The Current State of the Playstation Network

Shawdad

PSLS Level: Bronze
After seeing all the arguments in the comments section regarding the most recent disruption of service of the PSN, it made me curious about the overall opinion here on PSLS regarding the stability of the PSN.

Do you think it is stable enough now?
Do you think it should be more stable now that we are paying for the service on PS4? And if yes, should Sony be working faster on improving it with the money they are receiving from subscriptions?

I am definitely NOT an expert on the technical pitfalls of running such a huge network so any thoughts from someone who is would also be appreciated.
 
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I am no expert and I have no idea how often Xbox Live goes down but I think it is stable enough and I rarely have any real issues.
 
I rarely get any issues, and I mean RARELY, with how things have been recently I think people are just looking for something to bitch about.
 
I rarely have issues with PSN, and am completely fine with it being behind a paywall in the form of Plus (which is an AWESOME service).

On the off chance that it goes down, I get over it. It's rarely for more than a couple of hours at most, and isn't the end of the flipping world. Most of the time, I am at work when it goes down anyway.
 
I rarely have issues with PSN, and am completely fine with it being behind a paywall in the form of Plus (which is an AWESOME service).

On the off chance that it goes down, I get over it. It's rarely for more than a couple of hours at most, and isn't the end of the flipping world. Most of the time, I am at work when it goes down anyway.


I definitely feel the same way. I don't ever see myself dropping my PS+ membership even if I don't ever play online again. I never really had a problem with PSN before the pay wall and I think I have noticed greater stability and download speeds after it was introduced, so I'm happy!
 
I have both PS Plus and Xbox Live. Which is better? They are different. In terms of stability Xbox Live for sure, butt hats not saying the PSN is bad or anything, just a lot newer than the Xbox Live service. In terms of free content for a member PS Plus wins, and Xbox Live is making steady improvements to make Games With Gold a much better service for members. Both services have their positives and negatives IMO. But both are also making strides to compete with one another, which in turn makes it a great time to be a gamer. :)
 
Sometimes I have trouble with specific games on PSN, but then I check out forums online for those games and find out that the problems aren't limited to PSN users, but also people on Xbox and PC (like Assassin's Creed IV and it's terrible uplay servers). Once you isolate those problems, the only other ones are the maintenance times on PSN, which largely happen to be when I'm not playing anything online anyway.

Another thing I've noticed about PSN troubles - usually they permit people who have logged on in the last week or so to play online anyway. That effectively means that I can't spend money on the PSN during those times, which is usually a good thing for me.

Perhaps Xbox Live is doing something better with that other $10 / year, but I honestly wouldn't notice it. I have an excellent Internet connection (50-70mbps), so only slow game servers have effects on gameplay for me. I think the comment debates are just more cannon fodder for trolls.
 
After seeing all the arguments in the comments section regarding the most recent disruption of service of the PSN, it made me curious about the overall opinion here on PSLS regarding the stability of the PSN.

Do you think it is stable enough now?
Do you think it should be more stable now that we are paying for the service on PS4? And if yes, should Sony be working faster on improving it with the money they are receiving from subscriptions?

I am definitely NOT an expert on the technical pitfalls of running such a huge network so any thoughts from someone who is would also be appreciated.

Before I'd have said it was terrible but recently the service has rapidly improved. Before I'd be constantly logged offline and getting online in the first place on the PSN was a nightmare but now almost 9 times out of 10 it works first time and I have a stable connection. Maybe it's due to Sony now charging for the online with PS+ but to be honest the only reason Sony wasn't charging before was due to the way they botched up the initial launch of the PS3.

So I get that now Sony's doing well with the PS4 that they'd charge for it, I don't have a PS4 but I'd be fine with paying for the online. At least Sony had the decency to let PS4 users have Netflix with needing a PS+ account unlike someone else and yeah I know Microsoft have stated that you can now watch Netflix on an Xbox without a gold account but the fact that Sony needed to do this first with the PS4 just shows the arrogance of Microsoft. (By which I mean they only went back on making Xbox users buy gold accounts to use Netflix when they worked out they couldn't get away with it any longer)

So yeah the service is doing ok with one problem that I want to air. The PSN store is a complete scam. Sony is selling games on there for £60 (I don't know what prices are for the US PSN Store) and no this isn't about the Steam sales this is about Sony charging insane prices for their games. I'm not even talking about PS4 games (which have been overpriced everywhere) but rather the PS3 games what are priced up higher then the retail release. Sony have cut out the middle man, they're selling directly to us and they don't have to pay for packaging and distribution.

