Last week, Sony held it’s first “Playstation Experience”, a two-day fan focused expo in Las Vegas. Both Microsoft and Nintendo need to sit up and start taking notes. The Playstation Experience is an expo done right. It has generated more interest in me (and the internet at large) for the future of the PS4. Speaking of which, that future looks bright! You remember those Playstation Commercials for Uncharted 2? The one with Kevin Butler where the guy’s girlfriend thinks the game is a movie? Here’s a reminder (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QjuO5kwQh8). Well, that’s how I felt watching the gameplay footage for Uncharted 4, my jaw literally dropped watching just 25 minutes of gameplay, I can only imagine what the full game will be like! Sony has come a long way since the PS3 launch days. It realizes that at the end of the day, it is the exclusives that are going to make or break the console and it is very quick to remind us that Uncharted will be a PS4 exclusive.
Of course, that wasn’t the only exclusive that was teased to fans during the expo. Sony scored a huge coup when it announced that Street Fighter V would also be exclusive to PS4 (and PC’s) Sure there’s other notable fighting game franchises but the influence and reach of Street Fighter can’t be understated. This game on its own will cause people who have been sitting on the fence to pick a side. Sony wasn’t done though: it also announced the exclusive “Drawn to Death” which comes with one of the best pedigrees in the business, David Jaffe of Twisted Metal and God of War fame. This man has earned the trust of gamers over and over again, people will not think twice about playing a game he develops and that’s exactly what Sony is banking on.
The expo did an amazing job of highlighting other exclusives we had seen before, Bloodborne and The Order: 1886. It’s important to keep people excited about these games and I think that Sony pulled it off with their extended demo time. More importantly, the convention floor was littered with kiosks for you to try out many of the games (some even in alpha states!) that had been announced or had upcoming releases. While I didn’t attend the expo in person, it made me want to attend the future ones. I’m excited for the PS4 lineup; to me it’s not a question of whether I’ll get the system but WHEN i’m going to get the system.
The Final Fantasy 7 troll was not cool though, Sony! That was a low blow!
Nintendo isn’t in as bad of a place as Microsoft here believe it or not. Their regular Nintendo Direct videos have been a fantastic way for them to communicate with their core audience and keep them excited, but Microsoft should be worried. All they have going for them currently is a $50 discount off their console and a Tomb Raider game with limited exclusivity. Come on Microsoft, make me excited about what you got!