PlayStation 4 and Xbox One Interfaces: Sony And Microsoft Have Learned From Previous Mistakes

IPP writes: "We’re only three months away from the launch of both the Xbox One and PS4, and we’re starting to get a better sense of how the consoles will actually work."

[majiebeast]

Loved the UI demo at gamescom by Sony with Yosp in his boss chair it was so unlike Sony, i was expecting another montage.

Im glad they kept the XMB it looks like Sony has really learned from the PS3 UI's mistakes. The 6-10 second game join was pretty surprising, no more waiting for logos and start menus before being able to join your friend in a mp game.

Best of all no freaking ads.

[sincitysir1]

agree. at first i thought it was too xbox 360 but then i saw the xmb and i said "oh playstation you sly devil you." i love the depth they went into each game and the trophies and your friends showing up on the game page. love it

edit: btw hello ron swanson you sly dog ;]

[adorie]

This one's for you, Sincitysir1
http://chrisbucknews.files....

[sincitysir1]

Ahahah bubble up man bubble up haha

[cesuf]

Did they learn from the mistake of paid online from the ps3 and no backwards compatibility? Wait no I guess they didn't. : ( . .. .

[OrangePowerz]

You do know that the architecture is completely different from the cell that would make it hard to do backwards compability.

[Ratty]

There's no way PS4 can software emulate PS3. It would be possible to emulate it with the PS3 hardware but then it'd probably cost a lot more.

Remember they hardware emulated the PS2 with the first models of PS3? PS3's price was a major complaint back then. They had to cut it out because of that. So, no. I don't think it's realistic to ask for backwards compatibility.

[thekhurg]

Gaikai is dealing with most "backwards compatibility" issues through online streaming of older games.

Paid online isn't an issue AT ALL since over the course of your 12 month investment you get more in free games than you paid for on the subscription.

[HammadTheBeast]

Unfortunately, some people haven't ad-vanced, or ad-ded to their UI. They have tiles ad-apted for the UI.

People should be ad-amantly against having ads in a paid service.

[DragonKnight]

Don't feed the off topic troll guys.

[johndoe11211]

The ps3 did not have paid online so I dont see what mistake they had to learn from and it is impossible for ps3 games to be played on the ps4.

The cell architecture of the ps3 was unique and games designed for the ps3 cannot be read by the cpu of the ps4 but somehow I get the feeling you already know this and your only purpose here was to troll and show your idiocy. Well done good chap, well done.

[Caleb_H]

The first ps3 was backwards compatible.

[Drainage]

yes they did, now they will bring better features, free DLC, free games, etc for gamers while still making the huge profit that they lost out on during th3 ps3. great for sony

[ufo8mycat]

What is it with people and this backwards compatibility

JUST KEEP YOUR PS3

For crying out loud it'snot rocket science

[ufo8mycat]

duplicate

[Bluepowerzz]

yeah orange powers two sony fanboy powez wasup dawg @ check my previous comments of me slaying xbots

[ZombieKiller]

Yet another x-tard trying to insult the PS name with a senseless stupid ass argument. It really hurts coming from a fanboy thats been paying the 50 a year to Microsoft and still getting advertised to. They did actually learn from the mistakes....their making us pay the 50 to play online yet it will give us FREE games on PS3 AND PS4 under 1 account nimrod, so YES Sony is taking care of my backwards compatibility issues by making me keep my ps3.
Online is also still free. Certain games won't hide behind the paywall, neither will Netflix and youtube. Basically what I'm saying in more simple terms for you simple minded, one sided fanboys, is that Sony didn't create a paperweight without a paywall like the xbox. Think of a better argument....seriously. Both systems have strengths and weaknesses, pick something better....or continue showing the games industry how stupid you actually are.

[Conzul]

Paid online is not a mistake - it is an improvement since the money goes to improved network infrastructure and features.

No B/C or Weak B/C is a *slight* mistake, but non-fatal.

Get over it.

[hqgamez]

great UI, I can't wait to use it. I just hope its not social blah blah only.

[Persistantthug]

As was pointed out by an IGN poster, the Gamescom camera guy was awful. Apparently he/she didn't realize this was a VIDEO GAME conference, and thus, we don't really want to see, nor are we interested in his/her cinematography skills.

If you want a better view of the interface, use Sony's youtube vid link:

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[FamilyGuy]

That intro was so natural and relate-able, I do the same thing daily. Browse what my friends are doing before hopping in a game. I really liked it.

