Alrighty then, mid-week already, and I am slacking at my E3 postings!!
So far there has been a lot of buzz going on about the new PlayStation 4 and the Xbox One, particularly in the sense that the majority of folks feel Sony came out on top in this round of E3 fights.
Sony finally released what the PS4 looks like, along with the dozen or so “launch titles” scheduled to roll out once its released this “Holiday, 2013”. (Um, nice Parallelogram Sony! Very original vs. the VCR box that Micro$oft released!)
Looking somewhat like a “similar” box rolled out by Micro$oft, Sony amped up the competition between the two systems by coming out with a release price of $399, which includes a Dual Shock 4 Controller, 500 GB HD, HDMI cable, and mono-headset. Micro$oft, however, is releasing the new Xbox One for an extra $100 bucks, which includes its Kinect device, 500 GB HD, HDMI Cable, and controller.
Fans totally decried foul when Micro$oft released information that the Xbox One requires a internet connection every 24 hours to phone home, otherwise, your games don’t work. They also caused a bit more of an uproar by releasing their DRM strategy on used games (basically saying, you can’t use em unless you pay for em again..); where as Sony said “I Don’t Think So” to both aspects, giving gamers freedom to trade in their old games, and even play them offline.
All this, and being thrown in are the mix of Next Gen released games, including Ubisoft’s Watch Dogs, Assassins’ Creed 4, Tom Clancy’s “The Division”; EA Sports with Madden 25, Battlefield 4; Bungie’s Destiny; Blizzard’s release of Diablo III; Respawn Entertainment’s “TitanFall”; Sucker Punch’s “inFamous: Second Son”, and many more..
Now as crazy as it may seem, this appears to only be scratching the surface, with both Console competitors stating that “online gaming, sharing, and multiplayer” are going to factor in BIG time with the release of the Next Gen systems. Squad based mechanics, MMO functionality, and even such items as “Public Events” found in Destiny, encourage folks to team up online, and have a good time. 
As E3 starts to wrap up this week, look out for even more gameplay videos, new info on upcoming release dates, etc.
Catch all the 2013 E3 Press releases here: Sony and Micro$oft.
<A big shout out to gameinformer.com and gametrailers.com for keeping us 9-5’ers informed.>
