Hasta La Gadget!

The PlayStation 4’s DualShock 4 controller may seem like the logical evolution of Sony’s gamepad design, but we now know that it wasn’t always destined to be that way. Product manager Toshimasa Aoki tells VentureBeat that the company threw out all the rules during the early design phase, and had tested both all-touchscreen gamepads as well as one where a touchpad could move to different locations. The PlayStation team had also considered abandoning its signature bottom-mounted analog sticks in favor of moving them up top, much like Nintendo’s Wii U Pro Controller. However, feedback pushed Sony to a more conservative layout — many early PS4 game developers were worried that a new control scheme would break their software design. While it’s unfortunate that Sony had to restrain its creative impulses, we suspect that many gamers are happy with the end result.

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Sony

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Source: VentureBeat

The patent application from Sony that popped up at the US Patent and Trademark Office this morning isn’t quite the DualShock 4 that we’ve become acquainted with this year. While it contains many descriptors that apply to the controller Sony introduced alongside its PlayStation 4, it’s also got a few extra bells and whistles that the current model doesn’t include — most notably, a microphone for tracking player location and a larger light bar that extends to the bottom of the controller. Apparently the light bar at some point could be “shaped to provide for a wide angle of visibility.”

There’s also a variety of trackpad versions, and the patent describes a slight outward curvature “which provides a tactile sensation by virtue of its shape” — the DualShock 4 models we’ve used don’t seem to feature this, but we’ll need to revisit the controller to be sure. Further, the trackpad was apparently tested as a display screen as well at one point. “In one embodiment, the touch panel can be coupled with a display screen to provide a touchscreen interface as part of the controller,” the application reads. “For example, the touchscreen might display an image which delineates regions of the touchscreen that correspond to various functionalities for the interactive application.”

Beyond that, the patent dances around its connection to the PlayStation 4, as this was filed back in the end of June 2012 (it just published today). Make no mistake: this is very much a patent for the DualShock 4 long before the controller and its corresponding console were announced.

Filed under: Gaming, Handhelds, Peripherals, HD, Sony

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Source: USPTO

After getting a deeper hands-on with the PlayStation 4 and its very thorough tech demo today, The Playroom, we wanted to show you all the bells and whistles of the new console, its new controller and the new PlayStation 4 Eye. So we shot a video with Sony Japan’s Nicolas Doucet and walked through the game’s various demos. If you’re looking for a thorough walkthrough of the various new PlayStation hardware, look no further. It’s just below the break.

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Software, HD

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Sony just wrapped its E3 press event, delighting attendees and future console buyers with showstopping news: a $399 retail price and lack of used game restrictions on the PlayStation 4. Now, with all those important bits behind us, it’s time to once again focus on the hardware, specifically the PS4 controller. We got our grips on the controller immediately following Sony’s E3 2013 presser — our first chance to check out the new DualShock — and it feels great!

We’re glad to say that the thumbsticks have dramatically improved and no longer allow your thumbs to easily slip out. The triggers are also much improved, with a little lip enabling a comfortable cradle. The front face buttons are nigh identical with the DualShock 3, as is the d-pad (despite a slight visual alteration) — the biggest difference is the new touchpad. It’s clicky and feels like a surprisingly nice addition to the DualShock. It’s easily clickable from the standard two hand position on a controller, though the share and options buttons are a bit out of reach (at least for our small hands). We’ll have a closer look at the DualShock 4 this week from E3 and some impressions of it with actual games, so stay tuned for more from E3 2013!

Update: We’ve got our hands-on video embedded after the break, so head on down to check it out.

Zach Honig and Ben Gilbert contributed to this report.

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, HD, Sony

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The PlayStation 4’s new DualShock 4 controller can be charged even while the PlayStation 4 is turned off. The PlayStation 4’s new Eye motion camera has a tilt sensor so it can tell players when its facing the wrong direction or if it’s fallen off your TV stand. The PlayStation 4’s Blu-ray disc drive is three times as fast as the PlayStation 3’s. In case it weren’t clear, Sony’s PlayStation 4 panel at this week’s Game Developers Conference wasn’t chock full of major revelations, but it did provide plenty of interesting little details about the PlayStation 4 and its various hardware companions.

For instance, the console’s “True Name” social functionality isn’t automatic — you have to opt-in to who will see your real name versus your PlayStation Network ID. That is, unless you find a friend through Facebook or another social network where your real name is already your main ID; in that instance, the console defaults to displaying your actual name. That’s not the only change coming to your friends list, either, as the standing 100 friends cap is being raised to an unknown amount.

Additionally, the Gaikai-powered Remote Play functionality between the Vita and PS4 is said to be “much better,” according to Sony senior staff engineer Chris Norden. Not only can it display your PS4 games in the Vita’s native resolution (960×544), but it can be activated at any given time rather than having to be preset. And unlike Remote Play on PS3, with PS4 the game being pushed to the Vita is mirrored on your television screen. None of this stuff is what we’d call red hot, but we’re hungry for PS4 details and this is what Sony’s delivering. Here’s hoping the company’s more forthcoming at E3.

Filed under: Gaming, HD, Sony

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