I'd like to see two things added to HOME before release:

1. Skateboards
2. Sniper Rifles

Look at all those railslide opportunities. And imagine being able to drill someone through a window while they're walking over to their trophy cabinet. Sure, social interaction would basically drop to zero, since every social exchange would end in someones avatar being shot dead, but hey.

J-Fro

Yeaaaa awesome. No thanks. Something about a better looking Second Life on a PS3 means precisely dick to me. On the plus side the "game" (if you can call it that) looks good (was part of a beta a while back) but again, it's just not for me.

UncleScrotar

It looks exactly the same as the US beta. Expect for the last 11 pics with the glass building in the background, WTF is that?

jitty9

I can't wait for this~ I just hope they have different body types and accessories to suit me personally.

Puchi

I just can't see myself sitting around decorating my house or dressing my avatar. Ever.

The best selling games on this system are not dress-me-up cutesy, and it has nothing to do with watching Hi-Def movies, other than having ads for them.

I want to be blown away by this, but I just can't get excited about it. Give me persistent voice and friedns across games and the like, and I'll get excited. This is the stuff that will build the online service.

It's like putting up pretty curtains and then realizing there's no window there.

lionkitten

@ManjiKengo:
You must have been captain of the debate team with structured arguments like that! ;)

Also like they've been saying for over a year, you will not be forced to use it. It's basically a lobby that's there if you choose to partake.

fuchikoma

@fuchikoma:
..............

No.

ManjiKengo

Nice. It'll be like all the time I spent in MMOs loafing around chatting with friends instead of hitting dungeons... but in this one, the dungeons are PS3 games! :D

fuchikoma

Whoever it was that listed surfing the web on the PS3's trash browser need to rethink their priorities. When is Home supposed to come out again?

robbo_the_hood

@Youlikeyams: Agreed.
I already bought High Velocity Bowling, and Home gets it for free with online play?

I don't care if it's not as 'in-depth', I'd rather play online, with my own avatar, than listen to Barry for one more game. You're not cool with the ladies, man. Go check yourself into a nursing home.

Tyber_Zann

I'm so glad you get to choose from cool clothes, cool accessories and cool haircuts because that's exactly what I, and 95% of video game players, look like.

floppylobster

Are the homes in Home preset? I'll get a little bored if they are.

-Sigil-

@jp182:
This is a Early Beta Vid from last year, think you'll be happy:

+ Watch video

Dir_en_grey

i just hope that the Avatar setup is ethnically diverse. I get sick of not being able to make an avatar that ACTUALLY looks like me; let alone making it look like any black man. Yes, I'm talking to you SKATE! (i'm sorry Skate i love you)

jp182

@Klopfer123: SNAKE! YOU CREATED A TIME PARADOX!

... sorry, MGS4 on the brain =p.

DeeBG

@Klopfer123:

i agree. if sony made home mandatory and you had to use it to access games, then that would prompt me to box up my ps3 and sit it in the closet.

home has to be the most worthless idea next to second life.

kneehighspy

@ManjiKengo: It's be pretty funny if you did have to get through home to access your games.

'After a long day at College/School/Work you walk through your front door and plunk down on the sofa to walk through your door to plunk down on the sofa.....'

Nooo sony has created a paradox...gits.

Klopfer123

BTW, the content (aka the videos/posters on the walls) may be different for the different regions, but this version of Home is not limited to Japan. There was a worldwide update a few weeks ago. It's kind of cool being part of the beta (even though it's very limited and expanding slowly), because there are a lot of Sony employees on there. I talked to one guy from their compression/disc pressing (dunno the official name for it) lab and he said a bunch of them just got accounts and are planning to build a place inside Home (although I have no idea what it could be, "Video Compressor Funtime!").

There is also a cool lady from Sony of Japan that I helps me with my japanese pronunciation =).

Hey Kotaku, why don't you send me an external capture device (sorry, I spent all my money on a desktop replacement laptop) =). Although I'm sure you could easily get an account and record it for yourself, I just want a component video recorder...

DeeBG

@Mr Fortitude: I think it's Warhawk they're doing that with. Kotaku talked about it when they mentioned the bonus stuff for Resistance and Uncharted, too.

Cathaoir

@Mr Fortitude:

What? The format wars was for Movies.

Interwebs

Cool! I can't wait to see all the different houses~!

Vidril

I'm looking forward to Home but not as much because I think things aren't looking good. The beta has lasted forever, it has yet to be released, meaning they're most likely having trouble with people using/liking it. I'm worried for it because I cant wait to "play" it.

PSN ID: Kadaj24

The biggest problem with Home? My parents are not going to bother with it.

