13w ago - Following up on yesterday's
PlayStation 4 / PS4 announcement and
PlayStation 4 / PS4 trailer videos, today Sony Worldwide Studios boss
Shuhei Yoshida confirmed that PlayStation 4 / PS4 won't block the use of second-hand (used) games.
To quote from Eurogamer (linked above): "Sony Worldwide Studios boss Shuhei Yoshida has told Eurogamer that PlayStation 4 will not block the use of second-hand games, contrary to various reports, speculation and even a Sony patent unearthed last month.
I sat down with Yoshida a few hours after the PS4 reveal tonight and one of the first things I asked was whether used games would be blocked.
"Do you want us to do that?" he asked.
No, I said. I think, if you buy something on a disc, that you have a kind of moral contract with the person you've bought it from that you retain some of that value and you can pass it on.
Do you agree, I asked?
"Yes. That's the general expectation by consumers," said Yoshida. "They purchase physical form, they want to use it everywhere, right? So that's my expectation."
So if someone buys a PlayStation 4 game, I asked, you're not going to stop them reselling it?
"Aaaah," was Yoshida's initial answer, but seemingly only because he'd forgotten his line. "So what was our official answer to our internal question?" he asked his Japanese PR advisor. The advisor stepped in but didn't seem to answer clearly, at least to my ears. Yoshida then took control again firmly:
"So, used games can play on PS4. How is that?"
I said I thought that was fine.
Interestingly, I also spoke to a Sony source elsewhere at the event this evening who told me that the anti used-game patent discovered last month was actually nothing to do with PlayStation 4 at all.
The patent suggested that discs would come branded with a contactless tag that could be recognised and read by your console, which would then bind it to you and prevent you from selling it on.
But whatever reason Sony did have for patenting it, it sounds like it wasn't for its next-generation console. Hopefully Microsoft will also avoid this ludicrous technology with its next-generation Xbox as well."
just joined, a special interest in streaming HD movies...
The last console I brought on release night as the PSP GO and Sony totally screwed me with that so now I refuse to get anything in the first month at least. I waited about 2 months before I got the WiiU and I wanted to return it in the first week as I'm not impressed at all with it. It crashed/locked up 5 times in the first week. We play it less than the PS3 so it only locks up about once a week now. Still if I could get my money back I would. Anyone want a WiiU and 4 games?
That said, I wont get another Sony product in the first month at least. I'll wait till the slim version is released and get the first version as they will be cheaper by then and probably have a few holes for exploits. With the Xbox, maybe I'll get that at launch. Depends on how good it is and if it IS BC with 360.
If you want graphics then what are you doing with consoles? You will never get better than a PC. These days even laptops are better than consoles for graphics.
They are going to nickel and dime you for the same content over and over again, and you'll still have to watch adds an product placements. They should just rent these boxes out since you don't really own them in the first place just like the cable company does and be done with it. It would cost them absolutely nothing to enable CD & SACD support. We'll probably have to leave it up to the hackers again.
Back to the Dragonborn addon for me on my PC. The only platform left that isn't out to constantly screw you. Thanks Steam - here's hoping Valve releases a Steam box for my living room.
Why burden them with the hardware and software side of older consoles which could potentially only drive up the price? (Launch PS3's had BC hardware and I'm sure that it affected the high launch price for the console in some way).
That is not to say that BC wouldn't be nice to have, but wouldn't you rather have a console that plays the games it's supposed to rather than one that tries to?
-Just my 2 cents.