Playstation Home.

[slade]

It's basically a large virtual space in which you can create your own apartment replete with your gaming accomplishments as well as meet other people online. Looks kind of cool actually as it seems to integrate some of the features that MS and Nintendo boast.

http://ps3.ign.com/articles/770/770998p1.html

[Ocelot]

Here's the official trailer for Home....http://www.gametrailers.com/player.php?id=17558&type=wmv

Kinda reminds me of a The Sims meets Animal Crossing meets Mii....Online, its free w00t!

I can't wait for Phils entire keynote:thumbsup:

[Ocelot]

I just found some Pics of "Home"

http://www.kotaku.com/assets/images/gallery/9/2007/03/medium_413858467_088e805b1d_o.jpg
http://www.kotaku.com/assets/images/gallery/9/2007/03/medium_413857651_9cf270a129_o.jpg
http://www.kotaku.com/assets/images/gallery/9/2007/03/medium_413857415_f7e5713268_o.jpg
http://www.kotaku.com/assets/images/gallery/9/2007/03/medium_413856640_a2b973a203_o.jpg
http://www.kotaku.com/assets/images/gallery/9/2007/03/medium_413855688_97ea95e068_o.jpg

[slade]

Yeah, nice going. I was debating whether or not to link to the trailer but then decided feh, you clowns want the info you can go look it up yourselves. I'll include the trailer for Little Big Planet though.

[folken001]

Yeah, nice going. I was debating whether or not to link to the trailer but then decided feh, you clowns want the info you can go look it up yourselves. I'll include the trailer for Little Big Planet though.
.
There is a lot of good news for PS3 today. Playstation Home looks very promising. Then Sony is backing up their killzone 2 claim. From what I read on gamespot, it definitely looks promising. I hope the real killzone 2 is 3rd person though. Then the littlebugplanet looks really good. I can't wait t play it.

Overall, PS3 is finally getting something going. Lair/Heavenly Sword will break the ice then other big titles will soon follow. I am happy for Sony. It didn't give its ballz to people like take two and ubisoft. While losing these titles exclusivity is disappointing, but what matters even more is that Sony can stand its own ground without them.

[Rogue Bounty Hunter]

[QUOTE=folken001I hope the real killzone 2 is 3rd person though.[/QUOTE]

That's probably the only way I'll consider the game, if it's in 3rd person. If anything, the devs should give the player the option of which view to use. Then again, the developer of this game (and the first) hasn't made anything good yet, so I'm not going to expect much from them.

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

RBH I can't see how you prefer a shooter in the 3rd person. God I hate it. The intensity level just get's ratcheted way up in the first person for me. I even played the suffering in the FP even though it was primarily a 3rd person game.

Home uh Sony doesn't seem to get it. They are looking at the competition then just trying to top them. Nintendo has a motion controller lets get one two let's copy mii and achievement and make it better. The problem with home is that it's totally outside the game. Live is integrated it's part of the game. Home looks cool to fool around with and it may be a hit. But it's not a U.I. I intially thought they were going for something like the crib in 2k sports as the u.i. that would be better than a MMO going around looking for people to play with. Ugh. Are they going to have any standards with there online environment. The standardaztion of live is what makes it cool.

[slade]

The problem with home is that it's totally outside the game.

Nope, they demonstrated this a bit with Little Big Planet in the trailer. You can jump straight from Home into the game. Support for other games will have to be built in and just like with Live at the beginning, Sony will have to push for game developers to include that support.

Home, I suppose, will serve as your standardized friends list. You can see which of your friends are online and take them into the game with you. I've also read that you can make a house for clan gatherings. There's also other stuff like online movie theatres where you and a bunch of friends can go and watch movies as well as the Hall of Fame.

All in all, this thing looks like a virtual leapfrog over the competition. It's a lot more then you guys realize. If you can track down Phil Harrison's GDC keynote, then watch that. It goes a lot more into detail then these gametrailer videos.

[folken001]

RBH I can't see how you prefer a shooter in the 3rd person. God I hate it. The intensity level just get's ratcheted way up in the first person for me. I even played the suffering in the FP even though it was primarily a 3rd person game.

Home uh Sony doesn't seem to get it. They are looking at the competition then just trying to top them. Nintendo has a motion controller lets get one two let's copy mii and achievement and make it better. The problem with home is that it's totally outside the game. Live is integrated it's part of the game. Home looks cool to fool around with and it may be a hit. But it's not a U.I. I intially thought they were going for something like the crib in 2k sports as the u.i. that would be better than a MMO going around looking for people to play with. Ugh. Are they going to have any standards with there online environment. The standardaztion of live is what makes it cool.
I understand why RBH would prefer 3rd but I don't understand he would want to eliminate first person completely. They have their pros and cons. But, with 3rd person, I feel I have better grasp on the situation around me. In FPS, when I walk pass an intersection, I literally have to turn to see what's next to me. But, that's not very real life like and sometimes it's outright annoying.

As for home, I like it. It looks interesting. We'll see more at this year's E3.

[Rogue Bounty Hunter]

Besides sniping and using a rocket launcher (like in Halo or GTA), I find playing games in first person pretty much useless. I just can't enjoy gaming in that view.

[slade]

Huge FAQ of Home:

Press Q&A:

Home Key Points:
• Its the first of it’s kind on a videogame console
• A unique blend of community, user-generated content, collaboration
and commerce that is the future of computer entertainment.
• Will broaden the online community market in the same way that the
PlayStation brand has broadened the video gaming market
• Will take the mystery and the geekiness out of online interaction, and
make it as easy as text messaging or picking up the phone
• Is inclusive and welcoming, not exclusive and daunting like current
offerings
• Is the gateway and start point for a huge range of future
PLAYSTATION®Network services

Q: How do you get to Home?
A: Home will be available as a free download from the PLAYSTATION
Store and will launch directly from the PS3 XMB™ (XrossMediaBar).

