Xbox 3D Virtual World necessary to compete with Playstation Home?

Sony Playstation Home will launch some when in 2008. If Sony does everything right it will be huge for the Sony PS3. I4U actually thinks Microsoft cannot afford to not launch a similar 3D virtual world for the Xbox 360.

[xsteinbachx]

better make a HDD standard then.

[gamesR4fun]

ya Home is gonna b huge ms really needs to step it up to compete. Hopefully they'll at least start giving gold lvl access 4 free...

[Feihc Retsam]

About HOME?
I know it could be cool, but I never got into Second Life, or any of the MMORPGs out there.
If I wanted a virtual world experience, I would have done that on PC already.
So, I feel like console owners aren't going to buy into the whole HOME thing very much.
Even people with XBox Live don't all utilize all of the features available.
People who just want to play games online will be fine with what Xbox Live and PSN have right now. I look at home as nothing more than a game.

[moparful99]

You're passing judgement on something based on a totally different service. Second life is a pay to play style game, where as home is a free interactive online experience. To call home a game is a mistake. Home is designed to intergrate gaming into a virtual online community where you actually see the people you play, communicate, spend time with every day. Think of the popularity of myspace and facebook. Instead of having a profile you have a virtual house that displays photos, decorating tastes, trophies and so on. Its essentially a new more immersive way to interact. Home, in my opinion, is a very innovative and genius move by sony...

[Joey Gladstone]

Microsoft will launch their own version, this is a very basic business motto in that you see what the competition is doing right, and you "borrow" or clone your own version and attempt to make it better in some way......but they would be wise to release it soon after Home, because this Free Home Service is sure to have an effect on the 360's sales numbers..
..
....
....."The JOEY has Spoken"

[Covenant]

"you see what the competition is doing right, and you "borrow" or clone your own version and attempt to make it better in some way..."

Like Trophies?

Companies rip each other off all the time...it won't be that last time that Sony/MS/Nintendo copy each other in some capacity.

[Guwapo77]

To think Microsoft hasn't dabbled or even actually started with a virtual world yet would be retarded. The top companies borrow whats successful from the other company and try to improve upon it, ie. achievements - accomplishments.

The question is not IF there will be a virtual world on Live but WHEN.

[Feihc Retsam]

All of this talk about MICROSOFT "H4S 2 MAKE ITZ PWN VIRTUAL WORLD!!!" is very presumptious.
If HOME is a big flop, I don't see Microsoft rushing to dump money into their own version.

I'm still not sold on the whole concept of HOME yet. I"m just glad SONY improved the PSN to a point where it's actually somewhat convenient to connect and play games online.

[Silellak]

I really could care less about having Second Life built into the online functionality of my console, but whatever.

I realize I'm not everyone though, and some people certainly do care. I just think XBox Live has most of the functionality I'd want it an online service already, and I don't care what sort 3D window dressing they give it.

And yes, I know Home is a bit more than that, and it's awesome that it's free, it's just something I don't think I need for the 360. Maybe some people want it, though.

Sigh. And cue the endless screen of "disgrees" with people who can't stand to see anyone say something remotely negative about anything Sony related. Because Sony is the One Lord and Savior of Gaming and everything they do is perfection.

It's my opinion that I could care less if something like Home came to the 360. If it did, great! Do I personally think the 360 needs it? No, I think the functionality it already has is very solid. What's wrong with that?

[beavis4play]

i really could care less about having to PAY for the online functionality of my console, but whatever.

home is going to be huge.

[Silellak]

I've explained it before, and I'll explain it again -

When you pay for XBox Live, you are essentially funding the development of future multiplayer games for the 360. You aren't just paying to play online. You're paying to support the entire online framework that developers can take into when they make games for the 360.

That's why nearly every game for the 360 - from intern-written XBLA games to huge multi-million dollar blockbusters - have some sort of online component, be it full multiplayer functionality or some sort of online leaderboard. Microsoft has made it incredibly easy for developers to tap into this system, because Live handles all of the things like matchmaking, skill ranking, etc. Developers no longer have to implement that system themselves, which saves them both time and money.

Now, you may not care, which is fine. If you just want to play a few games online, then the PSN has everything you probably want.

But me, I love feeling like almost every 360 game I play is, in some way, shape, or form, a community experience - and it's that way because it's *so easy* to add online functionality to a 360 game. As a programmer myself, I see the power behind that and am more than willing to pay $50 a year to support that sort of system.

Like it or not, PSN is nowhere near XBox Live in that capacity.

[Brixxer600]

You should get plenty agree's aswell, i agree with everything you said, well done.

