Confessions of A Home Addict: Sodium2 Project Velocity

by Susan, HomeCast co-producer

You win some, lose some and wreck some. — Dale Earnhardt

My name is Susan, and I am a PlayStation Home addict.

(Hi, Susan. –editors)

I blame no one but myself for this compelling desire to be on Home 24/7. “Get a life,” I am frequently told, when people find out I have just spent eight hours shaving a couple of seconds off my time at the Project Velocity space. I pay for my fixation any way I can. I spend hours stomping scorpions or hustling drinks at the nearby watering hole to get enough Sodium credits to pay for booster rockets or fuel additives for my velocity racer.

Eat my dust!!!

Not too long ago, the staff here was given an assignment: write about your favorite Home game. I have no favorite anything. No favorite song on the radio. No favorite movie. Not even a favorite NASCAR driver. Having a favorite anything is like having an expectation — eventually, you will be disappointed. There are songs I listen to more than others, movies I watch more than others and drivers I root for more than others.

That personal mantra was temporarily laid to rest when I got into the cockpit of a Sodium2 Velocity racecraft. The odor of jet exhaust as it spewed awesomeness from those powerful engines, the feel of the craft as it vibrated against the strain of the holding couplings, and the excitement of racing against your friends on Home are a few of many reasons why this is my favorite game in Home.

I have been a fan of the Sodium Salt Shooter game since I first logged into Home. When Blaster’s Paradise became available, I scooped up that right away, merely for the mini game. The products that Lockwood Publishing has put out have never disappointed me. I publicly announce all the time how I love all things from Lockwood. It is to this company that a lot of my dollars have willingly fled.

Rest in peace

What makes this game something I call my favorite?  To answer that, I should share some personal background.

Racing is in my blood. I have been an armchair racer since I came out of the womb. I watched NASCAR evolve as I grew up near the Pocono racetrack. Cale Yarboro, Davy Allison, Richard Petty and the one, the only number 3 — Dale Earnhart — are the guys I had in my life as a teenager. I was busy building and assembling plastic model race cars while the other girls on the block were playing dress up and having sleep overs. I was saying, “I want to go fast,” long before Ricky Bobby said it in the movie Talladega Nights.

People say that NASCAR is boring and all they do is turn left over and over. To these people I say, “What’s so special about baseball or football? You run with a ball, you catch a ball and you chase after a ball while patting everyone’s okole.” I can oversimplify things too.

The top three racing games I play the most are Gran Turismo 5, Forza Motorsports and Dirt. I haven’t come across any decent multiplayer air racing games, or those would be in that list. I own a “driving wheel,” which really ups the enjoyability factor of these types of games. I sit maybe three feet from a 46-inch flat screen, and always wonder what the brake pedal’s for. I crank up the surround sound just loud enough to warrant a visit from our neighbors. They don’t always seem to share my desire to go fast and go at it loud.

Starting gate

Sodium 2 was released to Home in June of 2011 as the second part of a four-part series. I was one of the lucky ones who participated in the beta test of this game. I spent endless hours in the beta learning the tracks and tweaking my vehicle. I tried to talk to some of the people I saw on the leader boards, pump them for some info — no go, there. It was as if I was trying to get the combination of the safe at Fort Knox, or steal candy from a baby. Fine, whatever… when I pass these people, it is they who will come to me for advice.

This game is completely free. You need not spend any money in order to go fast or get a ton of rewards from this game. Sodium 2 has single player and multiplayer options. The single player option allows you to race against the time of your friends or local people. The multi player offers real-time action — a first for the PlayStation Home community.

You can upgrade your craft with a variety of options, including changing your paint scheme (gotta look good while going Mach 3…), modifying your braking options and adding a fuel boost for that needed extra speed. As you move up in experience points, more goodies are unlocked for you to use. There a variety of tracks where you can slam that four-ton racecraft into the wall. If you go slow enough, you might see the paint I left on a barrier on the Industrial track.

This game touched a chord with me. It offers almost everything I want from a Home game. I get to compete alongside my friends while still in Home. It has a huge replayability factor. I do not race as much as I did when I first came to the space. Now I mostly go for the land speed records. There was a time I was number one on the all time leader board, and I keep trying to get back on that board. I have no problem achieving a rank on the daily board, but that all time still eludes me. But the tracks are challenging enough to keep me interested in teaching someone what it means to practice, practice, practice.

Lockwood Publishing FTW

I am now at rank 40 — the current maximum. But I still grind out the tracks to get the experience points and credits I need for upgrades. In the beginning, I had a bare bones racer with the speed of my real-world Prius. I could have played the game and leveled up and upgraded that way, but I don’t have that kind of time. We are an I want it now generation, and I want it now. So out came the stack of PSN cards, and I went shopping. I bought everything I needed to go fast.

