playstation 3
This PSN Ad Is Beautiful. Really.
Posted by Brian Ashcraft at 7:00 PM on March 18, 2008
Nice ad alert! Haven't seen this one before. It's a PlayStation Network ad by Terry Hall. It's not annoying either! Which for an ad these days, says heaps. Lovely Spot [Motionographer Thanks, Jean!]

Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
criffyred
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Um, really? Obviously this guy has eaten some mushrooms and turned on his PS3 while he waits for them to kick in. Looking at the moving pictures on your wall is always more fun than a night alone with a Playstation. No one else is making the drug connection here? Why is he sitting alone and drumming his fingers--drugs.
criffyred
modorenai
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Bokusatsu_Tenshi: Haha, I had the same thought, actually. Although the budget for this ad is obviously nowhere NEAR the insane budget for the Bravia ads. :p
modorenai
modorenai
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Very pretty! I love the bursts of colours and the fact that although the drawings are all very dynamic, it's not in your face at all and instead is very pleasing to the eye - combined with the soothing music, it made me feel really relaxed and happy when I was watching it. :)
I must say that if this is the direction they're taking with their ads, Sony's definitely improving their Playstation marketing. I still remember how WTF I was after watching one of their "This is Living" ads. *shudders*
modorenai
markuspants
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
This seems a LOT like the movie "Me and You and Everyone We Know (2005)". Music, human camera shake, easy to digest colors.
markuspants
V1L3
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Wow, it's amazing how many people here don't have the slightest clue about marketing.
You want the ad to tell you that the PS3 plays games? Where have you been living, outer space? Sony has spent the last ten years building up the Playstation brand for a REASON - everyone on the PLANET knows it plays games. Why would you waste advertising dollars to explain that a kettle boils water or that butter goes on bread?
Any advertising agency will tell you... good ads (especially for large companies - Coke, etc) aren't meant to give you cold hard facts about what features the product has - it's aimed at producing an emotional response; in this case... Simple. Fun. Light-hearted. Social.
The commercial is designed to present the antithesis of Xbox Live - not Sony's carbon-copy of it. And that's 100% intentional. It's also very clever, given that Microsoft already has the "IT SHULD HAVE MOAR ROCK MUSICK AND HEDSHOTS!!!" demographic sewn up.
V1L3
sweetie55
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I enjoyed watching the ad, which says a lot, but I'll have to agree that it really didn't send a clear message on what the Playstation Network is. I still don't know what it has to offer. :P Better than some of their other ads though.
sweetie55
ohhello
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Xer0Ph0kus: A lot of ads out there don't actually drive their message cleary.
I was just commenting at how you morons complain about stupid ads and fail to recognize that some ads you like is just as retarded. Like that 360 finger shooting bullshit. What? 360s can let people kill others with fingers?
ohhello
Xer0Ph0kus
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@ohhello: I just checked my PS3 and I didn't find any Home on there, you must have one of those special PS3s from the future that tell us all that Home will be awesome.
That or you're a fanboy.
Either way this ad was kind of lame. It doesn't tell you anything about PSN. If a nongamer looked at this they wouldn't understand, nor would they care. Hell I'm a gamer with a PS3 and I don't care. If they are trying to inform the public, they failed, if they are trying to reassure fanboys they are still hip and cool, they succeeded...apparently.
Xer0Ph0kus
ohhello
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Byakko: You apparently don't get it either.
This is a PSN ad. Not really PS3. PSN includes things like HOME, if you weren't aware. They're trying to point out how you can use it to communicate with your online friends and mess around with player-created content. It's not just for gaming.
ohhello
GoonieGooGoo
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Imagine the person that buys a PS3 based on that ad.....then boots up all excited to access the PLAYSTATION NETWORK & Playstation Store.....
Can you imagine how disappointed they would be??
"why do these pages load so slow?"
"why is the layout so garbled?"
"Why is the only new thing ROCK BAND tracks?"
"what is this garbled vocals coming out of my Bluetooth headset in WARHAWK?"
"Why do I have to install what I just downloaded?"
GoonieGooGoo
lazyartist
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
So PSN deletes your funiture?
lazyartist
RedFive
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Very cool *looking* ad, but it doesn't convey the message of what PSN is and what it does. Another artsy, self-congratulatory marketing failure, similar to the "jump rope" Xbox 360 "Jump In" ad.
