The battle between console rewards programs continues to grow more intense. This time it’s Sony firing another shot in the battle for your digital loyalty. They have just announced the addition of specific "quests" to the PlayStation Rewards program. These quests provide members with tasks to aid them in moving up the rewards ladder even faster.

The first batch of them has already been released:

  • Speak Your Mind: Review 5 Games On PlayStation.Com
  • Move It: Play any eligible PlayStation Move game.
  • Movie Maniac: Rent or buy a movie from PlayStation Store.
  • Share the Play: Place your portable ID on 5 websites.
  • Check Your Pulse: Download PULSE in HD on your PS3 system.
  • Demo Down: Download and play 5 game demos from PlayStation Store.
  • Click It: Learn more by clicking through in 5 different emails from PlayStation.
  • No Place Like Home: Go to PlayStation Home and visit the Central Plaza.
  • Read It and Reap: Read 10 emails from PlayStation.

This new facet of the program comes right on the heels of Microsoft’s announcement of an Xbox Live Rewards program. While PlayStation Rewards was technically announced first, the rules and specifics of gaining status to earn the rewards was pretty vague. Sony’s guiding words of “just do what you love to do” left many scratching their heads. Microsoft’s program, on the other hand, laid out a little more precisely what actions reaped points and benefits. While the PlayStation Rewards quest system is still a little fuzzy on the details, since they don’t appear to be given any sort of point value or reward, this does seem to be a bit of an attempt to make things clearer for users.

Keep in mind that the PlayStation Rewards program is still in beta. PlayStation Plus members currently have access to “get their quest on,” but everyone else will have to wait until the program opens up to all in April. It wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to assume that fans could expect to see future additions to the program as well as a fine-tuning of what’s already there. For example, quests or quest completion can only be seen from a website. Integration into the PS3 experience such as visible lists or pop-ups that lets one know when something has been accomplished could go a long way in making this stick.

This seems like a step in the right direction for Sony’s attempt at grabbing player devotion. Fashioning their program with themes similar to RPG quests and level status could certainly push the right buttons for some users. Not too much unlike Xbox’s achievements, it’s all about honing in on the same fundamentals that get players addicted to being rewarded in actual games.

Anyone out there already questing? Does the inclusion of these quests make you more interested in the PlayStation Rewards program, or does Microsoft’s version seem more enticing?