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Playstation Home - It's official


Romier S

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The worst kept secret in gaming pre-GDC is now official thanks to a full trailer for the service which is currently available at gametrailers.com. There will be a lot to discuss here so I'm giving this announcement its own thread. We'll no doubt hear much more at Harrison's keynote today at around 1:30EST. In the interim, check out the trailer:

 

Playstation Home Trailer

 

Direct download link:

 

http://download.gametrailers.com/gt_vault/t_home_gdc07_h264.wmv

 

Here's a look at Little Big Planet. A new multiplayer Platformer for Playstation Home:

 

Little Big Planet

 

The service is entirely free according to the trailer. Here's some quick screenshots of the Home lobby which allows user to mingle. It's very similiar to the lobby system from Phantasy Star Online for those of you who've played the game:

 

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If the usability is as cool as the idea seems, this may be really neat. Everyone thought and hoped Sony would add some basic integration features to come inline with XBlive. Instead of just doing that, they're wrapping those features with this whole Home initiative. I'm impressed with the ambition.

 

Until I hear about things to complain about, this sounds really really promising.

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Luke Smith is live blogging the Sony keynote as is Eurogamer. Both links are right here:

 

Sony Keynote at Eurogamer.net

 

1up.com Sony Keynote

 

More screens (high res) including a pic of how the game integration section looks:

 

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Communication is of utmost importance with home. Users will be able to talk via headset/voice, USB keyboard, predetermined phrases etc.

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Another key function the private spaces offer is the ability to go from game to game with your friends. Want to play Motorstorm with your friends? Invite them to your home and you can start the game with your friends from your apartment. It's, quite literally, the visual representation of the Halo 2 couch-system. Where your buddies will be able to play with you and return to your 'Home' throughout the night.

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3157797

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The matchmaking is the most exciting thing mentioned. I love the ability to launch right into a game from the Home virtual space and that may be the very type of integration we've been wanting from online titles on the PS3.:tu If Sony offers a standardized matchmaking system for all of its titles and free to boot? Color me excited.

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Very impressive looking so far-I'm looking forward to seeing how it really works in the end. If it ends up being a whole matchmaking service, it could really give Microsoft a run for its money in the online space.

 

The public lobby system seems kind of interesting though-I wonder how that'll actually work with voice. I'm sure it's a case that not "everyone" will be in the same area to start-I wonder how it'll work?

 

The user shared content is also a huge risk. I like the idea, and I'm glad someone's doing it, but both Microsoft and Nintendo have tripped over themselves to try to stick to copyright laws and some sort of parental controls. Will anyone try to police what users share? I always figured this was the reason that you couldn't define your own avatars for live.

 

First reaction is definitely positive though. Should silence a few ps3 online critics.

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In the theoretical world this is incredibly exciting. But in the real world I have some questions. This service is launching at the end of 2007. No doubt this is going to be a work-in-progress for many years to come. New features will be added all the time. This is to be expected.

 

People are still complaining today that Xbox 360 games still are not achieving online functionality on par with Halo 2. That there is a disparity between the best and worst of XBlive games, even with Microsoft's efforts to standardize (voice chat, achievements, messaging, invites, etc...).

 

So take all that I have said above, and my concern is that Sony is going to create a grand canyon-like disparity between games with their service. That is, the extent and quality of integration on a per game basis may be huge for a great while.

 

It's almost like Sony is re-launching the PS3 this fall. Do you think that all the major details with HOME will be ironed out by this fall allowing developers to hit the ground running, where all games from then on are plugged into all these HOME features?

 

Or do you think that for some time to come, we'll see games supporting just a subset of features while other games ("Resistance 2") are the unique games that support most of the features?

 

If we asked EA (right now) if they're building HOME integration into their games coming out this Fall, what do you think they would say?

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Yeah I'm very psyched for that as well.

 

Stole this from an rllmuk post, don't know what the original source is:

 

"Another innovative example of the Game 3.0 vision is a brand-new community-based world called LittleBigPlanet. LittleBigPlanet starts with players learning about the powers of their chosen characters to interact physically with the environment. There are obstacles to explore, items to collect and puzzles to solve -- requiring community-based teamwork and brainpower. As players begin to explore, their creative skills grow and they will be ready to start creating and modifying their surroundings -- the first step to sharing them with the whole world. Ultimately, levels of the game will be user generated on a worldwide scale and will change everyday as players create, publish and share their own levels.

 

Users have the power to design, shape and build both objects and entire locations for others to play. Players can make their world as open or as secretive to explore as they like. When it's ready, they can invite anyone within the LittleBigPlanet universe to come and explore their "patch," or they can go and explore everybody else's."

 

Sounds brilliant.

 

Eurogamer has apparently confirmed the final game will feature music from The Go Team, as featured in the trailer.

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Keith, those are fair questions, and I think one would be out of his mind to think that this will roll out in a perfectly-integrated, bug-free fashion. Right now we're just loving the idea...IF it works. Sony knows it's under a lot of scrutiny right now, and they had better make this thing fly.

 

As for the developers, well, I imagine that's why they're announcing it at GDC instead of CES.

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It will be interesting to hear Major Nelson's thoughts on these announcements. Will he embrace it like the avid gamer he claims to be or will he take the corporate lackey approach and downplay its potential.

 

This windbag will go all corporate on it, I'm sure. He'll make some sly comments and possibly commend them in one breath, then slyly slam them in the next... Nelson is no longer on my list of 'casts. He is just a mouth-piece, which I accept, since he works for MS... but I can't stand him anymore.

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This windbag will go all corporate on it, I'm sure. He'll make some sly comments and possibly commend them in one breath, then slyly slam them in the next... Nelson is no longer on my list of 'casts. He is just a mouth-piece, which I accept, since he works for MS... but I can't stand him anymore.

 

I'm surprised it took people this long to realize he was drinking the Kool Aid.

 

Oh, and just saw this comment elsewhere, which makes sense:

 

Now I know why they haven't labeled AFRIKA to be any specific genre. It's probably gonna be a Home vacation destination or something.

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