What Console Wars?
Console Wars
Console Wars is a never ending phenomenon. It happens between the fanboys of Play Station and Xbox (Sorry, Wii) and both bash each other very well. Now when my friends fought over this, I always used to take the side of the Xbox , and for good reason too. Still, The final verdict would almost always be undecided as both the consoles offer something unique that only it can do the best.
The Nail In The Coffin
Now, Sony wants to end it all in one go. Here is what it is doing :- It’s bringing PlayStation games to PC. Yes you read that right, You no longer need a console to play games like God Of War, Uncharted etc.
This move by Sony is being cited by many as yet one more proof of why PC is called the “Master Race”. I don’t know about what the implications of this is going to be , but I think it’s pretty much the time when the console wars have to stop, There is no good console out there anymore, The PC rules.
The Catch
Now, Not everything is good here. It’s not a fantasyland you see. Sony is doing this for a reason, and here it is. – You’ll be playing those games over the internet with Sony’s streaming game service, PlayStation Now.
PlayStation Now has been around for a few years and it hasn’t really gained up the momentum that Sony was expecting. I think this move is definitely the one that will make up for this drag.
For $20 a month or $45 for three (£13 monthly in the UK, but alas, not available in Australia), the service gives players unlimited access to a long list of over 400 PlayStation 3 games. (The service is available only in those countries as well as in Canada and Japan, with Belgium and the Netherlands currently in beta.)
What You Need
There aren’t many things that you need to get started, although they all are very important. The first thing you need is a solid internet connection (Recommended is 5Mbps) that I think is manageable by all the gamers.
You’ll also need a Dual Shock 4 controller that you will use to play all the PlayStation games for a smooth experience. Don’t worry, In PC controllers will eventually arrive too if you have less budget and just want to experience how it works first.
A decent windows PC will do as the games are just being streamed on your device via internet so don’t require much raw power.
Conclusion
It’s just about bringing this small chunk of PlayStation to a new audience. “The PlayStation launched so many great franchises, and this brings new life to them,” said Eric Lempel, The Head Of PlayStation Now.
PlayStation Now is coming to Windows PCs in the UK “soon,” and will expand to the US and Canada shortly after. No availability was discussed for Australia or other parts of the world.
The road ahead might include the newer PS4 titles and the old PS2 titles if the response is as they expect. I am definitely very excited to get my hands on it as soon as it arrives here in India.
What do you think about this move? Will console wars really end? Will sony succeed in it’s ‘game plan’? Comment down below.