UPDATE: Due to high traffic on PlayStation Store, you may encounter error messages or issues. We advise you to check back a little later and try again.
Note: In order to download two games at no cost, you must redeem them from the “Welcome Back” category. The individual titles are still available for purchase outside of the “Welcome Back Program”
If at any point you can’t find the ‘Welcome Back Free Game 1 or 2’ products, the list of available titles or a game you’ve selected, go to your XMB>PlayStation Network>Account Management>Transaction Management>Services List>SCEA Promotions to complete the process.
We’re so excited to welcome you back to PlayStation Network. With the PlayStation Store back online, we’ve been getting all caught up this week, having launched an abundance of amazing content for download on PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable devices across games, movies, themes and DLC. Today, we’re excited to launch the Welcome Back program to thank you for your loyalty, and below, we’ve got what you need in order to get access to the included content. So, here’s a list of questions about the program. If you don’t see your question below, mention it in the comments and we’ll do our best to provide an answer. Thanks again for your patience and understanding as we restored the PlayStation Network and Qriocity services – your support has meant a lot to us and is greatly appreciated.
Q: What’s in the Welcome Back Program?
A: To start, all PSN members who had signed up before the outage (April 20, 2011) will be able to select two games for the PS3 system and two games for the PSP system.
For PS3 owners, go to the ‘Welcome Back’ section in the PlayStation Store, and select 2 titles from the following list:
- Dead Nation
- inFAMOUS
- LittleBigPlanet
- Super Stardust HD
- Wipeout HD + Fury
For PSP owners, go to the ‘Welcome Back’ section of PlayStation Store on your PSP system and select 2 titles from the following list:
- LittleBigPlanet (PSP)
- ModNation Racers
- Pursuit Force
- Killzone Liberation
Select your first game from “Game 1”, then return to the Welcome Back page and go to “Game 2” to select your second game out of the remaining choices available. This goes for both PS3 and PSP.
In addition, we’re giving access to our premium subscription service, PlayStation Plus, which includes games, huge discounts, exciting exclusives and added features like online storage and automatic downloads, to all PSN members for 30 days at no charge, requiring no long term commitment. As with the games above, go to the PlayStation Store and under the ‘Welcome Back’ section, select ‘PlayStation Plus: 30 Days Free’, and you’ll be given access to all of the benefits of PlayStation Plus. Note that this will not auto-renew and simply expires 30 days after activation.
Current Plus subscribers receive an extra 60 days added to their existing subscription at no charge. For current Plus subscribers, no action is needed as the 60 days are automatically added to your subscription.
PlayStation Network users will also get 100 virtual items in PlayStation Home as a show of appreciation for your patience while Home was inaccessible. Additional content is coming soon, including the next addition to the Home Mansion personal space, and Ooblag’s Alien Casino, an exclusive game.
A selection of “On Us” movie rentals are currently available to PlayStation Network customers this weekend only, where Video Service is available.
Finally, current Music Unlimited Premium subscription members will receive an additional 30 days of premium subscription plus days lost due to the outage.
Q: When will I have access to the Welcome Back Program?
A: The content offered as part of the Welcome Back Program is available for download today and will be available through July 3.
Q: I have both PS3 and PSP. Does this mean I will get 4 games all together?
A: Yes, as long as you were a PSN member before April 20, 2011, you’ll be able to receive up to 4 games based on the titles listed above; 2 on each platform.
Q: Are there any limitations to the PS3 and PSP games we are receiving as part of the Welcome Back Program?
A: These games are yours to keep.
Q: How long do I have to get into the PlayStation Store and receive my content for Welcome Back?
A: Access to the Welcome Back content will be expiring on July 3. Once this date has passed, the Welcome Back section in the PlayStation Store will be removed.
Q: When does the 30 days of my PlayStation Plus access expire?
A: Your PlayStation Plus 30-day access will expire 30 days from the date you activated it in PlayStation Store.
Q: When will (insert game here) be published?
A: Look forward to posts over the coming days that will show what content will be available at that point, or coming soon. We’re planning frequent store publishes offering lots of new content for everyone to enjoy.
Q: I’m getting 30 days of access to PlayStation Plus; can you refresh my memory on what I get with this service?
A: From the time you activate your 30 days of PlayStation Plus, you’ll be able to download games and game related content, purchase select store items at a discount, and have access to the exclusive features of Plus. You’ll also be able to get early access to any Plus exclusive Demos and priority Beta invitations that might be scheduled during your 30 days.
Q: Do I get to keep the games in PlayStation Plus forever?
A: Content that is free in PlayStation Plus will not be available after your PlayStation Plus time has expired. However, if you decide to join PlayStation Plus, you’ll have access to all of the content you downloaded during your 30 day access for as long as you are a subscriber.
Q: Do I get to keep any games or content I purchased with the PlayStation Plus discount?
A: Yes. Any content you purchase at a discount is yours to keep, regardless of your subscription status.
Q: Aside from the games and discounts; does PlayStation Plus offer anything else?