Q: Why is Sony Computer Entertainment creating this service?
A: The power of the PS3 and the PLAYSTATION Network afford us the
opportunity to create a unique user service that will define the future of
community on computer entertainment platforms. We feel it is
important to foster not only user-interaction, but increased, ongoing
contact between users, first and third party publishers and other
partners.

Q: Is there a cost or a subscription required to participate in Home?
A: Home is free to download and free to use. The user will be able to
purchase items from the PLAYSTATION Store (Home supports the
Sony Wallet) to further customise their Home Space, as well as make
purchases from other third party partners

Q: Is Home global?
A: Yes, when it launches Home will be a global network service.

Q: When is Home launching?
A: We will be executing a closed beta this spring. The official launch date
will be later this year.

Q: What is the ambition of Home?
A: Home Space
• Design and build your own apartment, house or even
neighbourhood.
• Purchase new landscapes, apartments and furniture
World
• Purchase new clothing sets, pets and accessories for your
character
• Purchase functional items to add value to your private Home
experience
• Leave your mark on the world with premium player-created content
tools.
Entertainment
• Share photos, movies and music from your PS3 HDD with friends in
your personal space.
Gaming
• Meeting game-specific lobbies to discuss games, get new content
or team up for online gameplay
Lobbies
• Individual lobbies created by first and third parties allow for
consumer interaction, commerce

Q: Isn’t Home a copycat?
A: Home is a first of its kind 3D community that allows for open interaction
between consumers, Sony Computer Entertainment and third party
partners.

Q: How is this different from other network communities?
A: Home is a much more rich, user friendly experience than other network
communities, allowing for ease of entry and use, as well as being fullyfunctional
with the technology and capabilities of PS3

Q: How will you make money from Home?
A: The business model for Home is based on a combination of
ecommerce and advertising revenue.

Q: How will third party partners be able to be involved in Home?
A: Third party partners will be able to build their own custom lobbies for
their products, where they can present information to users, provide
downloadable content and implement various ecommerce models.
Advertising options will also be made available through Home.

Q: How big is the Home download?
A: The Home download will be under 500MB.



Presence / navigation / features

Q: What is the function of the Home central lobby and what is the
maximum number of users in a lobby?
A: The Home central lobby is the central meeting place where you can
meet new friends or arrange to meet old friends, before transferring to
a private meeting place. The current maximum number of concurrent
users in a single lobby is 64, but there will be a multitude of lobbies
active at any given time for users to explore.

Q: How do you make sure friends are present in the same space?
A: You can invite them via your friends list or invite them to your personal
Home Space

Q: How do players find friends within the Home world?
A: We will have search functions for finding people online and offline, and
for finding lobbies.

Q: How many Home avatars can I have?
A: The current plan is for each user to have one avatar. Home is the
human face of PLAYSTATION Network (PSN), and your Home avatar
is how you represent yourself. However, it will be possible to change
your appearance, through customising your character and adding
accessories, so you’ll be able to constantly re-invent yourself should
you so desire.

Q: How can I customize my Home avatar?
A: Home avatars are fully customizable with different facial features,
height, weight, sex, skin color, hair styles, clothing, accessories, etc.

Q: Can you enter, say, MotorStorm™ quickly through Home without
having to travel to the specific MotorStorm™ lobby?
A: Currently, users can find each other in Home, and then arrange to go
off and play MotorStorm at the same time. Eventually, users will be
able to meet in Home and seamlessly launch into a game of
MotorStorm™. Similarly, users will be able to exit to Home directly from
the game.

Q: How will the Hall of Fame rewards program be implemented?
A: Users receive points for in-game achievements. More details
regarding this will be made available closer to launch.



Moderation / Abuse

Q: What is the policy on acceptable behaviour?
A: Within our public spaces, Home follows the same rules and guidelines
as the PLAYSTATION Network with regard to age stipulations and
acceptable behaviour. Home uses all the same age controls as the
PS3 System Software. Private spaces will not be monitored unless
abuses or violations to our policies are reported by a user.

Q: How will I protect my kids from seeing things they shouldn’t?
A: Within our public spaces, Home follows the same rules and guidelines
as the PLAYSTATION Network with regard to age stipulations and
acceptable behaviour. Any public areas that contain subject matter not
suitable for all users will be age restricted, and the registered age of
users will determine entry.

Q: How will age restrictions be applied?
A: Home employs the same age restriction policies as the PS3 System
Software and the PLAYSTATION Network.

Q: How will I protect my kids from associating with undesirable
people?
A: Parental controls are available through PS3 and the PLAYSTATION
Network. We encourage parents to take an active role in participating
any time a child has access to an open communication network, such
as the Internet.

Q: Will users be able to make complaints about other users?
A: Of course. We will operate a system of logging complaints with our
moderators, which will then be investigated. If necessary we are able to
take away a user’s login rights and ban them from the service.

Q: How much control will we have over what people get up to in their
private spaces?
A: Our policy is not to actively police private areas, and a user cannot be
invited to another user’s private space until they have accepted an
invitation to be on their buddy list. However, the complaints process will
still operate in these private spaces, so if people feel that they have
been subjected to inappropriate behaviour while in someone’s private
space, they will be able to lodge a complaint by the usual process.





Home™ Development Q&A

General Features

Q: What is Home™?
Home™ is a real-time 3D, networked community that serves as a meeting
place for PLAYSTATION®3 (PS3™) users from around the world, where they
can interact, communicate, join online games, shop, share content and even
build and show off their own personal spaces. Home will be available as a
free download from the PLAYSTATION®Store and will launch directly from
the PS3 XMB™ (XrossMediaBar).

