PSN boss Eric Lempel acknowledges the importance of an achievement system - something for which Xbox 360 is heavily praised - but says Sony has plans that "go well beyond a single score."
We already know that Sony's long-awaited PS3 Home application (that virtual world app that seems to be taking forever to arrive) will have a trophy system that will reward gamers for in-game achievements with trophies for their Home space. But Sony has more up its sleeve.
"I recognise that there are a few features that PS3 users have asked for that we haven't delivered yet...", admitted Lempel (and we listed them all in our recent '10 steps to perfect PS3 firmware' feature).
"We have a lot of features in different stages of development that I think our users will be very excited about," he said in an interview with Next-Gen.
"I know that an achievement system is very important to our consumers. With Home, and in addition to Home, we have some very exciting programs planned to recognize our consumers' gaming skills and loyalty in new ways that go well beyond a single score."
That sounds exciting. It would be brilliant if you got, say, a pound or two credited to your PSN account for finishing games - you know, a real-life reward. That'd get you playing.
Lempel did not disclose any further details, but Sony CEO Howard Stringer has promised, "2008 will be a big year in many ways for PlayStation Network."
I think the only way they could improve on the 360 achievements would be to introduce kind of tangible reward, maybe a few psn credit. I doubt i will use home much so a virtual trophy seems a little useless to me.
It's a shame how nowadays gamers refuse to play a game unless they get a reward. Good old last gen when you played a game over and over again because you enjoyed it, not just grinding achievements. Achievements can be fun sometimes, the best achievements i have ever seen were the Orange Box achievements. They were perfect and you didnt have to grind, you could just play the game properly. But this is still just Sony bragging PR crap at the moment, i hate their 'look at us we are gonna be the mutt's nuts somewhere in the near future' attitude. If you've got something fantastic then tell us and we can look forward to it. Perhaps even buy your console in anticipation of it, boost your sales a bit. God knows you need it.
It's a shame how nowadays gamers refuse to play a game unless they get a reward. Good old last gen when you played a game over and over again because you enjoyed it, not just grinding achievements. Achievements can be fun sometimes, the best achievements i have ever seen were the Orange Box achievements. They were perfect and you didnt have to grind, you could just play the game properly. But this is still just Sony bragging PR crap at the moment, i hate their 'look at us we are gonna be the mutt's nuts somewhere in the near future' attitude. If you've got something fantastic then tell us and we can look forward to it. Perhaps even buy your console in anticipation of it, boost your sales a bit. God knows you need it.
i have to agree orange boxs achievements are simple, but sony just seem to rip off evryones ideas man, if i wanted acheivements id play my 360, i dont need my ps3 now doing what xbox games do.
I've played sports games with a trophy room...LAME. So unless Sony or a third party is making a hand job attachment for the PS3 I don't really see it going "well beyond" what is being done already. Sony are pros at building up things that don't yet or more often never will exist.
This sort of thing should have been there from the start. Instead they copy something that has been done already, in a typical lacklustre Sony fashion. When are they going to think up their own ideas?
I take everything they say with a pinch of salt now. Altho any company that tells me their system will be better than another, but doesn't tell me how, is just typical spin.
So I'll put this in with the 4D graphics, dual HDMI ports and flawless backwards compatability until they tell me what they are doing different.
Yawn.... have been doing the achievement thing for the last 2 years. At first it was really cool, now I only play COD4 and Halo 3 so achievements are kinda redundant.
However I do agree that Sony need to come up with their own material for the PS3 to make a difference and attract people away from MS or Nintendo. Instead they are trying to catch up by utilising other peoples ideas.
I play on both my PS3 and 360 online and I don't believe that PSN is on a par with Live and introducing achievements, even with a minuscule cash reward will bring any new life to the platform.
They need to standardise voice input, private chat, friends lists, invites, easy party creation for any game, and introduce a standard headset both wired and Bluetooth that actually works. These are the reasons that Xbox Live works well, it's the simplicity of it all that makes it a worthwhile experience. Plus there is just a hell of a lot more content available in the Marketplace and there has been since day one of the 360 launch. PSN might be free, but I use it a hell of a lot less compared to Live.
