UPDATE 8:08p.m. EDT: @j_smedley: Our games are live again!

You must first change your password before you'll be able to login to your game!

Sony Online Entertainment announced around 4:15pm PDT today that it is beginning "phased restoration" of its game services. Also announced is a Welcome Back Program which will compensate every Station Account in good standing with 45 days of game time as long as the account is logged into by 11:59pm PDT on August 31, 2011. In addition to game time, here are some highlights of other special items and events being offered:

Station Access Subscribers: 500 Station Cash (account must be in good standing)
Lifetime Subscribers: Select amounts of in-game currency (CWA, DCUO and Free Realms only)
EverQuest: Double XP, Double Rare Mob Spawns, Double Faction Gains (May 14 - May 22)
EverQuest II: Double XP, Double Guild XP, Loot Bonanza, City Festivals and Moonlight Enchantments, Original Aether Races (May 14 - May 22)
Free Realms: Free Daily Items, 7 total (May 14 - June 15)
Vanguard: Double Adventuring/Crafting/Diplomancy XP, Double Faction Gains (May 14 - May 22)
DC Universe Online: Two-Face Inspired Mask, Batman Inspired Mask, Marks of Distinction (granted to all existing characters)

See this article for a full listing of everything entailed by the SOE Welcome Back Program.

We at ZAM would like to point out that the games may not immediately be up at the time of this posting, so please have some patience while you wait for the login servers to be opened. We'd also like to remind our readers to reset their passwords once you are able to login.

UPDATE, May 14, 7:15p.m. EDT: SOE has slowly begun restoration of their services.

SOE - Restoration Announcement
SOE - Welcome Back Program
SOE - Recent Updates

SAN DIEGO, May 14, 2011 - Sony Online Entertainment LLC (SOE) announced today that restoration of its game services will begin today. The phased restoration will include the return of nearly all of SOE's portfolio of online games, the reinstatement of SOE's game forums and websites, and added functionality to require players to reset their passwords.

For details on the hacker attack that has kept SOE down since May 2 and compromised the personal information of players, check out SOE's brief FAQ and all of our previous coverage. See this article for the May 12th news on the "Make Good" program details.

During the downtime you are welcome to join us in ZAM's IRC chat. Feldon of EQ2Wire also has set up a ZAM IRC java applet that you can use.

Sony Online Entertainment's games have been offline for almost two weeks following a recent attack by hackers, and we're all anxiously awaiting any news regarding the status of the company's services. While it doesn't give an estimated date for when the games will be live, SOE's latest update outlines its "Make Good" program and unveils its complimentary Debix “AllClear ID PLUS” identity theft protection program in the United States.

As previously announced, all impacted players will receive 30 days of game time added to the end of the current billing cycle in addition to one day for each day the system is down. Players will also receive the following items once services resume:

• DC Universe Online: Batman and Two-Face Inspired Masks and 30 Marks of Distinction
• Free Realms: Free daily items (7 to collect)
• Clone Wars Adventures: Count Dooku v2 Outfit
• EverQuest: A series of events, including Double XP, Double Rare Mob Spawns and Double Faction Gains
• EverQuest II and EverQuest II Extended: A series of events, including Double XP, Double Guild XP, Loot Bonanza, and City Festivals
• Vanguard: Saga of Heroes: A series of Double XP events
• Star Wars Galaxies: Bounty Hunter Statue, a miniature model of Boba Fett's ship, the Slave I
• Magic: The Gathering - Tactics: Four of each of these spells: "Ivory Mask", "Duress" and "Angelheart Vial", plus 500 Station Cash
• PoxNora: Limited edition Carrionling, Welcome Back 5K Gold Award Tournaments and two Draft Tournaments, plus 500 Station Cash

In addition to the above items, lifetime subscribers will receive 20,000 coins for Free Realms, 7,500 Galactic Credits for Clone Wars Adventures and 10 Marks of Distinction for DC Universe Online. Station Access subscribers will also receive 500 Station Cash.

While we all wait for the Sony Online Entertainment services to come back online following an attack on the network, SOE posted a brief FAQ today to keep players updated on the situation. While they don't provide any new details, SOE has said it will continue to post updates to the site with new information as it becomes available. 

According to the FAQ, some games and services are expected to be up and running "soon." SOE emphasizes that the services will only be restored once the network is secure. SOE spokewoman Taina Rodriguez told The San Diego Union-Tribune that the network will be shut down until Friday and possibly longer, so it certainly looks like players should remain patient during this downtime.

You can read the current FAQ after the jump. As a reminder, SOE has confirmed that hackers may have obtained personal information from SOE systems, so be wary of any phishing scams that you may receive through e-mail. SOE will be granting customers 30 days of additional time on their subscriptions, in addition to compensating them one day for each day the system is down.

During the downtime you are welcome to join us in ZAM's IRC chat. Feldon of EQ2Wire also has set up a ZAM IRC java applet that you can use.

UPDATE, May 4: SOE has answered some common questions about the attack.