Q: What is the target demographic of Home users?
Home is for everybody. It is a global platform and the aim is to populate it with
a broad and rich content experience, the diversity of which will create a broad
and diverse community of users.

Q: How do consumers use it?
For the user, Home is a new experience in social networking. It’s a way to
meet new friends online, or hang out with old friends and family. It’s also a
rich media experience outside of the fundamental game-based activities on
PS3. It will reside on the XMB between Game and Network.

Q: What features does it have?
Communication between users, creation and customisation of your own
personal avatar, creation and customisation of your own personal space.
Ability to share media with friends, and to experience media from publishers.
Users will be able to benefit from game matchmaking, search facilities,
seamless transition between game and Home.

Q: What is the timeline for rollout?
Closed Beta (appx. 15,000 users): April - August
Open Beta (appx. 50,000 users): August - October
Service Live (50,000+): October

Q: What is the function of the Central Lounge?
The lobby is the central meeting place where you can meet new friends or
arrange to meet old friends, before transferring to a private meeting place.
The current maximum of concurrent users in a lobby is 64. But a multitude of
lobbies can be active at any time to accommodate all users.

Q: What other lobbies will exist within Home?
Over time Home will expand to include many different locations. It is our
intention that ultimately anyone can create a Home Space, be they a
publisher, a developer or a Non-game Company.

Q: What is the Hall of Fame?
The trophy room is a Home Space where users are able to display their
gaming accomplishments.

Q: How do I win Trophies?
Players will be able to win Home Trophies when they play games that support
the Home Trophy system. publishers and developers will be able to support
Trophies by building them into their games' architecture. Further information
on how to develop trophies within games will be available soon.

Q: What content will users be able to purchase from within Home?
Over time the range of content available to users will expand dramatically. If
you consider Home to be a simulacra of the real world then most goods and
services found within the real world could theoretically be replicated within
Home. Initially all commercial transaction will be via the
PLAYSTATION®Network (PSN) Store. Eventually users will be able to
transact within the Home environment.

Q: Will I be able to attend ticketed (paid-for) special events?
Yes, in time Home will play host to many types of event. Bespoke events such
as exclusive game previews and developer interviews will be organised by
Home and its affiliated content providers. Live events such as sports and
concerts may also be broadcast within Home.

Q: Can Home users win non-purchased prizes and items?
Yes, it will be possible to give prizes to users.

Q: Will all billing have to be via Sony Wallet?
Yes, all transactions will use the Sony Wallet system within the PSN Store,
although ultimately transactions will be possible without leaving Home.

Q: Can users share their favourite bookmarked Home Spaces with one
another?
Currently there isn't a way to do this, but this is a feature that we'd like to
implement in the future.

Q: When can users have / manage their own spaces?
Every user has a private apartment space that users can modify and change
over time. The basic apartment is free and will offer users lots of options for
customization and personalization. In the future we will provide tools that will
enable users to have an even greater ability to create their own Home spaces
and content.



Commerce & Partnerships

Q: Is Home a commercial environment?
Home is primarily a platform for social interaction and the intention is not to
create a space for purely conducting ecommerce. Home prioritises community
and entertainment over ecommerce. That said, we believe that there will be
ample opportunities for businesses and individuals alike to generate
significant revenues from the Home platform.

Q: When can I start to develop for Home?
You can register your interest to develop for the Home platform immediately
at http://home.scedev.net

Q: Who should I contact about developing for Home?
If you are an existing licence holder you should channel requests for
information through your existing 3rd Party Account Manager. If you do not
have a license agreement, please visit http://home.scedev.net where you will
find more information and an application to register your interest.

Q: I don’t have an existing PlayStation® licence agreement – how can
get involved in developing content for Home?
See above.

Q: I’m an IP / content holder / aggregator – how can I get involved in
Home?
See above.

[slade]

Cont'd:

Q: How soon can publishers and developers have and manage their own spaces?
We would like to engage with interested publishers and developers
immediately. If you an existing licence holder you should channel requests for
information through your existing 3rd Party Account Manager. If you do not
have a licence agreement, please visit http://home.scedev.net where you will
find more information and an application to register your interest.

Q: When can IP holders have / manage their own Home Spaces?
We would like to engage with interested IP and content rights holders
immediately. If you are an interested non-games company or IP holder,
please register your interest with us at http://home.scedev.net . An
appropriate representative will follow up your enquiry.

Q: What support will SCE give to 3rd Parties?
Support to publishers and developers with existing licence agreements will be
provided by the Third Party Relations groups within each region. If you are a
non-game content provider or do not have a license agreement, please visit
http://home.scedev.net where you will find more information and an
application to register your interest.

Q: Who should our developers call for support?
Registered developers should request information through their existing
support relationships. Information will be available on http://home.scedev.net

Q: Who will run Home?
SCE has created a Home Platform Group that will provide the technology,
strategic direction and support to each of the SCE regional headquarters.

Q: Home looks so great – how do publishers ensure that users continue
to play their games rather than spending all their time in Home?
There is a huge scope for publishers and developers to promote their current
and future IPs - as well as exploiting their back-catalogue. For example, it will
be possible to develop small demo-areas within Home that promote new titles,
or to re-publish an old IP as mini-game within their Home Space.

Q: Is Home just a platform for SCE-published games?
Absolutely not. Home will not be a success without broad support and
adoption by our Publishing and Development partners and indeed from nongame
companies and services.

Q: Is Home a PS3 specific service? Will users be able to access Home
through other devices?
Initially Home will only be accessible via that PLAYSTATION®3, although
over time our intention is to enable users to interface certain Home features
and services via other networked devices such as PlayStation®Portable
(PSP®) and mobile phones.

Q: Can I launch and watch a BD movie from within Home?
Launch, yes. Watch, no. (This means you would leave Home to watch the
BD™.)

