Daylight Savings! - Spring Forward 3/11/2012
If you're in the U.S. (except non-observing states/territories) don't forget to "Spring Forward" this Sunday! Daylight Saving Time starts on Sunday, March 11th, 2012. Set your clock ahead one hour before you go to bed on Sunday night. Or if you're still awake (we know you, you crazy gamers!), the time change goes into effect at 2:00 a.m.
Forum Maintenance: Thursday, March 8, 2012
Forum Maintenance: Thursday, March 8, 2012
Important: We will perform maintenance on all SOE forums beginning at 7:00 AM Pacific* on March 8, 2012. All forums will be unavailable for 3 hours during this maintenance.
We apologize for this interruption and will resume all affected services as soon as the maintenance is completed.
*Convert to your local time
SOE Community Webcast: At the Speed of Dev
SOE Producers are hosting an Industry Mixer at GDC (Game Developers Conference) on Thursday! To get things rolling, we've invited a developer from each game team to give us a lightning-fast insight into what it's like to work on their team and answer questions YOU submitted about working in the game industry? all at the speed of Dev!
Join us on Wednesday, March 7th, at 4:00pm Pacific Time on?Twitch?TV!?
See you on?Twitch?TV!?
*Convert to your local time?
The Telon Puzzle ? March 05, 2012
Maintenance Notice: Monday, March 5, 2012
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Maintenance Notice: Monday, March 5, 2012
Important:?We will perform maintenance beginning at 11:00 PM Pacific* on March 5, 2012. This will impact the following services:
- The following games will be unavailable will?starting at 11:00 PM on March 5, 2012 to approximately 5:00 AM Pacific* on March 6, 2012
- Free Realms
- Clone Wars Adventures
- DC Universe Online
- PoxNora
- EverQuest II - (Antonia Bayle, Sebilis and Nagafen will not be affected)
- EverQuest - Povar
- Magic the Gathering Tactics
- Account management will be unavailable starting at 11:00 PM on March 5, 2012 to approximately 7:00 AM Pacific* on March 6, 2012
- Commerce transactions, including purchases on our websites and in-game marketplaces will be unavailable between 11:00 PM on March 5, 2012 to approximately 7:00 AM Pacific* on March 6, 2012
- Forums will be read-only starting at 11:00 PM on March 5, 2012 to approximately 7:00 AM Pacific* on March 6, 2012
- Login for ALL games will be affected from 11:00 on March 5, 2012 PM to 5:00 AM Pacific* on March 6, 2012 (players already logged in should not be impacted)
We apologize for this interruption and will resume all affected services as soon as the maintenance is completed.
*Convert to your local time
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SOE Community Webcast: A Day in the Life of Quality Assurance
The SOE Quality Assurance Team has a tough job, but someone has to do it! Nick Patience (QA Tester), Jamie Wolfcale (QA Tester), Nick Montez (QA Tester), and Tyler Roudenbush (QA Tester) will tell you what a day in the Quality Assurance department is really like. We'll also talk about how you can help them by leveling up your bug-reporting skills. And, if you're curious about the industry, the guys plan to share how they got their start and how you could, too, so don't miss it! ?We are taking your questions here! ?The guys would like to answer you questions on the air, we are collecting them?here.
Join us on Thursday, March 1, 2012, at 4:00 p.m. US Pacific Time* on?Twitch?TV!?The webcast is expected to last about 20 minutes.
See you on?Twitch?TV!?
*Convert to your local time?
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Maintenance Notice: Tuesday, February 28, 2012
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Maintenance Notice: Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Important:?We will perform maintenance beginning at 2:30 AM Pacific* on February 28, 2012. This will impact the following services:
- Account management will be unavailable starting at 2:30 AM to approximately 8:00 AM Pacific*
- Commerce transactions, including purchases on our websites and in-game marketplaces will be unavailable between 2:30 AM to approximately 8:00 AM Pacific*
- Forums will be read-only starting at 2:30 AM to approximately 7:00 AM Pacific*
- Login for our games will be affected from 2:30 AM to 7:00 AM Pacific* (players already logged in should not be impacted)
We apologize for this interruption and will resume all affected services as soon as the maintenance is completed.
