TECH RANT: Next Gen Consoles and Shortchanging Customers

      Well, guess I ain't sticking to my schedule from earlier.. not like anyone reads this anyway, so I'm good. I do have a pressing matter to discuss (while compiling my BF4 review). It confuses me as to why people--gamers, in particular--still think like this, regardless of whether a new system is being released, let alone two. Before I begin to rip into Sony, Microsoft, and the gaming community at-large, I have state that I am out of my persona, as I type this "emergency" blog out; emergency because all of this has surfaced within the past couple weeks and weeks before these new systems release). I am a gamer. I don't care about the platform. I don't care about allegiance. If there is a game that I see, that I really want, I'm gonna get it. I'm going to play it. If its multiplatform, my personal preference is get the version on the platform with the best visuals, knowing the gameplay is already established as good. That's my personal preference and no one is influencing that decision but me. My persona is PC Master Race. Its a funny play in the "system wars." There are many misconceptions about PC gaming and its obtainment in the monetary sense. While elitism is rampant within the Master Race,  they're not wrong about it. I won't dive into specifics, but i'll just say that its fun to be in that role.

Bow before your Lord and Savior..

     I type before you with grave concern over these next gen consoles; consoles that I have invested in by preordering the PlayStation 4 (for a wicked deal of $150.. thanks 360 trade-in!). Sony officially revealed the details of the PS4, back in February and Microsoft followed suit with the Xbox One in May. Both of these systems run on similar architecture revolving around a certain AMD-based CPU and GPU which were made a couple years prior to 2013. In other words, these are considered "old" by tech standards. Now, old doesn't mean incapable. In fact, these are chipsets that are capable of playing titles and upcoming console titles at 1080p, 60 frames per second, at the least. Before I digress further, both systems were marketed as easy-to-program and capable of the above stated.

     Fast forward to today... November 5th, 2013. We are 10 days out from the release of the PS4 (17 for the Xbox). The biggest titles being released at both launches are multiplatform games.. and only one of them (as in one of the blockbuster multiplat titles) is capable of rendering textures at 1080p @ 60fps... and on one system only. That's Call of Duty Ghosts.. on the PS4. How shameful is that? The one title that has Xbox timed-exclusive rights.. and its running and looking better on the competitions system?  What!? So, this next gen title is only rendering at the same resolution as its current-gen counterpart on the Xbox One. The next gen system that's supposed to usher in 1080p gaming at a mass-scale, is running a game that is STILL a heavily modified version of a 14 year old game engine at 720p (id Tech III... Quake III Arena. 1999). Meanwhile, we have PCs that cost less to build than the Xbox One, and is more graphically capable, let alone high-end PCs that renders games at 4k, 60fps.

     Another example is EA's Battlefield 4. I am currently running this game on my PC at a mixed high/ultra setting, 1080p with a framerate of anywhere between 45 and 85fps, on my monitor which has a refresh rate of 144hz, with the option of playing it comfortably on my HDTV. Why did I just tell you this? No, its not to show off. You should already expect gaming PCs to do all of that. I'm telling you this because its a standard that PC gaming has had for years. The over-the-top settings that PC Elitist boast about is the fact that they can run this game at 1440p and beyond. What does this game run at on the systems in which its based architecture can run this game pretty well at 1080p? Its 900p on the PS4 and 720p on the Xbox One. *sigh* Again, this is a system that was supposed to usher in another era of great, but more importantly, current visuals on a platform that is essentially unified with the other platforms (architecture-wise).

     Now, why am I stating all this technical stuff? Why am I sounding like a graphics whore? Why am I repeating myself? Well, if you're reading this, you may have an interest in buying a next generation console? That's rhetorical, by the way. Don't answer that. Do ask yourself this simple question: would you buy a product, full well knowing that its not being pushed to its full potential? More So, would you buy a product that will not be doing its baseline potential? Well guess what? If you're buying an Xbox One of PlayStation 4, that's exactly what you're getting. Another reason is that the user demographic at-large is uninformed about these woes. Yeah, that works out with the companies trying to sell the product, but it hurts the customer in the long run, and it hurts the industry.
     "Ryan, that's pretty bold statements!" Yes, reader. I am going there. Why in the hell are these titles not running as advertised only a few short months ago? Why is the consumer-base okay with that?! Has the community become so casual, that they become passive to the fact that these systems aren't running as advertised? WHY DO YOU HAVE STOCKHOLM SYNDROME!?!? As you can see, I have more questions than answers. I'm personally baffled by what the comments I read regarding these issues; how passive people are about the whole thing; how willing these people are to be shortchanged simply because these are the "only" avenues to get their game on.

