The time is upon us that we see next gen consoles begin to take over the market as preorders continue to be a mess and sell out within what seems to be minutes. It’s a big deal in general for hardcore gamers, but with the world wide pandemic, it’s an even hotter commodity as more people are turning to in-home entertainment and relentless online preorder scalpers seem to be out in full force.
Preorders a mess aside, we are once again seeing the end of a console generation that will soon be dubbed last-gen. The PS4 might be around for several years to come, but the reality is, it’s the end of an era. At least my mind, anyway.
I have had every PS console so far and let’s be honest, there’s only been 4 prior to what’s coming and that really isn’t a feat as much as it might show my age. I have enjoyed each one thoroughly and with each new release, I have appreciated the leaps and bounds they have made in technology. The PS4 though, that standouts a little more for me.
The PS4 was my first actual release day console. Prior to the PS4, I just never had any luck being able to get a console the day it releases. When I managed to get my preorder, I was lucky. A Target store about 45 minutes from where I lived had one preorder in stock and I had to drive there to secure it. Luckily for me, it was still on the rack. I gave them my $25 deposit and waited eagerly until the day I could pick it up.
As a longtime gamer that truly does have a passion for video games, it was an amazing day. I had a PS4 on release day. I had my first console on release day. I’ll never forget that feeling. While I have my PS5 preorder secure and I await that day to come, I can’t help but feel differently about it this time around l.
Preorders were a nightmare and I am grateful I could score one, but I was prepared ahead of time and had a little inside info to be ready for the orders to live prematurely. Insider info or not, I was extremely lucky to be able to grab one. When I got my PS4, it was different in the way that I missed the preorder window altogether. I didn’t want to stand in line at a store in the early hours before they opened in hopes that I might get one. I just happened to stumble upon a target preorder online that said there was one left in stock. Maybe I was lucky and no one was actually searching for a preorder at that time and someone by chance canceled their order, but again, that feeling of securing a PS4 was just like no other.
I remember playing BloodBorne for the first time. Admittedly, the game had a frame rate issues where stuttering seemed to interrupt certain fighting sequences on a rare occasion, but man oh man, that game was right up my ally. Still is and I will probably play it again on the PS5 just to see if the plus collection has any enhancements on the PS5.
I played through some of the Indy titles like Contrast, which was a good game. I made a bunch of new friends, some that were short lived friendships and others that have stuck. I’ve experienced advanced versions of call of duty that I enjoyed and hated at the same time. I’ve played every single major title the PS4 has offered and then some. Yes, my love for PS4 is probably as strong as my love for the original Nintendo entertainment system. My love for PlayStation in general is definitely stronger than any other franchise.
As I spend my extra time playing games on my PS4 console, I reminisce about all the good times and bad times I have had with the console (looking at you 2011 PSN Blackout! Grrr!).
Watching the PS4 sweep the game industry market the way it did was amazing. While some feel that Xbox 360 won the console war against the PS3 and though it was a sure sign the Sony was going to lose the next console race (PS3 outsold the 360 to date some time ago… so who really won?), but the reality was that PS3 was a year late to the console drop and honestly overpriced. Sony learned from that mistake and quickly took the throne from the gate of the last generation release.
PS4 has set sales records in ways great Sony could have only hoped for. Sales in consoles, software and not to mention it was the base platform for PlayStation VR.
Some have said the PS4 wasn’t a major jump from PS3, but I beg to differ. We got to play games on the PS4 that would have probably played better on the PS5, but were clearly much better on the PS4 than the PS3 could have produced.
Along the way we got to see mid-gen upgrades from both Sony and Microsoft. The pro versions were superior to their initial models and one has to wonder if this will inspire another mid gen upgrade or just the usual slimmer models that will appear in a year or two? We’ll find out soon enough.
Indeed, the PS5 release signals the end of an era. It’s the end of the PS4 era for me. While my youngest son will inherit my PS4 Pro, it will soon be just a memory for me and I’m sure for many others. I wonder though, am I the only one looking back at the last generation so fondly or does the majority just not care?
Let me know how you feel about transitioning to next gen consoles? What were your favorite PS4 games? Will you be upgrading to PS5 anytime soon?