Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Sony To Debut Two New PlayStation 4 Consoles Next Month, Says WSJ (cnet.com)

Posted by msmash on from the new-gaming-consoles dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Sony could be about to announce two new PlayStation 4 consoles, according to the Wall Street Journal. Both units are set to be introduced next month, people familiar with the matter told the newspaper. The upgraded console outlined by the company earlier this year, capable of outputting 4K-resolution graphics, could be joined by a slimmed-down, cheaper version of the console. That would give gamers options to suit their varying budgets and demands. Sony is set to hold a press conference at the PlayStation Theater in New York on September 7 where the company is expected to outline the consoles in further detail.

86 comments

  1. Related Leaked Images by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

    Leaked images of the ps4 slim http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2016/08/ps4-slim-specs-price-release-date/

    1. Re: Related Leaked Images by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Anyone seen further info on the Sony PS4VR PSVR for $399 on -3th October?. There were rumors than a new PS4 with snappier system was needed to drive the VR headset. . .

  2. The console advantage. by jellomizer · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I don't get this changes with Microsoft than Sony.
    They key advantage of Consoles isn't their power and performance but the fact that they are a common setup for the entire platform. Having different models with different features, will degrade this advantage and will end up with the same problem that we get with PCs. Games not optimized for the platforms, where they will not support the features that want to use, or will perform at a level that will cause a disadvantage to the other lesser box.

    --
    If something is so important that you feel the need to post it on the internet... It probably isn't that important.
    1. Re:The console advantage. by Higaran · · Score: 2

      Yes, but 3 or 4 configurations is much easier to deal with then the almost infinite processor/ram/gpu/hard drive configurations out there.

    2. Re:The console advantage. by phishybongwaters · · Score: 1

      Well there's two things to say about that. Firstly, the 7 year console cycle sony was locked into was losing them money, they can now make tons more. The other side is, eventually consoles become a service, you no longer by play station 4, you buy "playstation" and pay a monthly fee, when the hardware gets updated, you get a new console in the mail, send back the old gen (or the parts replaced) and enjoy the new hardware. This is where it's going, this is a slow first step towards it

    3. Re:The console advantage. by Gilgaron · · Score: 2

      Are console exclusives written anymore without ownership or heavy incentivization from the console manufacturers? If the software writers are going to go cross platform anyway, it probably isn't a great deal more effort to code in some PC-style performance settings hardcoded to the different console revisions. Certainly it is easy to do a few performance settings for different Xboxes versus Xbox and Playstation both, and yet most do the latter anyway. Console peripherals like controllers can add up to a lot, so that they'll be portable across version updates would make it more attractive to update consoles, as well.

    4. Re:The console advantage. by DarkOx · · Score: 4, Insightful

      On the developer side not its not probably that much harder to make the games able to support a range, all be it a limited one, of hardware.

      On the consumer side though, I am not thrilled. I know many will disagree with me but I liked the least common denominator aspect of consoles. It meant that you could go to the store bring the game home and just play it. It worked and played the way it did in the store or on the TV commercial. Granny just had to understand little Timmy has a PlayStation and this is a PlayStation title to buy him a birthday gift.

      Now its going to be back to the world of PC games. Where you have to buy the thing to find out it runs all choppy on your hardware or many of the cool visual effects are disabled etc. Now its back to having to go read a bunch of forums to see if Grand Theft Auto 19 is actually worth playing on my PlayStation 9 model 1B+ or if I really have to go invest in a PlayStation 9 model 2X or maybe a PlayStation 9 model 2X+ to enjoy it.

      I don't see this as being terribly good for consumers.

      --
      Repeal the 17th Amendment TODAY! Also Please Read http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
    5. Re:The console advantage. by dissy · · Score: 1

      That doesn't make any sense.

      The new ps4 provides playback for 4k bluray movies. The current/old ps4 only provides 1080hd playback of movies.

      How does that effect or give advantage to someone in a game?

