Sony pushes Home open beta out until fall '08, closed beta extended

by Jason Dobson on Apr 22nd 2008 1:56AM

Sony's promise of a true open-world experience with Home has been a continual dot on the horizon for PlayStation 3 owners since it was first announced during former Sony-exec Phil Harrison's GDC keynote last year. This continues to be the case this evening, as Sony just sent word that it plans to extend the service's closed beta phase through the summer season, pushing the eventual open beta launch until sometime in the fall.

According to Sony, the move will allow the company to invite more PS3 users into the closed beta, perhaps to iron out some of the social MMO's failings we heard so much about late last year. Says SCEI president and group CEO Kaz Hirai, the delay will let Sony "refine the service to ensure a more focused gaming entertainment experience than what it is today," which is business speak for telling us that we'll have to wait a few more months before we can know the joy of throwing virtual televisions down equally virtual stairs.

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Tags: breaking-news, breakingnews, home, kaz-hirai, kazhirai, PS3, scei, sony

Reader Comments (93)

Yea I totally agree with you. I picked up Resistance about a year after it launched, talk about an overhyped piece of crap. The PS controller is truly horrible for FPS games.

I had the same experience. It helps if you change the controller settings. The thingis, you use r1 for firing because insomniac knew that the l2/r2 buttons were of such poor quality, noone would use them.

Yup same here, it was aight...aww man why didnt you guys have my back in the Resistance 2 story where I was outnumbered =P

You're comparing a launch title to one that came out a year into the 360's life? I love both games, and that's a pretty low blow.

So now you make excuses why it wasnt that good? Make your mind.

I don't recall comparing the two titles. All I said was that I did not like RFOM and that I am anticipating GOW2. Jeez....

I'm a big FPS fan and Resistance was decent. Multiplayer is also fun to play, especially on the larger maps. The controller takes a little bit of time to get used to but it's nothing major, especially since you can change the pre-sets on most PS3 FPS games. I also like the analog sticks being parallel to each other. I'm definitely looking forward to Resistance 2.

It is more than 2 years. HOME was originally meant for the PS3.

I'm getting a feeling that this will be released only on the New PS3 slim that will have extra memory for overhead like this. Similar to the extra memory added to the PSP that allows for SKYPE only on the new console.

A well, early adopters take that chance I guess.

Does anyone honestly care?

All I want: In-Game XMB.
And MAYBE some in-game messenger functionality (Trillian-esque?)

Although, I AM glad that they fixed the store (it's no longer in a crappy browser)

Too bad the navigation and functionality is still very much the same (aka subpar). It does help that it isn't butt-ugly anymore, though.

I don't think it's a terribly good idea either. At what point to you just say... "Wow this is costing us a heck of a lot of money and developer time better spent somewhere else. How are we going to make money of this thing?"

Will this really lure the casual gamer away from Nintendo and the PC? I mean I doubt this service is going to attract the Xbox fanboy away from the Xbox. Only good games will do that.

I know they are trying to do something unique but by the time this thing is out we might be looking at an XBOX 720 and Wii HD.

And don't even get me started on perverts picking up little kids in this system. I bet a huge chunck of their time is trying to figure that little problem out. Since as we all know there are parents out there who can't be bothered to know what their kids are doing.

[Disclaimer: Currently own 360, saving for PS3 [got to have blu-ray], and returned a Wii.]

It always amazes me. A thread like this. Because you have bad news which was to be expected (aka, no mention of public beta being dated at GDC = delay, fucking duh people), and yet you see every PS3 basher in this thread. The same people who go attacking when someone says anythign but the most glowing phrases for Wii and 360.

Fucking grow up, people. This console warrior stuff is really getting old.

-1, too much common sense involved, common sense has no place in this thread, if you dont have any flamebait to add, dont say anything at all

Oh NOW its getting old? How convenient...

Fid...I kid ;)

like I told you and Fernando the other day, on almost every article about Microsoft and Nintendo you will find people complaining about the trolls, but when it is a Sony related news, you will find those same people quiet (well, not quiet, actually, just bitching about Sony)

Meh, like I told nando, if Home follows what they have announced, then it is bound to become...well, it would be pretty much like The World to those familiar with the .Hack/ series, huge online lobby, and everyone will have their own space from which they can be send straight to the game

But yah, it will take some time for it to be polished, just like it did with XBL

Sorry professor, I'm not bashing anything, just keeping it real. I own the damn system and it is my primary movie player. I'll play some exclusives on it (I'm playing Hot Shots Golf right now) but online functionality is a big thing for me and this system is a huge letdown in that area after having been on Live since its' inception. What happened to "everything that Xbox Live offers but for free"?

