140°

PlayStation Home is Incredible, and Sony Sucks at Advertising It

"PlayStation Home, some have heard about it but have never really heard much about it, right? What If I were to say that Home is without a doubt the best avatar service out of any console, yes, better than Nintendo’s and Microsoft’s avatar services by a massive leap. Did you know you could watch full-length movies or listen to music with a bunch of friends? Or build huge cities? If you think I’m crazy by saying that, if you think that all you do in Home is bowl and play pool, then you really need to read this article, and you are also a good example of why Sony sucks at advertising Home."

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dlb-network.com
GribbleGrunger4097d ago

I'm not going to read the article. The headline says it all for me. Home isn't for everyone but it caters to the demographic it aims at brilliantly.

Myst4097d ago

It could have been something really amazing to be honest. Just that it's eh, one of those things you try out once or twice then stopped. I still log in every now and again though to see what it's like. I will say a lot has improved and some new additions are interesting.

GribbleGrunger4097d ago

Same here, but I recognise that it's for a different demographic. When I stand back from my own views on HOME, I can see how great it is. That sounds like a contradiction in terms but it's just straight forward objectivity. For example, I hate FPS but I can still appreciate why some are better than others. The only thing Sony have done wrong with HOME is not advertise it.

Dee_914097d ago

I dont think the people in home right now wants Sony to advertise it to be honest.Because although it may bring more people it will bring more trolls.Last time I went in home about a month ago it was great.Alot of people on mics and not much trolling at all.However its not for me as I prefer to meet new people in person,so I agree with gribble.Some people dont understand that Home isnt a game its a social pub.So if you want to blow stuff up and fight people etc, its not for you.I think a girl on youtube married a guy she met on there... she was pretty hot too xD

TheUndertaker854097d ago

@Dmarc: That's the problem though. If you go into Home there ARE games in Home like Bootleggers(a FPS(Is it first or third? Only tried it out once or twice.)plus other types of games coming into Home or already there.

That's the only thing being done wrong in my opinion. Progression of Home goes majorly social then majorly gaming then majorly social again. The demographic for Home exists in the first place simply because of the split message Home is sending. Is it for social users or gamers? Even the Home team doesn't seem to know.

My only question is this: Why does there have to be a demographic for Home? If the Home team could find a way to balance the content going into Home, IE get both social and gaming content rather than one or the other, Home COULD be a great place for both crowds, skewing that demographic by far.

Myst4097d ago

That seems to be a lot of Sony's fault this generation and well a bit of the last as well. A lot of great games were not advertised or mentioned at all. A lot of things were done in the 'shadows' or so.

4097d ago Replies(4)
Pushagree4097d ago (Edited 4097d ago )

I've tried to get back into home to past few days, but I think Home's biggest flaw is that it is filled with gamers. Much like FPS voice chats, people just go on home to troll, which makes it hard to have conversations with people because they all have their guard up. Even general greetings are met with a distant hostility until you have proven that you are genuine.

Not to mention, communication in general is painfully slow because most people don't have keyboards. Costumes have also gotten to the point of being so absurdly flagrant that every person looks like they are going to an anime convention. Home just doesn't feel real because of that and it's hard to actually connect to people due to the fact that no one is really themself on home. Guys pump their avatars full of steroids and girls morph their bodies and wear stripper outfits. As a social network, home fails to be social.

trenso14097d ago

yea thats why i dont go on anymore it certainly wasnt like that when it was first released in the early beta was a lot more simpler

Tetsujin4097d ago

@Push

I agree 100% with what your saying; and I also want to add I can't stand the people who live on Home more than actually playing games. I remember meeting a few people from Home and they either troll, use people for PSN cards for digital merchandise, or use it as an alternative for yahoo/msn chat.

My problem with Home is the people, not the service. Up until 2011 I went on Home to help take a break from gaming to chat with some friends; now I hate the idea to even log on it unless we go to a personal space because of the morons who live on it. If I had an option to block anyone with a level 1 with 0 trophy count, or people who doesn't have a certain number of games they played if they have a 0 trophy count.