    6. Re:The console advantage. by ezelkow1 · · Score: 1

      it doesnt, except that the upscaler probably works for games as well. So you can output 4k for games, just upscaled from 1080. Not much of an advantage, then again many of the 4k sets Ive seen have horrible upscalers and anything but 4k looks like utter crap. So hopefully the xbones/ps4+++ upscaler does a better job

    7. Re:The console advantage. by phishybongwaters · · Score: 1

      wow that comes off as if I'm supporting the decision, I'm not, I'm so butthurt over buying a ps4 and instantly finding out they are putting out a better one probably next year, with game devs already saying how the new ps4 will change their games (meaning I get fucked TWICE, first by paying 70$ for a digital game without a physical copy, then again for round two as I watch the game I bought become better on the neo while I get to play fucking shitty half assed ports.) I do not support this decision. I do support the hardware as a service model that is slowly becoming a reality. not even PC manufacturers are offering a service like this to the masses, this is a game changer and I'd be willing to drop the same amount on that console as my pc, knowing I'm locked into a upgrade cycle for so many years that I'm not going to be obsolete by next x-mas.

    8. Re:The console advantage. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      As a former game dev, if it's an optional add-on for a console we don't develop for it.
      Too much effort for no one to use. This is going to end the Playstation if they keep it up.

    9. Re:The console advantage. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      That was true in the past but it's not today. Has not really been true since half way in to the ps3/360 product cycle.

      Every time I fire up a console it has a several-hundred megabyte system patch it needs to install. The same goes for actively popular games. - And you know what? My windows PCs don't update that frequently.. Or when they do, they patch in the background without interupting my ability to play games.

      Current gen consoles are just managed PCs with a monthly subscription fee.

      Really, having a fixed hardware target is an anachronism. With memory and bandwith and cpu being cheap it's much smarter to develop a fixed software target with hardware independence.

    10. Re:The console advantage. by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      This.

      A thousand times this.

      And it's not just that they wouldn't know and have to learn that now. That's basically been the problem since the days of the Atari 2600. Remember the train wreck its successor was, that 5200? Yes, it was "better". But nobody built jack shit for it. Because there were a ton of 2600 machines out there that would not be compatible, while the 5200 was compatible with 2600 games. So why the hell build for a console that was, first, not that much better, second, far more complicated to write for and third nobody had (in comparison to the numbers of A2600 boxes)?

      Same here. Why the hell should I develop for that "new and improved" PS4, knowing that everyone who wants a PS4 and then some already have one, with few of them, if any, going to buy that "new" model? I'd deliberately limit my market that way.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    11. Re:The console advantage. by dissy · · Score: 1

      Because there were a ton of 2600 machines out there that would not be compatible, while the 5200 was compatible with 2600 games.

      Just a tech-nit, but it was actually the 7800 that was the "next gen" 2600 that had backwards compatibility with games and utilized the same controllers.

      The 5200 was a totally different and unique beast that wasn't forward or backward compatible with anything, used completely different shaped cartridges, and a different controller protocol and connector (it was analog input with a keypad of buttons and the new pause from the controller function)

    12. Re:The console advantage. by SScorpio · · Score: 1

      That's no where near where this is going. You're right in that you just buy "Playstation" rather than a Playstation XYZ. But your new console will play all your older games and all newer games going forward for X number of years without needing a subscription. Sure if 2023 a game might come out that requires a 2017 or newer version of the hardware, but how if that different than the normal generational increases?

      I find this much more attractive than the PS3/360 -> PS4/XBone shift. On the Microsoft side there is some backwards compatibility, but on Sony's side unless you keep a PS3 around, your digital collection and older games are no longer usable. On my PC I can fire up a 30 year old game and still play it on a system that will play all the latest games.

    13. Re:The console advantage. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I thought that 4 different console configurations were part of what did Sega in. Genesis, Genesis + CD, Genesis + 32X, and Genesis + CD + 32X.

