PlayStation CEO Andrew House says company will keep new hardware under
wraps until it can demonstrate a major advance over PlayStation 3.
Despite some suggestions that Sony would show new hardware during its 2012 Electronic Entertainment Expo media briefing earlier this month, the company did not utter a word about the PlayStation 4. Explaining the console's absence from the show and Sony's wider thoughts about new hardware to MCV,
PlayStation CEO Andrew House said gamers should not expect talk of the
PS4 until major advances over the PlayStation 3 can be shown.
Sony isn't ready to show off the PS4 just yet, House says.
"The right time to talk about new advances in hardware is when you can
demonstrate a significant leap on the current experience, and something
that is going to be attractive," he said. "That remains our philosophy.
Beyond that we have nothing to say at this point."
A recent analyst report
predicts Sony--and Microsoft--will have their respective
future-generation consoles on store shelves by the end of next year.
Sony's PS4 is rumored to boast the same graphics card as Microsoft's next Xbox, as well as measures to block out used games, though analysts do not find this claim likely.
After an E3 no-show the speculat-o-dial for PS4
is back to clueless shrug levels. There’s been talk of it being built
from off the shelf components, cloud gaming and more; but what do team
OPM think about the next PlayStation?
Joel Gregory, deputy editor
It’s not so much a case of what I want from PS4 as when I want it.
And the answer to that – other than yelling “NOW!” while stamping my
feet – is ‘not a year after Microsoft’s next console’. Whatever its form
or features, it needs to make sure of two things: that it’s not playing
catch-up from the off, and that it’s sensibly priced. Trying to cram in
every gizmodic-pixelising graphicsonometer under the sun will simply
make it too pricey, and releasing too late will give the next Xbox
another head start when it comes to the install base. I also demand it
comes in hot pink with a diamanté-studded case.
Dave Meikleham, freelance writer
I want my Orbis Sexy 64 (or whatever) to be a multimedia hub. Think
watching 60-odd voice-activated channels simultaneously via a built-in
projector, Back To The Future Part II-style. Failing that, I want a
machine with the raw horsepower capable of recreating Pixar-quality
graphics. PS3 can’t even nearly match the dinos in Jurassic Park (a
19-year-old film) so again, maybe that’s a lofty wish. More importantly,
and realistically, I want a system that’s easy to develop for out of
the gate. No more inferior ports just because of troublesome
architecture – just brilliant games that run every bit as smoothly as
their Microsoft counterparts.
A picture has surfaced on the internet showing what could be the specifications for the next PlayStation console. If true we're in for a powerful machine, but some are saying it's far too good to be a reality.
Smart bets, depending on who you ask, is that the above image is a fabrication, a fiction, something that someone with too much time on their hands have done between homework and bed time. Considering that it shows not only the specs for the PlayStation 4, but an absolute powerhouse of a console far beyond what people expect (or could justify the cost of in a console), perhaps they have a right to be cynical.
Sony is yet to confirm the existence of the PS4 games console, but it exists out there somewhere - you can be sure of that.The latest rumours suggest that Sony is calling the PS4 'Orbis'.
This comes from a source speaking to Kotaku "who is not authorised to
talk publicly about next-gen hardware but has shared correct
information" with them before.
Assuming the Orbis name is accurate, it's still unclear whether the name is a codename like Durango or whether the console will literally be called the Sony PlayStation Orbis instead of the Sony PS4.
The
name does make some kind of sense if you combine it with the word
'Vitae' (or Vita). Orbis Vitae translates from Latin as 'circle of life'
and hints at some serious synergy between the PS4 and the PS Vita.
It could be a red herring, of course, but with the Vita already communicating fairly competently with the PS3, it seems highly likely that this will be the case. So what can we expect from the PlayStation 4?
PS4 likely to pack AMD CPU and graphics power
The
same source who revealed the PlayStation Orbis name also mentioned that
the PS4 is currently penciled in as packing an AMD x64 CPU and 28nm AMD Southern Islands graphics power.
The
source doesn't go into any detail about what revision of AMD CPU
hardware it's going to be using, but it could be the forthcoming
Piledriver revision of the weak Bulldozer architecture from the AMD FX-8150 CPU.
Next-gen gaming
Piledriver
is also going to be used in the upcoming Trinity APU, which incorporate
both CPU and GPU components on die, but the first iterations of that
particular chip possibly wont come with the 28nm GPU part. Subsequent
APUs are scheduled to include Southern Island components, so that is
still a possibility.
Meanwhile, IGN reports that the PS4 will be powered specifically by the AMD Radeon HD 7670 chip and the A8-3850 APU.
If
that's true, it really is a big surprise. Those chips aren't even the
best that AMD currently has to offer - so by the time the PS4 goes on
sale it would be woefully lacking in power compared to the latest AMD
tech, let alone the most advanced chips from Nvidia and Intel.
By
2014, Intel will be shipping 14nm - or possibly even 11nm - CPUs and
with that amount of transistors on a die, we're talking serious
performance and efficiency gains.
Next-gen gaming
So
it's for this reason that we suspect - or hope - that early PS4
development kits may currently be using these AMD chips, but the final
PS4 will most likely pack something a little more special. If that's not
the case, it's time for hardcore gamers to start worrying.
