Hey gamers! Response to this here PlayStation.Blog has been so impressive, that SCEA decided that someone needed to be brought in to help keep an eye on it full time. I’m that person. Really, I’ve been lurking behind the scenes here for over a month, but it’s time to come out and say hello.
Among other things, it’s my job to help connect those who create software, hardware, and peripherals for PlayStation systems, and those of you who play them. And I can’t do it without you, the faithful and passionate readers.
So keep those comments coming – we’re reading them! Also, please feel free to utilize the Contact Us section (on the right side of the blog) if what you wanna say is off-topic. We read that too, even if we don’t necessarily have enough hours in the day to write back to each of you.
In the near future, we plan on coming to you more and more, finding out what you want to know and what you’d like to see here on PlayStation.Blog.
As a lifelong gamer, and a PlayStation fan since the days of (the original) Twisted Metal, Resident Evil and Crash Bandicoot games – I’m ecstatic to be here and to serve in this role. Keep me busy.
PS – shoot at me online: JeffPS
Jeff, it’s good to know that these comments aren’t falling on deaf ears. Here are a few of my suggestions for enhancing the PS3 experience:
PS3 System:
1) A quicker or “always on” view of the number of friends online and messages. I hate having to keep going to the far right side of the XMB to check these things.
2) Hints or Tips for each of the settings. I have no clue what most of the settings do so I feel like I might have something active that may affect my system negatively.
3) Create a timezone for Arizona. We don’t do Daylight Savings so sometimes we’re pacific and sometimes we’re mountain time zone. While we’re here, please add a clock when the PS button is pressed.
4) Rotating background image. I don’t like looking at the same image all the time and I also don’t want to keep changing it manually.
5) How about the ability to disable the system from asking me “Are you sure you want to turn off the system?” because it just adds a step that really isn’t necessary.
PSN:
1) Demos for all downloadable games. No more blind faith for me after purchasing flOw.
2) Better layout. It’s a web page but we don’t have a mouse. Can’t it be designed around the controller instead?
3) More avatars. Actually how about the ability to make our own?
Hardware:
1) Get us rumble sooner! Dual Shock 3 by Christmas please!!!
2) Create a headset for all future PS3’s. It’s hard playing team based games (like Warhawk) when only 1/3 of the people are able to communicate.
That’s all for now. Thanks for taking the time to listen and provide feedback.
wow, I go to get a sandwich and 80 more comments. Well here goes:
@rothgar – no such list exists. Some choose to make their names public, and I understand not wanting to. I’m curious to log on tonight, haha.
@whoelse – yep
@frostedcakes – I don’t have an official date on that. We will update on the Blog when there is one. Don’t expect it Thursday. Do expect PAIN.
@Draicus – did you see this? There are others out there too, but an ‘official’ contest is not outside the realm of possibility. BTW, Schwag contest winners to be announced very shortly.
@manutd – we don’t do that because content changes almost on a daily basis. To the best of our ability – if it shows up on this blog, it’s a fact. PS – Go Arsenal ;-)
@Voozi – as soon as I’m done replying to comments ;-)
@ianp622 – those got a ton of great feedback – both here and on the many sites it was picked up on. Sentiments like that can help concepts turn into reality. Will those particular demos be released? There are no current plans that I’m aware of. Will concepts seen there be incorporated into future games? Well that seems a lot more likely. Expect Richard and co. to share their advances on the Blog as they continue to come up with cool stuff.
@eksMAN – fried, preferably. Also: in nugget/strip form.
@RobinNL – you may, though I have no intention to become the Tila Tequila of PSN.
@Kaoro – I, too, am a Mac user. So you know that if there is any movement on this, I’ll pass it on!
OK, we’re in the 200 comment range, so I’m probably going to have to move on to making new posts. Thanks everyone for your comments, and the polite, conversational tone. PlayStation is fortunate to have some of the best, most passionate fans out there. See you soon.
Will you guys upload the Heavenly Sword soundtrack on to iTunes or the PS store?
