New consoles from the big three, madness or brilliant? (Now with added Scorpio & Neo!) This the last gen?

I couldn't think of a good title thread at all all guys, so sorry for that.

Anyway you may have seen lot's of rumors of a PS4.5, PS4K for a while on the internet with lot's of predictions on what it could be and what it could do. We've talked about it on PoE and will this week as well as we have some new news and this is the most concrete yet.

What we now know is the in house codename is Neo, someone at Sony clearly likes The Matrix with PSVR once called Morpheus.

Along with these specs and details:

Base PS4 which has a Eight Jaguar cores clocked at 1.6GHz CPU, Eight Jaguar cores clocked at 1.6GHz GPU, 8GB GDDR5 at 176GB/s of Memory

Neo PS4 has Eight Jaguar cores clocked at 2.1GHz CPU which is a 1.3x boost, 36 'improved' GCN compute units at 911MHz GPU which is a 2.3x FLOPs boost, 8GB GDDR5 at 218GB/s of memory which is a 24% more bandwidth, 512MB more usable memory.

Now you maybe worried that there maybe exclusives like how XC & SNES VC is only on New 3DS and not Old 3DS. There will be no exclusive Neo games or features and every game developed has to work on a base PS4.

The benefit of the Neo will be 4K playback eg Netflix but it does seem the Neo doesn't have a 4K Blu Ray drive and the following for gaming

• Higher frame-rates
  
• More stable frame-rates
  
• Improved graphics fidelity
  
• Additional graphics features
  There is also things like resolution, load times and 1080p recording for instance that maybe something the Neo does
  

Even on a standard 1080p TV, if you were playing on a 4KTV the games that run with Neo's power will be upscaled to 4K but not running natively in 4K and game that are out now or before the Neo launches can be patched to take advantage of the Neo and run in Neo mode. I would a guess a game only running in base mode will look like they do now if played on a 4KTV and enhanced by the TV's upscaling.

From what I gather, if I'm playing Horizon: Zero Dawn on my Neo it maybe running at 1080p locked at 60fps, might look a bit better and no load times after you die, where Jay for instance playing it on Base it's running at 900p locked at 30fps with Bloodborne like load times when you die.

It's rumored to be shown at E3, come out this October and cost the same as PS4 does now which if you don't own a PS4 at the moment, might be a good thing if you just care about playing games as a base PS4 will only come down in price. I've got no idea if Sony will keep both systems side by side like Nintendo with the 2DS & New 3DS though.

What's everyone elses thoughts on this esoully a lot of us bought a New 3DS which this a very similar situation, also Phill Spencer has said similar about the same for Xbox One but then back tracked on it but I think a NeXt-box One is coming as well at some point maybe this year as well if Gamestop is to believed.

I think it's dumb. Sony are already the market leader this generation and should focus on pumping out quality games, and ensuring the VR console market is wrapped up. We are at a stage now where new consoles aren't making the big graphical changes they once did (SNES to N64, N64 to Gamecube), and tech-talk like this isn't impressive, not to me anyway. It's not as if PS4 games look bad, just look at Ratchet & Clank. At this rate, we'll have consoles with upgrade-able parts, like the PC gaming market.

Ah, that's what all the matrix taglines were about

gjones wrote:

I think it's dumb. Sony are already the market leader this generation and should focus on pumping out quality games, and ensuring the VR console market is wrapped up. We are at a stage now where new consoles aren't making the big graphical changes they once did (SNES to N64, N64 to Gamecube), and tech-talk like this isn't impressive, not to me anyway. It's not as if PS4 games look bad, just look at Ratchet & Clank. At this rate, we'll have consoles with upgrade-able parts, like the PC gaming market.

Not sure on the last bit as from the leaked document Sony want;s PS4's to be easily assessable still and easy for devs and a something we could customize like a PC would be a pain for them.

Someone put this as a luxury item which a PS4 is anyway, for the few who want the best tech and care about resolution & frame-rate. I see it as no different when I got my Z5, I could of got the premium but wasn't paying the premium price for 4K as the Z5 does what I want from a phone.

Double Post as it seems AMD have let the cat out of the bag and there will be THREE consoles coming this year that uses there stuff.

That would be PS4 Neo, NeXT-Box One and NX, so what do you guys think off this and bow all three could do?