Sony is all about word of mouth, they are advertising in a way. Being able to see what your friends are playing, what they've done in a game recently, what apps they're on, being able to stream and watch streams of game play are ALL ways the Sony systems PASSIVELY advertise games.

Luckily we don't get any blatant, non-gaming related ads like for food or some bs.

[come_bom]

PS4's UI looks like the Metro UI, with small differences.

[Gster]

Sophistication breeds sophistication.... Yoo Shuei

[Mikelarry]

i never really spend time on the interface to really care how it looks but from what i have seen they are both quick to navigate to get to what i require be it gaming or watching tv /movies which in my book is a win.

[StoutBEER]

Amen. Sometimes the Dashboard menu button on the 360 is slower than a baby wading through mud.

[JewyMcJew]

For me, the interfaces are the least impressive part of this new generation.

But this is in no way limited to consoles.. Windows 8 Metro, Apple / Adobe, two-color flat icons, lack of texture and shadows, etc...

...not loving this new design phase!

[mcstorm]

I think the new two tone flat design looks far better than the old ones of most devices and web sites. Everything looks more simple and less complex. For me things like the metro design woke very well with finger and mouse input and working in IT I have found people pick this simple design in programs quicker and easer then before. Even in things that people have said they have hated before like the ribbon bar in office 07 10 and 13. People who have used 07 or 10 that have gone to 13 have all said the same thing because it is now all plain it is simple to find what they are looking for where it was too messy on the older versions.

As for the Dashboard one the Xbox one and ps4 I do like the look of them both. For me I like the Xbox one better as I like the way the metro ui looks but Sony have done a great job at giving there us a big make over as for me it was the worst ui on a console I've seen for a long time.

That said can't wait to try them both out for my self.

[JewyMcJew]

I am a programmer myself... most of my anger is dedicated towards Visual Studio 2012 where all the rich texture icons were replaced with two-tone line-art.

It honestly has severely reduced my productivity. And metro on Windows Server 2012 is an insult to nerds everywhere.

[mcstorm]

Lol I know what your saying but at the end of the day more people than ever are using computing devices so we need a simple design and Microsoft have noticed this to. It may not be a hit with the tech guys but we are a small number of people compared to the none tech guys. I also like the simple look of the new Microsoft as it is better on the eye's.

[WeedyOne]

I thought the XMB was the best UI ever on a console. Always hated how unintuitive the 360 dashboard was, took me forever to finds what I was looking for. The XMB was simple and VERY EASY to navigate, it just needed to be more responsive.

[mcstorm]

@WeedyOne its each to there own. I always felt frustrated with the ps3 dash as you could not do to much from it when in a game or app. I did not like it on the pap too for me the vita is a step in the right direction but the ps4 dash dose look like Sony have worked things out but from what I've seen so far the Xbox one dash will fit me better.

[pyramidshead]

The pimped up XMB at gamescom presser looked very slick. Impressed, more so that it was a genuine live demo too.

[_QQ_]

Pay to play online? they still haven't learned.

[OrangePowerz]

Servers don't grow on trees for free :)

[_QQ_]

unfortunately,but PSN was fine how it was, i guess i just prefer having options.

[Cable2kx]

@Lopez

PSN was not fine. I'm excited they going to pay to play. Perfect example socom confrontation, First month of that game was unplayable online. I'm sure the servers are not going to be perfect but I would gladly pay 5 dollars a month for free games and a better online experience.

Side note : http://cable2kx.blogspot.co...

[Bluepowerzz]

hi bro

[Jiggins99]

you get at least 12 AAA games a year for your £40, if that's not worth it then i don't know what is. if you even play one of those games then there's your value right there

[_QQ_]

if you only play one it actually isn't value because when those games are available free on plus they aren't even close to full price anymore. its a good deal for those who want it but i prefer having options.

[Jazz4108]

I can almost gurantee it it will be more indie games then aaa this coming gen or maybe free to play. I hope im wrong as I would like to see ms gice away more quality games as well but either way its nice to always own them.

[BitbyDeath]

Some of the best games came from indie studios, do you remember Command and Conquer before EA bought Westwood? Or Bullfrog games before EA bought and buried them? Indies will move us away from the horrible FPS rut we have been stuck in this gen

[JackStraw]

w... why would they give away a free to play game?... i don't... stop.

[LAZL0-Panaflex]

Its not 12 AAA games a year....its like 2 old triple a games like battlefield 3 and hitman and a bunch of crappy indie games I'll never play like star funk or cow queefs. You're just afraid to admit Sony is ass raping you just like Microsoft has been doing to their fan boys for the last decade but their service is a little more polished.

