ps3

Playstation Knobs That Could Have A Unique Tone

June 7, 2020 Design
Playstation Buttons

If you’ve been a kind of a gamer, you can’t miss out on those 4 colourful ubiquitous signs of the PlayStation controller. On the other hand, there are chances that you completely miss their significance beyond using them as primary controls for interacting with the game environment. PlayStation logo and product designer Teiyu Goto explains the real reason behind choosing symbols over alphabets, which previous generation consoles were already doing, and it makes total sense:

Other game companies at the time assigned alphabet letters or colors to the buttons. We wanted something simple to remember, which is why we went with icons or symbols, and I came up with the triangle-circle-X-square combination immediately afterward. I gave each symbol a meaning and a color. The triangle refers to viewpoint; I had it represent one’s head or direction and made it green. Square refers to a piece of paper; I had it represent menus or documents and made it pink. The circle and X represent ‘yes’ or ‘no’ decision-making and I made them red and blue respectively. People thought those colors were mixed up, and I had to reinforce to management that that’s what I wanted.

Techcrunch

It’s not so much the design or the use of geometric shapes which are just perfect for a suggestion method & recall during the gaming interaction, but the colours of the ‘circle’ and the X that has got me all knotted up — based on Goto’s theory the ‘yes’ or ‘no’ decision markers should have been green and red. Ultimately, the buttons serve a different purpose today regardless of their conceptual origins. Speaking of which, maybe the red and blue for ‘yes’ and ‘no’ might find its inspiration from the Japanese traditions and culture?

It’s widely noted that more often than not colours are mere tools for marking a differentiation on the user-interface with the element, just like the four different shades of the geometric shapes. Today, one could conclude that the green, red, blue, and pink tones on the Playstation consoles are not just any colours but elements that are identified by an entire gaming generation as the basis for creating a strategy with a recreational intent, and for making advancements into the story. The time to make those subtle changes in the colours might have passed a long time ago.

PS Vita – A Diehard Fan’s Ultimate Eulogy

September 24, 2018 General Happenings Technology
PS Vita
The PS Vita (Metallic Red) version which was exclusively launched in Japan in 2016. 

I was kind of expecting this update for some time now so there were no surprises for me in discovering that Sony has decided to put an end to the manufacturing and supply of the PlayStation (PS) Vita through 2019. This handheld gaming platform which received a well-deserved upgrade 4 years ago in the form of PS Vita Slim is sadly going to be buried forever. Personally, I was never able to push the potential of the gadget, which I bought when it launched in North America in 2014; beyond playing the Uncharted – Golden Abyss, with other exclusive titles such as Killzone Mercenary and WipeOut 2048; and Mortal Kombat. In fact, it was the storyline of the Uncharted series that kept me hooked to the Vita for the duration of its gameplay and I bagged the Platinum trophy as well, but it also left me lurking in the dark about why some of the other more popular franchises such as the Second Son or Crash Bandicoot (available on the Switch) for that matter, weren’t introduced on this handheld platform. Presumably, Sony’s gaming studios were more focused on developing games for the PlayStation 4.

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PlayStation Virtual Reality

November 7, 2015 Design Technology

The Paris Games Week (PGW) concluded last week and I watched the PlayStation media event.

What has fascinated me from the beginning with the PlayStation (PS) console is the ‘Uncharted’ (UC) and ‘InFamous’ titles. ‘Uncharted – Among Thieves’ was the first title (Part 2 in the series actually) that I got my hands on , and I was completely stunned with the gameplay and the graphics. It’s much like watching a movie actually. After that I have played almost all the ‘Uncharted’ titles to date. The much anticipated ‘Uncharted 4 – A Thief’s End’ was announced at the PGW to be released on 18-March 2016, it’s the last title in this ambitious series. The sadness over its culmination has overtaken the excitement from the launch. Guerrilla Games’ ‘Horizons Zero Dawn’ was good in terms of gameplay.

But the highlight of the event for me was definitely the demonstration of PlayStation VR. While Facebook has longterm goals for Oculus, Sony has already announced some terrific exclusive titles like ‘Robinson – The Journey’ for the VR platform, and many others. Looks like VR may finally become a mainstream reality soon and can’t wait to get my hands on it.

