Sony/Anonymous Nonsense & the PSN Outage ... also GeoHotz

[Mormz]

The welcome back program is pretty shitty, honestly. If they really wanted to show how much they appreciated their users, shouldn't they have let us choose any two games from the store?

I already have LBP, and inFamous bored me. Maybe I'll just sell my physical copy of LBP. Hopefully get a couple bucks to put toward the new Blops maps.

I know I'm sounding a bit like a whiny kid that thinks stuff is never enough, I just find this to be a bit underwhelming considering the unreasonably long down time.

Sigh, oh well. At least I can play online on my PS3 again.

 

[Makoeyes987]

Letting everyone CHOOSE one or two free games would be pretty dang excessive, given the fact most people would probably go for a new, expensive game, and thus cut into the profits of a software distributor who probably doesn't WANT their games being given away for free in the first place. They have their own business and shit to manage without having to lose their profits thanks to Sony's fuck up.

Sony offering good games that are a bit older is a fair compromise. They've already gotten most of their sales and for those who haven't gotten a chance to get them, they can take advantage and get a free gift.

Not everybody can be pleased.

 

[OneWingedDemon]

....still can't access the PS store. =( This blows
I want Infamous. I was gonna buy it too.

 

[Mormz]

Letting everyone CHOOSE one or two free games would be pretty dang excessive, given the fact most people would probably go for a new, expensive game, and thus cut into the profits of a software distributor who probably doesn't WANT their games being given away for free in the first place. They have their own business and shit to manage without having to lose their profits thanks to Sony's fuck up.

Okay, then set a cap to it. Like, thirty bucks. At least then, we aren't limited to Greatest Hits titles which most people already have in the first place. Hell, they could have at least picked titles that were a bit better than what they chose.

Sony offering good games that are a bit older is a fair compromise. They've already gotten most of their sales and for those who haven't gotten a chance to get them, they can take advantage and get a free gift.

Not everybody can be pleased.

"Most of their sales," is a bit of an understatement. Both LBP and InFamous are extremely popular titles. I'm sure that Sony did that on purpose in hopes of not having to give away too many free copies.

It's not the best of compromises, really. I'd have been happier with a free $20 redeem code to spend on whatever I want. It's better than getting two uninteresting games from the boring games bush. And it would be cheaper than what they're doing.


The only thing I don't really know about is PS+. Do you have to continue a subscription in order to play the games? I've heard something along the lines before, but I never intended on getting PS+, so I was never really concerned with it.

 

[ForceStealer]

It's not the best of compromises, really. I'd have been happier with a free $20 redeem code to spend on whatever I want. It's better than getting two uninteresting games from the boring games bush. And it would be cheaper than what they're doing.

Say what? A $20 gift card x 77 million users is $1,540,000,000. You think that's cheaper than what they're doing? For a free service, that would be one HELL of a compensation for a month of no service.

First of all, it has to be first party titles, no other developer/publisher would let them just give away their game. And by offering games that are near the end of their life cycle they ruffle the fewest feathers and still offer more than I would have expected. I expected us to get a crappy little PSN game. MAYBE they'd let us choose between 2.

 

[Mormz]

InFamous, brand new, is $20. At least, in stores. I'm not sure what the PSN price was, but I doubt it was less than $10. Add another game to it, for most likely the same price, and you have $20 anyways - probably more. If it has to be first party, then limit the card to first party shit only. Also, you have this mindset that Sony is taking a massive loss. They're really not.

Oh, and 77 million users probably aren't going to be partaking in this "incredible deal of awesome greatness for the century, oh thank you, my God, Sony for being so gracious." Maybe closer to 30 million. Still a lot, but meh.

Also, also, PS3's are fucking expensive. Even if they did lose that much money, the revenue from the PS3's themselves (not to mention every other Sony product in the world) probably outweighs it greatly.

 

[ForceStealer]

As far as I know they're still losing money on every PS3 sold. At best they're breaking even.

And what Infamous goes for is irrelevant. The point is almost no one was going to buy it at this point. So that's not the same amount of money as letting you spend $20 towards, say, Mass Effect 3. Which is likely to still be selling.

