People ask us all the time whether they should buy a new-gen console? Should they get an Xbox One? A PS4? For a year, we’ve told people to not bother with either. Now, we think you should make the leap, especially if you’re a console-only gamer. But which one to get?
We’re not going to tell you which one is better, because, frankly, it’s an unresolvable debate. PS4 vs. Xbox One? There are good things and bad things about both machines.
In fact, it’s a little surprising how the rivals have levelled off. For most of the last year, we were far more impressed with the PS4 last year than we were with the Xbox One, but a series of software improvements and smart business decisions by Microsoft has closed the gap between the consoles. In late 2013, the sleek, powerful PS4 wowed us more than the chunky, clunky Xbox One. A year later? We think it’s a more even fight.
Nevertheless, the PS4 and Xbox One are not identical, so we’ve got some comparing to do. Hopefully the comparison will help you determine which console is better for you or whether you might want to go all in and get both… or neither.
A note about Nintendo’s console: Nintendo’s Wii U has evolved into a superb console of its own, but is by and large a Nintendo machine. Want to play wonderful, new versions of Smash Bros., Mario Kart, and Pikmin? Want to play excellent sequels, such as Super Mario 3D World and the surprise Nintendo-exclusive Bayonetta 2? Want to do any of this on a console that lets you play the games on a handheld screen if your TV is being used for other stuff? Pay the $US299 Nintendo tax and get a Wii U. Dwindling third-party support means that there is virtually no more overlap between the games released for XboxOne/PS4/PC and Nintendo’s home console. A good thing, because you won’t feel like your devices are redundant, but a bad thing, because you’ll need to buy more expensive stuff to play every game.
A note about PC gaming: If you have a good gaming PC or are interested in getting one, you may not need a PS4 or Xbox One yet. Most of the top games on the new-gen consoles — including such buzzworthy late-2014 games as Dragon Age Inquisition, Shadow of Mordor, Assassin’s Creed Unity and Alien: Isolation are all available on PC. Many of the consoles’ best indie games, like Transistor, Don’t Starve, TowerFall: Ascension and Super Time Force are also on PC. Skipping the new consoles now and sticking just with a PC won’t cost you access to that many exclusive games yet (you’d basically just miss the Sony-published PS4 games and some, but not all of the Microsoft-published Xbox One games). So if you can live without playing Infamous Second Son (PS4), LittleBigPlanet 3 (PS4), Sunset Overdrive (Xbox One), and Halo: The Master Chief Collection (Xbox One) and you’ve got a good way to play the best new games on your TV — and if you don’t mind waiting until early next year to play the superb new first-person-enabled version of Grand Theft Auto V — then stick with PC gaming for now.
How The PS4 And Xbox One Are Similar
They’re both pretty beefy. The Xbox One and PS4 are both powerful consoles. The best-looking games for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 — Halo 4 and The Last of Us, arguably — are already visually outclassed by the likes of the new consoles’ versions of Shadow of Mordor, Assassin’s Creed Unity and Grand Theft Auto V.
They’re not identical, but it’s close. The specs for the consoles are not identical, and close analysis of this first year’s games has regularly revealed a small performanceadvantage for the PS4 (higher resolution graphics, for example), the kind you might notice if looking at the game running on each console side-by-side. But Xbox One games tend to look phenomenal as well, and in at least one case — Assassin’s Creed Unity — seem to perform better on Microsoft’s console. History shows that developers get better at programming for consoles as the years go by, which would either close any performance gaps or accentuate them. It’s too early to say.
Games cost the same. Major game releases cost $US60 each on both consoles.
They have got (mostly) the same third-party games. The PS4 and Xbox One run many of the same games and largely have parity in terms of third-party support. All major games from Ubisoft, Activision and Take Two have come to both consoles. EA released the multiplayer shooter Titanfall exclusively on Xbox platforms and Microsoft secured console exclusivity for Dead Rising 3 from Capcom and the next Tomb Raider from Square Enix/Eidos (possibly a timed exclusive there). The massively multiplayer Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm Reborn is available for PS4, not Xbox One. Otherwise, from existing blockbusters such as Call of Duty, Assassin’s Creed, FIFA and GTA to next year’s Metal Gear Solid V, Evolve and The Division, big third-party games come to PS4 and Xbox One and generally on the exact same day.
There aren’t many exclusives on either side. Neither system has an overwhelming number of exclusive games yet, so PS4 and Xbox One owners would likely still find a lot of overlap in their software collections.