*Convert to your local time
The Telon Puzzle ? February 27, 2012
Vanguard Gets a New Community Manager
It started out as just an ordinary day on the world of Telon. Peaceful relations and aggressive conflicts were occurring as normal on all three continents - Thestra, Kojan, and Qalia. The gods were being worshipped with ritualistic ceremonies, and the denizens were going about their daily tasks.
As night fell, a terrible force ripped through the fabric of the realm, making way for the arrival of a dark and evil being, garbed in black.
Whispers and rumors began to spread all throughout the lands. They asked, "Who is this strange being? What does she have planned for us?"
Greetings, Vanguard: Saga of Heroes Community!
I'm the new Community Manager for Vanguard: Saga of Heroes! Don't worry, I didn't destroy Naylie. She's still around but has just moved on to take the reins on another project.
While some of you may already be familiar with me from the past, allow me to share with you all a little bit more! Some people might say that if SOE had dinosaurs, I would be one of them. I started working at Sony Online Entertainment before SOE was actually formed, back in the Verant days; May 7, 1999, to be exact.
For almost 13 years, I have worked in various positions here at SOE, including Lead Game Master, Game Designer, and Community Relations Manager. In one way or another, I have worked on most of our games, including Vanguard. Technically, I was even the first official Community Manager for Vanguard under SOE, as I helped with getting it set up for the transition!
While I haven't had time to visit this world in the past few years, I'm no stranger to Telon and its history?or its future. ;) We'll have more on that after I spend a little bit of time getting settled and back up to speed. For now, look for more in-game events and community features on the website, and let's get to know each other!
Lydia Pope
Community Relations Manager
~Zatozia the Torturess in the Shadows~
Za-to-zia = Zuh-TOE-zsuh (i.e. Zsuh Zsuh instead of Zsa Zsa Gabor, dah-link!)
The Telon Puzzle ? February 22, 2012
SOE Community Webcast: EverQuest Hero's Journey and PlanetSide 2 Weaponry!
We've got two exciting webcasts for you this week one on Thursday and one on Friday!
Thursday EverQuest Hero's Journey
The world of Norrath is deep, challenging, and massive. Finding your way and your friends in this world can sometimes be the same, especially for newer players who are just beginning to scratch the surface of the game's stunning 18 expansions. Join members of the EverQuest team as they discuss navigating around Norrath and some changes planned for the future, including new tutorials and the Hero's Journey. You won't want to miss this!
Join us on Thursday, February 23, 2012, at 4:00 p.m. US Pacific Time* on Twitch TV!
Friday PlanetSide 2 Weaponry
Check your loadout, soldiers, and get ready to talk about hardware! The PlanetSide 2 team will be on hand to discuss weaponry from the Terran Republic, New Conglomerate, and Vanu Sovereignty. Do you have questions about the previews you've seen over the last few weeks? Here is your chance to learn more! You won't want to miss this PlanetSide 2 weaponry webcast.
Join us on Friday, February 24, 2012, at 4:30 p.m. US Pacific Time* on Twitch TV!
See you on Twitch TV!
*Convert to your local time
The Telon Puzzle ? February 15, 2012
Maintenance Notice: Thursday, February 16, 2012
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Maintenance Notice: Thursday, February 16, 2012
Important:?We will perform maintenance beginning at 6:00 AM Pacific* on February 16, 2012. This will impact the following services:
- Account management will be unavailable starting at 6:00 AM to approximately 7:00 AM Pacific*
- Commerce transactions, including purchases on our websites and in-game marketplaces will be unavailable between 6:00 AM to approximately 7:00 AM Pacific*
- Forums will be read-only starting at 6:00 AM to approximately 7:00 AM Pacific*
- Login for our games?will be affected from 6:00 AM to 7:00 AM Pacific* (players already logged in should not be impacted)
We apologize for this interruption and will resume all affected services as soon as the maintenance is completed.
