[quote]According to a scan posted on the PlayStation forums, the March issue of PlayStation Magazine (PSM) reveals Sony’s plans to deliver an online gaming experience that not only targets Microsoft’s much lauded Live service, but surpasses it. The article reads:
“Cast aside any doubts and start gazing skyward, because that’s where Sony is aiming with plans that go far beyond simple leader boards and matchmaking – or even the PS3, for that matter.”
“‘It’s very real,’ one source tells us. ‘They (Sony) are dead serious about it. They’ve declared, and I quote, a ‘full-on assault’ on the latest version of Xbox Live.’”
“They are committed to matching Xbox Live [on the 360] feature for feature and then some.”
This story, together with the recent survey Sony conducted, should remove any doubts about Sony’s online ambitions. Is it possible that Sony could create a network the size and scale of Xbox Live in such a short time? It has cost Microsoft, the world’s largest software company, billions and taken years just to lay the framework for the current Live service.
Sony is known for their hyperbolic marketing: the PS2’s Emotion Engine, the PSP as iPod-killer; it seems unlikely they could take the crown from Microsoft on their first try, but any attempt is a huge relief. It was beginning to look like Sony didn’t think the Live service was a valuable addition to console gaming, or a serious competitor to their hegemony.[/quote]
It should be interesting to see whether it will be able to compare with what Microsoft have achieved with Xbox Live in terms of functionality and stability.
It seems such a short time ago Sony had nothing but disparagement for every detail of XBL.
As the article references this is exactly the kind of overblown hype you’d expect from Sony, though I have no doubt they are serious about the plan. I also have little expectation Sony will change their stripes and stop cutting every little corner they think they can get away with, it will be interesting indeed to see.
XBOX Live could certainly be beat, but not very easily and not for cheap. If they’re truly going all out it’s a safe bet we’ll see lots of Sony’s other media properties on offer as well in some way or another… for a price of course.
Xbox Live as a concept is a wonderful thing. The reality fro me has been very different however, and involves being shouted at by 14 year old American kids on Halo2 (one of very few games you can get a some players on in under half an hour). I also disagree in principle with the idea of paying to unlock bonus content - unless it’s downloaded as some kind of patch, it’s already hidden on the disc I paid ?40, so you’re charging me to access something I already physically own.
Anyway… competition can only improve the situation, I suppose…
I agree with the article, it would be quite a feat for Sony to develop that kind of network in such a short time. The orginal Xbox Live came out a while back and has had time to be tested and optimized and continues to be. It will be truly impressive to see how smooth of a launch the PS3 service has, and with what features. I wonder how much they’ll charge as well? Too many unknowns at this point to make any solid conclusions.
These are yet more lies to deter people from the competition, IMO. Sony can win over gamers with the mere promise of online support sometime in the future, then when it owns the market once again, conveniently forget about the whole thing or provide something that isn’t up to par unchallenged.
Sony is becoming increasingly desperate to retain its target audience, which is a good sign.
Online gaming is a corner Sony thinks can be cut as far as I’m concerned. Sony has no real intention of expanding the market for online games if it can be more or less avoided. The PS2 has proven that it can be.
Don’t fall victim to the hype. Let’s see Sony actually deliver this servive first before proclaiming it as the Xbox LIVE killer Sony zealots are hoping it to be. Look at how much Sony is willing to do to catch up and overtake the competition now.
The problem for Sony is that the Asian market is becoming more online orientated especially outside Japan with the ever growing South Korean scene and the emerging Chinese games market. Sony has to deliever on a Xbox live version for their games system in order to keep up with the different tastes of the biggest Asian games market outside of japan(whose gamers are also embracing MMOP)
Really, 360 and Xbox forced their hand. All M$ has to do is take the oriental east to succeed but with peter moore in charge of the Xbox division Gates dreams of asian domination is doomed for failure.
All Sony cares about is retaining its marketshare. Online gaming was never really profitable until M$ made it a selling point in the Xbox, and now Sony is scrambling to keep up with the competition.
Sony will have a hard enough time bringing high-end games out for the bottlenecked PS3, let alone an online service.
