UPDATE: Due to high traffic on PlayStation Store, you may encounter error messages or issues. We advise you to check back a little later and try again.
Note: In order to download two games at no cost, you must redeem them from the “Welcome Back” category. The individual titles are still available for purchase outside of the “Welcome Back Program”
If at any point you can’t find the ‘Welcome Back Free Game 1 or 2’ products, the list of available titles or a game you’ve selected, go to your XMB>PlayStation Network>Account Management>Transaction Management>Services List>SCEA Promotions to complete the process.
We’re so excited to welcome you back to PlayStation Network. With the PlayStation Store back online, we’ve been getting all caught up this week, having launched an abundance of amazing content for download on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable devices across games, movies, themes and DLC. Today, we’re excited to launch the Welcome Back program to thank you for your loyalty, and below, we’ve got what you need in order to get access to the included content. So, here’s a list of questions about the program. If you don’t see your question below, mention it in the comments and we’ll do our best to provide an answer. Thanks again for your patience and understanding as we restored the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services – your support has meant a lot to us and is greatly appreciated.
Q: What’s in the Welcome Back Program?
A: To start, all PSN members who had signed up before the outage (April 20, 2011) will be able to select two games for the PS3 system and two games for the PSP system.
For PS3 owners, go to the ‘Welcome Back’ section in the PlayStation Store, and select 2 titles from the following list:
- Dead Nation
- inFAMOUS
- LittleBigPlanet
- Super Stardust HD
- Wipeout HD + Fury
For PSP owners, go to the ‘Welcome Back’ section of PlayStation Store on your PSP system and select 2 titles from the following list:
- LittleBigPlanet (PSP)
- ModNation Racers
- Pursuit Force
- Killzone Liberation
Select your first game from “Game 1”, then return to the Welcome Back page and go to “Game 2” to select your second game out of the remaining choices available. This goes for both PS3 and PSP.
In addition, we’re giving access to our premium subscription service, PlayStation Plus, which includes games, huge discounts, exciting exclusives and added features like online storage and automatic downloads, to all PSN members for 30 days at no charge, requiring no long term commitment. As with the games above, go to the PlayStation Store and under the ‘Welcome Back’ section, select ‘PlayStation Plus: 30 Days Free’, and you’ll be given access to all of the benefits of PlayStation Plus. Note that this will not auto-renew and simply expires 30 days after activation.
Current Plus subscribers receive an extra 60 days added to their existing subscription at no charge. For current Plus subscribers, no action is needed as the 60 days are automatically added to your subscription.
PlayStation Network users will also get 100 virtual items in PlayStation Home as a show of appreciation for your patience while Home was inaccessible. Additional content is coming soon, including the next addition to the Home Mansion personal space, and Ooblag’s Alien Casino, an exclusive game.
A selection of “On Us” movie rentals are currently available to PlayStation Network customers this weekend only, where Video Service is available.
Finally, current Music Unlimited Premium subscription members will receive an additional 30 days of premium subscription plus days lost due to the outage.
Q: When will I have access to the Welcome Back Program?
A: The content offered as part of the Welcome Back Program is available for download today and will be available through July 3.
Q: I have both PS3 and PSP. Does this mean I will get 4 games all together?
A: Yes, as long as you were a PSN member before April 20, 2011, you’ll be able to receive up to 4 games based on the titles listed above; 2 on each platform.
Q: Are there any limitations to the PS3 and PSP games we are receiving as part of the Welcome Back Program?
A: These games are yours to keep.
Q: How long do I have to get into the PlayStation Store and receive my content for Welcome Back?
A: Access to the Welcome Back content will be expiring on July 3. Once this date has passed, the Welcome Back section in the PlayStation Store will be removed.
Q: When does the 30 days of my PlayStation Plus access expire?
A: Your PlayStation Plus 30-day access will expire 30 days from the date you activated it in PlayStation Store.
Q: When will (insert game here) be published?
A: Look forward to posts over the coming days that will show what content will be available at that point, or coming soon. We’re planning frequent store publishes offering lots of new content for everyone to enjoy.
Q: I’m getting 30 days of access to PlayStation Plus; can you refresh my memory on what I get with this service?
A: From the time you activate your 30 days of PlayStation Plus, you’ll be able to download games and game related content, purchase select store items at a discount, and have access to the exclusive features of Plus. You’ll also be able to get early access to any Plus exclusive Demos and priority Beta invitations that might be scheduled during your 30 days.
