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Free PlayStation Home Batcave comes on Batman: Arkham Asylum disc
After pounding macho men to a pulp in the recent Batman: Arkham Asylum demo, we're definitely excited for additional bat-goodies. That's why we're happy to pass along some info from the PlayStation Blog, which says Home users will get the sweet Batcave space you see above. It's called the "Batman Arkham Asylum Batcave Outpost Apartment" and comes chock full of stuff, including a "Batsuit, Batmobile, and Batwing, along with various Bat-gadgets." The space will be unlocked for gamers when they pop in the disc and allow them to walk about Bruce Wayne's (spoiler!) underground lair. Sounds all well and good, but where's the virtual Alfred to boss around?
Allow Criss Angel to Mindfreak you, get a free (virtual) couch
Presumably to entice virtual patrons into PlayStation Home, Sony's offering up a free viewing of Criss Angel's Mindfreak on August 6th. As if virtually watching a magic trick illusion show starring the often farcical Criss Angel weren't enough, the company is enticing folks to watch with a free coffin couch (pictured above). Even though we're pretty sure that Glenn Danzig trademarked Mr. Angel's style back in the early '80s, Angel's distinctive couch isn't one we'll be passing up. Now all we have to do is lure some unsuspecting Home patron back to our virtual place, show them the coffin couch, and immediately Quincy them. Good times! [Thanks, Laz!] [Image credit]
Burn Zombie Burn to get DLC, lights up Home with new space
PlayStation Home is getting another themed space, this time promoting the recently PSN exclusive Burn Zombie Burn. According to doublesix senior games designer Ollie Barder, the BZB Home space will a feature a maze populated with brain-munching zombies and will be placed within a graveyard, so players can frolic with the undead. Bigger than that, BZB is getting a dose of DLC with two new levels taking place in space (it's the final frontier, by the way). Release information or price for the DLC was not revealed. Check out a trailer of the new alien abduction-themed levels after the break.
G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra infiltrates PlayStation Home
For a limited time only, PlayStation Home users will be able to download a set of four costumes based upon G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra, the upcoming flick that will likely ruin their childhoods. Costumes for Storm Shadow, Duke, The Baroness and Snake Eyes can now be downloaded for free. Over the next two weeks, more G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra related content is planned to invade the Home cinema, along with a G.I. Joe Training Game where players have the chance to win in-world loot for their expert marksmanship.Finally, the cast and crew get involved in the promotional onslaught with an exclusive welcome message video from sexy rivals Sienna Miller and Rachel Nichols, and a trailer introduction from director Stephen Sommers. Whether anyone apologizes for the upcoming action flick is unclear.
MotorStorm races Home
It may be nearly a year since the release of MotorStorm: Pacific Rift, but that's not stopping Sony from creating a brand new Home Space for the franchise. MotorStorm content will be appearing "over the coming weeks," beginning with the ability to use Game Launching for Pacific Rift this Thursday. Through Game Launching, Home users can meet up, chat, and then instantly jump into a game of MotorStorm together. Neat, huh?PlayStation Home has been getting support from a wide variety of games, from Katamari to Fight Night to Fat Princess. The addition of MotorStorm is another nice addition to Home's ever-diversifying lineup.
Katamari Forever to feature Home rewards, minigames over credits
If there's one complaint we'd lobby at PlayStation Home, it's that (aside from the woefully low amount of users) there's no miniaturized version of Katamari Forever's Prince (nor his cousins) to adorn our avatar's shoulder! Well, that changes now, as Namco Bandai has revealed (via Siliconera) that not only will the upcoming title support Trophies, but also Home rewards.There's no talk of anything outside of the parrot-like companion, though Siliconera also reveals Katamari Forever will return with minigames over the credits. Fans of We Love Katamari will also be happy to know that its minigame, featuring the King of All Cosmos, will make a return. As cool a Home reward as this is, we must say that we'd much prefer a real shirt with a Prince sewn onto it. Pre-order bonus, Namco Bandai? Please?
