Sony online announcement set for 360 launch?

Hmm... that seems like a smart idea by Sony.

The day before the 360 launches, they unveil their new Sony Online stuff.

I'm interested to see what they pull out of the bag. I love what microsoft has set up with xbox live, and that's one of the reasons I'm willing to pay for it. I've read somewhere that they were basically going to stay out of the picture for the online thing, so this seems like they've changed their mind and our attempting to unify the experience across the board with developers and players. Maybe I just read it wrong though.

It's funny seeing Sony play "me too!!!11" against Microsoft. Will their hype-machine work?

Sony = All Shout, No Show.

Remember Sony, When the Kid Cried wolf Too many Times the Villagers got fed up and Ignored Him.

Well, if it offers good matchmaking, and doesn't cost $50 a year to use... I'll be very happy.

I think it will be hilarious until they wait until the day before the 360 launches to announce their Sony World 'service'. Everyone will be to busy out buying their 360 to notice. I love it....

Hmmmm, "user transactions, multimedia functions....", wow Sony, way to try and do what Xbox Live has been doing for three years now. And guess what people....by the time Sony World launches next year, doing what Xbox Live is already doing, Live will roll-out a host of additional features.

Well I for one will be glad to see what they plan to offer.
They are not going to risk becoming an "also ran" in the console race.
Sony has a good online presence with MMORPGs, maybe they will come up with something good.
They could also stick it to Microsoft with downloadable content, they have the media muscle to do movie downloads etc.

When it comes to the bottomline it is all about the graphics.

I don't really care about online stuff. I have a PC for that.

Has no-one noticed that Microsoft **charges** for XBLive? (Which is matchmaking + instant messaging). That's part of the reason why there are only 2 million people using it (~10% of installed base).
There are actually more people playing SocomII than there are on all of Live.
This is a serious issue, and while it's suprisingly ignored in online media it will play a major role in the next console war.

Woop-dee-Doo... It's not like Sony have all the Super Servers that Microsoft do to make the XBL service run as smoothly as it does.

I know this is unlikely to happen, but how about waiting to see it before we judge it??

What's the point? Most of the people who wants to buy a 360 already is determined to get one, preorders, etc. It's not like an announcement of online will stray people away, people want to see games...

"Has no-one noticed that Microsoft **charges** for XBLive?"
Less than most MMOs.
"(Which is matchmaking + instant messaging). "
Not true. It is also game patching, bonus content downloads, etc.. The fact that it unified multiplayer gaming under one set of functionality (easing development, for sure) is noteworthy.
"That's part of the reason why there are only 2 million people using it (~10% of installed base)." Source?
"There are actually more people playing SocomII than there are on all of Live."
Source?

ArrestedDevelopment, Thats not actualy True.
There are more people playing Halo 2 at any one time then there are People playing Socom 2. Then you add all the people playing all the other games. Thats a testement to how Crap Socom 2 is, people have tried it and then not Gone back.

Hmmm... well considering XBL costs $50 a year.. so I can play 8-player CoD2... (which I could play for free on the PC, with 32+ players...), I for one am actually interested in what Sony has to offer...

Will Sony also be announcing how many of the announced features will actually show up on the PS3?

8 Player Cod2?

It's 32 player Cod2 on the Xbox 360 :S

The best thing about XBL is the Fact that 99.99% of people that use it have an XBL headset, something that PC games Don't have. It really makes the whole online play a lot better.

Sony promised us downloadable games and episodic game content back in 1999&2000, and guess what, we're still waiting for it.

i'm not an xboxlive user yet, but i will be for FFXI.

jc - it seems unlikely that will happen.

#8 - Of course people recognize you have to pay for XBOX Live, and I don't think the media have ever been shy about addressing that. But I think, like generally every other live subscriber, that the service justifies the cost, espescially going into the new generation of Live. I think the fact that it IS a subscription service, and everyone has one unique ID, it keeps people using it somewhat responsibly (as much as you can expect from online gamers)... feedback, gamer scores, and the "classes" of gamers in the next gen will make it an even better matchmaking service. At the core it's fundamentally matchmaking and IM, but their plans moving forward are much integrated with the games too.

