PSN - Work in progress?

Do you think that the PlayStation Network is a work-in-progress and that in the next year, we should see some radical improvements, such as making it easier/quicker to purchase and download games, and perhaps bring over a few features from Xbox Live?

Or are bug fixes and minor tweaks (... and Home) the only improvements we can look forward to?

I'm asking because it is my intention to buy a PS3 later in the year (hopefully when they cut the price) and at the moment it seems to me like PSN is severely lacking in the ease-of-use and features departments.

For those of you in the States that were early-adopters, have you noticed considerable improvements since launch?

PSN is the definition of work-in-progress. They're always working on improving its features, we've had plenty of updates in just few months.lusitanogamer

Agreed. PSN is relatively new and will carry on improving untill the end of of PS3's lifespan which won't be until 7-8 years time.

[QUOTE="lusitanogamer"]PSN is the definition of work-in-progress. They're always working on improving its features, we've had plenty of updates in just few months.Swift_Boss_A

Agreed. PSN is relatively new and will carry on improving untill the end of of PS3's lifespan which won't be until 7-8 years time.

Yup,m the PSN is a work in progress, - the entire ideology of Sony for this generation is the concept of a '10 year relationship'.

Effectively, this stems from the playstation 1 which enjoyed a good 9/10 years of high sales before fading out for the PS2, which is in its 7th year with still more games coming out for it. (a good place to get brushed up on this, which is actually quite relevant to the topic of discussion is IGN's latest AFK podcast - although it may be blasphemy to mention them on a GS board, heh)

The result of this mentality is the PS3 being, not a console which comes out of the box and is everything they want from it, but instead, a console which quite literally starts small and grows. "The ever evolving console over the 10 year planned life span", in short. This has being reinforced in almost every Sony statement ever (pointing towards the E3 2005/2006, TGS 2005/2006, GDC 2006/2007, Gamers Days and D.I.C.E.s press conferences, keynotes and interviews).

So if you look at how it's progressing, the rate at which the PS3 and PSP features are evolving over time is vastly accelerated compared to other platforms. We get completely new functionality every half year, and this is with these major updates not being viewed as features they have had to catch up on, but features which are released when "the time is right".

Such a feature is indeed Home. Home has been hinted to be more than just Second Life with prettier graphics. If it does well, it is aiming at becoming a fully fledged online gaming lounge (with full matchmaking and game-lobby features) with extensive media distribution ability.

We're going to see - again, if it does well - TV shows, music videos, and perhaps even movies being streamed through the Home medium. Additionally, advertising wont be limited to McDonald's - I can fully imagine campaigns beginning in some developer's space (such as Kratos' temple which I hope IS going to be built in Home), telling people to be in the main lobby at X time, where a trailer will be screened on those massive TVs.

IE it CAN be everything the other consoles are offering and more.

So what we're currently doing with the PSN is comparing the equivalent of xbox live! marketplace to xbox live! and saying "dude, where's the functionality?"

The PSN is an evolving entity, and the first steps towards a comprehensive space haven't started yet, but will with the beginning of Home.

[QUOTE="Swift_Boss_A"]

[QUOTE="lusitanogamer"]PSN is the definition of work-in-progress. They're always working on improving its features, we've had plenty of updates in just few months.byronman91

Agreed. PSN is relatively new and will carry on improving untill the end of of PS3's lifespan which won't be until 7-8 years time.

I do and i believe all gamers that owned a PS console before think the same thing. It's not someone saying that the PS3 is already dead and buried that'll make us think differently.