*Convert to your local time
SOE Community Webcasts: PoxNora - Crusade of the Vashal and DC Universe Online?s Next DLC?Pack
On Thursday, February 16, 2012 we have two great webcasts for you: PoxNora - Crusade of the Vashal and DC Universe Online's Next DLC Pack
First up, at 4pm, are you ready to learn all about the next PoxNora expansion, Crusade of the Vashal? The team is ready to tell you all about it! Host Linda "Brasse" Carlson (Director, Global Community Relations) will interview Luke "Hawkfain" Bultman (Producer) and Derek "Sokolov" Chin (Lead Designer) to give you a preview of what's to come. We'll also show off some rune art, so don't miss it!
Then at 4:30 pm the next DLC Pack for DC Universe Online is fast approaching, and the team is ready to tell you all about it. Join Lorin Jameson (Executive Producer), Jens Andersen (Creative Director), and other members of the DCUO Development Team as they talk about DLC 3, Game Update 10, and what's ahead for DCUO. You won't want to miss this insider's look at the next DLC!
Join us on Thursday, February 16, 2012, at 4:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. US Pacific Time* on Twitch TV! These webcasts are expected to last about 20 minutes.
*Convert to your local time
Official SOE Podcast #126 is Live!
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Official SOE Podcast #126
Join us for the Official SOE Podcast #126 - the "Love Cast!" Your host, Aimee "Ashlanne" Rekoske is joined by your co-host Linda "Brasse" Carlson. Listen in as they chat about Valentine's Day in our games, Gamer Safety Week, and Spouse Aggro. We'll also have an interview with Nathan "Kaitheel" McCall, Game Designer II on EverQuest II. Let us know what you think at podcast@soe.sony.com or head over to the Station Forums and share your opinion with the Community!
You can download the MP3 file directly or subscribe to the RSS feed by clicking the button listed below. We have MP3, M4A, and YouTube versions available.
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Don't forget you can find us on Twitter and Facebook! 
Maintenance Notice: Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Maintenance Notice: Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Important: We will perform maintenance beginning at 7:00 AM Pacific* on February 8, 2012. This will impact the following services:
- Account management will be unavailable starting at 7:00 AM to approximately 8:30 AM Pacific*
- Commerce transactions, including purchases on our websites and in-game marketplaces will be unavailable between 7:00 AM to approximately 8:30 AM Pacific*
- Forums will remain open during the downtime however you may lose permissions and experience occasional disconnects between 7:00 AM to approximately 8:30 AM Pacific*
- Login for our games MAY be affected from 7:00 AM to approximately 8:30 AM Pacific*
We apologize for this interruption and will resume all affected services as soon as the maintenance is completed.
*Convert to your local time
SOE Community Webcasts: Free Realms and EQ2 Players Sneak Peek
On Thursday, February 9, 2012 we have two great webcasts for you: Free Realms Festival of Hearts and EQ2 Players Sneak Peek
First up, at 4pm, Love is in the air, which means the Festival of Hearts has returned to Free Realms! Referee Ruby is joined by Nafisah Tung (Artist) and Chris Fritchoff (Designer) to chat about this year's exciting Festival of Hearts events and activities. We'll also talk about the Festival of Hearts themed items and Community Events, so don't miss it!
Then at 4:30 pm the Beta version of the new and improved EQ2 Players site is nearly ready to launch! Join host Linda "Brasse" Carlson as she sits down with SOE's Clif Bate (Director of Commerce Services & Web Presence) and Abby Watt (Associate Web Producer) to get a sneak peek at what we've been working on. If you have questions you'd like to see answered, Brasse will be collecting questions from the forums. You do not want to miss Abby and Clif answering them live!
Join us on Thursday, February 9, 2012, at 4:00 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. US Pacific Time* on Twitch TV! These webcasts are expected to last about 20 minutes.
*Convert to your local time
Gamer Safety Week February 2012
By Scott Dale (Customer Service Manager)?
and Linda "Brasse" Carlson (Director, Global Community Relations)
Every day, thousands of game accounts are stolen. Tens of thousands of credit cards are compromised. Most of you know someone who has gone through this traumatic experience. Maybe it has even happened to you.
Sony Online Entertainment has joined together with a number of high-profile game companies under the umbrella of the Gamer Safety Alliance to bring you?Gamer Safety Week, running from February 6th to12th, 2012.
