Quick match, party functionality coming to SOCOM: Confrontation in patch 1.30
by Griffin McElroy 
{ Dec 13th 2008 at 1:30PM }
The two features are actually linked -- selecting the quick match option will take you into a party lobby, where you and your PSN friend platoon can congregate. After your party is built, you can choose one of the three match types to join (16 v. 16 Ranked, Unranked and Respawn) and be automatically matched up against similarly skilled parties. However, no word has been given on a specific launch window for the much-anticipated patch -- SOCOMe on, Slant Six! The anticipation is killing us!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Chase @ Dec 13th 2008 1:32PM
Well, that's a nice effort, but it's much too late.
Jeffery @ Dec 13th 2008 1:43PM
Too much too late. I was so excited for this game on launch day, and it really played well. Too bad the servers were terrible and I haven't touched it since launch week (although I'm kind of thinking about playing it right now...)
Tiptup300 @ Dec 13th 2008 1:53PM
Too MUCH, too late?
(0.O)
Night Elve @ Dec 13th 2008 4:44PM
Well I don't think it's late, with the constant patches they have been released the game is getting better and better.
Jeffery @ Dec 13th 2008 7:45PM
Hah, my bad. TIRED!
EgoCheck616 @ Dec 13th 2008 1:36PM
It's nice that Sony has finally decided to SOCOMe join the rest of us who enjoy functional online games.
*crickets*
*continues to feed his addiction to Banjo Kazooie*
Haggard @ Dec 13th 2008 1:37PM
I always thought the reviews on this were a little unfair. Reviewers said the gameplay the series is noted for was present and correct - but they marked it down on the technical issues which Sony promised to fix soon.
KingOfGods @ Dec 13th 2008 2:50PM
Well why shouldnt they? It's an online only game. There is no single player to hold you over till they fix the online.
Haggard @ Dec 13th 2008 2:59PM
Because people looking back on reviews might see a game gets a 6 or 7 even though after a couple of weeks it became a 9 or 10 to everyone who stuck with it.
Take Team Fortress 2. At launch, people complained of the lack of maps. It now has dozens of official maps and thousands of user-made ones.
Jakka ( The Order of Haters of Balance) @ Dec 13th 2008 3:40PM
Part of me would like to agree because some games like MMO's need some time to truly 'launch', but then again - TF2 did deserve the criticism it got and so does SOCOM.
The reviewer is reviewing a complete final product.If the final product is buggy, then the reviewer is obliged to write it down as opposed to ignoring the issues because 'they're bound to fix it at some point'.After all,they could always re-review it like they did with Witcher:EE and AitD v.2.0
ill trooper @ Dec 13th 2008 5:10PM
Taking TF2 as an example, I would have to say that it was from a PC-gaming lineage, and the mindset for many who were familiar with the game was very accepting of patches and waiting for it to get better... But SOCOM was born and bred on the PS2, a realm where there was very little possibility for downloadable patches, and when the PS3 version came out lacking the polish of the PS2 versions, it just killed it for me.
I haven't played it since the first week. It was so disappointing, but hey, I got a nice headset.
Marius @ Dec 13th 2008 1:41PM
This game should have been delay till everything was ok
Stew @ Dec 13th 2008 2:05PM
Like Gears2, which suffered similar online bugs..
LOL, people in glass houses....
Moptimus Slime @ Dec 13th 2008 2:31PM
hey stew, since when have "cheakskate trailer trash" been able to afford glass houses? Also, when did Marius ever bring up Gears 2? From what I've seen, hes another PS3 fanboy just like yourself
LOL, people with retarded arguments...
KingOfGods @ Dec 13th 2008 2:54PM
@stew
the only thing that was messed up with gears was parties of 1 and 4 and that was for ranked matches only. private matches with up to 10 players worked perfectly fine and parties of 3 and 5 worked fine as well for ranked. The problem with socom was you couldn't play at all. I remember buying it the weekend it was released and not able to connect until Monday. To this day the game will sometimes freeze my PS3 during loading of a map and I have to click the power switch in the back.
Heyyou27 @ Dec 13th 2008 3:12PM
But Stew, Gears 2 at least had other modes of play to hold you down until stuff was fixed.