It's a bad idea now. I'd buy the NX if there was a Nintendo-exclusive game on the cards. However, I bought my PS4 6 months ago, as did a lot of other people - the launch of the PS4 and XBone wasn't that long ago. Very few will be willing to fork out that much money again so soon.
This is a comment on new consoles in general - the quote from AMD might as well be a horoscope; don't react to that at all. They could be talking about 3 SKUs of the same console; they could be talking about replacement components for existing hardware.

I'm not wild about it either. I'll get the NX, and I've already started saving up for it. Wether that's out of some sort of loyalty or because I'm genuinely looking forward to it, I don't really know yet.

Same as Jimbob, I bought my PS4 six months ago. I'm not that impressed with it's games library, truth be told. I'm another one in thinking that Sony could do well to "focus on pumping out quality games", rather than potentially divide the market. I hate it when games companies to that. Nintendo were ripping the pish when they launched Wii MotionPlus three years into the Wii's lifespan, and the New 3DS four years into the 3DS' cycle. I just want to be able to get a console and know that it'll do me for five+ years, with no (majorly expensive) upgrades necessary. That's what I feel I should be paying for when I spend £300 on launch day, or whatever.

Two of them are hardly new consoles & are basically there to take the shine off Nintendo's NX which is smart on the part of Sony & MS.

I think Nintendo will do enough by themselves to take the shine off of the NX. I'm waiting for 'The NX Experience, Starring Josef Fritzl'.

Before I read Jas's reply, I'd come to this thread to say that only Nintendo were offering something genuinely new, but he's right: it's spoiling tactics on behalf of Micro$ony. That's not cricket.

Taking the wider viewpoint, it's madness. Madness Madnusson, the former host of Madstermind. Flooding the market is not what it needs right now, particularly when I understand that some consoles are still establishing themselves. All in all,

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

I think Nintendo will do enough by themselves to take the shine off of the NX. I'm waiting for 'The NX Experience, Starring Josef Fritzl'.

That won't stop them from calling it the Nintendo Shine box & they could get this guy to advertise it.



Even if Mr Pesci isn't a fan.

You're all spot on: it's Micro$ony (love it, ZJ) trying to steal some limelight in this, the Year of Blathers the NX. Neither of the other options is at all interesting, or (listening to Sterling) good for the industry as a whole.

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

Nintendo were ripping the pish when they launched Wii MotionPlus three years into the Wii's lifespan, and the New 3DS four years into the 3DS' cycle.

I was actually quite fond of the Motion+, simple because it could do what the Wiimote had promised to do but couldn't quite. It coming out with Wii Sports Resort meant I didn't feel too ripped off either.

The New 3DS, on the other hand, was a silly idea. Did it sell that well? I presume it must have done, for Mi¢ro$on¥ to be copying the idea, but I'm surprised.

ZeroJones wrote:

Taking the wider viewpoint, it's madness. Madness Madnusson, the former host of Madstermind.

Sorry guys, but I highly doubt these consoles have anything to do with the NX, which I doubt the other two are especially worried about. It's more about keeping up with the constantly moving goalposts of PC performance, which they are worried about.

The_Jaster wrote:

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

I think Nintendo will do enough by themselves to take the shine off of the NX. I'm waiting for 'The NX Experience, Starring Josef Fritzl'.

That won't stop them from calling it the Nintendo Shine box

I was hoping for the Nintendo Trapezoidal Prism, to be honest.

Also, thanks to Balla for his love and Shia LaBeouf gif!

Drunkalilly wrote:

Sorry guys, but I highly doubt these consoles have anything to do with the NX, which I doubt the other two are especially worried about. It's more about keeping up with the constantly moving goalposts of PC performance, which they are worried about.

Yes, that's got to be a big factor. However, might it not be a case of two (or more - there must be Micro$ony whales out there to exploit, much like the Nintendo ones, who are willing to buy everything the companies make) birds with one stone?

I don't think so, I really don't think MS see Nintendo as a competitor at all, Sony maybe a little more, but I don't see the crossover unless Nintendo suddenly work out how to get and sell multiplats.

I don't think Sony and Microsoft are competing with Nintendo - Nintendo will always march to the beat of its own drum and do reasonably well - but with the PC market which is swallowing huge chunks of their playerbase as PC gaming becomes more and more affordable. Microsoft definitely seem concerned about PC considering their push towards a joint PC/Xbox platform.

