Veterans of this website will know that it's rarely been as positive as it is now. Sony, in the pre-PlayStation 4 era, had a tendency to take one step forward and two steps back. Think about it: for every The Last of Us there was a Starhawk; for every forward-thinking initiative like PlayStation Plus there was an ill-fated 3D-esque push. Heck, the PlayStation Vita provided perhaps the biggest instance of the Japanese giant's self-destructive style; many praised the portable's price tag when it was announced, but then the manufacturer revealed those ridiculous memory cards and all of the goodwill was gone in a flash.
I've been waiting for things to go wrong with the PS4 since it was revealed. The announcement event went incredibly well, I thought, but I expected things to go south at E3 later that year. They didn't. I assumed that the hardware would be faulty when it eventually hit store shelves. Minor issues with DualShock 4 durability aside, it wasn't. The sales have been good, Sony's attitude has been generally good – heck, I even think that the first-party content has been decent. The company hasn't really put a foot wrong.
I'm going to get pulled up soon, I'm sure; I bet you're all waiting to jump into the comments and tell me I'm a fanboy, aren't you? Whatever. The point is that PlayStation 3 era Sony got a lot wrong: it misread the market with motion controls, it misread the market with handheld gaming, and it misread the market with the monolithic monstrosity of a machine that it put out in the first place. But even with the formal announcement of PlayStation VR last week – a potential banana skin, for sure – it navigated the pricing issues with grace.
And that means the scepticism that used to lead me to believe that PlayStation was one mistake away from completely crumbling has now gone – I trust the division under the leadership of Andrew House et al. And it's why I'm not really worried about these PS4.5 rumours. I can't say that I'm anywhere close to being convinced by a hypothetical hardware half-step – I alluded recently that I think it's a bad idea. Now, my viewpoint on that hasn't changed, but PlayStation's been so flawless of late that it's earned the benefit of the doubt.
I guess what I'm trying to say is that I'm no longer waiting for this current PlayStation team to slip-up, because they've proven over and over again that – with the big decisions – they're generally going to get them right. Everyone fails eventually, but where the PS3 years left me sceptical of everything that Sony announced, I feel more optimistic these days. Maybe the PS4.5 will be the unmitigated disaster that rekindles my old mind-set, but in the meantime, I'm actually quite enthusiastic about what the future brings. And if that's an upgraded piece of hardware, then I know that there's a good chance House and his team will be making the right call.
Are you still incredibly sceptical of Sony's decisions, or do you agree that it's earned the benefit of the doubt for now? Pick a side in the comments section below.
Comments 44
I'm still sceptical of Sony for two reasons.
1: Market stuff you make that might hit other demographics. There is money to be made and Sony is hesitant to bite.
2: The PS4, while my issues with how they handling the sole game I bought it for, has been good. A few hiccups and some stuff the system desperately needs, because I'm not taking it apart to slap a HD in. But for every PS4 there is a Vita. And PS MOBILE, and camera, and Move, and Wonder book, and the EU PSN. The list goes on.
I appreciate Sony is getting it's act together, but they are 1 good move for God knows how many bad ones in a scarily short time. When the good outweighs the bad we'lol talk about faith.
@BLPs So much of that stuff is pre-PS4 Sony, though - Mobile, Move, Wonderbook all under the old regime. They still have the capacity to flub their lines, I agree - but it doesn't feel as likely anymore.
I don't like the idea of it at all. If it's just a slight revision with the ability to stream 4K content and play 4K Bluray movies with some other hardware upgrades, sure, but if it's all new tech I won't be very happy, especially when I had no intentions of buying a 4K TV for a long time for gaming.
What if the additional 0.5 is a separate box you connect to your PS4 and TV, just like a unit you get with VR? That way you get an incremental upgrade but don't ask everyone to buy a new console altogether. Not sure if this is even possible, just a thought.
It's a classic case of people jumping to conclusions based off one article.
If Sony just switched to regular SD cards for the vita 2.0 it could have saved the vita. They stubbornly killed the vita.
i still think that the ps4.5 is a means to get 40-48fps or even 60fps out of games that are currently 30fps. it makes so much more sense than 4k. it might be accomplished by integration of the piggybacked vr module into the ps4 itself.
