Thursday, February 21, 2013

Sony Reveal The PlayStation 4, Coming Holiday 2013


Sony have announced the PlayStation 4. But, this was not a full reveal of the console. some rumored late changes to the Specs, more specifically the inclusion of GDDR5 8GB RAM, are thought to be behind the decision not to reveal the Console itself. 

Sony have announced the PlayStation 4 is coming out this holiday season. no specific countries/territories or prices were revealed. But, Sony have revealed some details about the console.

the console has been built around gamers and developers. they asked developers what they wanted from a console and Sony say the console, and tools to develop the games with, have been designed so the developers can push the boundaries. Gamers are now able to share their experiences. built into the system at a hardware level is the ability to share video of gameplay, and screenshots. the PS4 hardware means the console is always ready to upload your gameplay. This is also true in the controller where there is now a Share button which lets gamers share screenshots and videos to sites like Facebook.

As well as uploading video, you can stream the game your playing to your friends using services like Ustream. during this streaming sessions, your friends are able to comment on gameplay and if you get stuck in a level, your friends can also jump in and play by offering special weapons or health potions for example.

Sony have confirmed that the PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita will work together via Remote Play. this can mean playing the game on the PS4 and then transferring it to the PSV, much like with the Wii U how you can play on TV or the screen on the GamePad. Sony's aim is to have most/all PS4 titles have this PSV Remote Play feature. Sony is also working with smartphones and tablets to bring "Second Screen" functionality to them.

Sony have revealed the PS4 has taken some PSV inspiration by having a suspend mode. it works much like the PS Vita where you can turn it off during a game and come back to it later. the PS4 does this in a low power sleep mode, no need to load a save or boot up the console. another inspiration borrowed is the ability to have other programs/apps running in the background of the game like a web browser.

When it comes to digital titles, once a download has started you can start playing that game and the download continues as you play. games will be downloaded and updated in the background. Sony has a aim that over time the PS4 will learn the games you like so there will be a point where the console has downloaded a game it thinks you'll like as well as games you want.

Sony's Gaikai integration was also announced. the aim is for gamers to find a game they like the look of and play it without downloading the game itself, you would be streaming the game over the internet. once you decide you like it you can then buy it and download it to your system. the aim is to not only have PS4 titles but also PS3 titles available for online streaming.

What Devs Are Saying About The PlayStation 4



Announced Console Specs:

Main Processor 
Single-chip custom processor
CPU :  x86-64 AMD “Jaguar”,  8 cores
GPU : 1.84 TFLOPS,  AMD next-generation Radeon™ based
graphics engine

Memory 
GDDR5 8GB

Hard Disk Drive 
Built-in

Optical Drive
(read only)
BD 6xCAV
DVD 8xCAV
I/O
Super-Speed USB (USB 3.0) AUX

Communication 
Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)
IEEE 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth® 2.1 (EDR)

AV output 
HDMI
Analog-AV out
Digital Output (optical)
*Specifications are subject to change without notice.

Press Release

New York City, New York, February 20, 2013 –Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (SCEI) today introduced PlayStation®4 (PS4™), its next generation computer entertainment system that redefines rich and immersive gameplay with powerful graphics and speed, intelligent personalization, deeply integrated social capabilities, and innovative second-screen features. Combined with PlayStation®Network with cloud technology, PS4 offers an expansive gaming ecosystem that is centered on gamers, enabling them to play when, where and how they want. PS4 will be available this holiday season.

Gamer Focused, Developer Inspired
PS4 was designed from the ground up to ensure that the very best games and the most immersive experiences reach PlayStation gamers.  PS4 accomplishes this by enabling the greatest game developers in the world to unlock their creativity and push the boundaries of play through a system that is tuned specifically to their needs.

PS4 also fluidly connects players to the larger world of experiences offered by PlayStation, across the console and mobile spaces, and PlayStation® Network (PSN). The PS4 system architecture is distinguished by its high performance and ease of development.  PS4 is centered around a powerful custom chip that contains eight x86-64 cores and a state of the art graphics processor.

The Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) has been enhanced in a number of ways, principally to allow for easier use of the GPU for general purpose computing (GPGPU) such as physics simulation.  The GPU contains a unified array of 18 compute units, which collectively generate 1.84 Teraflops of processing power that can freely be applied to graphics, simulation tasks, or some mixture of the two.

PS4 is equipped with 8 GB of unified system memory, easing game creation and increasing the richness of content achievable on the platform.  GDDR5 is used for this memory, giving the system 176 GB/second of bandwidth and providing a further boost to graphics performance. The end result for gamers is new games with rich, high-fidelity graphics and deeply immersive experiences that shatter expectations.

Shared Game Experiences
Social interaction is central to PS4 experiences, so new features were built into the actual foundation of the system’s hardware architecture.  PS4 provides dedicated, “always on” video compression and decompression systems that enables seamless uploading of gameplay.

For the first time ever, gamers can share their epic triumphs with the press of a button. Gamers simply hit the “SHARE button” on the controller, scan through the last few minutes of gameplay, tag it and return to the game—the video uploads as the gamer plays.  Gamers can share their images and videos to their friends on social networking services such as Facebook.

