Pachter's strategy is simple and it works (perhaps unfortunately though for everyone who has to listen to him). He lives by saying controversial click-bait type things which have at least a small element of obvious truth to them which he can later call upon to claim he was right. It's a rather cunning technique actually and is helped in no small part by websites like this who give his quotes the extra publicity that he thrives on.
This is a wonderful result for inFAMOUS! It's not my kind of game but that is purely down to my personal taste.
To be honest though, I think it's folly to determine your level of enjoyment in a game by how well it does in the sales charts. Enjoy your games people and don't let the reviews or the charts affect that.
To be fair yes you did tell us all but to be honest both consoles will do very well in the marketplace. There's no need for us to think that all is lost over some irrelevant unit sales figures which don't mean a lot at the end of the day. Let's not demand that Sony be something it isn't and that's an extremely solvent company. They need to be careful with their cashflow and that means not going berserk writing cheques that their company can't cash.
That's the spirit Kaim86, I consider people like you to be true PlayStation fans because just like me you have no time for this silly nonsense of comparing consoles. It's like the only reason some of these people got PS4s was just because it wasn't an Xbox and that to me isn't someone who has a pure interest in the greatness of PlayStation.
@get2sammyb Do you know whether the use of Xbox Live Compute will complicate things? The multiplayer portion of the game (i.e. all of it) is supposedly hosted on Microsoft's cloud infrastructure so hopefully if Titanfall 2 comes to PS4 we would get the use of that. Without the cloud hosting the game would be a completely different beast and my only fear is that Titanfall and Xbox Live Compute are inextricably tangled (but I hope not).
You've got to hand it to Sony, they really do know how to "push the boundaries of play" in style. That headset really does make VR look cool.
Personally, whilst I wish it all the best I can't help but feel that it won't come very close to being as popular as the Move. The Move was reasonably inexpensive but this headset does not look cheap at all. That, together with the fact it cuts off all social interaction with your surrounding friends or family (couch coop would really be interesting!). However, if there's anyone who can prove us wrong to doubt it's Sony.
I think that on the whole this could be a good thing for PS4 but I do have one concern. Many people feel that Call of Duty is losing its appeal and, dare I say it, going stale. So I think care needs to be taken to make sure that PS4 doesn't become viewed as the console which gets the Xbox One cast offs or the platform where videogame brands go to die. COD Ghost's sales figures were nothing to be sniffed at but they also showed decline. So whilst this could be good news in the short term I can't help but feel that it would be a proper coup if PS4 became the primary platform for Titanfall instead.
Whilst I definitely appreciate these improvements (and to be honest who wouldn't) I think the future of online competitive multiplayer lies with dedicated servers. By that I don't mean servers that are dedicated to the task of matchmaking. Instead I mean the accepted definition of "dedicated servers" where the game is actually run on them rather than the situation we have now where the reference version of the game runs on one of the PS4s. This would make games a lot fairer and cheaters with lag switches would only hurt themselves. Also, it would deal with the usual host migration nonsense whenever the host just turns off their PS4 without any warning.
Having said that, I do understand that datacentres are very expensive to set up and run so perhaps this is something that a cash-strapped Sony might want to leave for the future.
I love updates and improvements! Keep 'em coming, I say. Oh and thanks Kell for the analysis because it's really handy to know what these patches are actually doing, even when it's the standard "software has been improved".
Oh that's good that it was Respawn who said it as I have much more faith in that. On balance it might be a good thing if we have to wait longer for a Titanfall game because you never know maybe they'll have the time to reconsider their game model and include a single-player campaign. Here's hoping X=
Oh thanks for letting me know that they said Titanfall wouldn't be an annual thing. By the way do you know who said that? Was it EA or the developers?
Regarding your opinion that Dark Souls II is king, I'm really happy that you prefer it to Titanfall, honestly I am but surely you can see that it wouldn't be anywhere near being king to someone who loves FPSs but can't stand RPGs or hated the first Dark Souls game (and believe me there are people who don't like Dark Souls II, just ask Sammy because he said he'd rather chew on a bucket of rusty nails LOL!). Terms like "king" or "better" are subjective according to who you're asking that's all.
The same goes for the value for money thing. Videogaming has never been a cheap hobby but you don't get card players saying that their standard deck of cards is better because of the value for money. Once again, it all comes down to player preference because if someone doesn't like RPGs or Dark Souls II then any money spent on it (even a tenner) could be seen as poor value for money.
Like I said before there is very little point in trying to measure up completely different games on features and even less point on the value for money proposition. If you prefer Dark Souls II to Titanfall simply be content with that and accept that others might prefer Titanfall. Live & Let live (my favourite motto).
It doesn't really make much sense to say one game is "better" than another when you're comparing different game genres.
Someone who isn't into RPGs might dislike Dark Souls II and someone that detests FPSs might not be keen on Titanfall. The question of which game is better doesn't even come into it because people are all different and choose the games that appeal to them. It's good that people are all different and interested in different games and it makes conversation between gamers more enjoyable. Enjoy your chosen games people and don't worry yourselves over which game is numbered 1 or 2 in the sales charts.
@SimonAdebisi Yes I'd also be happy to try out a Titanfall game if it ever made it to PS4. I'm not sure I'd be keen to see it turn into an annual thing with Titanfall 3, 4, 5, 6, and so on but hey I say live and let live.
I am thoroughly chuffed for our Xbox gaming brethren and I hope that they enjoy Titanfall in every way possible. Greatness awaits for me and my fellow PlayStation fans as well, it's just that we have to be a little bit more patient.
To be fair it's difficult to compare Dark Souls II to Titanfall because they focus on completely different market segments. Titanfall is completely engineered for mass market appeal whereas Dark Souls II is much more narrowly aimed at the hardcore gamer. I agree with Sammy that it's more relevant to compare the early sales performance of Dark Souls II with its predecessor.
@FullbringIchigo The reasons for buying an Xbox One instead of a PC are the same as for opting for a PS4. Firstly, the convenience of a console is something that many people will happily pay a premium for. Whilst setting up a gaming rig might be easy for someone who has done it successfully, it can seem very daunting for others. With a console you pretty much just remove it from the box and plug in 2 or 3 cables and you're done. Secondly, it has already been reported that there are cheaters on the PC version who are using aimbots to really spoil the fun for their competitors. By contrast, console gaming represents a much more level playing field. Titanfall is apparently completely focused around competitive multiplayer because it doesn't have a single-player campaign so I can very much see how the enjoyment from better graphics on the PC version could be wrecked by cheaters therefore spoiling the overall gaming experience for some people. Just so everyone knows, I really don't want to incur the wrath of any PC master race people by stating these reasons because I also wish them all the best for their gaming but these are just a couple of the reasons why I choose PlayStation for my gaming needs.
