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Are You Now More Or Less Likely To Own Multiple Consoles?

Ben-Dutka 58 Comments

Some say this will be one of the last – if not the last – generation of home video games consoles.

And many argue that it would be better for the industry if we simply had one universal system that played everything, and that it's silly and ultimately counterproductive to have these competing consoles.

Well, I'm still not sure where I stand on the issue, but I do know I'm less likely to be a multi-console owner these days. Growing up, I always needed more than one; from the SNES and Genesis onward, I always played on more than one platform (even if the alternate platform was PC). Right up until the last generation, when I had PS3 and Xbox 360, this was the norm for me.

But this is the first generation in a very long time where I haven't felt compelled to own multiple consoles, and it's not because PlayStation 4 is head-and-shoulders above the competition. I don't even think it is at this point (though I believe it'll change in 2016, what with the exclusives on tap). I think the reason I'm a single console owner is just because PS4 and Xbox One seem so ridiculously similar. Yes, PS4 has the obvious technical edge, as most multiplatform titles tend to perform better on Sony's console, but we're talking about minor differences. And Nintendo lost me a while ago.

I might be intrigued by the NX but knowing the gimmick-happy company that Nintendo has become, I'm not really holding my breath. Then, combine this with the fact that more games are being produced than ever before and I have less time than ever before, and a second gaming platform just seems superfluous. I doubt I'd even have much chance to play the Vita if it had any games I wanted to play. I'm just wondering if others out there feel the same way. Or are you the opposite? Are you more interested in having multiple consoles in your entertainment center these days? And if so, why?

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Pachter Predicts Shorter Console Cycle This Time Around

Ben-Dutka 15 Comments

Last generation really did drag on far too long, and one analyst says we shouldn't expect a repeat performance.

Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter spoke about the possible length of this generation of consoles in a recent round of Pachter Factor (check it out here ).

When asked by a SIFTD user about the next console cycle – perhaps brought on by consoles that can't really handle VR or run 1080p and 60fps on a consistent basis – Pachter replied:

"I would be surprised if we had a next-gen console in 2018; we might have one in 2019, so I think 6 years is likely. We will have one by 2020, so I think seven years is a lock. So, lasting as long, probably not, but lasting longer than five years, probably so."

He added that due to the quick reduction in price of 4K HDTVs, it's likely that by the time 2018 rolls around, most people will be looking to own a 4K set. At that point, they'll be looking for consoles that can actually present games in 4K. That transition is happening quickly, too, as Pachter cited Black Friday prices for great TVs; for instance, a Samsung 55" 1080p HDTV was $699 and the 4K version was only $100 more.

The Xbox 360 went 8 years before the Xbox One arrived, and PlayStation 3 went 7. As a frame of reference, PS4 and Xbox One have both only been out for a little over two years.

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Sony: Our Competition With Microsoft Is “Really Healthy”

Ben-Dutka 17 Comments

Obviously, Sony and Microsoft are competitors in the video game industry. And without healthy competition, you have no industry.

But that's the key word: "Healthy." And at least one Sony boss believes that's precisely the right adjective to describe the Sony/Microsoft battle this generation.

In speaking to The Guardian , PlayStation boss Andrew House said the PS4 vs. Xbox One clash is bringing out the best of each company and all the creators. He also praises new Microsoft Xbox chief Phil Spencer as being a straight shooter:

"It’s reached a point of what I would describe as really healthy competition – and I use the word ‘healthy’ very deliberately. I think since Phil Spencer took on leadership of [Microsoft’s Xbox division], he has been very honest about their approach. He’s been, in a very gentlemanly way, complimentary about us in the past. But if you look at something like Augmented Reality for them or virtual reality for us, we’re both trying to build a category overall. At the end of the day, there is a shared goal of great experiences for gamers."

PS4 is certainly winning the sales war so far, recently passing the 30 million mark , while Xbox One is estimated to have sold maybe 16 or 17 million worldwide. And after falling from the top spot in October, Sony's console reclaimed the #1 hardware position in the U.S. last month. But there's no doubt that Microsoft will continue to fight, and both consoles should end up selling plenty before all is said and done.

