Although replaced by more powerful systems, the PlayStation 4 is still a world-class game console thanks to its extensive and diversified game library.
The PS4 has beaten Sony for the first half of this current generation of consoles with its sleek design, excellent controller, substantial hardware specifications, and, most importantly, the best game library in its class that surpasses the Xbox One.
PlayStation 4 remains an excellent choice for those looking to play in 1080p.
Sony PS4 Overview: Size and Installation
The Sony PS4 is surprisingly slim for such an essential gaming machine: at 2.8 kg, its 275 x 53 x 305 mm frame is smaller and lighter than the original PS3 and even its PS3 Slim.
It resembles a suitably futuristic black monolith but is discreet, with all the openings and most connectors hidden on the back. The matte/ shiny aesthetic is divided by a glowing line that lights up blue at startup before giving way to white.
The rear connectors are now digital, with an optional port for a PlayStation camera, Ethernet for wired network connections, an HDMI port for connection to a TV, and optical audio output.
On the front, there are two discrete USB 3.0 ports for charging wireless controllers under the power/eject buttons located on either side of the disc slot (6 x Blu-ray, 8 x DVD). It also has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, the latter synchronizing the pilots.
Despite the more powerful Jaguar x86-64 octa-core processor and the 1.84 AMD Radeon TFLOPS graphics processor, the console’s interior is significantly quieter than the machines of the current generation.
Sony PS4 Overview: Controller
Improving the DualShock 3 in almost every way, the DualShock 4 is a robust and equipped device.
The PS4 comes with DualShock 4, although additional controllers are available for around 50 per boot (the console supports up to four). It’s a massive upgrade in the latest iteration and the best pad produced by the PlayStation.
It is hard and convincing on the palm, compared to the DualShock 3, which is still a little light for us. Its striking elegance is combined with a textured lining at the base and double sticks that help to grip.
Setting the buttons at first is as you might expect: two analog joysticks, a bumper and a fire extinguisher button on each side, and four action buttons on the front marked in shape. Compared to the PS3, both levers are rigid, which we think can help with accuracy.
Triggers are now very active and more flexible than before, and their proximity to the buttons on the shoulder is a great design initiative that allows for quick changes.
Improved engine noise and an additional speaker that generates in-game controls when needed also provide feedback and contextual feedback.
However, where they were previously Select and Start, several new options are available now. The first, Options, is an alternative stop key that also displays contextual information when you are in the main interface and allows you to delete menu items.
On the other side of the platform, Share is the only media store that allows you to put photos or videos of your game on social media or even broadcast them live once you’ve created an account.
A quick button click automatically captures an image, saves the last 15 minutes of your game to your hard drive, and brings you to the sharing menu; a long click captures the image in flight.
The screenshots represent approximately 250 KB and 792 MB of video locally, which you can then share on Facebook or Twitter.
Sharing videos requires logging in to Facebook to be successful, and without integrated YouTube sync and the ability to upload images to an external drive, there is currently no editing package, unlike the excellent Xbox One downloader.
If you want to focus your gaming efforts on the Internet, you can choose Twitch and Ustream. However, you’ll need an account directly with them before you can activate it, and PS4 will simply send the stream to their website. You can now stream directly to YouTube, a feature missing at launch.
None of the new buttons have a particularly elegant or oversized space for quick use in the middle of a game.
In the middle is the touchpad, a touchscreen interface based on the rear input of the PS Vita. It has no texture at all and is smooth at your fingertips. However, it responds fairly well when navigating through menus and can also act as a substitution button with two mouse-like dots.
Beneath this speaker is a PS button, which acts as a home button for the iPad (except that it registers users for multiple inputs and output controls), and a headphone jack (though the handset has a button). It’s a bit cheap and a smartphone).
The Sixaxis stays indoors, and it can use a combined gyroscope and accelerometer to move faster on-screen keyboards. Consequently, the light bar on the back acts as a mini PlayStation Move if your camera is configured.
It also means that players are by color and shine in certain games when they attack you, although since you can’t see them yourself, this is probably only useful to others.
The battery life of this controller is seven hours, if not spectacular, decent, which is slightly less than that of the DualShock 3. It charges via micro-USB to USB instead of connecting to the front of the console.
Sony PS4 Overview: Features
Once you get used to the new PS4 interface, you’ll realize how fast and smooth the experience is. This is the most apparent effect of owning new hardware after six years of waiting.
But while it makes the latest generation archaic when you return, it’s familiar here. Visually appealing dynamic window panes can fill the screen, and the “new” social font for your movement and your friends hangs underneath, but a well-placed XMB bar sits just above for more settings.
Grilling through menus, in and out of apps in an instant, is a revealing experience, but its design can sometimes seem too unstructured.
There are, however, options, especially in the top row of XMB, but the problem is that you only come across them if you’re looking at trophies or updating your settings.
The PS controller button acts as a convenient default pause and home button, allowing you to stop what you are doing with one touch.
It sounds basic, but smartphones and tablets have been able to change settings on the fly without the need to log out and restart for years.
Consoles are finally here. Multitasking is done (although only one game can be played simultaneously).
The system update is now updated in the background, while the promise that you can play the game while downloading it is only partially fulfilled.
We had to wait for Warframe to be partially downloaded from PSN before playing, although this game is only for the Internet.
But the discs seemed to be playing right now, despite the precise data transfer to the hard drive, which they did without visible problems.
