Most of the PS3 community have run into the issue that they are in the middle of playing a game and a friend will message them but they have no way to access that message unless they choose to completely exit out of the game. That is just one scenario that brings to light the need for In-Game access to the XMB (cross media bar) for the PlayStation 3, and Sony has now come out and let consumers know they are aware of this.
The headman of the PlayStation Network, Eric Lempel, has expressed that this feature is the most requested feature from PlayStation 3 owners and has risen to the top of Sony's high priority list. In an interview with ShackNews, Lempel went on record to state:
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"We are looking at a number of enhancements related to accessing some of the XMB features during gameplay, including messaging your friends," he said. "While there's no timeline to announce at this point, we've heard loud and clear from consumers that in-game XMB access is one of the most requested PS3 enhancements."
Even though Lempel did not disclose an exact time frame as to when this issue would be resolved, it is possible the feature might not surface until Sony's community driven project Home is released and have the community aspect come together full circle.
Since the system's release last fall, PlayStation 3 owners have voiced their discontent with the lack of in-game XMB access which they believe has taking away from the ability to play in-game custom soundtracks, in-game messaging to friends as well as being able to jump right into the action of playing a multiplayer online game with a friend.
These features have all come to be expected from the PlayStation 3 especially since their direct competitor, Xbox 360, has had most of these features already running on their system since it's respective launch.
via psu