How about custom ps3 controllers for the highest rated games like they have for Halo? I know somewhere in this blog post Jeff says he can get in touch with peripheral designers. I’m thinking metal gear 4 controllers? Ratchet and Clank? Easy money right there (I’d buy em, just make em rumble and work correctly)
Hi Jeff,
Great to hear that you are on board to respond to user’s requests. Thats the way to do it Sony. Its hard not to complain about things that I dont like about my PS3 just because I have a lot of expectations. So here is my laundry list for this post:
– When will we be able to play DivX videos? I know the support is there.
– Please improve the browser’s stability. It freezes my PS3 often. Many flash players are not supported and it keeps running out of memory in media-rich sites. I would love to use my PS3 browser instead of my laptop but the PS3 browser is just not there yet. Adding the ability to play music in the background while browsing would be great too.
– Again … analog controls and a patch for Lair.
– When can we expect DVR capability in the US?
A roadmap of what to expect and when would be great!!
Glad to hear that someone from Sony is reading. I’ve been hesitant to post for fear of being drowned out by the sheer number of comments asking for in-game XMB.
I’m a fairly recent PS3 owner, but I’m having a blast so far. As much as there may not be very many games yet, the ones that exist are much more enjoyable than most of the previous PS2 games.
Here are a few things I’d like to see in future firmware updates:
1) A prominent indicator of who’s logged in currently, and the ability to change the logged-in user without quitting the current game. Since the game saves are tied to the account, we have problems with accidentally starting a game while logged in as someone else, and sometimes even restoring a save and playing the other person’s game, because there’s no good indication of who’s logged in. Even if we realize it after the fact, we have to quit out of the game, log in again, and then relaunch the game. This is time we’d rather be playing!
2) Group saves that are not tied to an account, for multiplayer games.
3) Ability to turn off the controllers without turning on the screen. Our PS3 is connected to a projector, and we leave the box on when we’re not playing to run Folding@Home. It’s a hassle if we forget to turn off the controllers before shutting off the screen. This could be pretty easily accomplished by something like “hold down select and the PS button for 5 seconds”.
4) Ability to show the current charge level of the controller on the LEDs without turning on the screen. Same rationale as above.
5) More information about what gets backed up when you do a backup to external drive. It is entirely unclear if this operation backs up saved game files and downloaded media.
Thanks, and welcome!
Hey Jeff,
Your very popular. I am looking forward to the schwag post! Take it easy!
what is your psn account???
Run while you still can Jeff hahaha…kidding, please stay! hah.
so theres another system that has a “big fall update” on december 4th. Is sony going to try and counter with anything in the next week or so? you probably wouldn’t know, but I figured it was worth a shot.
one last thing…i know home is a SCEE thing, but why do we never hear anything about home? especially its new .7 update with seperate servers. whats up with that?
HIGH VILOCITY BOWLING so far will be first game
thats uses custom soundtrack
will this be the first of many psn game
too use it
Hi Jeff, and welcome – glad to have a forum like this.
My wishes for future firmware updates:
In-game XMB, and also a timed auto shutoff feature for the controllers – if they aren’t used for an hour or two, they should power down automatically. And/Or add the ability to turn off the controllers without turning on the screen as mentioned above. I’m really enjoying the content in the PS Store, BTW. Nice work.
Thanks for all you do.
if thats true then why don’t you add the wanted things in the firmware? in game xmb etc…
Great!!
Welcome!!! I am mostly on Sony’s side all the time so I have to agree that this is nice and I thought that it was odd that they did not announce this before.
Anyway, nice to know someone is reading this.
Now to the bad part. If you read the 2.01 firmware post, you should know how pissed I am with 2.01. (if not, read the last 20 posts. I think half of them are mine)
Beginning with 2.0 I had a couple of really random shut downs. I had to restart the PS3 from the button in the back. After 2.01, I cant let the PS3 on more than 15 minutes that this happens.
