Beyond interesting, great-looking game experiences, gamers in 2013 expect a multitalented, speedy game console that's as fast and powerful as the ever-surging wave of bleeding edge electronics that are standard in modern life. Let's find out if the PlayStation 4 lives up to our lofty expectations.
Gallery: PlayStation 4 review | 12 Photos
Pros
- Dramatic improvement over PS3 gamepad
- Clickable touchpad
- The best triggers on any gamepad
Cons
- Terrible battery life
- Analog stick coating isn't grippy enough
Summary
The DualShock 4 is
everything gamers wanted from Sony's next gamepad. Unlike the DualShock
3, we only have minor complaints for the PlayStation 4's controller.
It's not simply a controller we'll "put up with" for the rare exclusive
PS4 titles; it's one we won't consider a roadblock when choosing where
to play multiplatform games.
Pros
- Fast
- Powerful
- Great gamepad
- Beautiful design
Cons
- Short gamepad battery life
- Weak game lineup at launch
Summary
Sony's fourth PlayStation
console is fast, sleek and powerful. Its new DualShock gamepad is the
best Sony's ever made. And the console is just getting started.
Hardware: design, performance and usability
Think of it this way: If E3 was a beauty pageant, and Sony's and Microsoft's next-gen console designs were the contestants, then the PS4 was basically crowned Miss World that day in LA. Sony's black gaming box is a return to form for the global electronics giant; it's the type of living room hardware that evokes signature Sony style, not celebrity-endorsed kitchenware. At 305 x 275 x 53mm (12.01 x 10.8 x 2.09 inches), the PS4's horizontal height manages to be more compact than both the original PS3 (98mm/3.86 inches) and its late 2012 revision (60mm/2.36 inches). The console extends just 15mm farther back than the superslim PS3, with an overall span that's nearly identical to the original PS3 and 45mm wider than the current model. And at 6.1 pounds (2.8kg), it's also considerably lighter than the first-gen PS3 by about 5 pounds and nearly 1.5 pounds heavier than the final PS3.
Now, let's talk about the box. Industrial design usually follows one of two rules to communicate "modernity" to consumers: the alluring danger of hard angles or the inviting comfort of soft curves. The PS4 is an example of that first rule, with a masculine chassis that's at once sleek and sharp-edged. Make no mistake: The PS4 is not a toy. It's a digital entertainment hub that, unlike the Xbox One, isn't meant to be an innocuous set-top box. Sony's crafted this console with consumer gadget-lust in mind. In a sense, it's the opposite of wallflower hardware: The PS4 will compete for visual attention next to your television, audio system and whatever other home media devices you have hooked up.
We applaud Sony for exercising restraint and not emblazoning the console with garish logos and loud fonts, like it did with the PS3 (remember the notorious Spider-Man 3 font?). Instead, what we get is a console that's virtually free of noticeable markings, save for the silvery PlayStation logo on the top. Sony's own logo and that of the PS4 (placed on the left and right, respectively) are so faded into the front face of the console that most consumers won't ever notice them unless they're staring up close. Even the disc-eject and power buttons take on this hidden-design approach, but we'd wager it's too effective: Those buttons are so well-disguised in the front seam (the bit that spills over from the illuminated strip) that we guarantee you'll be fumbling with the console for a few minutes before you locate them. They're also touch-activated, despite appearances to the contrary.
Sandwiched between the PS4's sloping front face, is a recessed area that contains both the slot-loading Blu-ray disc drive (6X for BD; 8X for DVD) and two USB 3.0 ports, which can also be used for connecting and charging the DualShock 4 and other devices. That recessed groove continues around the perimeter of the console and is mostly used as a clever way to disguise vents. Even the majority of the PS4's back end is taken up by vents, with only a section on the upper-left half dedicated to ports for HDMI out, digital out, Ethernet and the PlayStation Camera's auxiliary cable. Sony's relegated the bulk of the charging block to the inside of the console, so you won't have to deal with a bulky power brick cluttering your floor. In terms of connectivity, the PS4 supports 802.11b/g/n, as well as Bluetooth 2.1.