They both update when they’re turned off. Both of the new consoles are designed to patch and update your games (the PS4 does this more smoothly at the moment). Both have somewhat cluttered but well-stocked online stores. They each ship with 500GB hard drives and require just about every game to be installed (the Xbox One supports external hard drives; the PS4 does not, though the PS4 HDD is pretty easily swappable for a bigger one). They both let you start playing most games while they’re downloading or installing.
Achievements and trophies are still a thing. They both have Achievement-like systems. As has been the case for a while, Sony calls theirs Trophies.
They both support cross-game voice chat for parties of up to eight people. Cross-game chat was previously something the Xbox 360 could do that the PS3 couldn’t.
You can use your real name on both. In a change from the previous generation, both allow players to be identified by their friends by their real name instead of by a handle. This is optional, so you can keep masquerading as CoolBro420 if you want to.
Both controllers are similar to their predecessors. They each have evolutionary controllers that are similar to the ones from the previous generation, though the PS4’s new DualShock 4 feels like the more substantial design overhaul when compared to its predecessor the DualShock 3. The Xbox One’s controller includes more advanced force feedback rumbling, and it runs off of AA batteries. The PS4’s controller has a colourful light bar, a touch pad, and a speaker, and runs off of an internal battery that you’ll need to regularly recharge (thankfully, unlike the PS3, the PS4 lets you charge your controller while the system is in sleep mode). None of those features have amounted to anything all that special, so, for controller preference, it’s still largely a matter of which one you personally prefer. Additional controllers for both consoles cost $US60 each.
They both charge players for online multiplayer. You need PlayStation Plus for the PS4 ($US50 annual subscription) and Xbox Live Gold for the Xbox One ($US60 annual subscription).
Both paid services give you games. Both the PlayStation Plus and Xbox Live Gold services give players access to free games each month and let you keep the games as long as you’re a subscriber. Because there are relatively few new games out for the new consoles, the freebie games for PS4 and Xbox One tend to be indies, whereas the freebie games subscribers can get for last-gen consoles tend to be bigger releases. For example, in November 2014, Gold users can get a game called Volgarr The Viking for free on Xbox One but also get Viva Pinata: Trouble In Paradise and Red Faction: Guerilla for the Xbox 360. That indie/big-game divide isn’t always the case, though. Keeping it a bit more indie all around in the same month, Plus members get The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, Steamworld Dig and Escape Plan (originally for the PS Vita) for free for PS4, but also Frozen Synapse and Luftrausers for PS3. And in December, PS4 users of Plus will get free copies of the big-budget DC Comics fighting game Injustice.
They’re both indie-friendly. Sony and Microsoft have both aggressively courted indie game developers and have been rolling out indies on their platforms (Nintendo’s been getting into this, too but, of course, the PC is still by far the leading platform for anyone who wants to play great indie games).
Neither one is backwards compatible. Neither system will run a game disc from the previous generation, though the PS4 does offer last-gen games via a streaming program that will be explained below.
Both offer cameras of limited utility. The Xbox One used to ship with a Kinect sensor that could be used for voice and gestural control of the system’s interface and in many of its games. The Kinect is no longer packed in and has seen few games made that require it (standouts include Dance Central Spotlight and Disney Fantasia: Music Evolved). It costs over $US100. Sony’s PlayStation 4 Camera ($US60) allows for some voice control of the system. Both devices allow users to log into their respective consoles via facial recognition. Neither feels essential to the new-gen console experience.
Both normally cost $US400. When the Xbox One launched, it cost $US500, $US100 more than the PS4. But the removal of Kinect from the console’s base offering dropped the two machines down to the same price, $US400. Microsoft is currently running a holiday promotion that drops the Xbox One down further to $US350. Both machines are often bundled with games.
Both let you stream lots of different media. Both machines support a variety of media-streaming apps. They both have Netflix and Amazon Prime. and Hulu Plus. There are some notable differences: Xbox One has HBO Go, which the PS4 doesn’t yet have. The Xbox One also has an NFL app of limited utility.
The consoles both play Blu-Ray and DVD movies.
You can livestream from both without the need of any other devices.
You can capture gameplay footage and edit it on either console, then upload it (Sony has a couple of theoretically temporary advantages here in offering an easy screenshot-taking option and for local saving of videos to a USB stick).
How The PS4 And Xbox One Are Different
The PS4 is slim, the Xbox One is chunky. One of the biggest differences between the PS4 and the Xbox One is that, well, the PS4 is a slick, slender console and the Xbox One is the Duke controller of game consoles.