If this is cocincidence, is the mother of all coincidences.
I’ve read many asked you about this firmware but I honestly can’t read all of them, sorry. So I don’t know if you already answered this.
On another note, I know we the LA people are not much important for you guys but at least I would love to be able to register a user and use my country (Argentina) just to be able to buy things on the store or maybe send an email to support. (They ask me for a work order which I don’t have, and it seems that reach Sony’s support is a nightmare)
Thanks in advance. I’d appreciate anything you could tell me.
Hey Jeff, glad you here so we can get some communication rather than be left in the dark in the snow :P
YOU LOT HAVE WORN POOR
Jeff Rubenstein OUT!!! ;-D
(200+Comments!) ;)
@ Jeff: Can I ask when the date for the UK TV recording feature will be announced?
Thats awesome Jeff! Well, at least Sony is listening more than they did before… I think they’re finally seeing that brigde that tells that they cant depend on their own judgement, they need us for decent feedback.
Psst, Jeff, Shadow Hearts 4 PS3 only ;o *winkwink*
@Jeff
Where is the dualshock 3, why hasn’t it been imported to the US yet? No one wants to pay 70bux for an import, there are alot of games im holding out on buying because of lack of rumble and I’m sure im not alone.
HIGH VILOCITY BOWLING is it being delay
Also Jeff, it would be really great if you get that Trophy system out here PRONTO (it doesnt need to come with HOME, it should be seperate). Not only would it definitely calm alot of people down, but it would also set a huge sales boost in games ;o.
Yeah,well… you’ve probably read that a million times before though.
However I’m looking forward to what new games you will unveil in the upcoming future. As PS3 owner I also want to feel very excited about my puchase, dude.
You should definitely Bring some life back into some of the old classics like Ape Escape & Destruction Derby, perhaps even G-police, and DEFINITELY a REAL Wipeout for the PStriple :=).
Thanks for reading, and once again its great that our comments and info dont go in vain.
Welcome Jeff! Hey half of your last name is my first name, guess which. I have three questions, can you tell us what Sony’s next big thing for the PS3 is, or what they’re working on? Do you know anything about how Killzone’s development is going, and the beta? And do you think the PSN Store will be redesigned to make it easier for you guys to update, and for us to browse?
You’re doing a great job!
i REALLY want to know your psn account name i will add you to my one of my accounts, my accounts are killa1b91 or killa1b91_12345
Heres a usability request for the xmb…. Having two identities one in user and the other in the friends list seems a bit redundant. Maybe if it was reorganized to use the online playtation profile as the user that would be better… and instead of having friends a seperate selection stick it into playstation network selection… And a good way of being able to increase the number of friends in the friend list is by simply adding groups.. I also agree with the statements made about the playstation store… it feels alkward… It should be redesigned to suit the main control system used and not just be a web style interface.. The videos, games etc should be better organized allowing multiple views alphabetical etc.
VERY NICE TO SEE THAT WE ARE FINALLY GOING TO GET SOME CUSTOMER RELATIONS. I think this blog could use a facelift, with a user control panel where we can adjust our profiles, and MAKE OUR OWN PASSWORDS! It is very complicated to navigate, and I still havent figured out how to make my own custom avatar. That would make this blog a much better place to be! Also if they could give us some more USEFUL information such as insites into HOME, new PSN features, and also START IMPLEMENTING THE FEATURE THAT THE USERS WANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! These things dont take as much time as it is taking Sony. Other companies would have had these simple features in the system all ready, and we have been asking for them for a year, and still we continue to wait. ENOUGH WAITING ALREADY!
Just to quickly add in my two cents about features needing to be in PS3. New (non browser oriented) PS Store, XMB Access in Game, Expanded Buddy Lists, In Game Custom Soundtracks, and a totally revamped PSN. Better features, FASTER (downloads and connection to the servers for smoother online play), and other things such as a recently played games list under each players personal profile.
omg great work sony..HOMEEEEEEEE PLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ.!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow Señor Heff. I was going to add you and your list is full. Sadness!