@NathanUC I totally agree! A friend of mine and his wife swear by this because she finds a controller a little intimidating but is completely comfortable with tapping and swiping away on a tablet or smartphone. I truly believe that this is the model way for encouraging females in the mainstream into console gaming.
I really admire Sony for making surround sound gaming cheaply accessible to the masses. Personally, I have a pair of Astro A50s that I dearly love but they did cost £250 which was a real challenge to justify at the time I bought them. Mind you if this headset from Sony had been around then the decision would've been even tougher.
I've never really understood all the weight that people give to relative console unit sales. I can see that it's something very easy for the media to quote for the layperson to celebrate but it's a really abstract and narrow metric. I find it difficult to see how these unit sales directly benefit me as a PlayStation fan. On the other hand the stats for the number of PS+ subscribers is much more useful to me as a PS4 gamer because it tells me how vibrant the multiplayer community is that I participate in.
Like many other people here I really like TLoU and have actually played through the game a number of times. Regarding the movie, I have a strange feeling that I know how it will end.
In Uncharted 3 they visit the London Underground by way of the amusingly named "North Atwood" station. By contrast, it'll be interesting in The Order to see if they feature stations which actually exist lol!
@SimonAdebisi I agree with you maybe indie developers should all tell MS to shove it, let's see if it happens. I'm sure at least some of them will exercise that choice.
@eLarkos Certainly no offence taken, you very politely described your point of view.
Clearly, you feel that PlayStation hasn't pushed gaming experiences forward which I completely disagree with and that's fine but surely you couldn't accuse PlayStation of not trying, which is the "experimental nature" to which I was referring.
Once again, I don't understand this criticism of Xbox launch parity clause because it's all just business pure and simple. It helps if you think of it as a game; PlayStation made their moves in the indie space and now Xbox has made theirs but it's all within the rules of the game, namely business. You wouldn't scowl at a tennis player for sending their opponent a devilishly clever drop shot, you'd acknowledge the cunning of the move as many people on here have rightfully done today. Either way, I'm not concerned because PlayStation won't have a shortage of great indie games and that's what matters in the end.
Personally I applaud Sony's experimental nature when it comes to pushing gaming forwards. I too feel that if they manage to make VR work they will have succeeded in bringing it to the masses in a way that the Rift could only dream of. I completely expect Rift based systems to be more capable but I also expect them to have more of a niche focus too. I'm interested to see how they deal with pricing and that all important issue.......nausea. So I say let's give Sony a chance here because they may have a surprise or two in store for us.
I wish all the best to my Xbox & PC gaming brethren and hope they have a great time playing Titanfall. With games like MGS just round the corner and other treasures set to follow we PlayStation fans are in for a treat of our own too. It's a great time to be alive!
I'm more than perfectly happy to wait but I do wish these executives wouldn't spout this management talk nonsense about eating costs or whatever. I do have faith in the hard working developers though and I'm sure that if things have been delayed then it was necessary.
I actually applaud Sony's commitment to game innovation. Regardless of people's opinion of the PS Move it was nonetheless a very well produced piece of kit and the R&D on that couldn't have been cheap. In the end I found that the support for it was a little bit scarce though.
Personally, I've been having difficulty getting enthusiastic for VR goggles mainly due to the health drawbacks (namely nausea). Also, I'm not sure I'm comfortable with removing myself from the real world so completely just for the sake of total immersion in a game. I tend to find it bad enough when I've got headphones on and the doorbell rings. I will say though that if anyone can successfully bring VR to the masses then Sony stands a very good chance of being the ones to do it.
I would personally be a little apprehensive to see LToU turned into a 2-3 hour film. On the other hand, if they were to make it as a TV series in the same way that I heard Steven Spielberg was working on Halo then I'd be really looking forward to it. Having said that though, I'd be more than happy to see Naughty Dog's scriptwriting in a feature film but it would be great if it was a completely new IP. If that film was a success I'd have much more faith that they could convert it into a nice game rather than the other way around. Funnily enough, I wouldn't be surprised if their TLoU was so good that it had me eating my hat. One can only hope eh?
@Tasuki I included you because you were part of that conversation that I was referring to in my previous comment, that's all (i.e. your #24).
On the other hand, regarding your view that "you can't have the good without the bad", well that is often the case but we what we don't need to do is labour that point when we're trying to honour the career of a gentleman. There is a time and a place for everything and sometimes it's just good manners to temporarily keep that stuff to yourself for the sake of someone else instead. Just in the same way that relatives arguing at a funeral take the focus away from the life achievements of the recently deceased. it's just inconsiderate. You say that one of the biggest things that Jack Tretton will be remembered for is E3 2013 but you know what I'll bet you he'd rather be known for his titanic achievements over the years of making high quality PlayStation gaming available to the masses. An altogether more positive attribute don't you think? And a more professional one too.
I must admit I don't think it was a smart move on Naughty Dog's part to comment on the rumours. Rather than quelling them they've attracted even more attention as well as adding mystery and intrigue to the mix. On another website that I've just been to I've seen all manner of comments ranging from those that are focusing on what the statement neglects to mention (i.e. why Hennig left) to those conspiracy theorists who are proclaiming "so the rumours are true!". It's difficult to comment on rumours in a way that improves the situation and it only really works in those cases where it's possible to make a full disclosure of facts to stop substitute rumours from popping up instead.
@adf86 I personally don't think that Sony's studios are anywhere near being in the mess that people are fearing right now. They will be vindicated when the games come out
Can we show Jack Tretton a little bit of respect here. Regardless of whether you like him or not I don't believe his exit deserves to be trampled over by bringing Microsoft into the focus of these comments. Is it at all possible to have a single week around here where the comments don't bring Xbox into the conversation (actually that goes for the editorial too)?
@get2sammyb Sammy you wrote a very informative and balanced article. I understand that you were retorting to Carl-G's comment but you really don't need to get drawn into this silly Xbox thing every time. What has gleefully tracking Titanfall bundle orders got anything to do with celebrating Jack Tretton's career? That's like cheering in a tennis match when your player's opponent serves a double fault. I prefer to concentrate on how well PlayStation is doing and PlayStation alone.