If Sony or Nintendo come up with a similar service and keep it going for free, I expect Microsoft will have to adjust their model. I'm curious to see what Sony comes up with because I'm not sure what's left to bring to the table, and with everything that's integrated with Live moving forward, it will be difficult for Sony to even catch up. I do hope to see them come up with something new and innovatve if for no other reason than I'm sure such innovations will also work their way onto other online services too.

I think the fact that Sony has 4x the installed user base and comparatively limited online gaming options available are part of the reason why you see 2 million+ people playing SocomII online.

Regarding the figure of 2 million people on Live (~10% of Xbox owners):

That was confirmed July, 2005.
http://www.gamasutra.com/php-bin/news_index.php?story=5979

The stats regarding Socom2 dwarfing all of XBoxLive I still have to dig up. The gamasutra article was calles "Socom2 beats XBL" or something similar...

Anyway, it's nice that people are giving away their hard-earned money so easily...

Anyone that has played Halo 2 with some nice Friendly people knows How good the service is, It's only the little kids that think it's funny to curse and shout down the mic that ruin it.

Henry your statement about "Remember Sony, When the Kid Cried wolf Too many Times the Villagers got fed up and Ignored Him." Holds very true to me, I've gotten so sick of Sony saying look here look here and not showing us anything.

Sony needs to come right out and tell up everything. The next words out of Sony's mouth better be the price of the system, the price of games, and details about their online services. Also the next time the show off the PS3 it better be god damn playable. Otherwise its no better then the Phantom.

I've gotten so discouraged by Sony, As it stands the PS3 is last on my list. They just haven't done anything to make me want a PS3.

This is the dumbest thing ever.

Seriously,I get a fucking show and a half between Sony and Microsoft fighting.Who is this actually going to convince to wait until next year to get a new console when they show it the DAY BEFORE THE XBOX LAUNCHES? Hmm,wait until next year for a console's online plan or go out tomorrow and get the console i've been planning on getting for awhile.

Newflash Sony,whoever is going to buy a 360 is going to by one regardless of your online plan.

Newsflash Microsoft,whoever is going to buy a PS3 is ging to by one regardless of Halo3.

I just hope it isn't as bloated and lame as xbl. Something simple and well engineered is what we need. No "lamer-tags", "online marketplace", "micropayments", or other pathetic "features" to extract more money please! Sony, I don't wanna by a t-shirt for my avatar.

Most importantly, it must free. I certainly won't pay a dime for any online "service". If the console supports online, then I should be able to use it. If I paid for the networking hardware, perhaps I should be able to use it?

Arrested, I heard the same thing a while ago as well... about the number of SOCOM players.

All I could find is this from last year. I am sure it is different now that Halo2 is out. I would love to know what today's stats are.
http://ps2.ign.com/articles/534/534576p1.html

"Anyway, it's nice that people are giving away their hard-earned money so easily..."
Amazing how people pay for things they want. Apparently you've never played XBox Live, because it can be really fun. It is a service that I reccomend to anyone who has a broadband connection and a few Live enabled games. I've never played SOCOM2, so I can't tell how good it is.

soco: "Sony promised us downloadable games and episodic game content back in 1999&2000"

I got the extra maps / content for socom2 last year (or was it 2 years ago). It was available on the OPM demo discs that came with Official Playstation Magazine.

i like XBL, but i think the matchmaking is actually inferior to what you get free with most pc games, and i have no doubt sony could at least approximate its quality if they were committed to it. i think it's dumb for msft to count on live bringing in tons of users, just like it's dumb for sony to rely on the cell processor's specs. it's not going to be the online service or the power of the system that wins this next round, it will be...GASP...games and marketing!

good job jc! that's obviously not downloadable episodic content is it?

as for this whole socomII vs xbl stuff, it doesn't mean anything. i think the numbers you guys are referencing aren't the number of users, but rather the number of player hours and the number of users per day. i've not played socomII but i've been told you can create as many users as you like, which makes it all pretty irrelevant, doesn't it?


one of the biggest problems with the XBL numbers isn't that you have to pay to play, but rather the requirement of the credit card, which many europeans and kids don't have. MS has not eliminated this.

soco - You don't need a credit card to use Live on the 360.

"Microsoft also announced today that credit cards will no longer be required to create an account on Xbox Live for Xbox 360, removing one of the biggest barriers to entry."

