PlayStation Network outage leads to rush of complaints from gamers

The PlayStation Network (PSN) is down, depriving online gamers around the world from accessing weekend events.

The PSN is the service that Sony’s PlayStation console owners use to access its online gaming network. It allows players to connect with other gamers around the world.

The outage began in the UK at about midnight on Friday.

About 71,000 gamers reported the outage to PlayStation’s website. Many users can no longer access online gaming lobbies, the PlayStation Store or their online accounts.

The PSN runs a model that costs £13.49 a month, £39.99 for three months or £119.99 for 12 months for its premium subscription. Many gamers have pointed to these costs when complaining to Sony.

The weekend is when certain games host special tournaments and online events. FC 25, Electronic Arts’ popular football simulator, hosts Championship matches, known colloquially as “weekend league”, on its Ultimate Team platform. Gamers spend hundreds of hours and often hundreds of pounds investing in their Ultimate Team squads.

The outage also means Call of Duty fans will be unable to play during its promotional weekend and will not benefit from double XP (experience points) in Black Ops 6 and Warzone.

Thousands of angry PlayStation users have expressed their frustration with the outage on social media in memes, jokes and rants.

“Let’s be real; everyone deserves this month’s PS Plus for free. Paying monthly for the network to be down on a weekend is belligerent. Did someone fall asleep during their night shift? Heading into hour 5,” one X user wrote.

“I work a 9 to 5 and come home just to see the PlayStation servers are down on a Friday,” another posted.

“PlayStation network down, time to get to know my wife of 5 years,” joked another.

Sony responded to confirm the problems with its digital service. On its support webpage, PlayStation said it was aware of the issue and that it was working to resolve it as soon as possible.

The Guardian has contacted PlayStation, FC25 developer Electronic Arts, and Call of Duty publisher Activision Blizzard for comment.