[Guwapo77]

LevDog this needs to go =====>>>>

This is the area for intelligent discussion. Save the RROD BS for a when another thread is posted about it. This ain't it.

[Silellak]

I probably shouldn't even reply to this fanboy droll, since it's in the wrong zone, but it's a slow day at work.

"Paying for Online framework.. So your paying for Live to crash???"

Live didn't "crash". It had a month or so of instability due to an influx of new users. Should Microsoft have seen it coming? Sure, but they've hardly proved to be a bastion of foresight.

"Or your paying yearly for a console to RROD on you.. Or paying for the Crap Customer service.."

What does this thread have to do with RRoD? Oh right - nothing. When the console RRoDs, you get a month free of Live to make up for the month you missed. But you probably didn't know that, because it's not posted on the Sony Defense Force website.

"Your Paying for Nothing.. You cant watch HD movies.."

Really? I guess those HD movies I can download won't actually play? That sucks! I didn't know that.

"Your Paying for an Outdated system that cant even fit Extra content on their disc anymore.. Your paying for Old Technology.. The Roof has been reached.. Your paying for a system that has been maxed out.. You mite get slightly Better games.. but not drastic.. Come on man.. Ps3 games are on par with 360 and its in its first year and All Devs said its only at 20% potential reached.."

Welcome to: off-topic theatre. This has nothing to do with XBox Live or Home. It's also incredibly inaccurate, but that's beside the point.

"and We ps3 owners dont pay for this soo called "online frame work".. Come on man use your Head"

And that's my entire point. Sony doesn't have an "online framework" the same way Live does. And from what I've read about Home, it isn't providing this online framework, either. It's adding some of the FEATURES of the famework, with a shiny 3D finish, but it's not actually adding the sort of technological multiplayer backbone I described before.

[Keowrath]

Silellak, I respect your opinion and totally agree that as it stands XBL is miles above the PSN. Home however is a fresh idea of the whole network thing, I guess it's just a much more complex GUI.

I don't really know if Microsoft need to have their own version, XBL is pretty damn solid at the end of the day from what I've observed. I personally don't agree that you should pay for it but we'll have to agree to disagree there.

I've played a few MMO's in my time (NOT WARCRAFT!!!... sorry =) ) and I love the idea of starting games up with friends by meeting their virtual representation, the idea of trophies is cool too (Although I'm severly gutted that I doubt Ninja Gaiden will allow me to show off completed MNM trophy HARUMPH!)

It's down to your own tastes. I imagine a lot of PS3 users are looking forward to it due to how plain the PSN has been (I've always had a good service but we're not exactly flooded with options) If Home is everything it's said to be it'll be vastly different from what we've had up till now. You've always had a good service from Live so I can understand why you're not bothered about changing.

[SeNiLe911]

Home is cool and all especially for free but you wouldn't find me anywhere near it. I like playing games with action and adventure, not playing in a second life.

If M$ should copy anything or any company, it should be the Nintendo Wii. They have come out with something very innovated that could work nicely with the Xbox 360 or the PS3 for that matter. That is something that would grab not only the attention of casual gamers but hardcore gamers as well.

If M$ or Sony steal that idea, whoever does and soon will beat out Nintendo and be the winner of this gens console War. The the thing Nintendo is missing this gen is the graphics and the games to grab hardcore gamers.

[Lord Vader]

Another agree for Silellak...

Home/Sony Sims doesnt do anything for me. I dont want to invite ppl to my virtual apartment to start a game ? How long is that going to take ? Never was a Sims fan either...

I wish Sony would streamline navigation of their current hud menu, my 360's is so much more functional.

Everyone has an opinion, Home is cool b/c it is free atm, but I could care less about virtual sims-like worlds. Yet another non-gaming feature in my book.... I wish they would spend more money on game stuff like GTA content....

[kornbeaner]

I do see how you would want to support a service like live. But I really don't think the consumer should be asked to pay $50 for part of the games development. Having played on Live as well as PSN, I would have to give the edge to Live. The functionality and ease of use really streamlines what can be clunky on the same game on PC. But for PSN being a free service, it is not that far behind. The only problem I see with PSN is there is not that one uniform standard that makes Live that much easier to use. But thats also part of the charm. Games like Warhawk and Resistance are by far the best functioning games on PSN, thanks to dedicated servers and the developers for these games being so close to Sony. Also, by not having a uniform standard it has allowed Epic to allow PC mods to be crated for PS3 use without a backlash from Sony. Something that MS just does not allow with a service that a gamer pays money for. That is MY main issue with MS. If somebody is gonna pay for a service there should be more openess to the service. It's like paying the mortgage on your home and not being able to cut your own grass.