INEXCUSABLE.

     A famous counterargument to this perplexing issue is "Gameplay > Graphics." In most cases, I'm inclined to agree. Yeah, I would have liked to have seen an updated version of Final Fantasy VII, but every time I play the original (which I still have), I feel right at home. Same for SNES titles like Super Earth Defense Force, Donkey Kong Country, and Mario Paint! Yeah, the argument stands with me. My only exception to this is right now. These are new systems to usher in the 8th generation of video gaming. New systems are meant to set a new visual standard... so, again, why in the hell are we starting this on the standard of the last generation? I'll go lenient to say that these consoles seem to just start where the 7th generation left off. I mean, did you see COD Ghosts on the PS3/360 and put them neck and neck with the PS4/X1? You tell me how different they actually are... go on.

Make sure you full-screen it and set it to HD... for maximum sadness.

     Alright, alright. It's not all doom and gloom. Madden 25, FIFA 14, and NBA 2k14, all obviously multiplatform titles, both run at 1080p/60fps native. Forza Motorsport 5, an Xbox One exclusive also runs at 1080p/60 native, as well as  Killzone Shadow Fall (PS4 exclusive). While I commend EA and 2k Sports for setting those standards right, Forza and Killzone are the cop-outs in this shortchanging dilemma. Of course, the exclusive titles are going to be running at 1080p/60fps native! Can you imagine the fallout one company would receive if one of their exclusives were running at a lesser standard? Regardless, exclusives should be running as intended, but unless we ever have more exclusives than multiplat titles, it holds little weight over the fact that we're being shortchanged.
     A final gripe that will completely be looked over is the provided storage space for both consoles. Consoles are fully entering the world of how Steam handles their games: we download them. Regardless of size, games obviously takes space. Both systems come with a 500GB Hard Drive. There is no credible word as to how fast the Xbone's HDD is, but the provided HDD for the PS4 is only 5400RPM.. that is SLOW by today's standards. Read/write speeds are important in gaming. There is really no complex way to say it. They're important, and it plays a big role in gaming. Luckily, Sony gives the option of removing and replacing the HDD, so if you're willing to help your system out, get a bigger, faster drive. You want bigger because well... I have Killzone Shadow Fall already. Gamestop is selling copies already, so why the hell not? Anyway, there is a minimum install requirement of 45GB... 45 freaking Gigabytes! That's 45GBs taken from your 500GB drive, in which a good chunk of it will be already used when you startup the system. Do I need to say more? Have fun if (and possibly when) Sony decides to implement a DRM scheme which requires you to install every game. Relying on the cloud service is not an option for everyone, either. Not everyone has an awesome connection to stream games from some node... Xbone users, these are non-factors for you since your HDD is non-removable .. as in you're stuck with that HDD. Congrats.
      I really hate to break it like this. I really do. It makes me sound super biased. The truth of the matter is that I'm invested and I want the product that was advertised. Yes, I can't blame all this on the hardware, since the developers do have a hand in all of this. But then again.. this all goes back to the whole "this is x86 architecture! It'll be easy to code with!" spill that was heard from both parties, earlier this year. Remembering that, being hyped over these systems, and seeing the first results of such makes me cringe. The entire moral of my rant is that you're buying into something that is half-assed. You want the visuals that you come to expect in the 8th generation of gaming? Wait for a little bit. Stick with current-gen. Unless you're strictly gonna buy exclusives, sport titles, or want nothing but "TV, TV, TV, SPORTS, SPORTS, SPORTS, NSA, COD DOG (looking at you, Microsoft)," go get the new systems. Other than that, don't expect to be "wow'd." Don't even expect to be elevated. For now, you're only getting a nudge of nicer graphics, and you're not missing much.