[Jiggins99]

actually it is confirmed to be one AAA game that has been released in the past few months, every month for the foreseeable future. on ps3 i got great games like battlefield 3, saints row 3, xcom etc
so worth £40, especially after paying £40 a year to microsoft and getting online pay, plus things like netflix that i already pay for but are behind microsofts paywall.

[patsrule316]

@Jiggins99 "actually it is confirmed to be one AAA game that has been released in the past few months, every month for the foreseeable future. on ps3 i got great games like battlefield 3, saints row 3, xcom etc
so worth £40, especially after paying £40 a year to microsoft and getting online pay, plus things like netflix that i already pay for but are behind microsofts paywall. "

On PS4, it has not been confirmed to be one AAA per month. That is PS3. On PS4, the confirmed games for North America are Drive Club PS+ Edition (stripped down version), Secret Ponchos, Don't Starve, and (if I remember right) Outlast. One game a month, but not one AAA game a month. Don't get me wrong, I think there are some cool indie games coming, and I look forward to playing them, but PS4 owners are not going to get hundreds (meaning several hundred) dollars worth of free games per year, the way PS3 owners will.

As far as jabbing microsoft about the apps behind the paywall....you are behind the paywall if you have PS+ so it doesn't really matter. I just don't understand why people who pay for PS+ complain about Xbox apps being behind a paywall. I figure if you buy either console, you will buy the service PS+ or XBLG anyways. Last week, I bought a year of XBLG for my 360 for $30. Today, I can buy a PS+ for $40 for the PS4 I'll get in November. I think both are worth it, and I don't have to worry about what is behind the paywall.

[DigitalRaptor]

@ patsrule316

"I just don't understand why people who pay for PS+ complain about Xbox apps being behind a paywall. I figure if you buy either console, you will buy the service PS+ or XBLG anyways."

I don't mean to be disrespectful here, but that is a very naive perspective and one that you don't seem to understand has wider implications. And this is the common problem.

As it stands 90% of the Xbox One's features are behind a paywall and most of those are things that are free elsewhere. A paywall is designed to offer you something for your money. PS+ does that in spades - the required online problem has always been charging for P2P connectivity. That is what MS has done for a decade and it's disgraceful. Now both companies are using dedicated servers it's understandable and you should only be whining if you don't understand how server maintenance and productivity works.

The free applications is an absolute mind-bending disgrace and there is no way you can defend having those things behind the paywall. Just because these people pay for these services anyway, doesn't make them any less foolish for paying Microsoft to use free services - 90% of which are free across the board. You are actively telling Microsoft that this is okay, and like they already have tried to do this generation, they will go one step further since they believe you find it reasonable to pay for free things.

[Angeljuice]

Bubs down Lopez, this article is about the user interfaces, you just trolling til the wheels fall off.

[Raven722]

Paying $50 a year is not something worth complaining about considering everything you get. Just look at what you currently get for PS+. Tons of free games by year's end, small discounts for most of the year with occasional big discount events, access to exclusive digital content, exclusive or early access to demos/betas/time trials, cloud storage, and auto updates. You can still access things like Netflix and other apps, Free-To-Play games, friend chat, and the PlayStation Store. You can also still use the Share functions. They're simply putting multiplayer for premium games behind the paywall because they have to now. The option you want for yourself is not an option for Sony if they want to seriously improve their infrastructure. Microsoft made a killing on Xbox Live and it gave them tons of money to reinvest for their online service. Sony is going to need that kind of cash flow if they want to compete. More so than ever, the online space is where the next console war is going to be fought.

[LAZL0-Panaflex]

Yeah keep telling yourself that.

[_QQ_]

like i said for those who want what they offer it is good, but i like to have choices.

[Raven722]

@LAZL, I will keep telling myself that as well as anyone else who doesn't understand why or does but doesn't like it. Honestly though, I wouldn't expect much from such a halfwit.

@lopez, Like I said, there isn't a choice to be had. If they give you the choice to play online for free how many people do you think will take that option if they don't have to pay for online multiplayer? It's simple numbers, man. Microsoft made tons of money doing what they did and it allowed them to build a stronger online infrastructure. If Sony wants to stay competitive in that arena, they have to make more money to pay for it.

They lost a ton of money in the last generation. Not charging for online play is one of the few ways the system stayed alive long enough to make a comeback but it also meant them losing out on a huge amount of potential income. PlayStation fans had a free ride for 7 years. It was great but it won't work for what Sony is aiming to achieve. We either get use to it or we just don't game anymore because this is the direction things have been going. I'm not trying to give you a hard time or anything.