    14. Re:The console advantage. by tepples · · Score: 1

      To improve the median quality of games available for their platforms, console makers do background checks on their authorized developers to ensure some minimal level of experience and financial stability. So if a developer is making the jump from PC or smartphones to consoles for the first time, its qualification to develop on one console might still be pending, and the game might hit one console's download store before the developer gets a chance to start on a port to the other(s).

      If a third-party game is exclusive to a Nintendo platform, it may rely on the specialized input devices of that platform, such as the Wii Remote motion controller, the Wii U GamePad tablet controller, or the physical buttons that a Nintendo 3DS has and the vast majority of smartphones for the western market lack.

    15. Re:The console advantage. by Holi · · Score: 1

      "were part of what did Sega in"

      Reading is fundamental.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    16. Re:The console advantage. by Holi · · Score: 1

      a thirty year old game will be at best 16 bit, so no, without an emulator of some kind, you won't be playing it on a modern (64 bit) operating system.

      --
      Sorry, teleporters just kill you and then make a copy. A perfect, soul-less copy.
    17. Re:The console advantage. by Quirkz · · Score: 1

      I know many will disagree with me but I liked the least common denominator aspect of consoles. It meant that you could go to the store bring the game home and just play it. It worked and played the way it did in the store or on the TV commercial. ... Where you have to buy the thing to find out it runs all choppy on your hardware or many of the cool visual effects are disabled etc.

      I'm with you on this, because that's exactly the principle that got me into buying consoles rather than constantly fiddling with my computers. However, I've honestly had some issues with earlier Playstations. I can think of one PS3 game I've got that I've never finished, because there's a scene halfway through with some sort of memory error due to too many things on the screen. There are supposedly fixes, but I've never gotten them to work, and unlike a computer where I might add more RAM, on the PS3 I'm out of luck. I can think of another game that has PS3/PS4 versions, and while the PS4 version is nice, the PS3 version is slow and clunky and/or dumbed down. One of the most egregious cases I've seen is an instance where the PS2 version of a game is completely unrelated to the PS3 version of the same game, and also terrible.

      I'm probably rambling, but I think my point is sometimes developers try to squeeze too much into a game on a system that can't handle it, or they run into trouble trying to straddle the generations, and one or the other versions of the product comes out massively inferior. I think the game that kept crashing and I couldn't do anything about it was actually the last one I bought for a console. I realized I was stuck and my money was essentially wasted on that game. Since then I went back to the computer for gaming.

      --
      The Quirkz Handbook of Self-Improvement for People Who Are Already Pretty Okay
    18. Re:The console advantage. by mattack2 · · Score: 1

      I agree with you mostly, but it seems to me that Sony has done it (based on the leaked info IIRC) as well as can be done -- no "high end version only" games, only ADDED features (e.g. VR).

      Also, hasn't Nintendo had multiple different versions of GameBoys out at the same time very often? GBA, GBA SP, the various 3D ones, etc? I know not all of those were at the same time, but I thought they had multiple ones, that didn't always play all of the games, out at the same time... and the Wii U seemed to be the only one that confused the heck out of people.

    19. Re: The console advantage. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      sure, if you kept your 5,25" copy of leisure suit larry.

    20. Re:The console advantage. by SScorpio · · Score: 1

      Yes you might have to use something like DOSBox. But you can still run your original copy on the latest hardware. You can't run anything that's not PS4 on a PS4 (PS3 digital, PS2 disk, PS1 disk, etc). Hopefully the way consoles are going will fix that.

    21. Re: The console advantage. by unami · · Score: 1

      no, that's the slim xbox - the ps4neo is supposed to have a faster cpu, faster gpu, more memory bandwith, etc. which will probably have more advantages than running the same graphics just with higher resolution (although i hope it's mostly just that). it's definitely not just upscaling of video.

    22. Re:The console advantage. by barbariccow · · Score: 1

      I can play ps3 games on my ps4. What's wrong with yours?

    23. Re:The console advantage. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      They even had the Sega Saturn in that mix as well. In Japan, it was released before the 32x!

    24. Re:The console advantage. by jezwel · · Score: 1

      Granny just had to understand little Timmy has a PlayStation and this is a PlayStation title to buy him a birthday gift.