For better reference lets look at CoD4. The game performs on par with each other between the 2 consoles, the only difference being that Live allows for a better community thanks to the service. But the game itself performs that same between the 2.

Also you talk about $50 to support the community, which I can respect, which is one of the reasons I try my hardest to buy games new and not used, but in the end there are ways in which Microsoft is already able to support that community with the pricing of there points.

Example 2000 MS points are sold for $25. Thats not even a penny a point. So for every 2000 points MS sells they have already made $5 before you go and spend those points. Now lets say you buy an arcade game, the prices for those games reflect everything, cost of development, ad, and also MS share for the licensing, which can very from .50-$2 (more in some cases) depending on the game. So I think doing the math its safe to say out of every 2000 points you buy from MS there is about $6 - $8 (maybe more) that MS puts in its pocket or into the community. Multiply that by only a million and thats 6 to 8 million. And you know that is a low number considering the amount of digital product MS moves. Again I can respect you for supporting the MS online community, but please don't be fooled into thinking the $50 a year is the only way MS can keep the Live service going because its not. All the accessories are made by MS, Wifi connectors, controllers, HDD, battery packs, ETC. There are plenty of products MS has out for the system that I feel it is unjust for them to ask the consumer to pay another $50 a year to help them make developers life easier. Games have already gone up in price by $10 so where is that money going?

In the end Live provides better functionality then PSN, but PSN is not lacking as much as most make it seem, and with Home on the horizon it seems that Sony will rectify most of the lacking areas and improve on many others.

[Exhaust]

Do you people think we'd have universal in game voice chat on PSN by now if we were paying for it?

Absolutely. We would. Paying $4 a month has its ups and downs.

The fans that are already predicting Home will be huge should put the word "hope" in their sentence. You all "hope" it will be huge... I for one "hope" its a fun product before I "hope" it will be huge because I'm in this for a fun console experience more than forum bragging rights.

I'll get a ton of disagrees because I dared to say anything bad about the PS3 but thats fine. You guys can brag all you want about the FREE PSN service when it matches what XBL already provides.

I like my PS3 and PSN for its original games but not being able to private chat with my friend playing another game SUX!

[SeNiLe911]

so I thought I might as well throw out a deal for it to make it that much more sweet.

Buy.com has it for $38.75, use Google checkout for your first time and save $10.00, $28.75 http://www.buy.com/retail/p...

That makes it $2.40 a month, oh wait theres a month free as well bringing it down to $2.21 a month. not bad!

[Cupid_Viper_3]

"i don't think I need something like home on the 360"

my friend, that's exactly why it's not on the 360. no one said that 360 owners wanted something like home.

I seriously don't understand what is it you guys and the notion of "options" and ã "can do it all device". HOME Is going to be ã free optional service, do you understand that, its free. what the hell is wrong you all?

[SeNiLe911]

I got my first ignore from one of the two post I posted above. I could see if I hung out in the Open Zone next door ----> getting ignores could be had pretty easily but in here is a little strange for comments that where pretty mild if you ask me.

Well sorry for stepping on someone's toes.

[moparful99]

silellak I'm trying my best to respect your opinion but to say that xbl is far superior to psn is the reason I cant respect your opinion. If you weigh the pros and cons of both services then let someone else make their decision instead of pushing your opinion into this site then I could respect it more.
Ok xbox live has a smooth and seamless interface, universal voice chat allowing cross game private chats, in game dashboard, larger community. Psn is free, open service allowing developers to determine content and server support, voice text and video chat for up to 6 people simultaneously, free web browser. So both services have alot to offer. But on the other hand they both have issues xbl requires a subscription fee, have to buy microsoft points, closed service. Psn is slightly more complex, no in game xmb, no cross game chatting, have to exit game to read text messages... Of course neither service is perfect. Alot of people prefer live and alot prefer psn, it all depends on what you want out of your service. For people that just want to play games and arent worried about bells and whistles then yea psn is the way but if you want a deeper community with better member support the live is a good choice... I think the biggest determining factor is the price.... Now others here keep reffering to home as a game. It is not a game and I dont know how many times it has to be said. You dont have to go to your house to launch a game, its an optional service that happens to be free, and its just an attempt to advance the way we use our consoles and play our games. If you arent interested then why do you have to come on here and comment on it? Its this simple, you only set yourself appart as someone who doesnt appreciate innovation.

[player911]

Last I checked at my local Gamestop, a $20 Card was 2400 points.

I do have mixed feelings about Games being able to develop their own mods and such like UT.
-Love: Because UT has always brought in some sweet mods that keep the game new and refreshed. The lack of this feature made me change my mind buying it for the 360. But thats how the system works. Poor sales will make them re-think it next time.
-Hate: Because I'm an IT Administrator (network administrator) and I know that like anything popular... eventually you'll gets viruses. I'm actually surprised it hasn't happened yet, but I'll give it some time.

