It Has Better Future Prospects
Say what? Okay, bear with me for a moment. While most of us don’t view our gaming console as an investment, we should. And a long-term one at that. You see, if the past history of gaming consoles is taken into play, you would realised that console life-cycles last about 8 years. This is staggering considering that in 1 year alone, newer and newer technologies are invented that can surpass the hardware of our current consoles. What does this have to do with anything? Well, to aid the fact that we will be stuck with our shiny new console till 2021 (yes, that long), we should technically have a console that can withstand the sands of time. That is to say, be relevant even 5-10 years from now. Now the reason why the PS4 will win this, is because it was made with the future in mind.
With Sony’s recent acquisition of the cloud computing firm Gaikai, along with it its cloud gaming technology, it’s quite evident that Sony has been planning this one for quite some time. With this new technology under Sony’s new and improved utility belt, future PS4 users can apparently stream games over the internet. The implications? Imagine walking around town and then suddenly having the urge to play your PS4. Well, now with the new remote play technology, you can (provided you have the PS Vita of course). Or perhaps you want to see how your friend got through that mission on battlefield on the hardest difficulty? You can remotely watch them play it. Hell, if what Sony says comes true, you can jump right in and play it for them!
Best feature of all? Even though we know we aren’t getting backwards compatibility for both the PS4 and the X1, we know that with this technology, Sony plans to integrate PS3 games through streaming, back into the PS4. While details about this aren’t crystal clear as of now, we know that it is a very real possibility that we can play Heavy Rain or Uncharted 3 perhaps, on the PS4. This way, even though we can’t just pop in a PS3 disk into our PS4, at least we have some glimmer of hope that we can play our favourite games on our new device.
Add to all the above facts that the PS4 is going to feature seamless integration of devices. Your PS4 will link to PS Vita, or even your Sony phone or tablet. And while Microsoft’s X1 does in fact feature somewhat similar integration of devices, the PlayStation package as a whole, definitely has better future prospects.
It Is Going To Have More Space
It is in fact highly ironic that this argument comes into effect, considering that both consoles, look like giant hard disks. It is however, a highly important one. After shelling out hundreds of dollars on a consoles, it’d be a shame to run out of space. It seems unlikely though, with both the PS4 and X1 giving you half a terabyte of HDD storage, that you would encounter this problem. But think again.
Currently, we can ‘install’ a sizable amount of games and still have space on our Xbox 360 or PS3 for movies or songs even. However, a few years down the road, when games start becoming larger and larger in size due to developers making them more complex, a larger proportion of data has to be unpacked and stored on the device itself, instead of on the Blu-Ray disks. This poses a problem. Soon we will find ourselves deleting things which we actually would like to be on the device in addition to our games, like blu-ray movies perhaps. Add this to the fact that the future of games is pretty much set on being available in non-physical formats. How then, do you overcome the problem of a lack of space.
Logically, the best and first answer would be: Cloud Storage. Sure both companies do have their own cloud services, which will help both consoles. But the thing which makes the PS4 better, is that is has Gaikai to come to its rescue…again.
Streaming games in addition to being a cool feature to toy around with, will actually come in handy when it comes to storage space. With gaming cloud technology, it will be possible to store and stream your games to your PS4. This not only saves space, but reportedly time too, as you have the ability to play as the game downloads. The way in which the X1 loses out is that while it probably will have a cloud service to store songs,pictures and videos, it is unlikely to feature game streaming even in the long-run, which is what takes up majority of the space in the first place. While this may not be a major game-changer, it is a relevant advantage to the PS4.
Controller Functionality
The Xbox 360 controller always seemed to have an edge over the PS3 controller in the past console war. It had a better grip, feel, or whatever tactile term you deem fit. This time round though, Sony has got this one firmly in the ballpark.
While the X1 controller is very much identical to the 360′s controller, the PS3 and PS4 controllers are quite different. Their similarities boil down to form factor. That’s it. The rest is improved. Gone is the defunct select button. It is replaced by options and share buttons. The joysticks are finally not convex but rather concave for better grip. It also features a tactile trackpad, probably for future use in games. Perhaps we can now reload by swiping? Much like the X1 controller however, there is in fact an LED light behind for tracking via the PlayStation Eye. Another improvement which is exciting, mostly because it will have an interesting use in future games.
The one way in which I do think the PS4 controller has me sold though, is the fact that it has the ability to plug in your earphones. I’m sorry but that minute feature is far more useful that turning on your console by voice. Gone are the days where you have siblings, parents or spouses shouting at you for the racket you’re making playing Battlefield . Now, you can just plug in your earphones, and kill people in peace.
It Was Made By Developers, For Developers
It is a blessing from Sony that they have completely changed the PS4′s architecture. While this means we lose backward compatibility, we gain much more in return. When the PS3 was released, it was so hard to programme for, the games that were initially released were extremely buggy and didn’t look that good at all. However, over the years the PS3 has finally hit its stride and is now producing games as visually stimulating as Beyond: Two Souls. Sony has still made the best decision possible though: to change the PS4′s architecture such that it is very much PC-based. Since games are made on PC’s itself, it seems like a good idea that the console you are porting it to, has a similar architecture.
How Sony came to the conclusion to change its architecture, was to talk to game developers themselves. By involving studios such as Quantic Dreams and talking to indie developers, they literally asked them what they wanted on the next PlayStation, and then gave it to them. It is this close connection and involvement of developers in the development process of the PS4 that is going to make it better than the X1. While the X1 is using a similar architecture, the link between developers and the consoles is missing.
The result I think is going to be a slight but recognisable performance difference between the two. The first difference would definitely be with regards to graphics. Simply put, both consoles have almost identical hardware on board. That oh-so- important advantage then, goes to how well developers can squeeze every inch of performance out of the consoles. I think that advantage will go to the PS4. Without going into messy details such as DDR3 vs DDR5, I think that the PS4 will be a more developer-friendly device. Simply because…Sony asked. This means better games overall, and therefore, happier gamers.
Secondly, talking to indie developers is a smart move made by Sony, because the gaming landscape is changing whether we like it or not. More and more gamers are interested in indie studios and games, and by making it easier for such developers to develop and pitch games for the PS4, there is an undeniable advantage to the PS4. The X1 had better watch out, because with so many titles lined up for every type of gamer out there, it is being left behind in the dust in the wake of E3.