Our goal is to raise awareness of online security concerns, and to provide some suggestions for our players to keep their accounts safe. These principles apply regardless of whether you sign up for a game, buy some shoes, or donate to a charity online.? In this article, we'll share some actual experiences from our customer service files and how to avoid these nightmares.
Over the past year, SOE has redoubled its efforts to continually improve our company's online security on all levels. Keeping your information safe and secure is one of our top priorities. Even with our evolving security measures, it is still too easy for scammers and hackers to work around all security by counting on the trusting nature of players and the sheer volume of places where information may be shared.
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Scott Dale, guarding against fraud and wrongdoing.
AN ALL TOO COMMON SCENARIO
It's 2:00 a.m. Friday morning?you are fast asleep, resting up for your big raid on Saturday. While you dream of rare loot drops, a person utterly unknown to you logs into your account and starts to strip it. If you're lucky, they only sell off your equipment and broker items. It's more likely that they will attempt to collect everything you have, even packing up your house items, and then sell it all to the broker. Then they use your Station Cash to buy a character transfer token, transfer your character to a new server, and give all your plat to some low level character named Ureiwoeri (or something similar - we apologize if there is an actual character out there named Ureiwoeri). Sometimes they delete your character, whether this is done for spite or just to attempt to cover the trail, we really don't know. Years worth of personal investment is simply gone.
The clock starts ticking - you need to contact SOE Customer Support to verify your account ownership. We'll assign a GM to investigate and restore all of your items. A full character restore is not a one-click fix. Finding and restoring your character and all of your levels is a time consuming, manual process that takes several hours. With luck, we'll have you sorted out before your raid begins that evening.
If you are now a little paranoid about your account, that's good?keep reading!
The good news: there's a very good chance that SOE's Customer Service had already noticed unusual behavior on your account and put a stop to it before too much damage was done, locking your account to prevent further attempts against it.
Even better news: there are a few very simple things you can do to prevent this from happening at all.?
Ensure that your account has a strong password by using a combination of numbers, symbols, and upper and lower case letters. Don't use the same password across multiple accounts or services, and change your passwords regularly. Click?here?for more tips on password security.
If that seems like too much work, then the fraudsters have already won. Incredibly skilled hackers take advantage of our human tendency to use the same username and password everywhere simply because it's easier. Remember that highly motivated scammers and hackers work tirelessly, day and night, to obtain your account information across the internet. This is?big business?and hugely profitable around the globe, especially in places that our laws cannot reach. The perpetrators are highly organized and professional criminals.
A common path for criminals is to quietly and expertly hack the forums on a small fan site or a tiny (possibly even defunct) game company's login information. They then take that list of logins and passwords and start to hammer all of the major online games. Even though some of the information they access can be years old, some people have not changed passwords in that time. The compromised sites themselves usually remain utterly unaware that the data was stolen. Only companies with significant security protocols would even know that it was breached, because the vast majority of hackers for profit do not leave a calling card or brag about their efforts?they're in it for the money.
It's not just game accounts that are at risk. All transactions, online and in person, are potential routes to loss. As Brad Wilcox, head of SOE's Customer Service department was famously quoted a few years back, "We'll get calls from a grandmother in Wisconsin asking what the heck is EQ2 and why do I have $15,000 charged to my credit card?" Where did the scammers get her card information? It's anyone's guess. While many people are leery of making online purchases due to fraud, they seldom think twice about giving a credit card to a shopkeeper who makes a manual receipt, or restaurant worker who then disappears with it for several minutes. The paths to loss are many and we all have to help ourselves keep our information safe.
How can you remember all of your logins and passwords then? Consider writing them down on paper and storing them in a safe place. It seems old-fashioned, but it works. A small, fireproof safe is a very valuable one-time investment. Not only will it keep your account information safe, it can protect your most precious documents, including passports, social security cards, and car and home titles, from loss, flood, or fire. If you ever have to deal with identity theft or replacement of documents, you'll find that the safe was a much less expensive option. The chances of someone breaking in and stealing your safe are infinitely smaller than the ease with which they can access data online.