Keeping everything closed kinda sucks but the 360 gets updated material as well. Halo 3 gets new types of play just like Guitar Hero 3 gets new songs. The 360 just makes sure the source is legit and error free before distributing.

As far as home is concerned... I'm glad it's free. If I had a PS3 I would prolly put it on my system, check it out, then leave it alone. I can't really see myself using a service like this. Its a game console... I turn it on, jump in a game, and start voice chatting. When I'm done playing I turn it off. The only time I want to play my 360 is to play games. Sure I could IM, voicechat, download movies, etc... but I bought it to play games.

My wife would prolly like Home. Most girls like Myspace/Sims.

[zane547]

"Microsoft's Xbox 360 is loosing more and more coolness points."

"Playstation Home could just put Sony even further ahead"

The sense of biasedness just makes this article a bit... uninteresting.

[InYourMom]

Nevermind that this article is biased dribble. MS don't fall into this trap about 3D virtual worlds. This is an attempt to try and "one up" XBL but no worry because PSN lacks a lot of the basic features that make multplayer easy and connected. Sony thinks it can put out a cheezy online network and sprinkle HOME on top and it will somehow be better.

And people say Wii is a fad?!?!#?

Just get me into my games quickly, because again it is about games. Leave the PSN to their virtual worlds for the droids who have no real life and still live in mom's basement so they need a virtual place to feel like a big boy.

[gEnKiE]

Ok, I would actually like to see Sony release Home first!

[The Warmonger]

You will be able to get RRoD on your virtual console.
The virtual consoles with RRoD will be used as trophies.

The RRoD percentage will be higher in the virtual world so that you can experience it virtually before getting it in real life (training/simulation?).

Cheap shot, I know, but I couldnt resist.

[InYourMom]

feature to PSN so all the avatars can stand around tapping while they wait for a decent game.

[Sez]

thats a good one. bubbles for you. i couldn't stop laughing at that one.

[poopface1]

that was funny. I agree with you completley as all the fanboys and even gaming press are considering HoME as a big release, they must be hurting(I dont know as I have yet to purchase my pS3, but when I do I sure as hell wont use home, most my friends have 360 anyways)

[jack who]

Sony Playstation Home will launch some [u]when[u] in 2008

[InMyOpinion]

We haven't even seen Home yet. Why compete with something that might flop?

[Covenant]

Well, they've got the infrastructure in place (Live)...now, they need to do three things:

--Make hard drives standard for the 360, and cut the price of the existing ones ($40 for the 20GB is as high as it should go)

--Offer the virtual world for FREE to everyone: Gold and Silver members. Charge for content (as Sony is doing) but keep it reasonable.

--Market the *%#$ out of it to casual gamers.

[Guwapo77]

I believe it is a wait and see game now. MS wishes to see how successful or unsuccessful this home will be. MS knows this is an outstanding idea, they just need to watch for high and low points of Home and improve on it after Sony opens for use by all.

[kewlkat007]

Don't care about HOME never did. I think it's kewl and all but I spend enough time on Internet Social Sites.

I just wanna turn on my Console,

Play a game, look for new content, invite/chat to buddies to a game, not my Apartment. I seen it all before and was not interested. I used to play SIMS and lost interest due to time.

Plenty of titles coming out in 2008 and 2009 for me to spend useless time skipping around a Virtual World, when I could be leveling up in an RPG game.

As a casual Gamer, I don't have much time for Virtual Worlds too much games to play.

[gonzopia]

Home is based on the idea of the MMO - which are vastly popular game types these days (look at WoW or SWG in its prime). Many people love the idea of logging in and keeping a persistent character that they can improve upon over time. It might not be for everybody, but the catch here is that you won't need to use it if you don't want to. It's entirely free, and entirely optional.

I think the MMO fans who own a PS3 will check it out (I know I will) and it does look pretty slick. If it enables or improves the feeling of community, I'm all for it.

[kewlkat007]

like you said what can I loose, it's FREE and I have a PS3. I'm just going by my tastes for certain Games that were pretty much similar and why I never did put in time on them.

but I have a good feeling I've been there and done that. Unless this does something "totally" different..

Just my honest opinion not fact.

[gonzopia]

Yeah - I'm not trying to be standoffish or to imply that Home is going to be for everyone, just that it will nurture a wider sense of community than is available currently, and give people a place to meet other players (virtually face-to-face) and share stuff. That's desperately needed on the PS3, but the best part is that it's optional.

