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!
Hello! PlayStation…
Thank u very much guys 4 the Store back on..!! BUT i got 1 really bad issue thts really bad.
OK. I successfully started the PSP FREE Game 1 Download (Pursuit Force), and it was all working. the game was downloading n there were like 72 min. left in the download. But then suddenly it said ” there is an error in the wireless connection” or something like tht.!
n now there is no PSP FREE GAME 1 available 4 me in the PS Store… plzzzz HELP!
after i download the game where is it at? i cant find it no where its frustating the heck out of me.. someone please help me out
@1915 – I’m not sure where you heard that, but I’ve been on plus for 6 months and GoW I/II have never been free. They’ve always been 15 each – trust me I’d know (even though I have them on disc). They are exclusive to Plus, i.e. ONLY plus users can buy them.
@1926 is it in you download list on XMB?
Ok, I’m on my computer and MediaGo. Where in MediaGo is the “PlayStation Plus: 30 Days Free”? Is there a link that I click or what?
Any help would be much appreciated… :)
I was wondering if i have more than one account on my ps3, would one of the accounts be able to get two games and the other account can get another two games?
@1924 Try going back to it later and see if it comes up.
@1922 did you go to the welcome back package from the store and download them you must do that first.
ok, my wife has informed me that it’s my turn again, so I gotta go. Dead Nation time … best of luck you guys … it will get better over the next couple of days as traffic lightens up …
Thanks for the free games, however i’ve run into a problem.
I downloaded Modnation Racers with Free Game pass #1 with no problems. But then I went to go download Killzone Liberation with Free Game Pass #2 and got spammed with errors, and because of this it took away the Free Game 2 pass, it went from ” 1 ” to ” 0 ”. Basically it thinks I downloaded killzone when I didnt, its not located under the download list either. It just took my free game pass away and I dont know what to do. I noticed I saw the ”corrupted data” icon on killzone and pursuit force where the ESRB rating should be.
The only thng I think that was unffair, is the date the account had to be active to acess the wellcome back program. Those who bought a console WHILE it was down were affected by the downtime JUST AS those who aleady had a ps3 system before. And it’s no they’r fault they were just able to create new accounts AFTER the restoration of psn services started!
I bought my ps3 system while it was down, and just one game! After 2 days playing it, I just closed my ps3 on it’s box, and just got it back a while after psn came back, cos I had nothing else to do on it without the psn, having just 1 game and not being able to play it online!
And what happens now? Well, I’ll keep having jst this one game (tekken 6, not many ppl still play it online anyway), while someone who bought it’s ps3 just 1 day before the psn going down, will have the 2 frees…
i dont currently have my ps3 in my possession. i pawned it about ten days ago and i would like to know if i can pick my selections from the welcome back program on my pc now and store them on my computer until i get my ps3 back?
@1938…would be cool, but nope. Only your ‘main’ acct is able to get the WBP
hey, my psp doesn’t get internet so i have been using mediago and i got out of my second free game and i have been trying to go to account management on my pc and it keeps coming up that it is under maintenance can i still get the game?
Please reply i have been a loyal member for over a year now.
I’ve been downloading Little Big Planet for 5 hours, and it’s only at 58 percent… dear lord this is taking FOREVER =/
“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.”
Sony please answer this, PSN was down for 40 days, so you extend our PSN+ subscription by 60 days but minus the 40 days and all we actually get is 20 days extra.
Services List –> PlayStation Plus:
Starts 04/03/2011
Expires 06/01/2012
Downtime Start 04/17/2011
Downtime Expire 06/02/2011
Not trying to be a party popper, but saying that you gave us extra 60 days is complete and utter horse dung.
after i download the 2 free games where are they at? i cant find it no where its frustating the heck out of me..i wanna play some dead nation! can someone please help me out
ummm..I don’t mean to be rude but why the fff am I not included in this program??? I bought my PS3 for my birthday while the network was hacked. I knew it but since I love everything sony just like my PS1 and PS2, I chose not to return it for a 360 but instead keep it because I heard that there will be a appreciation pack. So incase you haven’t noticed I also missed out on PSN for a whole month and yet I am not eligible to get my part of the deal just because I didn’t have a PS3 and couldn’t sign up a few days earlier??? Can someone please tell me why I am left out of this great deal when I stayed loyal to Sony and didn’t trade my PS3 for a 360 even though I was missing out on one of the most important aspect of my console and I lent Sony like $350! :’(
i never pawned it before and it was life or death and i certainly dont want to get punished any further by not receiving whats due to me over a technicality
@1933 go back to your download list and see if it’s there try re-downloading it.