Q: Do I get to keep the games in PlayStation Plus forever?
A: Content that is free in PlayStation Plus will not be available after your PlayStation Plus time has expired. However, if you decide to join PlayStation Plus, you’ll have access to all of the content you downloaded during your 30 day access for as long as you are a subscriber.
Q: Do I get to keep any games or content I purchased with the PlayStation Plus discount?
A: Yes. Any content you purchase at a discount is yours to keep, regardless of your subscription status.
Q: Aside from the games and discounts; does PlayStation Plus offer anything else?
A: Yes! PlayStation Plus includes the Online Storage for Game Saves feature, allowing you to backup treasured game saves or access them from another PS3 system as long as you are a subscriber. In addition, you get the Automatic Download feature, which automatically updates your 10 most recently played games while the system is in stand-by mode so you don’t have to wait for updates before playing your games.
Q: What content will be in PlayStation Plus when I activate my 30 days?
A: PlayStation Plus content and discounts are regularly updated throughout the month. For up-to-date information on content within PlayStation Plus, please visit the Plus homepage.
Q: Where can I find the Welcome Back content in Home?
A: The 100 virtual items can be found in the kiosk in Home’s Central Plaza along with two personal spaces – Dragon’s Lair and the Mansion Garage. A new game – Ooblag’s Alien Casino – will be released soon (June 2011). This game will be free-to-play. As an added bonus, players that access the Ooblag Alien Casino space will be rewarded an active item version of the Ooblag game that can be played in your personal space(s).
Q: How do I access the content in the Welcome Back Program?
A: Follow the steps below to access the content in the Welcome Back Program:
1. Log on to PlayStation®Store
2. Click on the “Welcome Back” tab in the upper left menu
3. Select “Welcome Back Free PS3™ Game 1”
4. Within the category, click on the “Welcome Back Free PS3™ Game 1” product and “Get Now”
5. Select your free PS3™ game*, and “Download”*
6. Repeat steps 3-5 with “Welcome Back Free PS3™ Game 2”
7. Go to the XMB™ to play your free games.
Q: I clicked on one of the Welcome Back Free PS3/PSP Game 1/2 selections, clicked “Get Now”, but no games showed up. Now that option is no longer selectable in the Store. Where is my game?
A: This is an issue we’re working on resolving, however for the time being, you can still get to that content by going to the XMB and under the PlayStation Network column, go to Account Management>Transaction Management>Services List>SCEA Promotion. You should be able to access the content in the option you selected here.
Q: Why am I getting errors saying I can’t access the Store?
A: Due to the surge of people going to the Store, you may experience some blocks in accessing certain areas of the store. Give it another try, or wait for a small period of time to avoid the rush.
Remember, if you didn’t see your question answered above, drop us a line below and we’ll do our best to answer it. Welcome Back!
i got my ps3 on 4/22 so i get nothing :-(
Error come on maintence
I was able to redeem my first choice and as I was “purchasing” free game 2 I got a bunch of error messages, and the option went away. So looks like I only get one. However I’m just happy the store is back in time for SSF4 AE.
Fixed now
i cant sign in. Is that one of the errors?
Well, I finally got the Download to work thanks to a couple helpful people on here, but now it won’t let me sign in to PSN! AT ALL!… It keeps saying “under going maintenance”…. Now thats the LAST thing I wanted to see… next to a yellow light…
#1463, Don’t you know how to read? It says it. Read one of the questions.__________-
Looks like PSN is down… again. :(
Guys heres what you have to do constantly download it then back out if it doesnt work until you get it
my opinion on the store: I think once you get your 2 free games, you need to be temporarily blocked from the store so that others can get in there too. Its not fair.
failure program.. how nice..
What happens when you already own all of this…..
Not to sound ungrateful but someone like myself and others that I know, that own at least all the PS3 content made available from this are getting short changed. We are the die hard fans who stuck by you when other defected to Microsoft yet we get no compensation. And yet the causal “I play PS3 sometimes” folks get free games? It would have been nice to either have more options, or options of items that most of us don’t already own. But maybe that was the point? Someone like myself will stick around free game or not, where as someone who is pass or go about Sony will be swayed back by free games… logic can be cruel and unfair at times.
PSN is not down, im in home right now with lots of people.
