PlayStation Home gets voice chat

Sony has promised that "tons of cool stuff" will be coming to PlayStation Home as part of a new update next week - and revealed that voice chat will be reinstated.

Update Version 1.4 will hit on Thursday (November 11), and Sony claims that it will have an "enormous impact on [Home's] users and developers alike".

[MultiConsoleGamer]

HOME is the most under utilized feature on the PS3. It has tremendous potential to be a game changer but that potential is being squandered. As it stands how, HOME is nothing more than a glorified living advertisement / digital mall.

[saint_john_paul_ii]

its not fully integrated to the PSN. just imagine a Home with that Trophy room, or netflix/Hulu+ integration in your virtual Living room/your Personalized theater room. Lots of people will use it. or just imagine being able to join it with other people in a party in it, then jumping straight into a game.

as for advertising, companies are not even using it as much, because its not working well for them to promote their items there.

at the end of the day, they need to get the PS3 Firmware team and the Home team in the Same building so that they can collaborate ASAP

[MeatPopsicle]

"Lots of people will use it."

Hilarious. 20 million Home users and you're tying to pretend like Sony somehow desperately needs your advice to get people to log into Home...

[FragMnTagM]

Maybe I will use it more now.

@MeatPopsicle. Chill out man Pope is one of the biggest opinion pushers around here, but I do agree with him. It would be a great idea if the people that managed different aspects of features of the PS3 got together more often.

It is very obvious that everything about the PS3 was done by different teams as nothing really flows together too well.

Not hating, just pointing out that there is still room for improvement with the interface. I would gladly pay 50 bucks a year for Sony to improve their GUI. I am in a way, as I am a PSN+ subscriber.

[MeatPopsicle]

"As it stands how, HOME is nothing more than a glorified living advertisement / digital mall."

Yes, that is why Home now has 20 million gamers logging into...

Home is an absolutely gigantic project that no other gaming company has anything remotely close to or likely ever will for years to come.

So please, give these inane Home rants a rest. They just make people look silly. You don't have this massive numbers of users logging into and using your service and have the massive flow of content from game developers and publishers unless you have an amazingly compelling service like Sony has with their massive success with Home.

[k2d]

Stop being such a tool. I've visited Home after almost every update, yet I still have to conceed with MCG on this one. Don't come here saying 20 million people have visited Home more than 3 times since it's release, because there really isn't any reason to!

[jizzyjones]

Needs more integrated music (its just too quiet)
More game's machines in the arcade (the 2 current offerings are so dated)
An overall speed bump
Better avatar's (think PS eye take a photo of your face)
Trophies
MOVE SUPPORT which I think would be the most engaging (Think bowling/darts/mini golf/pool ect)
More in game unlockables that unlock stuff in HOME (Red dead was first to do it from what i gather)

If it could achieve this I think it would truely live up to potential as I think the hard bit is over.

[TheMART]

lol @ 20 mln. users

How many of that 20 mln. make use of it on a regularly basis?

I logged in the last time I think when the E3 space was there. And it was dull.

Everyone I know (many also from N4G, well known users) don't log into home ever anymore. Haven't been there for months or even longer than a year.

I bet of those 20 mln. people just a small fraction 'uses' home on a regular basis.

[MariaHelFutura]

I don`t use it much but lots do. Everytime I`m in there it`s packed and Sony keeps progressing w/ it so it must be working to some degree for them.

[MeatPopsicle]

"How many of that 20 mln. make use of it on a regularly basis?"

Blah,blah,blah...

Sony, as usual, only reports both active and unique users.

42+ million PS3s and all you need is a Net connection and a simple click on the Home icon in the XMB. Shouldn't surprise anyone Sony has such a gigantic number of people logging into Home. Nothing else like it exists on any other gaming platform.

And Sony manages to do it all without charging idiotic online fees for their console.

[mindedone]

my Cole costume says hi.

[Redempteur]

Pff [email protected] HOME haters ..

HOME has +1mil regulars users ...

And sony is improving it .. and new content ( space and games are coming on a regular basis ).

My only problem with home is that i want more slots for my characters ... BECAUSE i'm AN ACTIVE HOME USER ..!!

[NegativeCreepWA]

lol, how many times can you screw up the abbreviation for million?

[NotSoSilentBob]

jizzyjones

You are wrong in thinking RDR was the first with Home Unlockables. Street Fighter IV was the first that I know of.

[FACTUAL evidence]

Kool and all but, they're more worried about chat in PSH, and we still don't have voice messagung on the XMB!? LQTM........Sony just don't get it....I just want my name change feature and voice messagung and I'm good.

@Jizzyjone Actually here are some of my games that unlocks home rewards, Tekken 6, batman AA, SF4, RE5, infamous. I have more but that's some i can think of.

