PlayStation Home PS3

Like that final episode of Brookside where Jimmy Corkhill departs the boarded up Merseyside estate for his new life as the lord of a stately home, PlayStation Home has closed its doors for the last time. The service shut down officially at 08:02AM BST this morning according to Eurogamer.net. The servers were packed as congregations gathered in the Home Plaza for one last rousing rendition of the Running Man – but alas, nothing gold can stay.

The service actually started life as a multiplayer mode for The Getaway: Black Monday, before transforming into a somewhat sterile take on the booming Second Life. Despite being lambasted by some corners of the industry, though, the PlayStation 3 application did garner a fanbase – and it eventually grew into a clunky but interesting virtual world, filled with minigames and microtransactions. Word is that during its peak it was making serious bank for the Japanese giant.

Sadly, it's now just a relic, destined to be remembered for its ugly avatars and bowling alley queues. There was definitely potential here, but despite its best efforts, the platform holder never really came close to realising it. There's no word on whether the firm will take its learnings and launch a better virtual world on the PlayStation 4 – but, to be honest, we wouldn't hold your breath. Farewell, PlayStation Home!

[source eurogamer.net]