Also, that's just it. Not everyone is going to partake of this deal. So it is absolutely cheaper to offer this selection of older games that you may download than giving all 77 million users a $20 gift card that they're gonna have to keep on their books as a liability. Not to mention that, again, that $20 is worth much more if its spent on a new game that people are still buying rather than an older one that people stopped buying. They may have listed Infamous for $20, but that's not what its worth. "Worth" meaning what people would be willing to pay to get it.

I don't have the mindset that they are taking a massive loss. Just that they would if they handed 77 million people twenty bucks.

 

[Tennyo]

I actually think that what we are getting is a lot more than I was expecting.

Sorry, I don't need much to keep me happy. I'm grateful for what I got.

 

[Tetsujin]

....still can't access the PS store. =( This blows
I want Infamous. I was gonna buy it too.

The PS Store won't be up for a couple more days.

 

[OneWingedDemon]

The PS Store won't be up for a couple more days.

Ahh. I hadn't checked when the network came back up. Assumed the store went up with it.

Ok, then

 

[Mormz]

As far as I know they're still losing money on every PS3 sold. At best they're breaking even.

I doubt it. They're probably understating how much is made on each PS3. If they were really losing that much money, they wouldn't even be producing any more.

And what Infamous goes for is irrelevant. The point is almost no one was going to buy it at this point. So that's not the same amount of money as letting you spend $20 towards, say, Mass Effect 3. Which is likely to still be selling.

That's not true, it's completely relevant. If InFamous is worth $20, and everyone with online buys it, then it's no difference. It's still that many downloads worth 20 bucks each. And you can't buy Mass Effect 3 for 20 bucks, silly. Can you even buy it on the PSN store?

Also, that's just it. Not everyone is going to partake of this deal. So it is absolutely cheaper to offer this selection of older games that you may download than giving all 77 million users a $20 gift card that they're gonna have to keep on their books as a liability.

Very well, then. There's still a big list of older, first-party games for about the same value as InFamous or LBP that they could have let us choose from. Would you be happier if I said at least let us choose from first-party items with the same, or less value than InFamous? I mean, there's quite a few choices I would have had, then. And, in your mindset, it should be about the same, shouldn't it?

Not to mention that, again, that $20 is worth much more if its spent on a new game that people are still buying rather than an older one that people stopped buying.

What new games cost $20? Not talking about little arcade titles.

They may have listed Infamous for $20, but that's not what its worth. "Worth" meaning what people would be willing to pay to get it.

Obviously people would be willing to pay it, considering it's a greatest hits title, and I've seen quite a few people buy it brand new.

I don't have the mindset that they are taking a massive loss. Just that they would if they handed 77 million people twenty bucks.

Handing 77 million people two games isn't losing money, though. Gotcha.


I'm not saying that I don't think that just having PSN back is good enough, I'm just saying that their welcome back program is underwhelming, especially considering how big they're making it seem. The fact that different countries have a separate choice in games is kind of stupid, as well.

 

[Madame Mayor]

I doubt it. They're probably understating how much is made on each PS3. If they were really losing that much money, they wouldn't even be producing any more.

Consoles are never the money makers. It's the games, accessories, that makes them money. Though the ones with bigger hdds tend to make them a bit more because they charge way more than the bigger hdd would cost.

 

[Tetsujin]

Consoles are never the money makers.

Except when you're Nintendo. x)

 

[ForceStealer]

That's not true, it's completely relevant. If InFamous is worth $20, and everyone with online buys it, then it's no difference. It's still that many downloads worth 20 bucks each.

Not when no one's going to buy it for $20 anymore. Which no one will. It's not worth $20, it's worth maybe half that, according to what it's going for used online.

And you can't buy Mass Effect 3 for 20 bucks, silly. Can you even buy it on the PSN store?

Mass Effect 2 is on the PS Store for download. And, yeah, its $60, but if they just gave you a $20 card, you could still spend that $20 toward ME2

Very well, then. There's still a big list of older, first-party games for about the same value as InFamous or LBP that they could have let us choose from. Would you be happier if I said at least let us choose from first-party items with the same, or less value than InFamous? I mean, there's quite a few choices I would have had, then. And, in your mindset, it should be about the same, shouldn't it?