Why are we paying Sony more for a method that enables them to spend less? If guys like Sony want to convince us that digital is the way forward then they need to put those prices down. Is anyone even buying these games? How much money can Sony honestly be making off the downloads for full titles and if they're not making enough money that they need to charge that much in the first place has Sony considered that it's down to them overcharging for the games in the first place?

and then you have guys trying to pin the blame on Valve as if it's their fault. Yes Valve draw in a lot with Steam when they make deals like £4.99 for Dishonored but when there has to be a happy medium between charging barely anything and overcharging to the point of sheer greed. I want to support the guys who make the games I love but not to the point where I start to go bankrupt.
 
Overall the network is pretty good, I think. XBL is older, had it's growing pains, and is also owned / maintained by one of the largest companies out there, who got their start in OS infrastructure. Sony had to cobble something together with the PS3 and make is work across the world, since it's userbase ended up being very diverse while XBL was pretty central in a few countries. I also recognize old Xbox support is gone, and only now is MS working on it across 2 platforms, where Sony has to try and make it work on 3 concurrent platforms.

Aside from some early issues when PS4 launched, and the issues as the result of that, the network as a whole has been very stable and I'm happy with it. The only thing I'm unhappy with is the store update times. Most weeks they are consistent, but it seems the last couple have been stretching the update time later into the day. I really don't think it's that big of an issue, especially when the big games are able to be pre loaded now, but it does get a bit annoying sometimes.
 
Before I'd have said it was terrible but recently the service has rapidly improved. Before I'd be constantly logged offline and getting online in the first place on the PSN was a nightmare but now almost 9 times out of 10 it works first time and I have a stable connection. Maybe it's due to Sony now charging for the online with PS+ but to be honest the only reason Sony wasn't charging before was due to the way they botched up the initial launch of the PS3.

So I get that now Sony's doing well with the PS4 that they'd charge for it, I don't have a PS4 but I'd be fine with paying for the online. At least Sony had the decency to let PS4 users have Netflix with needing a PS+ account unlike someone else and yeah I know Microsoft have stated that you can now watch Netflix on an Xbox without a gold account but the fact that Sony needed to do this first with the PS4 just shows the arrogance of Microsoft. (By which I mean they only went back on making Xbox users buy gold accounts to use Netflix when they worked out they couldn't get away with it any longer)

So yeah the service is doing ok with one problem that I want to air. The PSN store is a complete scam. Sony is selling games on there for £60 (I don't know what prices are for the US PSN Store) and no this isn't about the Steam sales this is about Sony charging insane prices for their games. I'm not even talking about PS4 games (which have been overpriced everywhere) but rather the PS3 games what are priced up higher then the retail release. Sony have cut out the middle man, they're selling directly to us and they don't have to pay for packaging and distribution.

Why are we paying Sony more for a method that enables them to spend less? If guys like Sony want to convince us that digital is the way forward then they need to put those prices down. Is anyone even buying these games? How much money can Sony honestly be making off the downloads for full titles and if they're not making enough money that they need to charge that much in the first place has Sony considered that it's down to them overcharging for the games in the first place?

and then you have guys trying to pin the blame on Valve as if it's their fault. Yes Valve draw in a lot with Steam when they make deals like £4.99 for Dishonored but when there has to be a happy medium between charging barely anything and overcharging to the point of sheer greed. I want to support the guys who make the games I love but not to the point where I start to go bankrupt.

The prices you see on the psn store are the exact same retail prices for physical copies. The ONLY time sony has a say in the price is when it comes to sales and special deals. Other then that, take your complaints to the gaming companies. Just because it's their online store doesn't mean it's their prices. I shop on the jpn store, the prices there are no different then the physical retail copies. Same goes with the US. If it's ps+ related, a psn store sale, or some sort of ultimate edition compiled by sony. Then you are paying their price. Otherwise you are paying no different then the retail, you are also paying the price the game company listed it under.
 
The prices you see on the psn store are the exact same retail prices for physical copies. The ONLY time sony has a say in the price is when it comes to sales and special deals. Other then that, take your complaints to the gaming companies. Just because it's their online store doesn't mean it's their prices. I shop on the jpn store, the prices there are no different then the physical retail copies. Same goes with the US. If it's ps+ related, a psn store sale, or some sort of ultimate edition compiled by sony. Then you are paying their price. Otherwise you are paying no different then the retail, you are also paying the price the game company listed it under.