To constantly be obsessed with how Xbox is doing distorts our focus on PlayStation and it makes us all look like we have chips on our shoulders, which I'm hoping isn't the case. If my feedback is worth anything, I vote for less bile commenting towards Xbox and more focus on the treasure of all things PlayStation.
Nobody knows the full story behind this and that's a good thing because it means that all those concerned are keeping things professional and between themselves. Aside from the unknown reasons why she left, this does very much sound like the protocol that most big businesses follow. Once a conflict of artistic direction has been identified a decision is quickly made and swift action is taken so that the day-to-day operations remain unaffected. The general thinking behind it will be that by ushering her out quickly they will be able to nip any problems in the bud. You can pretty much guarantee that they will have commissioned a legal team to ensure that it all went through quickly and smoothly.
If it does turn out that they quickly swept her aside then that doesn't reflect on what it's like to work at Naughty Dog. Instead, I'm inclined to believe that Sony will have made a well researched business decision that they took in good faith.
Yes I'm in agreement with a lot of the other commenters - 6 out of 10 is a tad bit on the low side. I do understand that reviews are like personal opinions but Sammy's seems to be very out of step with public opinion here. I know it might sound dumb of me to say this but I really do suspect that Sammy wasn't very good at aiming or making measured use of the sprint and it evidently frustrated him. I find that completely understandable because we've all been there (particularly myself) but make no mistake Dead Nation's controls definitely reward a skilful hand and even I myself went from feeling frustrated at the start all the way to scoring in the global top 100 at one time.
It's a great, atmospheric little game that has the look and feel of an 80s John Carpenter movie (mainly because of the music) and has a solid campaign for both single player and 2-player coop (impressively including the increasingly rare local or so-called couch coop). In the realm of cheap downloadable PSN games I score this 9/10 (and that's in my humble opinion).
To be honest I see all exclusive games like Titanfall as being er..... exclusive. To me as an end consumer this only affects me as much as Halo or Gears of War would. As a PlayStation fan I have Uncharted, GoW and countless other exclusives which are just as unique and enjoyable. Titanfall looks like a really great game but at the end of the day it's only that - one game (or one game series, if they choose to serialise it like Call of Duty). If I didn't get my knickers in a twist about Forza or Project Gotham then I'm unlikely to do so about this. I'm in complete agreement with a lot of the sentiment on here about Pachter because he portrays himself as being in the know, when really he's just giving us his opinion which, frankly, is as bad (or as good) as many of ours.
@RaymanFan2 I agree. I personally don't have a problem with 3D although I know some people do so it was very interesting to see a technology that Sony was pushing very hard at the time end up in Uncharted 3. Just as with 3D, I'm sure that Naughty Dog would have the discretionary power to veto the ps4 collections but they'd probably reserve playing that drastic a card for something they were really dead set against. To be honest, I'd really like to play ps4 versions I just don't want to set myself up for possible disappointment lol!
I have to say that this really doesn't sound like Naughty Dog's style to pop Uncharted onto the PS4 remaster bandwagon. It'll be interesting enough just to see if they re-release TLoU. The problem for Sony is to make sure the PS4 doesn't get a reputation as being the console of choice for remakes and no new AAA content.
That said, I would be over the moon if they did. I know a lot of people who would buy a PS4 on the back of this alone. My fingers and toes are crossed for us all.
Personally, I'm really looking forward to this. Gaming has always been an expensive hobby and games are cheaper than they've ever been in real terms. If I didn't buy this then I'd pretty much have to knock the rest of the MGS series on the head because I don't think it would make much sense. I can understand those people who might want to wait until the price drops though.
@get2sammyb This is just business. Can you imagine if Ouya complained because Push Square only writes articles mainly about PlayStation? That's probably the weakest analogy in the world but the point is that all businesses have to clearly decide on a policy that works best for them.
Do you remember when Sony bullied Playdead into giving them ownership of the Limbo IP? Well that didn't work out very well at all and I had to wait for what seemed like an age before I could play Limbo on my ps3 (and believe me I really really wanted to play that game because I've never had an Xbox). Now I hear that Playdead has even signed up to the new Xbox indie scheme. You could say that we lost Playdead to Xbox for the longest time because of Sony's aggressive pursuit of them but that would be just as silly as berating the Xbox indie policies.
So you see it's all swings and roundabouts in business and at the end of the day it is just purely that.....business. Not "heinous", a word I would only reserve for a crime, just business. As some people have said on here, if it was such an unfair policy then the indies would all flock to PS4 then Xbox would have none but that's not happening is it? After all they are independent so they are free to do as they choose.
I may be a PlayStation fan but I shan't get into the trap of criticising Microsoft any which way I can. In one of your previous articles you revealed that you studied Business so surely you must realise that there are many many examples of this kind of contract in industry and you'd be a fool to think that Microsoft is anywhere near being the worst, far from it in fact. I can understand that attitude from many of the less experienced people on here who have been brainwashed into thinking that because they own a PlayStation they should hate Microsoft but I expect more from a professional. Look don't get me wrong, you write very informative articles and I love this website but I sometimes find the editorial a little unbalanced as though you feel that your readership demands to read it this way. It wasn't always like this though, I miss the way you used to write a couple of years back.
I say let's not rush to draw conclusions just quite yet. The game "looks" great already and we should give it a fair chance to prove itself in the gameplay department. I'm not saying that it will be the most innovative gameplay since sliced bread poker because it could still turn out to be boring but let's not write it off just quite yet especially when so much effort has gone into making it look this good.
Dead Nation on PS3 is my favourite downloadable PSN game of all time! I would have been really happy to see the much sought after sequel instead of this rehash for PS4. Having said that, it's possible that Housemarque are building up demand for a possible sequel by releasing this first. One can only hope eh?
@ztpayne7 @artemisthemp it has local and online coop for 2 players. Both players each control a character on the screen but because they're both on the same screen they can't go too far from one another. The game is the same whether you play locally or online, the only difference is that online can sometimes be a little bit laggy but I've only noticed that to be a problem if your partner is on the other side of the world.
@Jaz007 "Why would they collaborate with release dates?" That is an excellent question don't you think? Just look at how much more both consoles have been in the news due to the way their launches have been billed as some sort of Thrilla in Manila type boxing match. I actually think the WiiU is a great little console but together Sony & Microsoft have almost completely stolen the limelight away from Nintendo. People are poo pooing Xbox One's sales but I read with great interest last week that they're comfortably beating their Xbox 360 sales by the same stage as last time. You'd think that the unfortunate comparison with PS4 would be a bad thing for Xbox One but rather than hinder them it actually appears to be helping them. It was funny, a few days ago I read someone's forum comment where they suggested that Xbox One being a bit crappy has secured it a lot more mainstream press coverage than PS4 which was a real eye opener.
