The Xbox One - Mini Review & Comparison to Xbox 360/PS4
by Anand Lal Shimpi on November 20, 2013 8:00 AM ESTFinal Words
More so than last time, it seems like this next generation of console wars will boil down to a few key questions: exclusives, online, extra features and personal preference.
If there’s an exclusive IP that you will sink a ton of time into, the rest really doesn’t matter. For Microsoft that could be Halo, for Sony that could be Uncharted. I feel like Microsoft might have the stronger lineup out of the gate this generation, but that’s not saying much as neither platform appears to have anything that’s a must have at this point. I can’t help but wonder how different this launch would’ve been had there been a Halo 5 or Uncharted 4 (or Last of Us 2) available on day one.
The online story is going to take some time to flesh out. Microsoft held the clear advantage there last generation for online multiplayer, but Sony is intent on closing the gap this round. I’m going to say it’s still wait and see on this one as neither console is going to have enough users to make for a great online experience for a while to come.
In the extra features category, Microsoft is really hoping to win users over with things like their TV integration and Kinect. I couldn’t be further from the right demographic to talk about the former so I’m going to avoid saying much there. On the Kinect front, I know people who are interested in the Xbox One solely because of Kinect. I’m not one of those people but I can definitely see the appeal there. If Sony’s price tag didn’t nerf the PS3 last round, it’s entirely possible that Microsoft’s Kinect bundle and resulting price hike won’t do the same for the Xbox One this time.
Finally, there’s an element of personal preference in all of this. Look, feel, ecosystem, company loyalty all fall into this category. There are also things like controller preference that fit here as well. I can’t help much in this department.
If you’re looking at the Xbox One as a successor to the Xbox 360, I think you’ll be very pleased. It’s a much better console in every way and a long overdue upgrade.
It's interesting to me that the performance/image quality differences that exist between the Xbox One and PS4 ultimately boil down to a difference in memory interface rather than an interest in optimizing down silicon cost. In this case Microsoft has the bigger die, but the smaller GPU in order to accommodate enough eSRAM to offset the use of DDR3 memory.
If all you play are cross-platform games, then the PS4 will give you better looking titles at a lower console cost. For those of you that are particularly bothered by aliasing, the PS4 will definitely reduce (not eliminate) that. However I would argue that if all you play are cross-platform games then you might want to look into buying/building a PC instead. I’m also unsure about how much cross shopping actually happens between these two platforms. I can understand for first time gamers (e.g. parents buying the first console for their kids), but otherwise I feel like your friend group and prior experience is going to ultimately determine whether you end up with a Xbox One or PS4.
I need a Halo box, but I also like to play Uncharted. Unfortunately I don’t know that there’s a good recommendation one way or another, other than to wait for a bit. Being an early adopter of a next-gen console is rarely a fun thing. Literally all of my friends are on Xbox 360s or PS3s, meaning online multiplayer with people I know is pretty much out of the question for at least a year or so. The launch lineup for both platforms is reasonable but could be a lot better. Having just played Grand Theft Auto V and the Last of Us, I’m going to need more than CoD or NBA 2K14 to really draw me in to the Xbox One or PS4. This is how the story goes with any new console launch.
One thing is for sure - this generation was long overdue. I remember being at E3 in 2005 and wondering what the Xbox 360 and PS3 would do to the future of PC gaming given how well specced both systems were. This time around I’m less concerned. Everyone seems to have gone more conservative with GPU choices, even though the resulting APUs are anything but small. If anything the arrival of both consoles, targeted the way they are, is likely going to make things better industry wide. As both sell in good quantities we’ll see developers target a higher class of system, which will be good for everyone.
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IKeelU - Thursday, November 21, 2013 - link
Those "obsessions" in the PC-sphere are academic exercises to underline the differences between otherwise very similar pieces of silicon. Good GPU reviews (and good PC builders) focus on actual game performance and overall experience, incl. power and noise.And of course it matters that the PS4 is has a better GPU. It's just that native 1080p vs upscaled 720p (+AA) isn't a world of difference when viewed from 8-10 feet away (don't take my word for it, try for yourself).