      Right now Granny has to know which of the 4 versions of Playstations to target. Theoretically, the future would be just 'PlayStation' and the game will detect the capabilities of the console on which it is running and customise settings to cater for the setup.

    25. Re: The console advantage. by halltk1983 · · Score: 1

      You either re-bought the games, or you're lying. http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Ps3+on+ps...

      --
      Watch for Penguins, they eat Apples and throw rocks at Windows.
    26. Re: The console advantage. by deek · · Score: 1

      The third option is that he's talking about cross-buy titles.

    27. Re:The console advantage. by deek · · Score: 1

      Have you tried a PS4? You'll find your windows PC updates much more frequently. Sounds like you don't fire up the console all that often. Also, PS4 updates can download in the background while you play.

      Game patches can also be downloaded while you play, though multiplayer games would require you to install the patch before playing.

      If you don't want to play multiplayer, the subscription fee can be avoided.

      Fixed hardware targets aren't quite as anachronistic as you think. Just ask Batman Arkham Knight players.

    28. Re: The console advantage. by CronoCloud · · Score: 1

      You're forgetting about Playstation Now

      https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...

    29. Re:The console advantage. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It's not as hard to support a wide range of setups as some people suggest it is, nothing like it was 15+ years ago anyway (I'm a developer myself).

      This is horrible for consumers. The least common denominator aspect is the main bonus for consoles, removing that is making consoles themselves pointless. Your left with only the fact that with consoles your sitting on your couch and/or console exclusive titles (that is becoming less and less of an issue anyway).

      Last time I was tempted to get a console was with the Xbox 360 + Kinect, since then I've had zero interest... same goes for my kids (all PC master race). Mostly it's because of the limitations imposed with very few benefits to offset the limitations. I owned 4 of the original Xbox's because of how moddable they were, played games and used them as media centers networked throughout the house (still works better then any console since as far as sharing local media on your LAN).

    30. Re: The console advantage. by barbariccow · · Score: 1

      You either re-bought the games, or you're lying. http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Ps3+on+ps...

      Cute link -- but did you actually read through to the third link, "How To Play PS3 Games On PS4 - Knowledge Cage", or do you just accept as golden truth google's "Truth Bubble"?

    31. Re: The console advantage. by barbariccow · · Score: 1

      Yup! It's not "Every Game", sadly. But really, with subscription pricing for a huge catalog of games, it beats the hell out of actually buying used games (and hoping that scratch isn't on the last boss fight). For the 2 or 3 japanese bouncy bubbly anime games that aren't on the platform, yes I do have to reach on the table and push "input" and SCROLLL ALLLL THEEEE WAYYYY DOWNNNN.

      But what do you expect? It's a different architecture. They ditched cell. And I doubt Sony would release an emulator fearing that it would be reverse engineered (too late: Check the internet). At least last time I looked into this, it was hard to get the Sony image containing libs etc which was required for the emulator to work, but the architecture itself can be. And I think last time I looked was probably 8 years ago into PS1 emulation... but I'm rambling now.

      On a related note, I can also play NES games on my Wii U. And Nintendo DS games on my Wii U. But the split-screen does hurt my eyes after a while...

  3. Death Rattle of an Industry by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    That would give gamers options to suit their varying budgets and demands.

    I don't want console options or gimmicks. I want good games, at a reasonable price.
    Log into the PS4 store sometime. Game bundles of €100+ are visible, or last gen cinematic crud like Uncharted, and "next-gen" FPS like Doom, which won praise for actually getting within shooting distance of gameplay from 15 years ago.

    Consoles are a waste of money now. You can get 95%+ of all their shit on PC, cheaper, more conveniently, and more reliably. Aside from Nintendo, there aren't enough exclusive to justifying dropping even $300 on any current gen console when you could just buy an SSD/Card for your PC and live it larger for less.

    t. console pleb

    1. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by Opportunist · · Score: 3, Insightful

      *sputter* Games that actually boot at launch? When was the last time you had a console? That's so last-gen. Or before-last-gen, even.