No one can say anything NEGATIVE about XBL. It is the BEST service for online game play to date. Whatever SONY is dong is always based off other ideas. Why would they release the PSP without a service like XBL; and have it ready for PS3. Sony is supposed to be the innovators right? Heck, if XBL offered Decidated servers with 64 player games I would pay $100.00 dollars a year. With all this being said, I would like to see what SONY does because I am so bored with my PSP.

ATTENTION 360 FANS !!! QUIT COMPLAININ ABOUT HOW SONY'S "LYING" OR HYPING UP THEIR SYSTEMS. EVERY CONSOLE COMPANY DOES THAT!!! SO STOP WINING...CUZ U SOUND LIKE LIL BABIES... ITS ALWAYS... THE SAME CRAP... LOSERS...IF U WANA BUY A 360 GO AHEAD NO ONES STOPPIN YOU... BUT STOP HATIN ON SONY JUST BECAUSE THEY ARE PUTTING OUT A BETTER SYSTEM...

sorry art guy, you're right, i meant to say they had eliminated that.

Xbox live destroys online PC gaming, and it's hard to believe SONY can change their entire strategy and get it right for the PS3 launch. Last night, I was balancing my checkbook when I got an alert that two of my friends had were playing Halo 2. I love having the common friends list/messages, because I'm the kind that doesn't just want to play with a bunch of idiots - just with my friends. And with the 360, MS is taking that to the next level - the 360 dashboard is totally what is needed, just many haven't figured it out yet.

Jonas - Better system? LOL. We have no idea what the PS3 will be like, or how much it will cost. It might very well be 300% better than the 360, but it might also cost $500. We just don't have all of the facts yet.

People complain about how Sony lies... because they flat out lie all the time. Where are the Toy Story 2 graphics? How about the browser, email, and instant messaging capabilities for the PS2? MicroSoft and Nintendo tend to deliver on what they claim, while they may not be spot on every time, they beat Sony by a mile when it comes to the bull/truth meter.

This is a console WAR after all, if you're not worried about Sony, why bother complaining, fanboys?

Or is it just that you _are_ a little worried?

Sony isn't "hyping" or "lying," they just don't have a system ready to launch like Microsoft does. Sony will have game screen shots, media events, etc. when they are as far along in the development cycle as 360 is.

I want the PS3 to be technically amazing - nothing against the 360 (I played it last night, it's OK), but as a gamer, I want these machines to be totally BANANAS, and if PS3 is really all that, WE ALL BENEFIT as gamers in the marketplace.

"Where are the Toy Story 2 graphics?"

Seriously... Get over it man. Is that all you have?

I work for SCE and as of last week there is no online plan. The Sony big-wigs told us they're still trying to come up with some unified plan to cover all they're consoles. Very disappointing though they do have a year before the PS3 is released. Unless they're keeping it secret from everyone here, the rumor is false.

ill trooper - We don't know if Sony is lying about the PS3. But history teaches us that Sony likes to talk, a lot, and most of the time it is just talk. But I do hope it is a great system. I want all 3 systems to do well, as monopolies crush innovation.

darryl - Nope, thats not all I had. I also asked about the browser, email, and instant messaging capabilities of the PS2 that Sony claimed they had in the works.

I can absolutely gaurantee that the online service for the PS3 will not be as good as XBL. Why? Time. Microsoft already has a 1 generation head start. And XBL is the best online experience I have EVER had, when you find a group of mature people that is. If you do that, NOTHING beats it. I think the addition of 'zones will help make the whole experience more enjoyable. Hopefully all the whiny kids will go to the Underground while mature people can take it to the Pro zone.

