MIXED BAG PRESENTS
PS4: MY FIRST IMPRESSION!
Last night, alongside hundreds of thousands of viewers ranging from casual gamers to veteran video game journalists got their first peek at Sony's game plan for the PS4-- we got to see some new hardware, some new software, and a lot of talk about how PS4 plans to win its way into our homes & hearts. The purpose of today's article is to give you guy's my first-hand impressions and gut-feelings about the features they described and the games they showed off.
Before I get started, I wanna apologize for not doing this with the Wii-U-- yet! If this article has some legs, I might try and describe how I feel about Nintendo's newest console they released last Fall (cuz it still feels like it just launched with so little momentum right now).
As I break down each of my impressions, I will be linking as many videos as I can to help fill the blanks for you guys.
P.S. In case you're wondering, I do own a PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii. PS3 was my first Sony console and I do not play it as much as my Xbox, but probably around the same as my Wii. So, that gives you a frame of reference to judge my biases.
PRESENTATION
No cheer-leading. No gimmicky cameos. No "RIDGE RACER!" or "GIANT CRABS!" This announcement was not your old E3 announcement-- this was a sober display from Sony intended to try and sell their console to gamers, journalists, investors, & especially developers without necessarily boring us or scaring us (or exciting us-- but I blame that on the lag I suffered in the first half of the presentation).
There were no huge surprises, they didn't show us the console, and they didn't make promises about games without showing them (except for Square Enix, but I expected them to waste our time), BUT I appreciated that they focused on the PS4 instead of spending half of the presentation bragging about how awesome the PS3 sold or unnecessary crap like that. It focused on telling us details about the console and what would be coming down the pipeline.
And yet, if I had any complaints it would be that a) it was too sober and I didn't really get excited about anything and b) they were a little vague about what the console was gonna do-- especially near the beginning with all the introspective that gave me the dubious impression that this new console would:
- Will be able to make all our dreams come true and in real time.
- Allow a friend online to play your game as if they're sitting in the room with you.
- Connect us all together and everywhere. We are PS Legion.
- Not use discs (ha ha Sony, I'm hoping this is just a misunderstanding).
- PSVita is very much important and stuff (don't get me wrong I want one, but it isn't...yet.)
- Predict what you wanna buy and download it for you before you buy it.
- Heck, it's gonna predict all the things!
- Be a magical gateway to playing videogames INSTANTEOUSLY.
- There will be no load screens. Games will boot INSTANTEOUSLY.
- It'll stream INSTANTEOUSLY.
- Did I mention that everything will be INSTANTANEOUS? Cuz that was a big sell-point.
So, forgive me if I teased above, but there were more things they promised nebulously and didn't fully explain in the conference-- it seems like they weren't quite ready to show everything or are holding back. We didn't get to see the actual console, the discs, prices, dates, and a lot of other important fact. Heck, the fact the console isn't backwards compatible was a throwaway line... without an apology attached.
Also, if you're wondering where the specifics are in the presentation, I just wanted to give you a primer to set the tone before I describe the specifics.
HARDWARE
They started with lots of vague promises, but quickly followed up with Matt Cerny giving us a look at the console he had built. The good news? This console is built far more conventionally than the PS3 and does seem like it'll have the guts to make some big games, but nothing that will blow your effing mind (at least as far I can tell...yet). The hardware details were as follows:
I am by no means an expert on hardware, but that's a lot of power under the hood and we can only imagine that Microsoft's Durango is going to want to match it or outdo it. Because the PS4 uses hardware that is more conventional, it should be easier for us to compare the actual power of the next gen consoles (unless Microsoft installs some fancy Quantum Drive or something?).
But I do have something to admit-- though its not as damning as it may sound-- that I wasn't surprised by anything they showed on console. All of the graphical stuff they showed off gave me the impression that there isn't much more room to go before dipping into the uncanny valley (which they did at points) and the power will just make everything run smoother with more stuff happening (which is nice). The most impressive stuff about the console's reveal, for me at least, were the features they showed and described.
