SCEE’s Darren Cairns and Liam Wickhamhave spokenat the Develop conference, making strides to distance Sony’sHomeproduct from social networks. The PlayStation creator’s official stance seems to be thatHomeis all about the games, and not about the socializing.
“Home is not a social network – it’s focused on games,” stated the two men. “It’s a visual representation of the PlayStation community.”
That’s an interesting suggestion, not least because up until now, Sony has done nothingbuttalk aboutHomeas a social network. When Phil Harrison was still with the company,he referredtoHomeas a “3D social networking service.” Harrison stated thatHomewas “not just about Sony products and Sony games,” but was “a much wider network of connected spaces.” Sony has alsogone on recordas stating that they will be “implementing a fully featured social networking experience withinHome.”
See, this is the problem with Sony. It can’t get its stories straight. Sony already knows what a lack of focus and official definition did for the PlayStation 3 in its first year, andHomeisn’t even out of the gate before we’re having conflicting definitions of what the product can is. Sony needs to keep its facts straight, because customers and developers alike will be confused as to what it is Sonyactually offers, and that’s not a good scenario.
