PS4 - Get discussing

[thymeparadox]

I hope it is the same as the Vita, you get so much feedback from that thing, it's far superior to the DualShock in my opinion. Looks the business too.

I like how Sony are releasing videos emphasising their past, kind of gives me hope that their big announcement might actually be worthwhile. Either than or it will be the kind of disappointment only Sony can give us. I would be lying if I said I wasn't getting a little excited.

[Mix]

If that is a touch screen thing I don't get why they wouldn't put it on the back like the Vita.

I think it would be much easier to use.

I am pumped for the 20th but if this thing won't play used games.....they will burn in hell for eternity. Better play PS3 games too.

[thymeparadox]

I'm not sure I understand the decision to put it on the front either. There is actually more space on the back, at least in the case of the PS3 controller. They could have actually made it a decentish size. Then there's the fact that you don't have to get rid of any buttons. Maybe they really wanted it to be a screen instead of just a pad. Aesthetics was probably a factor too. On a superficial level, no touch screen visible on the front means it looks inferior to the Wii U and a possible new Microsoft controller. At least that's how the average consumer might see it.

[CornflakeJustice]

If that is a touch screen thing I don't get why they wouldn't put it on the back like the Vita.

I think it would be much easier to use.

I am pumped for the 20th but if this thing won't play used games.....they will burn in hell for eternity. Better play PS3 games too.

The used games thing will almost certainly *never* be an issue for a disc based home console. And even if they did it would cause almost immediate price drops across games, and they'd have to stop issuing DLC as the used games lose us money thing would cease to be a viable excuse they could fall back on.

As to playing PS3 games... I'd love backwards compatibility, but I won't hold my breath for it... :S

[Victor]

There are rumors there will be PS3 compatibility...via Gaikai. It's better than nothing.

[SephirothX]

I honestly think backwards compatibility is kind of overrated.

Also factor in this. If you want to play your old PS3 games on your PS4 you're going to have to go and download all of the patches & DLC, and do installs all over again in order to play them - why burn all of that HDD space on your old PS3 games when you can be burning all of that on PS4 games? Plus with the way the PS3 is built, the PS4 could very likely be a completely different hardware infrastructure - which can make backwards compatibility a real pain the ass.

I get the convenience of not needing to hook up an old system in order to play its games, but as things progress it's going to become progressively tougher to keep legacy support. And on top of that, the PS3 is at the point where it's making money for Sony right? They'd be in a PS2 backwards compatibility situation again where the new system is chewing up profits.

[Victor]

Ahn... Gaikai has none of those problems.

[TitusGroan]

I honestly think backwards compatibility is kind of overrated.

Also factor in this. If you want to play your old PS3 games on your PS4 you're going to have to go and download all of the patches & DLC, and do installs all over again in order to play them - why burn all of that HDD space on your old PS3 games when you can be burning all of that on PS4 games? Plus with the way the PS3 is built, the PS4 could very likely be a completely different hardware infrastructure - which can make backwards compatibility a real pain the ass.

I get the convenience of not needing to hook up an old system in order to play its games, but as things progress it's going to become progressively tougher to keep legacy support. And on top of that, the PS3 is at the point where it's making money for Sony right? They'd be in a PS2 backwards compatibility situation again where the new system is chewing up profits.

My problem with the lack of backwards compatibility is that it treats any game as something which has to be enjoyed at a certain time, or it's lost to the public forever.

If I want to enjoy a film from the 1950s or 60s, such as The Good, The Bad And The Ugly, I don't need to worry about going and finding a fifty year old roll of film, finding the correct type of projector to run it through, and praying that the damn thing hasn't broken yet. I can go pick it up on DVD, Blu-Ray, or just stream it online, and enjoy one of the greatest films ever made. Even more importantly, someone who's never even heard of the film can go out, buy it and watch it with a minimum of hassle. Films are essentially a timeless medium, simply because the vast majority of films from the past six decades are still there for people to go out and see.