Q: What is the business model?
The proposed business model for Home is still under review and we'll
announce the details in due course.

Q: How will publishers make money from it?
Initially we predict that the primary areas for generating revenues will come
from the following areas:
- Content purchases (e.g. avatar clothing and accessories)
- Advertising
- Content Auctions

Q: What will be the upfront investment and development costs be for me
as a Home content provider?
The tools and technology required to build and maintain a presence on the
Home Platform are being designed to enable fast and efficient development,
and use industry-standard processes and techniques. The resources required
are surprisingly low and entirely scaleable.

Q: How will businesses be able to promote their products?
The possibilities for promotion and advertising of products and services within
Home Spaces are virtually limitless. Given the initial broad set of functions
and features the possibilities are limited only by creative vision. As the native
features of Home will be continually growing, the creative possibilities will
grow also. The Home Platform Team will also take feature requests to support
our partners in their creative endeavours.

Q: Will we be able to sell products (other than Home assets) online?
Eventually Home will not only support the merchandising of virtual assets, but
also will provide cross-promotional opportunities for selling physical goods
online.

Q: Could publishers sell tutorials to their games through Home?
Yes, the commercial services and features that publishers and developers will
be able to support is extremely broad. Further discussion of specific content
ideas that you may have, please consult with your 3rd Party Account Manager
or register your interest in the Home platform at http://home.scedev.net

Q: What tools will be available for creating content, and when will they
be available?
The Home Platform Group will be providing a roadmap for the deployment
and content of Home Tools. Over time the Tools package will develop into a
comprehensive set of enabling technologies that we can provide to our
partners to assist them with their Home Platform content creation.

Q: Can we reserve a number of seats for the closed & open betas?
Yes, please liaise with your 3rd Party Account Manager and request the
number of seats that your company requires. If you do not have a TMLA,
please register your interest at http://home.scedev.net and an appropriate
Home Platform representative will contact you shortly.

Q: Will it be possible to have territory based promotions for regional
content?
Yes, although Home is a global platform there are regional Home Spaces that
users within each regional area will access by default (based upon their
registration details). There is no restriction on where a user can go from their
default starting location (other than any content age restrictions). Because
there are regional Home spaces, each region will operate its own promotional
events and activities.



Technical & Extended Features

Q: How large is the download?
We're aiming for the initial download to be under 500MB. Subsequent
downloads will hopefully integrate a streaming method that makes them
negligible.

Q: How do users find friends and spaces within Home?
There is an integrated PSN Friends list, and search functionality for spaces.

Q: How many friends can I have?
As many as the PSN friends list allows, which is currently 50.

Q: Will I be able to trade items that I have bought or won with other
Home users?
Ultimately, an auction service will be implemented that will allow users to sell
their Home assets and user-created content to other users.

Q: How often will the content in Home change?
Ultimately content in Home will be updated weekly. All the participants in
Home (the service itself, 1st Party and 3rd Party publishers, non-game brands
and ultimately users themselves) will be creating new content, so the flow of
new features will be will on a weekly basis.

Q: Can I create new items and content for Home myself?
This functionality is in the works for future release. We see user created
content as a very important element of Home's ongoing success.

Q: How will users transact within Home?
During the Beta period, there will be no purchases within Home.
Subsequently, commercial transactions will take place within Home.

Q: Can you enter, say, MotorStorm™ quickly through Home without
having to travel to the specific MotorStorm™ lobby?
Currently, users can find each other in Home, and then arrange to go off and
play MotorStorm™ at the same time. Eventually, users will be able to meet in
Home and seamlessly launch into a game of MotorStorm™. Similarly, users
will be able to exit to Home directly from the game.

Q: How often is incremental content being created for Home?
Content for Home will be developed continually. In addition to an ever
increasing variety of items to customize avatars and Home Spaces, there will
be special events such as Halloween and Christmas where special content
will be available for a limited time.

Q: Will consumers be bombarded with advertising?
Advertising is a core revenue source for the publishers who will have to put a
lot of resource and money into making the Home experience as fulfilling as it
will be. As an offset to having to pay for the basic online service, and being
able to enjoy the fundamental Home experience for free, some advertising is
entirely reasonable. Advertising will be kept to palatable levels however. It is
in no-one's interests to cause users to leave Home through excessive
advertising.

Q: How will I protect my kids from seeing things they shouldn’t?
Parental controls are available through PS3 and the PLAYSTATION Network.
We encourage parents to take an active role in participating any time a child
has access to an open communication network, such as the internet.

Q: How will age restrictions be applied?
Home employs the same age restriction policies as the PS3 system software
and the PLAYSTATION Network.

Q: What’s the development overhead?
Minimal. In the extreme, an application (say a mini-game) could be written in
C++ as normal, and then a thin Home layer added to implement that
application within Home.

Q: How quick and easy will it be to develop for?
Home will allow developers to use their own assets and code for applications,
and export those assets into a Home wrapper, which will allow the minimum
of bespoke work. The tools that will be available serve to provide that
wrapper, they do not require developers to work to particular specifications or
packages.

Q: Will developers be able to run existing code applications within
Home?
Given that any application would have to fit within the available resources
while running Home, and certain TRCs will need to be satisfied, yes.

Q: Will there be additional TRCs for games plugging into Home? When
will these TRCs be released?
There will have to be base TRCs for Trophies and Matchmaking before the
service hits the XMB™. Others will come online as they are needed.

Q: Will there be additional TRCs for Home game trophies? When will
these TRCs be released?
See above.

Q: In terms of user's names are they exclusive and different from their
network ID. E.g. PSN account = PeterE / Home name = Tarzan123?
Your Home user name will be the same as your PSN account ID.