As we previously reported, all Sony Online Entertainment services, games, forums and web sites went offline this morning as a result of the recent Playstation Network intrusion. SOE issued an announcement which revealed that personal information had been compromised.  Players were, for the most part, relieved that credit card information was safe, but wanted to know when they could play their games.  The press release only said, "Our teams are working around the clock on this, and services will be restored as soon as possible."

We shot off a quick e-mail to John "Smed" Smedley, president of Sony Online Entertainment, asking if the servers would be back up tonight, May 2.  He quickly replied with, "They won't be up tonight unfortunately." 

SOE is granting customers 30 days of additional time on their subscriptions, in addition to compensating them one day for each day the system is down.

As we previously reported, all Sony Online Entertainment services, games, forums and web sites went offline this morning as a result of the recent Playstation Network intrusion. SOE just issued an announcement, and it appears that the personal information of players may have been compromised. Here are the details straight from SOE:

"Our ongoing investigation of illegal intrusions into Sony Online Entertainment systems has discovered that hackers may have obtained personal customer information from SOE systems.  We are today advising you that the personal information you provided us in connection with your SOE account may have been stolen in a cyber-attack. Stolen information includes, to the extent you provided it to us, the following: name, address (city, state, zip, country), email address, gender, birthdate, phone number, login name and hashed password."

SOE goes on to state that there is no evidence that their main credit card database was compromised.  However, SOE is warning customers outside of the United States that credit and debit card information from an outdated database from 2007 may have been obtained. Affected customers will be notified.

SOE warns players to "be especially aware of email, telephone, and postal mail scams that ask for personal or sensitive information." SOE isn't going to contact you asking for personally identifiable information like your credit card number, so keep that in mind.

So when will the SOE game services be back? "As soon as possible." You can read the full notice after the jump.

UPDATE: As for compensation, according to the separate press release, "SOE will grant customers 30 days of additional time on their subscriptions, in addition to compensating them one day for each day the system is down.  It is also in the process of outlining a 'make good' plan for its PlayStation 3 MMOs (DC Universe Online and Free Realms).  More information will be released this week."

All Sony Online Entertainment services, games, forums and web sites are currently offline. This downtime relates to the recent Playstation Network intrusion. No ETA is available at this time. Here is the notice from Station.com:

Dear valued SOE Customers,

We have had to take the SOE service down temporarily. In the course of our investigation into the intrusion into our systems we have discovered an issue that warrants enough concern for us to take the service down effective immediately. We will provide an update later today (Monday).

During the downtime you are welcome to join us in ZAM's IRC chat. Feldon of EQ2Wire also has set up a ZAM IRC java applet that you can use.

UPDATE: A press release was posted on SOE's web site around 3:40pm PDT.

Registration for Sony Online Entertainment's 2011 Fan Faire has just opened! The Fan Faire will run from July 7th - 9th at Bally's Las Vegas. Events include developer panels, tournaments, live quests and much more.

This year registrants have the choice between a Friday only, Saturday only or an All-Access pass for the entire weekend. The All-Access pass includes digital copies of EverQuest and EverQuest II's next expansion pack, special in-game items and access to special evening events at Fan Faire. All three types of passes include access to the showroom and developer panels, gift bags and daytime events.

Register for the All-Access pass by May 6th and get the Early Bird Special pricing of $119 USD! Head over to the official SOE Fan Faire website for more information.

UPDATE: SOE has officially announced that "it will eliminate 205 positions and close its Denver, Seattle and Tucson studios." The company is discontinuing production of The Agency so it can "focus development resources on delivering two new MMOs based on its renowned PlanetSide and EverQuest properties." Its current portfolio of games will not be affected. Check out the full announcement after the jump.

According to Kotaku, Sony Online Entertainment has closed three studios and will lay off nearly one third of its workforce. While SOE hasn't released an official statement, Kotaku says they confirmed through "a source familiar with the matter" that the closures affect the Seattle, Tucson and Denver offices. In addition, the source stated that numerous employees in the Austin and San Diego offices have also been let go from their positions.

The rumor began spreading last night when Goerge Broussard of Duke Nukem fame tweeted, "Word that Sony Online Entertainment Seattle is having layoffs and that studio closure is possible." He quickly followed that by saying, "To be more clear, the layoffs may be SOE wide and not just limited to Seattle. So, Austin, San Diego, etc..."

Broussard's latest tweet on the matter, which was posted 12 hours ago, said "SOE Seattle and other studios (Denver is rumored) will be closed tomorrow. Good luck to all impacted."

The Official SOE Podcast episode 106 is called the "Hodgepodge Cast" since it covers such a wide variety of topics. Host Aimee “Ashlanne” Rekoske is joined by co-hosts Benito “Shingo” Martinez and Robyn “Naylie” Vallee to discuss the latest Star Wars Galaxies updates, Free Realms on the PlayStation 3, and EverQuest's 12th anniversary.

The podcast also features an interview with Don Vercelli, the senior vice president of sales, and Jason “Pex” Ryan brings us the latest updates on many SOE titles. Head over to the official site to give it a listen!