There’s been a patch to the PSN Store on PS3. Sony seems to have neglected to mention it but that’s probably understandable, given the week they’ve been having. The patch seems to have speeded things up a bit, with that long boot time now slightly more agreeable.
The menus also feel a little bit snappier when navigating around but perhaps the best result of the patch (1.03) is the return of easy free downloads. You no longer have to go through the pointless add-to-basket and check out steps when downloading free content. Just hit the selection, agree to the download and it’ll start.
It’s been a big week for Sony but sometimes it’s these little things that make all the difference. I still feel a bit like my PS3 is old hat now I’ve heard what the next console will do though!
djhsecondnature
Not sure the free download thing is a fix from this patch.
Encountered it a few weeks ago.
Peter Chapman
really? Felt new to me and a quick google backed me up that it arrived with this patch.
Apologies all, if this is old news :(
djhsecondnature
Oh it may well be part of the patch, just definitely had it when downloading a demo a few weeks back as it threw me :-p
cc_star
I was trying to download several demos & all the free PS+ content and couldn’t add to basket, I had to go through each one individually & it was right pain in the arse.
If this is patched to supposedly make things easier, then it still needs to provide the option whether to download or add to basket imo.
Not having the basket only suits those who are only downloading 1 item.
The store as a whole is sometimes a right buggy pile of crap too.
The whole trial & unlock system is frequently broken with it not displaying properly.
Whilst I like the rich design, the processes are often very hit & miss and considering SCEE region basically beta’d it before its recent US release – I’d have expected all these unavoidable teething problems sorted out before now.
Moshbag
This. The change is a real pain now, because you can’t put big PS+ game files into your download list, it just starts downloading and needs to be cancelled. The store really is a turkey.
gernboes
I also think its more annoying than an improvement… Especially when i want to add PS+ content to my DL-list without downloading them right away, i have to cancel every download after it automatically starts…
LTG Davey
” I still feel a bit like my PS3 is old hat now I’ve heard what the next console will do though!”
Lol, always the problem with new console releases. I was watching some Tomb Raider footage last night – a game I am thoroughly looking forward to and, up until last night, had been stunned how pretty it was – and was thinking to myself “hmm, I bet those water effects would look much better on PS4”. Dangerous business looking at new tech
kjkg
I’m the same Peter. Feels like I’m playing something old and outdated. Need to shake that feeling off since we still have a long way to go.
Also, playing God Of War: Chains of Olympus won’t help that feeling much. Game’s obviously old now and upscaled to the bigger screen will never come across perfect.
rossthebassist
Ive recently been getting back into PC gaming because of the obvious advantages that holds vs console visuals. But when i saw PS4 even my PC looked out of date lol. I do not have the type of money to make my pc have those kind of visuals yet! So PS4 for me :D
I know PC master race supremacists will call me mad and bonkers, but the truth is i just prefer the plug and play aspect of my consoles. I go through spits and spats with my PC depending how far along a life cycle we are.
mrfodder
I found in the run up to the Vita I couldn’t bring myself to touch my PSP. It was just so dated and the lack of 2 analogs so annoying.
However, last night started a new campaign in Killzone 2. Graphically, not a patch on new one, but still having a blast playing it.
Jim Hargreaves
It’s only a minor annoyance but one that constantly crops up, even as someone who rarely buys anything from the store (I’ve been PS+’d, mind you.)
JigsawPieces
I actually liked being able to add them to the cart, because that was an easy way to get PS+ goodies into my download list for later, without triggering a download right away!
Obviously it’s better this way, in general, though :)
dpb135
I agree with this. I noticed the change when the latest PS+ items where added to the store. Forces me to download straight away even though I do not want to. So have to quit the store and cancel them. Would be nice if we had the option
heedbaw
Being able to download demos etc. straight away again is nice, but I can see why it would be a hassle for PS+ users. Option to download or add to cart could’ve been a better step. Also on US store, which is even more of a mess layout wise, I noticed that hovering on links starts up video for some stuff. Wonder if we’ll see that rather than having to download trailers sometime soon.
On a related note, iPlayer also has an update to improve performance, just unfortunate that it seems borked as it doesn’t get past the loading screen now.
doug
Glad this is fixed it pissed me having to go through 5 steps just to download something that was free.
TSBonyman
I asked them nicely on the Blog recently if they could do something aout the Trial and Unlock obstacle course that a lot of people face if they previously downloaded and deleted a trial, hopefully they’ll sort that out too.