Hopefully they add Home support to this game, similar to the way Warhawk works. I personally think it's pretty neat how you setup and launch the game from within Home, and when you exit the game it returns you to the lobby in Home.
Kinsey @ Dec 13th 2008 1:48PM
I just hope the update SOCOMes before Christmas break. I wonder if there will be any SOCOMpensation after the dust settles like a DLC map or something. Could dream :).
To SOCOMmemorate the fixed game, I hope they market the game properly after.
Bowser Rogozhin @ Dec 13th 2008 1:51PM
There's a reason why I haven't got the PS3.
Keep chasing that FPS/shithead dollar, Sony. Yeah, totally abandon the people that brought the PS1/2 in droves. Focussing on Resistance and Socom is really going to bring in the families this Christmas, right.
Couple this short-sightedness with the pointless Home project, rumours of internal factions battling one another over the direction of the Playstation, bullshit Blu-Ray, razor thin profit lines drying up, and a lack of easy credit, and you've got a recipe for bloody fail. There'll be red everywhere, hope they're still paying their accountants top dollar.
Haggard @ Dec 13th 2008 2:01PM
They pushed LBP unbelievably hard here in Europe. Meanwhile I've not seen a single Resistance 2 promotion anywhere except on American gaming websites.
ice~ @ Dec 13th 2008 2:06PM
What pisses me off is how every douchebag reviewer gave this game like a 5 out of 10 and below just because of some technical issues that were fixed 2-3 days after launch, they even said its pure fun SOCOM, and they gave all the other ones good reviews....not that the reviews matter to me i will enjoy the game when its patched, but it does matter to the games sales...tsk tsk tsk
Bowser Rogozhin @ Dec 13th 2008 2:09PM
Comrade Hag: I don't watch TV (I get enough of it already) but I've been to the cinema* around six times in the month. I saw Sony pushing Resistance overly hard, on each visit in fact, but I never once saw LBP.
*also, whenever there was a Gears/Resistance commercial someone always grumbled how juvenile it all looked. These game companies need to hire somebody (me) who knows what they're talking about.
ice~ @ Dec 13th 2008 2:09PM
WTH this wasnt supposed to be a reply!....man am i having bad luck today!
Little Big PSN ID: johnnynumber5 @ Dec 13th 2008 2:15PM
Media Molecule has an exclusive agreement with Sony to create three new Ip's (not LBP and not counting sequels of LBP) so we will see more titles from them. We probably need to see more Spyro, Crash Bandicoot, Jak And Daxter, Ratchet & Clank and Sly Cooper style of games that have yet to be created as exclusives. I'm talking new franchises that have those similar style fun characters and cartoony feel that Nintendo has captured over the years.
I think Sony can attract the casual consumer but the cost of entry needs to be much lower. I won't get into a debate about Home or Blu-Ray as it's more of a preferenced based feature of the console. Honestly, if you still don't have at least an HDTV then Blu-Ray movies aren't necessary. If you don't game online Home is not necessary as the premise is an online world to communicate with others. Essentially the games Nintendo has an abundance of.
If all the consoles cost the same amount of money I think the Wii would still outsell the PS3 & 360 by more than 2:1. However, I think there are prospective buyers that would purchase a PS3 if the price were simply more in line with the competetion. I don't think $400 is a bad price for the value you get but when people compare the sticker price it becomes painfully obvious the PS3 is out of range especially during an economic crunch.
Heh @ Dec 13th 2008 2:15PM
"These game companies need to hire somebody (me) who knows what they're talking about."
You're quite the jokester, aren't you?
tmacairjordan87 @ Dec 13th 2008 2:22PM
"Focussing on Resistance and Socom is really going to bring in the families this Christmas, right."
I know I speak only for myself here, but if playing with my family means playing some awful casual shovelware then I'd rather play by myself. Rock Band 2 works well enough in the "family" slot.
Haggard @ Dec 13th 2008 2:33PM
johnnynumber5
I pretty much agree completely. I bought Crash Team Racing and Crash Bandicoot 3 off the PSN store the other day for some drunken amusements with friends, and Sony definitely have the ability to make awesome games that appeal right across the board.