Launching a new console is a logistical nightmare so to align a lengthy development process together with all the marketing and retail preparation that's required is no easy feat I assure you. Sony & Microsoft aren't small businesses that have the benefit of being able to react quickly to market conditions, like most big companies they move really slowly and have to plan things out years in advance so to release so near to each other and with such similar architectures would have been anything but easy.
About the DRM issue, you have to wonder whether Microsoft thought that Sony was going to go ahead with it. Certainly everyone else seemed to think that they would up until the last minute especially as they'd just acquired a patent for it. But even that seems a little too conspiracy theory for my liking. To be honest Sony & Microsoft are always going to try to differentiate their products and DRM is just one area. The nature of their similarities and the whole timing of it is what's extremely striking.
@BornOfEvil A lot of high ranking people in the tech industry believe that there was a soft, legal type of collaboration between Sony & Microsoft over the architecture and the timing of the consoles. If they were truly at each other's throats they would likely have completely different hardware architectures and they wouldn't be releasing at pretty much the exact time. Sammy even alluded to as much in his comments to a previous article where he effectively questioned the coincidence of it all. Furthermore, you don't see the type of litigation between them that you do with Apple, Google and Samsung. We all know that Sony willingly licences Bluray for the Xbox One. Interestingly enough Sony often celebrates the fact that ps4 is so much easier to develop for (as it rightly should) but did you know that's because Microsoft has licenced them Windows 7 based environments with the same Visual Studio software that is used to develop PC & Xbox games? For reference checkout: http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/03/sony-dives-deep-into-the-ps4s-hardware-power-controller-features-at-gdc/
This really is the profile of a cosy little money making tag team where they keep all the hype about them and not about anyone else's gaming products. Now, I know a lot of people won't want to hear that because they want to believe that there is some sort of war going on. Push Square and other media outlets thrive from and even sometimes encourage hostile sentiment because they generate clicks for their adverts and Sony & Microsoft gain because people declare their loyalty by spending money buying one or the other. Some people even spend money they don't have just to angrily take part in this silly non-existent war and that greatly saddens me.
To see why Samsung, Apple and Amazon were mentioned you might want to read Squiggle55's comment above as well as considering the rumours that Amazon and Samsung are working on games consoles. Also, with regards to your "big question" if you go back to my original post you'll see that I wasn't referring to the intellect of Sony & Microsoft but to that of their fanboys. If I thought I could pull off the humour I'd suggest that you were a perfect example of one given that you made that mistake. But I know it wouldn't come across as the light hearted humour I'd intend it to be so I won't
@JaxonH That's the spirit! I consider people like you to be true PlayStation fans rather than some of the drivelling fools on here who can only string together something like "Da ps4 beatz da xbox".
@Squiggle55 Absolutely! If Apple releases something like you just described I think that's when we'll really see Sony & Microsoft step it up.
I think Sony needs to run its own race. Sony's priority at the moment is to maximise profit so if a response is appropriate they'll do what works best for them. The PS4 is as much of a threat to the Xbox One as the Xbox One is a threat to PS4 - i.e. no threat whatsoever. In fact Android is more of a threat to iOS but Tim Cook said that Apple don't need to sell more to win which is very true. Sony & Microsoft are working together like a nice little tag team at the moment. It's no mistake that both consoles were released at the same time and it would've taken a big effort to coordinate their efforts like that. Sony & Microsoft are trying to take up the entire conversation so that Amazon, Samsung or Apple will have to work much harder to gain gamers' mindspace. If either of these enter the living room console market then both Sony & Microsoft will need to make a bigger response. Although I suspect that the fanboys will have one hell of a headache because they seem to have barely enough intellect to deal with a 2-horse race lol! Imagine how confusing it will be for them in a 3 or 4 way competition.
Comments 193
Re: Pachter: PS4's Virtual Reality Headset Is a 'Really Bad Idea'
Pachter's strategy is simple and it works (perhaps unfortunately though for everyone who has to listen to him). He lives by saying controversial click-bait type things which have at least a small element of obvious truth to them which he can later call upon to claim he was right. It's a rather cunning technique actually and is helped in no small part by websites like this who give his quotes the extra publicity that he thrives on.
Re: UK Sales Charts: inFAMOUS: Second Son Replenishes PS4's Power
This is a wonderful result for inFAMOUS! It's not my kind of game but that is purely down to my personal taste.
To be honest though, I think it's folly to determine your level of enjoyment in a game by how well it does in the sales charts. Enjoy your games people and don't let the reviews or the charts affect that.
Re: UK PS4 Stock Shortages Allow Xbox One to Pull Ahead Over Previous Four Weeks
@Gamer83
To be fair yes you did tell us all but to be honest both consoles will do very well in the marketplace. There's no need for us to think that all is lost over some irrelevant unit sales figures which don't mean a lot at the end of the day. Let's not demand that Sony be something it isn't and that's an extremely solvent company. They need to be careful with their cashflow and that means not going berserk writing cheques that their company can't cash.
Re: UK PS4 Stock Shortages Allow Xbox One to Pull Ahead Over Previous Four Weeks
@BornOfEvil @Kaim86
That's the spirit Kaim86, I consider people like you to be true PlayStation fans because just like me you have no time for this silly nonsense of comparing consoles. It's like the only reason some of these people got PS4s was just because it wasn't an Xbox and that to me isn't someone who has a pure interest in the greatness of PlayStation.
Re: Rumour: Titanfall 2 Takes One Robotic Stride Closer to PS4
@get2sammyb Do you know whether the use of Xbox Live Compute will complicate things? The multiplayer portion of the game (i.e. all of it) is supposedly hosted on Microsoft's cloud infrastructure so hopefully if Titanfall 2 comes to PS4 we would get the use of that. Without the cloud hosting the game would be a completely different beast and my only fear is that Titanfall and Xbox Live Compute are inextricably tangled (but I hope not).
Re: What's the Best Price for Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes on PS4 in the UK?
Thanks for the list Sammy, at those prices it makes trying the game out much more palatable.
Re: PS4's Virtual Reality Headset Project Morpheus Officially Unveiled
You've got to hand it to Sony, they really do know how to "push the boundaries of play" in style. That headset really does make VR look cool.