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Don’t Have A PlayStation 4 Yet? You Best Explain Yourself

Ben-Dutka 39 Comments

It's not a challenge; merely a request.

Even though plenty of people have the PlayStation 4 by now, many others don't. I know several who haven't yet sprung for Sony's latest console and they have their reasons. The question is, what are your reasons?

The lack of exclusives that you want to play could be possible, as we're still waiting on a few heavy hitters for PS4. We do have Bloodborne , Until Dawn . The Order: 1886 , Everybody's Gone to the Rapture , and Disgaea 5: Alliance of Vengeance (and they all launched in 2015). But even so, many are still waiting on Uncharted 4: A Thief's End , the next Gran Turismo and God of War installments, and the newly announced Detroit .

Some people say they've got everything they need with PC/Steam, while others say they're actually still trying to catch up on the previous generation. And in my experience, the fact that most big-budget multplatform titles do tend to perform better on PS4 isn't a big enough selling point for most. I mean, they admit that if they had PS4, they'd probably get that version over the Xbox One version (if it was confirmed that PS4's iteration ran at a higher resolution or frame rate), but it's not enough to prompt a purchase.

Of course, many said they were waiting for a price drop but you can't really use that as an excuse anymore. It has already happened . What, waiting for it to hit $300? Well, how about some Black Friday deals ?

If you don't yet own a PS4, how come?

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Microsoft Admits To “Losing Gamer Trust” With Xbox One

Ben-Dutka 24 Comments

Sony's lead over Microsoft in the current generation is a bit of a surprise to many, and even the Xbox One manufacturer is unsure if they can close the gap completely.

Xbox boss Phil Spencer spoke during a panel at the 2015 GeekWire Summit (as cited by Videogamer ) and when asked if he thought Xbox One could catch PlayStation 4, he answered:

"You know, I don't know. You know, the length of the generation… They [Sony] have a huge lead and they have a good product. I love the content, the games lineup that we have."

Spencer went on to say that the well-documented policy reversals at the start of the generation left a bad taste in people's mouths. As such, Microsoft "fundamentally lost the trust" of their most loyal customers. Most would agree with that. Added Spencer:

"Whether it's always-on, used games, whatever the feature was, we lost the trust in them that they were at the center of our decision-making process. Were we building a product for us, or were we building a product for the gamers? And as soon as that question came into people's minds and they looked at anything, whether it was the power of our box, our launch lineup, microtransactions, any of the features that you talked about, what you find is very quickly you lose the benefit of the doubt. You lose your customer's assumption that the reason you're building your product is to delight them and not just build a better and more maybe manipulative product."

All of that is spot-on, Phil. If only you could've realized it before the sh** hit the fan when you announced Xbox One. After PS4 was announced, one analyst said Microsoft had best bring its "A-game" and that's not what happened. The announcement meant with a ton of flak and even though MS quickly back-pedaled, we wondered if damage control was enough .

Obviously, it wasn't. All of that led to PS4 getting a huge lead out of the gate and it might stay that way.

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Almost 2 Years In, Is Your Launch PS4 Still Running Strong?

Ben-Dutka 62 Comments

Call it a reliability check.

We're closing in on two years of the PlayStation 4 and if you bought a launch system, how has yours been running?

Early hardware models of almost any machine tend to have at least some growing pains (unless your name is Nintendo). The original PlayStation was a little funky when it first came out, the PS2 scratched discs when the console was vertical, and we had the YLoD (Yellow Ring of Death) on PS3. The latter, while not a fraction as catastrophic as the infamous RRoD (Red Ring of Death) on Xbox 360, still nailed plenty of PS3s out there.

So far this generation, though, we haven't really heard much about PS4's sputtering and dying. Haven't heard too much about firmware updates that sadly bricked the system, either. My launch PS4 is running just fine but then again, I tend to have pretty good luck with my machines, as I've never had any PlayStation console break. The original PS1's disc-reader loosened somehow but my father fixed it, so I was without it for all of an hour.

But how is your launch PS4? Is it still running just as well as it did nearly two years ago? Or has it stuttered here and there? Or, and this would be a worst-case scenario, has it already died on you?

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