If I want to play my old copy of Otogi: Myth Of Demons, I need to go drag my old Xbox out of the attic, plug it into the TV, and hope that the 9 year old disc still works. All because the 360 doesn't have backwards compatibility. Moreover, if I want to try and convince someone that Otogi: Myth Of Demons is one of the greatest action games ever made (which it is), and an even better representation of mythical Japan than even Okami (which it is)... well, unless they've got their own original Xbox, and are willing to go hunt down a second hand copy somewhere, it's impossible for them to know. No matter what I say, they're never going to get to play the game, simply because of how hard it is to get hold of and play nowadays.

It's an archive thing. Gaming as a medium shouldn't just be constantly moving forwards. We should be ensuring that the classics of each generation also remain available and playable to those who may not have yet experienced them. What's the point of sinking millions of dollars into something like Ni No Kuni, or Xenoblade, or Metroid Prime 3 if ten years down the line, no-one's going to be able to play them?

Sure, some series are lucky enough to get uploaded to the digital distribution services, or get given an HD makeover, but that's hardly a common thing. How many classic games from previous gen have essentially been abandoned because companies didn't think it would be worth doing an HD port, or putting them on PSN?

[SephirothX]

I can totally understand and agree with Titus's point. The only difference is that it's a lot easier to update a movie to play on a different format versus updating a game to work on a different platform.

[ThePair]

Some way, somehow,
Steam on PS4.

Do it!

[Panzadolphin56]

*stuff*

I agree, but I doubt the console developers would. I think this is probably a better argument for a strong fan-driven emulation community really.

[Arttemis]

Ugh, why can't they go back to implementing features as consoles age. The PS3 lost so many capabilities as time went on, it's ridiculous. I highly doubt there will be any capability to play PS3 games on the PS4 since the Cell processor hub flopped hard on its premise of being in every household appliance, and I highly doubt they'd cram the nine chips into a new console when, like Seph said, the thing is finally profitable. It just sucks.

[Victor]

...didn't you guys see what I said? Gaikai and shit. That's the rumor for backwards compatibility.

[Tarvu]

I'm not sure being able to stream PS3 games would be a good enough form of backward compatibility. As many detractors rightly say, there are enough people who can't attain those transfer rates and a lot of ISPs who are too fascist to supply them.

[Victor]

It's better than nothing and it's an evolving technology. I'm for it.

[Revuhlooshun]

Everybody wants a cake that they can eat and a cheap console that can do everything under the sun. It's one or the other, guys: Either Sony and Microsoft give you everything you ever wished for at an extremely bloated price (which results in complaints), or they pick and choose the most affordable, appealing setup for everyone (which also results in complaints). How does Sony win in this situation, especially after we slagged them off for years because they made the PS3 so damn expensive? It's not like a Cell processor is cheap.

At least they gave a fuck and are trying to give the feature through Gakai. Does anybody remember Microsoft's horrendous software emulation for original Xbox games that they barely supported? You can't play most last-gen games on a 360 without them fucking up somewhere.

[Victor]

I could go for cake right now.

[SephirothX]

Everybody wants a cake that they can eat and a cheap console that can do everything under the sun. It's one or the other, guys: Either Sony and Microsoft give you everything you ever wished for at an extremely bloated price (which results in complaints), or they pick and choose the most affordable, appealing setup for everyone (which also results in complaints). How does Sony win in this situation, especially after we slagged them off for years because they made the PS3 so damn expensive? It's not like a Cell processor is cheap.

At least they gave a fuck and are trying to give the feature through Gakai. Does anybody remember Microsoft's horrendous software emulation for original Xbox games that they barely supported? You can't play most last-gen games on a 360 without them fucking up somewhere.

Pretty much this.

I'd rather have a cheaper next-gen system with a bunch of new great things instead of a bloated overpriced system that comes with a bunch of things I already have in my PS3.

[DualFace]

[Victor]

Fuck black piano.