The PS4 lets stream PS3 games (for money). The PS4 lets users play PS3 games through the recently-launched PlayStation Now service. You can stream any of a number of games if your Internet connection is fast enough to handle a two-way streaming signal (you’re basically remotely playing on a PS3 that is in some server farm somewhere). The games will support your older PS3 save files, but you have to pay to access these games, even if you owned them. The Now service is pricey. Four-hour rentals tend to go for about $US2-$US5 with longer month-long rentals nearly matching the price of just buying an old copy of the game. Of course, the store-bought copy of the PS3 game wouldn’t run on the PS4, so it’s really your only option.
The Xbox One is not backwards compatible at all.
You can play PS4 games on your Vita handheld. People who own a PlayStation Vita can use it to “Remote Play” any game running on their PS4. In theory this means you could play a PS4 game on a Vita from anywhere in the world, but Remote Play is dependent on having a really good Internet connection. In our experience, Remote Play is best for same-room or same-house sessions when the TV is either too far away or in use for something else. Remote Play has gotten much better over the last year, especially when game developers go out of their way to come up with solid adapted control schemes for the Vita.
The PS4 lets you “hand the controller” to a friend in another zip code. The PS4 also supports a new feature called Share Play, which allows any paying PlayStation Plus subscriber to “host” a session of most PS4 games that they own, enabling a second, remote PS4 user to spectate the host’s game through their console and on their TV. The host player can virtually hand control of the game to the guest player, enabling the recipient to play PS4 games that they don’t have, remotely, via their friend’s PS4. Sony sells this idea, in part, as a way for one player to help another through a tough spot in a game. There might be too much lag for that to work for twitch-based games, but the service otherwise works pretty well. Share Play sessions are limited to an hour, but the clock can be re-started at any time. You’ll need a decent Internet connection and a PlayStation Plus subscription for it.
The Xbox One lets you suspend your games. The Xbox One doesn’t have a Remote Play option nor, nor a Share Play mode (no reason why they couldn’t eventually get the latter), but it does have an excellent game suspend mode. Console gamers have been accustomed to having to load a video game before they start it, but the Xbox One can actually suspend a game, let you power the console off (into a low-power mode) and then, when you turn the machine back on, let you pick up the game right where you left it — no loading. It can only do this for one game at a time, but it basically removes the need to boot up the game you’ve been most avidly playing. Turn on the console and the game is waiting for you to continue playing, exactly where you left off. Sony indicated back in early 2013 that it was going to offer a similar option, but they have yet to deliver.
The Xbox One can show two things at once. The Xbox One has a semi-useful thing called Snap. Basically, it’s a split-screen option that will run certain applications in a vertical band on the right side of your TV screen while running a game or other application on the left. The console does this thanks to its unusual system architecture that has different operating systems handling what’s on the different portions of your TV. The problem is that Microsoft hasn’t found many good uses for Snap. You can snap a list of the Achievements for the game you’re playing, which is cool if you want to track your progress in achieving them in real-time. You can Snap a TV signal from your cable box, if your cable box is plugged into your Xbox One. You can keep a list of your Xbox Live friends snapped, watch a Twitch Stream snapped, and so on. A lot of that may sound cool, but most of it is stuff you might as well do with a second screen like your phone, tablet or laptop.
Xbox One has DLNA support, PS4 does not. Sony has taken some hits for still not supporting DLNA in-home media-streaming yet. They have indicated that they will, but at the moment, the Xbox One is the only new-gen console that will let you stream media from other devices in your home.
The Xbox One can integrate with your cable box. One of the biggest differences between the consoles should be that the Xbox One has an HDMI-in. That means you can plug a cable box — or even another console — into the Xbox One and have its video and audio play through the Microsoft machine. The Xbox team initially promoted this option as a way to unify your home entertainment devices, by having everything that would connect to your TV funnel through the Xbox One. In theory, your cable TV signal wouldn’t just flow through the Xbox One but be improved by it through a feature called the One Guide that would allow you to track what’s on TV and what’s also available through streaming apps. In practice, most of us at Kotaku who initially plugged our cable boxes into our Xbox Ones have since disentangled them. The benefits weren’t worth any signal lag that we experienced.
In the long term, we suspect that the biggest differences between the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4 will be the games. Currently, there are a handful of notable exclusives that are on one console and not its rival.
The Xbox One has these games: The four-classics-in-one Halo: The Master Chief Collection, the acrobatic third-person shooter Sunset Overdrive, the fun racing game Forza Horizon 2 (also on Xbox 360), multiplayer shooter Titanfall (also on Xbox 360 and PC), massive zombie-slaughtering game Dead Rising 3 (also on PC), and 2D time-warping game Super Time Force (also on PC).
