A Home With Nothing New
by Jin Lovelace, HSM team writer and filmmaker
I’ve seen it and have seen too much of it.
So much that it’s starting to become unnerving when I see some simpleton that would post that some apocalyptic point of view about how PlayStation Home is coming to some sort of end. Like a domino effect is about to take place and just waiting for the inevitable to happen. The rants, moaning, and whining on how it’s boring and Sony doesn’t do anything for this community is ridiculous.
The sentiment that SCEJ/SCEAsia’s Home community’s grass is greener is a pile of manure to me. The attitude of how SCEA Home should follow in the footsteps of the aforementioned communities–as far as content goes–baffled me crazy.
To really not echo what Terra Cide had stated in her article (http://www.hsmagazine.net/2013/08/how-the-hell-does-japan-home-turn-a-profit/), which I found golden, this article isn’t for me to laugh at anyone’s face. Rather, I wish to take the time to do so with a bonus statement that goes, “looking like utter fools now, eh?”
“Jin, that’s not right to say that. Be professional!”
And turn my left cheek alongside so they can kiss it? Sure thing, but I don’t think it’s the cheek you think I’m implying, however.
I say this because I’m fed up on how people can sit on their bottoms to just constantly post on such topics about their attachment to a server that had little to no social interactivity and items that weren’t–if at all–that interesting versus not doing something that what the seemingly above-average person would do: research?
Did anyone know at all that this was coming? Was I stunned about this news? Was I anticipating on something like this? My answer is I didn’t care. For one, aside from a Japanese PSN card that was given to me that was used for purchasing some content there, I can count by two hands the number of times I traversed over to SCEJ Home: six. Occasional oohs and aahs came to fruition when I saw some pretty neat items, and three–yes, three–public spaces that I desire to see grace the grounds of SCEA Home, but other than that, as much as I love my Japanese anime, a bit of the culture, and some of the delicacies, not once did I had the urge to just suddenly go over there again and bask into the leafy-green fields of SCEJ Home.
Am I stating my dislike towards the Japan Home region? No, not at all. I just personally feel that it’s overrated, to be honest. I say this because I believe upon the announcement that was made, people already have started conceiving notions like a Town Crier flying though the streets yelling that the end is coming — but have overlooked one point that was stated in the announcement:
“SCEA and SCEE will continue to fully support their PlayStation Communities.”
The most skeptical inquiry that you may have is, “for how long will they continue to support Home right after March of 2014?” After all, the PlayStation 4 has been announced for November 2013 and many purists have surmised that Home will diminish a bit around the release of the system. But here, Sony has officially announced they will continue their support of publishing weekly content to the two prominent regions.
Publishing content, not terminating the service altogether!
And according to what the SCEA Digitial Platforms Community Manager Tempest Fire has pointed out, SCEJ has restructured their business and wish to focus on other priorities.
But I think we’ve forgotten about one thing: SCEJ/SCEAsia is no longer publishing new content on the respective Home servers. What does this means for anyone that does enjoy the Japan servers? What does that mean for anyone that do bask in its utopia of hand-me-down undergarments and candy-pop cutesy anime voices squealing in harmony?
From a business perspective, it was coming. The restrictions on localization and reports of severe QA requirements provided little to no economic incentive for non-Japanese developers to bring anything other than the largest megahits to Japan, such as Hellfire’s Home Tycoon. It was a bit of a revelation to read in Terra’s article that Japan Home actually has less content than SCEAsia Home, and the truth is that without content for people to purchase, how do you expect to derive sufficient revenue to keep the lights turned on?
O-Two (Peakvox) has some incredible fashion items that I hope to see here, but they remain exclusive to SCEJ for now. The community events are aplenty in SCEE, and here in SCEA, we’re starting to pick up steam thanks to Granzella. Developers are listening to the community and their involvement is starting to be deeper than one might think, with VEEMEE’s Acorn Park and Juggernaut’s Serenity Plaza, two scenes which exist to enhance the social experience. In SCEJ Home community, I didn’t necessarily get this over there; I met a few nice people, several trolls, and some angry women.
And don’t get me started on the lack of Wrangler/Billabong fashion. Even Codeglue’s U Love Green items saw a limited release, with the second wave of items saw one item not making it into their stores.
From a social point, this can be a positive experience for the contributors of the Japan and Asia Home communities. HSM has readers from around the world and I’m quite sure their curiosities have piqued to at least give the North American and European servers a try. If so, I’m sure the respective communities will welcome them with open arms.