Eyeco4097d ago

When I first saw home 5 years ago I got exited , on paper I thought of something like sims online, like a virtual open world social network, but I was kinda disappointed, there's really not much to do in terms of socialising , and I agree with Pushagree, communicating is painfully slow, that and for some reason avatars take forever to appear,

I also didn't really like the idea of paying for clothes, if the currency was linked to your trophies that would have been awesome and it would have given trophy whores a legit excuse, or if virtual currency was earned in group social activities that to would have been a good idea, it's been 4-5 years since I've been on it, can someone please tell me or pm me on how much has changed ?

Tetsujin4097d ago (Edited 4097d ago )

@Eyeco

I know off the dome White Knight Chronicles has parts for your avatar for each gold trophy you get, and the plat gets you the helmet (from what I was told). A lot of mini games also pass out certain clothes that you can't buy from the store; and I know having Namco Museum grants you an arcade machine per game for getting certain stamps in each game. Having Batman Arkham Asylum gets you the Batcave as a personal space; there's tons other things but I haven't been on much either lately, those are the ones I remember from a long time ago. I've spent maybe a grand total of $10 or less on Home because I don't like the idea of spending real $ to "look" good when I can win items or play games to get items others don't have.

One thing I'd suggest is finding someone on your friends list who spends a lot of time on Home to get maybe a full list of what you can win from various games you own.

Edit: I know RE5 also has some sort of statue thing if you play it regularly.

nukeitall4097d ago

This my friends is called community building. How do you build a community that is friendly and pleasant?

It's nigh impossible!

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 4097d ago
miyamoto4097d ago (Edited 4097d ago )

Why didn't Sony made it as an integrated portal or search of some sorts for PS Store, PS+, Movies, Crackle, Netflix, YouTube, and all the PSN services?

That could have made use of Home much better.

Imagine your avatar going to all sorts of these services & places could have been a fun experience even if it may be an optional thing to do at Home.

But come to think of it some people want straight forward transactions with less time to click.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 4096d ago
Nawert4097d ago

They need to make it the main menu for PS4. Either that or press a Home button on controller to go right to it at all times.

smashcrashbash4097d ago

Millions of people use it.It has people in it every day.Whenever a new event happens it is crowded with users and is never completely empty. Obviously they are doing something right. And before we go on the usual idiotic rant about how Sony never advertises anything I could go and get the list of games that Nintendo and Microsoft left out to dry and barely made a big deal of them. Sony like everyone else can't make a big fuss about EVERY single game. So can we stop the pretense that the other companies don't lapse on advertising their lesser games. That old song is getting tiresome to listen to.

SmokingMonkey4097d ago

How ironic, that this was Phil Harrisons' baby.

Home could be the future of gaming...

..imagine GTA and Home...

...you could be playing football at the stadium while some a*s comes by in a jet and bombs the whole stadium...

Bowzabub4097d ago

Just like anything, it is what you make of it. It can be a great social app if used correctly. Game launching is grossly underused too.

SonyStyled4097d ago

i gamelaunched once from home for R2 when the Resistance Station first hit home

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280°

Sony Taps Bungie's Head of Revenue to Lead Live-Service Games

Sony has recruited Bungie's head of revenue Jaremy Rich to head up its live-service gaming division, Rich has announced on social media.

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techraptor.net
ChasterMies19d ago

Please do not put Destiny’s monetization into Sony’s first party games. The monetization is what’s driving players away from Destiny.

just_looken19d ago

The new temp boss is the sony cfo bean counter so i can see this being a thing get every penny.

Cacabunga19d ago

PlayStation officially losing it.. fans will never support gaas games

just_looken19d ago

@car

The new boss did a interview in japan he wants to tap into the mobile market like nintendio so he give 0 fucks about gamers/fans

https://www.pushsquare.com/...

Redemption-6419d ago

@Cacabunga
You only speak for you and those who think like you, but most fans will support what they want. Playstation and PC fans are literally supporting Helldivers 2 and that is a gaas. Maybe you wouldn't, but many more would if they like it.

