UPDATE 2: A Sony rep has informed us that cross-game voice chat "was not announced as part of PlayStation Plus," which we understand as a ‘no further information or direct comment at this time’ sort of thing. Perhaps we’ll hear more in the near future.
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UPDATE: It appears all mention of voice chat has been removed from .playstation websites from other countries. We are checking in with Sony to see if this is a temporary removal, or if the feature is going away for good – or, we should say, before it even launched.
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE: The moment many of you have been waiting for will soon arrive, sort of. We say ‘sort of’ because that coveted cross-game voice chat will require PlayStation Plus membership. If you have been waiting for this feature, you may just be willing to dish out the $49.99 USD yearly fee PlayStation Plus.
That fee will land you several other key features. It should be noted that basic PlayStation Network will not cost anything, so you do not have to buy PlayStation Plus to play with friends online or access the network or store.
Cross-game voice chat has been at, or near the top of many PS3 owners’ wish lists. With Plus membership, you’ll be able to chat with any PSN member even if you aren’t playing the same game. This feature is limited to four PSN members, and at least one must be a PlayStation Plus member.
Sony sent off some more specific information about the subscription service. The service launches on June 29 worldwide with a firmware update. Here is what you’ll get:
Full Game Trials – Members will have access to full versions of designated PS3 and PlayStation Network titles including PS one Archives (PS one Classics). The titles on offer will be available for download on PlayStation Store for a stated period and change every month. Members will be able to play the full version of the game for a designated period and even after the trial period expires, users will be able to continue playing the game by purchasing the game on-line.
Games – Member will be able to play the full version of designated PS3 downloadable and PlayStation Network titles including PS one Archives (PS one Classics) and minis with no limit of time as long as membership is effective. These games will become available exclusively for PlayStation Plus members at no extra cost.
Special content – Content such as avatars and custom themes many of which are exclusive will become available for PlayStation Plus members at no extra cost.
Discounts – Members will have access to exclusive discounts on designated PS3 and PSP titles. Titles will vary every month on PlayStation Store.
Early access – Members will have early access to designated new game beta trials, game demos and video content prior to public distribution.
Automatic content downloads and updates – PS3 will automatically download and install designated game demos and game updates and also download the system software update data. PS3 will automatically start up at a designated time to download content and will turn off after the download has completed.