RedFive
Elrinth
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
lol I was listening to Smash Bros Brawl. soundtrack (random tracklist). I thought I had paused the music but it seems I hadn't so it skipped on to the next track without I knowing it. Track was: A01 Mushroomy Kingdom 1-1. Then I thought when I was watching this, wtf what's Super Mario theme remix doing in this commercial? hahahaha :D cool commercial nevertheless
Elrinth
BornToFlail
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I love this flavorful school of motion graphics and ad design. It really has grown over the past few years but still manages to remain fresh. I await the day these ads will seem dated.
BornToFlail
bangbangblah
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I wish he had actually been doing something instead of browsing through a menu the whole time.
bangbangblah
ffmusicdj
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
My god, you guys are annoyingly hard to please. Why don't you all not buy the PS3 and rid us of your stupidity.
ffmusicdj
SolInvictus
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I like the ad. It seems very reminiscent of Salad Fingers.
SolInvictus
ForgotMyKeys
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Abdar: Yeah, those ads which showed those console has the universe of gaming were sweet. I don't even like the band they used, but it got you pumped up, showed you actual footage of games and ended with the price. Too bad they cut that ad agency. I'm pretty sure if you told people that PSN was free compared to Live's tier pay-service, there'd be some migration.
ForgotMyKeys
msondo
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
This ad makes me want to go to Urban Outfitters, sign up for a myspace account, and listen to crappy music.
msondo
sascha23
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@axiom: I turn on my console manually. Just to spice it up. Don't dog it until you try it. ;)
sascha23
Grim Santo
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
reminds me of a Zune ad.
Grim Santo
Jagzthebest
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
do-bee-do-do-bee-do PLAYSTATION Network, sorry guys this comment is just because I can't see my previous post, If I post this my previous may post, but then you will not see this one, wait, what??
Jagzthebest
Jagzthebest
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Oh but to be honest, let's face it, I really do not see (not trying to be negative as I am an avid PS3 player) the point of this ad. When I go on PSN, I simply look at which friends are on, browse the store for free shit like trailers and demos, then play FPSs online. Wow, that has a lot to do with creepy people peering out through wall windows, floating heads and random flora growing in your room.
Jagzthebest
mariospants
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Just think, in 20 years or so we'll have real video walls like that. Brings new meaning to the phrase "my wall just bricked."
mariospants
Jagzthebest
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Snake726: where have you been? Haven't seen Bravia ads yet???? GET OUTA' YER HOLE!
Jagzthebest
MURDERFACE
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
The people in the walls reminded me of Silent Hill 4.
MURDERFACE
Agnitio
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
You know what stinks? Government shutting down YouTube over conflicts in Tibet :( (Up until now I've been pretty happy with internet access here in China, but this kind of sucks)
Agnitio
Swizzler121
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
whew, i'm glad they finnaly got out of that creepy white room, with crying babies, exploding things, and alien skulls, it wasn't a nice room.
Swizzler121
Heyyou27
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@ VeeKaChu: I think it's just you. PSN can be slow as shit sometimes, but I generally find download times to be comparable to XBL.
Heyyou27
fuchikoma
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
PSN: You'll see some crazy stuff, maaaaaaan. Don't take it while operating heavy machinery because you are gonna be GONE... By the way, the real service has some stuff... uh... maybe some things... ah, forget it. Look at the drawings on your wall, dude... I swear that one just moved! Woah...
I didn't realize they were up to Playstation 9 yet...
+ Watch video
fuchikoma
Abdar
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Nice if you like artsy stuff I guess.. however.. as of now a non PS3 owner.. it does nothing to pump me up in wanting to play on it. Get some rocking tunes, show some headshots, and then mention that it's free.
Abdar
Huxle
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Very nice.
Huxle
VeeKaChu
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@branchclarke: No one likes a tattle-tale! >_<
Kidding aside, I'd imagine that with Sony's legions of lawyers, everything gets super-vetted. And if they didn't license the usage properly, that's probably also purposefully done. Because, if someone objects they're all like "oops, here's 200K$ to settle it, go away", and then they write that off, come tax time!
VeeKaChu
branchclarke
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I liked it, but I wonder if Sony got permission to duplicate one of my favorite paintings, " A Bigger Splash", by David Hockney, seen at the 45 second mark?