The PlayStation 4 has these games: The open-world action game Infamous Second Son, Game of the Year calibre survival game The Last of Us Remastered (a pretty port of a PS3 game), sidescrolling shooter PixelJunk Shooter Deluxe (a port of two PS3 games), another top sidescrolling shooter Resogun and the user-creation-centric sidescroller LittleBigPlanet 3.
Sony has more top internal game studios, but Microsoft has a pretty good crew, too: While Microsoft seems to still be interested in grabbing exclusives from third-party publishers (see: the next Tomb Raider) and Sony is publishing a spiritual sequel to the Dark Souls games in next year’s Bloodborne, most of the consoles’ exclusive games will come from first-party studios. Sony has the advantage here with a network of game studios that include Naughty Dog (Uncharted, The Last of Us), Guerilla Games (Killzone), Japan Studio (Ico, The Puppeteer), Media Molecule (LittleBigPlanet, Tearaway), Polyphony Digital (Gran Turismo), Sony Santa Monica (God of War), Sony San Diego (MLB: The Show), London Studio (Playroom) and more. Microsoft’s operation is smaller, with its major internal studios consisting of 343 Industries (Halo), Lionhead (Fable), Rare (Kinect Sports), Turn 10 (Forza), Black Tusk (forthcoming Gears of War), and, technically, Mojang (Minecraft).
Do you love baseball? If you’re into baseball games, Sony makes MLB: The Show, the de facto only one that matters. The Xbox One has no Major League Baseball games.
Do you love EA? If you like EA games, Microsoft has an exclusive on a paid program called EA Access that provides discounts and early access to some EA games as well as free copies of some older releases.
We could go on an on. Doubtless, many owners of the systems will have a lot that they can add to this, and we encourage them to do so in the comments below.
But do we really not have a preference? If you asked any of us on the staff to pick between an Xbox One and a PS4, would we really not be able to make a choice?
It’s tough.
A year ago, and even just six months ago, a lot of us leaned heavily toward the PS4. The system had some special features, but we liked it primarily for the one thing we wanted it to do — play games — really well. The Xbox One was a more confusing machine that seemed weighed down by a bunch of design decisions tied to using the machine as an enhancer to a cable TV box and yet shipped without some basic gamer-friendly features like a controller battery-power indicator or even a way to tell how much hard drive space you had left available (both issues have since been fixed). Microsoft, however, started closing the gap with a series of system software updates that made some of its odder features, such as Snap, work better. It turns out that the Xbox One is a perfectly good modern gaming console, a fact underlined by some strong fall Xbox-only games amid a surprisingly weak late-2014 PS4-only gaming line-up.
As a result, we feel pretty good about both consoles these days. You kind of can’t go wrong.
Aside from the temporary holiday discount for the Xbox One, the two machines basically cost the same amount of money. They largely run the same games. If you’re a huge Halo fan, then of course, get the Xbox One. If you’re a baseball person, the PS4 is the no-brainer. But the vast majority of new-gen games run on both consoles.
Perhaps the deciding factor will ultimately be wherever your friends are. Both consoles are machines geared toward social interaction. They’re full of activity feeds and support for chat and messaging. They’re designed to make you feel close to and competitive with the friends you have who also are in the same Xbox Live or PlayStation Network universe. So maybe, after reading all of this and weighing the pros and cons you just ask your friends. Which one do they have? Go get that one. Or decide to get the one you want and then convince them to come along and do the same.
Comments
94 responses to “One Year Later, Should You Get An Xbox One Or A PS4?”
…or a PC? Or a handheld? I mean, why limit your options? Good games come out on all platforms, but not always on every one.
*At pizza hut*
I really want asome pizza but don’t know if I should get hawaiian or pepperoni.
*dude driving past*
I’m going to KFC!
That’s the attitude I eventually got once I realised my friends didn’t care about my input but thought I should always fall in line.
Get whichever one you like. Whichever has the games you really want to play.
I don’t have either but would heavily lean towards Playstation, purely for the games.
Ps4 has games???
I’m still not getting either of them. Nothing on either system interests me enough yet. Hell it took Mario Kart 8 to finally convince me to buy a Wii U earlier this year.
Both systems look like they have interesting stuff coming out next year though, so maybe sometime around mid-next year I’ll reassess. I’ll likely lean more towards the PS4 though.
Major game releases cost AUD$100 online/EB Games or less at other stores.
While it’s obviously an American article, I haven’t paid close to $100 for a new game release for many many years now. You’ve got stores like ozgameshop where you can buy stuff from, or something like JB HiFi if you prefer to shop locally.
agree, the most expensive xbox one games I’ve bought were probably $79 through JB. Ozgameshop is usually abit cheaper if you can wait like you said.