The reason why money for completing games would be silly is because that would only push up the price of the games in the first - that money has to come from somewhere, and it wont be from sonys profits.
Intruiqed thougth, there are already some (but not enougth) games on the 360 that game you pictures when you get acheivments. Hmmmm, intruigued i am.
It's a shame how nowadays gamers refuse to play a game unless they get a reward. Good old last gen when you played a game over and over again because you enjoyed it, not just grinding achievements. Achievements can be fun sometimes, the best achievements i have ever seen were the Orange Box achievements. They were perfect and you didnt have to grind, you could just play the game properly. But this is still just Sony bragging PR crap at the moment, i hate their 'look at us we are gonna be the mutt's nuts somewhere in the near future' attitude. If you've got something fantastic then tell us and we can look forward to it. Perhaps even buy your console in anticipation of it, boost your sales a bit. God knows you need it.
i have to agree orange boxs achievements are simple, but sony just seem to rip off evryones ideas man, if i wanted acheivements id play my 360, i dont need my ps3 now doing what xbox games do.
soz man but thats bollox...heard of 'scene it'? complete rip off of 'buzz'...how about the microsoft 'cam' that blatently rips off the 'eyetoy/eye'..face it.EVERY company 'borrows' ideas from one another...
....What Sony will find is that if they implememnt a rewards system where players get cash or similar then the online system will become WORSE players will be cheating more in order to get acheivements and the players wo do play properly will become annoyed nd dissillusioned and move elsewhere. Everyone is aware of the issues surrunding achievments on xbox360 with te greatest whores actually cheating to get where they are instead of using any sort of skill.
I mean who hasnt been in a Halo lobby whre half the people have been working towards achivements later than to get any fun out of th game.
It's a shame how nowadays gamers refuse to play a game unless they get a reward. Good old last gen when you played a game over and over again because you enjoyed it, not just grinding achievements. Achievements can be fun sometimes, the best achievements i have ever seen were the Orange Box achievements. They were perfect and you didnt have to grind, you could just play the game properly. But this is still just Sony bragging PR crap at the moment, i hate their 'look at us we are gonna be the mutt's nuts somewhere in the near future' attitude. If you've got something fantastic then tell us and we can look forward to it. Perhaps even buy your console in anticipation of it, boost your sales a bit. God knows you need it.
i have to agree orange boxs achievements are simple, but sony just seem to rip off evryones ideas man, if i wanted acheivements id play my 360, i dont need my ps3 now doing what xbox games do.
soz man but thats bollox...heard of 'scene it'? complete rip off of 'buzz'...how about the microsoft 'cam' that blatently rips off the 'eyetoy/eye'..face it.EVERY company 'borrows' ideas from one another...
I never much liked the achievements on the 360 so I can do without them on the PS3. All those damn pop ups all over the place informing me that I've just completed the ‘walk five meters’ achievement or some other half bottomd pointless crap I can do without, thank you very much. Totally kills the immersion of the game and just gets in my way. That's one of the main reasons I prefer to buy a game on the PS3 rather than the 360 when they are multi platform titles.
What Microsoft don't rip off ideas? Like Windows wasn't taken from Apples operating system? The Zune isn't a rip off of the Ipod? Like the Xbox isn't a rip off of the Playstation? Microsoft have never had an orginal idea EVER!
As for achievements, I don't care about them. The Xbox360 achievements don't interest me at all. I just want good games, not gimmicks used to polish poor games.
I dont think Sony have realised that their current PR is one of the things killing their own brand. If they had been humble and just said "the other consoles are good, but we want ours to be better" there wouldn't be a problem.
Remember E3 06, when whats-his-name said they expected 6 million consoles were going to be sold in 6 months..... THEN he showed us the price. He must have been living in a dream.
I agree with all of you, anything Sonys PR say is just words until we see it. I swear to god, if i hear the words "next gen" from a spokesman again im going to scream.