But like Anand states in the article, things might get interesting when PS4 devs use this extra power to do more than just bump up the res. I, for one, would trade 1080p for better effects @ 60fps.
chelsea2889 - Thursday, November 21, 2013 - link
Great comparison of both products! Has anyone else heard of Why Remote though? I heard it has face and hand gesture recognition and apparently integrates with different types of social media and streaming apps. It seems pretty cool, I'm looking forward to seeing them at the upcoming CES convention!greywolf0 - Thursday, November 21, 2013 - link
Wow and I thought the Xbox One was just significantly handicapped in both memory bandwidth and GPU cores. Now I learn about this magical third thing called ROP where the Xbox One literally has only half that of the PS4 and it noticeably affects perceived resolution and is even lower than the standard AMD configuration for proper 1080p output. More nails in the Microsoft coffin.If you want to talk exclusive games and variety, the PS4 has more than enough bald headed space marine games and yet-another-space-marine-FPS-OMG-oversaturation to satiate any Halo desires, if you even had one to begin with. What you won't find on the Xbox One, however, is all the exclusive Japanese-made games, because lets face it, the Xbox is gonna sell poorly in Japan regardless, and that means no incentive to even make a half-ass port for the Xbox. This means all the JRPG fans and quirky Japanese adventure and indie games are not coming to Xbox, just like last gen.
And Microsoft just opened a Scroogled store selling more anti-Google paraphernalia, a continuation of their assinine and low-brow tactics and culture. They continue to be nothing but assholes day in and day out. They may have curbed their evil corporation ambitions with the backlash from their Xbox mind-control "features", but they show no sign of letting up anywhere else. I didn't think I could care much about tech companies, as they are all in it for money, but Microsoft continues to be the most morally reprehensible one around. A company not worth supporting or saving. To be shunned. It helps that all their recent products have been absolute out of touch flops, from Windows Phone to Windows RT and 8. Ditto Xbox power grab.
UltraTech79 - Thursday, November 21, 2013 - link
>More nails in the Microsoft coffin.Drama queen. This shit just doesnt matter in consoles unless youre a fanboy of one side or another. What matters is how good the game plays when they are done and its in your hands.
immanuel_aj - Friday, November 22, 2013 - link
Have to agree with you on the Japanese exclusives. They either take forever to get ported or don't get ported at all, unless it's a big title. I never got a PS3, but the PS4 seems like a good place to start and hopefully there'll be more indie stuff from Japan as well. I'm just waiting for a limited edition console to be released before getting one! Though using a Japanese PSN account is a bit of a pain sometimes.However, I don't think the PS4 has that many bald headed space marines ;)
jonjonjonj - Thursday, November 21, 2013 - link
i agree there's always someone crying about power costs. if the $5 a year in power is that big of a deal then you probably shouldn't be spending $500 on an xbox and $60 a year on xbox live.tuxfool - Friday, November 22, 2013 - link
Or alternatively they might care for the environment. Multiply all that "wasted" power by everyone and it adds up. This is doubly true when the apparent tasks this power is used on don't really require it.maxpwr - Friday, November 22, 2013 - link
Both "next generation" systems are increadibly weak and outdated. Not enough performance for Oculus Rift, let alone 4K displays.cheshirster - Friday, November 22, 2013 - link
Please, stop your squarephobia.Origin64 - Friday, November 22, 2013 - link
I acnually feel this generation is pretty bad for innovation. The PS3 And 360 made sense, at the time. They were very fast machines for the money. Sony sold PS3s at a loss for years. MS I dunno.I feel like time has kind of caught up with that kind of console. What's the use of building a whole new OS when these machines are x86 and fast enough to run Linux? Why focus on all kinds of closed proprietary online features when all that has been done before - and better - by volunteers building freeware. You build a PC thats comparable performance-wise and competitive on price with these machines, if you rip some parts out of an old one and replace PSU/mobo/cpu/gfx. Everyone can find a battered old pc that you can screw new parts in. People throw the things away if they get a little slow.
Then you can have the power of running what you want on the machine you paid for. Complete control. It'll save money in the long run.