Remembering The…PS4

We’re up to the penultimate article in this series here, and we’re bouncing back to the world of home consoles once again. Technically, I did actually experience two PlayStation consoles prior to this one (we had a PS2 growing up, and I own a PSVita) but I had so little to say about the two of them, and so little overall time spent playing/using them, that I decided not to commit to doing full articles on them. But the PlayStation 4? Well, it’s my most-played console of all time, so it should come as no surprise that I have just a bit to say about it…

Let’s get into things!

The Console

Definitely the sleekest and most simple console we’ve seen so far in this article series.

But, visually speaking, does it need to be anything more than this? It’s a thin, light-weight (shockingly light-weight, if you have the Slim version) box that does everything it needs to without bells or whistles. Two controller ports, power button, disc eject button (the discs are inserted through a built-in slot, not a pop-open top, which is always a plus), all those fun cords and stuff in the back. A shockingly portable console, all things considered, and one that I’ve carted around hundreds of times to friend’s houses or my brother’s apartment. Oh, and it’s also a Blu-ray player, which is an amazing bonus, and it’s fully capable of running all modern streaming apps.

Power-wise, the PS4 is a bit of a beast. Sure, year by year we get meatier machines that inch closer to real-life graphics, but the PS4 still stuns even now. Exceptionally beautiful quality and power in this machine, with games that will still wow you. It’s not always the fastest-running machine in the world (boot-up time takes thirty seconds or so, the PlayStation store can run a bit slow, etc.), but it’s not too bad. The PS4 is also infamous for sounding like a jet engine blasting during graphically intensive gaming sessions, but I can’t say I ever really experienced that myself.

The Controller

It’s the peak of controller design. It just is, plain and simple.

Like, there’s a reason that this is the controller supported by all PC games, without the need of extra bells or whistles to hook up your accessories. It connects straight to the console/computer with a USB cord, it has wireless Bluetooth that you can use instead if you prefer (I’ve always just weirdly liked keeping my controllers plugged in even when the battery is full), and all the buttons you could ever need for any sort of game, even button-intensive PC games. It’s even got two different shoulder buttons and the secret L3 and R3 by clicking in the analog sticks.

It’s a little bit of a shame that Sony has essentially cracked the code on an amazing, accessible, and comfortable controller, because we’re liable to only see iterative versions of this thing in the future (a statement proven by the PS5’s controller). Still, I can’t knock a controller as great as this one. My favorite things about it have to be the speakers (some games play audio straight from the controller, like the radio stations in Spider-Man), and the touchpad. That big rectangle in the middle is touch-controlled, which is super neat, but you know what is even cooler? Each half of the touch pad can be separately clicked-in (like the L3/R3 analog sticks), allowing for two new buttons should a game developer take advantage of that!

Cultural Impact

Talking about the cultural impact of the PlayStation is a bit strange, because talking about the cultural impact of most of Sony’s consoles is a bit strange. The PSONE established Sony as a gaming giant, and the PS2 is the best selling console of all time. But beyond that? Sony mostly just keeps doing what they do well, which is making solid consoles and amazing games. They rake in millions, and us video game enthusiasts are happy. But culturally? It’s not like there have been any major shake-ups because of the PS4 or anything. About the most culturally relevant moment was when Microsoft utterly butchered the launch of their Xbox One by announcing the console would essentially mark your disc-based games as your personal copy, and thus not allow you to share them with friends. PlayStation countered with a hilarious twenty second ad about ‘How To Share Games on PS4‘ in which two Sony developers handed a disc between each other and then smile.

The larger impact of the PS4 culturally would be in how it impacted gamers and gaming communities. Some of these impacts happened in-system, like how the PS4 had this neat feature (not carried over to the PS5, sadly) called ‘Communities‘, which was essentially like sub-Reddits but built into the PS4 infrastructure. The PS4 also had Themes to customize your console with (also not carried over to the PS5, much to my dismay), allowing you to change the background and even sound effects and music of the console menus. And then obviously the console excelled with games, launching brand-new big name series like Horizon Zero Dawn and the God of War reboot duology, alongside the Insomniac Spider-Man games, and so much more.

Favorite Games

It’s incalculable the number of amazing games on the PlayStation that I got to experience, all because back in 2016 I had such an irresistible desire to play Overwatch that I finally bought a PS4. I could talk for hours about the amazing games and series that I’ve since discovered in those years (seriously, gaming-wise (and even possibly beyond that) I’d be a very different person if I’d never gotten a PS4). Instead of talking your ear off, here’s four very special ones.

Valkyria Chronicles 4

The original Valkyria Chronicles is objectively the better written game, and arguably just the better made game in general. But this sequel takes the cake for being more fun. A significantly expanded roster of characters (including the ability to recruit the baddies during the post-game, and who doesn’t want to play as a Valkyria?), massively improved mechanics during combat (like the new Grenadier class, or the ability to promote your most-valuable units into Captains, which allows them to order your other units to follow them around the battlefield like a little team-up group), and a huge variety of crazy maps and foes to battle compared to the original game’s slimmer assortment of objectives and enemies.

The game’s replayability is also enhanced by side-stepping the awkward decision from the original game to only let you replay maps in New Game Plus. Seriously, Valkyria Chronicles 4 is just a really addicting game that constantly ensnares you in this feedback loop of providing you a fun new level, then rewarding you with a million goodies at the end of it to power up your allies with, then pushes you to jump right back into the fray. Also, rest assured that when I said the original was a better written game, I don’t mean to say this game is poorly written. Valkyria Chronicles 4 still has a bunch of stunning, powerful moments, and a very solid cast.

