Playstation Home

[NetViper]

Anyone tried this yet? What a peice of crap.

I am on my fourth attempt to log in. First I got a connection error.. then a parse error.. then another error... now my connection to the server was lost.

NOT impressed.

 

[White92]

What is it?

 

[Deltron Zero]

I've never seen it. I sure do like the new XBOX live though. I guess that's just another reason to get the 360 over the PS3.

 

[NSXrunner]

I have heard of it but, not looked into DL'ing it yet. I know from experience with other pcs of software, games, etc. Launch day usually = nightmares. I don't even plan to look at it for a month or so until they get everything up and running and maybe throw in a patch or two.

 

[H-carWizKid]

Anyone tried this yet? What a peice of crap.

I am on my fourth attempt to log in. First I got a connection error.. then a parse error.. then another error... now my connection to the server was lost.

NOT impressed.

Found a reference-

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/posttech/2008/12/sony_launches_ps3_home_for_the.html?nav=rss_blog

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PlayStation_Home

I have "Folding Home" on my machine- but it was basically just a newsfeed. I downloaded it last month before they launched this new "virtual world" which opened for beta testing yesterday. I imagine their servers are currently busy as hell with people downloading the new app.

I was playing Rock Band last night and had a hell of a time downloading an update- I kept getting knocked out of the network. Perhaps it is related?

And there is NO reason to get an Xbox over a PS3 :tongue:

J/K- my brother in law is shipping me his old 360, and I look forward to trying it out.

P

 

[Stephen@NCAutoUSA]

I've never seen it. I sure do like the new XBOX live though. I guess that's just another reason to get the 360 over the PS3.

What's the difference between the new xbox live and the old one? I have 360 and only noticed really that things look more "updated" but everything else seems the same I think. Correct me if I'm wrong or if I'm missing something.

Stephen

 

[akira3d]

Launch day usually = nightmares.

Remember, this is not a launch day, but the first day of a public beta! If you're not into beta testing, then don't download it. Otherwise, enjoy helping Sony squash bugs.

PlayStation Home is a virtual community...a 3D space for PlayStation Network users to congregate, socialize, play simple games, and use as a launching pad for multiplayer network games in their game libraries. Like the PlayStation Network itself, Home is provided as a free service. I'm guessing that Home won't be for everyone...

 

[NetViper]

I finally got on it and it was pretty damn lame. I don't know that I will ever use it.. nor do I see how it will ever be successful. But, who knows.

All I want to know is can I talk to a friend in private chat while I play a game?I cannot believe you cannot do this on a PS3.

Look, I think the PS3 is technically superior to the Xbox360 in pretty much every way, but the Xbox is so much better than the PS3 for anything online related. It isn't even close.

 

[Deltron Zero]

What's the difference between the new xbox live and the old one? I have 360 and only noticed really that things look more "updated" but everything else seems the same I think. Correct me if I'm wrong or if I'm missing something.

Stephen

Besides the updated look and feel, there's a couple cool new features.

-The ability to watch streaming movies and TV shows from Netflix, some of which are in HD.

-Avatars are new, and can be used in some games.

-You can install games entirely to your hard drive to reduce load times and noise from the disc drive. This doesn't affect load times too much now since game companies have not yet developed their games to take advantage of it, but my XBOX sure is nice and quiet now.

Look, I think the PS3 is technically superior to the Xbox360 in pretty much every way, but the Xbox is so much better than the PS3 for anything online related. It isn't even close.

Yup. Another thing to note is the fact that 360 sales nearly double PS3 sales, so game developers have an incentive to prioritize development for the 360 - no Fallout 3 DLC for PS3 owners. Ouch. It's gonna be good too.

 

[H-carWizKid]

-You can install games entirely to your hard drive to reduce load times and noise from the disc drive. This doesn't affect load times too much now since game companies have not yet developed their games to take advantage of it, but my XBOX sure is nice and quiet now.