What Microsoft don't rip off ideas? Like Windows wasn't taken from Apples operating system? The Zune isn't a rip off of the Ipod? Like the Xbox isn't a rip off of the Playstation? Microsoft have never had an orginal idea EVER!
As for achievements, I don't care about them. The Xbox360 achievements don't interest me at all. I just want good games, not gimmicks used to polish poor games.
Well thats mostly balls, isnt it? When windows and apple OS both came about they were very different, if anything, as they have become more similar, its apple boasting that there system can use microsoft software to now, so i wonder who is copying who. Zune and xbox arnt copies of the ipod and playstation, more microsoft commisioning there place into multimedia idustry. To say that xbox is a rip off of playstation is about as usefull as sayig there all rip offs of the super nintendo, they are very different consoles, and to say zune is a rip off of ipod is to say that all mp3 players are rip offs of the mpman which was the first portable mp3 player (thankyou wikipedia). Everyone is entitaled to make a stab at an idustry with there own version, and if anyone copies anyone, there would be lawsuits about it. Although achievments where something that made the xbox360 quite original, and i can see that sony are treading a fine line between invention and copying. we will need to see just how different they make it.
Sounds like it'll be rubbish. The beauty of the achievements system is in it's simplicity. It doesn't need making any more complicated, that'll just detract from it.
And I agree with the guy who said it should've been in there from the start. The fact is that Perfect Dark Zero has achievement points that are done in exactly the way as any game released today. What Sony will have is a bunch of games without achievements because they were released beforehand and a bunch of ones with. That diminishes the system in a way that I can't really explain, it just feels wrong.
What Microsoft don't rip off ideas? Like Windows wasn't taken from Apples operating system? The Zune isn't a rip off of the Ipod? Like the Xbox isn't a rip off of the Playstation? Microsoft have never had an orginal idea EVER!
As for achievements, I don't care about them. The Xbox360 achievements don't interest me at all. I just want good games, not gimmicks used to polish poor games.
Well thats mostly balls, isnt it? When windows and apple OS both came about they were very different, if anything, as they have become more similar, its apple boasting that there system can use microsoft software to now, so i wonder who is copying who. Zune and xbox arnt copies of the ipod and playstation, more microsoft commisioning there place into multimedia idustry. To say that xbox is a rip off of playstation is about as usefull as sayig there all rip offs of the super nintendo, they are very different consoles, and to say zune is a rip off of ipod is to say that all mp3 players are rip offs of the mpman which was the first portable mp3 player (thankyou wikipedia). Everyone is entitaled to make a stab at an idustry with there own version, and if anyone copies anyone, there would be lawsuits about it. Although achievments where something that made the xbox360 quite original, and i can see that sony are treading a fine line between invention and copying. we will need to see just how different they make it.
Sounds like you don't much about the history of Apple and Microsoft. Apple invented what is now Windows and Osx and when PCs still used MS DOS. Microsoft ripped off the GUI interface creating Windows 1.0. Yes they have become more similar in recent years because Microsoft continue to rip off OS X.
I dnt quite understand how sony are being portrayed as copycats right now because arguably gaming consoles are the way the are today because of sony so if we start talking about copying then surely everyone else has copied something from sony before.Look at it this way then sony are just claiming back wot they're owed.
What Microsoft don't rip off ideas? Like Windows wasn't taken from Apples operating system? The Zune isn't a rip off of the Ipod? Like the Xbox isn't a rip off of the Playstation? Microsoft have never had an orginal idea EVER!
As for achievements, I don't care about them. The Xbox360 achievements don't interest me at all. I just want good games, not gimmicks used to polish poor games.
Well thats mostly balls, isnt it? When windows and apple OS both came about they were very different, if anything, as they have become more similar, its apple boasting that there system can use microsoft software to now, so i wonder who is copying who. Zune and xbox arnt copies of the ipod and playstation, more microsoft commisioning there place into multimedia idustry. To say that xbox is a rip off of playstation is about as usefull as sayig there all rip offs of the super nintendo, they are very different consoles, and to say zune is a rip off of ipod is to say that all mp3 players are rip offs of the mpman which was the first portable mp3 player (thankyou wikipedia). Everyone is entitaled to make a stab at an idustry with there own version, and if anyone copies anyone, there would be lawsuits about it. Although achievments where something that made the xbox360 quite original, and i can see that sony are treading a fine line between invention and copying. we will need to see just how different they make it.
