Post by Lucy Youngblood on Feb 23, 2013 14:14:39 GMT -5
Going into the PS Meeting I had a few fears for the machine:
1 - That Sony would block used games.
2 - That PS4 would require an always online connection in order to play any games.
3 - That the Gaikai technology would be used to broadcast/stream gameplay or post brag clips similar to onlive; opposed to enabling software BC for PS1-2-3 discs/PSN digital games.
4 - That free online multiplayer or PS+ would be scrapped in favor of a Live-Gold-style payment plan such as PSPlatinum or the recently rumored PSWorld.
5 - That the PS4 will launch with a high price tag, one of the PS3's biggest mistakes in my opinion.
And so far I have to say that the PS Meeting and follow-up interviews have only half-squashed my fears...
For myself I feel as though I am caught between two worlds. I am certainly disappointed by the lack of PSN digital downloads moving over to PS4. I thought they would moveover, even if disc-based BC wasn't happening. I only have 2 PSN digital downloads, mind you, but if I'd been PS3 at the start of the generation and had the same amount of games on PSN as I do XBLA before I wised-up and got a Gaming PC and PS+ then I'd be a lot more annoyed. I still think that PS+ is a great service (DOA5 for free next month! Saves me yet another game purchase). Hope that stays the exact same for PS4. But it seems like every other problem I had with PS3 (menu navigation lag, poor controller, download+installation of games) has been addressed.
Disc-based BC I can probably live without. Even if Gaikai streaming did work in the future, I think license issues on some games would prevent them from appearing in the PS1/2/3 libraries. Would Netherrealm be able to put up new licenses for Mortal Kombat vs DC? Or John Woo's Stranglehold? They're not Midway Games anymore, after-all. I can see Sony's backing-away from all forms of BC forcing my hand.... Anything I can re-get digitally on Steam I will get there instead of PSN/XBLA. Anything I can't (Galaga Legions DX, Space Invaders Infinity for example) I'll get on PS3's PSN or on cheap, second hand PS3 discs (Return To Castle Wolfenstein 2009, de-listed from Steam). And I'll turn my office into a total retro games console room, and invest in each console I have to make it worth-while to keep holding onto them.
All-in-All I think I will end-up still getting a PS4 if it keeps free online multiplayer and PS+ the way it is currently, if not, then my choice becomes a lot harder...
1 - That Sony would block used games.
2 - That PS4 would require an always online connection in order to play any games.
3 - That the Gaikai technology would be used to broadcast/stream gameplay or post brag clips similar to onlive; opposed to enabling software BC for PS1-2-3 discs/PSN digital games.
4 - That free online multiplayer or PS+ would be scrapped in favor of a Live-Gold-style payment plan such as PSPlatinum or the recently rumored PSWorld.
5 - That the PS4 will launch with a high price tag, one of the PS3's biggest mistakes in my opinion.
And so far I have to say that the PS Meeting and follow-up interviews have only half-squashed my fears...
1 - Fear Squashed - Sony have told EuroGamer that they will not block used games: www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-02-21-sony-tells-eurogamer-playstation-4-will-not-block-used-games
2 - Fear Squashed - Sony have confirmed that the console will not require and always on connection to play games: www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-02-21-playstation-4-does-not-require-an-internet-connection
3 - Fear still alive - Whilst the Gaikai tech does seem like it will be used to stream/broadcast gameplay via the share button and post brag clips; it is also going beyond that to enable instant playing of demos from the PSN store, which solves the problem I had with having to download and then install games and demos. But it sounds like the backwards compatibility of PS1,2,3 games on PS4 is nothing more than a dream which may never come true at this point. Worse still, PSN digital purchases won't carry over.
4 - Fear still alive - Do we actually know anything on this yet? Will online multiplayer stay free? Will PS+ retain the 'instant game collection' feature, or will it even remain a thing? Will the share features be behind a PSWorld paywall?
5 - Fear still alive - All that streaming stuff didn't sound cheap, nor did the 8GB of GDDR5 memory. Which leads into fear number 4 of more things being put behind a paywall and/or a high launch price tag in order to recoup some of those costs.
2 - Fear Squashed - Sony have confirmed that the console will not require and always on connection to play games: www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-02-21-playstation-4-does-not-require-an-internet-connection
3 - Fear still alive - Whilst the Gaikai tech does seem like it will be used to stream/broadcast gameplay via the share button and post brag clips; it is also going beyond that to enable instant playing of demos from the PSN store, which solves the problem I had with having to download and then install games and demos. But it sounds like the backwards compatibility of PS1,2,3 games on PS4 is nothing more than a dream which may never come true at this point. Worse still, PSN digital purchases won't carry over.
4 - Fear still alive - Do we actually know anything on this yet? Will online multiplayer stay free? Will PS+ retain the 'instant game collection' feature, or will it even remain a thing? Will the share features be behind a PSWorld paywall?
5 - Fear still alive - All that streaming stuff didn't sound cheap, nor did the 8GB of GDDR5 memory. Which leads into fear number 4 of more things being put behind a paywall and/or a high launch price tag in order to recoup some of those costs.
For myself I feel as though I am caught between two worlds. I am certainly disappointed by the lack of PSN digital downloads moving over to PS4. I thought they would moveover, even if disc-based BC wasn't happening. I only have 2 PSN digital downloads, mind you, but if I'd been PS3 at the start of the generation and had the same amount of games on PSN as I do XBLA before I wised-up and got a Gaming PC and PS+ then I'd be a lot more annoyed. I still think that PS+ is a great service (DOA5 for free next month! Saves me yet another game purchase). Hope that stays the exact same for PS4. But it seems like every other problem I had with PS3 (menu navigation lag, poor controller, download+installation of games) has been addressed.
Disc-based BC I can probably live without. Even if Gaikai streaming did work in the future, I think license issues on some games would prevent them from appearing in the PS1/2/3 libraries. Would Netherrealm be able to put up new licenses for Mortal Kombat vs DC? Or John Woo's Stranglehold? They're not Midway Games anymore, after-all. I can see Sony's backing-away from all forms of BC forcing my hand.... Anything I can re-get digitally on Steam I will get there instead of PSN/XBLA. Anything I can't (Galaga Legions DX, Space Invaders Infinity for example) I'll get on PS3's PSN or on cheap, second hand PS3 discs (Return To Castle Wolfenstein 2009, de-listed from Steam). And I'll turn my office into a total retro games console room, and invest in each console I have to make it worth-while to keep holding onto them.
All-in-All I think I will end-up still getting a PS4 if it keeps free online multiplayer and PS+ the way it is currently, if not, then my choice becomes a lot harder...