What do I mean by that? Part of the equation with the "social gaming" experience is the accessibility by ANYONE. Home was developed for a certain demographic -- the one that loves to create/modify avatars and wander virtual expanses to meet other avatars to exchange virtual goods. While that's great and all, it's been done in tons of online social networks already.

What Home needed to do to distance themselves from the competition was to make it not only more graphic-intensive, but make it user-friendly to the degree that it would be as easy to use as a telephone. This program won't do that.

My parent's are not going to bother spending the time to create an avatar of themselves and wander around my virtual apartment texting my name. Because of that fact, I don't expect this to be the world-changing event that Sony hopes it will be.

boopadoo

@Awoken: i usually keep my big mouth shut in flame-prone zones such as this, but this sort of revisionistic nonsense just BEGS to be put right.

sony winning the format war means one thing for the ps3 - more units will sell for the sole purpose of bluray players. this is by no means a GOOD thing for consumers. bluray effectively has a monopoly on current-gen dvd technology and, as a quick search on amazon or newegg will reveal, the prices for said players has actually spiked since the announcement that hd-dvd is dead in the water.

the events surrounding hd-dvd's demise are highly contentious, as can be seen here and here. as deep as microsoft's gaming sector's pockets are, sony's aren't too shallow, either. they have effectively sunk all their chips in an effort to dominate the high-def media playing field, a move which has undoubtedly given them a leg up in the current console wars. trouble is, not everyone is on the hd bandwagon yet and the next generation of hdtv's and their legion of accessories isn't that far away. i consider this a temporary reprieve, similar to cd-rom drive manufacturers' attempts in the early 00's to maximize disc usage before the arrival of affordable dvdr's. they're all but useless now, demanded a premium at the time, and made their companies marginal profits.

sony made SURE they were right about bluray, regardless of the cost. that says nothing of the PS3 as a videogame console - keep in mind that neither the wii nor the 360 have native hd-dvd support. i'm worried that sony's insistence to have some sort of western market dominance will create ANOTHER wave of burned consumers via early adoption once the next generation of super high-def media devices comes around.

be smart about your purchases - buy the PS3 for its games, not for its functionality as a hi-fi betamax deck.

tehbighead

I'm sorry....I'm of the mindset that this is a complete waste of processing power for the PS3....

I prefer a steady stream of quality games than bothering my team with this.

Given that it won't be MANDATORY for people to use....its going to be a niche product that people will waste 5 minutes on....then get bored of it.

CMON SONY...Focus on the more important sections of the PSN...i.e FULL VOICE CHAT CAPABILITIES, Friends Lists that actually do something, My Bluetooth Headset not crappig out every couple minutes, MORE GAMES

GoonieGooGoo

@Awoken: Sony breaking ground? Have they filed the proper forms for this?

NessD12

@Awoken: Revolutionary? Groundbreaking? I'm all PS3 but let's not get too poetic now.

slomo788

how can you say no to something so revolutionary and groundbreaking... and FREE? SONY has the deep pockets to pull this off. They were right about blueray and the PS3. Give it time and an open mind. HURRY UP!!!

Awoken

Looks good, but I have to ask the question that's on everyone's mind: what's the endgame content like? ;)

Captain Impulse

@Scazza: where you are doubtful, I see possibilities ... just imagine all the happy teabaggers running around freely

uzivatel

As long as it isnt a lafgest than it looks very promising.

JackTretton

home will CERTAINLY evolve on a fairly regular basis after it comes out. the functions possible, like being able to explore levels in uncharted with your home character...

how fucking cool is that?

joelface

So why were Sony selling the ripoff tat that was High Velocity Bowling when we'll essentially have it here anyway? :D

Youlikeyams

@Stormrider: If I recall, Home was originally started by a tech company out of london and not a game designer. So them making a 1st party title woulda been out of the question.

As much as I doubt I will use Home ever when I get a PS3, it is still an interesting entertainment device that certainly has an audience (maybe not for the hardcore gamer, but myspace and facebook prove there is a market for boring social venues)

Home is very important to sony and that is why it is taking so long to create, as its one of those things that is so unique that you can't just **** it up and brush it under the carpet like a regular game. This is supposed to be pretty close to "system software" as you can get...

Scazza

@Dir_en_grey:
Yep, this would be very cool.

Garo

Home has the potential to change only community gaming forever or lame it up.

I'm hoping for the former, as I personally love just randomly customizing stuff.

DarkCode

@Stormrider: I can see where you are going with this, but Home isn't even out yet. You can't really say that it would have been more beneficial for sony to put their resources into other projects since no one knows how successful or unsuccessful Home is going to be. Lets just wait and see what happens.