Does the Xbox 360 need something similar? No. It would likely go over well, and would satisfy a similar need, but a Virtual World like this will always only appeal to a certain portion of the gaming population.

Sony is guessing the portion will be large.

[moparful99]

Ahh my dear sir you have said it better then I could. I just couldnt quite equate my thoughts into words, lest you did it for me.. Thank you and I wholly agree. Home is a place to "nurture" the gaming community. As evidenced by this site it usually turns into a console war on the internet so to have a place where people who enjoy the ps3 and its games is fantastic. Its not just myspace with 3d avatars, its not just a rip of second life. Its a living, breathing, and hopefully thriving environment that allows the barrier between gamers as well as developers to be broken. Never have gamers been able to congregate into a central "hub" with fully customizable representations of themselves or whatever their mind desires and just enjoy their hobby... Sony deserves respect for their efforts but we should reserve judgement until after the service is opened to the public.....

[TABSF]

sony have always been better than microsoft and always will
microsoft is on its last limb only business will keep it on its peg

Playstation
when ever, were ever, forever

[tweaker]

* additional fees required

[Salvadore]

It depends on the success of Home, but I don't expect it to be free.

[Anego Montoya FTMFW]

but there will be advertising.

i just hope it`s NOT forced on you.

like having to walk thru the "nike store" to get to your house.

[Mars Attacker]

I know there are a lot of games that people are really truly looking forward to on the PS3. I know this because there are many who are very vocal about them. KZ2, GT5 and MGS for example. Does anyone really care about Home? Is anyone really waiting on this? Is it just me or does Home look incredibly stupid? I think it's all hype.

I understand the MS already was developing something like Home a couple of years back and scrapped it. Good riddance!

[Anego Montoya FTMFW]

10 years ago people would have said............

"Why use MSN when there`s a phone"

5 years ago people would have said............

"Why use Facebook when you can use MSN"

people LOVE these kind of things.

if you don`t, that`s fine.

but atleast recognize that ALOT do.

[wowsauce]

10 years ago, I would have said "SWEET I can use MSN for less than the price of my phone to talk to people around the world." 5 years ago, I would have said "SWEET I can connect with people from my area/school in a moderated relatively exclusive community while having an easy way to stay in touch with all my friends regardless of how often I change my email or SNs."

All of those things brought an advantage to the table. Home doesn't really have an advantage. It's a game where you go to walk around, meet other people, play games with other people, mess around with friends, or practice interior design. As it stands now, a general online service that's just like XBL lets you meet people(while you're playing games with them, so you have similar interests already), play games with other people, and communicate/mess around with friends. So pretty much Home is xbl except you can walk around and practice interior design... super.

[TheWickedOne]

13.2 Home is not a game. Why do people keep on saying that?

[moparful99]

anego was refering to the reluctance of consumers to accept change before they even know the advantages of a new service or product. You, being the minority, obviously love change and harbour it. But the consumer base as a whole slowly repsonds too change until a relatively large portion of the market has adopted the change. Only rarely does a new innovation become a mass adopted product relatively fast. I can only think of electricity, due to the fact that it improved our standard of living so dramatically. Gamers however love change and innovation and adopt it very rapidly, so something like home will be adopted quickly but mass market success depends on the quality of the service. You are far to quick to pass judgement on home. Home isnt simply a game as you put it. Its far beyond a game, its a social networking device. You're right that it takes xbl and adds a 3d environment to explore and interact but it adds all of the services that a gamer would need and adds extra content. Imagine having checkers, chess, air hockey, pool, arcade games at your finger tips without having to pay or download them. Instant fun for you and a friend. It seems like you only degrade home because it is a sony product which is sad because you could be missing out on a great service because of biased reasoning.......

[wowsauce]

XBL is about to get a wealth of indy games that are going to be playable for free over XBL/XNA creators club. These are going to be a mix of new and established games(like chess/checkers/airhockey).

Either way, how much time do you honestly think you will spend playing checkers or chess in home? It's good to have as an option, but there are many larger issues with PS3/PSN that they could be fixing with the resources they're putting into home.

Now, on Home being a social networking device. Put simply, it is no more a social networking device than the games you already play over PSN/XBL (xbl moreso because PSN has a few issues with cross-game communication). The reason it's not going to be a great social networking device is because it's platform specific. Do you think if you could only access facebook from Macs it would be so huge?

There's going to be a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of the people that own a PS3 using home. In that a fraction of PS3 owners bought it as a blu-ray player, a fraction of the remaining don't play over PSN, a fraction of the remaining won't download home, and a fraction of them won't use it regularly.

