Sony “unveils” its next-generation gaming console, the PlayStation 4

ps4

After months of teaser videos, and years of speculation, Sony has just unveiled its next-generation gaming console, the Playstation 4, at its “See the Future” event in New York City.  That’s right, it’s supercharged, it’s intuitive, it’s social, and it’s finally here.

This might seem a bit off topic for iDB, but with growing rumors that Apple’s looking to add apps and games to its set-top box, you don’t have to work very hard to create the connection. Not to mention, we love games too. So without further a do, here’s the PS4…

First up, there’s the hardware. The PS4 is based on a “supercharged PC architecture,” with an 8-core X86 processor, enhanced PC GPU, and 8GB of unified high-speed memory. Sony says its capable of providing almost 2 teraflops of computational performance.

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Next, the controller. The system uses Sony’s new DualShock 4 controller with a touchpad, share button, lightbar and headphone jack. The lightbar pairs with a camera system on the PS4 that allows the console to track the depth (distance away) of the player.

As for features, Sony covered a ton of them during its keynote. So we decided to bullet point all of our favorite ones.

  • The new DualShock 4 controller connects to an included light bar, which can identify players and their movements via a 3D camera. No one is calling it Kinect-like yet, but it sounds like it serves a similar purpose.
  • The PS4 has a low-power state that auto-saves games. If you have to step away from your console, just tap the power button. Then when you return, you’ll find your game right where you left it. Sony says “long console boot times are a thing of the past.”
  • And the system can download games and other content in the background too, even with the power off. So no more annoying game-stopping system updates. Likewise, this also means that downloadable titles can be played as you’re downloading them.
  • Social is a huge aspect of the PS4. You can upload videos of your gameplay, while playing, watch other games being played, and even invite a friend to remotely play on your system.
  • And it can learn your likes and dislikes. “Long-term vision is to reduce download times to zero… if we know enough about you we know what game you’ll purchase next and can download it in the background.”
  • Gaikai technology lets you see what games your friends are playing, share screenshots and videos in-game, and take over their controller. It also allows owners of the PS Vita to remotely play the PS4 from their handheld devices.

After talking about the console, Sony proceeded to bring some 10-15 developers on stage to talk about and demo their games. And while they say they used ‘live action gameplay,’ footage we’re pretty sure that’s not the case. Still, they looked sharp.

Here’s Drive Club:

Kill Zone: Shadow Fall:

Deep Down (working title):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9UmHm9HA3c

And Knack:

So now for the big question, what does the new PlayStation look like? Well, we don’t know yet. Believe it or not, Sony held a 2 hour long event talking about the PlayStation 4, and never actually showed one, or even a picture of one, on stage.

The consensus is that the PS4’s casing and hardware is still very much in the prototype stage, and Sony’s reason for holding its event so early is to get a head start on Microsoft—who is also expected to unveil its next-generation console this year.

This also explains why Sony didn’t announce any pricing details, or availability, outside of ‘Coming Holiday 2013.’

At any rate, the event is over. And we’re dying to know. What’d you think of Sony’s PS4 announcements today?