guests can visit to watch, but not ‘take’ stuff away). Eventually there will be an auction service launched to sell user-created wares, plus the contents of your Home-space (and the way things are going it would not be surprising if a deal is struck with eBay…).

And that is that…leaving us with our heads spinning from all the information. It all looks to be coming together nicely, and it could be the key factor is resurrecting the PlayStation 3 around the world. But what did the competition have to say on the idea that apparently started way back on the PlayStation 2? Well, Nintendo jumped straight on Sony’s case, claiming it was another case of ‘Mii-too’, referring to how Nintendo is currently in the process of slowly but surely developing a similar world, albeit a more family orientated one. As for the company’s own legend, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto, he even stated that it was something Nintendo had considered many years ago, but decided to not bother with it. This is possibly in reference to the Nintendo 64’s Disk Drive, which was to be developed with gamers creating your own 3D characters for use in a virtual community where you could move around and meet others. Obviously, though, the 64DD died a sorry death in Japan due to a lack of support and Sony appears to have now run with the idea, fleshing it out in a way many probably never thought possible.

Welcome Home…

Article by Adam Riley


Hindbark PS3Chat Members Posts: 20 Join Date: Mar 2007	03-21-2007, 01:50 PM cant wait thats all i have 2 say! lol reminds me of W.o.W just without the quests lol


crash1202 PS3Chat Members Posts: 565 Join Date: Feb 2007 PSN ID: Crash1202	03-21-2007, 06:26 PM Home will be the greatest thing ever the PS3 has done so far....I mean it is cool the apartments are huge too (watch the video on youtube if you havent) and the trophies......cant wait.. The PS3 may be weak now...But the 360 is slipping and we will strike when the time is right...


jesusraz PS3Chat Members Posts: 21 Join Date: Feb 2007	03-22-2007, 12:10 PM The potential is amazing...Just imagine what it will be like when a developer like Square Enix creates its own lobby! It will look fantastic!


Chaos Junior Member Posts: 4 Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: in System of ps3	03-23-2007, 06:11 PM i can't wait


Guitar_Fly PS3Chat Members Posts: 121 Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Canada PSN ID: Guitar_Fly	03-25-2007, 11:15 AM As soon this is up Microsoft will fall!


chinese_buddha PS3Chat Members Posts: 15 Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Ramsgate uk PSN ID: chinese_buddha	03-25-2007, 11:21 AM Yeah if we can sign into it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


PS3.Percy PS3Chat Members Posts: 14 Join Date: Mar 2007	03-29-2007, 06:34 PM cannot wait.


Pugamall PS3Chat Members Posts: 16 Join Date: Mar 2007	04-01-2007, 10:31 AM Will it be limited to eu users and others ?(sperate worlds ect) Sounds a bit Sim's ish ?


RAMPAGE PS3Chat Members Posts: 415 Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: AUSTRALIA PSN ID: RAMPAGE23	04-01-2007, 07:34 PM hopefully they get the beta up and running soon so we can try it out.


LemonArmy PS3Chat Members Posts: 146 Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Hull, UK PSN ID: LemonArmy	04-01-2007, 09:35 PM Does look and sound fantastic and its free!!! Who said sony are money grabbers, they could have easily charged us for this


zekecee Junior Member Posts: 8 Join Date: Jan 2007	04-02-2007, 01:11 PM I am sooooooo ready to GO HOME!!!


jesterslave PS3Chat Members Posts: 23 Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: lakeland fl.	04-03-2007, 03:24 PM yea very badass only reason im buying a ps3... and HD graphics


MUNKEYNUTS PS3Chat Members Posts: 8 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: UK PSN ID: MUNKEYNUTS	04-19-2007, 07:14 PM it does look good any news when the beta out


rubema Junior Member Posts: 3 Join Date: May 2007	05-28-2007, 02:30 PM Realy! it will be very very very nice, i can't wait...


deano_16 PS3Chat Members Posts: 115 Join Date: May 2007 Location: Carlisle, England PSN ID: deano_16	07-04-2007, 01:27 PM home will be sooooooo cool, can't wait PS3 60gb PSN: deano_16 Games Tiger Woods PGA Tour 09 Racedriver: Grid Metal Gear Solid 4 GTA IV Call Of Duty 4: Game Of The Year Edition Uncharted: Drake's Fortune Assassin's Creed Fifa 08 Pro Evo 08 Smackdown vs Raw 08 Rainbow Six Vegas Resistance: Fall Of Man Def Jam Icon Virtua Tennis 3 NHL 2K7 Spiderman 3 Pirates Of The Carribean: At World's End