As for whether it's for me... well, unless my PS4 explodes into a thousand tiny irreparable bits, I have zero interest in this and think it's a bad idea, especially if the majority of games are released and are piss-poor to play on the vanilla PS4 due to framerate issues and the like. I bought a N3DS as my old 3DS XL kicked the bucket, but outside of Xenoblade, Hyrule Warriors Legends (arguably, as it still runs on regular 3DS... just not as well) and the SNES VC line-up, there's no real reason to upgrade if you've got a regular 3DS. Hopefully this is the same with the new MS/Sony boxes incoming as I've no desire to upgrade. The only console I'll buy this year will be the NX.

In practical terms, the kind of upgrade they're talking about can only go one of two ways: pointless-to-own new machines, or crap, barely functional games on the old machine.

Or, in the case of the New 3DS, both!

I'm still confused about them being labelled as new consoles in any way. Is it not just the same as a Slim console? That's something PS has done every gen. The only difference is a little bit more power which most will happily go without.

Not fans it seems yet how many of us bought a New 3DS which does have divide.

Cappa you won't need to worry about a divide as every game has to run on Base & Neo, just Neo has to be better which could leave to a situation like Jay points out in 2 years time FIFA 19 could be 720p 15fps on Base but 1080p 60fps on Neo. From the specs I don't think it's that high of jump but could be 900p 30fps on Neo for instance if base is 720p 15fps.

Surprised on your thoughts on PS4's line up though Cappa, but that's for a another time & place.

The AMD thing seems pretty legit and reports are saying FFXV will be one of the Neo enhanced games and will run 1080p 60fos compared to 900p 30fps on Base and it's even worse on Xbox One.

I think MS could stand the most to gain from a new system and a sort of re-launch, they will either get it bang on or cock it up totally. Also they maybe looking at gettign Rift to run on the Xbox One which the current system may not be able to handle which could be a cockup if VR only works on NeXt-Box One.

Someone point out a good name for the PS4 Neo instead and that's PS4 Slim which maybe easier to market as well, by going this is a new slim model which has upgraded internals which means games can run better.

I do see this as not Sony & MS coping Nintendo with DSi & New 3DS but the phone market, with PS4 Base & Neo being just like a Xperia Z5 & Z5 Premium both do the same but the Premium has 4K support and bit faster of course cost more with the Neo rumored to just cost the same as PS4 Base does now.

Will I get one though well if you listened to Pod of War you'll know I bought a 360 Elite day one because it had a better chip set & bigger HDD, then a 360 slim as again it had a big hard drive and more reliable, I bought GBA SP because it felt better and had a back light, a DS Lite,  a 3DS XL due the bigger screen and now New 3D XL.

That I'm no stranger of buying a new version of a system, a bigger HDD in the Neo would tempted me and even though I only have what is now 4 year old 1080p TV and no plans to get a 4K one to get that up-scaling and 4K Netflix from a Neo. I would still get that 1080p 60fps FFXV on it.

I can just imagine if Neo, NeXt-Box One, NX, PSVR all come out near each other and we don't know about NX that may have a VR component as well urggh the cost

@Andy yeah there not new consoles (I went for the click-bait) but new SKU's and from what I remember of the 360 Elite and Slim both had sort of launches along side a bunch of games and midnight launch, same with New 3DS.

Crumpy Andy wrote:

I'm still confused about them being labelled as new consoles in any way. Is it not just the same as a Slim console? That's something PS has done every gen. The only difference is a little bit more power which most will happily go without.

Having that extra power is why I think Sony/MS are worried or at least keeping a close eye on Nintendo as if NX wasn't coming then it probably would be just a slim style upgrade but they know Nintendo could potentially have the most powerful console on the market so they want to keep parity with that or maybe it's just the "HD remake trend" transferring over to the hardware side of things.

*shudders*

That basically what is Jas the HD trend but for hardware which like I said phones & tablets have done for now along with Nintendo with the 3DS to New 3DS.

This is nothing really new from a tech stand point but a bit different for the home consoles which you don't have to bu because it's got a Wii game Exclusive to it.

Aye, you don't have to buy it & I won't be but it's still a worrying trend, I already waited a while before I bought my ps4 so if upgrades like this become the norm I'd only wait longer before buying a new console.

I doubt we will see a Neo 2 for instance which now has FIFA 20 running at 1080p 60fps, with Neo at 900p 30fps & Base at 720p 15fps type deal for instance but maybe each now from on will have a enhanced version midway or enhanced version from the word go like Phones do.

Not saying they'd do that just pointing out that I'd likely hold off from getting a ps5 if the .5 version was to come out just 2 years later.