PS4 Console Reviews: The Critics Weigh In

The PS4 reviews are in for the console itself, and though Sony’s machine is the fan favorite, it does have it’s downsides, however few.

Before we get into it, let’s go back and recap the PlayStation 3 launch. Sony really messed up on that one, charging almost twice as much for a gaming console with hardly any games. It set the standard with Blu-Ray technology as one of its native formats, but it was months before we actually saw a good number of games on it. The jokes were flying at the time that if Sony had just put a Blu-Ray player in the casing, nobody would notice.

Microsoft enjoyed a triumphant launch competing with the PS3 because the Xbox 360 had more games and a lower price.

It’s not so simple now, unless you look at the image Microsoft has built for themselves over the past year. With the prices and everything practically identical between the two, this console war is technically and realistically far from decided yet.

According to the PS4 review from The Verge, the first notable highlight is the PlayStation 4’s Remote Play capability. While it isn’t really anything new, Sony has perfected it so you can literally play the games with the PS Vita. The compatibility is now native to the main console. It doesn’t work if the Camera or the Move functions are needed, but that’s just asking too much.

Just don’t try using Remote Play too far from the PlayStation 4 or you might find yourself a victim of lag.

The presentation straight out of the box is quite good, with the surprisingly small console and the DualShock 4 accompanying the “Quick Start” guide front and center. Sony knows you just want to play games and even shows it by the way they pack it in the box. All of the connections that worked with the PS3 can be used here, so you might not even need to unpack the cords.

The DualShock 4 uses a surprisingly nice light function that interacts with the games. It turns red when your character is low on health, so you have a notification without even looking at the screen.

Sony’s controller also comes with a Micro USB port for charging and a stereo headset jack, meaning you won’t need to even connect to the console if you don’t want to. When was the last time your controller had ports like a smartphone?

According to NBC‘s PS4 review, the graphics show a noticeable improvement over the current generation. It looks like the equivalent of trading in a ten year old laptop for that new Alienware rig you’ve been checking out.

The futuristic slant of the machine’s casing does well to hide its kibble, so you won’t see the USB and other ports so readily while you’re using it. However, the same design makes it difficult to find the main function buttons in the front of the console if you’re not in a well-lit room. Doing much of anything manually might require a flashlight.

The DualShock 4 will fit your hand much more easily than its predecessors, showing that Sony put a lot of thought into the design of everything this time around. Even the grip feels more natural.

CNet‘s PS4 review tells us that while the PlayStation 4 is simply better than the PS3, the game selection is still quite slim. As previously reported by The Inquisitr, only 21 PS4 launch titles are available, so it might be wise to wait for more games before taking the plunge, unless you just want to show Microsoft how badly they screwed up.

The PS4 reviews show that the critics all agree that Sony’s new machine is a work of art, but you might want to wait until there is more you can do with it.