I think Sony should make a controller adapter that will allow Guitar Hero 2 guitars to work with GH3 and Rock Band. I know that this really is not Sony’s responsibility, but think of how happy Sony would make people who want to expand its music game collection without buying new controllers. If the creators of those games won’t do it, Sony should.
While you’ve obviously been around a while, I’d like to say welcome! It really means a lot to fans (or at least to me) to have that extra bit of human communication, especially when you acknowledge suggestions and complaints so that they don’t feel totally in vain. :)
Please give the UK TV adverts they understand. They really need to have what the PS3 can do spelt out for them in big letters and simple pictures.
It’s a shame you finished with the original 60gb version.
people are always asking me for it now they are slowly walking up to everything it can do!
And that’s not because of the Ad’s – interest is growing only by word of mouth starting with people who already have a PS3. But it takes a while (if at all) for the general public to actually listen to people stereotyped as gamers or ‘techies’.
Your adverts don’t help get the bigger picture of the PS3 across.
New thing to ask for from Sony…. Ability to put game to sleep and access other areas of PS3. Like, pause a game, take out the disc, watch a blu ray, then put the game disc back in amd resume the game. Easy right? :)
I would love you to read this…
Please bring Suikoden 2 to the Playstation Store.
To all the ps3 gamers who say in game XMB is minor, you dont know any better. You never had it, unless you own a 360. I have both consoles, and my ps3 was given to me. I never would have purchased it myself! However, i can honestly say that since i’ve owned it, my ps3 has been turned on 3 times in the last month, and two of them were to fold. Until sony gets off their lazy A** and does something about this major issue, you’ll be finding me on craigslist selling my ps3 for another 360 elite! Peace out suckas!
@227: If they ever integrate the PSN store into the XMB, they’ll score a home run with me. The new Network icon should cascade content I can download and have thumbnails/descriptions for each. I’d much rather deal with that than open a web page every time.
Hey Jeff, im glad to hear that somebody is listening, that shows that SONY really cares about customers. I have 1 little suggestion, can you please put post number right next to the poster’s name when you reply them??? cause sometimes you give answers, but we dont know the question, and is a pain in the neck to look for posters names. Thanks and keep it up man.
hey jeff nice to see you on the boards. i’m very happy your listning to us, but really my main conserns is that i really hope you don’t listen to xbox losers or people that own both and say you guys arn’t doing a good jobbecause thats far from the truth and honstly it makes me sick when people say that stuff about you guyz. don’t pay attation to the haters just ignore them unless your looking for constructive critisims but if the comments are being unreasonable just dismiss them and listen to your true fans. we’ll tell you the truth good or bad.
thanx Jeff.
Did I miss something or did he just ignore every comment about in-game xmb? lol looks like Sony hired the right person for this job.
Is the open beta for playstation home really going to be open for everyone??
And when can we expect it?
Welcome Jeff, It’s good to see the blog being put to such good use. A few were skeptical in the beginning, but it’s definitely exceeding our expectations. Perhaps, this should replace the information board icon on the XMB, anyone agree?
I do have a few random enquries, which may have already been asked, but there’s a lot of comments to scroll through, so here goes:
1) When will we see more PS1 classics in the stores?
2) Will Home be region locked?
3) How is the record gameplay feature coming along? It has been talked about behind briefly and I think it would be an excellent feature to add to the PS3.
4) I would really love to see the Folklore downloadable content in the US store.
5) It goes without saying that there is a strong demand for in-game XMB and custom soundtracks.
and finally,
5) Is Phil Harrison ever going to grace us with an appearance on the blogs, Kaz Hirai and himself are the ones we’d all love to have a talk with, perhaps a Q&A session. See what they think about it, we’d have lots to ask and say.
I’ve throughly enjoyed my first year gaming with the PS3, no regrets, looking forward to the second year even more. Keep up the good work, let’s hope all the negative press is behind us now and can we can move forward.
