The team got together to talk about what we want from the PS4 and Xbox One. We spoke about all launch titles, features and also spoke about what we’d like to see from the consoles in Australia specifically.
John: I will be getting both next gen consoles, I was slow pre-ordering the PS4. So like many others I’m on the waiting list. I’m looking forward to the PS4 the most, mainly because I’m more familiar with Playstation franchises. A new gen means new chances for my favourites to return.
Jake: I will be getting a PlayStation 4, I was fortunate enough to be able to secure myself a launch day console. At the moment November 29th cannot come quick enough. Since the announcement back in February I have been hanging off every piece of news and information I can gather in anticipation for the next generation of PlayStation.
Shannon: I’m getting both consoles at next gen but i’m excited for both for completely different reasons. I grew up playing on Playstation and have always felt better aligned with Playstation franchises so i’m excited to see how these advance on the PS4 but i’m excited for the Xbox One because I truly don’t know what to expect. I’m not sure what to expect from the new UI and how the Kinect will advance it. I’m also really excited to see what direction the Xbox One takes immediately after launch. It’s no surprise to anyone that Microsoft really changed their policies on the Xbox One so i’m really intrigued to see what will happen once the console is out.
Diego: Alright so here’s the thing, back in the day, I had a PS1, and it was the absolute bomb. Some of my sweetest childhood memories are of me playing games on that dream machine; I played lots of console games back then. After the PS1, I missed the PS2 and PS3 gen due to being too broke, so all I was able to afford was a PSP and to play free PC games on a pre-built Dell computer with windows XP; Not the most ideal of gaming platforms. I don’t want to miss a third generation of consoles this time, and since I have a long history with PlayStation, my plan is to return with the PS4. By no means am I saying that I’m not interested in what Xbox One offers, but it’s more about a nostalgia thing, besides, if I get the chance, I will get an Xbox One just to be able to play a new Halo.
Kevin: Neither at launch, but I foresee I’ll eventually get both when the time is right. Looking forward to initial reviews and the inevitable launch catastrophe for either consoles…or maybe the entire thing will be smooth, I have no idea.
Joshua: I’d definitely say I’m most excited for the Xbox One.
Tyla: Next gen i’m looking forward to Xbox One. I’m really excited for the graphical enhancement for sure because it’s getting rather old looking at really bad textures on brand new games.
John: Man, the launch line up has been chopped and changed so much it’s hard to keep up. As of right now, it’s a toss up between Dead Rising 3 and Need For Speed Rivals. If I had to choose, Dead Rising 3 is my pick.
Jake: Although it isn’t an actual launch title, it is still deemed as being released in the “Launch Window” I cannot wait to take to the streets of Seattle in InFamous: Second Son. I have been an absolute fanatic of the two previous games of the series and Second Son from all that I have seen appears to maximize the already amazing experience from the Sucker Punch developed series.
Shannon: I’m really excited for Killzone, Knack and Dead Rising. I’ve always been a huge fan of the Killzone and Dead Rising series but they both look to have taken a massive turn in the art direction department. They’ve both gone for my grittier tones an that’s exactly what I wanted from both series. I grew up playing Crash Bandicoot and Spyro The Dragon so that’s why i’m HUGELY excited for Knack. It seems to be one of the first true platformers since PS2 days so I just hope it holds up in terms of variety and difficulty.
Diego: Games have gotten to such a level of polish that they have become rather stale over the years, or at least that’s my opinion; this isn’t something negative, but something that has gotten me to think about the industry. As I’ve repeatedly said before, and the rest of the team knows this: I’m all about Knack. It seems like a silly thing, but when I saw Knack, I wasn’t exactly impressed; I wasn’t too impressed by any games in general really, but maybe it’s because I’m getting older and life is losing its colors. What I saw in Knack was hope and opportunity, not something sure. Knack is a cartoony platform game where you can control a strange creature with strange powers. This for some reason just got me to remember the good old days of the PS1 that I mentioned earlier, back when games were pretty much my only company and entertainment. I feel like more games like Knack are necessary, where a game actually feels like a game, and not like some overly complicated interactive scenario where everything is pretentious, grim or serious. Mario is like that, but he’s… old.
Kevin: Nothing for launch, but I am very interested in The Division. Looks amazing and if I don’t get it on PC that could be my PS4 go-to title.
Joshua: With the launch I’m most looking forward to Ryse or Dead Rising 3 or Titanfall. Those three games alone are the reason why I’m leaning towards the Xbox One in general.
Tyla: I’m really looking forward to Assassins Creed Black Flag. It’s set to blow minds and i’ll be looking to sink a lot of time into it.
John: This is one is easy for me, I want to see what the Persona team from Atlus is working on. Ever since that teaser site came up a few months ago, I have been getting my hopes up for Persona 5. It might not be that, it could be another Catherine like game, or a new IP altogether. Either way, I’m excited.
Jake: I honestly can’t pick one just a single game, after InFamous: Second Son’s announcements, which was what I was dying for. I can now only hope and wait for the Rocksteady developed sequel to Arkham City and I am extremely curious to see what Naughty Dog’s second team have been working on over the last few years.