[furneri357]

i hope they made an update for vita to make vita ui interface looks like ps4, vita ui is really ugly...

[dcj0524]

Only if you have apps/games scattered everywhere. Organize them into bubbles and it's fine. Also I love the whole "peel off to close"thing. Nice touch.

[Omar91]

sorry i disagreed when I actually wanted to agree with you! I would prefer the ps4 interface used for the vita as well.

[BitbyDeath]

Wasn't planning on getting the new Killzone game til I saw how quick it was to get into multiplayer. Might have to go digital for all my multiplayer games on PS4. Simply amazing.

[DigitalRaptor]

I'm very curious to see how that aspect of the game compares to the Xbox One's interface. Can you view what friends are live streaming and then hop into the game within a couple of seconds?

That really blew me away, and this "instant gaming" aspects has me really excited.

- Suspend your gameplay, put your console into a low power state, go away for an hour, come back and hit your controller and the game will pick up immediately.

- Play games as they're downloading.

- Download certain parts of the game separately, like Killzone campaign and multiplayer, so you can get into the parts you want to play quicker.

- And this entire interface looks smooth, deep and quick to navigate.

[stuff]

"- Suspend your gameplay, put your console into a low power state, go away for an hour, come back and hit your controller and the game will pick up immediately."

I forgot all about that feature. It was what brought me back to console gaming in the first place. +bubs

[OrangePowerz]

I hope Sony doesnt plaster the UI with ad's like some other company does with their UI that they use on multiple devices.

[jackanderson1985]

for flamebaiting i'll give you a 6/10... better than some of the attempts seen on here

[BABYLEG]

He almost fooled me..

[MadMen]

Its amazing How far SONY has come since their Horrific PS3
approach. The PS4 Interface will dominate.

Xbox had UI down even on the Original Xbox.

Next Gen all gamers are going to win.

[Qrphe]

>Xbox had UI down even on the Original Xbox.

Oh boy, there is a reason the 360 went through several interface resets

[JackStraw]

original xbox ui was terrible...

[hyperfire21]

True but the PS3 UI is still terrible...

[JackStraw]

^is that why it won an emmy and hasn't had one update to change how it looks?

correction, the xmb's performance USED to be terrible.*

during the beginning of the ps3, it was terrible. up until 08. sony improved it quite a bit. as did ms with the 360 dash.

[hyperfire21]

The ps3 ui is still terrible in today's standards. The award was won in 2006 and its the same ui being used now. fanboy much?

So winning an award means there should never be any update or alteration to any user interfaces? And we cant mention 7 year old interfaces as being terrible in today's standards?

[STANK08]

I gotta see PS4 UI multitasking features before a cast judgement. So far, PS4 UI seems meh. Never been a fan of the XMB either. It was too tedious to navigate.

[dcj0524]

Not that hard. Left right to select categories. Down up to sepect games/friends/sub-categories. Not Quantum Physics people. More like grade 4 math.
@redcar twitch said they want to get on everything. Ps4 is a thing. The ui looks like windows 8 and XMB had a sexy baby. Its still like the XMB but more improved.

[WickedLester]

"Not Quantum Physics people. More like grade 4 math."

Well that explains it! STANK08 only made it past 3rd grade.

[PirateKing]

Yea you have to actually think a bit to use the ps3 xmb.

[Massenwithme]

You know that the XMB won an emmy? Its a fact that the XMb is awesome. If you really find that its too tedious to navigate, you are a bit weird.

[STANK08]

Ok for lack of a better term I should Have choose "XMB is unintuitive, clunky, uninspiring, unattractive eyesore that was tedious to navigate.

There I fixed it.

[scott182]

@STANK08

I agree with Nothing you said about the XMB.
I think it is a very classy, attractive interface. Simple and elegant was the best way to do it, Sony didn't need to create a new interface...

[dragon82]

@STANK08

You do know the XMB is exactly the same as the old 360 dashboard just backwards right?

PS3: You go left to right to choose a category and then up and down to choose what you want within that category.

360: You went up and down to choose a category and then left to right to choose what you wanted within that category.

[cesuf]

Justin Bieber, Mc Donalds, and Seaseme Street won many awards too. Care to comment on the validity of those?

[LordDhampire]

dude if you think the xmb is tedious to navigate your retarded, I love the xmb for how simple it is, and the good thing about it is the custom backgrounds and icons you can use. Most poeple don't take advantage and it really looks awesome, I have some cool backgrounds on my ps3 what really make it stand out. yes it was kinda getting outdated, but it looks like its been really updated.