Q: Can I log on to Home in addition to someone else from one PS3? E.g.
at my friends and I want to log on...
This is technically quite an advanced problem. It effectively means logging in
to two PSN accounts at the same time from one machine, which makes it
unlikely.

Q: How will I navigate between spaces?
Within Home you can travel instantly (i.e. through the world map), or at your
own pace on foot.

Q: How will the age restrictions work? Will I be able to see different
content in the generic lobby depending on my age?
Home employs the same age restriction policies as the PS3 system software
and the PLAYSTATION Network. These age restrictions will apply to both the
areas that users are admitted to and the content that they are able to view.

Q: When I jump back from a game into Home, will I return with the same
people next to me? Will I return to a default location?
Upon returning to Home, you will land in the same place which was your last
position before you left (for instance, if you left Home from your apartment,
that is where you will return to.) However, given that Home is an online world,
other users will doubtless have moved on while you are off doing something
else (unless you've specifically asked them to wait for you.) Currently Home
is not a persistent world, so when you leave Home, all of your possessions go
with you. For instance, it is not currently possible for other users to visit your
apartment while you're not there. We are working on the persistent aspect of
Home, and expect to implement it in the long term.

Q: Can I get media for my apartment from other devices such as PC?
Not yet; we are working on enabling this feature which is contingent upon
firmware functionality.

Q: Would we be able to showcase bespoke events such a live broadcast
of a multiplayer game?
Absolutely - it would even be possible to replicate a game that is being played
by two players together on one PS3, replicating their avatars and movements
on the "world stage". This could be an invitational match, with users paying to
view the event live.

Q: How will the DRM of purchased items work?
Home 's DRM system is based on the entitlements system which will be
offered by the PSN.

Q: Will I be able to give a purchased / earned item to another user?
Not yet; however it is a feature which is planned.

Q. How will sharing media work within the private space? Will users be
able to distribute content?
Users will not be able to broadcast their media to people outside their private
space, but they will be able to show their own media to invited guests. We
have deliberately chosen not to allow users to 'give' media to other users as
this opens up serious risks of piracy and sharing of illegal content.

Q: How many lobby instances can be run?
This is down to the server infrastructure, and in theory is entirely scalable.

Q: How will the lobbies be regionalised? Would it be possible to have
bespoke, selectable backgrounds for each regional lobby, e.g. Paris /
London / Rome etc?
It is highly likely that the European, US and Japanese lobbies will be
localised, but it is undecided as to whether individual lobbies within Europe
will be.

Q: Could the global Hall of Fame be filtered by region?
This is possible, and also it is possible to have different levels of Halls of
Fame - Junior league, Newbie league etc

[slade]

Cont'd:

Policy

Q: What is the policy on acceptable behaviour?
Within our public spaces, Home follows the same rules and guidelines as the
PLAYSTATION Network with regard to age stipulations and acceptable
behaviour. Home uses all the same age controls as the PS3 system software.
Within users' own private spaces, we take the view that what people get up to
in their own apartment is their own business, within reason.

Q: Will there be a restriction to the age you’ll be able to give your
avatar?
Yes. We will not have avatars which resemble children. The avatars are
adult in appearance.

Q: Will users be able to make complaints about other users?
Of course. We will operate a system of logging complaints with our
moderators, which will then be investigated. If necessary we are able to take
away a user's login rights and ban them from the service.

Q: How much control will we have over what people get up to in their
private spaces?
As stated before, our policy is that what people get up to in their own private
spaces is up to them, and a user cannot be invited to another user's private
space until they have accepted an invitation to be on their buddy list.
However, the complaints process will still operate in these private spaces, so
if people feel that they have been subjected to inappropriate behaviour while
in someone's private space, they will be able to lodge a complaint by the
usual process.

Q: What moderation is used in the system for vulgar / abusive
language?
We will have a basic text profanity filter.

Q: Will users be able to sell things to each other?
Ultimately, an auction service will be implemented that will allow users to sell
their Home assets and user-created content to other users.

Q: Can I earn money in Home?
As noted above, there will be eventually opportunities for user-to-user
auctions.

Q: Will retailers (e.g. GAME) be able to have a presence in Home?
Yes. Retailers can create their own lobbies and deploy these for commercial
operations.

Q: Can we use advertising within it?
Advertising will be a big part of Home. At first adverts will be fed through the
Home advertising servers, but ultimately we may allow 3rd parties to integrate
their own advertising engines into the service. Dynamic advertising will also
be implemented, allowing us to direct specific targeted ads at particular users.

Q: Are all games required to have trophies available for Home?
No, it's up to each game to do what they want. But we see a huge consumer
appeal for games that support the trophy system.

Q: If a game does offer trophies, what is the maximum / minimum
number of trophies required?
This is undecided, currently. We would like to feel this out during the beta
period. Our inclination is to encourage a relatively small number of high value
trophies.

__________________________________________________ _____

My thoughts on this are basically that Sony is shooting for the moon with this service. It's a virtual leapfrog over what MS or Nintendo are currently offering and a huge reason why so many hardcore gamers are interested in the service currently. One thing they talk about and I would love to see is a virtual rendition of E3 with all the game publishers hawking their warez in their own private spaces.

[Rogue Bounty Hunter]

One thing they talk about and I would love to see is a virtual rendition of E3 with all the game publishers hawking their warez in their own private spaces.

That would be the only thing I'd find interesting about this "Home", considering (from the screenshots) it kind of looks like a convention. At the end of the day, it would be just another way of giving out demos and video footage, something that 360 is already doing (not sure what Wii is doing in regards to something like this), but it would still be a good thing for PS3 owners.

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

Nope, they demonstrated this a bit with Little Big Planet in the trailer. You can jump straight from Home into the game. Support for other games will have to be built in and just like with Live at the beginning, Sony will have to push for game developers to include that support.

