Now that May has come and two of the three next-gen consoles have been out for six months, I decided it would be a good idea to do a retrospective and review each next-gen console, looking at technical features, software releases and general performance respectively.
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Sony’s Playstation 4.
The first console I’m going to look at is the Playstation 4. This is the next-gen console that I decided to buy first, and as far as the console itself goes I haven’t been disappointed. It’s compact and powerful, I like the simplicity of the UI, as well as the extra £50 I didn’t have to spend for a peripheral I didn’t want.
The games library is however a little sparse; so far I’ve played through Black Flag and Infamous, as well as some of the free downloadable titles available on PSN. I’m really looking forward to games from previous consoles becoming available on the PlayStation 4, via PlayStation Now. Hopefully streaming these games will work well, and the ability to upscale these games will be an extra bonus.
The upshot is that the PS4 is still suffering from a distinctive lack of software, hardly a surprising issue for a recent hardware release but frustrating nonetheless. The obvious conclusion of what the PS4 needs is more games, as well as a definitive use for the touch pad that doesn’t feel like a gimmicky add-on. More games will come with time, but I would be hard-pushed to come up with a use for the touch pad that doesn’t feel unnecessary. Using it to set way-points felt imprecise, and the contextual mish-mash in Infamous seemed tacked on. The touch-pad needs a function that is unique and makes it feel necessary.
As a final point, I’m excited to get to play around with SHAREfactory, the video-editing software coming to the PS4. The rise of the YouTube gamer means that plenty of people will be wanting to capture their own footage, and any software that facilitates and improves that process provides a useful update to the Playstation 4’s repertoire.
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It’s fair to say that the Wii U has so far been a bit of a financial flop. Nintendo have had to readjust their sales targets repeatedly, while the system’s poor performance has eaten away at the profits they made from the storming success of the original Wii and the Nintendo DS.
There are a number of probable causes for the Wii U’s failures, such as poor marketing in terms of why people should upgrade (the Wii U’s similar name probably being at least partially at fault), a lack of titles and the initial launch price. Many people seem to see the Wii U as ‘not really next-gen’, presumably basing what makes a next-gen system on the power of the console. Regardless, Nintendo themselves are more than aware of the problems their latest console is facing, with Nintendo president Satoru Iwata making the news for taking pay cuts earlier this year.
Nintendo’s Wii U.
From a personal perspective I hate to see Nintendo struggle, as it was Nintendo that gave me my first gaming experiences, however it’s difficult to suggest how they’d improve their situation. Writing off the Wii U and developing a whole new console would be unfeasible; what will really help the console is some unmissable titles, be they new IPs or not. Hopefully the release of Mario Kart 8, Super Smash Bros and a new iteration of Zelda will give people more of a reason to buy Nintendo’s next-gen console.
Multiple sources speculate on whether Nintendo will begin to develop for other companies, and Nintendo themselves have entertained the possibility of developing for mobile devices. Whatever happens, I hope Nintendo find some way to rally themselves, as they’ve always seemed somehow different, more willing to push for innovation even if it’s not always in the right direction.
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The Xbox One experienced a difficult conception, what with all the back and forth about mandatory internet connections during development, as well as the high initial cost of the console. Microsoft reported this month that they had sold over 5 million units, as well as the fact that Titanfall was their top-selling game, suggesting that things are going a little better for the company, although still not matching the reported sales of Sony’s console.
For me personally, none of the selling points of the Xbox were particularly exciting. I’m not bothered by the integration of gaming and TV, nor by the promise of a more advanced Kinect, although I’m sure there are consumers who appreciate both selling points. It’s important to mention also that Microsoft has recently announced a Kinect-less XBone will be on sale, making their console more viable for people who didn’t want to pay for something they didn’t want/see the use for.
Microsoft’s Xbox One.
From a purely physical standpoint the One is a behemoth, presumably because Microsoft wanted their console to be the only thing taking up space in consumer’s living rooms (and to fit enough ventilation to allay any fears about temperature issues). But I already have limited space, on account of having older consoles (which I need to keep as on of the features of next-gen seems to be a lack of backwards compatibility) so I don’t want a monolithic black box taking up the rest of the room.
Admittedly there are a few games on the One that look like a lot of fun, such as Dead Rising 3 and Garden Warfare. But again, the choices are still extremely limited and, like the PS4, the One needs some truly absorbing, next-gen games that elevate the platform more than just ‘more detailed textures’ or pretty bloom.
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Honestly it’s hard to say. I think this is probably one of the most difficult generations of new hardware, simply because the main feature of two out of three consoles is more power. Each have their own gimmicks, the PS4 has its controller, the One has the Kinect and TV, the Wii U has the gamepad. Increased graphical fidelity is getting more and more difficult and has probably hit a point of diminishing returns. It’s easy to say that each company needs more innovation, but the simple fact is entirely new ideas are hard. Suffice to say, it could be very interesting to see where each company decides to go in the next-gen market.
Let us know in the comments below if you have any thoughts on the direction of the console market, any next-gen game releases you’re particularly excited for, or any thoughts on how to improve on each console’s weaker areas.