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PlayStation 4 Released
Today marks the launch of the latest entrant to the next-gen console race: Sony's PlayStation 4. A number of reviews for the system have already gone up, but many outlets are waiting for next Friday's Xbox One launch before passing final judgment. With regard to the PS4's hardware and UI, Digital Foundry praises the DualShock 4 controller design and the improvements to background downloading, while worrying about fan noise in warmer environments. iFixit provides a step-by-step teardown of the device, giving it an 8/10 repairability score. Ars has many good things to say, but many bad things as well: "The PlayStation 4 has an excellent controller, decently powerful hardware, some intriguing, well-executed new features, and an interface that shows belated acknowledgment of some of Sony's most user-unfriendly past designs. It also has a lot of features that are half-assed, missing, or downright bewildering at this point." Polygon's review is more visually oriented, filled with pictures, videos, and drawings. They conclude, "[T]he PlayStation 4's focus on gaming — and only gaming — is undermined by a distinct lack of compelling software. That failing is sure to improve — better games and more of them will appear on the PlayStation 4 — but right now, this is a game console without a game to recommend it." Eurogamer's coverage includes has a round-up of launch title reviews and gameplay videos. IGN has coverage of the roughly 0.4% of PS4s that arrive broken out of the box, and Kotaku explains how they fixed theirs.
Why cant we get both loosing?
I don't think you should speak for "the majority of us." My impression is it's a vocal minority upset over things most of Slashdot doesn't particularly care about - they got rid of the Linux OS nobody was actually using, and they purchased BMG right after BMG added anti-piracy rootkits to CDs, 10 years ago.
I don't think PS4 will fuck over the user. Sony sells it as a game device and it seems to do just that.
Slashdot: providing anti-social weirdos a soapbox, since 1997.
That was the point at which I decided that the internet connection wasn't benefiting me, but them. I just disconnected it from the network.
My XBox 360 is happily still working without an internet connection. But from the sounds of it both new consoles are still mostly going to demand an always-on connection (and if they're not at launch, they will I assume).
I'm more likely to buy a spare 360 at this point that consider either of the newer offerings from Sony or Microsoft.
I have no desire to play on-line, give these guys a marketing channel, or provide them with my usage data and a camera in my living room. If game consoles stop being something you can run completely off-line, well, I'll stop having game consoles.
Lost at C:>. Found at C.
Considering I'm usually anti DRM anything, I'm surprisingly ok with Steam DRM. Steam itself is fast, convenient and I've never had the DRM get in the way of me playing a game when I wanted to. They maintain my collection of purchased games which I can re-download without hassle as needed. -- After struggling in the past to find old CD keys and media this is the main reason I love Steam. Your mileage may vary, and I don't care. ;)
Sigs are bad for you...
Valve is a friendlier company, but a really powerful Steam machine isn't going to do you much good. You still need a powerful Windows machine to run most of the AAA games, which will then stream to the Steam Machine thin client.
If Linux gaming gains traction due to the Steam Machine, and I hope it does, a powerful one would become useful at that time. One you buy now will be out of date and worth much less than you paid by the time it's actually useful.
Well, if you put it that way there is zero reason to ever buy a console during initial release. All have problems and all have few titles. You could just do what I do and wait until the next gen is out and buy up the old consoles then. Yes, I bought my first 360 in July 3013, 200gb special edition with 40 games for $250, and yes, I bought my first original xbox in 2006 with similar extras. No, I don't care if "all my friends" are playing the new system, because no one comes to my house to play console games and I don't play console games online with my friends.
my karma will be here long after I'm gone
I also so far never had problem with Steam DRM and that's why I am OK with it.
And if/when Valve go bust or turn evil? (I'm aware Gabe said that if Valve go bust they'll unlock the Steam DRM. I don't believe it for a second - I doubt they're even legally in a position to make that call for other companies' games.)
I use Steam too, and yes it works fine now, but that's not to say that by going with Steam you've escaped all the downsides of DRM. They still hold the keys to your gaming locker.