A: Yes! PlayStation Plus includes the Online Storage for Game Saves feature, allowing you to backup treasured game saves or access them from another PS3 system as long as you are a subscriber. In addition, you get the Automatic Download feature, which automatically updates your 10 most recently played games while the system is in stand-by mode so you don’t have to wait for updates before playing your games.
Q: What content will be in PlayStation Plus when I activate my 30 days?
A: PlayStation Plus content and discounts are regularly updated throughout the month. For up-to-date information on content within PlayStation Plus, please visit the Plus homepage.
Q: Where can I find the Welcome Back content in Home?
A: The 100 virtual items can be found in the kiosk in Home’s Central Plaza along with two personal spaces – Dragon’s Lair and the Mansion Garage. A new game – Ooblag’s Alien Casino – will be released soon (June 2011). This game will be free-to-play. As an added bonus, players that access the Ooblag Alien Casino space will be rewarded an active item version of the Ooblag game that can be played in your personal space(s).
Q: How do I access the content in the Welcome Back Program?
A: Follow the steps below to access the content in the Welcome Back Program:
1. Log on to PlayStation®Store
2. Click on the “Welcome Back” tab in the upper left menu
3. Select “Welcome Back Free PS3™ Game 1”
4. Within the category, click on the “Welcome Back Free PS3™ Game 1” product and “Get Now”
5. Select your free PS3™ game*, and “Download”*
6. Repeat steps 3-5 with “Welcome Back Free PS3™ Game 2”
7. Go to the XMB™ to play your free games.
Q: I clicked on one of the Welcome Back Free PS3/PSP Game 1/2 selections, clicked “Get Now”, but no games showed up. Now that option is no longer selectable in the Store. Where is my game?
A: This is an issue we’re working on resolving, however for the time being, you can still get to that content by going to the XMB and under the PlayStation Network column, go to Account Management>Transaction Management>Services List>SCEA Promotion. You should be able to access the content in the option you selected here.
Q: Why am I getting errors saying I can’t access the Store?
A: Due to the surge of people going to the Store, you may experience some blocks in accessing certain areas of the store. Give it another try, or wait for a small period of time to avoid the rush.
Remember, if you didn’t see your question answered above, drop us a line below and we’ll do our best to answer it. Welcome Back!
plz help sony i was promised free games and nthn
@AMBSNAKE, Its spamming to try to get the free content promised? wow how crazy of everyone man we should all be ashamed, its not like Sony should have staggered the release of the welcome back program in manageable traffic groups or anything! Man thanks for setting us str8t!
NAHT
Was a huge sony fan..count me independent.
Yea so i went to download my second free game and it said i couldnt then took my second free game download away, so now i only got 1 free game.
Question: I was only able to get one game, it won’t let me get a second one, does it mean I only get one game? and the store keeps popping up errors.
362
+ mrcinsc on June 3rd, 2011 at 10:53 am said:
Yes I care to comment. If they had nothing but Indie titles that a very small percentage of people downloaded. People would complain that “No one has these games, FU Sony, why don’t you put better triple A titles on the list?” So they decided to put triple A titles on the list. Still “Everyone has these games, FU Sony.” No matter what Sony can do nothing right in the eyes of the greedy.
Is there any fix to the errors that prevent me from accessing the PS3 store or download anything from Home store?
ok
people need to just be paitent if you cant get it right this second, when sony says they have 77 million users i bet you believe it now right? Now that you want ou games and others are getting it and the traffic is alot so relax, it isnt going anywhere… thanks SONY, now i can have infamous on my HDD
I can’t access the Playstation Store it say “An error has occurred (80710D36). Sony please what is going?
Hi there,
The games that been offered for the ps3 are big and require a lot of memory.
Is there anyway to backup them in a case that I’ll have to format my system in the future?
okay so i have an issue my recent players list in black ops is all like met 48570 days ago lol and it doesnt work so can some one help me !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PLEASE
“sony, i thing you should post another blog with these instructions: go to Account Management>Transaction Management>Services List>SCEA Promotions and you should be able to select accordingly”
FOR THE MILLIONTH TIME…
This does not work. Stop posting it. Tried this, got an error, now it won’t let me try it again.
Sony’s solution to THEIR problem, just gives you more problems… stop posting their solution, because it DOESN’T work.
I have a question for you Morgan. I hope you’ll answer, because I haven’t got a response from anyone else I’ve contacted on this yet.
Can I get a couple games as part of this welcome back / customer appreciation thing, like other loyal customers are getting?
I already have all of the games from this short list. I bought them with my own money before your company put my personal information at risk. Now some customers are being given a nice gift, and other customers like me are getting nothing.
PlayStation Network > Account Management>Transaction Management>Services List>SCEA Promotions
You may get errors, just go back and try again.
Thanks I was going to ask a question but you already answered it. Thanks for the info and follow up.