branchclarke
Seiven
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
that is awesome, simple, effective, and it actually makes sense...some of the stuff we have seen like that creepy ass carnival commercial. *shudder*
Seiven
iRloading
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
i am now subliminally psyched for home.
iRloading
Frank
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
The guy who made this ad is very likely to get fired.
Because it's good.
Frank
Byakko
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@ohhello:
And I'm pointing out I loved it. It was fun and great; most importantly it looked like an ad for a console for gaming. Something apparently Sony has forgotten their PS3 actually does too.
Byakko
supertails15
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
it has the effect of crack
supertails15
chantron
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I liked it. I don't see these kind of ads peeling away the XBOX 360 yeah dudes :p nor do I see them attracting the art fags that this sort of style would appeal to. Its fun to stereotype.
chantron
Taco Bell™
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Isn't this how advertisement's supposed to work? I think this is how advertisement's supposed to work! It's easily the first commercial that's made me want a PS3.
Taco Bell™
WhiskeyJak
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Nice Ad. Music and visuals are really good. the only thing is that the bouncing heads reminded me of the Miis, which is probably not what the ad intended, but otherwise I like it a lot.
And I prefer this kind of post thousands of times better than those silly maximum risky stuff.
WhiskeyJak
ohhello
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Byakko: Actually I was pointing out at how retarded that 360 ad is.
ohhello
Chesu
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
...Heaps? Has Bashcraft been hanging around with Luke Plunkett?
Chesu
not_tom_brokaw
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
There seems to be some confusion over what this is an ad for.
Remember, it's an ad for the Playstation Network not the PS3 or the PSP. If I recall the ads for XBL didn't really show off much of the network's actual features, either; but I can see why that's an issue since it has to show why it's better than XBL, or whatever.
On the other hand, I think it's trying to show that PSN is not just gaming (which is what the XBL ads [the jump rope one and the finger-gun one] seemed to focus on, the idea of "playing together"), that it can also be a social tool working outside the medium of online gaming.
I think they're also trying to differentiate XBL from PSN by making everything colorful and simple and not overly-produced (but in reality probably more overproduced? heheh). That is, PSN is calm and simple, XBL is loud and imposing and etc.
That being said, now that people are mentioning it, it does feel a little bit like the guy in the ad is shut off from the rest of the world for some reason and only communicates via PSN. Additionally the very bare furnishings of his apartment both add to that idea of being some kind of recluse and also (to me) say "haw, this guy spent all his money on a ps3, hurr" although I suspect that's just the residual effects of many a "lol ps3 is expensive" joke.
not_tom_brokaw
Sloopydrew
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@pokebud:
You beat me to it. I was thinking the same thing about the "double his workload" comment. I used to always get up to turn the console on, just cuz there wasn't really a visible button there and it felt like magic. Definitely worth the 3 foot walk for the PS3. I could count it as my exercise for the week, as well. ;-)
Sloopydrew
Hamsnibit
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Playstation Network: It's like LSD for kids.
Hamsnibit
Collapse The Control
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
There is a reason why the ad never really shows the screen, lol.
Too bland.
Collapse The Control
TKWarrior
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
So.. did Sony hire Demetri Martin to draw ads for PSN now?
+ Watch video
TKWarrior
Byakko
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@ohhello:
Now THAT ad was fun. It was honest about the games the 360 had, and honest about how people are just going to shoot other people. That's a GREAT thing.
In a less-sensantionalist world where the ad would be aired regularly, I would be so happy.
Byakko
ohhello
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Oh wait I have a better idea, let's bitch about every little thing, because this is the internet.
ohhello
ohhello
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Remember that 360 ad where people where shooting each other with their fingers. Yeah. I hope those people got hurt.
ohhello
psychobaka
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Reneg: I agree. I couldn't help feeling that the dude was letting his life waste away in front of the TV. All that pretty stuff going on around him and the only thing he cared about was the TV. When he got up and all those people came out of the wall and started talking to each other, it was kinda sad to see the dude sit back down to continue playing.
psychobaka
zombieistired
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Lanhoj
lol if you're confused, then you must be an idiot.
zombieistired
olion597
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Demaar: That's the one thing that bugged me while watching it. If I wasn't into gaming as much as I am, I would have no clue what the hell was going on, especially when the windows fly open and their friends appear.