Home, I suppose, will serve as your standardized friends list. You can see which of your friends are online and take them into the game with you. I've also read that you can make a house for clan gatherings. There's also other stuff like online movie theatres where you and a bunch of friends can go and watch movies as well as the Hall of Fame.

All in all, this thing looks like a virtual leapfrog over the competition. It's a lot more then you guys realize. If you can track down Phil Harrison's GDC keynote, then watch that. It goes a lot more into detail then these gametrailer videos.


This thing for one is going to need servers. So how exactly are you going to meet up with your friends. I know they mentioned keeping friends together but that won't be possible. Because Fan 1 and Fan 2 may be friends but Fan 3 is not on Fans 2 friends list but he is on Fan 1 friends so how do you work that out. Second it's not built into the UI or the games. Home will disappear basically once you start gaming online Live is always there you can always interact with your friends list.

The application itself sounds cool but not really practical. And eventually I see it getting boring. Who's going to do this for 10 years? Live is unobtrusive it supports the games Home encroaches. Add this to Sony's rep on line and I'm even more skeptical. Plus they aren't requiring Publishers to actually use it. So PS3 online is mix mash of PSN, Xfire, Home and whatever app this defeats the purpose.

[slade]

This thing for one is going to need servers. So how exactly are you going to meet up with your friends. I know they mentioned keeping friends together but that won't be possible. Because Fan 1 and Fan 2 may be friends but Fan 3 is not on Fans 2 friends list but he is on Fan 1 friends so how do you work that out.

You PSN friends list will act as your friends list within Home. Whoever you add to that is up to you. Furthermore, clans will be able to gather together in their own spaces. This is mentioned in the FAQ.

Q: How do users find friends and spaces within Home?
There is an integrated PSN Friends list, and search functionality for spaces

In fact, this above thing was demonstrated in the GDC keynote. They pulled up a virtual map and jumped from place to place.

Second it's not built into the UI or the games. Home will disappear basically once you start gaming online Live is always there you can always interact with your friends list.

Wrong. It is built into the XMB and it will be built into the games. They mentioned in the FAQ that you will be able to jump from Home into the game and then exit from the game into Home.

Q: Can you enter, say, MotorStorm™ quickly through Home without
having to travel to the specific MotorStorm™ lobby?
Currently, users can find each other in Home, and then arrange to go off and
play MotorStorm™ at the same time. Eventually, users will be able to meet in
Home and seamlessly launch into a game of MotorStorm™. Similarly, users
will be able to exit to Home directly from the game.

Plus they aren't requiring Publishers to actually use it.

Given the message they are sending to Publishers about how their products are important to Sony and that they can actively advertise them within Home, I doubt that publishers are going to be hesitant about supporting the service. With Home, Sony is sending a message that third party products are important to them and with their service as opposed to Live's method, third parties can actually benefit more. This ties into Game Publisher's themselves creating their own spaces in Home. Currently a trailer gets thrown on Live and that's that. For user feedback, the publisher's have to tramp throughout the net and find threads littered all over dozens of forums to see the gamer response to their products. With Home, their audience is right there and the user feedback is right there.

Again, most of you have no clue what this service can actually provide. Read the Faq, most of your questions are answered there.

[Gadfly2317]

It looks a lot like Second Life http://secondlife.com/

Also, the first few screens, where people are shopping, looks like the Sony Store at the Metreon, except virtual, like it was in Second Life.

Over all, this looks like a cool idea. The shopping anyway. . . I'm really not that keen on hanging out in a virtual chatroom, and the "advertising will be a big part of home" kind of turns my stomach.

One thing, only vaguely related to Home. . .what I really want is for those little games being made for the PS game network, like Flow, to be purchasable and playable on the PsP. Though it would be nice if those were downloadable online, and not just through Sony's new advertising chatroom.

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

You PSN friends list will act as your friends list within Home. Whoever you add to that is up to you. Furthermore, clans will be able to gather together in their own spaces. This is mentioned in the FAQ.

But what if you are just in a public area? That's what I'm talking about this is going to need multiple servers so beyond your Friends list you will have to be on the same server.



In fact, this above thing was demonstrated in the GDC keynote. They pulled up a virtual map and jumped from place to place.

Come on that had to be the same server. You aren't just jumping servers that easy.



Wrong. It is built into the XMB and it will be built into the games. They mentioned in the FAQ that you will be able to jump from Home into the game and then exit from the game into Home.

What are you talking about. I said it was part of XMB. I thought it was actually going to be the UI. It's not it's another app that you access from the U.I which right there kills a bunch of functionalilty. When you turn on a 360 that hooked up to the internet you automatically log on to Xbox live. You don't go select. Which is why it's such a good service. You don't go looking for friends to meet up then go to a game. You log on put in your game start a multiplayer session and send your invites. It's all within the game it never takes you away. Even if you are watching a movie on the 360 you take it out and put the game in. And it automatically directs you right to that lobby. That is infintely better than what Sony is talking about. Home is 95% fluff and 5% functionality. Honestly give me one reason why anyone who wants to start up a game of resistance with there friends would want to load up Home first? It's ridiculous.





Given the message they are sending to Publishers about how their products are important to Sony and that they can actively advertise them within Home, I doubt that publishers are going to be hesitant about supporting the service.

Why would a publisher want to support an application that is taking the gamer away from there games? The more time spent dicking around in Home is the less time playing that publishers game. Sure they will use it as a means for advertisments but then the question becomes do online gamers really want to spend time in a virtual chat room watching adds? Sony is missing the point that Nintendo and MS seems to have grasp instinctively and that's the service should be intergrated into the game.