Bloodborne

My very first PlayStation game (alongside Overwatch), and the game that got me into the inimitable and fantastic Souls series (and the hundreds of titles that followed in those footsteps, like Nioh or Code Vein). My initial journey through Bloodborne was one fraught with hardship and misery, and there was more than one occasion where I came close to giving up and abandoning the venture (it was a horrible mistake to pick the Threaded Cane as my starting weapon). But I persevered, I stuck with it, I ‘got good’ if you will. And boy am I glad I did, because Bloodborne is not only a fantastic game, but I’m so appreciative of the amazing experiences I’ve had playing other Soulslikes because of this game being my entry into the genre.

Nowadays, Bloodborne is my most replayed Souls game (in fact, I just played it again last December). It’s relatively short, it’s extremely enjoyable, and like all Souls games it’s relatively easy once you know what you’re doing. But the easiness isn’t yawn-inducing or anything. It’s the sort of easiness that comes from that satisfying feeling of knowing you’ve mastered a game and all the tricks it can throw at you. I never get tired of exploring the world of Yharnam, battling the epic beasts that await within, and proving myself the most skilled hunter around, like no one ever was (wait, wrong series).

Dreams

Look, I know I talk about Dreams every single chance I get, but how else am I supposed to try and convince you all that this is a magical and unforgettable game that is, legitimately, unlike anything else in existence? I’ve got dozens of hours in Dreams at this point, and even I struggle to fully wrap my head around it sometimes. RPG Maker lets you make RPGs, Game Maker Engine lets you make pixel-based adventures, and Visual Novel Maker lets you make visual novels…but Dreams lets you make anything. Truly, anything. If you can dream it up, it’s possible with Dreams, and made so much easier thanks to the collaborative design that allows creators to share models, songs, and code between each other for their own respective projects.

What other gaming experience is out there where you can say that you can admire a photo-realistic portrayal of a delicious-looking breakfast, right before you play a game about driving through San Francisco during an earthquake? What other game lets you play better Sonic levels than the actual Sega developers have been putting out, and when you get tired of that you can take a break by listening to a full music album by a hopeful indie artist? What other game is packed with thousands upon thousands of amazing and high-quality 3D platformers, 2D platformers, RPG adventures, puzzle games, party games, racing games, fighting games, and even a gosh-darn full-length animated movie? In Dreams, the sky is the limit…or, honestly, it might just be better to say that there is no limit.

Spider-Man

There have been good Spider-Man games before, and there have been bad Spider-Man games before, but until this spectacular gem came out, we’d never had an amazing Spider-Man game before (see what I did there?). It’s a running joke online about how reviewers can’t resist saying that a Spider-Man game really ‘makes you feel like Spider-Man‘, but in the case of this game, it truly feels like an apt description. The style, the speed, the strength, the freedom of sailing through the city on your webs…it’s pretty immaculate, to the point where people often joke about how this game’s fast travel system is redundant, because why wouldn’t you just chose to swing everywhere when it’s so fun?

I think what I love most about this game is how it doesn’t rest on its laurels. The developers easily could’ve thrown together a half-hearted effort, and the game still would’ve reviewed well because of how good the swinging system is. Instead, they went all-in on providing the best possible experience, and I adore the game for that. It’s stuffed with content and side missions to complete, packed with fun easter eggs and references to Spider-Man lore (good old Big Wheel even gets a nod), and gets further enhanced with some engaging post-game DLC. And, of course, the game’s crowning achievement is the main story, which presents (in my opinion) the single best Spider-Man story of all time, with one unforgettably emotional ending.

Gaming Memories

I said at the top of this article that the PS4 is my most-played console of all time, so it stands to reason that I’d have plenty of memories to share about it. I remember conquering the Souls series in reverse order, leading me to become one of the few people in the world who thinks the original Dark Souls isn’t very good. I remember spending an ungodly amount of hours playing Nioh 2 with my best bud during those long days of the Covid lockdown in 2020. I remember jumping out of my seat in fright at the unexpected appearance of zombie monsters during my first time experiencing the Uncharted series. I remember stringing together some Olympic-level feats with my bow-and-arrow in Tomb Raider, and I remember long marathons of the original Overwatch back in its heyday.

I remember claiming the hair-pullingly difficult platinum trophy in Rogue Legacy, then destressing with some laughs and some tears in Tales From The Borderlands. I remember my jaw dropping at each new mind-bogglingly creative level in A Hat in Time, and that profound sense of accomplishment watching the ending sequence of Trails of Cold Steel IV play out. I also remember the countless times lugging my PS4 around to other people’s houses, most often to play the Jackbox series of games, which are always an amazing treat at parties (Quiplash or Tee-K-O anyone?). And a solemn moment of honor for my original PS4 which basically spontaneously combusted one day, losing me hundreds of amazing screenshots and videos I’d added to my capture gallery. Rest in peace, those memories (and Twin Town from Minecraft).

Conclusion

To conclude, the PS4 is one of the greatest video game consoles ever released, standing at the top of the mountain in practically every conceivable way. It didn’t outright revolutionize gaming in any way, but instead perfected the modern form of gaming we know and love today. A plethora of jaw-droppingly fantastic exclusive games (many of which are pictured below), a machine powerful enough to run all these beautiful experiences with ease, great user experience features like Communities and Themes, Blu-ray and streaming capabilities, and surprisingly-easy portability to pack-up and play with the system wherever you needed it. Just a stunning console, across the board.