That is new for you guys? We have had that since rollout

Another thing to note is the fact that 360 sales nearly double PS3 sales, so game developers have an incentive to prioritize development for the 360 - no Fallout 3 DLC for PS3 owners. Ouch. It's gonna be good too.

XBox is cheaper on the front end so that would account for greater sales, but what most people don't consider when making their purchase is the continued cost of their XBox Live membership fee.

Sure, I paid $100 more on the front end for my PS3, but the Playstation network is free, so I don't have to consider operating costs into perpetuity. Off the cuff the XBox Live starter would have been $49, which cuts my additional cost to only $51- and for that $51 extra bucks I get a Blue-Ray player...

The final argument is this- the PS3 is a superior machine and gaming companies are enticed to take advantage of the consol to produce the best gaming experience available. As games continue to evolve, the superiority of the PS3 consol will become more apparent. For now, the trade off of fewer games but with greater quality is acceptable for me. I only own 8 games anyway, with just a few more that I would consider for purchase right now.

1 of my games is not available for XBox 360, and never will be. The rest I could have on either consol.

 

[NetViper]

XBox is cheaper on the front end so that would account for greater sales, but what most people don't consider when making their purchase is the continued cost of their XBox Live membership fee.

Sure, I paid $100 more on the front end for my PS3, but the Playstation network is free, so I don't have to consider operating costs into perpetuity. Off the cuff the XBox Live starter would have been $49, which cuts my additional cost to only $51- and for that $51 extra bucks I get a Blue-Ray player....

I would gladly pay the $45 for xbox live every year because xbox live is SOOOOO much better than PS3 online. yes, PS3 is free.. but you get what you pay for.

Don't forget, we can now stream Netflix over the Xbox360 also.

 

[steveo5000]

Dont forget my favorite update to the 360;
The ability to have a 8 person private chat that is persistent across all menus and games. I never have to talk to anyone else on live just so that i can talk with 3 friends at one time.

Also, alot of the same games come out for both systems, but many reviewers say that, side by side, they look better on the 360 because the developers havent figured out how to use the ps3's technology completely.
By the time they figure it out the xbox 720 or whatever it will be called will be comming out.

one more thing.

360 gets forza
ps3 gets a demo of gran turismo thats been in development for what, 5 years???

 

[Deltron Zero]

The final argument is this- the PS3 is a superior machine and gaming companies are enticed to take advantage of the consol to produce the best gaming experience available.

What would entice a company besides Sony to produce a game that could only utilize the PS3's superior hardware? It couldn't be money. I think the 360 has too big of a market share for them to create a split like that.

1 of my games is not available for XBox 360, and never will be. The rest I could have on either consol.

That sounds about right - 6 of my games will never be on PS3, and I only have a dozen or so games. It was 7 until Bioshock finally came out on PS3.

 

[H-carWizKid]

Diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks

NetViper-
I am assuming that many families who purchased XBox when comparison shopping with PS3 did not consider the long term costs of XBox Live. in assuming this I am thinking they were looking at immediate cost, but i could be wrong, in which case I am humble. I have no statistics that would prove this was the case.

The only game I am really playing online is COD4, and the online support is fine for that- free or not.

Deltron Zero-
Projections are that video games will only become more complex. I am supposing that in the long scheme of things game designers will favor the consol that supports innovation in game design. The XBox will become outmoded before the PS3. When that happens PS3 will start getting the hot titles, at which point MS will need to produce a new consol to accomodate improving technologies. This equals additional cost to the consumer, and at that point PS3 will be ahead of the curve.

again- this is supposition. I don't have any industry contact, background or statistics that would back that up, it just seems logical to me.

Personally- I am a careful consumer. I looked at a LOT of aspects before I bought my system. I have laid these aspects out for you here. Utimately my choice was made using 5 factors.