Linda "Brasse" Carlson, defender against evildoers and stray trolls.
NO MATTER WHAT YOUR PARENTS TAUGHT YOU ABOUT SHARING?
Never, ever share your account information or password. Friends and guildmates all too commonly become ex-friends or ex-guildmates, after cleaning out the accounts of a great many people who trusted them. Even ex-spouses and relatives have been known to betray trust for the sake of profit or revenge, selling or deleting items and characters. It is an incredibly painful thing to watch people go through. If you have?ever?shared your account information, go in and change your password immediately to something very safe and secure.
Never buy plat, gold, or powerleveling services. You may even end up buying your own plat back! We know from our own investigations that the scammer that stole all your items in our case study is very likely the same one that sells your plat in game. In fact, the main goal of many online currency and powerleveling services is to obtain your account information in any way they can. Even if they do not use the information themselves in an effort to look legitimate, they will very likely sell your information to yet another company. Remember, they have already proven that they have no regard for rules, and your trust is merely currency for them.
Keep in mind that when SOE investigates accounts that have been selling currency in violation of our EULA and ToS, the team can track where it went and it?will?be removed?the company you bought it from isn't going to give you a refund just because you got caught.
Hundreds of thousands of accounts selling in-game currency have been shut down over the years and the investigation team, called "NUGIT," is always watching for new cases. What does "NUGIT" stand for? We're glad you asked! It's the Norrathian Underground Gnome Investigation Team?they have branched out to cover all of our worlds, not just EverQuest and EverQuest II. The name may be lighthearted, but this team takes its task very seriously and works hard every day to stamp out scammers, gold sellers, and others who violate game rules and endanger the account safety of our player base. This is a problem that is not going to go away any time soon. As long as players keep buying plat, items, and powerleveling from third parties, these businesses remain highly profitable and they'll keep ruining play experiences and finances for everyone.
The prevalence of credit card fraud is staggering. The moment SOE bans a hundred accounts that were purchased with stolen credit cards (together with their ill-gotten items and coin), the scammers buy a hundred more with new stolen credit cards. We can easily tell when they are bought in bulk ? let's face it, no normal person buys thirty accounts at once, or repeatedly tries to exceed the daily limit for Station Cash on a credit card. Here's another sobering thought?around the world, credit card information can be bought for under a dollar a piece.?
Last year, SOE introduced login authenticators. Invest in an SOE Authenticator for your account. If you have one of these on your account, any login attempt will require the user to enter the PIN currently on the authenticator. A few extra seconds to log in is a small price to pay for the peace of mind you'll get from knowing no one is logged into your account, cleaning out the guild bank. You can use one authenticator to secure?all?of your accounts?you don't have to buy one per account. You can read more about our authenticators?here.
Sony Online Entertainment is committed to doing everything within our power to help keep your information and data safe. The fine folks of NUGIT comprise only one of?many?layers of security and fraud-busting we bring to bear each and every day. We can't tell you about all of them because we don't want any criminals getting the heads-up!
Keeping your play experience fun, safe, and secure is our primary goal. Become our partners against online crime by following these basic steps:
- Use strong passwords, changed regularly
- Never share account information, and if you have, change your password immediately
- Don't support online currency sellers or power levelers, they cost everyone in the end
- Consider using an SOE Authenticator ? a small investment for peace of mind
- Apply the same smart security measures to ALL of your transactions, online and offline
Check out our?SOE Knowledge Base?article on Gamer Safety Week as well! Be strong, be safe, and enjoy the many worlds of SOE!
Scott and Linda
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The Telon Puzzle ? February 06, 2012
The Telon Puzzle ? February 01, 2012
Official SOE Podcast #125 is Live!
Official SOE Podcast #125
Join us for the Official SOE Podcast #125 - the "Pirates-Cast!" Your host, Aimee "Ashlanne" Rekoske, is joined by your co-host, Donna "Danicia" Prior. Listen in as they chat about Pirates of the Burning Sea; we'll also have an interview with Tom "Rhaegar" Atkins-Edwards and Tyler "Sasquatch" Mason from Flying Lab. Our News Caster Abby Watt will bring us the latest updates on many SOE titles. Let us know what you think at podcast@soe.sony.com or head over to the Station Forums and share your opinion with the Community!
