Dev-friendly Home update launches today

Sony is today launching a significant update to its PlayStation Home virtual world service.

Home version 1.5 comes with a back-end makeover for game developers to better utilise the tech, according to Sony.

Core Client version 1.5 is said to allow for real-time multiplayer within the platform, as well as a series of other features for “enhanced game development”.

Sony has made clear its plans to shift the Home business model from virtual avatar hub to online games platform.

Speaking at the Game Developers Conference in March, a Sony representative said “when we launched PS Home, we realised that its games were the killer app.”

Core Client 1.5 will also deliver an updated physics engine, providing developers with enhanced control over collision, mass, velocity and other physics elements.

Other new technologies have been added to increase developer control of animations in a scene or game, including the ability to play multiple animations on a single model, blending between animations and getting details in real-time for in-motion animations.

Despite the shift to freemium online games, Sony insists it hasn’t abandoned its original idea of ad-supported games.

Sony added that game submissions to the Home platform would be returned on “in a matter of weeks”.