Believe it or not, most of the people I come across tend to have no clue about PSN, or the fact that it's free. They believe that Xbox Live is the only online service, and sometimes end up buying 360's because of it. These are the people that the ad should be targeting, and it fails at doing that.
olion597
Byakko
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Actually, if Home seriously animated like that, I would give the PSN a shot.
As it is though; good ad, but completely showing nothing about the PSN realistically? Only the most delusional of people are going to associate what's happening in this ad with anything close to the actual service.
Props though, that it doesn't have creepy dolls. Or possessed consoles. Or some, weird, Europe dancer troupe thing in the background.
Though it does have a man clearly on LSD, but hey, who isn't.
@VeeKaChu:
A simple lack of servers could be the reason. My friends who own PS3s do say their downloads are terrible usually, depending on the content.
Byakko
Agnostic
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I had the same experience when I use to drop acid.
Agnostic
kidko
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Wait, so, he was watching "I [heart] Huckabee's"?
kidko
Rask
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Look at that. Another PS3 ad that talks about everything else but gaming...
Which is, you know... the primary purpose of PSN...
Rask
thelastdestroyer
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Playstation Network - where furniture and grass pops out of the ground, and crappy 4 year old doodles come out of the walls.
Anyone else notice that he turns on the PS3 without the controller?
Nice music, but didn't showcase the features AT ALL.
thelastdestroyer
anubis2788
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
This is sweet, yet.. disturbing.
anubis2788
alecpyron
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Pretty sweet ad. I hope this is a new trend for Sony.
alecpyron
TyrannosaurusRox
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@VeeKaChu: Yeah, what's with that?! When I first got my PS3, it literally took 2 hours to update Motorstorm and Resistance but after I've had it for a few months, downloads fly along. Random :/
TyrannosaurusRox
Bokusatsu_Tenshi
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Nice one! Sony moving Bravia ads staff to PSN?
Bokusatsu_Tenshi
VeeKaChu
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I've had a PS3 for about two weeks now (to complete my "Next-Gen Trinity", thank you very much, Blu-Ray victory!), and as an analogue to my own experience, I'd say that he's looking at the XMB the whole time because he's waiting for some download to complete over the PSN's hideously constrained bandwidth. It's totally appropo!
Is it just me, I wonder? I can download a 1GB movie from XBL in about an hour. Yet a download of approximately the same size on PSN takes in excess of 8. Again, is it just me, or is this a common experience?
VeeKaChu
Demaar
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
It's a neat ad, but man... says nothing about the service AT ALL. There's a reason everyone thinks ads that are all about brands, products and PR BS are evil: because they're effective at brain washing the ignorant masses.
Demaar
RuneX
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Not annoying????? I wanted to stop playing this ad after just 10 seconds because I felt as if my ears were gonna bleed.
That being said, I think it had the opposite effect that they were looking for on me, I not only didnt like the ad, but it made me not want to purchase anything.(already have a PS3)
Never did understand the artsy type commercials though, I relate them to the IFC style films which I also dislike.(read as almost anything that wins an award)
I hope these kind of ads are not the future, good to mix them in, but I wouldnt want them being standard. I prefer to laugh at comercials, like most beer commercials.(and for the record, this one still beats the hell out of the Do!Do!Do! ad commercials they had.)
RuneX
GMC
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
This ad is cack.
Like many (many) ads - it shows nothing about the products available. The guy sits on the XMB and stuff appears on the wall - what about stuff appearing on the screen for fuxake?
I know this is basically the mantra for all ads (does coke make Polar Bears appear?), but at least other ads actually show a person enjoying the product while snowboarding/skydiving/dodging robots. This guy sat not playing games on a games machine ad about a games service.
Nice one.
GMC
epherlite
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I like the minimalism thing that seems to be coming back into the mainstream. This ad is really pretty to watch (regardless of whether you think it's successful or not).
epherlite
dexterr
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
its nice.
dexterr
Hollette
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I really like this ad, although I do agree that there is a certain element of loneliness to it. I mean, there's nothing wrong with playing games by yourself (I do it all the time!), but the guy walks in and sits in this little chair in the middle of a big empty room, and he doesn't look particularly happy... It is kind of reminiscent of one of those depression medication commercials where they show all these sad, bored looking people and go on about how "depression hurts".
