Official February 20, 2013 Playstation event

[TrungGap]

I had a friend who raved about the awesomeness of the graphics on the 360. It was the best visuals he'd ever seen. He was even more impressed when I swapped out his RCA cable for an HDMI one.

LOL...K, now, i'm going to be an ass...This proves the point he could tell the differences. It just it doesn't matter to him, as he just want to enjoy the game.

Edit:

And even he did not notice that BLOPS was not running at 1080p, but at 540p.

He might not know better. But do you think he couldn't tell that resolution wasn't that high? I don't doubt you. You have more experience in field. I'm just trying to split hair.

 

[gongo]

I am disgusted with the media negative PS4 remarks...while i thought the conference was not the best timed and best presented, i dont get the love for....mobile games...tablets..."innovation". Like when was the last time Apple/Android "innovated" with the products?? They were same incremental software upgrade via faster hardware specs ....and mobile games aren't innovative either....what they are, is they are cheap, disposable, hollow, always readily available by your side....i prefer the days when good games call outs are really for good games....

 

[eastmen]

I am disgusted with the media negative PS4 remarks...while i thought the conference was not the best timed and best presented, i dont get the love for....mobile games...tablets..."innovation". Like when was the last time Apple/Android "innovated" with the products?? They were same incremental software upgrade via faster hardware specs ....and mobile games aren't innovative either....what they are, is they are cheap, disposable, hollow, always readily available by your side....i prefer the days when good games call outs are really for good games....

tablets are the hot thing right now , in a few years cell phones and tablets will be forgotten for the next hot thing. Who cares , just enjoy what your doing.

I've been pc gaming since I was 8 and its easier to count the number of years that the press wasn't claiming the death of pc gaming.

That was mostly due to consoles. Now its console's turn to face the heat.

 

[patsu]

Finally someone reasonable...

To be honest I'm wondering if the majority of the potential customers would notice a difference between the best PS3 game and the average PS4 game. Naughty Dog, Guerilla, Quantic Dream and the internal studios are already producing some really high quality visuals, and I'd also like to remind everyone again that many people still believe the COD games to be running at a full 1920*1080 resolution.
I wonder how many people actually know even simple technical stuff like the amount of memory in their consoles. Or if they even know the difference between RAM and HDD...

So declaring a defeat for MS just because of a 10 to 30% performance disadvantage based on leaked specs, and without knowing anything about the additional features or Kinect 2, is just way too ignorant of what the average customer cares about.

They will notice the difference because there may be art direction changes with more realistic models.

They may notice shimmering and aliasing in the older games.

Whether they care is another matter altogether. People may have low expectation.



They may care more about spectating, fast load time, the quick pause & resume, and general smoothness in the newer game. For those who don't care, they will remain ignorant. I have a PhD friend who doesn't know how to use Kinect (He bought it for his kids but never uses it himself).

 

[rockaman]

I am disgusted with the media negative PS4 remarks...while i thought the conference was not the best timed and best presented, i dont get the love for....mobile games...tablets..."innovation". Like when was the last time Apple/Android "innovated" with the products?? They were same incremental software upgrade via faster hardware specs ....and mobile games aren't innovative either....what they are, is they are cheap, disposable, hollow, always readily available by your side....i prefer the days when good games call outs are really for good games....

Very much agreed. I don't understand some of the responses from the gaming press.

Kotaku claims Killzone 4 doesn't look much better than PS3 graphics.

For me that would be easier to understand if it wasn't quite literally the best graphics in any game ever seen. Sony quite literally put out the best graphics in gaming ever seen in public... Somehow that isn't good enough? I really fail to understand that...

I just don't understand the desire to belittle the achievements of any company or platform, whether it is MS, Sony, Nintendo, or any other party for that matter.

Must everything at the first announcement, prima facie, give an indication it will change gaming completely? I don't understand the motivation to be so inflammatory except for personal gain (advertising and traffic).

They may care more about spectating, fast load time, the quick pause & resume, and general smoothness in the newer game. For those who don't care, they will remain ignorant. I have a PhD friend who doesn't know how to use Kinect (He bought it for his kids but never uses it himself).

I think interface is a great focus for Sony.

The best indicator is that it is such a primary focus. Sony has never treating the user experience on PS the same before, and this change in mindset bodes very well for them imo...

 

[patsu]

Kotaku claims Killzone 4 doesn't look much better than PS3 graphics.

Actually, I feel that way mainly because KZ3 has more personality. Plus it has 3D despite being lower spec'ed.
I liked KZ2's look even more because I its art direction and "realistic" pace.

The KZ4 demo didn't really introduce anything new. The introduction segment reminded me of Halo, and Lair !

 

[Brad Grenz]

I thought the post-war direction is a really smart move for the Killzone games. People have gotten pretty tired of the in the trenches warfare and drab look of KZ2 and 3. They're technical marvels, and good games, too, I think, but I think a reinvention is totally appropriate.

What is strange to me is the people who claim it just looks like another KZ. No, we're shown this vast, shining metropolis in peacetime. It is colorful, glittering and full of people and the action is the result of an apparent terrorist attack. You aren't running through tunnels in the muck or snow, clearing bunkers. You're standing in the sky defending the citizenry from cloaked insurgents. I think that's incredibly promising.