1. longevity
2. long term costs
3. familiarity (PS controllers haven't changed much)
4. Blu-ray compatibility
5. initial cost

To my mind $400 was a lot of cabbage to lay out for a video game system (basically a toy) I only play the thing every once in a while, and don't consider myself a "Gamer" by any means (if I were I would probably have a 360, and a Wii to compliment my PS3 since all 3 have positive attributes)

I made a choice using my requirements, and I am satisfied with my decision. If you all love your XBox, then good on you! My old roomate in Dallas got one of the first 360's when it came out, and while i was impressed with it, I found the PS3 to be more to my liking. I'll let you know what I think when my B.I.L's system gets here and I get to use it for a while and make a more direct comparison.

P

 

[NetViper]

Diff'rent strokes for diff'rent folks

NetViper-
I am assuming that many families who purchased XBox when comparison shopping with PS3 did not consider the long term costs of XBox Live. in assuming this I am thinking they were looking at immediate cost, but i could be wrong, in which case I am humble. I have no statistics that would prove this was the case.

P

$45/year for xbox Live. That is $3.75 a month for by far the best online service out there -- plus you can stream netflix from it. Most people pay more than that for one cup of coffee.

I do understand not wanting to pay for Xbox live when you are not a "gamer" though and just use it from time to time.

 

[Deltron Zero]

I agree with all of your points H-car. The competition between the 3 major players only makes it better for us consumers. Sony just needs to make a sequel to Shadow of the Colossus for the PS3 - that would definitely force me to have both.

 

[akira3d]

All I know is that I had Xbox Live for two months free and then two years paid with the original Xbox. I couldn't keep the same gamertag between the two periods because once my intial trial period expired, my gamertag was locked. I played games for maybe a month total of the entire time I had the service. I would have canceled after the first year of my second tour on Live, but was out of the country and missed the chance to cancel it (since they don't refund unused months, I just kept it for the next full year). When I finally did go to cancel it, I had to go through a whole series of questions about what it would take to keep me. No thanks.

My schedule doesn't really accommodate regular online gaming. I like the PSN model. I don't have to shell out extra bucks so I can play online games when I can find time without worrying about if I'm getting the value out of the service.

PSN, like Home, is evolving. It would have been nice if it had all the features been present since day 1, but you can't argue that the service has already come a long way.

I don't have an Xbox360...and while there are games on the 360 that I would liked to have played (online or off), I have a backlog of games I'm enjoying on PS3, so I have no reason to buy one at this time.

BTW, I have yet to try Call of Duty 4 online...loved and finished the single player game, but just haven't had time to try its multiplayer.

 

[H-carWizKid]

BTW, I have yet to try Call of Duty 4 online...loved and finished the single player game, but just haven't had time to try its multiplayer.

COD4 online has private game features I would love to see for GT5. A few of my buddies and I can organize games where we stalk each other while conversing over the blue tooth. Being as my closest friends are in Pa, Tx, Ca, and Il we are hardly ever in the same place at once, so it is like hanging out, but we can kill each other which is fun.

I sincerely hope that the final version of GT5 includes that sort of thing so we can continue the tradition with racing.

P

 

[NetViper]

I sincerely hope that the final version of GT5 includes that sort of thing so we can continue the tradition with racing.

P

I just hope GT5 comes out before 2010 at this rate. Not being able to race with your friends is totally rediculous. The people that made that game must not be true gamers because anyone with a brain would want to be able to race your friends from day 1.

 

[Stephen@NCAutoUSA]

By streaming netflix what does that mean? Like if you have a 360 and a live account you can watch free movies?

Stephen

 

[NetViper]

By streaming netflix what does that mean? Like if you have a 360 and a live account you can watch free movies?

Stephen

If you have a 360 and you have a netflix unlimited account ( I think mine is $14/m) you can watch any of the "Instant" movies on Netflix. It's not bad, but it isn't any of the new releases.

 

[Klayton]

Just tried it, pretty lame.. and lagy.

 

[makav3li]

so netflix isnt free with live? now its 17 plus a month versus the previous amount

 

[NetViper]

so netflix isnt free with live? now its 17 plus a month versus the previous amount

No, if you already have a netflix unlimted account it is free.