Shannon: I’m really excited to see what Sony first party studios are working on in general. When you look at Sonys lineup of Studios and what’s announced, you soon realise just how special the next few years are going to be. With teams like Guerrilla, Bend, Naughty Dog, Sony Santa Monica etc all working on PS4 games, it’s extremely hard not to be excited. To be specific, i’m really exited to see what Naughty Dog are working on. They have two great studios now and it’ll be introducing to see whether they want to continue with Uncharted or start another new IP
Diego: The game I’m waiting for the most has already been announced and even had its title changed, but it doesn’t have a release date yet, and that’s Final Fantasy XV. As you may all be aware, this game was announced ages ago, so you can already imagine how aggravating the wait has been. Admittedly, I haven’t actually played the PS2 ones yet (Because of my previously mentioned reasons), but this one got me hype as no other. The setting in this Final Fantasy is my absolute favorite kind of setting: a modern fantasy cyber punk world where swords, magic and modern technology collide into one hybrid and interesting universe. Isn’t that fascinating?
Kevin: I have no idea. The games I want to see in the future I want regardless of the next generation, specifically KOTOR 3, Condemned 3 or a new Ninja Gaiden that isn’t a complete fuck-up (looking at Ninja Gaiden 3 here).
Joshua: Although I can’t wait for more to be released on Destiny or The Division.
Tyla: Some of my favourite games my favourite titles were released by epic games. I’m really excited to see what they do with the Gears Of War franchise on the Xbox One.
John: Honestly, I’ve been very skeptical when it comes to these new features on these consoles. So this one is particularly difficult for me to say anything with certainty. I will have to go with the Cloud computing that Mircrosoft is hyping up. If it works as described, it could be a huge deal in changing games in a way we have never seen before. I’m still skeptical though.
Jake: The most game changing feature that I’ve come to notice is the always connected and participation approach in games, whether it be playing on to go with a variety of companion smart phone applications that compliment your console experience and the social media connection has taken leaps and bounds forwards with features such as the share option
Shannon: I’m really excited to see how both consoles can improve how much gaming time we can have. The one thing i’m really over in this generation is having to turn my console on, update a game, install the update and then wait for the game to load up. I’m really over waiting 15 minutes before I can finally get started with a game. Sony have already announced that their Suspend/Wake feature will be coming soon after launch which should really improve this downtime. I’m also excited to see what both companies do with the mobile scene. It’s very clear that connectivity is going to be a huge deal this time around.
Diego: It seems like all the big 3 are pushing for the supplementary screen tech. Smart Glass, PSVita, The Wii tablet, all three contenders seem to have a similar idea going. I reckon there’s going to be a lot of trips and falls in the beginning, but hopefully with enough experimentation, the companies will figure out a way to use the technology as a means to advance the gaming industry in a meaningful and provocative way, and not just end up as another gimmick that has to be implemented because of this latest trend.
Kevin: The steadily online-centric focus, streaming and the proposed cloud systems for BOTH consoles. I’m very interested to see how all of this will pan out, and hopefully we see something new and innovative that makes consoles stand out.
Joshua: The most game changing feature will definitely be dedicated servers. The amount of times I’ve dropped out online because the host left, now it won’t be a problem.
Tyla: I think kinnect has some serious potential in regards to being a game changing feature because both consoles are so close in all other departments that it makes it difficult when narrowing it down to a single feature. i think it will probably come down to preference in the end.
John: Honestly, I’m excited about the network partnerships being talked about for next gen consoles.I’m not a big TV guy, but that’s primarily because I don’t have to time to stay up to date as a series is airing. Yes there is itunes, quickflix and other solutions to this. I find most of these services lack what I want to see. I’d like to see a deal worked out for Hulu and Netflix for Australia, it’s been a long time coming, surely we have waited long enough.
Jake: Hmm, that is a tough question. What I think Australia could benefit from the most with the release of both new consoles would be a faster internet solution. Now without getting into the politics and NBN, it is a well-known fact that Australia is quite on par with a lot of other countries in regards to internet service. So an upgrade to that would be immensely beneficial to getting the most of your new console no matter what one you choose.
Shannon: I think it’s a tough question overall but i’m really hoping that external publishers work more with Sony and Microsoft in order to bring more Australian based content to the PS4/Xbox One. It was great to see companies like Foxtel and QuickFlix bringing native apps to the PS3 and 360 so I really hope that we see more of this this generation. It’d be great to see the AFL/NRL bringing apps to the consoles and hopefully more news based companies bringing Australian specific stuff. I feel like we need to try and embrace that casual gamer as this benefits the industry overall. I’m also really hoping that Gaikai make it’s way here eventually. It sounds like a huge feature for the PS4 but so far only American launch details have really been talked about. I understand that this will be problem with our current internet solution but this can only improve.
Diego: We Aussies have it rough don’t we? We get screwed over with pretty much everything related to the gaming industry: Prices, dates and time. Hardly fair right? What I want is not exactly a feature, and more like a plea of fairness. I can imagine how hard it is to provide to this sort-of-isolated country, since we’re, you know, surrounded by water and all, but we’re still a big juggernaut with influence over the industry, but sometimes, I feel like the world seems to forget that.
Kevin: If MS are pushing the whole NFL/NBA sports service so much, at least do something for Australia, like the A-League or AFL. Sick to death of the America-centric focus Microsoft has been pushing since day 1.
Joshua: With the features that been announced, I’m quite happy with it as is. Even before they changed the policy’s and that, I was fine with it.