 

[Ghostz]

I am disgusted with the media negative PS4 remarks...while i thought the conference was not the best timed and best presented, i dont get the love for....mobile games...tablets..."innovation". Like when was the last time Apple/Android "innovated" with the products?? They were same incremental software upgrade via faster hardware specs ....and mobile games aren't innovative either....what they are, is they are cheap, disposable, hollow, always readily available by your side....i prefer the days when good games call outs are really for good games....

The people who have something to gain for saying "mobile tablets are innovation" are going to say that the ps4 sux and the people who are making big ps4 games are going to say the ps4 is innovating and that mobile crap sux. It cuts both ways. Everyone likes to think they know the future, don't pay attention to them. The reality is: content is king. Who's bringing the content?

 

[Silenti]

Price may be King between the economy and what may be a quite high introductory price for the PS4.

 

[Ghostz]

Very much agreed. I don't understand some of the responses from the gaming press.

Kotaku claims Killzone 4 doesn't look much better than PS3 graphics.

For me that would be easier to understand if it wasn't quite literally the best graphics in any game ever seen. Sony quite literally put out the best graphics in gaming ever seen in public... Somehow that isn't good enough? I really fail to understand that...

I just don't understand the desire to belittle the achievements of any company or platform, whether it is MS, Sony, Nintendo, or any other party for that matter.

Must everything at the first announcement, prima facie, give an indication it will change gaming completely? I don't understand the motivation to be so inflammatory except for personal gain (advertising and traffic).
I think interface is a great focus for Sony.

The best indicator is that it is such a primary focus. Sony has never treating the user experience on PS the same before, and this change in mindset bodes very well for them imo...

Actually do you remember back was it in 2004 or 2005 that Perfect Dark screen shot? The 360 launch titles, you don't remember those times? People were saying the same things: "OMG diminishing returns, OMG God War 2 looks so much better than that, I see no reason to upgrade." This was the press and gamers alike. Same shit just years later but then we got Gears of War and they shut-up.

 

[Ghostz]

Price may be King between the economy and what may be a quite high introductory price for the PS4.

Right how cheap are all those sony phones again compared to an iphone?

 

[rockaman]

Actually, I feel that way mainly because KZ3 has more personality. Plus it has 3D despite being lower spec'ed.
I liked KZ2's look even more because I its art direction and "realistic" pace.

The KZ4 demo didn't really introduce anything new. The introduction segment reminded me of Halo, and Lair !

Why is it when I read your posts... I feel like I'm talking? You're really creeping me out man!

The art in KZ I prefer most is actually the E3 2005 demo, oddly enough a reinterpretation of the universe by a third party.

Gritty, rugged, grey, concrete, burly.... So many words I can describe the personality of that FMV.... I am sad we got a cross between Crysis and Killzone..

But it is slowly growing on me I have to admit. There is something I am starting to feel they are doing right after I am getting over the shock of it being so far removed from Killzone 1 and the Templar saga and that style of 1990s movie storytelling.

If it were me, I would have picked the inspiration of the trenches of WW1.

That said I can understand the direction more now since I am past the initial shock. As Brad has said, I think Sony and GG want to demonstrate something other than just 'brown war' and hence the direction to the colour palette approaching Crysis.

What I find most interesting however is that we might get this kind of hybrid game of half Crysis and half Helghan dark and gritty, and that is what I am now hoping for... The best of both worlds in one.

 

[rockaman]

Actually do you remember back was it in 2004 or 2005 that Perfect Dark screen shot? The 360 launch titles, you don't remember those times? People were saying the same things: "OMG diminishing returns, OMG God War 2 looks so much better than that, I see no reason to upgrade." This was the press and gamers alike. Same shit just years later but then we got Gears of War and they shut-up.

That is true. I feel like Infamous, Killzone, and others really are comparable jumps.

Not saying nothing better will come, not at all... But this presentation really blew me away in terms of showing realtime and gameplay material...

I am just a little bit confused why they really must seek to be so negative, or that my own opinions of the show was really so off? Lol.

Nothing I can do in the end I guess is maybe what you're saying, so best not to be bothered by it

It's just those generational 'growing pains' I guess...

 

[patsu]

I thought the post-war direction is a really smart move for the Killzone games. People have gotten pretty tired of the in the trenches warfare and drab look of KZ2 and 3. They're technical marvels, and good games, too, I think, but I think a reinvention is totally appropriate.

I am not sure if that's true. With the jump in specs and capability, there should be ways to reimagine space trench warfare.

What is strange to me is the people who claim it just looks like another KZ. No, we're shown this vast, shining metropolis in peacetime. It is colorful, glittering and full of people and the action is the result of an apparent terrorist attack. You aren't running through tunnels in the muck or snow, clearing bunkers. You're standing in the sky defending the citizenry from cloaked insurgents. I think that's incredibly promising.

I don't mind the peacetime look if it's unique. Right now, it seems that I have been to that city many times before. It's the introduction level. Hopefully the full game has more interesting scenes.

