Leonid Melikhov: How closely will the PS4 version match the PC during launch?

Luke Sigmund: They will be the same game. The biggest difference is between the PC and PS4 version is the user experience. We’re redoing all of the UI screens so its native to the console and we’re focusing heavily on performance so the game runs awesome.

Leonid Melikhov: Will players need PlayStation Plus to play PlanetSide 2?

Luke Sigmund: No, they will not. We are a true Free-2-Play.

"Right now we're not planning keyboard/mouse support. We've talked about it, we want to get in beta and see how many people really want it and then we'll re-address that decision."

Leonid Melikhov: Can you tell us what resolution and frame-rate will PlanetSide 2 run on the PlayStation 4? AKA, 1080 60 FPS?

Luke Sigmund: We are running at 1080p [on the PS4] and our goal is always going to be 60fps but because of the scale of PlanetSide 2 we are going to see more fluctuations than a lot of order games do. In a battlefield we can get like 64 vs. 64 but in PlanetSide 2 we can have 100’s versus 100’s so that might bring about some frame rate dips.

Leonid Melikhov: Safe to say at least 30 locked?

Luke Sigmund: Yes, definitely. We have a lot of heuristics in the background that control things like the number of players that you see on the screen. So we can tone all that down and we can make sure that we are always at a playable frame rate. An awesome thing about the PlayStation 4 is that we know exactly what everyone hardware’s [specification] is, so we can optimize around that but on the PC we have a hundred different video cards.

Leonid Melikov:  Given that you’re going from keyboard/mouse configuration to the DualShock 4, what will be the control scheme like? Will you be taking advantage of the controller features such as the Touchpad and will be there support for keyboard/mouse for the PS4 version?

Luke Sigmund: Right now we’re not planning keyboard/mouse support. We’ve talked about it, we want to get in beta and see how many people really want it and then we’ll re-address that decision. We are using the Touchpad. We’re using it for a-lot of the UI side stuff like rotating your character and we use the “pinch” functionality to zoom in and out on the map. Then we’re looking into using it for shortcuts, so for example; if you get a squad invite, you’ll swipe right or left to accept or decline that invitation.

" We have a an app for PlanetSide 2 that will be supporting the PlayStation 4 accounts. Everything we have in the app you'll be able to use as a PlayStation 4 player. In that app you can see your outfit which is PlanetSide's version of guilds, you can see all your stats, you can see everything about your character. It's really detailed, it's a really cool app actually."

Leonid Melikhov: I like that you guys are taking advantage of the controller in some sort of fashion, particularly the system. I think it’s a good idea.

Luke Sigmund: Yeah, I think the Touchpad stuff is cool. I think it’s difficult to use for real gameplay, just because different people have different hand configurations.

Leonid Melikhov: Do you have plans for second screen support via iPad or Vita version for PS4 version of PlanetSide 2? Can you please share details on how it will work.

Luke Sigmund: We have a an app for PlanetSide 2 that will be supporting the PlayStation 4 accounts. Everything we have in the app you’ll be able to use as a PlayStation 4 player. In that app you can see your outfit which is PlanetSide’s version of guilds, you can see all your stats, you can see everything about your character. It’s really detailed, it’s a really cool app actually.

We are looking into the Vita support, but we just need too see if it make sense .

Leonid Melikhov:  Can you tell us how micro-transactions will work on the PS4?

Luke Sigmund: It’s actually going to be exactly the same as the PC version, exact same setup. If you play you will earn Certification Points which is our earned currency, you spend that on weapons but you can also shortcut that with our paid currency. We’ll also have all the customizations, camos, all the decals and all that stuff.

Leonid Melikhov: What additional content can PlanetSide 2 players expect in the immediate future?

Luke Sigmund: Since we launched, we’ve done 30 updates [to the PC version], so we update frequently. The biggest thing we have coming up is a brand new continent called Hossin. It’s going to be coming out pretty soon. It’ll definitely be there for the PS4 launch. We have the Directives system, which is an expansion on the achievements idea, so we’ll actually have tiered-layer achievements.

We have new Outfits features coming. We have Outfit Base Capturing, when an Outfit goes and captures a base their name will now be splashed on the map and it’s shown in the game along with their decal and banners. We’ll also have Outfit recruiting as well.

"The game looks fantastic, we have no problems running it. What you're seeing here is our Ultra settings on the PC. This is as good as the game can look for us. We've put a-lot of work into our shaders to transition them over from the PC to the PS4 and we think it came out looking fantastic."

Leonid Melikhov: What are your thoughts on the PS4? Do you think PlanetSide 2 will be a true estimation of what the consoles are capable of graphically?

Luke Sigmund: That’s a hard question…

Leonid Melikhov: That’s the point (laughs)

Luke Sigmund: (Laughs) Yeah, I think we’re really pushing it. The game looks fantastic, we have no problems running it. What you’re seeing here is our Ultra settings on the PC. This is as good as the game can look for us. We’ve put a-lot of work into our shaders to transition them over from the PC to the PS4 and we think it came out looking fantastic.

Leonid Melikhov: This might be a little-bit off-topic but I think H1Z1 uses the same engine as PlanetSide 2?

Luke Sigmund: Yes it does, it’s our Forgelight engine. H1Z1 uses it. It’s what we’re trying to do for all of our projects.

Leonid Melikhov: What kind of modifcations have you done to the Forgelight engine to support the PS4 version?

Luke Sigmund: Mostly it’s been multi-threading support. Forgelight didn’t have a ton of that at first, so it was kind of an issue with the AMD processors. Now that we’ve added more of that support it’s running better on PC and it runs great on the PS4.