[LevDog]

Actually Im not off topic your were talkin about "online framework" Which besides achievments and accessing Messegeing In Game (which Ps3 is getting Both) and I was just stating facts about paying for this " Framework so I wasnt Off topic.. You were the one talking about Support for a system and Online capacity.. you were talking about Paying for the OVERALL.. So I just explained what you are PAYING FOR.. Simple Learn to read.. Thanx

[poopface1]

find this stupid. I dont see how itis neccesary and sure wouldent use it. If you had to go to someones virtual home to see achievements they wouldent be half as popular as they are today. The idea is good but if it isnt that easy to view achievemnts then many just wont bother. All these people who are looking foward to home weere saying that achievements are stupid and not worth their time, but now there going to go into a virtual 3d world just to look at there buddies trophies? I can start up my 360 and within 10 seconds be comparing my friends achievements to mine. And not just one person, it has all of my friends on one list. Also sony thinks the developers are gonna like making 20 or so 3d trophies for each game they make when a simple 2d picture is more than enough. If I wanna meet my friends online somewhere its gonna be on the battlefield not in some sim world where I can look at their 3d trophies.

[Anego Montoya FTMFW]

13.1

[poopface1]

but it isnt really like that at all. I doubt that that many people are gonna want to use this except current users, mabe. Facebook etc. is nothing like this as there are more computers than people in this country and majority of its users are not gamers. In other words, no one is gonna buy a PS3 because of this especially when they have facebook etc on their pc or any of the other 300 million or whatever computers there are. I dint even know about achievements until I bought 360. But you can look at them while playing games and compare to your friends so easily that I began to welcome them, instead of viewing them as a gimmik. And from what ive seen sony is taking the one thing outa achievemnts that made them so popular: simplicity.

I voted to give you bubbles so you can reply :)

also above when I say this is stupid Im talking about the article not HOME itself, as any upgrades are good things in my opinion.

[suedester]

You seem to be jumping the gun about PS3s "Accomplishments" system. Sony haven't released many details about it yet and we've no idea how it will be integrated. They may be just as easily viewable on the PS3 as the 360.

[Leathersoup]

I'm not sure that's absolutely necessary. I think that Xbox Live is just fine the way it is. I don't want to play Doll House on my console.

[Lord Vader]

LOL !!!

AMEN !!!!!

[moparful99]

People such as yourself are the reason that americans are sometimes viewed as c@cky, overly arrogant people who are too full of themselves to realize anything else. This country was built on the foundation of open innovation and a peoples who contributed to the world as a whole instead of focusing on their short term gain... Why do I bring this up? Because you are casting judgement on an innovative service that is only attempting to add value to the steep price of gaming in modern society. Is home neccesary? Nope not at all, but we are getting it. Is xbox live necessary? Nope. For that matter are games in general necessary to survival? Not by a long shot, but we love it and we continue to support and purchase games. If your, I dont need it because I think its unecessary approach was adopte by all gamers then the games industy would be stuck in the 80's. I could easily make a correlation that achievements on xbl is simply a "my d!ck is bigger then you d!ck" competition but I dont. I have the tact to respect the way other people enjoy their games. If you're going to act so childish you need to stay off of this site or take your fluff to the open zone.... GOOD DAY!

[poopface1]

WTF are you talking about. If thats his opinion then its just that, his opinion. It has nothing to do with being american. His opinion probaly has more reasonability than your, if you hate home your a bastard american, cause at least his makes sense. The title of the article says is it necesary for live to copy home. HE and me both have LIVE and don't want HOMe at all. It has nothing to do with being american, and everything to do with playing games, not secondlife on my 360. Guess what, when I get a PS3, I sure as hell can say I wont use home, am I a coky ahole too cause I dont want it.

[Milkman541]

Home is going to be huge are u kidding...As anyone seen how Facebook and Myspace are going...Or Second Life...They are huge, Sony knows this and so should everyone else...they are making sure when it gets released they are doing it right...Can not wait..

[heyheyhey]

did you guys read that surfer girl post?

she said that M$ had already started planning a Home-type thing in 2002, but abandoned the idea

perhaps they thought that it wouldn't work- i bet they are kicking themselves right now

[Dann7978]

There goes M$ copying from everyone again. Can we hear RROD's all over the place espicially lag.

[pshizle]

please

[GrimWarrior]

MS should call it "XBox Live World/Universe"...

lol

i think i should be working for MS!! hehe

[kewlkat007]

you know they are hiring for that same Jaab?

[VirusE]

If i wanted to play 2nd life i would play 2nd life, i dont need a ms or sony version of something that has been out for years now on pc. I dont see how home is going to make playing games any more fun in the end. Home just seems like a bid towards the myspace/facebook teen crowd. Count me out regardless of which system its for, i dont need a virtual life my real life is busy enough as it is. When i do have free time i like to spend them playing games not decorating my fake apartment.