 

[DJ12]

Finally someone reasonable...

To be honest I'm wondering if the majority of the potential customers would notice a difference between the best PS3 game and the average PS4 game. Naughty Dog, Guerilla, Quantic Dream and the internal studios are already producing some really high quality visuals, and I'd also like to remind everyone again that many people still believe the COD games to be running at a full 1920*1080 resolution.
I wonder how many people actually know even simple technical stuff like the amount of memory in their consoles. Or if they even know the difference between RAM and HDD...

So declaring a defeat for MS just because of a 10 to 30% performance disadvantage based on leaked specs, and without knowing anything about the additional features or Kinect 2, is just way too ignorant of what the average customer cares about.

Says the guy that pointed out every difference between PS3 and xbox360 multiplatform game and also made everyone aware of technical deficiencies of every PS3 exclusive and the difference between those 2 consoles was less than 5 %

 

[-tkf-]

Finally someone reasonable...

Considering how many people around here have spend the past years, yes years, going over screenshots, videos, counting pixels, anti aliasing modes etc etc. There is nothing reasonable about the slightest weakness from any of the platforms. It will be torn out, screenshotted ridiculed, made fun off with smart ass remarks about superiority of one platform over another. You know, exactly like it's been since the XBOX launched. Just as Digital Foundry have had their head to heads with the PS3 and 360, there will be the same for the 720 and PS4.

So declaring a defeat for MS just because of a 10 to 30% performance disadvantage based on leaked specs, and without knowing anything about the additional features or Kinect 2, is just way too ignorant of what the average customer cares about.

Since when was the average consumer interesting around these parts, the Wii got that one in bag since a few years ago

And as i said earlier, Kinnect 2 would have to be a real revolution to sell it to the average consumers, the current Kinect is crude and have nothing to do with "real" gaming. It's a party device that really doesn't need an incremental upgrade but a real revolution to be useful and worth buying.

Now with all that of my chest, i would personally be surprised if Microsoft was actually outgunned to the extent we are speculating on. I think Microsoft have better hardware than we think they do, i find it unlikely that they would be that much weaker on hardware considering they have been pretty smart about their consoles the past 2 generations. And if everything else fails, they have their money machine to buy the market with a extreme cheap Sku. And they have some of the most hardcore fans to back them up as well.

 

[bkilian]

Actually do you remember back was it in 2004 or 2005 that Perfect Dark screen shot? The 360 launch titles, you don't remember those times? People were saying the same things: "OMG diminishing returns, OMG God War 2 looks so much better than that, I see no reason to upgrade." This was the press and gamers alike. Same shit just years later but then we got Gears of War and they shut-up.

It was Kameo for me. Stunning visuals, huge numbers of actors on screen, and a launch game, at that.

 

[DuckThor Evil]

Again: this guy is a movie critic, works at a movie distributor and handles local theatear and BR releases, has a 50" plasma at his home on his PS3 and uses it for gaming and movies.

And even he did not notice that BLOPS was not running at 1080p, but at 540p.

540p isn't so far away from 720p, which is what most games are. If he thinks every 720p (or less) game is 1080p, it's not that weird for him to think BLOPS is the same as other games. That dude simply has no knowledge of the matter, however connect a PC to his plasma, fire up a game and alternate resolutions between 1080p and 540p and he should be able to easily tell the difference.

 

[Hecatoncheires]

So I watched the show and worked my way through countless comments on several sites and now I'm totally confused.

In my eyes the PS4 looks like a dream for both core gamers and devlopers, but the reactions to it are kind of irritating. I read "tablet and smartphone gaming is the future", "bad graphics" and "no new controller like the Wii U". A TV show I watched didn't even say anything about the ne features of the new console, they only bashed Sony for a boring show and compared it to an Apple show with Steve Jobs and thousands of claqueurs.

In my eyes Sony presented great new features that are much more than useless gimmicks. If all this GAIKAI stuff works properly then I can see me using it all the time. Where's all the hate coming from? Core gaming isn't dead, is it? I don't want to play motion controlled casual games or cheap tablet and smartphone games. I want GTA, Metal Gear Solid and Dark Souls and I think the PS4 looks absolutely great for these kind of games.

I have a very, very good feeling for the PS4 but I'm totally irritated by the reactions.

 

[Phil]

Maybe the problem is that many people from the press that are presenting these critics are not really people qualifyed enough on the topic? Hard to blame them though - smartphones and tablets brought gaming (well, mini games) to millions of people - millions of people that never bought a console or PC for gaming. For them, the headlines are that Sony as a brand is struggling and that Samsung, Google and Apple are taking over the world. And when it comes to 'real' games, they look at Wii (not Wii-U) because it's the console that is the most 'casual' friendly and sold the most.

Unfortunately that also means that suddenly many that play the occasional Angry Bird on their iPhone seem to think to know what gaming is. To me it just sounds like the comments from a market that buys into smartphones and tablets that is not overly enthusiastic about a console they never bought anyway. The press that has been playing games and buying consoles IMO do sound pretty excited.