Personally, whilst I wish it all the best I can't help but feel that it won't come very close to being as popular as the Move. The Move was reasonably inexpensive but this headset does not look cheap at all. That, together with the fact it cuts off all social interaction with your surrounding friends or family (couch coop would really be interesting!). However, if there's anyone who can prove us wrong to doubt it's Sony.
Re: Rumour: Is the PS4 About to Become the Primary Platform for Call of Duty?
I think that on the whole this could be a good thing for PS4 but I do have one concern. Many people feel that Call of Duty is losing its appeal and, dare I say it, going stale. So I think care needs to be taken to make sure that PS4 doesn't become viewed as the console which gets the Xbox One cast offs or the platform where videogame brands go to die. COD Ghost's sales figures were nothing to be sniffed at but they also showed decline. So whilst this could be good news in the short term I can't help but feel that it would be a proper coup if PS4 became the primary platform for Titanfall instead.
Re: Guerrilla Games Puts a Bullet in PS4 Sequel Killzone: Shadow Fall's Lag
Whilst I definitely appreciate these improvements (and to be honest who wouldn't) I think the future of online competitive multiplayer lies with dedicated servers. By that I don't mean servers that are dedicated to the task of matchmaking. Instead I mean the accepted definition of "dedicated servers" where the game is actually run on them rather than the situation we have now where the reference version of the game runs on one of the PS4s. This would make games a lot fairer and cheaters with lag switches would only hurt themselves. Also, it would deal with the usual host migration nonsense whenever the host just turns off their PS4 without any warning.
Having said that, I do understand that datacentres are very expensive to set up and run so perhaps this is something that a cash-strapped Sony might want to leave for the future.
Re: PS4 Firmware Update 1.62 Will Improve Your Console's Operation Quality
I love updates and improvements! Keep 'em coming, I say. Oh and thanks Kell for the analysis because it's really handy to know what these patches are actually doing, even when it's the standard "software has been improved".
Re: UK Sales Charts: Dark Souls II Blocked from the Top by You Know What
@banacheck
Oh that's good that it was Respawn who said it as I have much more faith in that. On balance it might be a good thing if we have to wait longer for a Titanfall game because you never know maybe they'll have the time to reconsider their game model and include a single-player campaign. Here's hoping X=
Re: UK Sales Charts: Dark Souls II Blocked from the Top by You Know What
@banacheck
Oh thanks for letting me know that they said Titanfall wouldn't be an annual thing. By the way do you know who said that? Was it EA or the developers?
Regarding your opinion that Dark Souls II is king, I'm really happy that you prefer it to Titanfall, honestly I am but surely you can see that it wouldn't be anywhere near being king to someone who loves FPSs but can't stand RPGs or hated the first Dark Souls game (and believe me there are people who don't like Dark Souls II, just ask Sammy because he said he'd rather chew on a bucket of rusty nails LOL!). Terms like "king" or "better" are subjective according to who you're asking that's all.
The same goes for the value for money thing. Videogaming has never been a cheap hobby but you don't get card players saying that their standard deck of cards is better because of the value for money. Once again, it all comes down to player preference because if someone doesn't like RPGs or Dark Souls II then any money spent on it (even a tenner) could be seen as poor value for money.
Like I said before there is very little point in trying to measure up completely different games on features and even less point on the value for money proposition. If you prefer Dark Souls II to Titanfall simply be content with that and accept that others might prefer Titanfall. Live & Let live (my favourite motto).
Re: UK Sales Charts: Dark Souls II Blocked from the Top by You Know What
@banacheck @LDXD
It doesn't really make much sense to say one game is "better" than another when you're comparing different game genres.
Someone who isn't into RPGs might dislike Dark Souls II and someone that detests FPSs might not be keen on Titanfall. The question of which game is better doesn't even come into it because people are all different and choose the games that appeal to them. It's good that people are all different and interested in different games and it makes conversation between gamers more enjoyable. Enjoy your chosen games people and don't worry yourselves over which game is numbered 1 or 2 in the sales charts.
@SimonAdebisi Yes I'd also be happy to try out a Titanfall game if it ever made it to PS4. I'm not sure I'd be keen to see it turn into an annual thing with Titanfall 3, 4, 5, 6, and so on but hey I say live and let live.
Re: UK Sales Charts: Dark Souls II Blocked from the Top by You Know What
I am thoroughly chuffed for our Xbox gaming brethren and I hope that they enjoy Titanfall in every way possible. Greatness awaits for me and my fellow PlayStation fans as well, it's just that we have to be a little bit more patient.
To be fair it's difficult to compare Dark Souls II to Titanfall because they focus on completely different market segments. Titanfall is completely engineered for mass market appeal whereas Dark Souls II is much more narrowly aimed at the hardcore gamer. I agree with Sammy that it's more relevant to compare the early sales performance of Dark Souls II with its predecessor.
@FullbringIchigo The reasons for buying an Xbox One instead of a PC are the same as for opting for a PS4. Firstly, the convenience of a console is something that many people will happily pay a premium for. Whilst setting up a gaming rig might be easy for someone who has done it successfully, it can seem very daunting for others. With a console you pretty much just remove it from the box and plug in 2 or 3 cables and you're done. Secondly, it has already been reported that there are cheaters on the PC version who are using aimbots to really spoil the fun for their competitors. By contrast, console gaming represents a much more level playing field. Titanfall is apparently completely focused around competitive multiplayer because it doesn't have a single-player campaign so I can very much see how the enjoyment from better graphics on the PC version could be wrecked by cheaters therefore spoiling the overall gaming experience for some people. Just so everyone knows, I really don't want to incur the wrath of any PC master race people by stating these reasons because I also wish them all the best for their gaming but these are just a couple of the reasons why I choose PlayStation for my gaming needs.
Re: Hideo Kojima Wants You to Play Metal Gear Solid 5 with a Smartphone in Tow
@NathanUC I totally agree! A friend of mine and his wife swear by this because she finds a controller a little intimidating but is completely comfortable with tapping and swiping away on a tablet or smartphone. I truly believe that this is the model way for encouraging females in the mainstream into console gaming.
Re: Hardware Review: PlayStation Gold Wireless Stereo Headset - Sound Buy
I really admire Sony for making surround sound gaming cheaply accessible to the masses. Personally, I have a pair of Astro A50s that I dearly love but they did cost £250 which was a real challenge to justify at the time I bought them. Mind you if this headset from Sony had been around then the decision would've been even tougher.