Jb-HI-Fi have started to sell games at $69 ( I got Destiny and GTA V at this price there) which is really cheap compared to the digital stores for both consoles.
To clarify: by online I meant the PSN/Xbox store for digital downloads
region change is your friend
never never go to EB theyre nobs. Big W or Target the games are usually $65.00
Eb price match.
That’s a bit harsh.
EBAY a week or so after release (unless you MUST have it), and you’ll most likely nab a copy from someone who’s already finished it, or didnt like it, for half the price.
Simples…..
[I take that back]
My local EB is always nice enough to price match ANYTHING on release day. I havent paid $100 for any title in the last few years. I usually put $10 on a pre-order that they price match and pay the balance on pick up. In saying that though Big W and Dickies have had some pretty awesome preorder prices lately.
As long as you’re nice I’ve found they will match almost anything yeah.
Shop at Big W – their PS4/Xbone games have been sitting at $64 at release for most with the occasional $78 at most.
JB is usually $69 at release with the occasional $88
And Dick Smith is usually $68 at release with the occasional $79.95
All cheaper then the old EB $99.95 at release..
I have both the PS4 and Xbone, the UI of the Xbone is quite maddening, literally the worst user interface on any console ever.
I agree with this.
Really? What don’t you like about it? serious question. I’m not here to white knight for the Xbox one but i have personally found the interface quick simple and easy to use.
I have to admit i don’t own a PS4 so i can’t comment on that but yeah i enjoy the Xbox interface.
That may be a matter of personal opinion, I found the Ps4 incredibly simple and dumb
Also for the Xbox one a double tap the guide button now opens up a plethora of choices at a very easy to use menu.
Yeah I hate how 95% of the stuff on the PS4 homescreen is useless for me (I don’t do online MP, I don’t care about trophies). I wish I could customise it a bit.
Buying whichever has the exclusives you want is the best answer. Right now for me it was the xbox one. I’ll get a ps4 at a later date but right now there’s nothing of interest for me on it whereas I’ve already had a handful of xbox one exclusives I really enjoyed (even if they are on pc now).
The real key for me has always been exclusives, and I’ve always felt Sony wiped the floor with Microsoft in that department. Microsoft’s taking of Insomniac away has definitely hurt, but as far as I’m concerned Naughty Dog made two Games of the Year last generation, so for me it’s not even a question.
I guess you don’t consider UC3 a GOTY?
Don’t get me wrong – I loved it. But that year had Portal 2 and Mass Effect 2 on the PS3. I’d say it was the PS3 exclusive of the year easily, but a better game than Portal 2? That’s tough.
Psst, ME2 was 2010, not 2011. Skyrim was the major contender that year along with UC3 and Portal 2
2010 on Xbox. I didn’t play it until it was out on PS3 the following year. That’d disqualify it from most 2011 GOTY lists, but not mine.
Microsoft didn’t take Insomniac away, Insomniac approached them because Microsoft will allow them ownership of their IP. Sony wanted to own the IP. This is the reason Insomniac is still working on a Ratchet & Clank game for the PS4, and Sunset Overdrive may appear on a Sony console too.
Sony Exclusives????
Microsoft Xbox One ?
Halo, Ryse, Gears of War, Forza, Forza Horizon, Dead Rising, Crackdown, sunset overdrive, tomb raider… should I keep going???
(ea access) – ( 5 day /6hr early head start on any EA game, Dragon Age, BF, Fifa, Madden)
Sony don’t even know what the word exclusive means anymore
Let’s see here
Crackdown, Forza Motorsport, Forza Horizon and Halo are made by first party internal studios (in Halo’s case they own the IP)
Dead Rising, Sunset Overdrive are third party exclusives developed for Xbox
Tomb Raider – MS paid for a timed exclusive
Sony Exclusives
Infamous: Second Son, Driveclub, Little Big Planet 3, The Last Of Us: Remastered, MLB 14: The Show, Destiny timed updates,
So Sony do know the word exclusive is.
The way I ended up choosing between them was the controllers. 99% of my time on a console is spent in-game, and since they’re graphically equivalent (differences are hard to spot in side-by-side comparisons and there’s no way you’re going to notice anything during actual gameplay), and the feature sets are pretty similar, so the only difference I’m going to experience during the vast majority of my time is what’s in my hands. I had a bit of a play with both, and the Xbox One controller just felt better to me. Don’t regret my choice at all.
(Having said that: They weren’t reasons to pick one console or another, but the ability to pause movies by talking to my Xbox, and the fast-resume feature for games, have both been pretty big bonuses.)