So if we’re looking at the PS store and see that a game is free with PS+, like Sonic 2, we really only get to keep it until our PS+ subscription runs out? That’s a little useless. I don’t need a 30 day trial of a game that came out 20 years ago. You’re welcoming us back with something that is only useful to us if we give you more money… Can’t say I feel very welcomed any more.
@34: I had the same problem..I’m on the phone with playstation now
what about those who already have the games listed under the ps3 and psp section? i’m not trying to be greedy or anything just raise the question, seeing as i already have all the games being offered.
ok is the welcome back package up cause i tried going into the game one went to purchase game one and all i got was an error and free game one disappeared
@Klokateer1986. Thank you for that tip. You are the man. I hope that trick works for you soon.
everyone needs to get a bowl of wheedies & chill.
@ 405 – If you think it’s greedy that people would like to be included in a nice reward program that some/other people are benefiting from, then maybe you think no one should get any games out of this? That’s a pretty narrow, selfish view. I’m not being greedy, I would just like to be able to benefit from this welcome back package like other less-loyal customers are able to.
And you’re wrong to say that Sony couldn’t win either way. Instead of offering five specific popular games, they could have offered some credits to be used on games that loyal customers like me don’t already have.
Hey if anyone at sony reads this, tell the help center to ignore my e-mail.
I was only able to download infamous. I tried downloading the other 3 games and plus but errors came up. Now infamous is the only game I was able to download and the only thing one my download list. What do I do to fix this. I really wanted to try the games and become a plus member and see if I would like it and continue doing it. Sony are you going fix this?
I’ve commented on sony blogs three times and you’ve responded to all of them poptarts… kind of creepy but ok. I still stand by original stance that a credit should have been issued. It is very generous of them to offer anything at all so in some ways I am thankful for their attempt to satisfy the masses but it still sucks as none of the titles interest me and as some already own all 5 of the free games…
my welcome back wont work i download the thing that it tells you to butt after that everthing was gone only the them was there
OK IM SORRY BUT THIS BLOWS
? what happen 2 the geese pets from the barron game alot of people hew had that still have not gotn those yet. like always im one of them lol. did we get ripd off
People, get off the store, i need to spend my moneys
I clicked to download game one it is telling me the content cannot be downloaded at this time so I backed out when I left though my ps3 game one button was gone and all I have left is ps3 game 2 and I don’t wanna risk losing that too did I just mess up my chances of getting both free games? I was reading through here and tried going to account management and looking at my downloads but account management has an error what do I do :( I hope I didn’t mess up
Hey, Sony, when will the site maintenance be done? I leave on vacation next week, was hoping to get all my DLC/new games before then. Geez.
I keep getting an error when I try to download my free game 1(even through the account management method, it keeps saying “An error has occurred (80710D36) What;s going on?
“This cannot be selected at this time”
WTF means that????
if people slow down on the store you will get your free downloads let the server catch up with what billions of people are trying to do all at once
nvm a previous comment solved it thanks :D
I keep getting some error that removed the second PS3 game and second PSP game from the store. The error code is 80710D36.
I can’t access any of the rewards, I’m doing everything
when I went to free game 1 …. I pressed get now … it gave me an error so I pressed back to hide error then pressed get now again and the error apeared and I made the same thing again then when I pressed get now it said ‘the content cannot be selected at this time ‘ so I pressed back (circle) ,,,, the game 1 dissapeared now I’m trying game 2 … the same is happening but I wont go back till u tell me!
this is what im talking about here. where do i start.
Go play a round of Frisbee Golf at ur nearest disc golf course – then come back & try again.
Due to internet problems, i just missed out on getting the first game, went in and pressed yes for infamous, or whatever the word was, it wasn’t yes, and it said error, now i can’t get to it for some reason and it says error every time i try to do something psn related :/
this is all so messed up sony. time to make a second welcome back.
Just be patient people. If you cant download your games go to account management then transaction management then services list. If you see an error keep trying eventually it will work or try again later.
i love u dude5689
LAME!!!! I tried getting my free PS3 games but in the process it kept on saying error connection something and I thought it was my connection but I can see other people are having the same problem . . . and now I cant get my free PS3 games they wont show up . . . i can see you guys didnt test the playstation store well enough very dissapointed
“PlayStation Network > Account Management>Transaction Management>Services List>SCEA Promotions
You may get errors, just go back and try again.”
What part of THIS DOESNT WORK don’t you understand?
My “Free game 1” shows up in my transaction history, but there are no downloads in my list, and every time I do the transaction management, it says my “free game 1” has expired, and won’t let me download it again.
If you dont know where to start go to Playstation Store then Welcome Back as soon as it loads. Dont pick what game you want until you “Get” playstation game 1 or 2
The account management method does work just be patient with the servers right now but really where is infamous?
If you’re not seeing inFamous in your selections, there are two reasons why this might be happening: – either you already own it or you downloaded the full game trial (via PS Plus) and didn’t boot the file. If you fall into the latter category, boot the file, wait an hour and the title should be available as an option in Welcome Back. Hope this helps!