Sounds like you don't much about the history of Apple and Microsoft. Apple invented what is now Windows and Osx and when PCs still used MS DOS. Microsoft ripped off the GUI interface creating Windows 1.0. Yes they have become more similar in recent years because Microsoft continue to rip off OS X.
No i didnt, too much to read, and i would much rather be playing mass effect tbh Still I was pretty accurate about the mp3 thing
The genius of MS of course, is that they look at what OSX has done, write it better, and then release a version of windows that has all the features of OSX, but improved upon. Its fool-proof.
What Microsoft don't rip off ideas? Like Windows wasn't taken from Apples operating system? The Zune isn't a rip off of the Ipod? Like the Xbox isn't a rip off of the Playstation? Microsoft have never had an orginal idea EVER!
As for achievements, I don't care about them. The Xbox360 achievements don't interest me at all. I just want good games, not gimmicks used to polish poor games.
Uhhh the Xbox had a hard drive and 4 controller ports, the Playstion 2 had memory cards and 2 ports. Hmm let me see, now the PS3 has a hard drive and supports more than 2 controllers. Whose copying who again? I think Nintendo has had 4 ports for some time but by your logic they are all still copying the Atari 2600?
Sounds like you don't much about the history of Apple and Microsoft. Apple invented what is now Windows and Osx and when PCs still used MS DOS. Microsoft ripped off the GUI interface creating Windows 1.0. Yes they have become more similar in recent years because Microsoft continue to rip off OS X.
Actually, I think you'll find that both OS's were inspired by the old Amiga Workbench....
Sounds like you don't much about the history of Apple and Microsoft. Apple invented what is now Windows and Osx and when PCs still used MS DOS. Microsoft ripped off the GUI interface creating Windows 1.0. Yes they have become more similar in recent years because Microsoft continue to rip off OS X.
Actually, I think you'll find that both OS's were inspired by the old Amiga Workbench....
My thoughts exactly. The Amiga Workbench was one of the original GUI controlled operating systems, capable of multitasking too.
What Microsoft don't rip off ideas? Like Windows wasn't taken from Apples operating system? The Zune isn't a rip off of the Ipod? Like the Xbox isn't a rip off of the Playstation? Microsoft have never had an orginal idea EVER!
As for achievements, I don't care about them. The Xbox360 achievements don't interest me at all. I just want good games, not gimmicks used to polish poor games.
Sounds like another cow who forgets that Sony only entered the console gaming market to spite Nintendo after having the CD drive for the Nintendo refused.
If the Xbox is a copy of the Playstation, the Playstation is just a copy of the SNES.
Yawn... Its far too late to bother with this idea now. 360 has basically established it as one of the defining points of its system and its going to look really bad for Sony trying to copy them as it gives the idea that Sony are playing catch-up to 360 rather than bringing new things to the table. The only way they could even gain some credability from this would be to other a real life money discounts from the PSN store, which I can't see happening... Im also not too fond of this 'Home' idea. It may have seemed like a cool idea at first but I can see it getting boring really fast. Its just going to be like these 3D chat programs trying to challenge MSN, and we all know who rules that roost...
so don't go sony and try to make it look like ps3 got better achievements than 360 because that is completely stupid.
sony has become to used to overall stupidity and good believing from fans too long. so it will take some time before they invest more time into quality improvement of their console "suff".