Re: February NPD: PS4 Claims Narrow Victory Over Xbox One
I've never really understood all the weight that people give to relative console unit sales. I can see that it's something very easy for the media to quote for the layperson to celebrate but it's a really abstract and narrow metric. I find it difficult to see how these unit sales directly benefit me as a PlayStation fan. On the other hand the stats for the number of PS+ subscribers is much more useful to me as a PS4 gamer because it tells me how vibrant the multiplayer community is that I participate in.
Re: Groan, Naughty Dog's The Last of Us Movie Is Just a Retelling of the Game's Story
Like many other people here I really like TLoU and have actually played through the game a number of times. Regarding the movie, I have a strange feeling that I know how it will end.
Re: You'll Be Going Underground in PS4 Exclusive The Order: 1886
In Uncharted 3 they visit the London Underground by way of the amusingly named "North Atwood" station. By contrast, it'll be interesting in The Order to see if they feature stations which actually exist lol!
Re: Sony's PS4 Indie Launch Parity Clause Is More Parody
@SimonAdebisi I agree with you maybe indie developers should all tell MS to shove it, let's see if it happens. I'm sure at least some of them will exercise that choice.
Re: Sources Suggest PS4's Virtual Reality Headset Stomps All Over Oculus Rift
@eLarkos Certainly no offence taken, you very politely described your point of view.
Clearly, you feel that PlayStation hasn't pushed gaming experiences forward which I completely disagree with and that's fine but surely you couldn't accuse PlayStation of not trying, which is the "experimental nature" to which I was referring.
Re: Sony's PS4 Indie Launch Parity Clause Is More Parody
Once again, I don't understand this criticism of Xbox launch parity clause because it's all just business pure and simple. It helps if you think of it as a game; PlayStation made their moves in the indie space and now Xbox has made theirs but it's all within the rules of the game, namely business. You wouldn't scowl at a tennis player for sending their opponent a devilishly clever drop shot, you'd acknowledge the cunning of the move as many people on here have rightfully done today. Either way, I'm not concerned because PlayStation won't have a shortage of great indie games and that's what matters in the end.
Re: Sources Suggest PS4's Virtual Reality Headset Stomps All Over Oculus Rift
Personally I applaud Sony's experimental nature when it comes to pushing gaming forwards. I too feel that if they manage to make VR work they will have succeeded in bringing it to the masses in a way that the Rift could only dream of. I completely expect Rift based systems to be more capable but I also expect them to have more of a niche focus too. I'm interested to see how they deal with pricing and that all important issue.......nausea. So I say let's give Sony a chance here because they may have a surprise or two in store for us.
Re: Cure Those Titanfall Blues with This Call of Duty Themed PSN Sale
I wish all the best to my Xbox & PC gaming brethren and hope they have a great time playing Titanfall. With games like MGS just round the corner and other treasures set to follow we PlayStation fans are in for a treat of our own too. It's a great time to be alive!
Re: Round Up: Prepare to Die Reading These Dark Souls II Reviews
@get2sammyb I agree with you as I'm not a big fan of all the spells and such like but just out of interest what is it that you're not keen on?
Re: Sony: We're Willing to Eat Costs to Create Great Games
I'm more than perfectly happy to wait but I do wish these executives wouldn't spout this management talk nonsense about eating costs or whatever. I do have faith in the hard working developers though and I'm sure that if things have been delayed then it was necessary.
Re: Sony Schedules PlayStation Network Maintenance for Today
Anna Karenina? I hope you picked that up with the obligatory copy of War & Peace lol! Scheduled maintenance certainly won't be a problem today then
Re: PS4's Virtual Reality Headset May Just Be Revealed on 18th March
I actually applaud Sony's commitment to game innovation. Regardless of people's opinion of the PS Move it was nonetheless a very well produced piece of kit and the R&D on that couldn't have been cheap. In the end I found that the support for it was a little bit scarce though.
Personally, I've been having difficulty getting enthusiastic for VR goggles mainly due to the health drawbacks (namely nausea). Also, I'm not sure I'm comfortable with removing myself from the real world so completely just for the sake of total immersion in a game. I tend to find it bad enough when I've got headphones on and the doorbell rings. I will say though that if anyone can successfully bring VR to the masses then Sony stands a very good chance of being the ones to do it.
Re: Oh Dear, The Last Of Us Is Getting a Big Budget Movie Tie-in
I would personally be a little apprehensive to see LToU turned into a 2-3 hour film. On the other hand, if they were to make it as a TV series in the same way that I heard Steven Spielberg was working on Halo then I'd be really looking forward to it. Having said that though, I'd be more than happy to see Naughty Dog's scriptwriting in a feature film but it would be great if it was a completely new IP. If that film was a success I'd have much more faith that they could convert it into a nice game rather than the other way around. Funnily enough, I wouldn't be surprised if their TLoU was so good that it had me eating my hat. One can only hope eh?
Re: SCEA President Jack Tretton Won't Be Dropping the Mic At Any More Sony Pressers
@Tasuki I included you because you were part of that conversation that I was referring to in my previous comment, that's all (i.e. your #24).
On the other hand, regarding your view that "you can't have the good without the bad", well that is often the case but we what we don't need to do is labour that point when we're trying to honour the career of a gentleman. There is a time and a place for everything and sometimes it's just good manners to temporarily keep that stuff to yourself for the sake of someone else instead. Just in the same way that relatives arguing at a funeral take the focus away from the life achievements of the recently deceased. it's just inconsiderate. You say that one of the biggest things that Jack Tretton will be remembered for is E3 2013 but you know what I'll bet you he'd rather be known for his titanic achievements over the years of making high quality PlayStation gaming available to the masses. An altogether more positive attribute don't you think? And a more professional one too.
Re: Naughty Dog Barks a Statement on Hennig Dismissal
I must admit I don't think it was a smart move on Naughty Dog's part to comment on the rumours. Rather than quelling them they've attracted even more attention as well as adding mystery and intrigue to the mix. On another website that I've just been to I've seen all manner of comments ranging from those that are focusing on what the statement neglects to mention (i.e. why Hennig left) to those conspiracy theorists who are proclaiming "so the rumours are true!". It's difficult to comment on rumours in a way that improves the situation and it only really works in those cases where it's possible to make a full disclosure of facts to stop substitute rumours from popping up instead.
Re: SCEA President Jack Tretton Won't Be Dropping the Mic At Any More Sony Pressers
@adf86 I personally don't think that Sony's studios are anywhere near being in the mess that people are fearing right now. They will be vindicated when the games come out
Re: SCEA President Jack Tretton Won't Be Dropping the Mic At Any More Sony Pressers
@Carl-G @get2sammyb @Gamer83 @Tasuki
Can we show Jack Tretton a little bit of respect here. Regardless of whether you like him or not I don't believe his exit deserves to be trampled over by bringing Microsoft into the focus of these comments. Is it at all possible to have a single week around here where the comments don't bring Xbox into the conversation (actually that goes for the editorial too)?