For the most part, the PS4 runs quietly and only gets somewhat warm while in operation, though not so hot you need to be alarmed. The only time you'll find fault with Sony's next-gen box is when initially loading up disc-based games. The console's disc drive ramps up so loudly that you'd be forgiven for mistaking this for the noisy superslim PS3. Every whir, click and spin can be heard, but thankfully, it's only momentary. The PS4 installs all the game data (for faster loading) the first time you insert a disc, so these noise disturbances should be few and far between.
Hardware: the DualShock 4 gamepad
The aforementioned thumbsticks are now of the concave variety, outfitted with a little lip around the edge of where your thumbs go to keep fingers from slipping. Our thumbs still slip off every now and then, but even the fact that the thumbsticks are now concave vastly improves usability. The imprecision of the DualShock 3's convex thumbsticks was the PS3 controller's greatest flaw, and flipping the script with the DualShock 4's thumbsticks indicates that Sony agrees and also that it's listened to users. That's a very good thing considering how much better the whole control experience feels as a result. Coupled with the fact that the DS4's thumbsticks are a bit squatter than the DS3, the general feel of the new controller is far more ergonomic than the comparatively blocky DS3. The handles stick out a bit more as well, and the front four face buttons are a tad lower in profile. Both of the triggers out back are specially shaped with an eye for comfort, and a little crevice between the shoulder button and trigger offers a comfy spot for finger placement at rest.
That it can't be turned off without turning off the controller is truly unfortunate given how many people use game consoles in home theaters. It does serve one purpose sans Camera, and that's glowing red when the controller's internal, rechargeable battery is in need of a refill. We should know, considering how many times we encountered it in our reviewing process; every three to five hours of use, the DualShock requires a recharge. Thankfully, the controller uses a standard charging cable (micro-USB) and the console can power USB devices while in standby mode.
The touchpad is the DualShock 4's finest new addition. It's intuitive, responsive and the gameplay potential is huge. In Killzone: Shadow Fall, we were quickly using it to swap between modes for our personal murder robot. In The Playroom, rubbing the touchpad awakens Asobi, the floating orb. In a world of touchpads, the DualShock 4's is a welcome addition in both use and feel. It works the first time, every time, and that's all that really matters when it comes to game input. It's Sony's answer to Microsoft's "impulse triggers," and it's a good answer.
Of course, the sum of all these parts is what matters most, and we're glad to report that using the DualShock 4 is a delight. It's comfy, responsive, sleek and familiar. The DualShock 4 is everything gamers wanted from Sony's next gamepad without having to spell it out to the company. Unlike the DualShock 3, we only have minor complaints for the PlayStation 4's controller. It's not simply a controller we'll "put up with" for the rare exclusive PS4 titles; it's one we won't consider a roadblock when choosing where to play multiplatform games. For Sony, simply not getting in the way this time around represents a huge step forward. That the DualShock 4 is as improved as it is speaks volumes.
Software
Day One patch and setup
First things first: the patch. It's 323MB, and it took us about five minutes to download and another three to install. After a few auto-restarts (yes, the PS4 still parses downloads from installs and therefore requires restarts for both), a brand-new world of PlayStation opened up to us. A swift setup process guided us through social integration with PSN (which only works with Facebook), various privacy settings and facial recognition login (among other minor details). And that's it!
The whole process took about 20 minutes from boot-up to socially integrated post-patch dashboard. It's certainly not perfect, but not much different from other modern electronics setups. Should you go home with a new PS4 only to find the internet temporarily out or PSN down for maintenance, you can at least play your games for a bit and the trophies will transfer to whatever account logs in as "User1" during post-patch setup.
