As we previously reported, there’s been a couple of stories floating around this year that suggest Sony is planning to do something with PlayStation Home. Back in April, fans spotted that the trademark for PlayStation Home had been renewed, igniting hope that the service could be re-launched. Following that, the trademark for the SoHo Engine was also renewed - the same one PS Home ran on.
Now, in a very similar development, Sony has renewed the PS Home trademark once again, and it’s been officially registered today. Since this is the third murmuring from the series in just a few months, it’s very possible that Sony has indeed got something planned for its ill-fated live service.
This news was once again spotted by Thorites over on the subreddit r/GamingLeaksAndRumours. As there’s been so much going on with the IP recently, many in the comments feel confident hypothesizing that Sony is planning to launch its own competition to VR chat. This would make sense, considering that the kind of video game hangout that PS Home was trying to be has exploded in popularity as the technology has improved. Other theories suggest the new PS Home will host virtual concerts, much in the same way as Fortnite.
For anyone who doesn’t remember, PS Home launched on PS3 in 2008, and was shut down in 2015 as Sony phased out the console. While it never found mainstream success, it has retained a dedicated following, with some fans creating the “Return Home PS5” campaign over on Twitter.
Previously, these rumours were written off by some due to the fact that renewing unused trademarks is a common practice. This is in order to protect the brand, and stop any other companies from using the PlayStation Home name. However, with the trademark for the title renewed twice in the past few months - as well as the SoHo Engine - it’s looking increasingly likely that the cult favourite is set to return in some capacity.