Dear People complaining about us getting only a day to redeem the stuff….WE HAVE A MONTH! Learn to read! It says JULY 3RD up there! Of course nobody ever bothers to read and see the answers in front of your face
And on top of that all these people like #1504 “failure program.. how nice..” .. these are the guys you are giving free games too, not me someone who has paid out my hard earned cash for these games already.. buh.. frustrating ….
It’s called network congestion. You have to July 3rd, so I’d suggest waiting a couple of days.
I think I broke my store… i selected first game then added it to cart then went to select second game and all of my stuff disapeared… it will no longer let me choose any games and the first game I selected disapeared from my cart…
everything works perfectly fine .. Thanks SONY!!!
I just Hope this doesn’t happen again..i mean as a customer I Only use PSN for it’s OnlinePlay and download-able content in such . i think you guys did a good Job handing this whole matter!!
And i hope this time you don’t have all our Info in Plain text..lol
be looking forward to updating PlayStation plus after my free 30 days ..
jefroafro
lokk at post 16
PSN STORE IS DOWN.!!!!!…WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON ..I WANT ME FREE STUFFF..COME ON SONY! FIX THIS ASAP!!! I HOPE IT GETS FIXED WHEN IM DONE DOWNLOADING ALL THE FREE STUFF FROM PS HOME!
psn store is not down!!!
hey, I finally got through…huzzah!
there r so many people downloading stuff wait or else try the suggestion on post 16
is there a way to put the games you got from the welcome back program onto a blu-ray disk?
lmao @ + rss1080
wtf what is error code 80023102 because it wont let me in the store and it says that when it did let me in the store a few min. ago I tryed to download wecome back stuff but it said the error code again and my ps3 just instantly shut down on its own what do i do HELPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP PLZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ :(
Ahhh ok thx… should have looked for that info first :D
@ cbrandon00 Log off and go Outside and don’t log back in Psn intill tomarrow
I attempted to download either free option for the PS3 selection of titles, but it neither acknowledges the free download and the offer itself. So… I have expectations of this being fixed, guys.
is InFamoous really slow downlodingg???
wtf why is it lmao i just wana know if i can do tht
Everything is fine… I got the “pixle wonderland” no problem :D my life is now complete.
Little Big Planet says it will take 490 minutes to download…………………………………………………
@JuanO_20
you too huh?
Since there would be a high traffic due to the Welcome Back Program can Sony extend the period for another day?
Heartless_Angel7 who said it was for one day???
Heartless….we have 1 MONTH! Why do people keep assuming we only have one day?
too much error!!
Let’s say I only have a 1GB memory card in my PSP. Only one of the PSP games will fit on it (and even then, not all of the games offered will fit on it).
Do I have to buy a larger card or is there a way to get two of the games which are offered and store them (say, on my PC) and swap them onto the card/PSP as I want to play them (like you used to have to do before firmware v5 when you had to use the PC to get games)?
Thanks Sony! You guys rock! You didn’t have to give us anything. I would have been happy with it just being back on-line but you guys went one step farther and hooked us up!
Guys stop bothering the PS Blog staff, If you look at previous comments most of your questions will be answered.
Can I get an update please!!!!! Playstation network down here in Southern Regions? U started downloading the first game (got it going). The second game I clicked get it now and it went through, went to pick my second game. I got a “server timed out”. The game was no where to be found (Little big planet is the game). I tried the account management method, and it said I had 0 remaining downloaded for the second SCEA promotion code. Can I get some feedback please
Sony, i got my 2 free games but i cant get the playstation plus 30 day free trial it dosent even show it when i press the welcome back
HEY GUYS I READ ON ANOTHER WEBSITE THAT THE PSN HAS BEEN BREACHED AGAIN. THAT U HAVE GO DELETE DA GAMES DWLOADED BECAUSE THE HAVE VIRUSES. HEARD ANYTHING LIKE DAT OR READ IT. PLS DISCUSS
so anyone else here actually play NHL 11 and unable to access the PSS through the hockey shop in game?
someone help infamous is downloading for me but there is no free game 2 get now option thing! so i cant get littlebigplanet!! help??!?!?!?
YES IS TRUE, THE GAMES HAVE A PHISHING PROGRAM WITHIN. IT CAN TAKE YOUR NEW PASSWORD
Dats wat i mean dat they stopped da dwlds. Cause they got hacked again. Any truth to it???? U guys heard anything bout dat??
BEWARE WITH YOUR DOWNLOADS GUYS, IS ANOTHER BREACH.-
1537 + 1540: Details/source/official Sony statement or GTFO.