LogFAQs > #947270625

It really was a generation of two halves, both in terms of software lineup (genuinely bad until mid-2016 and really good afterwards) and systems. At launch the PS4 was basically just a souped up previous gen machine, not even a PS3, it was more like a polished 360. It did everything you wanted from a 360/PS3 era machine with regards to features, 1080p, and so on, but I can't really think of anything major at or near launch that wasn't there in the gen before. The only thing is suspend mode, and even that took a while to get patched in right? On the other hand the Xbox One had some features that absolutely were a clear step up from what had come before, but also those were things that people didn't necessarily want, more importantly were atrociously communicated, and largely ended up getting dropped. Even the games just looked like 360/PS3 games with more particles for the first two and a half years.

Then at about the three year mark things started to change. You started getting not only really good games, but games like Uncharted 4 and Doom which clearly looked like a step up from the previous gen. You had the half-step consoles which could do 4k, and also VR and HDR on the base consoles which were definitely distinct from the gen before. So my answer would be kinda, but it took a long time to get there.

Now, PS5 and Xbox Series X seem like a much bigger leap. You get the sense that in 2013 people genuinely weren't sure if there was much of a role left for traditional console generations and we'd switch to more of a PC model, but now the feeling is like "yes there are still new generational leaps we can do". And that's a good thing, I was really over consoles when the last ones launched but I'm excited to get a PS5 next year.

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I just decided to change this sig.
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