Ratchet and Clank is good for this but perhaps isn't mainstream enough. In many ways Uncharted probably hurt Sony no matter how well it sold, because it meant Naughty Dog's talents were being spent on a fairly niche hardcore game. I guess we can only hope Media Molecule step up to the plate, and Insomniac comes up with some more franchises.
j.howlett @ Dec 13th 2008 2:49PM
socom is a third person shooter that still has an active community on the ps2 today. it's a game that had things like clan support that games today are still missing. i never got as deep into it as some of my family but i enjoyed busting out a few dance moves after taking out a human opponent instead of crouching up and down on their body.
-slycooper_rocker- (lorddshadow the amazing) psn: shahanasalam @ Dec 13th 2008 3:57PM
if they make an hd sly cooper or jak, i will die from happiness.
Archon @ Dec 13th 2008 1:55PM
The game is not broken. The problems were fixed quite fast so STFU. Each and every busy online game has some launch issues. Halo 3 anybody?
"Too bad the servers were terrible and I haven't touched it since launch week"... yeah, that's pretty much every single game. GTA IV? The servers were dead the first couple days. LBP? Same thing. blahblahblah. They work great now.
It's just ridiculous how people sometimes suck at thinking on their own. You heard that 'the game sucks' so you are gonna repeat that till the end of your miserable lives. Why won't you actually TRY the game? It's quite fun. And the wireless headset that comes with it is AMAZING.
Little Big PSN ID: johnnynumber5 @ Dec 13th 2008 2:22PM
I'm sure there are people that played it and didn't like it. Not everyone is hating just for the sake of it (I hope). I tend to agree with you that the game is a blast to play and I have been having fun with it since launch. Since I played the Beta I didn't experience any crippling bugs. It's impossible to please everyone and I would just say that if you are having fun with the game that's all that counts. Add me and we can play tonight.
Archon @ Dec 13th 2008 2:38PM
I've got nothing against people not liking a game after they played it. It's ok to not like a game. It is not ok to hate a game because:
a) it's on the system they don't own - most often PS3
"Yeah, MGS4 is a good game I heard, but it's not the exclusive people were waiting for. I can live without it. Halo 3, here I come."
Guess what. Some people can live without Halo 3.
or
Before: "HD-DVD OWNZ YOR PUNY BLU-REY", After: "Who needs a next-gen drive anyway..."
b) somebody said it sucks
"How can you play that game?! Look here: [link], they didn't leik it?!"
c) they are ten years old and are just moany cry-babies
"In-Game XMB? Meh. The XBox already does that, you know. while "NXE!!! THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST! AND NO! IT DOES NOT RIP MII'S OFF!"
d) love their baseless gossip
"I heard that the XBox sales are so huge because they include the replaced RROD XBox numbers in the total!!1111one"
I own every single current-gen system and I love them. A lot. (Although I must admit that my Wii is gathering dust lately. That'll change soon, I hope). What I don't love is stupid fanboy crybabies mad at the world because of hormones and the fact they won't ever get laid. Screw you. You suck. Get a life. Enjoy your consoles. USE YOUR BRAIN EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE.
AK @ Dec 13th 2008 4:58PM
If you are crying about those who cry, doesn't that just make you one of them?
You can't argue with morons, because they're morons.
Just enjoy what you like, and let them be.
Archon @ Dec 13th 2008 5:04PM
I usually have no problem turning my idiot filter on. Just not after 10 hours of work. They nullify my enjoyment of reading this site and spread their 'ideology of being an idiot' to other people. It's like a disease. It spawns new idiots. It's like Left 4 Dead. You, me and FUCKING ZOMBIES EVERYWHERE! OH MY GOD! GET IT OFF ME! AK?! WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU... DON'T LET ME DIE LIKE THAT!
ill trooper @ Dec 13th 2008 5:15PM
Look man, I hear your anger, it's disappointing... But the games you mentioned with problems also had a single-player or local multiplayer option - the ONLY game mode SOCOM: Confrontation has is ONLINE - the only mission it's charged with is ONLINE, that's all it has to do, because that's all it CAN do - so when that came out fucked, it really hurt the whole concept.
quadraphonic @ Dec 13th 2008 2:03PM
While this release will likely bring me back to the gane, Slant 6 really dropped the ball by not releasing the game with 1.3 functionality in it already. Online play has been greatly refined by several great games - COD4, Halo... they didn't need to come up with any new ideas, just launch with existing ones, and they failed to deliver.
