Speaking to GamesIndustry International for the first time since leaving EA, former CEO John Riccitiello offered his insight on the upcoming PlayStaion 4 and Xbox One, and how they would be bigger than their predecessors (and not just in terms of volume of sales).
“I think they’ll be bigger than the last generation, actually. The last generation can be described as supercharged engines – they had super-powerful boxes. But the entirety of the online communication and being able to connect to your friends and all that stuff, a seamless, smooth, social experience, was just masking tape – barely put together.
“Remember that this was eight years ago. Most people were just moving on from their 28k modems. Now these are fully functioning, fully integrated online computers connected to the best screen in your house.”
Riccitiello also believes that it will be ease of use that will make next-gen consoles more appealing, rather than being always connected. “You put a super computer under your TV, plug it in with one connection and it works. It knows who you are, it knows what your games are and it’s unbelievably simple; it’s not like PC plug and play, it’s just plug and play. The next generation of consoles are going to be a massive improvement on user interface. So I think that ‘s going to matter.”