      Today it's more like buying a new game and slipping it in. Waiting for the console to boot up. Finally realizing that hey, there is actually a medium in the reader but no, you get a selection screen. Because when you slip a medium in, it doesn't mean that you want to play the game, you could still be absolutely interested in our latest crap that we wanna hype! So you navigate to the "play the fucking game" option. Lucky you, btw, if you have a controller that doesn't require you to enter the 8 ballet positions to do so.

      Then the game finds out that, hey, your system is too old for this game, you have to install an update! And since you're online, let's get that update from the server instead of the game medium because, you know, it could be more up to date! Wait for the download while we entertain you with more ads for more crap you don't give a shit about! Oh, and then, please reboot the system.

      Waiting for the console to boot up. Finally realizing that hey, there is actually a medium in the reader... ...enter the 8 ballet positions to do so.

      Game starts. Awesome! Erh... no, doesn't, because it's found out that there is a patch actually for it, let's download it, shall we? That was not really a question, dummy, that's more like when your boss "suggests" you should do something, just sit there, look pretty and watch some recommendations from our store! Oh, and of course, then it's again reboot time!

      Waiting for the console ...

      And then it's finally ... time to get some sleep, it's past midnight. But you might be able to play tomorrow!

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    2. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      There is an option to boot straight to disc, but I leave that off. Often I'd rather play a game from the hard drive or use one of the other apps on the console.
       
        The main reason I prefer console though, is I enjoy sitting on my comfy couch instead of an office chair, and looking at my large TV instead of a monitor (like I do all day at work). A controller is much more enjoyable for me to use than mouse and keyboard (which many PC centric gamers insist is the best for twitch gameplay). I get to sit in a comfy position, on a comfy couch, and my dogs can sit with me without any issue. Not to mention if it's a game like LA Noire, friends can sit with me and we can all take a shot at interrogation without huddling around monitor.

      I could connect a PC to the TV, which I would like to do for other reasons, but the extra cost isn't enough to make me do it. I don't hate PC gaming, and I don't have the strange arrogance toward it like I seem to see from the PC gamer side, I just see what fits for me. There are small exceptions. Minecraft feels more natural on PC for me, and so does Terraria and games like Banished. Just a preferences thing, but it really isn't as bad as you suggest. Every time I put a disc in, it plays when I want. Content loads as quickly as I expect it to. No higher occurrence of crashing or glitches vs PC. It just boils down to usability for me.

    3. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by bloodhawk · · Score: 1

      I am both a PC gamer and a console gamer. you don't have to build a PC for $300, if you are a gamer the money you will save by getting games at considerably cheaper prices easily covers the extra cost of the PC which can then play a much wider and much vaster array of games on. consoles are great for living room but they are definitely not cheaper and you need to get a clue, games on consoles nowadays are just as buggy as PC games, it is a common occurrence to require multi GB patch downloads day one just to make them kinda work.

    4. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by mattack2 · · Score: 1

      I don't want console options or gimmicks. I want good games, at a reasonable price.

      You say this, then you rant about the stuff that's on the PS4 store.

      I'm VERY MUCH more a "physical media" person than a digital download person, largely because it is the "backup", in that I can put it in another console too...

      But games are often cheap enough on PSN that even I have been sucked into the digital download thing. I have even re-bought a few games that got CHEAP ENOUGH (literally a few dollars at most) to make it more convenient that way.

    5. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      On the PC I can at least DO something sensible while the game is patching. And with Steam the whole point is made moot by simply updating the whole crap in the background (if you let it). And even if for some odd reason Game A doesn't start due to an update missing, I can not only just say "screw that update and let me play" (ok, at least as long as I want to play single player), I could also get it updated, playing Game B while I wait for that update to finish.

      Anything like that on your console available?

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    6. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by CronoCloud · · Score: 1

      The Experience you describe resembles last gen , not current gen, and it sounds more like the 360 than the PS3.