Huey_My_D_Long19d ago

@Redemption-64
Look, Im not making any judgement calls about this guy, but I will say that Helldivers 2 GaaS model is unique to Helldivers, and legit the only other game I can think of thats similiar was the Avengers game except HD2 pass is still better.
The fact that you can earn in game currency in a way that doesnt make you feel like you have to grind forever, as well you being able work on that pass that you bought...on your own time without a time limit...that right there is fucking huge to me, and I can't name any game other than avengers that avoided trapping players with FOMO logic...I think GaaS on HD2 shouldn't be compared to the rest of the industry...it should be copied.

Einhander197219d ago

Cacabunga

Helldivers 2...

Redemption-64

In Europe it's a 60 40 split favoring PC.
In the US its a 60 40 split favoring PS5.

So PlayStation owners supported the game just fine, it's not getting carried by PC or anything like that.

FinalFantasyFanatic19d ago

@just_looken,
I'm perfectly fine with the way Nintendo entered the mobile market, I never touched their mobile games, meanwhile, the console/handheld stayed the way it is. As for being a bean counter, he's probably going to reel in these massive budgets that Sony's studios have had lately, I haven't played Spiderman 2, but I cannot see how they almost tripled the budget for that game.

@Redemption-64,
That's an exception to the rule, I'm expecting a lot of these GAAS games from Sony to fail, to be fair, they only need a few to succeed, but I would have preferred that they put more of their resources into other types of games.

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 19d ago
DivineHand12519d ago

True their monetization is driving players away and at the same time, their decision to chop out content and convoluted systems is keeping new players away from the game.

Joe91319d ago

I don't think that will happen based on how things worked out at Naughty Dog now that we know what we do, seems they had the option to fully commit to live service games or stay making single player experences so they gave up on their live service game. We are not sure how things came about with Bend making a live service game but I hope that was not a forced situation. Sony doesnt seem like they are forcing studios to switch up but we will see, Sony's bread and butter is single player games it is how they dominated the console market.

Obscure_Observer19d ago

Yeah, I though Sony learned something from all their failures in the LS segment under Bungie´s disastrous leadership and supervision which led to games been cancelled, studios closed and all the people laid off.

Looks like Bungie still plays a major role in Sony´s LS initiative and Sony is not backtracking on their GaaS plans.

S2Killinit19d ago (Edited 19d ago )

Are we forgetting that Destiny is also a highly successful franchise? I feel like that definitely deserves mention here.

Besides, there is no reason why a person cant learn from past experiences.

Joe91318d ago

I agree, people act as if Destiny flopped when it came out lol it took 9 to 10 years for the numbers to fall yet people are still playing it add the success of Helldivers 2 no wonder Sony is going forward down this path.

S2Killinit18d ago

Personally, I see no problem with Sony also having service games as long as they make good ones, and more importantly they deliver the AAA story driven games that they are known for. So yeah, I agree 100% with you.

+ Show (2) more repliesLast reply 18d ago
Christopher19d ago

I mean, this person made some pretty bad decisions at Bungie. I hope they've learned from them because I definitely don't see those type of ideas as good for PlaySation in general.

CrimsonWing6918d ago (Edited 18d ago )

Honestly, what’s to learn from? How to make people happily continuously dump money into a single game over its life-time? Buy season passes continuously for several years with a smile on our faces?

GaaS is a design decision that is everything wrong with this industry. The fact that Helldivers 2 did so well and people defend the monetization because it was $40 and is a fun game, scares the sh*t out of me to see that the door is open and all shift will probably be to replicate that in future games. We already know the ROI for traditional game dev cost isn’t doing it for them.

I thought with Jimbo leaving we’d see a change for the better… I’m not so sure now.

S2Killinit18d ago

Service games are being offered by everyone. Sony cannot afford to only create single player AAA games. No one can. They already said they will be doing both.

Abnor_Mal19d ago (Edited 19d ago )

Ps5 gamers in 2023 seemed to play more live service types of games, so regardless to how people feel about them, numbers don’t lie and Sony is going where the money is. I mean look at the excitement around Helldivers2, people are showing that they want live service games.