CONTROLLER
Well, games, say hello to the Dual-Shock 4. Same as the old Dual Shock, more or less. I am sorta teasing, but only because I have mixed feelings about the new controller and can't really judge it better until I hold it/see a side-by-side comparison of it to the Dual Shock 3. My only real experience with the Dual Shock designed controller was my PS3 and, to be honest, I didn't like it. The controller feels small, doesn't weigh enough, the six-axis is useless, the control sticks are poorly designed in comparison to the Xbox's, and the triggers are terrible. But, to be fair, that's comparing it to the Xbox 360 controller, one of the best controllers of all time, and I do think that the Dual Shock is a decent controller. I don't hate it, but I don't like it. As for the details they showed off:A light bar to tracked by a camera (Kinect, Eye-Toy thing?), a Share button to take you to a streaming/clip making menu, a microphone port (yay), and a touch pad (meh). They also described better rumble paks and latency.
In terms of design changes, I like the look of the control sticks and the triggers-- but more importantly, it looks like it has some more bulk than the whimpy PS3 controller, which I described to a friend as being designed for a race of subterranean fairy folk that live in an old abandoned coal mine in Japan rather than adult hands. So, that's a plus.
Also, PS Move is still a think, at least according to Media Molecule's vague but compelling "Polygons more like schmolygons!" approach to describing their new software ideas.
INTERFACE & FEATURES
Okay, so PS4 doesn't sound like it'll be backwards compatible, we didn't get any information about whether it can play Bluray, and we don't even know what the console looks like, but we got a buttload of features described or shown off-- and that's great.The interface looks similar to that of the PS3, so I expect it to be fairly effective if not a little bit cluttered (hey, the xbox's interface is worse). The way the intereface is changing is that they focused on describing three big changes: the ability to just step into a game demo or other content via the cloud service provided by Sony's recent purchase, Gaikai, that the PS4 will predict what you want want, download it for you before you even buy it, and even keep track of everything you do to make everything easier, & everything is way more social.
The second feature could be hit or miss, but I like all the details they described to make everything more seamless, quick, and yes, though I mocked it, INSTANTEOUS-- but I'm a little skeptical how effective those features are.
The social features, on the other hand, were obviously coming and, honestly, appreciated. Some gamers may not like how they're trying to make online play and spectating far more social, with an emphasis on having different relationships between anonymous friends and close friends, that I thought was compelling. I like the idea of being able to record stuff to post online, to be able to find and interact with my friends, to have my friends watch me play a game (even if they don't own it) and, hypothetically, to let someone play the game for you when you get to a hard part. The social features seem to be even more compelling than those described in the Miiverse for Wii-U, but its too early to tell how well they will be integratd.
Back to their promise of instant integration and streaming, that seems most dubious and was least displayed because, frankly, they forgot to mention that, no matter how powerful a console is, the biggest hang-up to instanteous gratification is the crappy internet that most of the world suffers. It's nice to promise that the console will cut down on times by downloading when offline and using the cloud, but if your download speed sucks, these features will be of little use to you.
But, all in all, while none of the features were mind-blowing, I did like what they showed and am excited to see what lies ahead over this generation-- heck, considering how many leaps and bounds the current gen took to become multi-media entertainment machines, my hopes are high that these promises are only the beginning of what's possible.
SOFTWARE
Hey, look guys! A tech demo that is well, just another tech demo! Ooh! Eerie! Sorry, but I'm not interested in what you can show me in a tech demo or a cinematic (cough Square Enix sucks cough), but I was excited to see all the games they showed off-- even if nothing really took my breath away. I'm gonna link each game trailer and then give you a quick snap judgement of each, of about a pargraph of my thoughts, before moving on. EX. "SNAP JUDGEMENT: Square Enix showed off a tech demo from last year, that wasn't that impressive, and then promised a new Final Fantasy game. Snore. "They showed off/ announced about 10 games, so here goes:
SNAP JUDGEMENT: Um, is this the trailer for like the sequel to the Astro Boy movie? Where is Nicholas Cage? Huh, goblins?! I like goblins! Doesn't look very next generation-- just a clean 3-D puzzle adventure platformer set in a cute kid friendly war between humans and goblins with like Katamari meets Ratchet & Clank game-play. Fun, but nothing I can't skip.
SNAP JUDGEMENT: I'm not a Killzone fan, but this could be interesting... Wow! This is really pretty. Like maybe even prettier than Halo 4 but not as pretty as Mass Effect 3 (both on last gen Xbox). Alright, enough snide half-compliment, I like this trailer. It sets up some interesting story stuff with some really cool designs for the city/citizens-- this looks like a solid FPS title to have on the launch of the PS4.