      Though you CAN set a PS3 so that if a game is in, it will boot to it, and you won't see ads while an update is occurring And you can set the PS3 to check for updates while you're not using it, say at 4AM or something. (It is probably using cron behind the scenes)

      Neither will you see ads during PS4 updates, which occur in the background, and you can play the game (Or another one) while it is updating. The PS4 also checks for updates in rest mode and will install them for you. Though it will only update games you actually play fairly frequently. For example if you don't play a game for a while, it won't check for updates to it.

    7. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by CronoCloud · · Score: 1

      Anything like that on your console available?

      Yes, that's how system and software updates have worked on the PS4 since 2013. Didn't you get the memo?

      I take it you have some familiarity with consoles of the past but not the current generation?

    8. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      I didn't really want to buy a PS4, admittedly, I wasn't sure it would still play games half a year later should Sony decide that it shouldn't anymore.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    9. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by CronoCloud · · Score: 1

      Funny comment, but that's not likely to happen, the PS4 is more focused on gaming than the PS3 was. And it is less annoying in regards to background updates and the like than the PS3 is.

      I've been enjoying mine, a launch model with the HD upgraded to 2TB, it has most of the features I wished the PS3 had. Though it is lacking a bit in certain specific ways compared to the PS3.

      I recently took some No Man's Sky screenshots on it, and while I usually copy my shots to an external drive for later batch upload with tags/description via flickr_upload on the PC, I was wondering if I could do a quick upload of one or two to flickr via the PS4's web browser. However, unlike the PS3's browser, the PS4's browser doesn't support image uploads.

      And the PS4 can't play/rip music CD's.

    10. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      The point is, Sony has demonstrated time and again that they revoke your right, sorry, privilege to use their console (it's theirs, not yours, even after you bought it) whenever they see fit. Why should I buy anything from a company like that?

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    11. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by CronoCloud · · Score: 1

      Time and again? That's a bit of an exaggeration there, don't you think? Are you referring to OtherOS, that was a single incident.

      and AFAIK the only thing they consider a privilege is their network, not the console itself.

      I did run OtherOS by the way, YDL, and moderated over on the YDL forums. Was a regular on the PS2 Linux forum as well. So I'm not unfamiliar with the issue you are probably referring to.

      And as I've said many many times:

      It is the users choice as to whether they keep OtherOS (and lose access to PSN because the PS3 isn't running the most recent firmware), or upgrade it and lose OtherOS. Now you may make the valid complaint that one shouldn't have had to make that choice, and I agree. But Sony felt that they had to do "something" about the vulnerabilities revealed and OtherOS users were just a rounding error against the horde of users who never used it.

      Supporting OtherOS also cost Sony money, and there were compatibility issues in regards to firmware not long before OtherOS was removed.

      http://www.ydl.net/board/viewt...

    12. Re:Death Rattle of an Industry by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      If you sell me something I have an expectation concerning its usefulness, features and abilities. Removing a feature after sale is fraud.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  4. Don't buy Sony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    After

      - the rootkit on CDs thing
      - the Linux on playstation debacle

    and numerous other things it is well-known that Sony likes to piss on its customers. Just Say No.

    1. Re:Don't buy Sony by LichtSpektren · · Score: 1

      I agree. Also don't buy from Microsoft because they're guilty of similar crimes.

      I'm really not a Nintendo fanboy, but they're the only console gaming company that doesn't suck these days.

    2. Re:Don't buy Sony by Khyber · · Score: 1, Flamebait

      Nope, Nintendo sucks too. They pulled the DMCA out on the AM2R project because it was far superior to Federation Force in every single way and they couldn't stand being made to look bad by a single programmer.

      --
      Still waiting on Serviscope_minor to wake up to fucking reality and realize that Jessica Price isn't going to fuck him.
    3. Re: Don't buy Sony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      They pulled DMCA on it in order to protect their IP. They always do this.

    4. Re: Don't buy Sony by tepples · · Score: 1

      Does that leave only select PC game developers that are open to licensing their works for amateur derivatives?