The retail release was unfinished at best. Sadly, given the ease with which patches can be disseminated to the public, we'll probably see this laziness in design and production persist.
sk8monroe81 @ Dec 13th 2008 3:42PM
sony allowed this game to be released too.
they get final review of any ps3 release, just as Microsoft does.
THIS GAME IS A JOKE TO ANY REAL TRUE ONLINE SHOOTER GAMER.
WORST SOCOM GAME TO DATE. WORST PUT TOGETHER SOCOM GAME. CHEAPEST PUT TOGETHER SOCOM GAME.
online shooter games need to have the least amount of issues, those are for open world RPG's.
phinn @ Dec 13th 2008 2:57PM
Although it can be said this is too little too late I'm looking forward to 1.30 patch big time. I can finally start playing this game since I've loved the series for a long time (considering socom 2 some of the best online gaming there is)
So yea, hopefully 1.30 will "fix everything" and make this game as amazing as it could be. Until Killzone 2 that is...
sk8monroe81 @ Dec 13th 2008 3:28PM
This is coming a bit too late for the majority of gamers.
of course die hard socom fans and some sony fans will forward to this. but the majority of socom fans have even jumped ship due to this incomplete title.
i love how stew brings up gears 2 issues, well stew sorry to tell you but gears 2 has a campaign and horde mode which more than give enough play time when there are online issues.
socom is a game where you are stuck playing online. so if the online has issues you have a worthless game.
i was right before when i said a lot of ps3 owners have purchased the ps3 as a blu ray media entertainment system (remember from nov 2006 - recent 2008 the ps3 was the most affordable blu ray player and was one of the highest rated blu ray players.)
when there are 17 million ps3 owners it is crazy that less than 1 million have bought LBP, socom, and R2.
it really just proves that a lot of ps3 systems are collecting dust and/or watching blu ray movies more.
Tez @ Dec 13th 2008 3:43PM
"the majority of socom fans have even jumped ship"
Do you have anything to back that statement up? Because I've been seeing the exact opposite. Just because a group of people (the people ditching the game) are louder than the ones sticking with it doesn't make them the majority.
sk8monroe81 @ Dec 13th 2008 3:47PM
majority is the wrong word yes.
a good number of socom fans from day 1 have left the series behind....
sony.com forums socom section has a lot of complaints and praise for the game.
-slycooper_rocker- (lorddshadow the amazing) psn: shahanasalam @ Dec 13th 2008 4:01PM
"socom is a game where you are stuck playing online. so if the online has issues you have a worthless game."
or you could have bought it for the headset because you couldn't find the stand alone one...and never opened it since then and plan to open it when 1.30 hits.
sk8monroe81 @ Dec 13th 2008 4:27PM
damn i would have held out for the clearance sales.
like the recent amazon.com $ 40 socom bundle.
colinbell @ Dec 13th 2008 4:38PM
"a lot of ps3 owners have purchased the ps3 as a blu ray media entertainment system"
I would disagree. If you look at multiplatform titles in 2008 (DMC4, Burnout, etc), sales on the PS3 are around 70%-90% on average of 360 sales, which corresponds to the ratio of PS3 systems sold to 360 consoles out there. So I am not sure if it "proves that a lot of ps3 systems are collecting dust and/or watching blu ray movies more", its just one very nice feature to have.