inFamous Home space encourages vandalism, electrocution
PlayStation Home is becoming, well, home to a number of new game-specific spaces, the latest of which -- devoted to inFamous -- has been revealed by Sony. Set to be added to the virtual world on Thursday, July 2 (hey, that's tomorrow!), the themed location ("The Abandoned Docks of Empire City") will feature a couple of interactive goodies, including the ability for users to create graffiti designs using Sony's tool set (to prevent any naughtiness, we suppose) which can be seen -- and voted on -- by other Homers. Much more exciting, though, is a shooting gallery minigame where (after waiting in line for, like, forever, spamming the X button) Cole-esque electric bolts are used to knock down targets fashioned after Reapers, Dustmen and the like. We were hoping for a corresponding announcement of a new "Zeke's Rooftop" private space, but, alas, it's seemingly not to be, at least for now. Check out a video tour of the new inFamous space after the break, along with high-res screens below. %Gallery-67194%
inFamous space coming to PlayStation Home
In a recent post on the PlayStation.Blog, SCEA's Katie Reid revealed a few random inFamous facts. According to the post, the inFamous demo is the fastest demo ever to reach 1,000,000 downloads. Will those demo downloads all turn into purchases? The biggest news hidden in the post must be the revelation of an inFamous space for Home. No other details (or images) were revealed, but we're sure it will let you walk around in a small section of Empire City. Odds are low that you'll get magical electricity superpowers when entering.
Fewer than 1 in 3 PS3 systems connected to PlayStation Home
According to Peter Edward, director of PlayStation Home for SCEE, PlayStation Home has gained 7 million users worldwide, with 3 million in Europe alone. That certainly sounds like an accomplishment -- but with over 21 million PS3s sold worldwide, that number reveals that fewer than one third of PS3 systems have connected to Home. That's a surprising figure, considering Edward calls Home "the starting point for PlayStation 3 online."There are a number of factors behind the PS3 community's slow acceptance of PlayStation Home. A long-delayed launch was marred by infrequent updates; the service received a mixed response from hardcore gamers. Since then, Home has expanded quite significantly, with the promise of more to come. Edward told Gamasutra that we can expect "more games [to] support Game Launch from within Home" in the future.%Poll-31332%
Watch as hamsters 'dance-off' against humans for Home superiority
digg_url = 'http://www.joystiq.com/2009/06/21/watch-as-hamsters-dance-off-against-humans-for-home-superiorit/'; When we heard Home was pitting Hamsters (Read: Virtual Furries) against Humans in a virtual world dance-off, we were intrigued. Actually, first we re-read our news feed to make sure we weren't hallucinating and then we became intrigued. Last night we decided to log onto Home and find out what all the fuss was about. Like cars slowing past a train wreck, we were unable to look away as dozens of PlayStation 3 users came together for the "ultimate dance-off." The winning faction has not been officially revealed, but humans appeared to be the clear winner during our multiple login sessions. If you're wondering what the point was: based on which side showed the most support, Home users would receive a different free item. If Hamsters are the decided winner, the PlayStation Home community will receive Viking and Valkyrie helmets. If Humans win, Home users net free Fedoras and Aviator headwear. It's easy for us to be dismissive of the wacky promotion, but users involved seemed to be enjoying themselves. Seriously. As avatars bumped (also, grinded), users would motivate and compliment each other on their "sick moves" ... it was one of the strangest things we've ever seen on a gaming console. The horrors of a giant hamster "shakin' its money maker" can be viewed above. Fair warning it's 3 minutes and 41 seconds that cannot be unseen, nor is it time you can ever get back.
Home to host Hamster vs Human Dance-Off tomorrow
Uh...We don't know what else to say. Looks like someone at the PlayStation Home team finally snapped? (Also, does the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man count as a human? Just wondering about the technicalities here.)Guess we'll see you in Home Central Plaza tomorrow at 8PM PST?
SOCOM and Ghostbusters join PlayStation Home
PlayStation Home is getting yet another update today, with the introduction of a new SOCOM Confrontation game space and a new for-purchase personal space based on Ghostbusters.The "SOCOM Tactical Operations Center" space is actually the first half of the SOCOM Home hub. This space will allow players to gather and create strategies around the Telestrator. Sounds a lot like the Warhawk game space.The Ghostbusters firehouse personal space is a three-story complex, ripped straight from the Ghostbusters video game. The personal space will come with unique items, like an Ecto-1, and features Stage Set functionality, so players can create their own Ghostbusters-themed movies. Finally, you'll be able to fly around as Slimer as well. Both these updates should be available in Home later today.