Leonid Melikhov: Sounds awesome. Finally, how long do you think you will keep on supporting PlanetSide 2? Are there talks about a sequel anytime soon?

Luke Sigmund: We going to support PlanetSide 2 as long as players want it. That’s what we do at SOE, we run long-term games. EverQuest we’ve been on 15 years, so if the players are still playing 10 years from now, 15 years from, now we’re gonna support it.

Leonid Melikhov: Is there anything else you’d like to tell us about PlanetSide 2?

Luke Sigmund: You can follow us on twitter @planetside2. We also have a website www.planetside2.com so check us out. Check out our roadmap and give us feedback on features.

2012’s free to play game, PlanetSide 2 will be making its way to the PlayStation 4. When exactly is a different topic all together but we have some new details for you. The PS4 version will have microtransactions and it will be similar to the PC version.

“It’s actually going to be exactly the same as the PC version, exact same setup. If you play you will earn Certification Points which is our earned currency, you spend that on weapons but you can also shortcut that with our paid currency. We’ll also have all the customizations, camos, all the decals and all that stuff,” PlanetSide 2’s lead designer Luke Sigmund said to GamingBolt.

He also confirmed that Hossin update will also be available for the PlayStation 4. “Since we launched, we’ve done 30 updates [to the PC version], so we update frequently. The biggest thing we have coming up is a brand new continent called Hossin. It’s going to be coming out pretty soon. It’ll definitely be there for the PS4 launch. We have the Directives system, which is an expansion on the achievements idea, so we’ll actually have tiered-layer achievements.”

“We have new Outfits features coming. We have Outfit Base Capturing, when an Outfit goes and captures a base their name will now be splashed on the map and it’s shown in the game along with their decal and banners. We’ll also have Outfit recruiting as well,” he further added.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and stay tuned for more PlanetSide 2 updates.

GamingBolt recently got in touch with PlanetSide 2’s lead designer Luke Sigmund and asked him about his thoughts on the PS4 and whether the game will be a true estimation of what the console is capable of graphically.

“Yeah, I think we’re really pushing it. The game looks fantastic, we have no problems running it. What you’re seeing here is our Ultra settings on the PC. This is as good as the game can look for us. We’ve put a-lot of work into our shaders to transition them over from the PC to the PS4 and we think it came out looking fantastic,” he said.

And what kind of modifications have they done to the Forgelight engine to support the PS4 version? “Mostly it’s been multi-threading support. Forgelight didn’t have a ton of that at first, so it was kind of an issue with the AMD processors. Now that we’ve added more of that support it’s running better on PC and it runs great on the PS4.”

PlanetSide 2 is due this year for the PlayStation 4. Stay tuned for more news and updates.

GamingBolt was present at Sony Online Entertainment’s E3 booth a few days back and we were able to get in touch with Game Designer Adam Clegg to talk about the upcoming MMO zombie survival game H1Z1.

We asked Adam about when can we expect the PC version of H1z1 to release and whether there is an update about the PS4 version. “The PC version release, basically, we are not ready yet. The team sat down and there were two things that we actually learnt. What do the players want, which is big and they want a lot of things, and we can accommodate them as we plan for it. And the other thing was what do players expect. I think players expect a lot from the game and they don’t talk about it since they are expecting to be there and there were a lot of things we did not had in the game that players were expecting. We did not want to launch early access without those things missing. So once things are in place and we have a polished alpha then we will push it as early access. So no date just yet.”

“As far as the PS4 version is concerned we are actually concentrating on the PC release. No one in the development team is working on the PS4 [version] and we are focused 100% on PC, for now.”

Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and stay tuned for more news and updates for H1Z1.

One of 2012’s best free to play shooters, PlanetSide 2 will be releasing on the PlayStation 4. Given that the MMO has pretty high end visuals, we asked PlanetSide 2’s lead designer Luke Sigmund whether the PS4 version will run at 1080p and 60fps.

“We are running at 1080p [on the PS4] and our goal is always going to be 60fps but because of the scale of PlanetSide 2 we are going to see more fluctuations than a lot of order games do. In a battlefield we can get like 64 vs. 64 but in PlanetSide 2 we can have 100’s versus 100’s so that might bring about some frame rate dips,” Luke explained to GamingBolt at E3.

But is it safe to assume that it won’t at least drop below 30? Luke was affirmative that it will at least be 30.

He also spoke that they have a number of parameters that they can tweak to improve performance. “We have a lot of heuristics in the background that control things like the number of players that you see on the screen. So we can tone all that down and we can make sure that we are always at a playable frame rate.”

Plus working on the PlayStation 4 allows them to carry out more optimizations since they only need to code for one set of specifications. “An awesome thing about the PlayStation 4 is that we know exactly what everyone hardware’s [specification] is, so we can optimize around that but on the PC we have a hundred different video cards.”

Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below and stay tuned for more PlanetSide 2 coverage.

H1Z1 is the new massively multiplayer online emergent zombie survival horror (whew!) game coming up from Sony Online Entertainment, and it’s amazingly ambitious. So ambitious, in fact, that most people were convinced that even with all the extra power that the PS4 affords, it simply would not be possible on it.

Well, as it turns out, it can be put on the PS4, as Sony announced during their conference earlier today, and here’s some footage to prove it. Mind you, this footage is pre-alpha, so it’s a very early build, and almost certainly not indicative of what the game will look like once it is finished and released, but at the very least, it’s comforting to see that the port is being worked on, and that at least in some capacity, it can be achieved.

H1Z1 is due out on PC soon, with a PS4 release to follow later some time. Stay tuned to GamingBolt for more coverage and information.