Rumours are swirling that PlayStation Home will be made available next month at the same time as LittleBigPlanet. So it looks like Home is almost upon us. I know Tosh has made it into the beta and has both good things and bad things to say. I, unfortunately, have not been so lucky to make it into the Home beta, and I would give up both my R2 and SOCOM beta invites for the chance (I didn’t enjoy either beta). Ah well, such is life.

The in-game launch feature requires that the game supports it if you want to end up in the game together, otherwise it’s just like launching a game from the XMB. Is this going to limit Home’s usefulness? I think so, for the foreseeable future at least. Games need to support Home for Home to be worth using!

So anyway, are you looking forward to Home? Vote in the sidebar as always.

Previous poll results:

Do you use a headset?

* Bluetooth: 45% (69)
* Will get the official Sony one: 23% (35)
* Nope: 21% (33)
* USB: 12% (18)

Total Votes : 155

After seeing the E3 presentation by Sony about the new game MAG, I thought it was just a stand-in title. MAG stands for “Massive Action Game”. Which, really, is more of a description than a title.

But it seems like this will actually be the title of the game! At least at this point. I’m crossing my fingers that Sony will clear the cobwebs from its collective brain and give the name a real title. And it would be nice if it didn’t have a colon in it!

What do you guys think? In my camp about this? Vote in the sidebar as always.

First look at MAG

Previous Poll Results:

How will you use PS3’s Trophies?

* Actively pursue them.: 28% (56)
* Try to get one here and there.: 39% (76)
* Check to see what I got every once in a while.: 20% (40)
* Ignore them.: 13% (25)

Total Votes : 197

One of the things I really dislike about Achievements on the 360 is how my friend keeps talking about them as if they were the second coming or something. (Sorry Todd.) I didn’t see why gaining Achievements was important. Isn’t a game for having fun? Why artificially change the way you play in order to unlock an Achievement that in the end doesn’t really mean anything?

Now the PS3 has its own version of Achievements call Trophies. You can get bronze, silver, gold, and platinum trophies in games that support them. The developer has a certain number of trophy points to allocate for a given type of game, and they can allocate them how they wish. More bronze, more silver, whatever. A gamer gets a platinum trophy for unlocking all the other trophies in a game. All these trophies go towards a total trophy score, which will determine when you level up to the next level. It sounds like a cool system, and the guys at IGN at least seem to think that it’s superior to the 360’s system.

Whatever.

I think it’ll be cool to check what trophies I’ve earned, but I don’t think I’ll check the non-earned trophies and go out of my way to earn them. But that’s just me. And who knows? Maybe I’ll get hooked on them. I’ll try to do a follow-up post in a couple months if I change my mind. (Tosh already told me that he would try to earn more on purpose.)

How are you going to use trophies?

Vote in the sidebar as always.

Previous poll results:

Are you buying MGS4?

* Yes, right away.: 61% (169)
* Yes, soon.: 15% (42)
* Yes, later.: 13% (37)
* No.: 11% (31)

Total Votes : 279

Wow! Fully 89% of you will buy (or have already bought) MGS4! Quite impressive.

It’s the week of MGS4. So the poll is simple. Are you buying it? Vote in the sidebar as always.

Previous poll results:

Has Rockstar going too far?

* They could have left some things out, it would still be a good game.: 17% (47)
* No, I like the controversial stuff. It’s just a game.: 69% (193)
* I don’t play the game because of this stuff.: 14% (39)

Total Votes : 279

Pursuent to Darrin’s post about GTAIV’s “ladies of the night”, I got to thinking. Personally I think that this is going too far. Having sex with a hooker, following her out of the car, and shooting her in the head. It offends the sensibilities, and I’m not ashamed to say I won’t be buying the game.