SNAP JUDGEMENT: Yawn. Another Gran Turismo game. I wonder if this time they'll sell an incomplete version of the game with a promise of the complete produce about a year or two later? Wait...its not Gran Turismo. Hm...well, it looks like another car racing game, but maybe a little prettier and with better multi-player features? I'll prolly pass, but you gear-heads will probably enjoy it. Every launch needs a good driving game, right?
SNAP JUDGEMENT: This was something I've been looking forward to and the trailer was gorgeous (in fact, I expected the game to be a lot less detailed), so in that regard this held my attention. Except... while a very pretty trailer, I was disappointed to see very little gameplay except for drawing squiggly lines. All in all, I'd probably pick this up, once I know what you can actually do in the game.
SNAP JUDGEMENT: Now, this was something new. Yes, it does involve the PSMove and yes it was really vague about how this sculpting stuff will be applied, but I'm really interested and thought this was the most NEW thing they showed off during the whole conference. I'm enthusiastically curious, but skeptical of some of the claims they made about reinventing game design and how this will all be applied to a game.
SNAP JUDGEMENT: lol, the inFamous build-up was all about the abuse of people's privacy in the name of security and in this game you're a vigilante that abuses people's privacy. This isn't a new game, we saw it at E3, but it does look really cool. My only gripe? Am I the only one that sees how much of an Assassin's Creed clone this is-- with all the AR and HUD stuff showing up everywhere. I liked Assassin's Creed, but always found myself disappointed with the repetitive nature of the game play and the awful storyline. We've seen the game before, and I'm actually pretty excited, but I want to share something that might affect the way you look at Ubisoft's next big title-- doesn't this remind you of anything? Just sayin'. I still might pick it up and imagine a lot of folks are since they've been salivating over this game for a half-year already.
SNAP JUDGEMENT: I'll be the first to admit that I wanted to see a new Mega Man game or Capcom announcing they're working on doing ports of all the old 2D Disney games, but this was my favorite game they showed (and I was glad it wasn't a Street Fighter game). I love the idea of playing a highly graphics intense Dungeon Crawler and the graphics look so amazing-- so amazing it makes me wonder if this is supposed to be in-game. Fingers-crossed.
SNAP JUDGEMENT: Bungie! You got Halo in my PS4 conference!? JK. But, seriously, the above shot looks like its straight out of Halo with a crappy looking gun (sorry). Now, I'm really excited about playing this game and want to know more about it, because Bungie created a genre defining series last generation with an amazing universe to explore with Halo. I'm glad to see its coming to next gen consoles, including PS4, but I'm wondering why is it gonna be on PS3. Wouldn't this be the kinda game you'd buy a PS4 to play? Hm...
And that's it. I'm not saying anything more about the Square Enix stuff or Blizzard's Diablo 3 announcement, cuz frankly it was the most embarrassing/unappealing part of the whole conference.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I felt like I got taken on a Willy Wonka-esque ride that was subtle, low-key, but very tantalizing and whimsical. Vague promises with words like "dream" were thrown around a lot. At best, it felt like they were describing the PS4 as the ever-lasting gobstopper of the next generation to solve all our problems and take us into a world of pure imagination. At worst, it felt like, instead of getting in the Glass Elevator with Matt Cerney to blast off into the next generation, I was rushed along past each exhibit at the dream factory before I could get a good enough look at what makes it all so scrumptious and fun by a pair of surly Oompa Loompas and out the backdoor without so much as a single ironic rhyme about why I wasn't good enough for the Ps4.
I don't know if the PS4 is going to be truly "instanteouslydumpdiddlyumptious" and "imaginedreamfulfilledharcoregamerfunctious" as Matt Cerny wanted to make us believe it was going to be. At the moment, I'm left wondering if all the magic was real or the fat German kid knocked me down in front of the factory and I imagined this all up, because nothing they showed off was anything unexpected.
In the end, the PS4 doesn't look like that much of a leap from the PS3-- so far, just like this announcement's presentation, they didn't take any risks. Somehow, even moreso than the Wii-U announcement, I'm left wanting something more. Maybe Slugworth has an offer under the code-name "Durango" that will truly surprise me? Or maybe I'm getting too old for videog- I mean, too old for candy Maybe the magic is gone...