[redcar121]

xbox one dash is better ps4 one not so good it look like the xbox 360 why wont sony come up with their own stuff 4 example ms use twitch sony copys why not use uplay

[BillytheBarbarian]

xmb works, it's just boring and plain. This new version looks nicer.

I want more customization

[WickedLester]

Why do you think a UI has to be flamboyant and eye-catching? To me it just needs to be functional. The whole point of a UI is for navigation. As long as it gets you to where you need to go quickly and efficiently, who cares if it's "plain and boring?"

[BillytheBarbarian]

@wickedlester...i like customization. I made my own wallpapers for my laptop, psp, old Xbox hacked, and my 360 when it had the blades. I like personality. I have my phone that exudes a streets of rage Sega theme. I'd just like it to be more personal when I hit the power button. Live in your world I play in mine.

[JackStraw]

...it looks nothing like the 360. it's like an updated xmb.

[WickedLester]

You obviously haven't seen it in use.

[edgeofsins]

The 360 ui is basically a copy of the XMB but with swapped x and y axis and with some more complications and menus to go through.

[ABeastNamedTariq]

Lmao, you said uplay, GTFO of here. XMB was simple and fine, PS4 dash looks great and fast.

[JackStraw]

"familiar metro-like"? it IS metro. and it looks ugly imho. hated using it even on windows 8 which is why i don't anymore. the home screen is nice though.

[MultiConsoleGamer]

I don't agree with the author concerning the Xbox One UI. It's the same ugly Microsoft style interface found on their other products.

[AllroundGamer]

i just want it to be super fast, not like waiting 3-5 seconds till it reacts...

[Talamak]

Why was Mehdi's hand in his pocket during the presentation?

[naBs]

Read the comments on the article, sounds suspicious lol

[mo241]

can't I just have a ps 4 with xbox one's UI, but still with all the things sony's way. only the looks and feelings of the xbox one's. It's just plane better.
Just look at the ps 3 and xbox 360.
Just as the article said the xbox is very clean and simple it's also very responsive
The ps 3 UI is a joke, just how it feels and looks. Hard to describe it, it feels al slow,and laggy especially the online gaming on the ps 3. But you have to pay now for ps 4 online so I think this will be much better. but still Love the new things they did with ps 4 UI, with the social aspect and all of it, but please do something about accessibility and looks. And it would be nice to add the xbox one's feature of multitasking so you can do something quick like watching a tropy without leaving the game.

[edgeofsins]

Oh so X1 invented multitasking? Somehow the XMB isn't very clean and simple all of a sudden. It's not like the new X360 interface is the same thing but swapped the position of categories when you move up and down and added even more categories and sub categories on top of that to clutter and complicate it. Then when you are in game and hit the guide button it pulls up a ui unlike the new ui to complicate it more rather then just using the same ui. It's a mess. Also, just to type something into youtube and other apps you use a horizontal keyboard. Just dreadfully time-wasting.

[ufo8mycat]

360's user interface is garbage

Large rectangles for everything - what is this play school?

PS4 UI looks nice and slick
One's interface looks to be more of the same large rectangular nonsense - sorry but to me, it's not aesthetically pleasing.

[hyperfire21]

PS4 UI has moved over to the "large rectangles"

[cityboy100]

The XMB looks nice but was slow, Sony makes good hardware but the Software needs to catch up.

[Tooly]

@mo241 The Xmb Was Was Simple ,Smooth,Elligent And Straight Forward So.What Are You Talkin About it was slow.Maybe You was Pressing left/right/up and down to slow. last time I checked the xbox 360 UI didn't win the Technology & Engineering Emmy Award.

[Agent_hitman]

Microsoft learned from their mistakes?.. really?.. no sh!t!

[TheGrimReaper0011]

No offence me saying this but
NO SHIT! If we are going in a new generation, it better be improved. I thought the XBM of PS3 was easy to use, but god, ever so barren.
The xbox UI was def nicer to look at, until you noticed all the adds.
I'm enjoying what I'm seeing here.

[90Supra]

Looks good...

Need to get my hands on it to really judge, tho...

[ramtah]

um no micrisoft did not learn ifcat they made it worse when they saw the preorders then they went back too oh hey gamers we still love you come back

[BlitzKriegBOOM]

i love sony but they are playing a dangerous game in my eyes, they are offering so much for so little money. i worry its gonna bite them in the ass financially.