In just about 24 hours, Sony will be hosting one of the largest gaming events of 2013. The New York event is expected to play host to the PlayStation 4 announcement. Let's be honest, though, not everything will be addressed during this event. This may be a PS4 unveiling, but a lot of questions are going to remain — even after the big reveal. At its core, this event will be nothing more than spectacle. Sure, we'll see the future of gaming, but the hard-hitting questions will go unanswered.
Earlier today, we posted a few realistic expectations for tomorrow's Sony event. To our credit, it looks like we were on the right track with our speculation — at least with Gaikai, as it was recently discovered to have registered several domain names related to PlayStation Cloud. Now it's time to take a look at the things we are almost positive won't be addressed tomorrow.
Release date and pricing for the PS4
It's too early for Sony to be talking about either of these. At best, we'll get a “release window” and maybe a price comparison. Don't expect anything more specific than “Holiday 2013” or “early 2014” though. Don't necessarily blame this one on Sony, though. There's plenty of logistical and legal issues that prevent a company from being too specific this early on. The last thing they want to do is get caught up in some legal loophole because they spoke too soon. With that said, I'm sure there will be plenty of speculation about pricing based on what we see at the event.
Official PlayStation 4 tech specs
As much as we want to know them, we won't get them. Again, it's way too early for Sony to be talking about technical specifications. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure we'll get a general sense of the PlayStation 4's functionality. By the end of the event, we should know whether or not it can play pre-owned games, if it has the ability to stream PS3 games, and things of that nature. Just don't expect information about the CPU, GPU and all of the other details that tech junkies love to make a big deal about.
A PlayStation 3 price cut
With the announcement of a new console, it's inevitable that the PlayStation 3 will receive a price cut, but I honestly don't think tomorrow's event is the right time or place to announce it. There's too much excitement surrounding the PS4 to detract with the PS3. Not to mention, there's still plenty of PS3 games yet to release — God of War: Ascension, The Last of Us, and Beyond: Two Souls to name a few. It's quite possible these games will be available on the PS4 as well; Sony could possibly cannibalize their own products by pitting the two platforms against each other.
Lengthy gameplay demos
Odds are we're going to see new games tomorrow. Heck, we'll probably see upcoming PS3 games that are set to be released both on the PS3 and the next-generation PlayStation. However, don't expect to see too much from these games. Remember, this is all spectacle designed to increase hype heading into the next-generation. The last thing Sony wants to do is detract from the PlayStation 4. Sony and its developers won't risk showing off lengthy gameplay demos that may reveal too much, potentially disappointing fans of the franchise. The more they show, the more fans and critics can scrutinize. If a remake of a classic franchise is announced and doesn't live up to expectations, it could be a disaster. Instead, prepare for some very pretty tech demos that will show off the potential of the PS4.
Tomorrow's event is set to take place at 6:00pm ET in New York. Be sure to check out GameZone for up-to-date analysis on all of the latest announcements. Coming up, we're going to take a look at a few announcements that are possible, but still up in the air. In the meantime, let us know what you want to see announced tomorrow.
