UPDATED: Welcome Back Program Available Now – Details Inside

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UPDATED: Welcome Back Program Available Now – Details Inside

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.

Welcome Back

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!

Comments are closed.

5,171 Comments

  • @ SONY

    I was signed out of the PSN during the choosing of my 1st “free” PS3 game and, when I went back in, guess what I saw? The choosing of the 1st “free” game was gone. I got WIPEOUT as my 2nd choice. What about my first choice? Are you guys going to give it back to me?

  • HEY SONY HOW COME I GOT RIPPED OFF FOR ONE GAME???

  • I accidentally downloaded the same game twice (InFamous). Any ideas?

  • txidrivermustdie

    I want LittleBigPlanet but it does not appear in the choices. why is that?

  • what if you cant login to your email your account is in?and when is the site maintenance going to be done?

  • @ txidriver

    Are you in Japan? If not for some reason those are the Japanese PSN titles for welcome back. This is just a blog for US/NA. Hope that helps. Europe has different choices also.

  • Hey @Susan Panico so i go and download my free games, i try first download and it tells me its not available at the time, so i proceed to the second download which i download successfully, i go back to try and download the first one and all i have available is PSP downloads, so i was robbed 1 game :( not cool…THANKS

  • Hey Sony! I went to download your Game 2.. and after i downloaded the game 2 It dissapeared and i didn’t get to download my Game! What do i do to download it.

  • I actually got 4 games.
    2 from my NA account and 2 from my EU account…

    LBP
    Infamous
    WipEout
    Ratchet and Clank Quest for booty

    :D

  • and Burnout paradis Full game for 30 days :D

  • i cant download second free game whats goin on server full or what?

  • I ONLY GOT ONE GAME IT WONT LET ME GET THE OTHER WHATS GOING ON PLAYSTATION

  • @ 4784

    Go into accont management on you XMB at the to of the PSN column. Go down to Services and look for “PSN Service…” (Something like that) And it should be there to download.

    Look back at other comments from the first day and read them. This has all been done before and there are better explanations than mine. (Smiley) I wouldn’t count on a whole lot of response today as it’s Sony’s day to shine at E3. I’m sure they’re focused on that at the moment.

  • txidrivermustdie

    @ marlyt

    is that so? i am somewhere in asia and the only free game that i know from the choices is wipeout. others are meh. i think they sucked. this sucks D:
    i was excited about this but know i am disappointed. :|
    anyway thanks. :)

  • When does E3 Start?

  • Sweet! Thanks for Reminding me to Set it up for Recording..

  • Devourer_of_Time

    How do I get my free 30 Days of PlayStation Plus?

    I was able to access and download my two PSP games just fine. However, under the “Welcome Back” section the ‘PlayStation Plus: 30 Days Free’ selection was never available.

    Can anyone help?

  • magnus_the_champ

    i have a bit of problems im from eroup i dont see the 1st and 2nd game i just see one says pick 3 games and i went out of it in a second and then it was all gone! what am i suposed to do? i did only get 1 game

  • 4795th….. suck on that!

  • magnus_the_champ

    your going to press the golden plus sign at the right of the icon of choosing a game

  • Hey Txi

    GO set up a secfondary account and access the us store. On the new account set the region to NA. You obviously speak English so its no problem. You’ll need a second email address though. Get a gmail or yahoo account. That’s how I keep up with what’s going on in EU and JPN. Happy hunting.

  • When visiting the Playstation Store on my PSP Go, there is no tab for Welcome Back. I’ve also followed the instructions to go via Account Management/Transaction Management/Services List and received the message ‘no content was found’. Help?!

  • can anyone anwser my question i bought socom 4 with a resistance 3 beta code but when I try to put it in it says that there was an error as if I put in the code wrong or something

  • I was watching the 360 press on G4 and damn did they fail lol All they really focused on was the Kinect and all they really showed was what looked like to me was Wii style crap lmao..Sony is gonna rock it tonight :)

  • Well this is another fail Sony. The Store took my credits for game 1 and game 2 but only game 2’s choice was placed in my download list. To make it worse it wasn’t the one game I really wanted. My total disappointment with Sony continues I guess.

  • Disregard last, fixed my issue through the FAQ!

  • txidrivermustdie

    @ marlyt

    Right. I’ll do it. I have three accounts. All same region though. What a waste. I’ll try to download the other free games even though I don’t seem to like them.
    Thank :D

  • @ Urlik
    is that an apology to sony? don’t see many of them around these days ;)

  • got 2 games from the welcome back(1 ps3 and 1 psp) but got charged for the other 2 free games (1 ps3 and 1 psp) what to do?

  • Thanks for the free games

  • i cant get on my account

  • Sony, if you are reading this I have a little issue. When i tried to get my 2 free games, I first downloaded wipeout hd + fury. When the dowload was complete it said: Server connection timed out. So i got back into playstation store, and when i tried to get my second game, the option was´nt available anymore. So my problem is that i only got one out of two games. What should i do? You guys who is reading this please comment and tell me if you have had the same issue. To Sony: Thanks on forehand //Emil

  • does the free games work for new players

  • Ms_HelloKittyNYC

    @4810 Read the top of this blog..

  • lol, why do all new people ask if welcome back is for them too? it says WELCOME BACK!!!
    not WELCOME NEW SUBSCRIBERS!!!

  • Im using my psp and i dont see the free 30 days of PS+ in the Welcome Back section.
    Help please?

  • So stoked. Got both my games without a problem. Now to just get my video stuff fixed so I can start buying those again. Hopefully this time, they’ll actually get it fixed instead of just sending me a bunch of “how’d we do” surveys.

  • So i know the playstation store just started is that why the call of duty black ops escalation pack got pushed back I’m not trying to be mean I was just wondering I just was looking really forward to escalation I mean its not that bad because it only got pushed back a week

  • ds7309 my guess is tryarch wanted to be able to give people a little notice about bringing it out before doing so, i believe that is why it was delayed. so ppl can save their money and what not. i cant wait until its out though, wasnt too impressed with the last map pack but i love cod.

  • Even accessing Services List> SCEA Promotion I can not choose the games, what can I do?

  • Didnt u guys say it also includes 30 day of free music from qriocity it sais to put in my credit card

  • If you buy all the content and it is in your downloadable list are you going to be able to download it again after the 30 days has expired………….?

  • @4821 any ps+ you get free will expire but the welcome back you can re-download but discounted stuff you buy from + you keep

  • everything worked for me got infamous and dead nation

  • @4777 did you go to your account management Service list

    I’m trying to help as many people as I can i was able to get my 2 free games easy and my +:)

  • I am really concerned with the future of this country (USA). Why you ask? It seems that the kids today are way advanced when it comes to technology but it also seems they can not follow instructions or comprehend information that is given to them. There must be 100 posts mentioning the fact they can’t download their second free game. If you simply read the blog, it clearly explains what to do………duhhhhh

  • i downloaded little big planet on my psp for free from the welcome back project. It downloads fine but half the way on the installation it says that installation failed.
    and when i go and find the file in the memory stick it says it is a corrupted file. Tried 2 times same thing happend.Any suggestions?

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