@ Ethridge (240): I agree, seems like he knows the Sony way.
@ Jeff: Anyway all I want to know is if you can clarify on the date for the UK TV recording feature please. If they’ve hired a guy to comment back it shouldn’t take me 4 posts to get a reply.
Any news on whether they will make an 80gb model for europe with BC?
Welcome aboard Jeff!
There is something I don’t quite remember beeing asked from the enhancement request. I would like to see in-gam… Noooo I’m joking :) I think even my mother is aware of that request :)
No, I was wondering if you guys (in the blog and at Sony) think it would be a good idea to have a new fonctionallity under network for the PS3. This new feature would help you see what is the activity rates on the PSN network. It would give PS3 user a big picture of what’s the percentage of PSN activity of a particular game or see the whole usage of the PSN for on-line gaming.
The reason I came with that idea is because the 2 last on-line games I tried to play with, one of the two as simply nobody playing it and the other one has hardly one or two people playing it (and I tried many times and at many diffrent time of the day). If I knew that when I bought this game, I would never make the move.
Beeing able to see the big picture could have saved me time and money, two things that I can’t afford to waste. I don’t think it would be very hard to do and this way, you could easily see which on-line games work and which don’t.
BTW, sorry for my poor english, I’m a French-Canadian :)
Hey Jeff,
Nice to know that all our comments are not going unread. So thank you!
If someone was reading our comments they would be aware that we want in game XMB. He hasnt even addressed it yet even tho everyone is commenting on it.
@Jeff
Can we get the weekly update earlier in the day, or can you explain why that isn’t possible? please.
Be brave Jeff. There will be harsh battles ahead. Lucky for you somebody is working on filtering out the rubbish.
http://stupidfilter.org/main/index.php?n=Main.About
Next stop, the Official Playstation Forums!
@Jeff
So can we call you Major Jeff?
LOL!
If you really read and take into consideration all the comments on the blogs, then why are Playstation 3 users STILL waiting for in-game XMB?
I’ve seen an astounding number of comments asking for it, and that can’t be ignored as the #1 most-wanted feature right now. I know you guys said that it would come in the next major update, but it didn’t come in 2.00, and we are still in the dark as to when we will have this feature that should have been included from the very beginning.
Don’t get me wrong, I love my PS3, but having to exit my game just send/read messages, check what friends are on, and listen to music is just plain inefficient. The competition has had this almost from the start, yet you guys decide to add THEMES (really, no one cares about themes), a useless icon(the PSN icon) with only 2 or 3 icons under it (which, ironically, doesn’t even comply with the themes), and the addition of an “information bar” (which has about 4 entries that are all ads for games…and, ironically, has been shown to cause many problems in games when enabled).
Out of all of those features, can you tell me how you were listening to the consumer? No one asked for those features, and even if they did it was such an infinitesimally small number compared to the overwhelmingly large number asking for in-game XMB and music.
So, please, I just ask that you practice what you preach and actually LISTEN to your customers. I appreciate what you do, I really do, and I don’t have any idea how much influence you have. All I know is that if Sony truly wants to make customers happy, then they should actually give priority to user input, not just sweep it under the rug to be dealt with after useless features like themes and advertisement..err, “info” bars.
Good luck weeding thru all the conflicting opinions. Hopefully the complainers won’t always dominate the agenda. Case in point: there’s no end to the whining about new features people want to see in the OS/firmware. I fear this may be causing Sony to rush updates more frequently than they should, causing some of the issues that have been seen. I’d rather see a more orderly release process with thorough testing.
And while i’m at it, I may as well give MY opinion of what Sony should do: Make it a priority to develop and release a Minority-Report-like gesturing interface. With the PS Eye and Home integration, I see huge potential to wow the masses and really set a new direction for the console. Given game budgets, ad budgets, and manufacturing costs, it seems that a couple million bucks and a couple of MIT types could develop something in stealth mode, then spring it on an unsuspecting awe-struck public (next year?).