Start Your Engines! (now with gifs)

ZOMG PLAYSTATION 4!!!!!!!1!

Mind = blown

Okay, so maybe the announcement wasn't that mind-blowing, but it certainly wasn't as lackluster as some of Sony's recent E3 press conferences. There weren't any giant crabs, massive damage, or RIIIIIDGE RACER references. I'm a little curious where Jack Tretton was, but I'll live without seeing him.

So.....PS4. It's real, and it'll be here before Christmas (most likely).

Kevin Butler is amazed, even though Sony just sued him.

To sum up the event, I'd have to say that Sony certainly seems to think social media is the next brave frontier for console gaming. I don't want to say they're wrong, but I will agree that there is some promise in the foundation they have laid.

Let's start with the hardware. I'm not a technical expert by any means, but 8GB of GDDR5 RAM is...incredible. From the press conference, it seems this memory will be used for a vast number of things, such as background downloads, saving game state for quick startup, massive particle counts, etc.  Apparently the PS3 only had 512GB of a lesser flavor of RAM, so this leap is gigantic. Then, there is the new controller:

Meet the DualShock 4.

Not too different, really. The big changes are the blue light on the front (we'll come back to that in a bit) and a touch pad between the face and directional buttons. Smaller changes include more rounded edges and slight redesign of stick and shoulder button shape/contour/texture. The blue light will be used with a sensor bar that will apparently come with the console so the controller's position in 3D space can be tracked, similar to Move.

Well played, Sony. But, you forgot three things: price, release date, and the console. Sure, you want to save it for E3. I get that, but isn't this the same problem Nintendo had with the Wii U? I'll trust your judgement for now, but you better wow me. I've got my eyes on you.

What's next? How about interconnectivity? CrossPlay and second screen sound as if they will be getting expanded upon exponentially. Vita may one day act a lot like Wii U's gamepad, acting as not only a second screen, but a way to play games away from your TV. Sony also plans to keep using tablets and phones as other means to expand gameplay and social interaction.

Speak of the devil: Social. This is one of the most terrifyingly intriguing aspects of the whole PS4 experience. One of the new features of the controller I left out is the "Share" button. I think I really like the concept of sharing my gaming experience. Not only can you tell your friends what you're playing while you're playing it, you can also share video of your gameplay session to social media (hereafter referred to Facebook and Twitter, because we all know that's where this is going). On top of this, the plan is that you'll be able to stream your gaming, having friends comment on your stream while you're playing, and even take control when you chose to let them. My initial reaction to all of this is generally positive.

It's even enough to soften up Ron Swanson.

I've wanted to share a lot of my gaming experiences with friends, but never had the means. PS4 has it built in. The idea of streaming gameplay to friends and letting them take control feels like long distance hot-seat play ("Dude, it's my turn!" or "You suck, let me kill this boss for you."), which sounds like a great way to connect friends and family over long distances. But, then the doubt sets in. I don't want someone to take over my game, whether I allow them to or not. There is also a security concern, which must be kept in mind when you consider PSN's history. Then, the added level of interconnectivity with other devices starts making me feel a little technophobic. It feels too much like a slippery slope leading to less and less human interaction while we're all burying ourselves in device screens. This is how the world will end...

That's the first PS4 arriving to stores.

Another focus of Sony's meeting was their partnership with Gaikai, the leader in streamed gaming that Sony purchased last year. What does this mean, exactly? Immediacy, essentially. Sony's plan is to make portions of games available for instant streaming to act as demos. Great! PS4 will also try to predict your gaming tastes and habits so the it can proactively download what it thinks you'll be interested in next. Again, I'm a little conflicted.

Ooh, that's good. Don't like that. But, this is awesome. Wait...no...damn it.

As far as games go, not much was shown off. We got confirmation that Watch Dogs will be on PS4, as well as Bungie's new IP, Destiny. There's a new Killzone and Infamous (which looks pretty sweet), too. Media Molecule showed off what I think is one of the most clever uses of Move (or Kinect, even) so far: 3D sculpting, basically. I can't see what they use that to create.

The biggest surprise, though, was that Diablo III is coming to PS4 and PS3. Some D3 fans seem to be none to happy with this. But, Blizzard seems to be getting back into the console game, folks! Perhaps they'll finally make Starcraft Ghost (fat chance), or the mysterious "Project Titan" will be on consoles. Only time will tell...or Blizzcon, maybe.

My cautious optimism for the PS4 was a good stance to take pre-announcement, and has only increased. I think the majority of the PS4 specs and features sound great, especially the massive RAM, what that means for how the console will perform, and what the Gaikai partnership can provide. More details on games, the physical machine's appearance, release date and price would have been great. I'm guessing Sony's holding on to all of this until E3, the sly devils. For now, we'll just have to save our pennies for "Holiday 2013."

The question that has to be begged now is, what does Microsoft have waiting in the wings? More Kinect? More exclusives? Will they also be focusing on immediate access to games and social integration? How will the next Xbox hardware stack up? The ball's in your court now, Microsoft.

Haven't you done enough damage, Kratos? Geez.