"WHERE ARE THE TOY STORY LIKE GRAPHICS?"-Art Guy
OMG !!! GET OVER IT U BABY...SEE THIS IS WHAT I WAS TALKIN ABOUT...MAAN THAT SHIT WAS YEARES AGO ...U GUYS RREALLY NEED TO PUT THE PAST NEHIND U. aND WHAT'S THIS I HEAR ABOUT SONY LYING AND ALL THIS CRAP...U MS FANBOYS ARE TALKIN LIKE THE PS 1 WAS A FAILIURE...THE PS2 SOLD WAAAAY MORE THAN THE X BOX 360...THE REASON THE FIRST XBOX WAS BBETTER THAN SONY WAS BECAUSE THEY REALEASED IT A WHILE AFTER SONY. aND AS FAR AS ONLINE PLAY GOES....U PPL... YES MS DID HAVE AN BETTER ONLINE FUNCTION ...BUT SONY STILL HAD MORE PEOPLE PLAYIN SOCOM ONLINE. sURE ms HAD BETTER GRAPHICS AND ALL BUT THE PS2 HAD BETTER GAMES.
NOW AS FAR AS PS3 AND XBOX 360 ARE CONCERNED... i DO BELIEVE THAT PS3 WILL BE A MORE POWERFUL SYSTEM BUT BECAUSE THEY CHOOSE TO RELEASE THEIR SYSTEM A YEAR AFTER. AND AS FAR AS INGAME FOOTAGE OF THE PS3 GOES...THE MAKERS OF GUNDAM FOR PS3 ALREADY DISPLAYED A PLAYABLE VERSION OF GUNDAM IN JAPAN A FEW MOTS AGO AT SONY'S CONFERENCE. THE GAME LOOKED AMAZING EVEN IN ITS EARLY DEVOLPMENT STAGE AND RUNNING ONLY ON 1 SPE.

If the PS3 has a better or comparable online service, and has better media fuctionality than the 360, nearly all advantages of MS's console will be gone.

Why are 360 fanboys seemingly ANGRY at the thought of Sony having an online service of it's own?

I'll tell you why: Because XboxLive is the ONLY thing that makes the 360 special. If Sony adds an online service, then the 360 will have no advantages over the PS3 whatsoever. (even though XboxLive will be more 'polished')

btw... I do plan on buying both systems, but I refuse to pretend that both systems are exactly equal in terms of features/performance.

No, PS2 has online. It just plain sucks.

BTW, numbers are good.

70,000 per day for SOCOM II

vs

500,000 per day for Halo 2

Just for Halo 2... Not to mention Xbox Connect and all the free alternatives to XBL, all of which still own PS2 online.

Yeah. Get your facts right.

"I'll tell you why: Because XboxLive is the ONLY thing that makes the 360 special. If Sony adds an online service, then the 360 will have no advantages over the PS3 whatsoever."

that what i been telling these xbox fanboys i know. they try to make it seem like the ps3 and 360 equal systems but they are not the only thing the 360 has is xb live

Do you have a source for those stats, SilverScyth?

The PS2's online sucked big time and history will more then likely repeat itself for the PS3. I would love to see Sony offer anything on the level of Xbox Live for free. Sony fanboys get it in your head. Microsoft runs dedicated servers, keeps track of your stats in deph while offering a streamlined service. This costs money, and a 50 dollar a year subscription is really not that bad at all.

The PS3 will be expensive, so what the hell are you complaining about an Xbox Live membership. BTW Jonas, I saw the Gundam gameplay clip. You thought that was impressive?? Get some taste or some glasses.

IF xbl is what makes the xbox/360 special, what does the ps2/ps3 have that makes it special.

After all, they both are game systems.

Y do people rag on the 360 extra features? THese are all ONTOP of games.

Just like the wierd mirror demo they did with the cell. You gunna buy a ps3 for an advanced mirror? No, of course not.

Xbox Live has grown with this next generation and it is the defining diffrence between Microsoft's and Sony's console. Sony's only has one entity capable of even thinking of putting out anything worth playing on and that's SOE... so unless those are the guys working on their online service it's likely going to suck monkey nuts. They have a long way to go to catch up the Xbox Live, but I look at it as a good thing as a future Xbox 360 owner... now I know that Microsoft will push Xbox Live further and faster than they would if Sony had just let out another lame PS2 like online plan -_-

@ Geof (re #47)

You should've read my post more carefully.

I wasn't ragging on XboxLive. I was saying it was the only thing the 360 has as an advantage over PS3. The PS3 will have higher-capacity discs, likely more power, Gigabit ethernet, etc.... and maybe now they'll have an online service, too! That wouldn't leave MS with much to brag about.

"The PS3 will be expensive, so what the hell are you complaining about an Xbox Live membership. BTW Jonas, I saw the Gundam gameplay clip. You thought that was impressive?? Get some taste or some glasses." -Pretty Obvious

Yo Pretty obvious... Thats why i Said it was in its early development stage and only using 1 spe of the cell. And yet it still seemed very impressive...far better than stupid 360 games like GUN, DOA 4, saints row etc. Tellin me to get some glasses...go sit in a corner with ure lil Xbox...spin it 360 and shove it.