@get2sammyb
"....but then the manufacturer revealed those ridiculous memory cards and all of the goodwill was gone in a flash."
:')
As someone who isn't a 'fan-boy' and certainly don't think Sony are the 'best' (or even one of the best) companies, I see that they have made more 'bad' decisions than good - not just in gaming terms either. That being said I am still hopeful that if/when PS4k becomes reality, it will be handled in the right way.
If all it does is upscale visuals from 1080p native to 4K, My 4K TV does that already. Even images that aren't native 1080p (such as Sky broadcasts and some games) look better than native 1080p. I don't own any 4K Blurays and don't tend to buy movies anyway - kind of pointless when I subscribe to Sky movies and have 1,000's on demand. Therefore a 4K bluray player doesn't necessarily appeal to me. I don't have Netflix (or similar) and so their 4K content isn't of interest either. I don't know yet what SkyQ's 4K content will be but that is most likely going to be my only source of 4K (native) content.
What will appeal - if it turns out to be the case - better gaming visuals and/or performance. A long as the PS4K doesn't split the user base, which I doubt Sony would do, then I would certainly be interested because I already have a 4K TV (not bragging just stating a fact). I don't see how it would split the user base - in the same way that the PC market isn't split. Gamers can still play the same games and together regardless of the resolution and refresh rates. I see that future games may well have 'graphic settings' and those with PS4K can select a higher resolution - maybe not always as high as 4K (2160p) but 1440p. Maybe on games that are 1440/60, these could be played at 2160/30 or 1080/120 for example but those with a standard PS4 have a fixed 1080/60 and maybe no graphic settings option - the same as they do now. As long as the PS4K has the same OS and coding, then it shouldn't have any issue running PS4 games.
With success, comes ego, not even Sony is exempt from that,......and despite winning a lot of good will at the beginning of this generation, I can still see them getting a bit over zealous, IE, greedy (just like Microsoft and Nintendo, these companies always inevitably shoot themselves in the foot from time to time).
@get2sammyb
Fanboy!!!
No proof, lack of information, Nothing from SONY! Why talk about PS4.5 like its a real thing in production ready for pre-orders LOL My focus is on PS VR.
Not some wet dream about a 4K unit that would drive cost into the $1,000+ range. Is this a rumor plant to take the spotlight off Playstation VR.
I've no idea what this 4K is and I'm not curios at all because I'm fine with my preowned PS4 and my 5 years old LCD tv even if that makes me a perfect non-consumer. Is more power what gaming industries need? More pixels?
Yeah I trust Sony. Yes to a ps4.5, yes to having consoles every 3-4 years.
I'm not entirely sure about this alleged PS4.5 yet, since obviously it's still not a confirmed thing. My only concern if it does come to fruition is whether it's mandatory or not. If so, I will have a problem with it.
I will admit Sony seems to be doing well enough right now, but then again I don't bring myself to actually look at what companies do. I'm no company fanboy, I'm not going to say this will work perfectly, because every company has a misstep now and then. We'll just see what happens with this, if it happens.
Still dont get what all the fuss is about...if sony do go ahead with this and get it right(which at the moment is very likely) then great, doesn't really matter what it is, a new model ps4 or a separate box that boosts the existing ps4(like some lap tops can use) there will still only be one version of any game so no one will lose out.
@BAMozzy what tv u using matey?
@teknium_ My main TV is a Samsung 55" HU7500 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B3IeqjK2Ruw
People forget that during the PS3 major positions changed within Sony, they went from a strictly Japanese company into a global company with a lot of key positions run by people outside of Japan, so they have more knowledge of the western market. It's why SCE is changing headquarters to the U.S. from April.
The only thing you can trust Sony with is doing their best to make as much money as posdible.
I think this PS4.5 thing is a horrible idea.
What it will result in is me not buying the PS5 until years after launch.
My next 'PlayStation' will be a 'PS5' and NOT a PS4.5 :-/ If a PS4 comes out with a 4K Blu-ray player and that extra stuff for VR(i.e that VR box thingy built in) and it's a slimmer version then that is o.k with me and I might get another 1(for the 4K Blu-ray player bit) But if you have to buy it to play better looking PS4 games then F-that. What is the point of that.
I don't got no fancy millionaire 4K tv.
