Topic: How would the PS4.5 and XB1.5 change the prospects of NX success?

Admittedly I've not read anything about the PS and XB rumours, but I can't help feeling that at the moment it's really just a bit of padding talk to stop NX getting all the specs attention this year.

The focus of this chatter seems to be on 4k. I've never experienced 4k - how does the leap compare (visually, not the boring numbers) from 1080p to the leap from SD to HD?

@gcunit: its significant. It mostly benefits games with high amount of detail in the environment. A great example of this is SW:Battlefront were playing in 1440p makes the environment almost lifelike. Thats just 1440p, imagine the level of clarity it will get when it 4k.

@WebHead:
Yeah, 4K games isn't going to happen. Not with a mid-gen refresh anyways. But a 10-50% boost in performance could get things running smoother. Some games that dip bellow the target framerate are less likely to and obviously they could render better frames at a similar rate. Higher resolutions, more AA and so on. But not 4K.

But they could also add other things just in general. They could move to HDMI 2.0 which would bring with it better colour and of course support for displaying at 4K 60fps. They could add H.265 hardware decoding which would mean effortless playback of 4K BluRays. They could bump the WiFi spec up to wireless AC. Maybe they even add stuff like USB 3.1. There are more than a few nice things that have appeared on the scene since the PS4 launched.

Here's my PS4K Expectations:
-HDMI 2.0
-4K Blu-Ray Drive
-5 Ghz/AC Wifi
-No exclusive games but games do run better on PS4K if developer chooses to
-Can work with PSVR without need of the breakout box.

@WebHead:
Yup, pretty much in line with what I'd expect. Though to be pedantic as I love to do there isn't any difference between a 4K Blu-Ray drive and a normal one. 4K Blu-Ray and standard Blu-Ray use the same disks, it's the content that's different. Because of that the drive on a 4K BluRay player is the same. It just has hardware H.265 decoding that can handle 4K and HDMI 2.0 to display it. Things the PS4 doesn't have.

@skywake: well...that works too! Again no exclusive or 4k native AAA games, too expensive. Its not like 3DS where it costs $10 mill for development at the most modern big budget console games are usually much more than that. Plus Sony has 4k tvs to sell, so if any of the 3 push 4k it will be Sony. And have a 4k version of the PS4 is their best shot.

In comparison, it's marginal. You need to sit pretty close to the TV to get the full "WOW!" factor.

"for a 84-inch screen, 4k resolution isn’t fully apparent until you are at least 5.5 feet or closer to the screen. For a “tiny” 55-inch screen, you’ll need to be 3.5 feet or closer."
http://carltonbale.com/does-4k-resolution-matter/

So basically nothing in most homes.

@gcunit: Don't ask me! I watch a football match on TV and round about the 42 minute mark I remember I have sky HD and switch channel. When I am involved in something...1080p becomes secondary lol.

I sit 10 feet away from a 32 inch TV... I am probably not getting the full HD effect already lol.

If I got a 4K set I'd probably get a bigger model and likely sit in the same spots. According to the chart linked I'd only see the benefits of 4K in the closest seats with a 55" set. Of course at my PC it's a different story. According to that chart I'd get the "full benefits" of 4K with most monitors given I sit only 2' away.

Of course for games it's a bit more complicated than that. With something shot with a camera IRL there's always amazing AA. You effectively have an infinite number of samples for each pixel. Every pixel is 99% right plus a bit of noise. For games? Not so much. Pixels will be the wrong colour especially on the edges of objects. Rendering at a higher resolution? More samples.

Basically with a movie if you sit too far away from 4K it's effectively just 1080p maybe with a bit less noise and better colour. Especially given that 4K sources will pretty much always be at a higher bitrate. For games though if you sit too far back 4K is like 1080p with 4x AA except that the colour receptors in your eyes do the final calculation.

Incidentally, NeoGAF seems to be having a meltdown over rumors about the PS4K being significantly more powerful than the PS4; this makes me think that if this is true, Nintendo has a huge opportunity to win over customers to the NX. All they have to do is promise not to do what Sony's doing with the PS4K.

Then again, this does rely on said rumors being true (or at least accurate) and not another hoax like those NX controllers. And I'm taking a strict "rumors are BS until proven otherwise" position, just for the record.

@MysteryMan23: Don't underestimate Microsoft, those potential NX customers may just head to XB1 instead.

@MysteryMan23: I agree in theory as for all intents and purposes, 3rd party support notwithstanding, Nintendo supported the Wii U for 4 years roughly (2012-14) before moving onto the NX whilst Sony have given the PS4 approximately 3 (2013-16) before moving onto the PS4.5. Of cours the key thing to bear in mind is that the PS4 will continue to be supported whilst the Wii U probably won't be, but as you say a huge number of people who have a PS4 are not happy with this news, myself included. Nintendo could use this as a good PR opportunity to win people over to their one system as opposed to Sony having to pacify PS4 owners and selling the 4.5 edition at the same time, and it looks like Microsoft will be in the same boat.

I'm still trying to wrap my head around who exactly benefits from all this, of course the fact that it's still rumours and guesswork makes it all the more confusing but I believe that Nintendo couldn't have had Sony/Microsoft do them a bigger favour than what is rumoured to be in the works, if they can make their new system more appealing than either of the two upgrades, they could capitalise on the discontent and win big.

I'm very intrigued...

Another thought: if it turns out that the PS4K is very close in power to the baseline PS4, such that games made for the PS4K can run on the PS4 without much of a sacrifice, that provides an opening for the NX to overpower the PS4K as well as the baseline PS4; all of a sudden, Nintendo has the strongest system on the market. Thus, Sony still has a problem on their hands.

The way I see it, these half-generation systems don't really threaten the NX much at all; with or without these systems, it all comes down to how great a system NX is and how well Nintendo sells it.

@MysteryMan23: I don't know. These half-generation systems are targeting those that haven't upgraded yet, which is probably the best audience for Nintendo to also target. The half-generation machines have the added advantage of A) having cheaper models on the market and B) a larger library of games. B could be helped by NX being backwards compatible but if the Wii U isn't doing well, then ports or BC probably won't help much. (But that doesn't make me expect BC any less) Price is probably the biggest factor but PS4 and XB1 will still be sold and be a cheaper price. I don't think Nintendo is going to release a system that is vastly more powerful than PS4.5 or XB1.5 because that would be way too expensive. The best we can hope for from Nintendo, in my opinion, would be slightly more powerful than PS4.5 or XB1.5 and just run games better than those systems. Like you said, it all comes down to how great a system the NX is, but I think they have more of a struggle in front of them.

@DefHalan: Unless their next home console is also PPC, BC probably isn't going to happen.

@DefHalan: I fear Nintendo are basing the NX specs on the original PS4 and Xbox One, and never considered the idea of either of them producing a half generation revision. Therefore I can see the NX being more in line with the PS4 in specs which could prove a problem especially if the price is still higher than the PS4 and Xbox One are currently on the market at.

@Octane: That didn't stop Xbox One from getting BC in their system. lol

@FragRed: If it is closer to PS4 and XB1 then the price needs to be closer to those systems. It will still have the hype factor of a new piece of hardware but not sure how much attention it could steal lol.

@DefHalan: True. Nintendo really needs to showcase a pretty damn impressive library of launch titles if they are to steal back the thunder of the potential PS4.5 and Xbox One.Two. And then do something bigger to wow everyone. Kinda go all out with the reveal.