SOE, Planetside, Sony, and "Planetside:Next"

Since 2003 I will never forget the first game that truly had my attention for years at a time.  This game was Planetside.  Developed by Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) after being picked up by a private developer, the game was the first true MMOFPS (Massively Multiplayer First Person Shooter).  Imagine a game with hundreds of players fighting each other over massive continents where the players are piloting aircraft, manning armored vehicles, infiltrating bases, and being heavy foot grunts... all at the same time.  Also there is not one single NPC in sight.

That is Planetside.  Yes, the game is still around, but for the few that were privileged to play the game during it's prime, nearly every one of use can ramble on and on about how awesome and unique it was.

When John Smedley announced a sequel to Planetside was in the works, I flocked back to the original along with hundreds of other players, all eager to relieve the game while we waited for the sequal.  We all had our doubts due to previous bad experiences with SOE, however a beta date was in the back of all our minds.  The beta is a couple months late now, and SOE had massive layoffs.  On top of that, mid development, it was announced some of the planetside engines needed an overhall.  That's not a good sign so late in the game.

Of course it gets worse.  Sony announced to the world that millions of user's information had been stolen by a hacker shortly after 200 SOE employees lost their jobs.  The result?  It can't be good.  Even Sony's stock has declined sharply in the past weeks.

It's not looking good at all, but Planetside:Next, I hope you come out afterall.  We've been waiting for years.  GG SOE.  GG.