I do that with all games. If I want something, I buy it. I am not the type of person that debates over whether it is worth the price. Not usually. I bought a ten dollar dress on Home, and spent money to go to premium on Battlefield. I have seen the talk on blogs and I hear the chat at the water cooler about the price of some Home commodities. Is the cost justifiable? I look at it this way. The money I spend on Home playing games is still cheaper than going to the store and purchasing a new-in-box disc game. I am in a place where money does not dictate my decisions in life.

The newest game to come out in Home is one where purchasing an item is necessary to survive. I am sure I will buy everything, just to cover all bases. If  Sodium2 became a pay-to-play game instead of being free, I still would be schooling people in the art of “I want to go fast.”

When I log into Home, there are two spaces I go to first, after leaving wherever I am forced spawned. The first is to  the Community Theater, to see what’s playing, and the second is the Sodium2 space, to maintain my leader board status. Sodium2 Project Velocity has become my favorite game on Home because it feeds every desire I have when it comes to racing. I am not a trophy hunter or a reward collector. I play this game over and over because, to be frank — it is a blast to play. It is not an easy game when you first start out, but once you figure out the basics, if you’re a racer, then this is a game you should try. I look forward to the next two sequels.

If you are a reward collector or trophy hunter, you can find a complete list of reward items for this game and others at alphazone4.com. I have found the website to be very informative and easy to navigate.

Now, if only these racecraft had the “3 Ms”, as I call them:  machine guns, missiles and mines!

  • going mach 3ETMC
  • very high replayability factor
  • wicked cool looking paint schemes
  • lots of free rewards and upgrades
  • free to play
  • no weapons to eliminate the race leader
  • no additional views while racing
  • no damage to craft when hitting a wall
  • no pit maneuvers in multi player
  • no Homeling mother ship to race against

June 27th, 2012 by | 5 comments
Susan is a team writer for HomeStation Magazine, co-founder of the award winning media group-AvatardProductions, a PlayStation MVP and a Home Guide. PSNID SCEA/xx96791DEATHxx-SCEE/oXx_EnIgMa_xXo. An avid PlayStation Home user, she is most often found setting land speed records at the Sodium 2 velocity racetracks, sitting at the Pier Park or playing with the R/C vehicles at Acorn Meadows Park.

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5 Responses to “Confessions of A Home Addict: Sodium2 Project Velocity”

  1. ted2112 says:

    I love Sodium 2 as well. When you get bored of a track, you can move to a new one. I love your idea about weapons on the racers to spice things up. One of my most cherished Sodium memories is the day I almost beat you!

  2. Godzprototype says:

    I live in Georgia, so I know Earnhardt. I love racing!
    Sodium 2, Hot Pursuit, I am so up for that challenge. 8) Let’s race!
    My personal favorite back in the day game was Rollcage. It had weapons, and plenty of speed!
    Of course there is always the old games, but I would love to see a real adeptation to these newer ones with weapons.

  3. KrazyFace says:

    I’m just gonna go ahead and assume for some reason you’ve never come across wipEout before? For me, this is the cream of the future racing crop. It’s fluidity, it’s precise controls, it’s gorgeous visuals (at a true 60fps on an HD TV, nothing matches it still) and of course, it’s speed. If you’ve never played wipEout HD from the PSN before, I suggest you pick it up as soon as humanly possible Susan. But be warned (and I’m not just saying this for the hell of it), the competition is FEIRCE!

    Its learning curve is more of a right-angle too, but trust me, once you button it down you’ll be zipping along, taking 90 degree corners at over 600mph while shoving a rocket up your rivals jacksie AND dodging the heavy fire behind you in no time. This is the REAL future racer, in comparison, S2 is like taking your grandad for a Sunday drive.

    Having said all that, LW have done a really amazing job to produce S2 from the constraints of the Home programe, they do deserve a big pat on the back for managing to pull it off. There’s definitely something to be said for the incorporation of the “smack-talk messages” that you can send or receive. A great way to pump you up and get you ready to claim back your place on your friends time boards. Nice write up BTW.

  4. MsLiZa says:

    Project Velocity had me hooked for a long while as well and I accomplished some pretty decent times.

    I especially appreciated the ability to add upgrades with Sodium credits for 2 reasons: I had close to a million of them in the bank from Salt Shooter and the store was closed to monetary transactions for much of the beta testing period. The only way to add upgrades was by redeeming Sodium credits for a few weeks then. I’ve also used wallet funds at times because the credits can be rather laborious to accumulate.

    Salt Shooter and Project Velocity must be the 2 Home games that I’ve played the most. I don’t play either of them so much anymore but I certainly received my money’s worth out of both. It’s a shame that no Home game in the past year has held my attention for nearly as long.

  5. Sizzle says:

    haha NASCAR geee they won’tr even race in the rain like F1 does

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