Everything else I love though. The music's nice, and it's very artsy. I love artsy. <3
Hollette
Zim
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Reneg: I felt the same thing. Sends the message ''Hey lonely and can't make friends? Buy a PS3 and make friends on it instead''
Reminds me of that old famous ad where the guy is smoking cigarettes and it says ''You're never alone with a strand (the cigarette)'' I can't remember the original intention of the advert but people basically saw it as: If you smoke you will be alone.
I mean it's a nice little film but I don't think it's a good advert.
Zim
joelface
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
i like the way they used the actual windows to represent how all your friends can use the PSN to voice chat with each other, etc.
joelface
ryivanV2
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Snake726: I thought the universe of entertainment add was pretty cool, still, from a design point of view, its nice to see an add with a little more artistic appeal.
Whats nicer is too see video gaming represented as more of a culture then a bunch of prepubescent teens screaming obscenities.
ryivanV2
Lanhoj
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
annoying, maybe not
boring, possibly
confusing, definitely
Lanhoj
itango
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Grey_Fox: as a voice replied:
"To talk to you."
itango
pokebud
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@axiom:
I know wtf was that? Damn show-off "Oh look at me I can walk 3 feet from my chair to the TV without getting winded" Bastard.
pokebud
超外人
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Everything seems so morbid and slowly pops to life. I'm left with a strange feeling, especially when there's like virtually no ambiance nor voices. I'm too used to those annoying PSP ads where they attempt to shove one in your face or have someone haggling another person. D;
I don't know how PSN is, but if what some of the above users have said is true, then this ad only disappoints by being false instead of having user generated content and such. ;-;
超外人
Wellhereweare
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I only liked the music.
Wellhereweare
Witzbold
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
That was a rather nice add.
Witzbold
Grey_Fox
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Heh now I can't stop thinking about a guy suffering from something having the same thing happen to him.
"WHY ARE THERE PEOPLE IN MY WALLS?!"
Grey_Fox
Reneg
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Grey_Fox: I know, but it just has a feel similar to a film about a person suffering from some form of mental illness. The sterile white room and the music just make it seem very sad.
Reneg
Grey_Fox
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Reneg: I think that's looking way too hard at it. I don't think it's meant to be taken at more then what is shown there which is just that PSN is supposed to be a colourful, interesting and social online component to the PS3.
Grey_Fox
Reneg
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
My only complaint with the ad is that it makes him seem like a very lonely person, sitting in his big white room with only his playstation to keep him company. It sends the message that the system is for people who have social problems, and are perhaps unable to communicate with other people or deal with the real world.
The ad is supposed to show how the playstation brings life into his home, but it just makes him seem like a terribly lonely addict.
Reneg
cheeses
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Sony's has a very Michel Gondry approach to advertising, which I, for one, appreciate.
cheeses
Snake726
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
A nice...Sony...ad? What is going on?
Snake726
Grey_Fox
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@bigmil87:
Looking at people doing stuff while you wish you could hear them in cross game voice chat? Yup that's PSN alright.
Grey_Fox
DaftDethMonkey
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@axiom: Yeah! You have to press the PS button on the sixaxis anyway, let it turn the console on too. Dude just doubled his workload.
DaftDethMonkey
Neo_Deus
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Very, very nice.
I think we may be reaching a new advertisement age in which X-treme(!) styles are dying out in favor of what seems to be more creative and innocent. Shame it took 16 years.
Neo_Deus
Crooked
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
@Nullzero: I sense a little resentment...
I enjoyed it. Simple and unique. Hope to see more of these. Not that I have seen any others...
Crooked
itango
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I think this ad seems like the most relaxed game(console) ad I've seen. Its a nice change compared to some of the other PS3 ads which kinda suck.
itango
axiom
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Who goes up to their console these days to turn it on?
axiom
Nullzero
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Look at all that User Generated Content that you WILL NEVER SEE. This is just slick advertising for a bunch of crap that noone will get to experience.
P.S. Bring on LBP, please.
Nullzero
yoshinatsu
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
I wasn't that amazed really.
yoshinatsu
bigmil87
Posted 11:09 PM 19/3/08
Thats pretty sweet. I like it, encompasses all that Sony is trying to do with PSN.
bigmil87