nextgn.com
I’m not even going to try and convince people that PlayStation
Network, in it’s current state, comes anywhere close to the whole Xbox
Live experience –XBL is, hands down, the better service. Xbox Live has
been a rock solid service since it first launched and has only improved
with the years. PlayStation Network, on the other hand, bombed when it
first launched, despite being free. People were still willing to spend
the extra cash for the extra service giving the Xbox 360 a large lead in
sales of most all multi-player games – but things just might change.
The PlayStation Network has come a long way since it opened and the fact
that Sony are also giving their users the option of buying a premium
service could mean trouble for Microsoft.
Here are six reasons why the PSN Premium service could outsell Xbox
Live:
6. Access to Betas
I’ve always been one of the unfortunate sobs who is either too late to
apply or plain and simply not selected into the latest and greatest
Betas. If paying a little extra guarantees me early access to games like
Resistance 3 and Killzone 3 you can definitely count me in.
5. Full Game Trial
With the price of most games these days I can’t gamble on what games are
going to be good and what games are going to suck so I am left with a
huge headache in trying to decide which games to get and which games to
skip, especially when the developers choose not to release a demo. Being
able to download and try the full version of the game for an hour, and
for free, is a huge help for me and any other gamer who can’t afford
every single game that will be released.
4. Free PSPOne Classics, and PS3 Themes
Tekken 3, Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy VII, for free? Hell yes! The
PSOne had some of the greatest games ever made, and if the PSN Premium
package gives you some of these titles for free I would not hesitate to
sign up.
3. Cloud Storage Space
Early adopters will love this one. One thing that pissed me off the most
is the mandatory installs a lot of the PlayStation 3 games have – would
leave me with very little space for extra DLC. This was a low blow for
me because I still own a phatty (60Gig hard drive).
2. Cross-Game Voice Chat
Something Xbox Live has and PlayStation Network desperately needs;
Cross-Game Voice Chat. It’s a bummer that it isn’t free but beggars
can’t be choosers, right? It sure is a nice bonus, though.
1. Extended Warranty
This is why the smartest thing Sony could include with the package. My
PlayStation 3 has been out of warranty for over a year now and after
reading post after post of people complaining about the YLOD (Yellow
Light of Death) I am starting to turn into one paranoid android
everytime I turn my dinosaur of a PS3 on. The APOCALYPS3 (29th
of February, 2010?) certainly did not help the cause. This alone is
worth the extra cash that the Premium service costs.
| 
