Last week, I was invited for a special look at the expanding closed beta for Sony's Home service, the virtual world they will be launching on the PlayStation 3 later this year. While Home director Jack Buser walked us through pretty much everything the service currently has to offer -- from the social gatherings in the Central Plaza to the virtual bowling and pool in the Game Space -- the most interesting thing we were shown was the "Uncharted Bar," a Game Space for Uncharted: Drake's Fortune.
Though we've already had brief glimpses at Home spaces for Resistance 2 and Warhawk, even the idea of one for Uncharted immediately raises the important question of what use there is for an online extension to a single-player-focused game. Buser quickly explained that the Uncharted Bar is a place where fans of the game as well as people who haven't played it but are curious can meet up to talk about and explore a space inspired by Uncharted.
One thing is for sure: The Bar looks like something straight out of the game. We couldn't get screenshots of the unfinished area yet, but it had a ton of detail and ran smoothly as a Home avatar navigated it. Scattered around the Bar's dirty tables were a full collection of the artifacts you can find hidden in Uncharted. As an example of something gamers could do here, Buser suggests looking at one of the artifacts and then asking others in the area for advice on where to find it. Not exactly as elegant as a walkthrough, given, but Buser believes the Home audience will naturally drift toward ideas such as this.
Thankfully the Uncharted Bar also has several features that should appeal to fans of the game in a more direct manner. In one dimly-lit corner, there is a new arcade game titled "Mercenary Madness." This eight-bit homage to games such as Pitfall! and Lode Runner was created by Naughty Dog specifically for Home. The space also contains several other secrets that Buser only hinted at cryptically. Visual cues should nod back to Uncharted's story as well as possibly hinting at new stuff, and the bar has three mysteriously locked doors that players will need to figure out how to get into if they want to see everything.
Buser also promised us that what we were shown was not everything the Uncharted Bar will offer. Game spaces will change and grow over time, so if and when an Uncharted 2 is announced, we expect some early sneak peeks at the game to appear in Home. Buser also noted that third-party publishers and developers will be able to make game spaces for their games as well, including non-PS3 exclusives. Though Sony isn't ready to drop names, he says many more are already in the works.
Though we're not totally sold on the concept yet, we're eager to get into Home and walk around the Uncharted space (and other game spaces) ourselves. If the sneaky secrets and mini-games end up being worth exploring, these spaces could provide some great extensions of existing games that we already love. Stay tuned for more coverage of Home soon, including an interview with members of Naughty Dog about what it was like helping create the Home space for their game.
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