    5. Re: Don't buy Sony by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      That is not even in the same fucking league. Nintendo shutting down stuff using their copyrights and trademarks is all they do, and that is a subset of Microsoft and Sony actions.

  5. Re:Don't need new consoles by phishybongwaters · · Score: 1

    tell us how you really feel sir

  6. Two PS4s by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Apparently, after seeing the hype Pokemon Sun and Moon are getting, Sony wanted in on the "pick one" paradigm. Not having any games that could be tastefully paired in such a way, they decided to apply it to their consoles. After some even worse ideas, they settled on two new versions of the same hardware they already have.

    Introducing PS4 Prince and Pauper editions!
    The Prince edition assumes you have the finest electronics available, so it outputs a 7680 by 4320 resolution image and audio only works on 8.2 or higher surround sound arrangements.
    The Pauper edition assumes you are still struggling by with salvaged hardware from 1988, so it has a 3-coax RGB video output and supports stereo sound, but one channel is always much louder than the other for no good reason and sometimes it swaps.

  7. Re:Don't need new consoles by sTERNKERN · · Score: 1

    Someone just took two from the morning fuck pills and became very productive. Congrats on your efforts and achievements, I hope you found the cure of aids and cancer in the mean time you posted this gem.

  8. Re: Remember when Sony mocked Microsoft atE3 by KatherineTheGeek · · Score: 2

    Nobody remembers it because it didn't happen. Some observers thought it odd to announce a console that won't ship for another year at the same time a new revision of the original was announced, but that doesn't amount to mocking. We don't yet know what the ship schedule will be for Sony's offerings.

  9. Hmmmm by hipp5 · · Score: 2

    The slim version makes sense. As the platform matures, get out a barebones system at a lower price point. Console manufacturers have been doing this for a while now. I had the PS1 slim and the second gen PS3. If the PS4 slim hits the right price point I'll finally jump into PS4 land. The 4k version is a little more iffy. Now developers have two configurations they have to consider.

    1. Re:Hmmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The 4k version is a little more iffy. Now developers have two configurations they have to consider.

      The machine won't natively render in 4K, as far as I know it renders in the usual resolution and then upscales to 4K, so the difference in hardware shouldn't be massive. I think most of the 4K talk relates to 4K videos, not gaming.

      Even PC gaming still hasn't seen widespread 4K adoption because pushing pixels at that resolution takes expensive horsepower. There's no way you could currently build a console at the usual price which could push 4K gaming.

    2. Re:Hmmmm by tepples · · Score: 1

      Will games necessarily be locked out of 4K, or are most AAA games just too graphically complex for it? If the latter, then perhaps some of those cross-platform games that display in 1080p even on the slightly slower Xbox One might be patchable to display in at least 1440p on the revised PlayStation 4.

    3. Re:Hmmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Most titles can't even meet the 1080p @ 60fps benchmark and these updated systems will be lucky to even do that. It seems counter-intuitive to try to push up the resolution on less visually complex games, they aren't going to look any better.

    4. Re:Hmmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The N64 got along reasonably well with rampacks in circulation. Few games required it and most of the rest either ignored it or added some slightly nicer bells and whistles.

    5. Re:Hmmmm by bloodhawk · · Score: 1

      1080p to 1440p is a LARGE step. games are struggling to even achieve 1080p on Ps4, to go to 1440p a lot of compromises would have to be made in games.

    6. Re:Hmmmm by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      The PS1 slim had better hardware than the original.

  10. Re:Don't need new consoles by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    I'm voting for this guy for president.

  11. Games for multiple consoles but not PC by tepples · · Score: 1

    Are console exclusives written anymore without ownership or heavy incentivization from the console manufacturers?

    There were third-party games released on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 but not PC. One of these was Red Dead Redemption. There are also third-party games released on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One but not PC. One of these is Mortal Kombat XL. This number increases if your home PC runs anything other than Windows. Did you also mean to count handheld games for PlayStation Vita or Nintendo 3DS?