Overview of The Sony PS4: Summary
All PS4 titles are now available for digital download on the PSN store; although some next-generation tri-generation games reach up to 40 GB, we’re unsure if the 500 GB hard drive is the same size as the old PS3.
PlayStation Now, Sony’s attempt to restore PS4 compatibility without offering it, is also available on its console. It is a game rental service with an extensive catalog of PS3 games.
It’s certainly an exciting way for PS4 owners who have never had a PS3 to access this vast catalog, but with a subscription service and only 400 games online, it hasn’t been a success for users.
Since its publication, many missing features in the media have been fixed. In June 2015, Media Player corrected USB support, including the use of MP3. Many file types, including MP4 and AAC, are now supported.
On the front of the service, we were promised that Netflix and BBC iPlayer would check the frames in the UK. Still, even in the United States, there is no large selection (the usual Hulu and Crackle). Sony focuses greatly on their musical endeavors and video, albeit restrictive, hub for unlimited music streaming and video subscriptions.
Overview Of The Sony PS4: Peripherals
The PlayStation camera is only handy if you’re also using PlayStation VR. Also, peripherals are not that important for regular gaming.
Management extends beyond the configuration with the inclusion of various additional add-ons.
The PlayStation Camera, which adds Kinect motion detection to the game mix and more useful voice-activated menus, is a friendly and unimportant kit. However, with the price drop for the PlayStation VR, it will likely become an increasingly worthwhile investment.
Although it is not as integrated or perhaps technologically advanced as the new Kinect, it performs individual tasks very well.
Voice dialing is much better than the current generation of Kinect. We have implemented several recognition applications, and we are still all, even in a crowd.
If you haven’t already made the jump, the PS Vita handheld is a great gaming laptop. With a selection of great games at affordable prices, it is now joining the PS4 as part of Remote Play (download the latest firmware to your Vita to join them).
There is also a PlayStation app available for iOS and Google Play smartphones and tablets, which brings the PS4 user interface to your phone or tablet.
In addition to managing your account and chatting with PSN friends wherever you are, you can sync your purchases and even interact with games and media, such as entering or leaving another screen.
Overview Sony PS4: Games
Many PlayStation 4 exclusives exist, including God of War, Detroit: Become Human, Spider-Man, and two PS4-exclusive Uncharted games.
At first glance, in the main four games (and a manual spin-off on PS Vita), the Uncharted series helped unite platforms, cover-based shooters, action pieces, and production value that once only dropped out of the HBO and TV Show.
If you like games, you’ve probably heard of Dark Souls, an infamous super-heavy game surrounded by an almost impenetrable community, like some games.
Bloodborne, a PS4 exclusive, is the perfect way to get in for those rejected by such a cult group. Created by the same fantastic game director, Hidetaka Miyazaki, Bloodborne talks about empowering players to act in a dangerous world.
If the Souls series concerns precautions and defenses, Bloodborne refers to insult and aggression with blood flowing behind the eyes. It’s as solid as the DS—it’s more reliable in some places, to be honest—but you have to miss big guns and all the tools you need to survive.
Few can light a torch in the Insomniac Games wallet when creating lavish platform action. With Spyro’s PS1 era, Ratchet & Clank’s science-fiction comedy platformer and the shooter is his cover letter, and the smooth remake/reboot of the original R&C (which appeared on PS2 in 2002) represents a rebellion on PS4.
Enjoyable to watch and infinitely exciting to play, Insomniac Games reaches the root of its most successful series and removes time flakes, adding features that align with modern expectations while eliminating bugs created in the development of the PS2. Entertainment of all ages, Ratchet & Clank is a must.
If we could choose a cross-platform game, we could finally get rid of it (MGS V: Phantom Pain, Batman: Arkham Knight, and Dark Souls 3 are three of these options), but our hearts know it better: no one can hold a torch to Wild Witch Hunt 3. A vast and ambitious action RPG sandbox, Wild Hunt offers the most measurable imaginative world since TESV: Skyrim in 2011.
Wild Hunt is the closest thing to life in imaginative fantasy, from tracking, planning, and hunting monsters across the country to playing Gwent at a local tavern.
Sony PS4 Overtime: Verdict
Even six years later, the PS4 is a powerful console that has earned a place among the most powerful and versatile machines in history.
The PlayStation 4 is a fast, attractive, and powerful 1080p game console at an attractive price. It includes the best controller ever designed to adorn the PlayStation machine, offers a wide selection of excellent games of all sizes and costs paid from the start, and its list of exclusive titles has grown significantly over the years since launching.
While Sony’s focus on games, games, and more games has left the PS4 with a bit of light for multimedia entertainment, its compatibility with your favorite Netflix-a-Demand 5 streaming apps also makes it more robust than most smart TVs.
It doesn’t match multimedia offerings on Xbox One S and X with Ultra HD Blu-ray players, but it still offers 4K HDR streaming capabilities as long as you have a compatible TV.
In addition to the remote play feature with PS Vita (which lets you stream the entire console user interface and all PS4 games directly to your handheld via Wi-Fi), the PS4 has excellent functionality that no Xbox can offer. The fact that any PS4 can be played on a few bold napkins is always awe-inspiring.
The PS4 DualShock 4 controller may not have the best build quality (those fluffy thumbs are always a nightmare for everyone).
However, it’s still an innovative platform with all the features you need to control the modern beast for consoles while maintaining the essential PlayStation legacy.
Although there are newer and more powerful consoles, like the PS4 Pro, the PS4 does not shrink hardware and remains an excellent choice for those who play in 1080p.
