Sony has made a major announcement and appearance at the 2014 Computer Electronics Show, announcing what may be the future of the PlayStation brand. Sony has announced PlayStation Now, a game streaming service that allows you to stream PlayStation games to almost any device. You will be able to stream games to the PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Vita, to phones, tablets and TVs. This new streaming service is from Gaikai, a video game streaming company that Sony purchased in 2012.
The games are streamed via the internet and wifi, so a reliable and quick internet connection is needed. At CES 2014, Sony demonstrated the service with the PS3 games: The Last of Us, God of War: Ascension, Puppeteer and Beyond: Two Souls, being playable via the Vita and the Sony Bravia TVs. This service will also allow PlayStation and PlayStation 2 games to be streamed, acting as a form of backwards compatibility for the PS4. The games will not be free, and will require either a single payment or a subscription fee, if you want more than one playable game.
In regards to non consoles, such as the TV and tablets, they require the use of a Dualshock controller. Due to the lack of buttons and needed functionalities of the products, a controller is needed to play the game. It may be a bit cumbersome since it won’t be purely mobile and that the controller is a costly accessory.
Sony hasn’t announced the lineup for PlayStation Now, or what games will be available for the service. The PlayStation Network does currently offer PlayStation Portable and the original PlayStation games, but only a select bunch. In addition, this may raise some concerns to multiplayer games as the connection would be used to stream rather than playing against other players.
Sony has announced that they have plans to introduce PlayStation Now in the United States in late 2014. A beta of the service started in late January. A 5Mbps internet connection is recommended for the service. In regards to the European release, it won’t be for a long while.
Source Article #2 – The Verge
Source Article and Images – The Verge
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