According to G4 and Playstation’s blog, Santa is coming to PlayStation Home starting December 10th.

Actually, a whole host of Christmas goodies are coming to PlayStation Home in the form of Winter Wonderland – complete with elves and presents!

While Christmas isn’t my favorite time of the year [Halloween, please.] free stuff and mini-games are right up my alley. I killed PlayStation Home on my PS3 but now that I can visit Santa and his busy, busy elves, maybe now I’ll reinstall Home and tell Santa what I want for Christmas.

Then again, he never did get me that pony…not that I’m holding a grudge or anything.

Image|PlayStation.Blog.Europe

Post from: EveryJoe

Santa’s Checking List at Playstation Home

Today is a day of downloadable goodies, as a number of titles are receiving new content, updates, or demos in the near future. Things are getting so hectic on the DLC front, you barely even have to leave your house to get new games to play. And that, my friends, is a wonderful thing. Read on for the headlines:

• Sony has announced a bunch of new content for Home, including ninja outfits, a Warhawk space, and a SOCOM space, all of which should be coming soon. They also confirmed that Capcom’s Street Fighter outfits will be coming to the North American version of Home.
• Yesterday it was revealed that Burnout Paradise would be getting a cops ‘n robbers update in the future, and now we have screenshots.
• A demo for Tom Clancy’s HAWX–a flight simulation game–is set to hit the PSN this week.
• LittleBigPlanet just received update 1.09. For a complete list of what’s changed/been fixed, head here.
• Call of Duty: World at War will be getting four brand new maps some time this March.

Post from: EveryJoe

Today in PlayStation: February 10, 2009

Well, it’s Monday, and the PlayStation news has slowed to a trickle. Today we have some great news for Resistance fans, and some bad news for Final Fantasy fans, as well as what could be an actually interesting new Home space. Here are the headlines:

• Resistance: Retribution finally has a release date, and the PSP title will be hitting store shelves on March 17.
• If you were curious as to what the new EA Sports Complex in Home will look like, check out this guided tour.
• It looks like those of us in North America won’t be getting a demo of Final Fantasy XIII.
• Final Fantasy Dissidia has topped the Japanese sales charts, moving an estimated 104,000 units.
• Fat Princess may very well be the next big PSN game. And if you don’t believe me, just check out these videos.
• And then there’s this.

Post from: EveryJoe

Today in PlayStation: January 12, 2009

Home has been out for a few weeks, but the Red Bull Island that was released yesterday is the first new area to hit the service. We took the section for a spin, and unfortunately, like the rest of Home, there isn’t a whole lot to it. Set in a tropical island, the new space provides the illusion that of a huge area. You can see beaches complete with palm trees off in the distance, but where you can actually go and explore is very limited. The walkable area is restricted to a few wooden walkways, which provide access to the only real addition that the space provides (besides the Red Bull ads, of course): the airplane races.

The first thing that you’ll notice about the races is that its difficult to start one. Not because you have to wait in line like in the rest of the services in Home, but because it takes a while, for me anyways, to figure out how to enter a race (FYI, the easiest way I found was to select a near by user then continually hit left on the analog stick until I found the race). Once you get into a race, you get to select one of three places (the helicopter appeared to be unavailable while I was on the island). I tested all three and they all seemed to be pretty much the same aside from the aesthetic differences.

An important thing to note is that the plane race isn’t really a race. Instead, you have to keep the plane on track and go through a series of loops found throughout the island. Since the planes move relatively slowly, this isn’t a difficult task. Just make sure to avoid trees as they send you into a spiral dive towards the ground if you touch them. And…that’s pretty much it. There really is nothing else to do on the island other than race, and even that isn’t all that engaging. Still, it at least looks nice, and the advertising isn’t very obtrusive, so there is potential for the space to be improved with more activities and games. But as it stands, like the rest of Home, there simply isn’t enough to do. And man am I getting sick of writing that.

Post from: EveryJoe

Quick Impressions: Red Bull Island in Home

It may be Friday, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t plenty of PlayStation news to enjoy. Today we have headlines covering everything from Home to Burnout, plus we even have some new info on the elusive Final Fantasy XIII. Well, sort of. Anyways, on to the news:

• Criterion has revealed the rest of the cars that will be available in the upcoming Legendary Cars pack for Burnout Paradise, and they are looking pretty sweet. Who you gonna call?
• EA is adding its support to Home, with an upcoming EA Sports Complex area. Expect to see it in Spring.
• The official Japanese websites for both Final Fantasy XIII and FF Versus XIII have been launched, which hopefully means the release isn’t too far off.
• Gameloft is developing a virtual version of the card game UNO, which will be available to download on both the PS3 and PSP later this year.
• A deluge of screens for the upcoming portable spin-off Resistance: Retribution were revealed at CES. It looks like the PSP title is shaping up quite nicely.
• After less than a year since its release, Vakyria Chronicles is already a Greatest Hits (or the Best, as the hit games are known in Japan) title in that territory.
• It’s no secret that Home hasn’t been all that well received, and Sony believes that some of the blame can be put on the fact that it was announced “too early.”

Post from: EveryJoe

Today in PlayStation: January 9, 2009

It’s Thursday, and you know what that means: another PSN update. This week we have some new games, a new Qore episode, and even a new addition to Home. There should also be a few interesting tidbits coming out CES this year, so stay tuned.