Namco Museum Essentials coming to PlayStation Home in July
Japan's Namco Museum Essentials is crossing the pond to America's PlayStation Network this July. The downloadable app will serve as a hub for various Namco arcade games, such as Pac-man, Galaga, Dig Dug, Dragon Spirit, Xevious, and a new 1080p "re-envisioned" Xevious: Resurrection. In addition to the standard gamut of features (trophies, leaderboards), players will be able to unlock PlayStation Home rewards to proudly display in their virtual apartments.Namco Bandai will also be launching a new destination within PlayStation Home simultaneously with the release of Museum Essentials. It will serve as the hub for all of Namco Bandai's upcoming downloadable games and will include a virtual arcade featuring a trial version of Museum Essentials. In addition to the free demo, PlayStation Home items can be unlocked for those who visit the space. All in all, it looks as though Home fans (casual and hardcore) will have a lot to look forward to.%Gallery-66211%
Qore Episode 13 includes free Spyro, removes PSP Go feature
Qore's first year is coming to an end with Episode 13. The delayed anniversary issue will focus on inFamous, Fight Night Round 4 and the PSPgo. Wait! It looks like the leaked feature has been removed from this upcoming issue. Strange, considering the damage has already been done.Digital bonuses included with this month's issue include a free Qore t-shirt for PlayStation Home, and a free download of the PSone classic, Spyro (playable on both PS3 and PSP). Episode 13 will be available on the PlayStation Store this Thursday. Check out a trailer after the break.
Home's Xi ARG is now complete
Xi is done; it's finished. The alternative reality game found within PlayStation Home is now complete with an ending. Some of you may have already discovered the super secret finish to Xi, but some of you haven't yet. This doesn't mean those of you who haven't won't ever get to -- there's still time.As detailed by the PlayStation Blog, all Xi-related spaces in Home will still remain active "for a few weeks." It looks like all you latecomers have some time to catch up. So get out there and start searching!
E3 2009: Massively's day 1 roundup
E3 2009 is turning out to be quite a show this year and Massively is right in the middle of it all to report on the MMO news. We got a head start on E3 and reported a bit on what's happening before the Expo officially kicked off and it looks like we'll have plenty more to share with you before E3 is over. Here's our recap of day 1 in MMO news from Electronic Entertainment Expo 2009, and be sure to click through to the E3 galleries we've got after the jump. Star Wars: The Old Republic world's first fully-voiced MMO Final Fantasy XIV announced Jumpgate Evolution releases E3 trailer EA to publish All Points Bulletin in 2010 PlayStation Home hits 6.5 million accounts Trion World Network unveils Heroes of Telara Boatloads of screenshots after the jump!
E3 2009: Sony says Playstation Home holds 6.5 million accounts
In addition to all of the games Sony has been showing at their press conference today, Sony released some impressive numbers for their Playstation Home service, revealing they now hold 6.5 million accounts and the Home service sports an 85% return rate for users. The 6.5 million accounts is impressive, but the 85% return rate is a vague, empty number that we're not quite sure what it means.To further expand their plans for Home, Sony will be introducing over 100 new virtual items each month, as over 100,000 items related to Capcom and Resident Evil were sold two months after their introduction. Future game spaces will include areas for inFAMOUS, Buzz! and Socom, with EA, Ubisoft, Activision, Namco, and Eidos jumping on the game space bandwagon with their support.
Buzz! space coming to Home 'very soon'
Buzz! is coming Home "very soon," according to both the US and EU PlayStation Blogs. The new space will feature a 64-player quiz game, which requires you to stand on the correct answer on the giant Buzz! controller as user-generated questions are pumped in from MyBuzz!. Exclusive prizes will be available for those who consistently find themselves at the top of the leaderboard. Check out the video after the break to see the Home space in action or visit the European PlayStation Flickr set for a selection of screenshots.
More and more people heading back Home
In an interview given to The Escapist, Home game director Peter Edward asserts user population for Sony's PS3 virtual world is on the upside. "We're at the point now where we're starting to see our active user-base go up and we're getting more people coming back than are leaving," said Edward. "So, we're at the tipping point of where the platform starts to gain momentum." Edward, unfortunately, was shy of detailing specific numbers. Are there more people now than when the service first appeared? Is the overall increase in PS3 owners a factor? Region? And did the recent development of ARG Xi play into this somehow? We still have so many questions. Do you find yourself coming back Home?
Siren: Blood Curse gets price drop, Home Space this week
PlayStation Home is getting its biggest update yet. In addition to the previously revealed StageSet add-on for Home, a brand new Space for Siren: Blood Curse will be available for American audiences. There are a few minigames for users to partake in, like the five-player cooperative "Ward of Despair" that tasks players with completing objectives without a Shibito grabbing any of them. Success will grant each five-man team some Home rewards.Those of you who don't have the game yet will want to jump on Home next week, on May 12th at 4PM, to participate in the "HorrorBowl" bowling tournament. Everyone that shows up will be given a chance to win a free voucher for the first four episodes of the PSN-exclusive horror game.Finally, those of who've been waiting for a price drop will be glad to know that Siren: Blood Curse is now available for $29.99. (Four episode packs are available for $10.99 each.)%Gallery-22445%