With Home, Sony is sending a message that third party products are important to them and with their service as opposed to Live's method, third parties can actually benefit more. This ties into Game Publisher's themselves creating their own spaces in Home. Currently a trailer gets thrown on Live and that's that. For user feedback, the publisher's have to tramp throughout the net and find threads littered all over dozens of forums to see the gamer response to their products. With Home, their audience is right there and the user feedback is right there.

Not only a trailer but the demo as well. Which allows the publishers to actually moniter realworld gameplay. Capcoms Lost Planet is a prime example of game being improved because of feed back on live.

Home seems interesting my point is this no matter what Sony says the foundation is that it's a seperat application and by it's nature it takes gamers out of the game. But we'll see how this pans out in a year or so.

Peronally I think they would have been better off just making it a full fledged MMO with hooks into your games and charging a monthly fee. 2-3 years from now the relevancy of Home to the actual games on the PSN will be minimal if it's even still up and running.

Again, most of you have no clue what this service can actually provide. Read the Faq, most of your questions are answered there.[/QUOTE]

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

For the record. Sony has made some improvements to the actual PSN. Or they are coming. XMB accessible through games backround downloading and a Unified friends list. Will do light years more for there online than Home ever will.

Edit. see system wars.

[slade]

But what if you are just in a public area? That's what I'm talking about this is going to need multiple servers so beyond your Friends list you will have to be on the same server.

Can't see why you can't just use your friends list to contact your friends and ask them to meet up with you on the same server. You realize that the PSN friends list and the friends list in Home is the same exact thing? Just send your invites which you can do right now. If you want to just launch into a game, you could probably do it from the friend's list too. For clans it will be even simpler because they have one location in which to meet.

Come on that had to be the same server. You aren't just jumping servers that easy.

Granted, there were some load times.


What are you talking about. I said it was part of XMB. I thought it was actually going to be the UI. It's not it's another app that you access from the U.I which right there kills a bunch of functionalilty. When you turn on a 360 that hooked up to the internet you automatically log on to Xbox live. You don't go select. Which is why it's such a good service. You don't go looking for friends to meet up then go to a game. You log on put in your game start a multiplayer session and send your invites. It's all within the game it never takes you away. Even if you are watching a movie on the 360 you take it out and put the game in. And it automatically directs you right to that lobby. That is infintely better than what Sony is talking about. Home is 95% fluff and 5% functionality. Honestly give me one reason why anyone who wants to start up a game of resistance with there friends would want to load up Home first? It's ridiculous.

Congratulations, you just described what I basically said. You think of Home as a seperate app but miss the fact that it encompasses all the functionality of the XMB, present and future, into it. In the end it's basically a 3d overlay of the features the XMB offers. If you want just plain menus, stay within the XMB. If you want a more involved UI, then you can use Home. You will probably also get the option to launch it on startup.

Why would a publisher want to support an application that is taking the gamer away from there games? The more time spent dicking around in Home is the less time playing that publishers game. Sure they will use it as a means for advertisments but then the question becomes do online gamers really want to spend time in a virtual chat room watching adds? Sony is missing the point that Nintendo and MS seems to have grasp instinctively and that's the service should be intergrated into the game.

Funny, this is addressed in the FAQ:

Q: Home looks so great – how do publishers ensure that users continue
to play their games rather than spending all their time in Home?
There is a huge scope for publishers and developers to promote their current
and future IPs - as well as exploiting their back-catalogue. For example, it will
be possible to develop small demo-areas within Home that promote new titles,
or to re-publish an old IP as mini-game within their Home Space.


Not only a trailer but the demo as well. Which allows the publishers to actually moniter realworld gameplay. Capcoms Lost Planet is a prime example of game being improved because of feed back on live.

Read above.

Again, read the FAQ.

[slade]

A little bit from Q&A with Phil Harrison:

http://www.pro-g.co.uk/news/12-03-2007-4977.html

[B]Pro-G: What do you think Home's key advantages are over rival online services?[/B}

Harrison: What we've always wanted to do on Home, and I think we've delivered on this vision, is to create a rich layer that sits on top of the network platform. We're not changing the functionality of the system; we're just displaying it in a really compelling way. And I think having it as a rich three dimensional world where you can build community, you can communicate and customize, are very powerful trends that I think will resonate very strongly with PS3 users. I think people will want to come and join the PS3 community because of a product and service like this. We're also going to have a strong entertainment focus with Home, as you can see. There are lots of touch points for other forms of entertainment not just games, but music, photos...
PS3 Home isn't simply a reaction to competitors. It's been in development for over two years.
PS3 Home isn't simply a reaction to competitors. It's been in development for over two years.

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

Can't see why you can't just use your friends list to contact your friends and ask them to meet up with you on the same server. You realize that the PSN friends list and the friends list in Home is the same exact thing? Just send your invites which you can do right now. If you want to just launch into a game, you could probably do it from the friend's list too. For clans it will be even simpler because they have one location in which to meet.

If that is the case. What's the purpose of the Home app outside of a marketing tool? The whole thing seems counter intuitative.





Congratulations, you just described what I basically said. You think of Home as a seperate app but miss the fact that it encompasses all the functionality of the XMB, present and future, into it. In the end it's basically a 3d overlay of the features the XMB offers. If you want just plain menus, stay within the XMB. If you want a more involved UI, then you can use Home. You will probably also get the option to launch it on startup.

No it's not an overlay if it was it would be cool. It's a seperate app that is detatched from the games. You have to load it up. You have to log onto Home servers that are seperate from the Home network.


Funny, this is addressed in the FAQ:

Q: Home looks so great – how do publishers ensure that users continue
to play their games rather than spending all their time in Home?
There is a huge scope for publishers and developers to promote their current
and future IPs - as well as exploiting their back-catalogue. For example, it will
be possible to develop small demo-areas within Home that promote new titles,
or to re-publish an old IP as mini-game within their Home Space.

