Ben-DutkaPlayStation Home will undergo quite the design overhaul , as we reported yesterday.
Last week, we spoke to Home boss Jack Buser about the upcoming changes and upgrades, and he elaborated upon the public information you've probably already seen. Key to the Home transformation is that Sony has recognized one immutable fact: Home is for gamers and gamers love to…well, game. They like to play games and talk about games, which is why Home is heading in the appropriate direction. Said Buser:
"We're going to reinforce the evolution of the network with central focus on games. We have learned that social games are the killer app for building the PlayStation community. Social games are the killer app. It’s what gamers talk about. Social networks have discovered this, too. But when you’re talking about the PlayStation audience, these are gamers to start with. 'Gameification' is a huge trend going on; it just makes sense for us. It’s going to aid people in their entertainment; it’s going give them this sense of accomplishment."
He also talked about how there will be one overarching adventure that encompasses all of Home; it's an "entire quest system" that encourages you to explore and participate. He said that one of the big questions people have concerning Home is, "what is there to do?" Well, in addition to the part where Home itself becomes a game, there are the four districts based around different genres. He even hinted at daily quests and "very sophisticated, branching quests that could take months."
Plus, Home will identify you whenever you log on:
"Home will remember choices you made in the past; it'll remember whether you've won or lost a game, and then it'll branch out. One decision will lead to another. Home will know the users that have been with us since the beginning, and it'll also know newcomers."
Lastly, Buser reminded us that one of the coolest new parts of Home will be the user-generated event system. Members of the PlayStation community will be able to coordinate events within Home and even promote those gatherings. But even with the new structure (the Hub and districts), you should know that everything you've known and loved about Home will remain the same. All this great new content is optional.
But man…that's quite the option. We've seen a large number of people show up at our PSXE Home shows, and we encourage everyone to check out what the service has to offer.