The instant resume feature has saved me a few times from 18 month old pressing buttons he shouldnt! Also, having played a mates PS4, I too prefer the XBone controller. Much more comfortable. And I just dont get the big rectangle button on PS4 either
Neither, I’m waiting for the slim editions to arrive. Cut down power consumptions, price, etc.
Maybe it’s different for the Yanks, but I love having my TV through my Xbox One. It’s much quicker to flick between TV and games (than to change channels), and I can snap it to the side during ads or waiting for a show to start.
I don’t see how signal lag is an issue with TV. It’s all done through HDMI, so it still comes through in-sync. Does it really matter that you neighbour is watching TV two seconds ahead of you?
(Note: I don’t actually know if two seconds is an accurate amount of signal lag, but even if it was two minutes, would it really be such a big deal?)
What about the Southerners? They have Xbones too!
“Which one should you buy? I dunno, whatever.”
Good god. Did my wife write this?
“what do you want for dinner sweetie?”
“it’s up to you”
“ok then let’s have mexican”
“No, I don’t want mexican”
“…”
This has been dinner with my wife for the past 7 years. *sobs*
One of the big pros for getting a PC that has been missed in the article is game pricing. I got Shadow of Mordor for $28 (via CD key) the day it came out. I haven’t paid full price on a game since Battlefield 4.
I keep a short list of “day 1 must haves”, then Wishlist all the others I want in the future and wait for Steam and GoG sales. By doing this, I’ve dramatically cut down the ongoing cost of game purchases.
The PC cost $1700 to buy (PC Case Gear) 2 years ago, but I haven’t done a single upgrade since and have also avoided the monthly online sub costs that comes with consoles.
The PC is one the 2nd floor of my house, but I have an amplified 10m HDMI cable which I’ve now successfully ran into my TV with minimal latency issues. I’m installing down the wall from the study to the lounge room in January, so I can play games on my couch.
I’m looking to upgrade to a 900 series Geforce card around June, which will set me back another $500. But it will push my PC past the limits of this generation of consoles and last another 2 maybe 3 years.
Take the plunge, free yourself (lol)
edit: formatting, not sure what happened haha
I also like to bold my significant points
Then why didn’t you?
Because my point wasn’t significant
Fair enough. 🙂
I’m all about making things TL;DR friendly
I’m one of those insane guys that would buy a console for a specific franchise. It used to be Halo, but then 343i decided to kill the franchise, so now I’m looking forward to picking up a PS4 for Bloodborne next year.
Yeah, when I found out Ace Combat was going to be 360 exclusive, that was pretty much my reasoning for buying an Xbox over a PS3. And then AC6 came out and I hated it. lol.
You and I are the same.
MGS2 is the reason I bought a PS2 and MGS4 a PS3, and even though MGS5 is cross platform I feel compelled to keep the combo going.
There’s also Uncharted, Infamous and probably The Order too.
I bought FF13 on PS3 (then gave it back), LA Noire on PS3 and all Souls games on PS3.
Halo 5 multiplayer looks pretty freaking sweet… no franchise is perfect…
I think you will regret getting a PS4 in the long run 🙁
I read somewhere that xboxes shrink your penis by one third and is the leading cause of death for people aged 12- 45……………so play it safe and buy a playstation.
I read somewhere PlayStation owners are as smooth downstairs as a Ken doll.
I like to shave, ok??!!!
I have a gaming PC and a Wii U which I use daily.
I have a PS4 which I barely touch. I do not have a XB One. The article makes a fantastic point that the Wii U is the real exclusive star here.
I think the best combos ranked are this unless you can have all 4 at once.
1. PC + Wii U
2. PS4 + Wii U
3. XB + Wii U
4. PC + PS4
5. PC + XB
The problem is that Wii U is such a specialist machine in that in only really plays one type of game (the switch-off-your-brain, “fun” type). I like these games as much as the next person but I would never buy a console that only plays these games.
Bayonetta and DK Tropical Freeze are far from switch brain off. Heck even Wind Wakerm, Wonderful 101 or Zombie U are to tricky to just smash your way lazily through.
Its not a Mario Kart brain dead machine. I wish people would get off that small window view of the platform.
Sums up where I’m at.
I played around on both at friends houses before going for the PS4. I liked the overall “feel” of it better. I found the controller to be really great and preferred it to XB’s, I like the slim line look of the console and that it stands vertically (which is how I have it set up at the moment due to space restrictions) and I like the ease of sharing due to having the share button right on the controller. Also the trackpad on there is great too.
So it was PS4 and a Wii U….which one do I love the most and have the most fun on….Wii U.