PS plus has been great, the software updates have been spot on, they misinterpreted the demand for both the PS4 and PSVR, they've closed studios, delayed games. It's not been great, it has been acceptable. I'm happy regardless.
No, I've never really been skeptical of Sony any more than Nintendo or MS. Truth is I'm happy with all 3 of them. They all slip up from time to time (Kinect 2.0 and forced online, $100 memory cards and abandon Vita owners, hardware tied accounts and no crossbuy) but all in all I'm quite happy with all 3 platform manufacturers.
Sony does make some questionable decisions sometimes, and I'm not entirely sure they won't prematurely pull out from VR if the cards don't fall in their favor. I'm also not confident they won't sell me a $500 VR package, then half a year later tell me I need to upgrade to PS4.5 to play half the VR games.
Nonetheless, I choose to remain optimistic and positive. After all, what's the point of gaming if you're just gonna be skeptical, unsatisfied and sour about it
Well it splits my mind, it's not easy as a consumer I would want it and probably pick one up day one. I don't have a 4K tv but this would be the excuse to then jump on it.
As a developer my mind just screams no as a platform all ps4 are the same so time optimising is spent getting the most out of a respective system. So now you have two systems to optimise for. Willing to bet Microsoft would do something similar so now you have 4 to optimise for maybe a 5th with Nintendo. It starts to have a effect for sure.
Technology increase so much these days the PS3 and the 360 were obsolete by the time they got replaced. In 18 months time I'm sure people will be saying the same about the ps4 and Xbox one. People already consider them aging and inferior.
@JaxonH Well said buddy.
@get2sammyb I personally think the PlayStation 4.5 is just going to be the slim model with the ability to stream content from apps like Netflix, Amazon and ESPN in 4K and support Blu-Ray UHD discs as some films are releasing in 4K. Other than that it will be a PlayStation 4 in a smaller form factor.
The big problem I have after playing mgs pp and comparing it to other games, no engine other arguably than the fox engine gets the best out of the ps4. The power in this machine should achieve 1080p 60fps for every game. We will be in a position soon were we have 80-150gb downloads with negligible difference on the ps4.5 to what we get now. Unless psvr is struggling to run on ps4....
@dire_distortion If its done properly, the PS4k shouldn't require any more work from developers to 'optimise'. Most development is done on PC's - particularly with 3rd party games. Instead of removing some 'assets' from the PC version that are pointless on the PS4, they could leave them in - like graphic settings. A PS4 is similar to a PC in its architecture. It has the same configuration but a different OS. Having a more powerful and faster CPU, a more powerful GPU and maybe more RAM is no different from the variation in PC's. Not every PC is 'identical' - some have more or faster cores in their CPU, A variety of RAM specs - up to 32GB it seems (both DDR and GDDR) and I don't know how many different GPU's including multiple ones in one machine. As long as they meet the 'minimum' specs, they can play the same games as the highest spec PC. The only difference being is that the minimum spec runs 1080p and the best can run at 4K - frame rate can depend on the game. A minimum spec machine may run at 1440p but the frame rate is halved (or worse). Developers don't have to optimise for 'every' combination of PC. Developers would optimise for the minimum spec - which in this case would be the PS4.
I feel like Sony is very hit and miss so I won't say I trust them to get this right. What I will say though is if they get it right I'm absolutely not opposed to upgrading, been doing it for a while. Got a slim PS2 back in 2006 to ensure I had a working console if the fat one ever screwed up. Replaced by 40 GB PS3 with a slim 160 GB because I needed the hard drive space and upgraded my launch Xbox 360 to a 250 GB slim for the extra memory but mostly because in 2011 in didn't make sense to have a console that lacked wifi. So, good specs, a nice price and a decent trade-in deal from Gamestop or Best Buy and I'm willing to upgrade eventhough I have zero plans to get PSVR which I think is why this 'PS4.5' is being made.
People love a good moan. Not much solid information on this yet, so happy to wait and see before getting all emotional on the many possibilities of what may or may not happen.
I am happy they nailed the PS4 so it doesnt go the way of the Vita or the Move. I picture the VR will be another one of those.
With this said, I am not getting another PS4 so soon, specially if NX really hits this year. A PSVR PS4.5 would instantly negate the cheaper price point of their headset.