• Home is getting a new area this week, with Red Bull Island. In addition to a whole bunch of advertising, the new area will give users the chance to explore the tropical island in planes and helicopters.
• The next episode of Qore is on its way, and with it comes an exclusive F.E.A.R 2 demo.
• Sony has been showing off some very cool 3D PS3 technology at CES, unfortunately it’s only a demo for now.
• Speaking of CES, head over here to take a quick tour of Sony’s impressive booth for the event.
• Asian gamers are getting two new, very bright colors for the PSP.
• PSN favorite PixelJunk Eden has been nominated for a number of Independent Games Festival awards, including best visuals and audio

Post from: EveryJoe

Today in PlayStation: January 8, 2008

Sony’s PlayStation Home service has been in open beta for almost a month now, and its reception has been lukewarm to say the least. For the most, PlayStation 3 owners have not been impressed by the service, which is sorely lacking in content leaving many, including us here at PSM, to wonder just why we would want to walk around Sony’s virtual world. Of course, the potential is there, and we’re hoping that Sony is able to eventually turn Home into the compelling killer app it was once touted to be. So let’s take a look at some of the things that need to be done in order for Home to be worth your time.

The biggest challenge that Sony faces is giving gamers a reason to want to enter Home. For most of us, a virtual 3D chat room simply isn’t enough. What would make players actually want to enter the world is if it was more event driven. Similar to the techniques used by many MMOs, special events can be used to attract players. Instead of repeatedly showing trailers for Twilight or some other movie, the service could host premieres for the trailers of big games, like say God of War III or Uncharted 2. Show them at a specfic time, at a specific place within Home, and dedicated fans will come. There are other types of events that could be used as well, such as in-game item giveaways, but the point is you need to give users a reason to want to use Home.

Another area that is in dire need of improvement is the game-specific areas. Sure, walking around environments from Uncharted and Far Cry 2 is cool, but it grows old quickly. Like the rest of Home, there needs to be more to do. The game-specifc areas should be tied to some sort of content, be it a demo, mini-game, or even a theme or Home t-shirt. These areas could also include the occasional event as well, such as chats with developers, or something else along those lines. Game specific spaces certainly have the potential to be really cool, but they need to have more to do with the game that they are promoting than simply looking like it.

It’s also important that Home becomes more integrated with the rest of the PS3 experience. Prior to the service’s launch, we were told that we would be able to invite friends over to our apartment, launch games from Home, and even form clubs made up of like minded gamers. If done successfully, these ideas could give the PS3 a truly unique social aspect. There are many gamers who would enjoy getting together with their friends virtually inside Home, and then being able to decide what they want to do from there, and simply do it. Of course, it’s also important to make this purely optional, as there are probably just as many gamers who wouldn’t want to start up a game that way. Basically, you should be able to do everything you can do from the XMB inside of Home. Be it access your videos, pictures and music, launch a game, or check up on your buddies, it needs to be a part of the service. But you also shouldn’t need Home to do any of those things either.

Of course, these are just a few ideas, and with the ever-evolving nature of Home it’s probable that we will see some of these changes soon. And that’s what’s most exciting about the service. There may not be much there now, but the potential is huge. Now that Sony has laid down most of the groundwork, a continuous stream of new content is what they need to keep interest in Home high. Be it new features, events, or whatever, they need to do something, becuase there isn’t much there at the moment. But there very well could be.

Post from: EveryJoe

Opinion: How To Improve Home In 2009

With the holidays almost upon us the news has slowed to a crawl, though a few interesting tidbits have popped up today. As for the PSM, we’ll be updating until tomorrow, and then resuming after the New Year. Expect to see a big review later this afternoon and our awards for best PSP, PS3, and PS2 games tomorrow. On to the headlines:

• PlayStation Home has been updated again, with voice chat be installed reinstated.
• The addictive tower defense PSN title Pixeljunk Monsters is coming to the PSP sometime next year.
• If you’re at all interested in the way games are made, check out this very interesting post-mortem over at Gamasutra dealing with one of last years’ best, Ratchet and Clank: Tools of Destruction.
• While it may not be the best game, it turns out that PAIN is the most downloaded title on the PSN.
• It looks like Lumines Supernova will be available to those of us in North America very soon, as in tomorrow.

Post from: EveryJoe

Today in PlayStation: December 22, 2008

When Home was first released, I took it for a spin only to be disappointed. The customization options were slim, the content was lacking, and overall there wasn’t much to do. Sony has updated the service, but unfortunately, not much has changed. In fact, the only real difference I noted was the addition of a few new facial hair options in the character creation mode. And while this is a good sign, creating the possibility of more customization options in the future, it isn’t much. The only other change made was the removal of voice chat, which is a temporary measure expected to help stability issues. It should be re-implemented soon. So basically, there still isn’t much to Home. Though the theatre is now playing trailers for Resident Evil: Degeneration, so that’s something.

Post from: EveryJoe

Quick Update: Home Impressions V1.04

Wow, Christmas sure is coming up quickly, and in one week from today we’ll all be busy opening up gifts that are hopefully video game related. But if you can’t wait, treat yourself to one of the many PSN titles that will be hitting the network in today’s update.

• Home has been updated, which should help alleviate some of the connection issues people were having. The update also includes the much needed addition of beards, but temporarily removes any form of voice chat. Compromises.
• The second episode of Penny Arcade Adventures will be hitting the PlayStation Store later today, bringing with it plenty of humor and turn-based combat.
• Also coming to the PS Store this week is Crash Commando, an action-packed 2D side-scrolling shooter with a heavy emphasis on multiplayer.
• Konami has announced that Castlevania Chronicles will be hitting the PS Store today, though whether it’s a remake or the classic PSOne title is still unknown.
• On the eve of its Japanese release, Dissidia: Final Fantasy has officially been announced for North America. It’s expected to come out “mid 2009.

Post from: EveryJoe

Today in PlayStation: December 18, 2008