Yes, they could have. I'm not sure just how many there are on the PS Store, Warhawk and Modnation Racers is the only ones that pops into my head. But yes, they could have done that. Again, I just said I was surprised they offered full games at all. But marketing comes into play here. Sucker Punch is probably all for the idea becuase Infamous 2 comes out soon. If this gets more people hooked on the first game, but almost no one was going to buy it still at this point, then that's better sales for the new one. Probably similar thinking with LBP, since LBP2 is still fairly new.

Obviously people would be willing to pay it, considering it's a greatest hits title, and I've seen quite a few people buy it brand new.

I think that number would be negligible. You can get it used for the physical disc and stuff from Amazon for $11. Why would you pay $20 for a digital copy? And again, it's basically advertising for Infamous 2 and this point.

Handing 77 million people two games isn't losing money, though. Gotcha.

Weren't you the one who just said not everyone will take part in the deal? I guarantee you that several orders of magnitude more people would participate if you just handed them 20 bucks.

The fact that different countries have a separate choice in games is kind of stupid, as well.

Well its not their fault the Germans are crazy
Besides that, who knows why. They still never would have satisfied everyone.

 

[ForceStealer]

They're saying the password reset system was taken down because of an exploit drawing ever more ire to Sony. But I'm kinda confused. They're saying the problem is is that all a hacker needs in order to change your password is your email and date of birth. ...Wouldn't they still need to be able to get into your email account? And isn't that what every place asks for to change your password? I'm assuming that I'm missing something.

 

[Tifabelle]

I didn't need access to my email in order to change my password. In fact, I don't remember needing to know my DOB. I just put in my email address and my old password. And I was prompted to put in the new password.

You signed on to PSN, didn't you just do that too?

 

[ForceStealer]

Well I think they mean when you click that you've forgotten your password. The force-change happened when you logged in.

 

[Tifabelle]

oh I gotcha. well, nm then I've never had to do a forgotten password so I don't know how it used to work.

 

[stiles]

@Mormz;

on top of offering a selection of two games out of infamous, lbp, wipeout and stardust hd (somebody has told me deadnation as well..? can anybody confirm this?) we also get a free months subscription of psplus.. for a free service that was down for a few weeks. i don't see what the problem is personally, i wasn't even expecting to get anything in the first place, this is just a bonus. they really don't owe us anything for getting hacked. especially seeing as nobody has reported any identity theft, and i'm sure that applies to you as well, if you even used your credit card to begin with.

 

[Interslicery]

@Mormz;

on top of offering a selection of two games out of infamous, lbp, wipeout and stardust hd (somebody has told me deadnation as well..? can anybody confirm this?) we also get a free months subscription of psplus.. for a free service that was down for a few weeks. i don't see what the problem is personally, i wasn't even expecting to get anything in the first place, this is just a bonus. they really don't owe us anything for getting hacked. especially seeing as nobody has reported any identity theft, and i'm sure that applies to you as well, if you even used your credit card to begin with.

http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011...stomer-appreciation-program-in-north-america/

 

[Mormz]

I actually quite like this post of yours.

Not when no one's going to buy it for $20 anymore. Which no one will. It's not worth $20, it's worth maybe half that, according to what it's going for used online.

I meant used it's $20. I mean, if you're buying a digital download, it's essentially a new copy.

Mass Effect 2 is on the PS Store for download. And, yeah, its $60, but if they just gave you a $20 card, you could still spend that $20 toward ME2

True, but I think most people would use it on DLC and such.
I could get ME2 for $20 anyways.

Yes, they could have. I'm not sure just how many there are on the PS Store, Warhawk and Modnation Racers is the only ones that pops into my head. But yes, they could have done that. Again, I just said I was surprised they offered full games at all. But marketing comes into play here. Sucker Punch is probably all for the idea becuase Infamous 2 comes out soon. If this gets more people hooked on the first game, but almost no one was going to buy it still at this point, then that's better sales for the new one. Probably similar thinking with LBP, since LBP2 is still fairly new.