NOKS415

I think will be fun for a few days at least. why not i have a 60gb ps3 and im only using 20 for installs and saves.

Allcars

Wow, I am so exci....

Sorry, dozed off -- what's this then?

Snake726

I really wish eventually they'll come out with Trophies that you can wear.

Like if you beat Devil May Cry 4 Heaven or Hell Mode you get Nero's Coat or something.
Make it hard so not everybody will wear the same thing. Multiple items from the same game from like speed or score or no damage run or something.
Other ideas like character/game specific Key Chains, Wallet Chains, Wrist Bands, Watches or what not.

Of course I want this on top of Trophies that you can display in your Trophy Room. =)

Dir_en_grey

@Mr Fortitude: I think he was being sarcastic.

Stormrider

@beerguy961: What's wrong with their online strategy?

slomo788

Think of all the money they've spent on this service and what else they could have done with it. I don't have a problem with Home in itself, but it just sort of begs the question, "why bother?" If they had put those resources into another first-party title, or cut the price sooner, I think that really would have been more beneficial for them.

Stormrider

im interested in what ps3-psp interconnectivity HOME will have.

joelface

Sony certainly has a lot of potential in the pipeline, but I still worry about their overall online strategy. Hopefully the execution here will be spot on and will spread to the other parts of online play. Will justify my wanting of a PS3.

beerguy961

HA, the shadows from their noses make them look like they have a Hitler mustache...

how long has this been in development, and how could they miss something that is so upfront and visually unappealing? *rhetorical question*

BigBadBlender

@ManjiKengo: You will need this just as much as you need F@H to play games.

slomo788

@ManjiKengo: No, home will not be forced on you in any way. It's entirely optional, and the majority of the game-specific features will be open to you without using it. Home isn't just this, though. It's also the myspace-like webpage that will feature your PSN profile and accomplishments and trophies and pictures and videos, the ericsson connection, and the youtube like page for uploading your game videos specifically. Those other things may be in later implementations of Home, however, and the first stage will be the upgraded matchmaking and the 3d avatar thing.

bobtheduck

@ManjiKengo: I do not know about everyone else, but I like custom things. I just like the idea of having my own space for friends to come over (friends on psn) and check out my awards, video trailers, game trailers and whatever else I have. It is a good tool for getting people together and going off to play a game. There is a game coming out and I dont remember the name of it, but you can invite your clan over and strategize your moves and or plans that you will use in the game. The home will have a map layout of the game you will be playing and you can decide who will go where and things like that. It just adds an extra layer of fun, for some people. Not to mention its free, so why the hell wouldn't someone at least try it?

Mr Fortitude

This thing could go either way but i want it now so i can decide if i like it or not. Its hard to argue with free stuff though.

snakepliskin

Why do people care about this sort of thing? Why would someone want something to detract them from quality games?

Also, will Home be something that you're forced to go through in order to get to playing your games?

ManjiKengo

@TheChosen: Negative sir, this is a ps3 exclusive.

Mr Fortitude

yeah, wouldn't pay six hundred dollars for this!

give me a break sony! spend your money making games, not this second-life wannabe!

(being sarcastic by the way)

108

ne chance of dis cumin out on da 360?

TheChosen

@IntelSilver:

I agree with the potential bit, and I want it to be great...

But I'm also imagining the potential for it to be like Xbox Live with 3d avatars (shudder)... or the potential to be like Second Life (shudder)

How is Sony going to keep the effects of Gabriel's Greater Internet F-wad Theory from ruining this?

SeeOne

You know at first when the ps3 came out, everyone (including myself) thought sony were screwing themselves. Here is a console (ps3) for 600 bucks when I can go and get one that has the same visuals for 200 bucks cheaper. Now, the tides are turning. PS3 has some pretty kick ass games coming out this year, they won the format war, Home is going to kick lives ass and I can browse the interwebz. I have both consoles, I am not a fanboy, just an avid gamer. I think sony new what they were doing the entire time. Kudos to sony, and to all the developers sticking out and forking the money over for development on multicore consoles.

Mr Fortitude

Oh hell yes. Now I can finally realize my dream of becoming an african-american version of MTV's Gideon Yago.

MisterSleep

meh, I got a PS3 and frankly I dont care about all of this. Id rather they release some good exclusives before I worry about home and its trophies...

Kocrachon

Can't wait for this. It has so much potential. Can't wait for trophies too.

IntelSilver

Bring it out already, not that I'm even going to use it

Rockwallaby

Nice!! XD

slomo788

Ooooooooooooooooooooooooo, pretty...

Now if only I had a PS3..

JerrD74: hates the media