'PlayStation Home'

First off, I can't really say this will be a 'real' review, solely due to the fact that PlayStation Home is still at an open Beta stage. Not the final thing. Although, from the opening messages and disclosures, it sounds like this Beta is pretty much the final thing with Sony adding and tweaking here and there in the future without any major overhauls. I read recently that Aaron Greenberg, Xbox 360 Group Product Manager, claimed that Home feels like "2005 tech in 2008" which, after playing it, I have to disagree with. The only thing that feels 2005, in places, is the concept and, even then, it's a concept that still holds up today, this idea of a social network; look at Facebook, Myspace, et al. This isn't a case of Sony jumping on a band wagon with avatars, a la Microsoft, this tech has been in development since 2005! Nintendo brought us the Mii's and showed us that virtual representations can do good business, so Sony took that and ran with it, with the product we've got right now being something to be proud of. Except for a few obvious detracting issues...

LOVED

Concept!

The concept is solid. Social networking is a big thing nowadays with even tech-savvy laymens joining in. Myspace revolutionized it, Facebook refined it and now Home does it all again, with a twist. This is, obviously, specifically for gamers. And, as most people know, most gamers happen to be male. Especially the Sony audience. And this really shows with just 10 minutes on Home, the amount of dudes at one time is almost embarrassing. But that's not Sony's fault, it's just something that is. Despite the amount of girl gamers out there, there will always be more male gamers, and this is a direct reflection of that.

Don't like it? Change it!

The amount of material you can edit in Home is very impressive. From moving furniture around, to redecorating your Home, it's all there. Albeit somewhat limited right now, due to the early stages, open Beta, etc, etc. I'm sure Sony have some sort of plans to expand. At least, I hope they do. 

A New Kind of Interactivity

Bands organize Xbox live sessions with fans. Imagine something to the same degree on Home but, instead of a specific game or whatever, it's literally just for a fan Q+A? Yes, that would be killer.

Other People

Meeting other people in this kind of situation was a kick at first. Whilst waiting for one of my friends to come online I got into a random conversation with some guy that ended in us talking about The Watchment and me recommending he read the graphic novel. I then had a group conversation about our favorite PS3 games, etc. The randomness of conversation is definitely a lot of fun, and you'll meet some interesting people with a doubt.

HATED

Don't like it? Tough.

As much as you can edit, there's also a lot you can't. I found the chin segment on my avatar the worse, you can't make the chin bigger or smaller in profile, giving all characters a bigger lower jaw and, frankly, giving most people an almost caveman-esque appearance. Not good. The limited amount of shirts and trousers is also an issue. If a game like No Mercy on the N64 can handle the same articles of clothing, but allow you to change the colour, why can't a game in 2008? I never wear jeans in real life, so why must I be forced to put my guy in jeans because the only trousers they offer are a disgusting shade of green that can't be changed? Bad. 

Other People

I was online last night with one of my friends and, after we had a group conversation and left, I saw him talking to a red headed girl, so I decided to leave him for a bit. Didn't wanna cramp his style considering he didn't need an in! Anyway, I get back and two other people (one was called _ReCKl3Ss_ (or some variation of that) and the other...I can't remember, though he did ask me to "join them". Basically they were saying all this shit to try and cause trouble, making fun of the girl, making fun of my friend, etc, etc. They were the epitome of the Keyboard Warrior, and it was a pathetic display of what Home should be about. Shitheads turning a neat idea into something barely bearable. Not Sony's fault, but there should definitely have some sort of regulators online at points just in case stuff like this happens. 

Do you really look like that?

I'm sure some people's characters don't look like them. Mostly because they don't look...y'know...human. At all. Put the time in, make the effort. Sony did. Seeing a black dude, with ginger hair and a blue mustache doesn't strike me as something created by somebody living within the realms of reality. 

Dance, Dance

Stop. Fucking. Dancing. Sony did not spend 3+ years developing this and 'x' amount of dollars so you can get your guy to do 'Running Man'. Fuck. Off. 

Final Thought/s

So, with my time in Home so far I have had a blast, been blasted, wanted to blast two douchebags that were causing trouble for no reason, and have decided I hate anybody who dances in Home. For someone who's barely played 3-5 hours, total, that's quite a bit. And frankly it feels like I'm almost done with it as an experience. It'll definitely be something I play about with in the future, definitely be something I'll use again, but it's not something that's ever going to take the place of Facebook/Myspace, etc. Though, to be fair, that's not what it was intended for. Not that it was intended for everybody to dance/be a dick/hit on 'girls'. Which, funnily enough, can also stand for Guy In Real Life. Which seems to be the case with a lot of the 'girls' on Home, which is worrying, considering the amount of guys who hit on the female avatars. Sony need to add some sort of feature that in the Profile section where we can state, once and for all, what sex the user is. When in doubt, check the Profile, then you'll know if you're good to go, or not. Depending on how much of a scumbag you are. Unfortunately, like with most unmoderated chat rooms, there's going to be ALOT of douchbaggery, a lot of perving, a lot of inappropriate behavior and, hopefully in places, a bit of decent fun between mature gamers who want to experience something new that doesn't resort in "where do you live, I wanna **** you" or "your mum" which I got a few of in my inbox from random people. Nice guys, just...nice. Get a life. Please.

So, Home. Worth the FREE download, without a doubt. Despite the server issues it is suffering from right now, something they are working on, something that really shouldn't have happened, but did, it's still a lot of fun. When you can get on. When it was released on the 11th I grabbed it when it went online at 8:30PM, I managed to create my guy and explored the areas for about 40/50 minutes before being kicked off due to the server crash. I went on the next morning and managed to get on after trying a few times, I got on straight away the first night btw and, even though there are still some issues with it, I''m confident that I'd manage to get on again if I tried. It may take a few tries, but I'll get on!

So, yeah, Home is worth it in a lot of ways but, just like in real life, it's the people that tend to ruin the experience and not the concept or trip itself.

And FYI, my avatar looks pretty much like me. Except from straight on. I'm pretty proud with how he turned out really. Awesomeness!