PS2 Online Pack

[Papercut]

Just got mine - cheers for the pics kamaran, I was going to check to see if there were any photos about before I opened mine up

Looks good, I like the big Beta Test mark. Makes me feel special somehow. shyeah

* edit * see you on SOCOM!

[Papercut]

Hmm, the Network Connection disk is buggy. The network diagnostics crash my machine every time it gets to the ping test - anyone else?

The games portal thing is really naff and buggy too, it needs a lot of work. That crashed on me once also.

I'm suprised how sloppy it all is. Compared to Live its amateurish.

I can't see them ironing out these problems in six weeks though, surely the beta test has more to do with monitoring network server load, than bugs in the client software itself.

SOCOM works without any problems though.

[wod]

any one here with a modded ps2 ?

does the kit work on a modded machine ?

i've got mine but cant set it up yet so was just wondering

[Shimmyhill]

It also crashed on the ping test for me - glad it wasnt just me then !!!

No probs with the game portal bit tho - i thought that was actually quite good.

So far seems no better + no worse than live - defi less lag in socom than in GR.

Looking forward to DD now, anynews on when its out ?

[Shez]

I have a modded PS2 and it works fine, but like papercut my machine also crashes/hangs on the ping test.

From what I have seen so far it isn't a patch on Xbox live, Reminds me of a downgraded gamespy set up. Pretty poor really, but the network seems very solid.

[kamaran]

Very Buggy and crashes intermittantly too - I guess this is a Beta test though

See you all on SOCOM - I agree this is not a patch on Xbox Live and it lets you appreciate just how good live really is.

XBox Live in killer app shocker !

[Papercut]

From what I have seen so far it isn't a patch on Xbox live, Reminds me of a downgraded gamespy set up. Pretty poor really, but the network seems very solid.

I'm in total agreement, its a sloppy setup. Well, in fact it is up to each game to implement their own interface. SOCOM is basic but functional, the setup disk and portal are poor and sub-standard.

Better would be a mix of the XBox and PS2 online setup. The single secure sign up of Live is very nice, but should be free (especially when many games are hosted peer to peer). Developers should decide themselves whether to charge or not (a la PSO), so I can choose to pay what I want depending on what games I'm interested in. I also should be free to choose my game nick per game as with the PS2 if I want.

Being able to store the Live network setup app on the hard disk is a big plus over PS2, and works much better than the dodgy PS2 Network disk.

Maybe the GameCube, and Dreamcast before it, has the right idea - no 'system' setup at all, online capabilities in their entirety built into the games themselves.

[Papercut]

So far seems no better + no worse than live - defi less lag in socom than in GR.

The cynic in me suggests that is because at the moment there is only a couple of hundred people playing.

[wod]

i think its good, but i've never seen xbox live so. there is a few problems, the setup seems complicated, i found problem setting it up. the network access disc is buggy.

anyone get the black screen after disconnecting from the central station, its happened to me also on socom when i quit a game ?

[wod]

yay, got another game to test. twisted metal black

keep em coming sony

[NeilMcRae]

I got my BBA today, one thing that is interesting is that it different to the US one, it has no modem just ethernet.

The software is different to the US adaptor also and is very buggy, the US software is far superior and bug free, not sure what SCEE are upto on this. They have also changed the presentation of SOCOM for the worse also, but the game seems unchanged playing wise. It also looks like they are aiming for a more Xbox Live type platform.

Regards,
Neil.

[Papercut]

Its fairly well known they removed the modem, but it is an odd decision isn't it?

I would guess the buggy network disk is down to them having to hack out the modem support and convert it to pal (it runs full screen).

Are the two network setup disks totally different, or is the pal disk just a hacked down version?

[ZeroRisk]

Got my pack and set it all up within minutes. Must say that SOCOM doesn't compare to Ghost Recon at all. So far M$ are beating Sony with the online battle in my book.

So far,

Delivery of equipment, M$ 1 Sony 0
Quality of equipment, M$ 1 Sony 0
Ease of setup, M$ 1 Sony 0
First online 'demo', M$ 1 Sony 0 (Moto vs Socom = no contest!)
Lobby and communication, M$ 1 Sony 0 ('Virtual Keyboard' to talk? Are you serious?!?!?!?)

So, M$ are 5-0 up in my book so far. Lets hope the Beta tests make things better soon as I can't see Socom hooking me for all that long. Any news on GT4 being online? That would be special.

[Papercut]

Hey ZeroRisk,

I'd go along with your 5-0 scoring there, the virtual keyboard in particular is nuts. It does support USB keyboards though.

I guess the issue is that the headset is not standard equipment as with Live, so most games will not support it. That doesn't explain why you can't use the headset in the SOCOM lobby mind. Headset support does feel a bit tacked on, must be a case of keeping up with the Gates's

I'd give SOCOM a second chance though, it does grow on you. I imagine that Ghost Recon (not played it) has a greater depth though.

[ZeroRisk]

It just all feels a little tacky after using Live for so long.

The headset is really naff but as you say, it's just for Socom really. Doesn't forgive them for using the vitual keyboard in the lobby though. Terrible.
I may have to get myself a USB keyboard in that case......

I'll give Socom a second chance as I suppose I gotta play it to give them an honest description of my findings online.

It's gonna be hard though, knowing I have GR sitting there screaming 'PLAY ME I'M BETTER!!!' lol

Another couple of bad points is the distinct lack of a 'Friends' list. How are people supposed to meet up for games?