There is such a thing as doing too much and I think that is exactly what Sony has tried to do with this Home service. For all the bells and whistles XBLive has, at its' heart is a fully integrated online service that isn't too complicated in concept. That's all Sony needed to do, but they didn't have anything ready and here we are two years later with a gimped online service.

I like my PS3, but I love my XBLive. I'd like to play Socom, or even Warhawk but I'm not bothering with that crappy network.

Haven't you heard? It's illegal to own more than one console.

Oh come on Eric, it's not as if XBox Live was expected to deliver Home or something.

Just be happy we're not talking about the Wii.

Wait, so if you're unhappy with a product and the services it offers that fail to suit your needs, you have to put up and shut up? Maybe, just maybe, you should gtfo. =)

So basically the final version of home won't even be out until next year, honestly who is going to give a shit about a 3D chatroom by then, not me.

Ive said it before and I will say it again, I would rather wait 6 more months and have a finished prodcut than get it 6 months early and full of bugs.

Not like there is plenty to do in the mean time

But software like this is a moving target. For example, find me one highly regarded MMO that's the same as it was when it launched. The launch product will disappoint regardless.

Yeah, but how many times have we had to wait 6 more months already? How many more before it finally arrives?

"Yeah, but how many times have we had to wait 6 more months already? How many more before it finally arrives?"

isn't this just the second delay? first release date was fall 07, then spring 08, and now fall 08, so yah, second delay....

2 delays is still one too many.

true, they can release it now and patch the hell out of it later, but Sony NEEDs Home to be a hit from the onset. They need to make a good first impression. They will get nothing but more scrutiny if they release Home without the features it promsied, and without them working well.

If they're delaying the universal in-game XMB because of this stupid third life crap then I'm not going to be happy.

It seems like they should have that much working by now. Just give us that much and save the third life nonsense for the seven people that care about it.

Bingo. Give us "in game xmb" aka in game communication and soundtracks...and dick off with this second life clone crap on your free time.
If this screws us out of IGXMB i will be pissed. Sell my console after I play MGS4 / GTA4 pissed : D

COME ON SONY YOU ARE PISSING ON YOUR FAN BASE PEOPLE

HAVE PATIENCE BUT NOT THAT MUCH ITS ALL ABOUT THE

GAMERS RELEASE HOME ALREADY AND FIX WHATEVER KINKS WITH

FIRMWARE UPGRADES...

The Sony Fanbase IS starting to finally wake up and realize that Sony has been consistently dropping the ball when it comes to what they say and what they deliver. I've been saying it from the beginning, all Sony has to do is copy LIVE. Hell, I'd be willing to pay an additional 50 bucks a year to Sony to enjoy a Live like service on that console. I have all three consoles and the 360 is my main console because of LIVE and all the friends I've made in that community.

PS3 is a cool console, but the operating system and online functionality is too clunky.

This is a horrible decision of sony stop lying about

home already it could be an april fools joke but yet

again sony has delayed home like a billion times already

by "billion times" you mean twice right? I bet you are one of those people that exaggerate everything like "I have slept with so many girls"

This comes as a surprise to no one......

HOME is verging on becoming irrelevant and vaporware at this point. I dare to say no one cares anymore anyway. HOME = a colossal failure???

It's free (i.e. who really cares).

I just want them to do an in-game XMB already. Home sounds neat, but I'm not wasting my time looking forward to it or getting bent out of shape over its delay.

The MGO beta, on the other hand... *fumes*

all they need is to delay haze again and what else ? singstar,little big planet? feel free to add to the list

But, but, but the POTENTIAL!!! BWAAAHAHAHAHAHA

Delay, postponed blahblah...How can I get in on some of the closed beta action?

proud ps3 owner (only ps3) but i gotta say "FAIL SONY"
one of the bullet points about "how projects fail" in my college book, it says: "A project fails when it is not delivered on time"

thats all i gotta say!

Home, home on the range. Where the deer and the antelope play.

I always felt Home had potential as kindof a massive, interactive version of the lobby system used in PSO where you could jump straight to online modes of the disc in the drive or the PSN games you had, or just shoot the breeze

However, integrating something like that into multiple games, and making it practical, is probably going to keep this from ever becoming a viable reality

Arggh... I'M STILL HOMELESS!
Oh well, Back to Brawl.

Woo Hoo, way to go Sony...yeah that's it..give it to me good. I thought for a moment...but no...they have re-established themselves.

Carmen San Diego? Or Carmen the opera? Carmen Electra? Oh...wait...you meant CARTMAN.

Sheezus.

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Sony pushes Home open beta out until fall '08, closed beta extended

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