Milkman541 as huge as 2nd life is, i have yet to meet a single person who actually plays it.

[heyheyhey]

i agree that Home is basically 2nd Life

but the difference is that it's a gaming-centric 2nd Life- it features trailers for upcoming games on virtual cinemas in "virtual E3" kind of way

it features the ability to unlock items by playing games e.g get this "accomplishment" to unlock Ratchet Ears or something

it's only being used by people with a PS3 so mostly everyone in it will be a gamer and therefore you can chat to him about gaming-related things

plus tons of Game's will have integration into Home in some kind of way

im pretty excited for it

[kewlkat007]

the 25+ year old gamer, that might have GF,wife,kids,work and happens to game, when he/she gets a chance is gonna spend tons of time on this thing?

I know adults at work that are addicted to Second life well that because they are at Work doing something else then working.

[wowsauce]

Honestly, would you rather go into home walk to a cinema and watch the movie projected onto a fake cinema screen, or just stream the movie?

In that same vein, but slightly different, Do you honestly think you're going to spend that much time on your PS3 decorating your apartment? When I go on my console, it's not to just mess around, it's to play games. Everything else is unimportant, and there's no need to put so much time into it.

PS: I hate that I can't say "d1ck around" instead of mess around :(

[Utalkin2me]

God i hope this home does something good for the PSN, cause right now it's a tird.

[etownone]

Personally, i like LIVE and how easy and quick it is to find things or start playing with friends.

I'm 32, and I have no interest in making a virtual life in HOME.
And unless your under the age of 12, i just dont understand why so much hype about HOME.

If your over the age of 12, why are you looking forward to HOME so much? Are you guys really going to decorate your virtual apartment? go out on the virtual streets and meet friends? or go check out your buddies virtual apartments?

[kornbeaner]

To answer your question, I could really careless about attempting to make friends in HOME, but for many this has something to do with it begin more of a 3-D myspace. Live for the most part is a real-time myspace for gaming, you log on you got your pals, they see when your on, message you and invite you to games and it works great. HOME on the other hand, I believe is looking to add that second degree of interaction, not only will I now know what friends are logged on I can see them (or at least their avatar) talk to them face to face, wait and bowl or play pool as we are waiting for our other friends to log in so we can all sit in our virtual apartments and think of ways to destroy people on Resistance 2 or Killzone 2. I think it's this level of interaction that gives people a sense that a clan or buddy is no longer relegated to text messages, but we can have a more fulfilling experience in general.

I guess the best way I can sum it up is XBOX live is a real-time myspace for gamers.

Home seems to be a WoW gathering right before going out to the gaming world or Raid.

Both systems are huge, I guess it just comes down to which one you rather have a gamers version of Myspace or a more present version of a WoW gathering.

[FirstknighT]

Why not just play Killzone 2 or Resistance 2 and talk about it than? Why would you want to play virtual bowling or vitural pool and talk about playing KZ2 or R2 when you can play the actual game?

I agree with etow...Home is a fun lil gimmick for the kids. Almost like decorating your dollhouse. But now you can do it with virtual plasmas. :p

[kornbeaner]

You agree with anything anti-sony so the last part of you statement doesn't shock me.

"Why not just play Killzone 2 or Resistance 2 and talk about it than? Why would you want to play virtual bowling or vitural pool when you can play an actual game?"

As far as that statement goes, games as a whole have evolved to a point where they are just to huge to try to plan strategy and tactics on the fly, meaning that you or your team will lose. Do you think some of the best clans or players just sit around and wait for a challenge and they are naturally gifted at the game? That has never been the case, especially when it comes to FPS's. These players practice, practice, practice, learning all the in's and out's a map and discuss different ways to defeat the enemy. thats just what gaming has come to. Having never played WoW but knowing many people who have, they would always talk about the planning their guild would do in order to tackle some of the bigger enemies and quest in the game, some of them have told me that their guild would plan a week or 2 ahead of time just so they could get everything right. Now thats just for a 1 quest. So that just proves that games are getting bigger and bigger. The same thing can be said about CoD4, Halo, even go as far back as the days of Doom for the PC. Planning is always done ahead of schedule so that victory can be accomplished. Of course no plan is full proof and only the best gamers can make quick adjustment on the fly, but there the difference. Go in with a plan and only adjustments have to made, go in with no plan and you'll find youself in the bottom of the leaderboard not knowing what to do next.

