A few years ago my wife gave me a PS3 for Christmas. She said I needed to find a hobby to relax. For the most part I’ve very much enjoyed it. Unfortunately however, I’ve utilized it more as a set-top box and media player than as a game system. It’s a great player for NetFlix and Amazon Video! (Although for whatever reason, in recent months I have started playing games more frequently. This has proved to be a good thing for me.)
I haven’t had a need or desire to upgrade from the PS3 to the PS4. I was aware that the PS3 games wouldn’t play on the PS4. We have a reasonable library of PS3 games collected, so to lose these was a disadvantage. More so, I also learned that for multi-player games, and even to play Netflix, you need a “Playstation Network Plus” subscription. I tend to resist recurring monthly fees, and these same activities are free on the PS3. Likewise, I considered this a disadvantage.
All of this changed this past Christmas. My daughter bought her brother a copy of “Call of Duty: Black Ops III” for the PS3. She paid quite a bit of money for the game. My son put the disk into the PS3 and went to play it. It turned out that the PS3 doesn’t have the campaign mode, which, if you are familiar with the Call of Duty franchise, is the heart and soul of the game. I felt bad for my son (and my daughter who spent money on this). This was the first time we had a real disadvantage by not upgrading to the PS4. For the first time, the advantages of the PS3 did not outweighs the disadvantages of upgrading. (Note here I’m not talking graphics ability, or technical aspects of the consoles, which very clearly favor the PS4!) It was at this point that I began to shop for a PS4 at a good price.
I finally found it! The PS4 was on sale at a local chain store for $299,which was $50 cheaper than the usual published retail price. I hadn’t even found a used console this inexpensive yet, so this was good enough! Tonight, I brought home the PS4 and set it up.
Yeah! Finally the PS4 upgrade.
The initial setup was fun! There were however a few downsides: Mostly, there were a lot of updates to download when I first installed it. It should have gone quick, but it didn’t. It was taking hours. Then, I realized that something was amiss with my router and my bandwidth was way way down. Rebooting my router fixed that problem and the rest of the setup process went quickly.
Eek! Why so long! (Router issue!)
The PS4 package came with an ear bud. This was new as the PS3 didn’t have such a thing. The ear-bud plugs into the game controller itself and operates wirelessly. Apparently it’s used for in-game chats, banter, trash-talk, and whatever else live gaming entails. I haven’t tried it yet, but the idea intrigues me. I’m sure my son already knows everything about it. Oddly, I’m the tech guy in the family, yet somehow I’m always a day late to this game stuff. (It probably goes back to my wife’s comment that I need to unwind and relax a bit more)
The new ear-bud … (Still in the bag) … I need to try this for in-game chats.
Contents of my PS4 package.
My PS4 kit came with the following items:
- Game Console (Obviously, but not pictured above)
- One controller (Just one, that was a bit surprising)
- Power cable
- HDMI cable
- Ear-bud (Mentioned earlier, for in-game chats)
- Instructions (very basic)
- Coupon for $10 on the Playstation Network
- Call of Duty: Black Ops III game
I’ll admit to being surprised that the game didn’t come with two controllers, but that’s a minor nit. The console also comes with a 14 day free trial of the “Playstation Network Plus” service, so you can try it immediately without committing to money. I supposed this is in case you change your mind and want to exchange your PS4 for an Xbox or something like that. Ultimately, I’ll likely purchase the PSN+ subscription. The best deal seems to be the one year at $50. Since I already saved $50 on the console, I’m enough ahead of the game (pun intended) to pay for the first year’s subscription.
So: That’s my first impressions thus far. I like it. My game library is now opened up to all of the new games that are available. I won’t have to deal with any more “limited” games as my son had to deal with for Call of Duty: Black Ops III on the PS3 version. (In fact, he’s away this weekend and hasn’t gotten the news I upgraded the system, he’ll be pretty thrilled when he gets home!)
I just have to decide what to do with my PS3 now. I can either keep it around as a set-top box for when I finish my man cave, or keep it to play the library of PS3 games. Alternatively, I could go to Gamestop and sell it, and all the games and recover some cash. I haven’t decided yet.
I look forward to forming some more opinions of the PS4 as time goes on.
Travel and Mobility 