Sony revealed a series of new details today surrounding the forthcoming PlayStation 4, including the capacity of the friends list and the nuances of the PlayStation Plus subscription. All of these, and more, are answered in a neat Q&A video published by PlayStation Access, which you can check out right here.
While we already knew the answer to some of the more commonplace questions – such as the PlayStation 4’s upgradable hard drive and, yes, that it does in fact come in jet black – Sony unveiled some fresh facets of their hardware’s underlying blueprint. These include the ability to access free-to-play games and interact with your friends via party chart without the need for a PS Plus subscription. What’s more, Sony has vastly increased the friend list capacity up to 2,000, which makes the PS3’s 100 player list seem like a bygone relic.
Requiring a PlayStation Plus subscription in order to access Sony’s online ether with the PlayStation 4 was a brief snippet that was drowned in June’s E3 noise. Nevertheless, today’s update will placate many fans who were apprehensive about just how opaque that mandatory pay wall would be. With the ability to access streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu subscription-free as well, it seems Sony will cater to the more casual consumer as well when their new console hits stores later this year.
Rounding off the video is the news that the company is open to exploring 3D as a viable method of gameplay. And although Sony showcased their impressive 3D capabilities at E3, the industry giant has stated that they will release details of their plans with the technology in due time. Fingers crossed for that hopeful announcement of Oculus Rift compatibility, too.
Tell us, what do you make of Sony’s method of approach with the PlayStation 4? Do you think that their potential subscription service is more flexible than that of the Xbox One? Or do you feel Microsoft provide a more reliable package when it comes to online gaming? Let us know below!