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!
I went into Service List and I dont see SCEA in there at all, what am I doing wrong?
ooh im so scared… comment awaiting moderation
not working
dammit
i just got my ps3 and sigined up after april 20th of this year how can i get the 2 free games
It would be nice if we could not use our 2 free PSP games and then when the PS Vita comes out we could use them for games on the Vita.
I can’t download the 2 free games for my psp, when I hit confirm on the welcome back icon, it pops up with nothing in the boxes. Also, I tried the other way by going into account management>transaction management>services list>SCEA Promotions to download the game but under services it said none present.
Yes, i have a problem i picked Infamous as one of my two free games and its not even on my download list and my other free Playstation 3 game was Wipeout and i downloaded the unlock version or what ever its called but it doesnt seem to be in my downloaded games….any help?
plz can some1 help me get the free ps plus membership? i hav both teh games for psp and ps3, but i cant get ps plus…? i think sony has mucked this up: my friend didnt hav ps plus and now got 90 days free….? plz help?
I am also having problems finding the icon to activate my free Playstaton Plus account. I have the free games already, but I never saw the free 30 days service.
is the welcome package can only be downloaded on the consoles not my pcs??
have they fixed the free psp thing cause ihad the same problem nd it didnt show up on my recent downloads wat do i do?
I’m having a problem claiming one of my free (psp) games.
For the first welcome back pack, after I clicked ‘get now’ on the pack itself it didn’t give me an option to select which game I wanted.
I tried it again with the second one, and it correctly allowed me to choose modnation racers which I -am- able to download and appears on my recent download list… but there seems to be no way for me to choose the first game that I never received an option for. Any suggestions?
hey guys. um. when i went today to claim my PNS welcome back package. i followed the instructions and when i went to the services list. there is no services listed at all…
what do i do?
i was a pns member since before april 20th, and i even checked the other account on my PS3 that used a credit card # to purchase a game thinking that it was because of the information on there that, that account would get the benefits because it might have lost the most.
anyways, i hope i can get this resolved. thanks guys!
Hi, Im from Brazil and I wanna know how Latin American users can use the Welcome Back Program as we dont have access to the PlayStation Store.
Thank you.
I got my psp for my birthday and the same day the network shutdown was unable to create an account, i feel a little bit cheated here, I dont get no free game, I want angry birds, tried to get on everyday but couldnot , now store is open again and i cant find angry birds it is no longer in the minis, or anywhere else, where did it go
Hey Sony, could you please leave the welcome back package on for more time? There are still lots of people who won’t be able to download the games due to ignorance. It wouldn’t hurt to leave it on for August 3rd or something like that.
I mean PLEASE, I need these games, and I won’t be able to download the games until July 14th.
Or is there some way I could “buy them” on another PS3 and not download them, then download them on my PS3?
Please help me, I wouldn’t want to miss two great games on PS3, I would’ve extremely sad if I just had to let the time pass with my ps3 sitting there doing nothing. And I’ve had a PSN account since before the outage, and I was somewhat affected from it too, not like other people, but I was. Well the thing is, that I will have the PS3 available again in July 14th, so… Would you mind leaving the welcome back package for more time?
Thank you
Hmm, I’ve been a member for years and I’m not seeing a “welcome back” tab… Since my PSP can’t connect over WPA2 I haven’t had it online in ages…
So now what?
Ok. what if you don’t see anything at all. Well i go to the playstation store click on welcome back in the left hand corner and this picture that says welcome back comes up but there is empty spaces next to it. i try clicking on the picture and noothing happens. i go to the empty spots and click it says no content found. so i tried going through all the account management stuff and when i get to the services list it says no content was found. what the heck is going on lol my psp dont play games anymore cuz something messed up in it. so i’m kinda relying on these games. And so is my five year old son lol please help before july 3rd (before it ends) :(
I didn’t have enough GB on my psp when i tried to download it then when i came back with more GB it said I already downloaded a game!!?!?! HELP ME!!!???!!!
SONY PLEASE HELP!
