Assume the Crash Position
by ted2112 HSM team writer
You know when you take a flight, before takeoff, there’s always that ominous announcement that goes something like this:
“In the unlikely event of a emergency, oxygen masks magically appear, flotation devices are under your seat, life rafts and slides inflate, exit row people are to sacrifice themselves for there use of that few extra feet of leg room.”
Right, I don’t know exactly how it goes, because I never really listen to it. Call it the kid in me that believes if he covers his eyes, nobody can see him. If I don’t listen to the doom and gloom announcement, nothing can possibly go wrong, right? Plus, when I am on a plane, it’s generally because I desperately need a vacation, and that announcement isn’t the best way to start your recovery from all those stressful things that put you on the plane to begin with.
I am a firm believer that Home is a long term investment for Sony; I have written many times about it. But what if we logged on one day and the message of the day sounded like those ominous announcements before take off: “In the unlikely event of a Home emergency, the USB ports on your PS3 will activate and automatically save your avatars data on a thumb drive. Your DualShock controller will become a homing beacon, and you are encouraged to assume the crash position in your Home Harbor Studio.”
What if Home did crash somewhere way out beyond the Dream Island? It has happened to us before; remember the great PSN outage of 2011? What did you do? Where did your virtual selves hang out? What if the sudden end did come for our avatars, what new shore would we wash up on? I have a few ideas, but I welcome yours as well.
The rumored XBox virtual community: The Microsoft folks have always had their toe in the water with virtual space, but it has been a very bad effort so far. The avatars seem like a bad cartoon, and their venture into avatar chat was a dismal failure. I have heard more than one rumor about the next generation Xbox having a “Home-like” community, and this would make sense, given that the man who is generally considered as Home’s “father,” Phil Harrison, has been at Microsoft since this spring. Would you ditch your PS3s for an XBox 720, or whatever they are going to be calling it?
Second Life: For the record, I’m not a big fan of Second Life. The game had amazing potential, but in the end, I feel in the same way Home has brought out the best in virtual space; Second Life has brought out the worst. The turnover rate there is staggering, and the game has become an adult-themed and economic free-for-all. For all of those who complain about trolling in Home, they haven’t seen anything like what gets dished up there. The graphics are terrible, and unless you pay through the nose, there is no such thing as a personal space. But, would it be good enough for a emergency Home substitute?
World of Warcraft: How about trading in your personal companion for a broadsword? Are you into loin cloths and living in a world that seems like it was designed by J.R.R. Tolkien, if he had worked for professional wrestling? Coming over to this virtual space is on the expensive side, and Mercia fans would need to change their focus from making friends to killing them.
Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean on-Line: This game is more of a happy place where you merrily sail the high seas and hunt for treasure. For those who love Cutthroats, this might be a good landing spot. The in-game communication, however, is subject to Disney’s rated G online dictionary, so saying things other than you love Mickey Mouse can be a challenge. It is a fun game, and those of us who play Home because it’s free, will be happy to know there is no cover charge, and they even throw in a free ship.
Final Fantasy XIV On-Line: This might be where I go in the event of a sudden Home depressurization. It has different lands much like Home, and friendship is encouraged. It’s a great adventure game that you can take at your own pace. How much you do depends on you. The PC version is out now, but the PS3 version is still in limbo.
Call of Duty- Modern warfare. Like the on-line gaming experience of shooting everything that moves, and you could pass on the social interaction side of things? The Call of Duty series is a great way for No Man’s Land players gamers to keep there skills sharp. It’s simple arcade style is a great fix for your inner sharpshooter.
There are dozens more on-line games, some good, some bad, but most fail to provide that unique balance that Home has accomplished between sociability and gaming. Most on-line games are just that – games. Home, on the other hand, is more than the sum of its parts by making a gaming metaverse that the player is free to play in a genre-rich environment that also allows us to invite our friends along for that experience. Let’s all hope that we have a safe and smooth flight here at Home, and not have to worry that we didn’t look at that emergency instructions card in the seat back pocket.
We know you have a choice when flying and we sincerely hope you have enjoyed your time with us; this is your captain speaking. Your feedback is always welcome, and until next time, wherever you may land, happy gaming.
September 13th, 2012 by ted2112 | 6 comments
ted2112 is a writer and a Bass player that has been both inspired and takes to heart Kurt Vonnegut words...."we are here on planet Earth to fart around, and don't let anyone tell you different."
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You can find me on the mean streets of GTA V, should be a great game to ride around with your friends. Great read teD, keep’em coming.
Can find me in GTA , RDR, midnight club, saints row, uncharted, imvu or dcuo. Home isn’t that great that it can’t be replaced. Got elder scrolls online due next year. Second life is too buggy for me but it’s an experience that people have to try to fully appreciate how hard certain things are to do with in a virtual world the size of second life. As the size makes home look tiny. But quality over quantity in that case. Chances are home will be revamped for ps4 and we will all have to start again on home 2.
For all the problems and reorganization over at square enix Final Fantasy 14 seems to be getting it together. I am on the waiting list for the ps3 beta, but who knows how long that will take givin were still waiting for 13 Versus. Very funny article!
When Home went down last time, I think most of my Home friends just ended up in cam-chat the whole time! Saying that, IF I had Test Drive Unlimited 2 during that time I’d have hardly noticed the Great Home Blackout since it’s basically Home with cars and miles of road to convoy with friends on. Theres plenty of shops to buy loads of clothes from, an estate agents to go looking for new houses and furniture to buy to ‘re-decorate etc. Also a casino to waste your hard earned cash in ( with its own exclusive clothing range). Also has its own club houses too! So yeah, Home with cars, and oh my, such nice cars! Good luck getting the money together to afford the yacht or the “mansion” in that game though lol. Nice article BTW Ted, fun read.
Free realms is is a great mmo type, and World of Warcraft gets boring quick. other than that I might just stick with regular 1 player games
Good article and fun read. I don’t know where I’d go if that happened to Home. I used to play Pirates Online so maybe I’d start there for back up and then search and try out new MMO’s. Regarding the doom and gloom announcements on a plane, as a kid I was scared to death when I heard them and believed them. I still to this day don’t like them. Let’s just hope Home sticks around and we never get that type of message.