You can download the MP3 file directly or subscribe to the RSS feed by clicking the button listed below. We have MP3, M4A, and YouTube versions available.
Don't forget you can find us on Twitter and Facebook!
SOE Community Webcast: EverQuest Free to Play Your Way
EverQuest is going Free to Play and it is time to chat with the team about the details! Host Eric "Piestro" Cleaver (EverQuest Community Manger) will interview Thom "Phantom" Terrazas (EverQuest Producer) and Adam "Ngreth" Bell (EverQuest Lead Designer) to share information on the journey we are about to take with EverQuest. We'll talk about how EverQuest will be Free to Play, Your Way. If you've played EQ or considered playing EQ do not miss this webcast!
Join us on Thursday, February 2, 2012, at 4:00 p.m. US Pacific Time* on Twitch TV! The webcast is expected to last about 20 minutes.
Be there for all of the Free to Play details!
See you on Twitch TV!
*Convert to your local time
Vanguard Saga of Heroes is getting a new LaunchPad!
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Vanguard Saga of Heroes is getting a new LaunchPad!
During the week of January 30, 2012, Vanguard Saga of Heroes will be upgrading to LaunchPad 4!
[Read More]
During the week of January 30, 2012, Vanguard Saga of Heroes will be upgrading to LaunchPad 4! LaunchPad 4 offers many advantages over previous versions of our LaunchPad software, in that it handles data quicker, more efficiently, and takes less time to update your game.
So what do you need to do to get LaunchPad 4, you ask? It?s very simple. Just continue to use your current launcher for Vanguard Saga of Heroes as normal, and when Vanguard Saga of Heroes upgrades it will be automatically downloaded to your computer and installed.
We know there are bound to be a few questions about this upgrade, so we?ve created this handy FAQ. If you don?t see your question answered, please feel free to ask.
- Why are you upgrading to LaunchPad 4?
There are two reasons for our upgrade to LaunchPad 4. This way we?ll have one version across all our games and this launcher comes with a myriad of technical improvements. This should lead to better stability, quicker changes, faster patching, and fewer errors.
- I like my current version of LaunchPad. Why do I have to switch?
We understand change isn?t always easy, but the improvements with LaunchPad 4 will far outweigh the problems created by maintaining several different launchers. The upgrade should be seamless and provide a better experience for everyone.
- I regularly log in more than one account at the same time. Will I still be able to do this with LaunchPad 4?
Yes. Logging in multiple times with separate accounts is very easy to do in LaunchPad 4. Because LaunchPad 4 does not exit once you have started the game, simply switch back to the LaunchPad 4 application and log out of your account. Then log in again with any other account you would like to use and click the Play button again. A second instance of Vanguard Saga of Heroes will open and you can continue as normal.
- With LaunchPad 3, I had some compatibility issues. How have you addressed these with LaunchPad 4?
One of the downsides of LaunchPad 3 was it had some file dependencies and required Adobe Flash to be installed. With LaunchPad 4, we have moved away from these external dependencies. We?ve already successfully rolled out LaunchPad 4 to a number of our other games.
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Maintenance Notice: Wednesday, January 25, 2012
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Maintenance Notice: Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Important: We will perform maintenance beginning at 7:00 AM Pacific* on January 25, 2012. This will impact the following services:
- Account management will be unavailable starting at 7:00 AM to approximately 8:00 AM Pacific*
- Commerce transactions, including purchases on our websites and in-game marketplaces, will be unavailable between 7:00 AM to approximately 8:00 AM Pacific*
- Forums will remain open during the downtime, but you may lose permissions and experience occasional disconnects between 7:00 AM to approximately 8:00 AM Pacific*
- Logins for?PoxNora?, Star Wars?: Clone Wars Adventures? and?Free Realms? will be affected from 7:00 AM to approximately 8:00 AM Pacific*
We apologize for this interruption and will resume all affected services as soon as the maintenance is completed.
*Convert to your local time
Source: http://vgplayers.station.sony.com/newsArchive.vm?section=News&id=1369
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