Life with PlayStation 4
Whatever you've used most recently automatically pushes to the left-most position -- directly to the right of the starting tile, the "What's New" social feed -- meaning a whole variety of things might be on your screen. At launch, it's likely to be The Playroom (a tech demo for the Camera mostly), TV & Video (which houses Netflix, Hulu and other such apps), Internet Browser (the typical, not-so-great game console web browser), Live from PlayStation (the place to watch game streams), Music Unlimited, Video Unlimited and Library (where only downloaded software resides).
After inserting game discs, they're auto-installed on the 500GB internal HDD and a new square forever resides on your main content area (unless you uninstall it, of course). The same situation applies when downloading games from the PS Store, and it's got us worried about the future mess of games and content strewn about our front page.
Above the main content is a distant relative of the XMB, where things like Party chat and the Messenger app reside alongside Trophies and your Friends list. This is the nuts and bolts stuff, as well as Settings and Power options. The boring stuff, if you will. The PlayStation Store is also up there, though, and that's seen an overhaul for ease of use as well.
The PlayStation Store
Music Unlimited, Hulu Plus, Netflix and the Internet Browser
Music Unlimited is, unbelievably, the only option for playing music on the PlayStation 4. You can't set up a media server, or play MP3s or audio CDs. There's a free 30-day trial to the subscription service as part of buying a PS4, but it's a cumbersome hassle if you're not already a member. And why can't we play our own music on this super-powerful PC-esque game console? Sony says more options are coming, but at launch this is your only option.Music Unlimited takes a shockingly long time to load, and navigation within the app is similarly sluggish. When you've finally located music you'd like to listen to, you can thankfully push the Home button and keep listening to it on a system level. Jump into a game and turn off the game's music track -- voila! It's pretty slick, but that same feature existed in a smarter form on the Xbox 360. And on the 360, we could load our own music onto the box.
Hulu Plus and Netflix load a bit quicker than Music Unlimited, but are still amazingly slow to boot considering how comparatively light the workload is for streaming apps versus next-gen games. Navigation is identical to the PlayStation 3 apps, with a variety of suggested categories sitting below a large active marquee.
Unsurprisingly, the PS4's web client isn't much better than on other game consoles. Navigating a mouse and keyboard-based world without a mouse and keyboard remains a major challenge, even with the addition of a tilt-based keyboard cursor relying on your movement with the DualShock 4. Simply put, you tilt and swivel the DualShock 4, and an on-screen cursor moves in turn over a virtual keyboard. It's a big step forward in virtual-keyboard entry, but still doesn't solve the "web browser with a gamepad" problem.
Remote Play
Raise your hand if you thought Remote Play on PS Vita would turn out to be a poorly executed, second-screen failure; a historical footnote for the PS4 launch. It's OK -- even if you don't want to admit it, we were all fearing the worst before launch. That's because prior to the Tokyo Game Show, Sony hadn't really let the press demo Remote Play, so the assumption was that it wasn't working. Well, we're here to tell you that it doesn't just work... it works nearly flawlessly.Getting the feature up and running is a simple affair, and that's key to convincing existing Vita owners to embrace it -- not to mention, getting everyone else to go out and buy a Vita for this purpose. All that's required on the Vita end is the PS4 Link app, which was bundled into the system's latest OS update. Access that app and you'll be presented with one of two options: Remote Play or Second Screen. Second Screen is basically a means of controlling the PS4 UI using the Vita as a touch input. To effectively mirror the PS4 UI on the portable, you'll need to select Remote Play. Once you've done that, the system will search for the PS4 system over WiFi and then prompt you to enter an eight-digit string to register the device (this is found within the PS4's system settings). And that's pretty much it. From then on, you'll have the entire PS4 UI streaming to the Vita. Sony recommends connecting the PS4 via Ethernet to ensure a stable connection, but you can also opt to go the WiFi-only route if your home connection is strong enough.
