Sony, a while back ago, had promised that the company is set to deliver big at this year’s E3, and with the E3 already upon us with a number of big publishing companies arriving with their planned titles, Sony has managed to keep its promise although it’s comprised of both highs and lows. But the important point here is that Sony has indeed delivered.
First off, Sony made it pretty clear that it has a certain business structure in mind for its new PS4 gaming console, and unlike Microsoft (with its Xbox One), the Sony console will have no real rules and restrictions and will even cost less than the Xbox One.
The trump card that Sony had brought along with it in its presentation at the E3 was Sony’s explicit clarification that PS4 owners won’t have to deal with any kind of DRM against used games, that the console won’t need an always online connectivity and none of the negative aspects that has plagued the Xbox One since its inception.
To round it all off sweetly, Sony also revealed the price tag that the company had decided to put on the PS4, and happily enough, the console will be available for $399 price, notably a full $100 cheaper than the Xbox One’s asking price of $499.
Next, Sony, as expected, didn’t shy away from showing its support for the previous generation PlayStation 3, a console that gave Sony so much business and gained immense popularity. The company showed off titles such as Rain, Gran Turismo 6, Beyond: Two Souls, Puppeteer, and even revealed that that company will continue supporting the PS Vita. While these were big announcements, a bit more was expected from Sony in this section.
The company had a good time introducing its new console, but that was far from it over. Sony also detailed a few titles and thing kicked off with the official confirmation of Final Fantasy Versus XIII (formerly known as Final Fantasy XV) and Kingdom Hearts 3.
It was also confirmed that Final Fantasy XIV 2.0 will be arriving on the Playstation 3 exclusively for consoles later in the year, alongside Santa Monica’s new IP, a newly arriving action title with steampunk settings (looks a bit like Dishonored).
Interestingly, while all is well, Sony needs to realize fast that apart from the new Final Fantasy game and Kingdom Hearts, there not really that Sony showed off and, seriously, a lot was expected. At least, what the company could have done is show off more gameplay footages from upcoming titles, and although it did that with Destiny, Watch Dogs, and Assassin’s Creed, it still wasn’t really enough.
By the way, why was Sony wasting time in showing off the same titles it did the same with back in February during the PS4 reveal event (Drive Club and inFamous Second Son, to name a few)?
There was an interactive session later on where Sony detailed as to how the PS4 will support the interactive entertainment scenario, music and movies. But this information could have waited for the time being and Sony could have taken this opportunity to talk more about some exclusive titles. It is E3 after all.
The PS+ subscription from Sony was also detailed with the company confirming that users will need a PS+ subscription to play online on the PS4, and the deal may sound pretty sweet compared to Microsoft’s Xbox Live Gold charges.
The E3 for this year is being held at the Los Angeles Convention center from June 11 to 13.