I went PS4 for a few reasons, including keeping my trophy profile from PS3 and Vita, the fact that it is more powerful and more likely to run cross-platform games better, Remote play, and the fact that MS were just committing atrocity after atrocity with the Xbone reveal.
Sony had, in my view, more interesting exclusives in the PS3 era, and I’m expecting that to continue for PS4.
Xbone doesn’t really have any exclusives to make me buy it yet. If Tomb Raider (Rise Of The) were exclusive forever then I might plan to buy one, but I’ve never really been attracted to Halo, Forza or Gears of War. I didn’t get a 360 for the same reason.
I think it’s a case of buy whatever your friends play the most
I have all three of 2nd gen and new gen for exclusives, basically any multiplatform game i would rather pc or ps4 but overall for me Wii U is king best exclusives you can get on new gen ATM
“The PS4 lets you “hand the controller” to a friend in another zip code”
You mentioned this, but failed to mention the amazing “home console” option on Xbone!
On PS4 you can lend a game to a friend by having them play your copy from your console to theirs. On Xbone you can only share physical games by lending the disc, BUT if you buy digitally and use this feature you can play the single game on 2 consoles at once! Not only that but you can share your live subscription between 2 people too!
For a comparison article its pretty disappointing to see this missed. I mean it mainly applies to having 2 consoles in the 1 house, but with a bit of negotiation with a friend you could make use of it too to get double your digital bucks! As someone who loves to play games with my partner it was a surprising, but invaluable feature!
I don’t think Sony lets you share Plus, but you’ve been able to log your account into four consoles and share games since the PS3. Would be surprised if the PS4 didn’t allow this.
I was going to gameshare with my brother, but then realised my wife would no longer be able to play her digital games that are on my account.
Corteks^^^ this is incredibly true, I’m doing the same thing bought GTA V and Halo for $59 each sharing over two consoles and playing online together off one sub!!!
Microsoft is just ahead of the curve these PS4 Owner nobs are too blinded by their weekly centerlink cheques and coronas to see clearly
For me? Neither. Hell, I didn’t even bother with a console LAST generation (apart from a Wii I received as a Christmas gift and barely played)- I still have tons of games on my PS2 and Gamecube to finish and even unbeaten games going as far back as the PS1 and GBA! Combined with the ABSURD number of games I have waiting for me on Steam and GoG, I don’t think I’m ever going to need to buy another console for the rest of my life.
I went for both but the Xbox One first. Best to cover all the bases I reckon.
I’m starting to consider purchasing a console, or giving my pc a little upgrade. Thing is, I’ve barely played any games over the last few years.. However there are some titles coming out that seem to have sparked a bit of an interest
I would purchase an xbox one, due to being better suited for media streaming and an overall entertainment unit – however, the only thing holding me back is the uncertainty of its performance in the future..
the ps4 is more powerful and games do perform slightly better. but we are still very early stages… if the gap worsens it could be pretty detrimental to the xbox
Well what state is your pc in? There is already a significant gap between even a moderate pc and the ‘next-gen’ consoles. If you are planning on streaming media from the internet the computer upgrade will give you a more powerful machine with similar to better media capabilities.
Hahahahhahahahahahahaha
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… No.
I don’t love them, hell i’d go far enough to say I hate them.
That said, Mass Effect, Dragon Age, Burnout, the best sports games for the sports I actually enjoy (MMA and soccer) and a whole bunch of other AAA franchises.
They make some very good games. If you’re getting a saving on all of them then it’s a good thing, even if they’re a bunch of f*cks.
They have the worst customer support in the world (really made Sims 3 expansions a waste of money) and I don’t care much about most of their other games, so yeah, I don’t love EA.
That said, Burnout Paradise was legendary!
If you want to play with your friends, then buy whichever console the majority of them are on. I own both, can’t tell the difference graphically on the tv.
If you want to play single player stuff, build a pc instead.
Really, if you want local multiplayer, buy a Wii U.
If you want online multiplayer and enjoy using PCs, get one of them
If you don’t like PCs, then get a PS4 or Xbox One (they’re generally better for singleplayer games anyway imo).
I only use my PC to play Dota 2 and AoE (still), I use my Wii U all the time for local multiplayer (and occasionally single-player) and I don’t have a PS4, but most of my single-player games are for the PS3.
Understandable. I pretty much only play 4x, MMOs and indies on pc. And I have to admit to buying DA Inquisition for pc.
The rest is all consoles. I bought my fiancée our households second x1 so we could play games together with our friend group, because we aren’t big fans of local multipler (prefer having our own screen). We had a wiiU but can’t recommend it. The os was slow and clunky, the pad/touch controller was a pain to use for both of us. Just didn’t like the system, same as we didn’t like the wii. So we sold it. If they released a true full console pokemon game today I’d buy another wiiu again in a heartbeat dispite my dislike of the controller/second screen. I don’t play hand helds anymore.
