Photo by: Will Gentry
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) and Xbox One were both released in mid-November, the first time for the two companies to release a system within a week of each other.
The PS4 is Sony’s first console release in seven years, while Microsoft has gone even longer, with the Xbox One as their first new console produced since the Xbox 360 in 2005.
Many self-proclaimed video game experts, including Oklahoma Christian sophomore Jaron Brandt, have been waiting for either one console or the other with great anticipation.
“I’ve been very excited about [the PS4] for a very long time,” Brandt said. “I remember watching the revealing conference, and I was really pumped. I’m a nerd like that.”
Microsoft, parent company of the Xbox, and Sony, parent of the PlayStation systems, has a history of clashing over the similarities in their consoles.
A comparison chart on Imagine Games Network’s (IGN) website lists the tech-specs of each console: Unlike the Xbox 360, Xbox One will now play Blu-ray Discs, a feature that PlayStation has offered since its last model, the PS3, and offers again with the PS4.
Both the PS4 and Xbox One come standard with a 500 GB hard drive, providing more space for game data, however Xbox One also offers external storage features that PS4 does not. PS4 does include a removable and swappable hard drive feature that Xbox One lacks.
Both consoles offer cloud storage, play-as-you-download gaming and remote download, which allows users to program compatible universal remotes with their console.
The Xbox One and PS4 allow gamers to access their online accounts from multiple consoles, and neither one requires Internet connection for regular gameplay.
PS4 does not have mandatory game installs, while Xbox One makes this a requirement for their system.
Microsoft shocked many game buffs by maintaining the use of AA batteries or separately sold rechargeable battery packs in its controllers, compared to PS4’s built-in rechargeable controllers.
While there are some discrepancies between the two systems, many will go unnoticed by non-serious gamers, but the $100 difference between the Xbox One, priced at $499, and the PS4, costing $399, will grab the attention of even the most amateur gamer. For many, this alone is enough to deter consumers from the Xbox One.
Perhaps the most notable variance between the two is the goal of each company for their console. While Sony is pushing the PS4 as the gamer’s console, Microsoft hopes to offer a wider assortment of entertainment opportunities with the Xbox One.
“The main difference between the two is that Microsoft wants the Xbox to be an all-in-one entertainment system while Sony is sticking to making games the main feature of the console,” a recent Washington Post article stated.
Xbox One defends its higher price tag by offering a more expansive, technologically entertaining experience. In short, Xbox One does more than just games.
In an article on Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s website, technologyreview.com, “Microsoft’s more expensive Xbox One…has a broader aim, acting as an HDMI-enabled set-top box as well as offering a vast array of non-game apps, from streaming TV and movie services to a camera-enabled fitness program.”
For uncertain buyers, the most important question to answer is what the player wants out of the game system. Many agree that PS4 offers a better quality single-player gaming experience, while Xbox One is can be for users who want more than just game-play out of their console.
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