I never much liked the achievements on the 360 so I can do without them on the PS3. All those damn pop ups all over the place informing me that I've just completed the ‘walk five meters’ achievement or some other half bottomd pointless crap I can do without, thank you very much. Totally kills the immersion of the game and just gets in my way. That's one of the main reasons I prefer to buy a game on the PS3 rather than the 360 when they are multi platform titles.
i agree completely with this. i have owed a 360 and i found a lot of the times the achievements banner flashing up on screen very intrusive. especially when its a pointless one like completing a level or coming first in a race - something u would have done regardless.
achievements should be specialized, like the one i done last nite on CoD4 (ps3) - kill an enemy by shooting an explosive device through a wall by bullet penetration.
also i think its a bit of a farce when a game comes with in-game challanges (CoD4) then a second lot of xbox360 achievements on top.. a proper game should have built-in achievements/tasks to keep you going. i think it should be an integral part of a game. not a universal system where most of the achievements seem like an afterthought.
You can just turn the 360 achievment notifications off you know I quite like my achievments as it goes, gives me a definitive task upon replaying the game.
Am I the only person who does not care about rewards? Why do 360 owners need to have a pat on the back every time they finish a level? Sureley we are above this.
The Amiga?? I'm afraid you are over a decade out mate.
I think you'll actually find that the first GUI OS was created by Xerox for the Alto, then the Star. Funnily enough, those machines also used mice which Apple also claim to have invented. This was in 1972. Apple then released the Apple Lisa in 1983, Commodore launched the Amiga in 1985, along with Windows 1.01 (which wasn't even technically an OS, just a front-end).
Everyone copies ideas, then adds their own spin to make things better. Cars, washing machines, bicycles, soft drinks, food, everything.
Sounds like you don't much about the history of Apple and Microsoft. Apple invented what is now Windows and Osx and when PCs still used MS DOS. Microsoft ripped off the GUI interface creating Windows 1.0. Yes they have become more similar in recent years because Microsoft continue to rip off OS X.
Actually, I think you'll find that both OS's were inspired by the old Amiga Workbench....
My thoughts exactly. The Amiga Workbench was one of the original GUI controlled operating systems, capable of multitasking too.
Not picking a fight here (I remember the good 'ole Amiga...), but I thought Xerox's OS (the one that Microsoft bought and changed into their own creature) predated the Amiga OS.
i have to agree orange boxs achievements are simple, but sony just seem to rip off evryones ideas man, if i wanted acheivements id play my 360, i dont need my ps3 now doing what xbox games do.
soz man but thats bollox...heard of 'scene it'? complete rip off of 'buzz'...how about the microsoft 'cam' that blatently rips off the 'eyetoy/eye'..face it.EVERY company 'borrows' ideas from one another...
well no its not bollox the xbox camera is for online games and acts like a webcam, you dont play games like eyetoy play with the xbox cam, scene it is a rip off yes but lets look at sony. sixaxis= wii remote, dual shock = rumble pak n64, ps3acheivements = 360acheivements. 20-80 gb hard drive on a console= 360 hard drive. companies do rip off each other but sony do it blatantly and then try and act like they made it up in the 1st place! have they no shame? wheres their originality man
Sounds like you don't much about the history of Apple and Microsoft. Apple invented what is now Windows and Osx and when PCs still used MS DOS. Microsoft ripped off the GUI interface creating Windows 1.0. Yes they have become more similar in recent years because Microsoft continue to rip off OS X.
Actually, I think you'll find that both OS's were inspired by the old Amiga Workbench....
My thoughts exactly. The Amiga Workbench was one of the original GUI controlled operating systems, capable of multitasking too.
Not picking a fight here (I remember the good 'ole Amiga...), but I thought Xerox's OS (the one that Microsoft bought and changed into their own creature) predated the Amiga OS.
(EDIT) n/m, kricca posted it before me.
That's why I said, "one of the first", not the first. It was pretty much one of the original GUI OS's for the mainstream home user anyway.
I dnt quite understand how sony are being portrayed as copycats right now because arguably gaming consoles are the way the are today because of sony so if we start talking about copying then surely everyone else has copied something from sony before.Look at it this way then sony are just claiming back wot they're owed.
Copyright 2006 - 2009 Future Publishing Limited, Beauford Court, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath, UK BA1 2BW England and Wales company registration number 2008885
Still I was pretty accurate about the mp3 thing 
I quite like my achievments as it goes, gives me a definitive task upon replaying the game.