When is a good time to activate PlayStation Plus? What betas and other cool things coming out that are worth waiting for?
and yes, I know this is to prevent ppl creating a lot of new accounts just to get all free games. But know many ppl who ALREADY had 2+ accounts before, and now are being able to download all free games!
When I goto Playstation Home, and try ot buy the 100 free items, I click on them, and Instead of add to basket, it says Error. PLEASE!! I Need Reply!!
@1950 You have until 7/3 to enroll in the WBP, so get it outta pawn by then and youre good to go
@1953 You can only d/l from your main account
So Tried to get my first free psp game and it errored out and I never recieved it, it also removed the free game selection. so i wen to account management and checked if i could dl it there nope. Is there anything i can do to fix this?
Everybody who still has a credit card on PSN, I urge you to call your bank this very moment and verify if you were charged for the “free games” as I was. I have only activated and attempted to download Infamous, and my bank is stating that $29.99 has been removed from my account. Also, whil emerely reading up on whatever Arcana Heart was, I tried to back out of the page and it said thank you for your purchase, another $29.99 game THAT I DID NOT TELL IT I WANTED!!!! I have been charge $60 in a matter of minutes, the first $30 which was supposed to be free, and the second $30 which should not have occurred in the first place! Everyone, please call your banks and verify that you have not been charged erroneously!
Dear Sony,
I’ve accidentally downloaded 3 games instead of 2 Little Big Planet , Dead Nation and Infamous 2 but only Little Big Planet and Dead Nation is in my download list can you remove from me Dead Nation and put inFamous instead?? please reply!
after i download the 2 free games where are they at? i cant find it no where its frustating the heck out of me..i wanna play some dead nation! can someone please help me out
Ok, I’m on my computer and MediaGo. Where in MediaGo is the “PlayStation Plus: 30 Days Free”? Is there a link that I click or what?
Any help would be much appreciated… :)
ive had 4 ps3s since day one and i had my system before during and after the downtime and i should be able to get it back in time but i might miss the july 3rd deadline, which is my bday btw. PLEASE can i download my selections on my pc and store them on its hard drive, just in case?
@1958 Did you do it from the welcome back package selection? It states it in the blog post
@1957 Did you check from your service list or download list?
my gf and i have seperate accounts. got 4 of the the ps3 games and 2 psp games. thanks sony
whats a XMB?? AND WERE DO U FIND IT??
@1956/ JxOx you don’t understand, the wbp denies my account from any access to the free content because I didn’t make my account before April 20th. -_-
does anyone know how to make purchases at the ps store from a pc?
@1959 – did you go through the ‘Welcome Back’ portal, or did you just search the games and try to download them? I’m guessing so – did you click a button that said ‘Confirm Purchase’ at any point in the process?
Hey, I’ve been getting that same 80710D36 error code that pretty much everyone is getting, because we’re all blowing the servers up basically. I know about that one but I just now tried to log in (I was off for awhile waiting for the servers to hopefully catch up) and I got an error that I haven’t seen before. It’s the same “connection to the server was lost” message, but this time the error code is Z(7,-13). Does it mean the same thing or is something else messed up now? Or is it just off or maintenance maybe? (Even though, they just updated).
@1965 It’s the main screen when you turn on PS. got to PSN<account management<Transcription<service list and you should be able to download if you miss one go to your download list
I know that playstation plus items are inaccessible after the 30-days but do the full games do the same thing? please i would like to know.
I am having issue, I went to download the my two free games then received a error message , then my first free games dissappeared, then the same with the second one.. Help? Sorry if I am not the first to ask this either.
If this happened, go to the XMB and under the PlayStation Network column, go to Account Management>Transaction Management>Services List>SCEA Promotions to download the game for that first slot.
@1963 I did this before I read the post, but I had redeemed the free things beforehand. It was my understanding that having done that, the games would not be charged. Besides that, I did not tell my PS3 to purchase Arcana Heart, I was just reading up on it, and it came through as a purchase. I have not downloaded it, and I fully intend to call sony in the morning. I tried tonight but the support office is closed.
i cant seem to find the games after i download them and installed them. what do i do where do i find em to play them
Oh, good, turns out I DID have killzone liberation in the download list. I was confusing the services list with the download list because I saw modnation racers in the services list. But that was actually the license to play through infrastructure. All is figured out and well.
what happen to angry birds?
I am loving my free games and movies and music… thank you Sony… I will always be a loyal follower….
Thanks Sony!!
The welcome games are yours to keep same goes for any thing you pay for.
@1970 thanks a lot… i found it…
Wow the movies suck…. bad boys.. ghostbusters…….