The poker scene in PlayStation Home is continuing to grow as we add another round of features to our space.  The biggest change includes the launch of a brand new level of play on the black poker tables. These tables will target the high rollers in Home, who will be rewarded with the new Diamond Poker bracelets after winning on an 8 player table.  These new black tables will pay out a record 100,000 points to the winner of an 8-seat game. Expect to work for this accomplishment reward, and make sure you have time to play because the black tables will be designed for much longer games than currently found on red or green tables.

Another obvious change to the EA SPORTS Texas Hold'em rooms in Home is the reset of the season leader boards.  This reset clears the high scores for the season but will leave the personal bankrolls intact.  Players will be able to use the previous winnings to get back in the top player rankings.  Once we confirm the results you will see a list of the top players from both the US and European leagues. With the release of the black tables we will be going into a tuning phase for a few weeks, and we will again reset the results.

In the next big push the poker leader boards will see a few new features based on requests from the Home community.  Seasons for poker will now be split by table color with green, red, and black tables all utilizing separate rankings. Now you won't have to work all the way up to black tables to see your name in lights.  The season duration for each level of play will also be different with green having short 2 weeks seasons, and black having the longest season at 12 weeks.  Each leader board will have a reset date posted so you can see how much time is left before the next reset.  Of course we will continue to preserve bankrolls between seasons so players can jump back into play at their preferred level. When the new leader boards appear in a few weeks we will continue the testing and will do one more reset before the start of the next full season of play.

The next version of poker to be pushed in a couple weeks will also include a player's win ratio.  This number is calculated by dividing the total number of games paid out by the number of games played.  By holding the R1 button, each player's chip stack and bet amounts will be replaced by the players bankroll and their percentage of games paid out.  You will quickly be able to tell the experienced Home players from the new ones, but don't be fooled by experienced players who create new accounts to catch people off guard.  Releasing the R1 button will return the information to the original chip stack and bet amount information.

The 5th table has returned to the poker rooms today.  The current 32 seat rooms will see a bump up to 40 seats and 5 tables.  This should cut down on wait times a bit for the green rooms. We expect the Black tables to be very popular for the high level players, and we are looking into a space that be dedicated for this level of play in the future. The red poker table area found upstairs in the EA SPORTS Golf Complex will be the home to the single black table, which will be surrounded by the original 4 red tables.

The game cameras will also be changed in a few weeks when we add a bird's eye view of each table.  The camera will also be able to focus separately on the left and right leader boards. The separate views will be important with the additional of separate rankings for each table level.  We will now have a total of 6 different ranking systems (daily green-red-black, season green-red-black.) To prevent people from having to wait to cycle through all six screens to see results we will put the daily ranking on one board and the season rankings on the alternate board.

The EA SPORTS Pro Shop is now open on the first floor of the EA SPORTS Racing Complex.  Featuring boxing outfits form the hit game FIGHT NIGHT Round 4, the opening of the Pro Shop is just a hint of things to come from EA SPORTS on Home.  The picture below shows the introductory selection of outfits created using assets directly from the game.  Authentic boxing gloves, shorts, boots, headgear and a shirt are all included in each set.  You will also find a complete set of furniture from Club Fight Night to decorate your personal space with.

See you at the poker tables ... Go Cowboys!

- Rob Burnett

This is an exciting week for the team working on the EA SPORTS Complex, and not because we are finally shipping something and get to take a few weeks off .. quite the opposite, this is where the work really begins.  

The great opportunity here is for EA SPORTS to interact with a much broader audience than just the typical sports gaming fan.  In Home players can meet up and jump into a game without a complex installation or matchup process.  Often the social aspects of enjoying professional sports are overlooked by non-sports fans.  Many football loyalists tell you the pre-game tailgate party is almost as fun as the game itself.  Getting together over a hamburger and razing the opposing fans as they walk by adds to the gameday experience.  Then, sitting in the stands and groaning together as the team's star drops the ball for the third straight time becomes a shared experience. Home embodies that same social dynamic.

We want people to do more than just visit our space. We want them to come back. We want users to tell us what they like and don't like.  To make sure you don't miss some of the key components, here are a few things to look for:

Racing - this is the first time users get a chance to drive cars around in Home. This game can be played along-side 3 other players. Although you can't bump into the other cars, you will see their ghosts drive around the course.  HINT - taking sharp turns bleeds off speed; taking long clean lines around corners helps you maintain your speed. EA SPORTS Racing is a simple racing game that rewards players who learn how to drive well.

Racing Boosts - This early version of the game automatically gives you 4 boosts, 2 allow you to accelerate quickly for a short burst, and 2 let you accelerate for a longer period of time but not as aggressively. Learn how to use these now while they are easy to get, later you are going to have to earn them.
    
Racing Rewards - Everyone who plays EA SPORTS Racing will get 2 T-shirt rewards (one male design and one female design.)
   
Poker - The new version of poker lets users see the status of a game by looking at a virtual screen that appears over each table. Now you can get an idea when the table will open up again.  The rules on the tables are standard No-limit Hold'em rules which can be found on the Texas Hold'em wiki

Poker Chat - Chat is available to players on the poker tables. The triangle button launches the chat window while playing poker. BEWARE - closing the chat window using the circle button can also fold your cards if you are betting. Click the left analog stick to resize the chat window.
   
Poker Rewards - Everyone who completes an EA SPORTS Texas Hold'em game gets 2 T-shirt rewards (one male design and one female design.)

Here are a few detail shots to show off additional features like the accurate representation of chips and bet stacks.





Sony has been a great partner on this project, and we are looking forward to evolving the space and developing the next round of interactive content.  So now that you have heard what we are thinking how bout you tell us what you think.  Add your comments below or jump on our Forum and start talking about how EA SPORTS can use Home to make gaming on the PS3 more fun.