The ceasing of publishing new content for SCEJ and SCEAsia Home doesn’t necessarily equate to the end of SCEA and SCEE. Though there are no announcements of the service being on the PS4, instead of focusing on the end of our servers, how about we all discuss what the lack of new content means to the community cohesion of Japan and Asia? Will the lack of new content bother anyone there? That, to me, is a far more interesting question.
September 7th, 2013 by Jin Lovelace | 9 comments
Jin Lovelace is a machinimist and team writer for HomeStation Magazine, as well as the founder of Twilight Touch Inc. -- http://twilighttouchinc.com and http://youtube.com/twilighttouchinc. When not found in PlayStation Home, Jin studies graphic design and illustration (character design and fashion), gaming, and the culinary arts.
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The problem with no new items means that a lot of the support of home in them regions has shifted. Even though they have said special events will still take place. Giving a clear indication that at some point these regions will not be continued. For developers like Granzella that’s a lot of income I believe the figures they released was 35% of they turnover is from Japan where the EU is only 15%, that’s a big shortfall it also says that the EU doesn’t really do this everything from Japan is better rubbish. But does that mean that granzella have to change to make up the short fall and make more products that will sell in the EU. I’m from the EU region and I’m a great believer in the whole ps3 experience with me and my friends shifting regions and games. Anyone thinks that id have a ps3 just for home really should relook at what they are doing. Example Home users that waited until Lockwood released the prairies to go horse riding missed out so much earlier by not setting a private RDR game. And you could now buy RDR for less than a price of a Lockwood horse if you look on auction web sites. Ultimately any changes to one region at some point in some way will effect other regions. 2 regions falling on they swords over new content doesn’t mean a thing until the other two regions actually tell us what they intend to do which the only info we have is developers are developing for home past next march
Great article, personally i feel the SCEA and SCEE communities need to chill out a bit. SCEA and SCEE as you stated above (quoting the official press release) are still going on and there has been no discussion or announcements for stopping new content being published for those regions.
So even if SCEA/SCEE did follow suit, I am sure like the SCEJ/SCEAsia press release we would hear a good 6 months to a year before it happened anyway at the very least.
However what probably will close PS Home down sooner, like any business will be that the community stop playing/spending money and enjoying Home, if this happens due to scare mongering community members and players ‘jumping ship’ then I would imagine it would close sooner rather then later.
This, I agree fully and you’ve took the words right out of my head. That is the thing that I want everyone to understand: Home isn’t stopping production until it’s announced.
I didn’t steel your thoughts in your sleep, honest
I to think that as long as people pay for content on home, that home will stay open. I don’t see Sony shutting it down for some time as long as they are getting a significant amount of money for it.I don’t even see Japan/ Asia closing their servers down for a while either, as there are still a number of things you can still get there, for a long time.
When Home truly sees their ” final” days, there will be places one can go to. Lockwood is working on Avakin, which is looking pretty cool and will only get better in the future. My home husband wants our family to continue there, and maybe even on ” Second life”. I may even start playing Sims again, I have some of the games, I might just start getting more. Home is still having a good ride and I plan to stay on until the last server is shut down.
Right on, Nora!
I sincerely thank you for your response.
Outside of the ps3 experience IMVU has quite a simple interface, allows music from you tube to be played and even has a smart phone chat app. Second life is quite complex to get used to, and very easy to take a wrong turn. I was walking round ancient Rome on second life when I realised it was set up as gay role play space. I’ve also learnt that there are vampires in second life that have the powers that vampires have in the stories so don’t get bitten otherwise well you know what happens.
But I don’t think it’s the end yet. I still think users buying and usage patterns will change with the news from Japan and Asia
JP and Asia are still going to be around for quite awhile. I for one never bought a thing there and still had fun when I went. I haven’t been there or any other region for months now and to tell you the truth I don’t miss it all that much. Our Home has so much going on compared to theirs that I quite simply haven’t the time to invest elsewhere.
FOr those who did go and spend there I know there will be some sadness. But Even though they won’t have new things to invest in they still have all the stuff they never bought yet and the things they did. Besides, Home is its people not its things. those are just to enhance the fun we have with our friends, not take their places in our hearts.
My view is simply this, I am invested in Home N/A, and will have fun till the servers close and there is no more Home, be it tonight or 1000 years from now. The fact is that we can impact the business model here if we continue to buy, and I will. Practically, when Sony decides to pull the plug, they will, I will buy and ride until that day. I have a couple accounts here in N/A, and the second one is much smaller than my Fema account, I just am too focused on Fema, to invest in any other account, and so the passing of Japan and Asia new content is a blip on the radar for me as my focus is on Fema. And if there was no new content, I would still take time to have fun with what I have gathered here in the time I have been on. The stuff I have will take me far into a future without new content, so even then, I’m still gonna be here for a long time.Good article Jin.