What about the Playstation exclusives? They still charge insane prices for those games and Sony dictates the prices for those games plus I don't think I pointed it out but I'm not just directing this at Sony, everyone in gaming has a problem with digital sales (with the exception of Valve).

Also when it comes to retail the companies can't tell the retailers what price to sell the game as, there's an RRP (Recommended Retail Price) but that's just what a guideline so the games companies set the RRP as say £60 and then the retailers go "That's stupid nobody is going to buy a game for £60" and sell it off at £50 writing it off as a discount. It's the main reason why I'm not buying into the next-generation of consoles, I don't see any reason for a £10 price hike when the games haven't improved beyond prettier graphics.
 
Id rather say that they say the PS4 is doing well BECAUSE they charge for PSN. It's Mandatory because no one really plays Couch Coop anymore.
I wish PSN was more stable, same with their maintenance -.- Why the hell is Canada getting DLC for a game they cant buy? Magical Beats*
Plus, their Blog updates so slowly. The Games are actually in PSN every Tuesday At around 2.00 pm IF you type in the Name of the game in SEARCH. Its not even shown in psn until you search which is pretty bs
 
I don't get online much, but when I do I don't seem to have any issues. I use Netflix and Amazom Prime all the time and those services stay strong. So I'm very happy.
 
I don't get online much, but when I do I don't seem to have any issues. I use Netflix and Amazom Prime all the time and those services stay strong. So I'm very happy.
Is that necessarily through the PSN though? Do you have to be signed in to access these services?
 
Is that necessarily through the PSN though? Do you have to be signed in to access these services?
Yes, but you don't have to be a Plus subscriber. :D

On that note, Hulu Plus on PS4 pisses me off. My internet has been upgraded to 105mbps, and I actually get 98mbps on my wife's laptop through WiFi. My PS4 is wired, and Hulu still dumps out every now and then. That's super annoying.
 
Yes, but you don't have to be a Plus subscriber. :D

On that note, Hulu Plus on PS4 pisses me off. My internet has been upgraded to 105mbps, and I actually get 98mbps on my wife's laptop through WiFi. My PS4 is wired, and Hulu still dumps out every now and then. That's super annoying.
I get that, but say you are watching a show on Netflix on your PS4, then the PSN goes down, resulting in you being signed out. Would this cause your Netflix stream to stop?
 
I get that, but say you are watching a show on Netflix on your PS4, then the PSN goes down, resulting in you being signed out. Would this cause your Netflix stream to stop?
Err... good question. I haven't experienced that yet. hahaha

Edit: I couldn't use Netflix on my PS3 when the PSN got hacked a couple years ago. I don't know otherwise. :(
 
Err... good question. I haven't experienced that yet. hahaha

Edit: I couldn't use Netflix on my PS3 when the PSN got hacked a couple years ago. I don't know otherwise. :(
So it seems it is all linked together. Granted you don't have to have PS Plus to use it, but you have to be signed in. I haven't tried it on the Xbox One yet with me signed out (I primarily use that when wanting to view Netflix, Hulu Plus, etc.), but I would assume it is the same.
 
Uh oh. PSN was down again (not for me though) let the inevitable shit storm of pointless arguments, CAPS LOCK and the intellectually challenged with avatars of weenies begin! Gotta love the ole interweb. :rolleyes:
 
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First off, thanks for writing/posting your question. Personally, I have had nothing but great experiences with PSN and it's services. I feel that the odd occasion when the network is down for maintenance or to correct an issue is actually good because it lets people know they are working on things. Security improvements, system enhancements and overall stability in performance are exactly why I don't mind paying for the service. I'm no expert on system stability but I do know that there are many more variables to it than what PSN is responsible for. For example - home modem malfunctioning, internet service provider having issues of their own, weather (in some cases), shared internet access that causes hiccups, fluctuations in speed and timing out scenarios. Any and all of these things get wrongly pushed onto PSN as "stability issues" as a lot of people have no idea!!


Unfortunately, we live in a "NOW" society with little to no tolerance or patience for anything. People consider it to be an "inconvenience" and are easily frustrated and even 'offended' when they want something immediately but can't get it. "What do you mean the network is going to be down, I want it now!"

Makes me miss the good old days when going outside and playing games/sports/etc. and having fun with friends was the 'in' thing to do!
 

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