That’s not to say it’s otherwise not a good game. And this poll is not asking you about whether or not GTAIV is a good game, or whether you enjoy it. I want to know what you think about how it’s pushing the boundaries. For some reason, society thinks that pushing the boundaries is always a good thing, no matter what the boundaries are. Personally I feel that some boundaries are just best left alone.

Vote in the sidebar, as always.

Last Poll’s Results:

What do you think of in-game messaging on the PS3?

* Very important - must have both voice and text.: 62% (269)
* Very important, but just text is good enough.: 14% (61)
* Not important to me.: 13% (56)
* Somewhat important.: 11% (46)

Total Votes : 432

You’ve heard it blitzing across the net now for a couple of days, so I thought I’d get your opinion on the whole in-game messaging for the PS3 thing. In case you haven’t heard, SCE UK boss Ray Maguire had this to say about hitting the 1m sold mark in the UK:

Achieving one million PS3 sales faster than both PSOne and PlayStation 2 is even more gratifying considering PS3 is a premium product introduced at a premium price. Our momentum will continue with the introduction of in-game communication in the summer, firmware update 2.4 and the strongest line-up of games through our third party partners and our own studios. I’d personally like to thank our trade and business partners for helping us on the start of the PS3 journey. [Emphasis added.]

So what do you think? First of all, do you think that Mr. Maguire actually said this? Do you think that he was well informed enough to pass this information along, or was he simply mistaken? If he spoke the truth as he knew it, will circumstances change?

But the real question is: do you care? I know lots of people are making a big deal about this, and I think it’s quite important. But just because I do, that doesn’t mean you do. So what do you think of in-game messaging? Vote in the sidebar as always.

Note: in the poll I made a distinction between in-game voice and text communication. Text is obvious - you can go see any text messages you have received and reply to them. Voice might not be so obvious. What I mean is that you’d have the ability to talk to a friend via your headset, while in a game, no matter what game you or your friend are in. So if he’s playing MotorStorm and you’re playing CoD4, you can still chat. Personally, I think this is very important.

Sony hails retail as PS3 hits 1m

Previous poll results:

When will Home be released?

* 1Q 2008: 25% (48)
* 2Q 2008: 45% (85)
* 3Q 2008: 19% (35)
* 4Q 2008: 11% (21)

Total Votes : 189

Sony originally said that Home would go through a large public beta before release. But now rumours suggest that this will not happen and that Home will be released very soon. So what do you think? When is Home coming out? Vote in the sidebar as always.

Previous Poll Results:

Here are the results for the totally misplaced poll trying to predict when PS3 sales would outpace the 360’s in North America. As it turned out, this already happened in January of 2008, which I didn’t even list as an option.

What month in 2008 will the PS3 surpass the 360 in North American monthly sales?

* February: 5% (21)
* March: 6% (25)
* April: 9% (37)
* May: 7% (30)
* June: 13% (51)
* July: 7% (28)
* August: 4% (15)
* September: 6% (26)
* October: 5% (22)
* November: 8% (31)
* December: 10% (42)
* You’ve got to be kidding: 19% (79)

Total Votes : 407

What month in 2008 (or at all?) will the PS3 surpass the 360 in monthly sales? (In North America.)

See Darrin’s post about 2008 predictions to read more.

Previous Poll Results:

Who would you rather play in Soul Calibur IV?

* Darth Vader: 76% (87)
* Yoda: 24% (27)

Total Votes : 114

Soulcalibur IV is coming out on the PS3 and 360, and the title will have exclusive new characters for each platform. Who? Darth Vader and Yoda! Cool stuff.

I guess it kinda makes sense that the little green guy goes to the 360 and the black-dressed dude goes to the PS3. What do you guys think of that choice?

Which would you prefer to play? Vader or Yoda?

Previous Poll Results

How does the PS3 gaming lineup for the first half of 2008 look to you?