Since the PS Vita only somewhat approximates the button layout of the PS4, developers that support it for Remote Play titles have to re-map that input scheme. Much of that mapping relegates functionality to the Vita's rear touchpad, which is divided into four quadrants. Since you can't really see what your fingers are up to on the back of the Vita, Sony's made things easier by adding a faded UI overlay to highlight the quadrant you're triggering. Pardon the pun, but it's a really nice touch and it also ensures you'll get more use out of that rear touchpad than you did with any native Vita app. The Vita's physical home button functions here as a "toolbar," which will bring up options to either return to the Vita's Live Tile area, the PS4 system's Dynamic Menu or display a button guide.
The Share button
At any point in a game -- at least any point in games released thus far -- you can simply push the Share button on the DualShock 4 and launch the streaming application. Options for uploading video clips and screenshots are there, as well as gameplay broadcasting. Should you choose video, a very basic editing tool allows for setting the in and out of your upload clip, and there's a preview option so you can make sure it looks super fresh before putting it on the internet for the world to see.
Live-broadcasting games may be the PlayStation 4's most powerful feature. Being able to instantly share the game you're playing with the internet is exciting -- it's like hosting your own TV channel, but filled with video games! -- and shockingly simple to use. Would you like comments? Perhaps your face and voice piped in (via either the PS Camera or mic)? Or to share what you're doing to Facebook? All of that is built in so that you're spending the least amount of time possible fussing with checkboxes and other metadata. The Share button is Sony's biggest promise delivered, and it's this type of functionality that will shape the next 10 years with the PlayStation 4.
Games
If you're looking for bombast and bullets, Killzone: Shadow Fall is your launch title of choice. It's also the place to look for one of the most graphically impressive experiences available thus far on the PS4. Colors pop, shadows are articulate and lighting is shockingly realistic. All told, it's a great game for impressing your friends.
Resogun
Knack
Ten minutes with Knack is all you need to realize this title is basically Crash Bandicoot for the next gen. It's also Cerny's side project and it's fitting considering he brought the iconic Crash franchise to PlayStation. The game is a brilliant showcase for the PS4's graphical prowess given the processing needed to draw the individual elements of the eponymous Knack's relic-based body. It's also a softball title for non-hardcore gamers as the game runs along on a rail and doesn't require a complex button scheme. Knack is pick-up-and-play at its best -- the kind of game your mother would feel comfortable playing.
Battlefield 4
Assassin's Creed 4: Black Flag
PlayStation App
When it initially loads up, you'll be taken to the PSN tab, which contains six squares blocked out for What's New, Store, Friends, Settings, Trophies and Profile. The largest of these, the What's New square, will display any of your latest activity, along with that of your friends. Tapping on this will bring up a full-screen Activity stream that you can browse more easily. The same applies for all the other option squares, except Store. For that, the PlayStation App will actually launch you into the browser and into the Sony Entertainment Network storefront. We couldn't actually test out remote purchase downloads with the app since the SEN store only lists Game Videos for PS4, not titles. But we assume that'll change come launch day.
The Links tab gives you access to Sony-curated content like Latest news (e.g., blog posts about upcoming game releases), product pages for PS4 games and accessories, promotions and an event calendar for Sony product launches. Truthfully, we don't expect users will visit this tab too often.
The last, presumably most useful, bit about the PlayStation App is its ability to turn your smartphone or tablet into a Second Screen. This feature can be accessed via the Connect to PS4 tab, which also offers options to Disconnect from the console and Power it down. At present, there aren't any titles we've encountered that make use of Second Screen, so we've only been able to test it out as a secondary touch input control for the PS4's UI. And it's bad. Two options appear in the upper right of the screen in this mode: one to toggle Second Screen and the touch input and the other for text entry. Touch input brings you to a mostly blank screen (there's no mimicked UI) that features a soft PS button, as well as buttons for Back and Options. As there's no way to precisely traverse the PS4's UI with Second Screen on the PlayStation App, navigation is rendered mostly useless. You'll just be blindly swiping and smashing glass with your finger. It's just not worth the effort.
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