@get2sammyb Sammy you wrote a very informative and balanced article. I understand that you were retorting to Carl-G's comment but you really don't need to get drawn into this silly Xbox thing every time. What has gleefully tracking Titanfall bundle orders got anything to do with celebrating Jack Tretton's career? That's like cheering in a tennis match when your player's opponent serves a double fault. I prefer to concentrate on how well PlayStation is doing and PlayStation alone.
To constantly be obsessed with how Xbox is doing distorts our focus on PlayStation and it makes us all look like we have chips on our shoulders, which I'm hoping isn't the case. If my feedback is worth anything, I vote for less bile commenting towards Xbox and more focus on the treasure of all things PlayStation.
Re: Uncharted Franchise Director Amy Hennig Leaves Naughty Dog After 10 Years
Nobody knows the full story behind this and that's a good thing because it means that all those concerned are keeping things professional and between themselves. Aside from the unknown reasons why she left, this does very much sound like the protocol that most big businesses follow. Once a conflict of artistic direction has been identified a decision is quickly made and swift action is taken so that the day-to-day operations remain unaffected. The general thinking behind it will be that by ushering her out quickly they will be able to nip any problems in the bud. You can pretty much guarantee that they will have commissioned a legal team to ensure that it all went through quickly and smoothly.
If it does turn out that they quickly swept her aside then that doesn't reflect on what it's like to work at Naughty Dog. Instead, I'm inclined to believe that Sony will have made a well researched business decision that they took in good faith.
Re: Review: Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition (PlayStation 4)
Yes I'm in agreement with a lot of the other commenters - 6 out of 10 is a tad bit on the low side. I do understand that reviews are like personal opinions but Sammy's seems to be very out of step with public opinion here. I know it might sound dumb of me to say this but I really do suspect that Sammy wasn't very good at aiming or making measured use of the sprint and it evidently frustrated him. I find that completely understandable because we've all been there (particularly myself) but make no mistake Dead Nation's controls definitely reward a skilful hand and even I myself went from feeling frustrated at the start all the way to scoring in the global top 100 at one time.
It's a great, atmospheric little game that has the look and feel of an 80s John Carpenter movie (mainly because of the music) and has a solid campaign for both single player and 2-player coop (impressively including the increasingly rare local or so-called couch coop). In the realm of cheap downloadable PSN games I score this 9/10 (and that's in my humble opinion).
Re: Pachter: Titanfall Exclusivity Due to Industry Thinking Xbox One Would Eat PS4's Lunch
To be honest I see all exclusive games like Titanfall as being er..... exclusive. To me as an end consumer this only affects me as much as Halo or Gears of War would. As a PlayStation fan I have Uncharted, GoW and countless other exclusives which are just as unique and enjoyable. Titanfall looks like a really great game but at the end of the day it's only that - one game (or one game series, if they choose to serialise it like Call of Duty). If I didn't get my knickers in a twist about Forza or Project Gotham then I'm unlikely to do so about this. I'm in complete agreement with a lot of the sentiment on here about Pachter because he portrays himself as being in the know, when really he's just giving us his opinion which, frankly, is as bad (or as good) as many of ours.
Re: Rumour: Nathan Drake to Scale PS4 in Enhanced Uncharted Collection
@RaymanFan2 I agree. I personally don't have a problem with 3D although I know some people do so it was very interesting to see a technology that Sony was pushing very hard at the time end up in Uncharted 3. Just as with 3D, I'm sure that Naughty Dog would have the discretionary power to veto the ps4 collections but they'd probably reserve playing that drastic a card for something they were really dead set against. To be honest, I'd really like to play ps4 versions I just don't want to set myself up for possible disappointment lol!
Re: Rumour: Nathan Drake to Scale PS4 in Enhanced Uncharted Collection
I have to say that this really doesn't sound like Naughty Dog's style to pop Uncharted onto the PS4 remaster bandwagon. It'll be interesting enough just to see if they re-release TLoU. The problem for Sony is to make sure the PS4 doesn't get a reputation as being the console of choice for remakes and no new AAA content.
That said, I would be over the moon if they did. I know a lot of people who would buy a PS4 on the back of this alone. My fingers and toes are crossed for us all.
Re: Poll: Is Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes Worth the Price on PS4?
Personally, I'm really looking forward to this. Gaming has always been an expensive hobby and games are cheaper than they've ever been in real terms. If I didn't buy this then I'd pretty much have to knock the rest of the MGS series on the head because I don't think it would make much sense. I can understand those people who might want to wait until the price drops though.
Re: Xbox One's Heinous Launch Parity Clause Still Causing Problems for PlayStation Devs
@get2sammyb This is just business. Can you imagine if Ouya complained because Push Square only writes articles mainly about PlayStation? That's probably the weakest analogy in the world but the point is that all businesses have to clearly decide on a policy that works best for them.
Do you remember when Sony bullied Playdead into giving them ownership of the Limbo IP? Well that didn't work out very well at all and I had to wait for what seemed like an age before I could play Limbo on my ps3 (and believe me I really really wanted to play that game because I've never had an Xbox). Now I hear that Playdead has even signed up to the new Xbox indie scheme. You could say that we lost Playdead to Xbox for the longest time because of Sony's aggressive pursuit of them but that would be just as silly as berating the Xbox indie policies.
So you see it's all swings and roundabouts in business and at the end of the day it is just purely that.....business. Not "heinous", a word I would only reserve for a crime, just business. As some people have said on here, if it was such an unfair policy then the indies would all flock to PS4 then Xbox would have none but that's not happening is it? After all they are independent so they are free to do as they choose.
I may be a PlayStation fan but I shan't get into the trap of criticising Microsoft any which way I can. In one of your previous articles you revealed that you studied Business so surely you must realise that there are many many examples of this kind of contract in industry and you'd be a fool to think that Microsoft is anywhere near being the worst, far from it in fact. I can understand that attitude from many of the less experienced people on here who have been brainwashed into thinking that because they own a PlayStation they should hate Microsoft but I expect more from a professional. Look don't get me wrong, you write very informative articles and I love this website but I sometimes find the editorial a little unbalanced as though you feel that your readership demands to read it this way. It wasn't always like this though, I miss the way you used to write a couple of years back.
