Playstation... Orbis?

Coming out of the rumor mill recently is the Playstation 4.  What rumors is the mill churning out?  What does everyone want to know?  Well, first off, the name Orbis is being passed around all over.  Does it play all of my old PS3 games?  I sure have created a solid collection! And, most importantly, with the used game market coming under fire as of late, will Sony try to block the games you buy from friends and second hand stores instead of the developers?  Let's take a look at these individually.


Will it continue to be called the Orbis?  For now.
Try going to orbis.scedev.net/.  Brings you to a developer's site for Sony products.  Same thing with vita.scedev.net.  Or even ngp.scedev.net. All of them work!  Orbis is a code name for something that Sony is working on.  And these signs point towards another system.  It should be in development already, given that all of their competitors are already working on new systems as well, and Sony is not one to be left out of a technology race.  

Well I severely doubt that.

What about backwards compatibility?
I severely doubt that this could continue to be an option at this point.  While I would love to be able to play my PS3 games on a new system, Sony is recognizing the profits gained from re-releasing HD collections of beloved games, and if upping the quality of the system's technology is the aim here, Sony could be sitting on a cash cow by "hyperHDifying" (I just made that up.) their franchises like Uncharted and Killzone.  
Point is: I view backwards compatibility to be a slim chance.  Sony wants their customers (and their profits) to keep moving forward. 


Will the PSOrbis block used games?
The current rumor about used games on the Orbis is simply this:  That a game purchased for the system in physical form (aka NOT downloaded, but on a disc potentially) will be tied to a specific PSN name.  This means that anyone that wants to play it that is not your PSN name will have access to only limited features, if any at all. If you want to play one that is tied to someone else's name, you must 'unlock' the game by paying a fee. This also means: No used purchases, no borrowing it/trading it from a friend, no renting the game.


It seems that analysts are rife with opinions about the used games problem.  Industry analyst Michael Patchter recently opinionated to Gamesindustry.biz that killing off the used games market would be a bad idea for both Sony and Microsoft.  This would harm beneficial relationships that Sony has always had with Gamestop and basically seperate them from the entire market, as why would a used games store carry a system that does not support used games.  If Gamestop didn't carry Sony's Orbit (or whatever its going to be called), then that would be a huge step back for Sony in the "games arms race".  

"You would miss me, right?"

Another industry analyst reporter from Gamesindustry.biz, James Brightman, agrees that blocking used games sales in any way, shape, or form would ultimately give gamers more of a swing to go elsewhere: such as Microsoft or even Nintendo. 

"If Sony moves forward with this rumored plan, it'll be a huge black eye for the company from the consumer perspective. Quite simply, Sony would be taking away consumer choice, and that's never a good thing."

I know I don't have sixty bones to drop on every new game that comes out, and buying used gives me a money saving choice.  My friends and I trade games all the time, and with my personal working experience at Blockbuster, I have three solid reasons why blocking used games would hurt me.  
So will it happen?  I know companies like Activision and EA would love it to, but big companies like Gamestop would not love it so much.  I'd say the odds are just slightly more in not banning them, but only because the customer is always right.  Not the developers.
More news will be reported on the Orbis/PS4 when it appears!

Evil?  Or money-savers? What do you think?

What do you think?  Is it smart to block used games?  Or should Playstation listen a bit more to their consumers and ixnay on the anningsbay?  Let us know by subscribing and posting in our comments! I would love to hear from you!


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