Warhawk would have been pretty tight. Or maybe some old PS1 or 2 games. I'd love that, considering my PS3 can't play PS2 games. But, I don't know if you can DL PS2 games.

I think that number would be negligible. You can get it used for the physical disc and stuff from Amazon for $11. Why would you pay $20 for a digital copy? And again, it's basically advertising for Infamous 2 and this point.

Mostly because it's a used copy that's $11. Personally, yeah, I'd probably go for the used copy, but some people don't like used copies.

Weren't you the one who just said not everyone will take part in the deal? I guarantee you that several orders of magnitude more people would participate if you just handed them 20 bucks.

I did, and honestly, I forgot the point I was trying to make there, lol.

Well its not their fault the Germans are crazy
Besides that, who knows why. They still never would have satisfied everyone.

Germans are a glorious people. But I know what you mean. Just doesn't make much sense, but meh, that's the industry, for ya.

on top of offering a selection of two games out of infamous, lbp, wipeout and stardust hd (somebody has told me deadnation as well..? can anybody confirm this?) we also get a free months subscription of psplus.. for a free service that was down for a few weeks. i don't see what the problem is personally, i wasn't even expecting to get anything in the first place, this is just a bonus. they really don't owe us anything for getting hacked. especially seeing as nobody has reported any identity theft, and i'm sure that applies to you as well, if you even used your credit card to begin with.

I know. I'm not saying that it's not a nice gesture, it's just a little underwhelming considering how they presented it.

And no, we didn't directly pay for online service, but we did purchase a console so that we could play games (both on and offline), so it's quite inconvenient for such popular service to be taken down for a month. And it's even further disappointing because of Sony's lack of communication (well, WAS disappointing because of it, everything seems to be smooth now.)

If I may present an extremely stretched analogy, it's like letting someone jump out of an airplane with a parachute, then cutting it saying the parachute couldn't support them anyways. Wait, I'm not even sure that makes sense. Fuck it, you know what I mean, lol.

 

[ForceStealer]

Warhawk would have been pretty tight. Or maybe some old PS1 or 2 games. I'd love that, considering my PS3 can't play PS2 games. But, I don't know if you can DL PS2 games.

Well I already have Warhawk
And so far the only PS2 games on there that I'm aware of are the Prince of Persia games. Which would have been an idea...though I have all of those also. I feel like another PS2 game was added recently but i can't think what it was....

 

[Mormz]

Give me your copy of Warhawk. And all your Prince of Persia games.

 

[Tetsujin]

Well I already have Warhawk
And so far the only PS2 games on there that I'm aware of are the Prince of Persia games. Which would have been an idea...though I have all of those also. I feel like another PS2 game was added recently but i can't think what it was....

The God of War Collection is also on there...

 

[X-SOLDIER]

Looks like the PS Store's scheduled to be back online on 5/24/2011!!!

Sony has notified its developer and publisher partners that the PlayStation Store is scheduled to relaunch next Tuesday, May 24, according to a memo obtained by Gamasutra. In the message, PSN content manager Jack Osorno details plans to update the Store twice weekly -- on Tuesdays and Fridays -- for two weeks in order to speed up the release of content that's been delayed due to the outage.

Next Tuesday's update will include content originally scheduled to be released on April 26, while an update on Friday the 27th will bring releases previously planned for May 3. Updates on May 31 and June 3 will comprise the remaining content intended to be published throughout the rest of May. By the regularly scheduled June 7 update, the Store is expected to be up to date.

"If there are concerns, we are willing to consider adjusting the release date of your content on this schedule," Osorno notes. "Adjustments will be made on a case by case basis." (The memo does not address any other kind of adjustment that might be made to appease concerns.)

While the launch date for the "Customer Appreciation Program" wasn't noted (this was a memo to devs and pubs, remember?), the choice of two free games is expected to be made available "shortly after PlayStation Store is restored," for a limited time, according to an announcement earlier this week.

X