According
to the source of these rumours, Sony is attempting to get 4K gaming out
the door with the PS4, along with full HD 1080p 3D gaming for the first
time. We don't think it would even be possible to achieve this kind of
output with the Southern Islands GPUs unless some kind of multi-GPU
set-up is being used.
The Playstation 4 would also need to have
some serious graphics memory inside it to cope with outputting to such
high-resolution screens as 4K.
So we fully expect the launch specifications to be far more impressive.
There were actually some previous rumours that PS4 could use Nvidia's ARM-based Project Denver but this now seems quite unlikely.
It's
far more probable that AMD is offering Sony and Microsoft (which is
rumoured to also be using this AMD hardware in its XBox 720) heavily
subsidised access to its CPU and GPU tech. AMD is currently being beaten
by both Intel and Nvidia in the CPU and GPU markets, and so we reckon
AMD needs these consoles almost as much as Sony and Microsoft do.
Backwards compatibility
When
the original original PS3 unit shipped, it contained a chip that gave
it the ability to play PS2 games. Subsequent iterations of hardware
omitted this chip and so the backwards compatibility was condemned to
death.
Current rumours suggests that the PS4 will completely
ignore the possibility of backwards compatibility and focus firmly on
the next generation. So if you want to continue playing your PS3 games,
keep hold of your PS3s, kids.
Second hand games on the way out?
More
rumours suggest that Sony is going in the same direction as Microsoft
in that it wants to kill off the second hand games market. Current
industry wisdom suggests that future PS4 games might be tied to your
Sony Entertainment Network account and will thus then have no resale
value. That's a similar approach as used by PC developers using Steam so
we reckon this is a likely development. Doesn't mean we're happy about
it, though.
What are the PS4 features we'd most like to see?
PS4info dreams of a next-gen PlayStation with a 32nm Cell processor an up to 16 SPEs, double the number in the PlayStation 3. While over on gamrConnect, there's talk of a greater partnership with Google. Sony's new fondness for Android on the Xperia Play is an interesting strategy.
Blu-ray
on the PlayStation 4 is a dead cert. While digital distribution is
undoubtedly the way forward, not every PlayStation owner has access to a
fast broadband connection. As Kaz Hirai told Develop,
"we do business in parts of the world where network infrastructure
isn't as robust as one would hope. There's always going to be
requirement for a business of our size and scope to have a physical
medium."
As for the PlayStation 4 controller, Dr. Richard Marks
(Sony Computer Entertainment's US R&D manager of special projects)
says that "anything that lets us get the player's intent into the system
more" is technology they'll be looking at. No brain wave gaming just yet.
You can check out our wishlist PS4 video, to see what we are seeking in the next-gen console below:
PS4 release date
Latest rumours suggest that the PS4 will launch in time for Christmas 2013, though Sony are remaining quiet on the issue.
VG247 is quoting an anonymous source
(always a bad start to a rumour) as saying that Sony believes it is in a
position to get the PS4 out of the door before the launch of
Microsoft's Xbox 720.
We remember, of course, how Microsoft
managed to launch the 360 a full year before the PS3 went on sale and
that enabled it to gain a huge headstart, despite all sorts of technical
faults and expensive repair bills.
So it's a no-brainer that Sony
will be looking to make sure that doesn't happen this time. How it can
be so sure of beating Microsoft to the punch is another matter though,
and as usual we'd take these anonymous comments with a glass of salty
water.
Meanwhile, if you side with the likes of ITProPortal,
you might believe that "the whole concept of a single lounge-bound
gaming device may become obsolete". The future of gaming may well lie in
a more portable device/controller that you can play on the move or plug
into your TV. Epic's Mark Rein has some interesting thoughts on this here.
Senior execs for a big US retailer told their shareholders
that they don't expect the Xbox 720 and PlayStation 4 til 2014. That
seems like a good guess to us, even though Sony has always said the PS3
will have a 10-year life cycle (which began in 2006).
Bethesda's Todd Howard, game director for the blockbuster Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, also says that gamers should not expect follow-ups to the PS3 and Xbox 360 until 2014, at the very earliest.
Speaking to PSM3 magazine,
the Bethesda exec said that gamers were happy with the current
generation of console tech and that he didn't expect to see an Xbox 720 or a PS4 before 2014.
Long live PlayStation 3!
Source :http://www.techradar.com
We’ve heard lots of rumors surface of the possibility of successors for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 coming out within a couple of years. Recently, there has been news about the preliminary development and work on PlayStation 4 titles from Sony’s internal studios.
A report fromDevelopindicated that Sony is beginning to allocate software for their yet unannounced successor to the PS3.
The projects in development are at an extremely early stage though, but Develop suggests that the possibility of multiple developers entering production is quite viable if approved by Sony.
Sony, obviously, has not commented or stated anything on this behalf.
However, Sony has generally maintained its goal of making their current-generation PS3 have a ten-year lifespan, as stated during its launch. We can expect to see some early form of revelation of the PS4 by next year, but it is expected that the PS4 won’t come out till at least 2013.
PlayStation 3 was launched in 2006, and has a good rate of success despite some extreme multiple PSN hacking incidents. Nevertheless, we can safely say that there is ample time remaining before the retail PS4 is anywhere in the spotlight.