PS4 also enhances social spectating by enabling gamers to broadcast their gameplay in real-time to friends using live internet streaming services such as Ustream. During live broadcasts, friends can make comments on the streamed gameplay and, if a gamer gets stuck on a challenging level, friends can also join the game in completely new ways.  For example, friends can offer health potions or special weapons when a player needs them most during actual gameplay.

Furthermore, users can connect their Facebook account with Sony Entertainment Network account.  Through PS4, users are able to deepen their connections through co-op play or “cross-game chat”.

PS4 Second Screens
PS4 integrates second screens, including PlayStation®Vita (PS Vita), smartphones and
tablets, to wrap gamers in their favorite content wherever they are. A key feature enabled by
second screens is “Remote Play” and PS4 fully unlocks its potential by making PS Vita the
ultimate companion device.  With PS Vita, gamers will be able to seamlessly pull PS4 titles
from their living room TVs and play them on PS Vita’s beautiful 5-inch display and intuitive
dual analog sticks over Wi-Fi networks *1.  It is SCEI’s long-term vision is to make most PS4 titles playable on PS Vita *2.

A new application from SCE called “PlayStation®App” will enable iPhone, iPad, and  AndroidTM based smartphones and tablets*3 to become second screens.  Once installed on these devices, users can, for example, see maps on their second screens when playing an
adventure game, purchase PS4 games while away from home and download it directly to the
console at home, or remotely watch other gamers playing on their devices.

Immediate Gameplay
PS4 radically reduces the lag time between players and their content.  PS4 features “suspend mode” which keeps the system in a low power state while preserving the game session.  The time it takes today to boot a console and load a saved game will be a thing of the past.  With PS4, gamers just hit the power button again and are promptly back playing the game at the exact point where they left off.  Additionally, users can boot a variety of applications including a web browser when playing a game on PS4.

PS4 also enables games to be downloaded or updated in the background, or even in stand-by mode.  The system takes it one step further by making digital titles playable as they are being downloaded.  When a player purchases a game, PS4 downloads just a fraction of the data so gamers can start playing immediately, and the rest is downloaded in the background during actual gameplay.

Personalized, Curated Content
On the newly designed PS4 menu screen, players can look over game-related information shared by friends, view friends’ gameplay with ease, or obtain information of recommended content, including games, TV shows and movies.  The long-term goal of PS4 is to reduce download times of digital titles to zero: if the system knows enough about a player to predict the next game they will purchase, then that game can be loaded and ready to go before they even click the “buy” button.  PS4 will further enrich users’ entertainment experiences, by meeting their potential needs.

Gaming in the Cloud
Launched in November 2006, PlayStation Network, a network service for PlayStation users, now operates in 67 countries and regions*4 around the world with the total number of downloaded content of more than 2.8 billion*5.  In addition to a variety of games available in PlayStation®Store, PS4 users will be able to enjoy a variety of services offered by PSN, such as Sony Corporation’s Music Unlimited, a cloud-based music subscription service and Video Unlimited, a premium video service, as well as various content distribution services.

By combining PlayStation Network with Gaikai Inc’s cloud technology, it is SCE’s goal to make free exploration possible for various games. In the future, when a gamer sees a title of interest in PlayStation Store, they can immediately start playing a portion of the actual game — not a stripped down version of the game.  With Gaikai and PlayStation Store, gamers will be able to experience appealing games and only pay for the games they actually love. PlayStation Network and the cloud will offer additional value to PlayStation gamers. SCE is exploring unique opportunities enabled by cloud technology with the long-term vision of making PlayStation libraries including an incredible catalog of more than 3000 PS3 titles*6
that is unmatched in the industry, mostly ubiquitous on PS4.

SCE will announce new details of PS4 and its robust lineup of games from 3rd party developers and publishers, the independent gaming community and SCE Worldwide Studios, as well as further enhancements to the entire PlayStation ecosystem between now and the holiday 2013 launch.

###

*1 Depending on network environment or titles, users may not be able to play games outside comfortably.
*2 Exept games that require peripherals such as PlayStation®4 Eye .
*3 Depending on the version of OS or other conditions, users cannot use the application.
*4 Number as of December 31st , 2012
*5 Number as of February 19st, 2013
*6 Number as of December 31st, 2012, including free trials.
< PlayStation®4 Logo>
PlayStation®4

Main Processor
Single-chip custom processor
CPU :  x86-64 AMD “Jaguar”,  8 cores
GPU : 1.84 TFLOPS,  AMD next-generation Radeon™ based
graphics engine

Memory
GDDR5 8GB

Hard Disk Drive
Built-in

Optical Drive
(read only)
BD 6xCAV
DVD 8xCAV
I/O
Super-Speed USB (USB 3.0) AUX

Communication
Ethernet (10BASE-T, 100BASE-TX, 1000BASE-T)
IEEE 802.11 b/g/n
Bluetooth® 2.1 (EDR)

AV output
HDMI
Analog-AV out
Digital Output (optical)
*Specifications are subject to change without notice.

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