Christopher19d ago

They play long-time existing live service games like CoD, Fortnite, Apex Legends, Destiny 2, and the like. Mass majority of new live service games are considered failures and aren't moving gamers away from older games.

just_looken19d ago

Yep the huge issue with live service is they need paid players along with a reason to play them.

You forgot mobile market that also taps into that player base as well as the eve online style games there is only a certain amount of krakens/whales blind supporters compared to the amount of live service games we have its not sustainable math wise.

700 restaurants making food for every seat for 1000-3000 eaters just does not work out

Einhander197219d ago (Edited 19d ago )

Christopher

I am not a big live service fan and literally own zero of the games you listed, but that is not true, unless you call games that aren't the top games to be failures.

There are tons of live service games that are profitable.

Games don't have to be the biggest game ever they just need to make more than they cost.

I challenge you to show professionally prepared data that shows that more live service games fail than make enough to keep going.

Because all the data that I have seen shows that live service is less of a gamble than making a big AAA budget game which needs to survive off retail sales.

FinalFantasyFanatic19d ago

I sometimes wonder if we're at saturation point, where it's hard for a new game to join those ranks unless it's particularly exceptional, people only have so much time and money to devote to these types of games.

romulus2319d ago

Correction, they have no issue playing good live service games

shinoff218319d ago

Lol it's not even a quarter of the ps5s sold. Helldivers may have been a hit but let's not say most are enjoying it because truth is most(the real most ) don't care about it.

S2Killinit18d ago (Edited 18d ago )

I play what is fun. If a live service game is good I’ll play it as long as its not a money scheme which Helldivers is not.

And Im a single player gamer.

mastershredder19d ago

How do you kill a franchise that already been killed?
Destiny’s grind, cash-in-on-playbass-cha-Ching, and pop-culture-insertion mainstream-me-too bs totally killed any rep Bungie had. Sony/Bungie, if you are doing this to ward-off players, it’s already working.

crazyCoconuts19d ago

Headline truncated:
"... off a cliff"

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80°

Sony May Soon Let You Decide How Much NPCs Talk In Games

Sony has patented to add multiple dialogue modes to let players switch between how many conversations with NPCs they want in the game.

blackblades25d ago

Sony is like the only ones outta the 3 that has atuff like like this pop up changing thing in ways.

just_looken25d ago

Sony in the past has always been first at bat with new ideas/tech but in the end never fully use it or just toss it away.

blackblades25d ago

I think they did use some but yeah most usually never happened but at least they thought about it. Sony seeks things like this and other, Nintendo seek different ways of playing going by there different controler designs and console designs.

just_looken25d ago (Edited 25d ago )

some of the other stuff sony want's/owns never used
https://gamerant.com/sony-p...
https://gamerant.com/sony-p...
https://www.eurogamer.net/s...
https://metro.co.uk/2023/03...
https://decrypt.co/114754/s...

monitor/adjust game difficultly as you play
https://www.techradar.com/g...

Sony nfts
https://www.theblock.co/pos...

Pay ai to play the game for you
https://thebusinessofesport...

Oh all the above last 12 months

I just imagine a evil scientist with test subjects when it comes down to sony recent patent reports.

Kaii25d ago

Will we get dialogue options that won't spoil puzzles in a matter of seconds? :p

280°

Judge rules in PlayStation's favour in $500m patent infringement lawsuit

Genuine Enabling Technology was seeking damages, claiming the tech allowing PlayStation consoles and controllers to communicate infringes its rights.

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gamesindustry.biz
S2Killinit27d ago

Big victory for Sony. And a long time coming.

DarXyde27d ago (Edited 27d ago )

Crazy to think the savings from this lawsuit allows them to develop one AAA game.

Make it Bloodborne 2, please and thank you.

27d ago
Profchaos27d ago

Sounds like patent trolling they tried the same thing against Nintendo with the same pattern.

Motion and control input traversing over higher and lower frequencies seperate from each other allowing the controller to do both

Pyrofire9527d ago

Patents suck. Most of them are complete garbage.

Knightofelemia27d ago

So to recoup the money Genuine is going to take on Nintendo or Microsoft next. I hate patent lawyers they are some of the worst bottom feeders out there.

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