On the PSN under ‘welcome back’ i only get the large leftside ‘welcome back’ window showcasing the games and instructions, but nothing for me to ‘select’ from the right (and ‘choosing’ that leftside window changes nothing on-screen); Likewise, going into acct mgmt/trans/services list reveals only ‘no content was found’.
[DELETED]! My screens look nothing like the how-to’s that’ve been posted up on youtube, et al. where the redeem process is totally straight-forward.
PLEASE notify me on how to redeem my games – i’ve waited three weeks hoping it was a glitch in the Canadian Store, but now i’m afraid i’m just screwed and won’t get in on some LBP and Infamous action!!!
ive got a problem, i downloaded the two free games but playstation plus is not available why
i want angry birds
After My PSN Plus 30 Days Ends ..
My Downloaded Games Will Be Mine Forever Right ?
Or ?
If you bought them, then yes, but if you got them for free, you will need to renovate your suscription to play them again.
Forget it. I got the sollution already. xD
So if I get this right, We PS3 owners who were not PSN members before the outage (April 20, 2011), however we still owed the console during the outage, will not be able to collect the free games?
That kind of sucks because we had the console but could not use the online feature, one of the console’s key features and suffered as much as everybody else!?
So I do not get any compensation if I did not sign up before the outage (april 20, 2011) ?
I own a PSP and might get a PS3 soon, so if I get a PS3 before the offer expires will I still get 2 free games for the PS3?
ps. Yes I joined before April 20, 2011.
Can someone please tell me why my downloaded InFamous has NO SOUND!?!? It’s so frustration, can’t play a game that has no sound at all. :(
I just now got PSN for my psp a few minutes, am I still eligible for my two free games? :) if so let me know.
I checked but the welcome back promotion is empty.. :(
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. <~~ THIS IS NOT WORKING.
i need help!! when ever i finish downloading a game n i go to install in when it reaches to 14% it says error.
can someone plz help me I’ve been trying to download infamous.
I tried to download Infamous and LittleBigPlanet, but its downloading 2 copies of littlebigplanet and now I cannot get Infamous! I am leaving for Vancouver in 7 hours for 5 days..what do I do??
I just recently bought a psp from my friend and it wont let me sign into my PSN it says that i cannot log in with another Username, what can i do to get it back?
It doesn’t work! when i go to my psp and go to psn and go to the welcome back tab for psp all is blank!!!! why! wtf?!
i try to get the free playstation plus,but it doesnt appear on the welcome back screen.is it not available on the psp?thanks in advance.
hey
Boys, & Girls there is nothing free here?
Hey when are going to create a store for Argentina?!!!!!!!!!
it charged me for 1 game twice how can i get my other game??
HELLO :}
;
how do you get the free 30 day playstation plus on a psp
I’m a student and I just move out for the summer for a job opportunity. I didn,t bring my PS3 wih me. Is there a way to still get my free games?
Followed the on screen directions and I can’t seem to get the games either. Looks like the promo ended early. I thought it was July 3rd? What’s the deal!
anyone know when exactly is the last date to get welcome back things, i know july 3 but is that on july 3 before july 4 or does it end on july 3 at 12:01 am
So, I’m seeing the Welcome Back program expires tomorrow (July 4), but… I’m in sort of an interesting situation. My PS3 Yellow Ring of Death’d back in April. I sent it off for repair, got it back, and had it for almost a month when PSN went down. A scant few days after it was brought back online, my newly “repaired” PS3 YLOD’d all over again (meaning another trip to the service center). It’s still not back, and I’ve not yet redeemed any of this lovely free-ness that’s supposed to make me forget that the PSN was inpoerable for most of the little time I had with the “repaired” unit.
All this to ask: Is there the possibility of an exception being made on the deadline for people in interesting circumstances? Already none too happy over PSN being down, but add that to having to have two PS3 units sent to service over the last three months, and well… it’s not been a very good playstation experience for this guy.
Whatcha think?
It’s morning of July 3, but the welcome back program is already gone. A day early, very nice Sony.
Also, logging into the PSN shows me a grey screen with
Site Maintenance Notice
The server is currently down for maintenance.
What a welcome! Ah well, didn’t really want the free games. Too bad I bothered to update the firmware to see this.