Re: Don't Worry, PS4 Exclusive The Order: 1886 Isn't Your Ordinary Third Person Shooter
I say let's not rush to draw conclusions just quite yet. The game "looks" great already and we should give it a fair chance to prove itself in the gameplay department. I'm not saying that it will be the most innovative gameplay since sliced bread poker because it could still turn out to be boring but let's not write it off just quite yet especially when so much effort has gone into making it look this good.
Re: Resogun Developer's Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition Fires onto PS4 Next Week
Dead Nation on PS3 is my favourite downloadable PSN game of all time! I would have been really happy to see the much sought after sequel instead of this rehash for PS4. Having said that, it's possible that Housemarque are building up demand for a possible sequel by releasing this first. One can only hope eh?
@ztpayne7 @artemisthemp it has local and online coop for 2 players. Both players each control a character on the screen but because they're both on the same screen they can't go too far from one another. The game is the same whether you play locally or online, the only difference is that online can sometimes be a little bit laggy but I've only noticed that to be a problem if your partner is on the other side of the world.
Re: At Last, the PS4 Is Finally Set to Get a Tower Defence Game
I'll be honest, I tend to play tower defence games on my phone and tablet. But hey, more games and more choice equals more fun for more people
Re: Rumour: Sony Santa Monica's PS4 Sci-Fi Property May Have Been Jettisoned
Yes things like this are truly sad.
Re: Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition Lurching onto PS4
This sounds great, although I'd be fibbing if I said I wasn't looking forward to a Dead Nation 2.
Re: Don't Worry, PS4 Has Actually Done Pretty Darn Well in Japan So Far
Great job Sony! Fantastic job!
Re: Talking Point: Should Sony Respond to Microsoft's UK Xbox One Price Cut?
@Jaz007 "Why would they collaborate with release dates?" That is an excellent question don't you think? Just look at how much more both consoles have been in the news due to the way their launches have been billed as some sort of Thrilla in Manila type boxing match. I actually think the WiiU is a great little console but together Sony & Microsoft have almost completely stolen the limelight away from Nintendo. People are poo pooing Xbox One's sales but I read with great interest last week that they're comfortably beating their Xbox 360 sales by the same stage as last time. You'd think that the unfortunate comparison with PS4 would be a bad thing for Xbox One but rather than hinder them it actually appears to be helping them. It was funny, a few days ago I read someone's forum comment where they suggested that Xbox One being a bit crappy has secured it a lot more mainstream press coverage than PS4 which was a real eye opener.
Launching a new console is a logistical nightmare so to align a lengthy development process together with all the marketing and retail preparation that's required is no easy feat I assure you. Sony & Microsoft aren't small businesses that have the benefit of being able to react quickly to market conditions, like most big companies they move really slowly and have to plan things out years in advance so to release so near to each other and with such similar architectures would have been anything but easy.
About the DRM issue, you have to wonder whether Microsoft thought that Sony was going to go ahead with it. Certainly everyone else seemed to think that they would up until the last minute especially as they'd just acquired a patent for it. But even that seems a little too conspiracy theory for my liking. To be honest Sony & Microsoft are always going to try to differentiate their products and DRM is just one area. The nature of their similarities and the whole timing of it is what's extremely striking.
Re: Talking Point: Should Sony Respond to Microsoft's UK Xbox One Price Cut?
@BornOfEvil A lot of high ranking people in the tech industry believe that there was a soft, legal type of collaboration between Sony & Microsoft over the architecture and the timing of the consoles. If they were truly at each other's throats they would likely have completely different hardware architectures and they wouldn't be releasing at pretty much the exact time. Sammy even alluded to as much in his comments to a previous article where he effectively questioned the coincidence of it all. Furthermore, you don't see the type of litigation between them that you do with Apple, Google and Samsung. We all know that Sony willingly licences Bluray for the Xbox One. Interestingly enough Sony often celebrates the fact that ps4 is so much easier to develop for (as it rightly should) but did you know that's because Microsoft has licenced them Windows 7 based environments with the same Visual Studio software that is used to develop PC & Xbox games? For reference checkout: http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2013/03/sony-dives-deep-into-the-ps4s-hardware-power-controller-features-at-gdc/
This really is the profile of a cosy little money making tag team where they keep all the hype about them and not about anyone else's gaming products. Now, I know a lot of people won't want to hear that because they want to believe that there is some sort of war going on. Push Square and other media outlets thrive from and even sometimes encourage hostile sentiment because they generate clicks for their adverts and Sony & Microsoft gain because people declare their loyalty by spending money buying one or the other. Some people even spend money they don't have just to angrily take part in this silly non-existent war and that greatly saddens me.
To see why Samsung, Apple and Amazon were mentioned you might want to read Squiggle55's comment above as well as considering the rumours that Amazon and Samsung are working on games consoles. Also, with regards to your "big question" if you go back to my original post you'll see that I wasn't referring to the intellect of Sony & Microsoft but to that of their fanboys. If I thought I could pull off the humour I'd suggest that you were a perfect example of one given that you made that mistake. But I know it wouldn't come across as the light hearted humour I'd intend it to be so I won't
Re: Talking Point: Should Sony Respond to Microsoft's UK Xbox One Price Cut?
@JaxonH That's the spirit! I consider people like you to be true PlayStation fans rather than some of the drivelling fools on here who can only string together something like "Da ps4 beatz da xbox".
@Squiggle55 Absolutely! If Apple releases something like you just described I think that's when we'll really see Sony & Microsoft step it up.
Re: Talking Point: Should Sony Respond to Microsoft's UK Xbox One Price Cut?
I think Sony needs to run its own race. Sony's priority at the moment is to maximise profit so if a response is appropriate they'll do what works best for them. The PS4 is as much of a threat to the Xbox One as the Xbox One is a threat to PS4 - i.e. no threat whatsoever. In fact Android is more of a threat to iOS but Tim Cook said that Apple don't need to sell more to win which is very true. Sony & Microsoft are working together like a nice little tag team at the moment. It's no mistake that both consoles were released at the same time and it would've taken a big effort to coordinate their efforts like that. Sony & Microsoft are trying to take up the entire conversation so that Amazon, Samsung or Apple will have to work much harder to gain gamers' mindspace. If either of these enter the living room console market then both Sony & Microsoft will need to make a bigger response. Although I suspect that the fanboys will have one hell of a headache because they seem to have barely enough intellect to deal with a 2-horse race lol! Imagine how confusing it will be for them in a 3 or 4 way competition.