The thing is that this generation Microsoft started plain terribly and Nintendo really made a number of incredibly greedy decisions that seemed so atypical for their style. As a result Sony looks kinda consumer friendly and smart. But is it?
I think the only thing I would disagree with you is sony misreading the market with ps3. It had built in Wi-Fi (100$ extra for 360), blu ray build in (200$ add-on for 360 in the form of hddvd) then it had easily swappable hd, a controller that lasted years in battery life, just overall it's price was at the time to anyone who did research an absolute steal. I think it was there lack of fully understanding what online gaming, and party chat fully meant to the generation. As a member of the blu ray conglomerate, they couldn't afford to make it optional in the ps3, especially with the early gains hddvd had over blu ray, they needed that blu ray player built in as a sort of Trojan horse in the household. Losing that battle would have cost sony and other members of that group so much money i think the losses in sales for the ps3 (which did sell out consistently, but manufacturing issues were plenty) were more than acceptable.
Overall though it seems sony and Microsoft completely flip flopped this gen verses last, especially at the start, and it cost Microsoft dearly in the states.
@BigDaddyT0101 Im glad they had Bluray HD DVD was a joke and i thank the Gods it didn't catch on or we would still be swapping disks.....
To be fair MS did say they wouldn't use bluray and it would fail well we know how it turned out.
Ontopic i will wait for some info on the PS4,5 of its even for real.
I don't even believe this PS4.5 nonsense, if they did make one it would either split the user base or not be worth the upgrade from the get go.
@get2sammyb External game storage & really only supporting 2tb of space= not good. I've filled up my 500gb long ago & have had to upgrade. I still don't own the major games (big file size), let alone music or movies; I'd like.
@TomKnows Alright, alright - everything's not 100% perfect. But you get what I'm saying... They've generally done a good job with all of the big stuff.
You guys should check out this article from eurogamer its very interesting http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/digitalfoundry-2016-in-theory-playstation-4k-is-real-but-why-is-sony-making-it
People still think that the little black box that comes as part of the PSVR holds a processing unit inside that helps the PS4 with some extra power needed for the Virtual Reality headset. Actually it is nothing of the sort. All it does is split the image so you can have a game being displayed on both the TV and the PSVR at the same time.
They had to do it that way because the PS4 only has one AV/HD port. It does help with 3D sound effects which will reduces the pressure that would a be put on the APU inside of the PS4. The little black box has no extra processing power whats so ever.
If Sony do release a "super charged PS4" later on then I will definitely purchase one because it will seriously help with Virtual Reality gaming. I really don't care whether it does or does not output newer games in 4k.
My only condition is just as long as it isn't released until very late next year because by then the PS4 will be 4 years old. That way the PS4 would hopefully be powerful enough to give us another good few years before Sony release the PS5.
If however they release the PS4.5 too early I will just sell my PS4 and move over to PC gaming.
One other thing, Sony had better make sure that they market the upgraded PS4 in such a way that those of us that have been loyal don't feel as though we are being forgot about.
That may be a tall order for Sony because their marketing skills leave alot to be desired. Just look at how they have marketed Ratchet & Clanck, or should I say haven't marketed it.
If they do it right they had better make sure that the PS4.5 will last us for years to come otherwise they may have a disaster on their hands and burn any and all the good will that they have earded since releasing the PS4.
I think the PS4.5 will just add the VR external box to the existing kit. I don't think they are as silly as Nintendo so won't do a "New 3DS".
So i suppose I too have faith they will do the right thing.
My only concern is that Sony's "normal" (i.e. not PSVR) game output is going to suffer and decrease because of having another device to support.
I'm happy about PSVR but I still want the same amount of non-VR games. That's one reason I moved to PS from Xbox as that happened when MS went all out with Kinect...
@Dodoo
I think a lot of people moved from Xbox to PlayStation this gen because of the exclusives. And a lot of people will be disappointed because Sony's first party output in particular has been putrid this gen.
@Gamer83 That may or may not be true but one thing's for sure, PS4 has had better output than X1!
Have they still not had an exclusive this year yet? Until Quantum Break?
Will it let me play uncharted 4 at 1080p 60fps? Cause I have had my PS4 since launch day I would not mind upgrading.
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