Does the PS4 have a weakness?

[greenmedic88]

Lack of BC isn't a weakness.

As much as I liked the feature on the PS3, barring a few favorites from the PS2, the only time it mattered (was used at all) was during that first year of ownership in 2007 when the PS3 catalog was extremely thin and I wanted something to play on my $600 console. Once the catalog was there and there were more PS3 games than I could buy or play among the ones I bought, it didn't matter that subsequent PS3s I bought didn't have BC.

At any rate, it's not going to effect sales since this is what the thread is really addressing.

And it's a given that the majority of the PS1/PS2/PS3 back catalog of games will likely be available through PS Now.

Currently, since the PS4 is in the enviable position of having a level of consumer demand that outstrips current production rates, the catalog doesn't matter. Repeat; doesn't matter. By the time supplies become readily available, the catalog of games will have filled out.

The interesting thing about the PS4 is that it has the distinction of being the most powerful console of the 8th gen, while simultaneously having the best launch and early sales rates. It will also likely see the best third party support from both major publishers and independent developers due to the hardware advantage and developer support policies. I can't think of any other console generation when this was the instance.

If there were any weaknesses in the PS4 currently, it would be lack of features that don't spur early sales. 3D playback? Any significant percentage of the market care? No. Not a priority; 3D support will be added later. Media functions? Didn't sell a lot of PS3s that first year and it was the best media center in a console seen to date. Again, not a priority; more functions and features will be added at a later date pending user demand.

Third party support? About the only developers who are singing the praises of the XB1 over the PS4 are Microsoft only developers who are obligated to give the platform good PR. We're not even past the first quarter of availability and already, there is an overwhelming amount of developer favoritism for the PS4.


On a personal note, what do I want as a longtime PS brand consumer? Some of the basic media functions the PS3 has would be nice.
A media remote like the PS3s or better yet, make the PS3 remote compatible.
External HDD support for media; don't care so much about game installs as there could be potential performance hits by playing games over USB HDD that I'd just as soon avoid.
PSVita data management: not sure why I still have to use my PS3 or laptop to manage my PSV games.

Other than that, more of the same of the franchises I've been enjoying and some new ones like Uncharted, Infamous and Little Big Planet.

Naturally, I expect hardware revisions to be par, along with corresponding price cuts.