Naughty Dog being exclusive to PS makes it a no-brainer.
I’m upvoting you but a lot of great people have left ND since The Last of Us was finished.
I own both consoles, and personally prefer the Xbox One by a long shot in terms of the user interface and experience.
PS3/PS4 for third person and driving games.
PC for shooters (Destiny excepted).
Neither of them have a large catalog of quality wow factor/must have games like the PS1 days, give them more time before buying. Until these consoles ‘happen’, we’re still calling them next gen until they earn the ‘current gen’ title.
Shouldnt use graphics and console in the same sentence. Console gamers are casual gamers who dont care if its running at 1080p or 420p. If you care about graphics you pay the money and play on pc like me at 4k60.
cool story bro… PC master race and all that? Yeah i game on a hardcore PC as well but who cares.
Lol sure you do buddy. Sure you do. If only i had a dollar for everytime a console player told me that… They think their old dell with i3 and old graphics card is a gaming machine…
Jesus, People like you are seriously ill and the reason why the gaming community is so toxic. Such a loser.
Really mate? Here you go tosser…
http://s30.postimg.org/uoqlg289t/Desk.jpg
http://s29.postimg.org/xjlocjsrr/Open_case.jpg
I have owned both consoles since the launch day of each, and also have a high end gaming pc. I am not a fan boy of anything; I love games and don’t want to limit myself to one particular platform as all have there exclusive games that I wan’t to play.
Personally I feel the PS4 is a more powerful, it’s extremely frustrating that a number of games that are launched on both PS4 and Xbone; however on Xbone they don’t support 1080p while on PS4 they do. So in turn, anything that is only on consoles and available on both will be purchased on PS4.
Xbone is still a great console, it excels in being an all round console/media system. Since the introduction of the Media App as well as the Plex App the Xbone has been my primary media device in the family room, and the Kinect is great for the kids to interact with games etc.
Currently I have the Xbone in the family room for media and family games, as well as the odd gaming session from myself; and I have the PS4 in my Man Cave with my PC for my serious gaming sessions.
Nothing pisses me off more than a fan boy saying Xbone is better than PS4 and the graphics are equal when the Xbone can’t even play certain games at 1080p that the PS4 can. At the end of the day it’s each to their own but these are just my opinions about the consoles seeing as I have both and believe they each have their strengths and weaknesses.
With graphics in mind (since you are suggesting you are a pc gamer) its hard to believe you own both consoles. Doesnt it annoy you that these machines cannot even output 1080p let alone 60fps. My rig runs 4k60 and its stupid to even think of playing on consoles with very inferior graphics. But its just me. I coulnt care less about exclusives i got tons of amazing games to play. We even get xbone exclusive games and last gen exclusive games. It doesnt get better than that. For example ac rogue is a last gen and pc only title. But at 4k60 on my pc it will look better than anything on any console to date. I say get rid of consoles and upgrade your pc for 4k60. You will be absolutely blown away at how amazing it looks. That true “Next Gen”.
Like I said, anything that is available on PC, then It has to be played there. I recently grabbed Farcry 4 and am running it on Ultra @ 1080P which looks amazing. I am yet to experience 4k as my monitor does not support it, maybe my Christmas pressie from the Wife? haha
wow its been a whole year. that went pretty quick. I think the most fun i have had with the Bone has been playing AC IV (I skipped it on 360) and Diablo 3 both are great games but arent console exclusives haha.
*EDIT* I forgot skylanders that was fun but again not a xbone exclusive.
*Second EDIT (Yeah I’m terrible)* actually i really fucking loved zoo tycoon… and that was an exclusive haha
I mainly use my Xbox for a YouTube / hulu + box for the last few months.
I mainly game on my PC but i can say that i haven’t regretted buying a new console. been a decent little “all-around” machine so far for media and gaming.
As more TVs are being released as Smart TVs even if you don’t need that added functionality you have to look for the TV that matches with your PS4. You can look for certain key features.
HDMI support: First you need to check whether the port of the PS4 is compatible with the TV port.
View angle: Look for TV which gives you a perfect picture from almost all the angles. If you play sitting exactly in front then there is no issues.
Colour quality: Check that the colour quality of the TV is natural otherwise the images will be extra coloured which may strain your eyes.
Black tone and contrast ratio: Check for these as well for better effects.
Response time: To get the true image without ghostly effects or blur lines then look for response time. For gaming anything 8ms or less will work.