* Awesome. Lots of great games are coming.: 58% (95)
* Alright. I’ll be picking up a couple.: 31% (51)
* Terrible wasteland.: 10% (17)

Total Votes : 163

I’ve been taking a look at games that are coming out soon for the PS3, and I say that things look bleaker than nuclear fallout. The end of last year brought several good games for me to play, but this year is looking boring. The only bright spots (I hope) are Killzone 2 and LittleBigPlanet. But we haven’t heard anything about Killzone 2 in a while, and LittleBigPlanet’s been pushed to September. Home is far out too.

I know that this is because of my particular taste in games, but what can I say? So I’m here to ask about your PS3 gaming future. How does the first half of 2008 look to you?

* Awesome. Lots of great games are coming.
* Alright. I’ll be picking up a couple.
* Terrible wasteland.

Vote in the sidebar as always.

Previous poll results:

How’s the PS3 doing?

* Awesome.: 35% (201)
* Very good.: 30% (168)
* Alright.: 22% (128)
* Not so good.: 8% (43)
* Terrible.: 5% (29)

It’s been just over a year since the PLAYSTATION 3 launched, and I want to know where you guys think the PS3 is sitting. Vote in the sidebar, as always.

How is the PS3 doing?

1. Awesome. Couldn’t be better!
2. Very good.
3. Alright.
4. Not so good.
5. Terrible.

Last poll’s results:

Are you playing CoD4 on your PS3?

* Yes!: 61% (403)
* Soon.: 24% (158)
* Never.: 16% (104)

Total Votes : 665

So, CoD4 was released the other day, and I have to say the game is awesome. Are you playing CoD4? Will you be soon? Or is this game just not for you?

Vote in the sidebar as always.

Last poll’s results:

Which next-gen console(s) do you own?

* PS3 Only: 61% (313)
* PS3 + Wii: 14% (70)
* PS3 + Wii + 360: 10% (50)
* PS3 + 360: 10% (49)
* 360 Only: 4% (21)
* Wii Only: 2% (9)
* 360 + Wii: 0% (2)

Total Votes : 514

I know I’ve done this poll before, but some time has passed since then. And I’m curious. So which next-gen consoles do you own? Vote in the sidebar as always.

Previous poll results:

Which PS3 SKU gives the best bang for the buck?

* Original 60GB PS3: 64% (157)
* Original 20GB PS3: 2% (6)
* European 60GB PS3: 15% (36)
* 80GB PS3: 8% (19)
* 40GB PS3: 11% (27)

Total Votes : 245

Okay, we’ve seen a total of 5 PS3 SKU’s announced and/or sold so far. Assuming launch prices of these models, which do you think is the best deal? Remember that you have to compare the launch prices. So the original 60GB PS3 = $600, and the 80GB PS3 = $600 too.

1. Original 60GB PS3 - $600
2. Original 20GB PS3 (no WiFi, MemCards, cheap) - $500
3. European 60GB PS3 (less BC) - $???
4. 80GB PS3 (less BC, more HDD) - $600
5. 40GB PS3 (no BC, cheap) - $400?

Last poll’s results:

Do you care about downloading and playing PSOne games on your PS3/PSP?

* On PS3 and PSP: 38% (140)
* On PS3 only: 18% (65)
* On PSP only: 11% (42)
* No: 33% (122)

Total Votes : 369

Gary just posted an article talking about PSOne games downloadable on the PS3. Which begs the question: do you care about being able to download and play PSOne games on your PS3 and/or PSP?

Vote in the sidebar here at PS3Blog.net, as always.

Last poll’s results:

What 2007 shooter are you most looking forward to?

* CoD4: 30% (158)
* Warhawk: 17% (90)
* Haze: 17% (88)
* UT3: 15% (77)
* Orange Box: 10% (50)
* Army of Two: 6% (32)
* GRAW2: 3% (15)
* TimeShift: 1% (6)
* BiA: HH: 1% (4)
* MoH: A: 1% (3)
* ET: QW: 1% (3)

Total Votes : 526

Looks like CoD4 takes it!