Sony has confirmed that its PlayStation Home service for the PS3 will not be available until Autumn.
The platform holder is clearly aware that it isn't making PlayStation 3 owners, who are eagerly awaiting the service, happy with this announcement. Rather than coming with a sugary corporo-quote about how Sony is optimising the service's throughput potential going forward, the announcement comes with an embarrassed near-apology from Sony Computer Entertainment president and CEO Kaz Hirai.
“We understand that we are asking PS3 and prospective PS3 users to wait a bit longer, but we have come to the conclusion that we need more time to refine the service to ensure a more focused gaming entertainment experience than what it is today”, Hirai says. “Our overarching objective is to provide users with new gaming experiences that are available only on PlayStation Home. Spending more time on the development and on the Closed Beta testing reaffirms our commitment to bringing a quality service, maintaining the PlayStation tradition.”
Some people will get the chance to get into Home before then, however. More registrants are going to be invited into what Sony is now calling the 'Expanded Closed Beta'. Exactly who, however, remains a mystery. The announcement tells us, “Details of the Closed Beta testing features, registration for the test and the opening of the service will be announced as they become available.”
All the way
back in March last year, Sony's then-head of worldwide studios, Phil Harrison, told us that Home would be available in “Fall 2007”.