Console

Last of The PS4 Games

PS4 Games: Final Releases Before The Big Launch

Without further ado, the announcement of the PS5 launch has meant that I’ve to say farewell to the PS4 games which have seen the last of its 2 major releases in successive months. Since it’s the end of a fruitful and glorious journey before the big launch of PS5, to say the least, it made complete sense therefore to get the special editions of The Last of Us Part II and the Ghost of Tsushima, but I will come to that in a bit.

Although launched in 2013 I caught up with PS4 gaming only a few years down the line after it was announced that the ‘Uncharted – A Thief’s End’ would be the final instalment with Nathan Drake’s adventures. It’s no secret that I’m a huge fan of treasure hunting and adventure games, including the Tomb Raider series. But back then I was still finishing up with my PS3 game catalogue and such titles like Sleeping Dogs, Spec Ops: The Line, MotorStorm: Pacific Rift, Burnout Paradise, Guacamelee, The Last of Us, just to name a few from a long list keep me busy — it’s a different discussion on why I couldn’t complete most of them after experiencing the game graphics that PS4 had to offer!

My most fundamental memory of the PS4 games would be the design of the DualShock 4 controller, and the innovation of the TouchPad, etc. It’s most striking example was inFamous – Second Son where you could use the controller to draw graffiti on the buildings or emulate a DNA test by putting your finger on a certain corner of the touch-pad. Just brilliant!

Why Sucker Punch added touch controls to Infamous: Second Son

PS4 Games Have Its Own Aura

I’ll always be a fan of the action/adventure genre and without a doubt, some of my favourite titles on the PS4 will always be, the Tomb Raider trilogy — Definitive Edition, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Shadow of Tomb Raider, the Uncharted franchise that includes the Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection, Uncharted: A Thief’s End, and Uncharted: The Lost Legacy (I can’t wait for the next Uncharted title on PS5). Then comes the remastered versions of Burnout Paradise and The Last of Us, and last but not the least, the 19th-century sci-fi adventure of The Order 1886. To say the least, I’ve mostly played exclusive titles (check below), and to that coveted list, I will now add the final PS4 games of The Last of Us Part II and Ghost of Tsushima.

Some notable PS4 Releases over the years.

There wasn’t a dull moment ever during any of those immersive gameplays, except for that one boss fight in inFamous – Second Son that made me abandon the game completely. Admittedly, I’ve only played a handful of titles on my PS4, mostly exclusives like I said, and persisted with some franchises that I’ve carried forward from my PS3 experiences. For instance, the expansive landscapes and the treasure hunt of the Uncharted series, the stealth gameplay and the gruesome puzzles of Tomb Raider, or even the sheer joy of racing a Renault Cleo through the rainy environs of the Bandipur sanctuary in India in Driveclub. Now with rumours abound of PS5’s backwards compatibility with PS4 games I’m definitely playing some of them again. For now, I will enjoy the last exclusive titles on PS4.

Quite Different Special Editions!

Speaking of which, I was disappointed with the Ghost of Tsushima Special Edition straight up. For example, the special edition pack for The Last of Us Part II bough just a month apart was loaded with goodies such as the artbook by Dark Horse Comics; a treat for art & illustration lovers, then there are double discs which include the soundtrack of the game.

Basically, when you buy the Special Edition (SE) of any PS4 game it shouldn’t feel like you missed out on a whole lot of stuff simply because the high-end Collector’s Editions have tons to offer but are always sold out no matter what! The SE is a way of rewarding the customer with stuff that’s really worth cherishing.

Coming from that experience I had a lot of expectations from the Ghost of Tsushima special edition pack but I was totally misled. There was no book included with it – it comes only with the Collector’s Edition which is always hoarded, and the rest of the items were a digital-only download. Going forward, my only wish is that Sony/PlayStation defines standards for what constitutes a ‘Collector’s Edition’ versus a ‘Special Edition’, and give it’s content a uniform structure across its marketing strategy.

TLOU_Special Edition

PS4 20th Anniversary Limited Edition

Go, Gone, Poof!

If you’re fretting and fuming over losing the chance to buy the PS4 20th Anniversary Limited Edition console today in Canada, I’d suggest DON’T! I am sure there’s a long line of Canadians doing just that over the last few hours. Sony commemorated 20 years of the launch of the PSOne by producing one great PS4 console design calling it the “PS4 20th Anniversary Limited Edition”, LIMITED in true sense of the word not just marketing gimmickry. Since the original PSOne was launched on 3-Dec or 12/3 they decided to produce only 12,300 of the PS4s worldwide. Just 12,300 can you believe it!! (lucky they didn’t go for just 123 pieces because that’d have been awkward).

The Japanese were the first to get their hands on this rare masterpiece on 3-Dec-14, and the Canadians today and I was keeping an eye on @PlaystationCA in the hope of some early news of this rare console launch. Here’s how I had hoped things would have worked – the tweet would have included a future date and a time when the link would go online on Sony’s online store, I would stay prepared with my CC and boom! But this happened today when I was away from my notebook for just 10 minutes only. Now I wasn’t told that the link would come and go *poof* within minutes. That’s insanity!

PlaystationCA Tweet

And I can’t even say I was “too late” because when I returned things had changed drastically in a matter of minutes! (I almost cursed myself “what was I doing in those 10 minutes?”)

PlaystationCA Tweet

 

So I resign to the fact that with just 12,300 units worldwide it was practically impossible to get my hands on one of them. Congrats to everyone who could buy it. Kudos to you. I am really envious, just so you know.

Here’s what I have to tell Sony though – you always disappoint me. Be it the incessant hacking of your servers (this has now become like an annual hacker party where everybody’s invited) where my privacy is compromised, or the multiple account ID issues on PS Vita/PSN. And now losing the chance of acquiring a masterpiece, a collector’s item which got you fixated on the launch date. Agreed you had to commemorate the launch of the console but getting serious about a number (12/3) that practically makes no sense WORLDWIDE when you consider the colossal gamer community Playstation has! (the ones who supported you by buying your PS consoles and titles for 20 long years!). It’s so pitiful to know that you had to celebrate this memorable gaming moment with your fans with only 12,300 units! Tsk tsk.