Want to know just who's developing for the PlayStation 4? Sony just gave is a very good peek: it's promising worldwide support for the console, and quickly flashed just which companies that involves.
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The PlayStation 3's microphone-looking motion controller, PlayStation Move, works on the PlayStation 4. LittleBigPlanet dev studio Media Molecule had its head, Alex Evans, on-stage at Sony's big PlayStation 4 event to introduce what his company's been creating for Sony's next-gen game system. That meant two gentlemen acting as puppeteers, employing the aforementioned Move controller, to create a ... well, a kind of crazy scene in a game. Two puppets, two men with Move controllers, and an '80s metal concert recreation. We're not sure what to make of it, but hey, it confirms that Move works on PS4. Hot dog! Oh, and as for an actual game title? We didn't hear one, but it looks like we'll hear something from MM about PS4 software in the future.
This is what it's all about, right? Live on-stage at the PS4's launch event, we saw some Killzone Shadow Fall game footage shared directly to Facebook... which we then proceeded to grab the extract code for and added after the break. Warning: it may involve explosions.
Check out our liveblog of Sony's event to get the latest news as it happens.
Nothing could've been more delightful than Braid creator Jonathan Blow suddenly appearing on-stage at Sony's big PlayStation 4 reveal only to make fun of all the explosions the event had already featured. Oh sure, he was also at the event to reveal that his latest game, The Witness, is headed exclusively to Sony's PlayStation 4, but the first statement was much funnier. Anyway, the game looks much, much better than the various demos we've played across the past few years -- Blow's been developing The Witness for quite some time, and showing it publicly, albeit never on a PlayStation 4. We'll hopefully hear more in the coming days, so keep an eye out.
UK-based audio outfit Orbitsound has just announced a new bluetooth-enabled range of soundbars. You may remember the British firm for its T14, T12 -- or more recently -- T9 offerings, but the latest line-up cuts the cable, opening up a host of new audio sources. So, it's out with the old 30-pin dock, but there's still optical, AUX, video out, RCA and 3.5mm jack connections if you prefer to keep things physically connected. It's not just the sound source that's on the loose either, as the companion active subwoofer uses a bespoke low-latency 2.4GHz connection (claimed to be 0.01 seconds delay) too -- no more hiding wires around the back. Other new features include a new digital amplifier, a Bluetooth remote, and a settings memory to remember your source, volume and EQ levels for next time. Not enough? How about a "grab" feature that instantly starts playing the last media from a paired phone or tabled? The firm's proprietary spatial sound? That, of course, remains present. There are two models to choose from, the M9 for smaller TVs, and the M12 for the bigger set in your front room. Expect to pay £299 (about $450) and £399 (about $600) respectively when they launch in March. UK retailer John Lewis will be getting them first, but online orders and "select" independent retailers should follow.
During today's PlayStation event Gaikai's Dave Perry revealed that the PS4 will not natively support PS3 games and that Sony's next-gen console will instead stream PS1, PS2 and PS3 games from the cloud -- something that the company has already confirmed on Twitter.
Check out our liveblog of Sony's event to get the latest news as it happens.
Sony is eking more out of its Gaikai acquisition than we thought -- it's using the streaming game technology to allow for remote play on the PlayStation Vita, advancing what we saw with the PS3. From a brief demo on stage, the company showed gameplay of the PS4 title Knack on the Vita with little apparent degradation in the visual quality -- it's not leaning on the smaller system's processing, after all. There was also a hint that remote play might not be exclusive, although there's nothing specific in this regard. Not every game will support remote play, either, so don't expect it to be a ubiquitous feature -- but it may help justify the Vita as a companion.
Check out our liveblog of Sony's event to get the latest news as it happens!
We've heard some hardware numbers, but now we're hearing more how the PlayStation 4 will actually work in practice. Alongside connections to other Sony hardware, the highlight that caught our attention was that you'll be able to leap back into your game by pressing the power button. From off. Better still, there's also a secondary custom chip for uploads and download and with that, the PS4 will let you play your new titles as you download them. The rest of the game will continue to be piped into that ample hard drive. You can also share (with that new button) 10 seconds of video, trimming and uploading your own gaming highlights to your buddies -- heck, you can even stream it, with allies 'tagging' in and taking over the controller.
In fact Sony will make social networks far more integrated, with "real people", photos and companion mobile apps to augment this. In fact you'll be able to browse video remotely from the likes of your smartphone, tablet or Vita. The system itself will also learn your preferences and download content it reckons you'll like. Personalization is shaping up to be a big focus for Sony.
Check out our liveblog of Sony's event to get the latest news as it happens!
Sharing in-game screenshots? That's last-generation stuff -- Sony wants to give gamers the ability to share their entire game with friends. Taking the stage at the company's PlayStation event, Mark Cerny explained that PS4 owners will be able to share their gameplay stream with friends, even giving their peers the ability remotely take control of the game to help them get through a tough spot. Sound familiar? It's Gaikai's streaming technology, in action. Gaikai founder Dave Perry explained that the technology is baked in to the PS4 architecture, and will give players new avenues of sharing their experiences by piping out video to Facebook and Ustream. The cloud gaming trick is central to the PlayStation Store too, promising to allow gamers the ability to "instantly experience anything." In other words, try before you buy, and forget about waiting for downloads. It's not quite the game streaming announcement we expected, but Sony certainly seems to be putting the technology to good use.
Check out our liveblog of Sony's event to get the latest news as it happens!
Sony's just begun to show us what's been up its sleeve for the PlayStation 4, and it turns out that it's got social networking and the second screen on its mind. Gamers will be able to share ten second video clips of their gameplay, stream play sessions online to friends and "keep in touch with the evolving world of your game, regardless of your location." The network will also learn a player's likes and dislikes, and will automatically download content it figures users will dig it. Hirai and Co. are also planning PS Vita and tablet apps for folks to partake in the social experiences when they're not near their PS4.
Check out our liveblog of Sony's event to get the latest news as it happens!