@MariaHelFutura Keep thinking x game chat is nothing. Yeah I can just easily fone 2 of my friends in germany, and the other 2 in japam on my cell I'll fet that clan match set up /S....RIIIIIGHT. XGAME IS needed.

[MariaHelFutura]

Why would you need X game chat to play a game w/ your clan. That so people don`t have clans on PS3 games cause their NO X game chat. Ok....BTW, I hope you make it to 2 bubbles one day then we can have a actual conversation.

XD XD XD

[The Hunter]

We need Xross-Voice Chat!!!

[MariaHelFutura]

Xgamechat is overrated anyone I want to talk to while playing a SP game.....I`ll use the phone. I would be nice, but it`s not needed. IMO, anyway.

[MeatPopsicle]

It's the only bullet point Xbox fans can think to keep bringing up to try to justify the idiotic 60 dollar a year online fees they are forced to pay.

[MariaHelFutura]

It`s not worth the 60 bucks that`s for sure.

[pimpmaster]

@ MariaHelFutura shut up hypocrite.

[The Hunter]

LIVE has so much more features what the PSN doesnt have.. And that is lame!

[MinskyM]

"LIVE has so much more features what the PSN doesnt have"

Yep, laggy P2P gaming and tiny game sizes is something that PS3 and PC gamers are so envious of Microsoft's online service.

[bodybombs]

i think ill be the one to decide whats worth a little over a dollar a week. thank you

[NegativeCreepWA]

Actually its a feature thats very convenient to have, your just making up reasons why you don't need it. What I don't understand is why cant we even do voice messaging on PSN. We shouldn't have to use a phone while on online and I don't want give my number out to people I meet online.

[seinfan]

Use the phone, huh? kinda sucks when you don't have a plan with an assload minutes nor a battery that can hold its charge for an all-nighter.

[MariaHelFutura]

For someone who thinks their a pimp....your acting like a b!tch. Maybe you should consider a name change.

XD XD XD

[zeksta]

Xbox Live, may have many features but the fact is, most of them are worthless, i mean how often do you use ESPN or some other feature integrated into Xbox Live? You don't much.

Slowly, PS3 is catching up to the 360 in features and the console sales, eventually they will release cross game chat or party mode, but until then, you have what you have and it's FREE so be happy.

[NegativeCreepWA]

It's free be happy, thats worst thing you could say. If everyone had that attitude nothing would ever change and company's would never try to make improvements.

[FragMnTagM]

I use last.fm, Netflix, ESPN, and many many other features of XBOX Live regularly.

I also log into PSN frequently and look for new stuff on my PSN+. I occasionally go into Home, but I will probably go more often now that there is voice chat and you won't be getting fooled that the girl you are talking to is actually a guy.

[Balt]

Didn't we have this when it 1st launched? Strange. Backwards is the way forwards.

[zeksta]

But it was removed on the grounds that it was being abused too much, hopefully people have learned.

[thehitman]

I got excited for Home was the trophy room and Sony still hasnt delivered im quite dissapointed with Home thus far, but that sounds like a nice update hope they keep improving until they finally get to what they promised they would deliver us.

[trainsinrdr]

theres is going to be so much stalking now lol

[NegativeCreepWA]

Nice been waiting for it to come back, cant stand typing. Looks like they're doing it right this time with a party system. Didn't care for the way it was the first time around having to hear every screaming teen in home.

[Weaksauce1138]

Home is PS3's HD DVD drive

[im-12-years-old]

So home was a failure of a storage format that only idiotic people bought?

Have you ever herped so much that you derped?

[Paradise Lost]

So there will be party chat in home? Alright that's a start.

[clintos59]

I havent been on home for a few months but good 2 see it just keeps growing. Dont get mad haters, its only free to use, so why get mad.

[Skynetone]

just the loading times know, i was thinking your apartment loads up and by the time you walk across your apartment to the door, 10/15 seconds it should load the outside, if thats not enough you get into a glass lift and travel down a skyscraper from the top floor all while enjoying the view down, they should also add fake queues to slow people down and allow loading

[typikal82]

So home has X Voice Chat within itself and the ability to all be in the same lobby with your friends and launch the same games with your friends presynced. Yet no one knows to use it.

[GoldPS3]

This is good. Thanks Sony.

[Neo Nugget]

I just got back into Home recently. It's pretty damn fun if you're into that kinda thing.

[kasasensei]

home is one of the biggest fail this gen.

[kingPoS]

The way I see it, Home could be used like an interactive twitter. Sure xbox has party chat, but there's just something different about actually walking up to a group and joining in.

Everyone knows about the humble "twitter" right...

[Sizzon]

Atleast it's free. Can't complain about that. And it's not that bad.

[earbus]

I just deleted home waste of space on the fourty gig id spend 5 mins and leave but some people love it.

[Bounkass]

PlayStation Home already has voice chat...