[etownone]

if people like you turn on your PS3 to play for example, ReFOM, but go hang out in virtual apartments first with your buddies to talk "strategy" and maybe play some pool and bowling while waiting for more friends to show up and have a social virtual gathering... then i stand corrected.

but, i guess there will always be people like me, that turn on my 360 to play for example, Halo3, and goto my friends list to see which of my friends are playing Halo and jump in immediately and start playing Halo3 with the,...and while we are playing we can discuss strategies or whatever.

by the way, have fun picking out curtains for your new virtual apartment.

[kornbeaner]

Theres no right or wrong it all comes down to what environment the user perfers. I for one don't care about making friends on HOME, I barely got time for my real friends. But it's free so I might as well try it.

P.S. No curtains for me, just big screens everywhere :)

[FirstknighT]

Yeah and that will be Gears of War 2, Ninja Gaiden 2, Fable 2, etc..

Video games are 3d Virtual Worlds.

[wowsauce]

They're designing a virtual world to meet people have fun/communicate with friends, and play games, but they're forgetting that a good online service that's integrated across all games is already a virtual world where you can meet people, play games, and have fun/communicate with friends.

[aftrdark21]

but i don't think it will happen on this console. I'm sure the 720 or whatever it will be called will have it incorporated into live.

[ELite_Ghost]

yea just copy sony you f@gs!

[Says you]

Xglitche live is an advance service that is made from an alien race well I hate to break it to you its not that a great of a service its a piece of junk that make you guys think it is its just a 2d flat community and I like it when you guys say you won't use it but anybody can say that and make themselves sound like there not going to use it but you probably will in secrecy and of course psn is not that far off from xglitche live all it needs is what the features have on that service and it is done you nitwits make it like, its light years a head of its time xglitche live that is.

[ben806]

port secondlife over to the 360, thousands of users there already job done...

[DFresh]

Please MS can't even play Crysis what makes you think they can make something as complex and beautiful as Home.
F*** MS!
R.I.P
Zune
360
HD DVD

[tgh machines]

u retard crysis is for the pc which is owned by MS. DUMB ASS!

PS. F U

[SSCOOLCHEA]

But when it does come out it wouldnt hurt to try it , the damn thing is free so why is everybody bichin ( you bots ) . You have the ability to want or not want home . I like innovations . so anything that sony wants to try its cool . keep looking forward to gears , halo every flippin year , you fools

[poopface1]

If you read the articl it is apparent that someone thinks that 360 needs a pointless service that intregrates many features taht xbox1/360 have had(unless XMB and other stuff isnt part of home). Im here to say taht this service will never be a hair of facebook, myspace etc. people actually think this is gonna compete with something that only requires a computer to access. And to say live needs something similar to compete is a pretty fanboy thing to say(the article not you). Home isnt out yet, live havs 10 million people willing to pay for the service and sony is releasing a sims/facebook style 3d world which intregrates features which should have been included since day one. I really like it how sony doesn't even have to release things to get people saying its the next 360 killer. It still hasnt happened yet, and I doubt home will attract many potential buyers(me) lke some seem to think it will. In other word it may be great for PS3, and any improvements are good in my eyes, but the 360 doesnt need anythin like this. If it had something like this it would just be ignored, me anyways, by people who just want to play games.

[Z501]

the way people 'dislike' Home for what it's trying to be, is the same way people were talking when Live came out.

The Wheel of Life

[moodymofo]

i wouldnt say they need to do something as big as home but if they could do something like myspace where everyone could create there own gamerspace with music, backgrounds,videos,picks and maybe some marketplace content to make your gamerpage sweet

[Guitarded]

the fact that it is optional. If your friends aren't using it how much can it help with community interaction if your community is separated by Home and non-Home users.

[DFresh]

Yes, but retard it can't be played on the 360 douche only PS3 so suck it and it'll kill the PC version by 3X in graphics and w/ Blu-ray more space for better features so bite me xbot.

[Citizen Cook]

They do software right? Better than anyone else. So they can't make a console, they can make the software for it though.

HA HA HA HA!

[Cynical-Gamerzus]

First off im considered a MS support Pro from 98 to server 2003 to Vista I have intimate experience in their systems at a business level and user level.
But let me make this point MS is the master of marketing and ripp off of ideas and competition,(they have the money to!!)Why Not
So ill say after cloning, OSX,Xerox,Apple Ipods,Linux,video game systems,search engines,etc,etc.
They should release a virtual world and yet again clone again.If they could do it better why not.,hmmm but with no hard drive on many 360's that could be a problem........!!

Ill wait for 360 II
with solid state 100MB pers second RW then ill be on the MS band wagon ,,maybe lol!!!

[Guitarded]

So is anyone who thinks it will be a success.