Flame @ Dec 13th 2008 5:18PM
I highly disagree with your statement that "a lot of ps3 owners have purchased a ps3 as a blu-ray media entertainment system." I wouldn't be caught ever buying a $400 blu-ray player when there are ones for $200 bucks. Also dont ignore the Japanese install base of around 3mil when they dont like most of our games. Us Americans are also shooter crazy where ps3 is alot less dominant. Also Colin is right, DMC4 did outsell 360s count due to the fact the japanese market is crazy about DMC. I predict RE5(shooter) will tie on both consoles and FFXIII(JRPG) will sell more on ps3.
sk8monroe81 @ Dec 13th 2008 5:26PM
colin- good point. yes with those 2 games and none else really. 360 dominates cross plat sales.
but what do you call the poor sales of 3 of the 4 biggest sony games releases of the year? at the time of year when software sales are always their best ? with 17 million ps3 owners now?
IMO as time passes more and more ps3's are collecting dust and playing blu rays.
sk8monroe81 @ Dec 13th 2008 5:34PM
flame- i clearly stated- remember from nov 2006 - recent 2008 the ps3 was the most affordable blu ray player.
only until recently have we seen $ 200 blu ray players, most every blu ray player was $ 400+ last year and those were lower rated than ps3 for many reasons including being stuck with blu ray profile 1.0 with no upgrades + slow load times.
the over 12 million ps3 consoles that were sold when there was only $ 400 blu ray players is what i was talking about.
not holiday 2008 clearance sales.
u realize that DMC is 1 game compared to 100's of cross platform games that the 360 has dominated sales?
and DMC was a sony fan game anyway. new to the 360.
lol..
you dont look at 1 games sales to make a statement like that.
you look at overall sales, and the 360 clearly dominates that. but i didnt even bring up sales of those games. you guys did.
our games?
LBP was done by sony europe and geared as a worldwide game.
socom is american at heart yes, however american shooters are supposed to sell well in america.
i feel re5 will do better on the 360.
co-op, online, zombies, shooting has become very popular on the 360.
ff13 will be fun to see.
i want to play versus more anyway. i like action battles instead of turned based more often, as those are overused.
Tez @ Dec 13th 2008 3:41PM
This game is a blast. The people talking shit don't even have the game, they just sit and read blog posts and act like armchair reviewers who know better than the people playing.
This isn't too little too late. This is what people have been asking for, and it's not that long after release. Tons of people are playing SOCOM online every night, and I know many people that are waiting for this very patch which will push them to go buy the game.
sk8monroe81 @ Dec 13th 2008 3:45PM
and thats why many socom die hard fans have left the series and this game??
out of all the socom games, this has to be the worst one yet, with the least amount of play options. no campaign.
of course some people will like the game....
but to think EVERYONE who doesnt like the game hasnt played it yet is just wrong..
the game is not that good to many people. even those that have tried it.
sk8monroe81 @ Dec 13th 2008 3:51PM
anybody who believes an online only game with 5 maps, needed patches, no campaign, no 1 player mode, no offline mode, no friends support, glitches, IS OK TO BE RELEASED AS IS is really just a fanboy that is allowing game companies to take more advantage of us.
you should complain and maybe next time they will release a complete product with minor issues (hopefully MAG).
keeping quiet and saying the game is fine and no issues allows them to do this and release incomplete products.
sorry i complained about an incomplete product i wanted finished.
Tez @ Dec 13th 2008 4:07PM
I don't keep quiet and say the game is fine. I'm active on the SOCOM site giving feedback, reporting bugs, offering suggestions. Most of the highly-requested ones are already implemented or coming in 1.30; Sony was stupid to rush this game, but Slant Six has been working their asses off making sure it stands up to previous SOCOM games.
You're stretching out your complaint, too: "no campaign, no 1 player mode, no offline mode" That's really just one mode you are complaining about not having. And while that's valid, no single player doesn't really affect me; it was my least favorite thing about previous SOCOMs. I would rather play against real people than flawed AI. Just my opinion there.
I've never said that SOCOM in the state of it's release is "fine." But Slant Six has been throwing out patches like crazy fixing problems, and after seeing devs that just release a buggy game and move on, I appreciate their effort. In it's current state, SOCOM is stable and I have a fun time playing it; that's not being an apologist, that's me enjoying a great game despite having issues.
And you're right, I was wrong to make a blanket statement about people not owning the game, but most of the people who I have encountered that talk shit about it either never had it or sold it in the first week (right before a majority of the stability issues were fixed).