In response to a major 24-hour PlayStation Network (PSN) outage on February 8, Sony is offering all PlayStation Plus subscribers an additional 5 days of service as compensation. However, the company has remained tight-lipped about the cause, only stating that "network services have fully recovered from an operational issue."
The outage had widespread impacts, preventing PlayStation users from accessing online gaming features, digital game libraries, and the PlayStation Store. The timing was particularly unfortunate for Monster Hunter Wilds fans, as it disrupted the game's second open beta test scheduled for February 6-9.
In light of the disruption, Capcom has announced they are exploring options to extend the beta test. "We are currently examining the possibility of conducting an additional approximately 24-hour session next weekend or later," the publisher stated on social media, acknowledging that players were unable to participate during a substantial portion of the planned test period.
The network downtime affected roughly one-third of the beta's runtime for PS5 players, who were unable to access both the game and its online features during the outage.
Despite the technical difficulties, Monster Hunter Wilds players who managed to access the beta encountered a familiar quirk - the return of a visual glitch that transforms characters into PS1-era-style graphics. Capcom had previously warned that improvements made since the first beta wouldn't be implemented until the game's full release on February 28.
Sony's decision to provide compensation comes without detailed explanation of the service interruption, leaving questions unanswered about the nature and cause of the extensive network problems.