PlayStation 4 will cost 399 USD in USA and 399 Euro in Europe – 100 USD/Euro less than the Xbox One - and it is coming this Holiday season. It is a simple two-piece, black box. From now on it will cost money to play online multi-player games but there are no restrictions on used games. Sony also talked more about games at E3.

PlayStation 4 will cost 399 USD, coming this Holiday
When the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles launched, the PlayStation was the most expensive of the two. Fast forward to 2013 and the roles have swapped. The PlayStation 4 will be 100 USD/Euro cheaper than the direct competitor. Both will be available before Christmas in select markets.


PlayStation 4 is a small black box

Sony did not share an exact date but November is probably a good guess as Sony would want to get it out in stores before Christmas sales. As for design, this is the first time we see the actual PlayStation 4 console. At the E3 presentation, Sony revealed the small box that has a two-piece black design. It is not very big either.

Sony did not talk as much about games as Microsoft did but Sony did not have to because they unveiled most details on the gaming aspect back in February. However, a few new game titles were announced such as The Order 1866. You can see the game trailer with in-game sequences below.



In addition, Sony announced new Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III games. Sony also gave us the first glimpse of in-game sequences from the much-anticipated Destiny that was announced to huge applauses at the first PlayStation event.



Lastly, Sony talked about games from independent game developers. Sony will continue to support indie games and had some interesting titles to show off. And we know from experience that some of the indie games er amazing.


PlayStation 4 will cost 399 USD / 399 Euro

To read more about the game titles for the PlayStation see our previous article here.

Cloud gaming and used games
Sony talked about cloud gaming during the first event and they expanded a bit on the topic at E3. PlayStation 4 will not only support cloud gaming but have some neat features integrated that utilizes the cloud. Sony still plans to use Gaikai’s streaming technology.

First and foremost, the cloud gaming service will enable PS4 owners to play PS3 games. The PS4 console cannot play PS3 Blu-ray games but instead you can access them from the cloud and stream the games to your console. In addition, Sony will let users start a game or demo shortly after clicking download.  The rest of the game will download and install in the background.


PlayStation 4 has a new game controller – but it is not that different

However, Sony’s cloud gaming service will not be available from launch but will arrive some time during 2014. There are still many details that Sony refused to share at this point so expect more later.

Sony’s policy on used games looks considerably more attractive than Microsoft’s. Sony says that you can borrow games to whomever you wish and you can sell or give away games as many times as you want. Sony has no internet check either. The crowd at the press conference loved it.

Inside the PlayStation is a 500 GB hard drive that can be replaced with a larger-capacity hard drive. PS4 has 1 HDMI and 1 optical audio output as well as 2 USB 3.0 ports.

Online gaming will cost money
But there is also bad news for Sony supporters. Sony has decided that online gaming will require a PlayStation Plus subscription. So, if you want to play online multi-player games you will have to pay. Microsoft has used the same concept for years but on the PlayStation3 it was free to jump into online games.

PlayStation Plus will cost around 50 USD per year and will also offer game discounts, cloud saving abilities and more. On the other hand, Sony does not require you to have a PlayStation Plus subscription to stream from streaming services such as Netflix. 

You can obviously play single-player games without PlayStation Plus.

Sony PlayStation 4 will be available in USA and Europe for 399 USD and 399 Euro, respectively. Included in the box is 1 Dual Shock controller. The camera is optional. You can also learn more about PlayStation 4 here.

Are you buying the PS4?