After all the hype around Home on PS3 it was always likely to disappoint when it launched late last year. And it did. I spent a few hours wondering around the virtual houses, shops and cinema before the loading times and pointlessness of it all caught up with me. But according to Sony things are going well for their virtual world. There are 7 million users worldwide (3 million in Europe), with 80% of users classed as males aged 18-35. How many of these 7 million users logged in once and how many are regular inhabitants is unclear.
Other user titbits include 450,000 costumes being sold during a two-week Star Trek movie campaign and 812,544 users watching an exclusive Watchmen interview. Home just a marketing tool then? Not according to Sony's Peter Edward, director of Home in Europe.
For Sony, revenue isn't the main driver for Home. We're in this for the longterm. Home is the starting point for PlayStation 3 online, and that's something that gamers are going to expect as more games support Game Launch from within Home.
Clearly then Home has found a solid – if relatively small - audience of core gamers. But can it expand further and attract more casual gamers? And what do you think about Home generally? Regular visitor or was one trip enough?