That still doesn't answer the general question. That's sony Pr spin. There are going to be people who go on to Home with no intention of playing a game. The app seems interesting it could be fun if this is the type of thing you like. But at the end of the day it's more fluff than anything.


Read above.

Again, read the FAQ.


I read some of it no way in hell I'm reading all of that. Especially when they are pimping 6 year old features.

[Mochan]

I hate shooters in 3rd person as well. It's just crap.

I hope Killzone 2 has mouse/kb support, that's all I ask. If it does, then PS3 here I come.




Q: Isn’t Home a copycat?
A: Home is a first of its kind 3D community that allows for open interaction
between consumers, Sony Computer Entertainment and third party
partners.

LOL I love how it dodges the question! Anyway remember Second Life? Yeah.


The application itself sounds cool but not really practical. And eventually I see it getting boring. Who's going to do this for 10 years? Live is unobtrusive it supports the games Home encroaches.

You'd be surprised at how long some people have been playing Second Life.

I think the error here is comparing Live to Home as if they were the same thing. They're not. While definitely Home is an answer Sony came up with to Live, it's not the same thing, and Live is obviously better for certain tasks over Home (Live is basically just a no frills online service) whereas Home is aspiring to be something of a game in itself.

It looks a lot like Second Life http://secondlife.com/

Indeed. I believe I noted this in System Wars as well. (I actually used to play Second Life).

[folken001]

The application itself sounds cool but not really practical. And eventually I see it getting boring. Who's going to do this for 10 years? Live is unobtrusive it supports the games Home encroaches.

I suppose you've never played online MMORPGs before? What do you think people do in them all day? Doing the same thing day after day and after day. Yet, many people (i am talking about millions) ended up playing them for years.

I don't think Home will stop people from wanting to play games. After all, no one plays their games 24 hours a day nor does any game last all eternity. It's not something developers should be worrying about.

[slade]

:mad2: If that is the case. What's the purpose of the Home app outside of a marketing tool? The whole thing seems counter intuitative.

The social aspect of it. This is a place to actually meet other gamers whereas most of the time you end up going in dry into a game and putting people on your friends list you won't ever see again. The thing here is that if you just want plain 2d menus for your interface then the XMB will serve you just fine. If you want a more involved interface, then that's what Home will provide.

No it's not an overlay if it was it would be cool. It's a seperate app that is detatched from the games. You have to load it up. You have to log onto Home servers that are seperate from the Home network.

:mad2:
What part of having access to everything from your friends list to your Trophy room, to the games on your system don't you understand? I swear it's like I really am beating my head against a brick wall. Plus, there is already talk of allowing you to launch directly into Home without going through XMB.

That still doesn't answer the general question. That's sony Pr spin. There are going to be people who go on to Home with no intention of playing a game. The app seems interesting it could be fun if this is the type of thing you like. But at the end of the day it's more fluff than anything.

It's not like they are putting in a level system and setting up a huge RPG world. This is basically a much more adept way to immerse users into gaming content. And you somehow believe that they won't want to do anything with this gaming content.

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

:mad2:

The social aspect of it. This is a place to actually meet other gamers whereas most of the time you end up going in dry into a game and putting people on your friends list you won't ever see again. The thing here is that if you just want plain 2d menus for your interface then the XMB will serve you just fine. If you want a more involved interface, then that's what Home will provide.



Ok here we go again. Remember what I was saying about multiple servers? So they are going to have to group you with all your friends on one server (not possible) then there are going to be others to meet. Now let's look at this in a real world practical sense. Who's going to actually be going up to strange avatars asking to meet and be friends and come back to my apartment? Not practical at all. Then it takes away from the games themselves because the social aspect isn't directly related to the game. This isn't a 3d overlay of menus it's a seperate application. It's ridicuolous to think that people you have good gaming sessions with in certain games you will never see again. But people who's random avatars you chat up with will be more substantial.

:mad2:
What part of having access to everything from your friends list to your Trophy room, to the games on your system don't you understand? I swear it's like I really am beating my head against a brick wall. Plus, there is already talk of allowing you to launch directly into Home without going through XMB.

Then what's the point of Home. The upgrades to the XMB and the PSN network are what's needed. I'm talking about HOME it's self. I know it's free but Sony is saying Home is what put there service over the top. And I think it's all fluff. As for logging directly into Home first. I hope not because 1 you will have to load the app. Log on to a server. And How will that work which friends do you log on with. If you have friends on multiple servers? Then you have to all this just to get into a multiplayer game? And the trophy room thing is again non practicale. On live you can click on someone's gamertag and boom right there in the lobby look at there achievements. With Home how is that going to work in game. Log out your game? Into Home and then look at someone elses Trophy room. That's assuming there still online because you can't do it any other way. Since Home isn't a persistant world. Oh but maybe you mean you can look at your own achievements at anytime. Because yeah when I'm in the middle of game I always have the urge to stop playing to look at my own achievements :rolleyes:



It's not like they are putting in a level system and setting up a huge RPG world. This is basically a much more adept way to immerse users into gaming content. And you somehow believe that they won't want to do anything with this gaming content.

No true it could be more immersive to get involved with the community. But it won't immerse people in the seperate game content.

[folken001]

This argument seems to be pointless. No matter what Slade says, it doesn't seem to be satisfy you. Drunken, I am sure you can find the answer for yourself once Home is out.

It is very simple. Home is interesting and it's free. Most important of all, you DO NOT have to get it.

[DrunkenThumbmaster]

This argument seems to be pointless. No matter what Slade says, it doesn't seem to be satisfy you. Drunken, I am sure you can find the answer for yourself once Home is out.

It is very simple. Home is interesting and it's free. Most important of all, you DO NOT have to get it.


True, True and True. I'll reserve judgement until it's out.