    1. Re:Games for multiple consoles but not PC by tlhIngan · · Score: 2

      Are console exclusives written anymore without ownership or heavy incentivization from the console manufacturers?

      There were third-party games released on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 but not PC. One of these was Red Dead Redemption. There are also third-party games released on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One but not PC. One of these is Mortal Kombat XL. This number increases if your home PC runs anything other than Windows. Did you also mean to count handheld games for PlayStation Vita or Nintendo 3DS?

      I think OP meant' "console exclusives" as in "Sony" or "Microsoft", not games that lack a PC port.

      And despite the PC being vastly larger, there are many sound reasons why devs may not want to support the PC - piracy being pretty much the biggest reason. The piracy rate being so much higher on PC (from virtually nil on console to over 90% on PC) means that the market has to be just that much larger to even consider making money on PC. Then there's all the support - graphics drivers especially often need tweaking for games. On a console, the manufacturer usually helps you out there (Sony and Microsoft generally are pretty good with it, Nintendo... not so much). But on PC you have to work with both NVidia and AMD (or risk your game doing strange things on the other card). Then there's all the strange display combinations - a console can be reasonably expected to work on a 16:9 screen (1080p most typically). PCs can be 16:9, 21:9, super duper widescreen with 3x 1080p horizontally, etc. And PC gamers expect you to support that with FOV adjustability And any textures that you may have reduced the size of because well, you won't see it at 1080p, you know PC people with quadruple 8K monitors will complain about fuzzy textures.

      There's a good chance the PC port won't make much money - between piracy, support and extra dev time, etc. which is why most PC ports are cheap and crap - the business case makes it hard.

    2. Re:Games for multiple consoles but not PC by Gilgaron · · Score: 1

      I meant more in terms of games that are available only on a single platform ie Xbox One or Playstation 4, but not both. Everyone else is already writing their games for multiple performance scenarios.

    3. Re:Games for multiple consoles but not PC by bloodhawk · · Score: 1

      I don't think anyone counts playstation vita for anything, not even sony.

  12. Re:Don't need new consoles by Opportunist · · Score: 1

    Well, you're in luck, you can actually vote for someone who is as eloquent and coherent.

    And his messages are also rather direct, to the point and not really ambiguous. Even though they might change a few times in the next weeks, but they will be just as clear. Just saying the opposite.

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
  13. No way it does 4k games by ZiakII · · Score: 1

    I could see 4k video sure. But 4k games? It can not even handle 1080p currently a lot of the time.

    1. Re:No way it does 4k games by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      By "it", you mean an unreleased console? Are you from the future?
      No reason some games won't run at 4k.

    2. Re:No way it does 4k games by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      unless the console is going to be $1000+ then there are many reasons it is simply not feasible. 4k requires a massive jump in horsepower, bandwidth etc to even have a hope of a achieving. You aren't getting that in a sub $500 console this year.

  14. Re: Remember when Sony mocked Microsoft atE3 by sexconker · · Score: 1

    Their main presenter, during their main presentation. Up on stage. Made fun of Microsoft for launching new consoles. Everyone saw it.

    That's not what happened. Quote it, I dare you.

  15. Re: Remember when Sony mocked Microsoft atE3 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Perhaps you could provide a youtube link then?

  16. Fix the networking by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Its not physical size thats keeping me from buying a ps4... nor is it the lack of 4k... i couldnt care less about that crap.

    Fix the networking so it doesnt need 100+ ports mapped to it (or the DMZ) so i can network the damn things without turning me whole home network inside-out. THATS why i dont (and wont) have a ps4.

    1. Re:Fix the networking by CronoCloud · · Score: 1

      Did you just time travel from 2002 with a PS2?

      I have a PS4 that works fine without any ports forwarded to it. The PS3 also works without it, though IIRC some games worked slightly better with some ports forwarded. That was with my previous router, an old WRT54, though. It works just fine without forwarding with the current router.

  17. PS4 = fail by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Sony went a whole console generation without a Tekken or a (decent) Gran Turismo. Talk about failure.