Gaming – What’s Hot, What’s Not.

July 20, 2014 General Technology

It happens quite often, I’m in a game shop looking for a title and I cannot wrap my head around which title I should buy! There are tons of titles for PS3 to choose from which makes my job difficult. 4 things that help me get what I want always:

Game Reviews
First and foremost I head over to IGN to see what the experts have to say. IGN has a pretty interesting rating system that helps in making a choice, but please remember that gaming is all about personal preferences much like movies are. Always go with that gut feel while reading the review. However ratings give you that inside look as to how a game feels helps you in making an informed choice. There are other websites that offer review based ratings such as Metacritic. Also Wikipedia is another awesome choice for a one-stop-shop gaming knowledge.

Story
It’s not always the boom-booms and the melee attacks that make up for an entertaining title. A story also contributes in making the game more interesting and immersive. I have always been an Uncharted series fan throughout, to me it holds all the entertaining values that an ideal game should have. Not to mention the cinematic experience typical of an Indiana Jones movie. After aren’t games are supposed to entertain us? Pick a game that has a good storyline so even if you are tired with the gameplay the story doesn’t let you down. If you are bored to wits’ end you can always go back to play that amazing story and relive those moments all over again. With Uncharted it’s always like acting in a movie as Nathan Drake! Trust me on that.

Gameplay
Speaking of gameplay, it’s about interacting with the characters using an external peripheral such as the game controller or the Move controller (PlayStation). For instance in ‘Uncharted-Drake’s Fortune’ when Drake walks on a log you have to tilt the controller sideways in order to help Drake maintain balance or he falls down into the stream below and dies. In the Killzone series the controller has to be moved in a circular motion to unlock a door, just like you would open a safety vault. This clever tactic of using external peripherals to control the game’s story brings lot of intrigue to the game making it interesting to play, hence the gameplay is an important factor in choosing a game. The game controller or the Move controller also has the ability to vibrate at certain points during the game which adds to the immersive value of the title. Of course you can’t know the gameplay for every title before buying that game unless a friend tells you or you read it online.

Fanboy
Honestly if there weren’t exclusive titles like Uncharted, inFamous or Killzone on the PlayStation it’d have made life boring. That’s not to say there aren’t good titles available on PS3 but you get my point – it’s called fanboyism. It’s what makes you buy titles regardless of what the world says because you enjoy playing them the most. One of the deals for me for buying a gaming console was the availability of a vast library of exclusive titles and PlayStation made the cut for me. Uncharted and inFamous are my most beloved game titles and whenever a new edition is released I pick it up without hesitation. Unfortunately both these titles have moved to PS4 now.

YouTube
Another brilliant way to help you choose a game title is to watch the gameplay. Nothing comes close to experiencing the real stuff than to head over to YouTube and see the walkthroughs (or watch a friend play). I cannot imagine any game title that doesn’t have a detailed walkthrough or a trophy guide uploaded on YouTube, the gaming community needs to be thanked for this a zillion times! Not only do these videos help you choose a title – the graphics, storyline, audio, etc. can be vividly captured and reviewed, but they also help if you are stuck on a difficult story level or busy harnessing trophies. Take full advantage of this priceless medium.

Price
Speaking of price, if you are just a casual gamer the cost of a game would matter to you a lot. Games can be a costly affair and brand new titles range anywhere from C$50-70. Most games are left untouched after you play them once while some of them are left incomplete because you lose interest mid-way and gather dust on the shelf. The best part about gaming is that the fun value or the excitement is not diminished if you buy traded games. And if you are not a serious gamer this will matter to you a lot in the longer run. I prefer to buy used titles at EB Games and I have never been disappointed with the quality they offer. The difference in price can be a lot as compared to a brand new title but it also depends on the life of the title – older titles cost less than more recent ones which are traded. Pay a visit to an outlet and start browsing the games, you never know which title will hit the target for you. Also if you are holding on to a game title that you haven’t touched for many months and is lying around the house, unless if you are really a collector of titles give it up for trading and share the joy of gaming with other gamers. They will bless you for your righteous deed.

Happy gaming!