GameStop has confirmed that it’s experiencing “strong demand” for Sony’s upcoming PlayStation 4 console, with 600,000 members of the retailer’s PowerUp Rewards program signing up for the PS4 “First to Know List.”
“With only a glance at the PS4, gamers are excited and eager to know more,” said GameStop President Bartel.
“Within just a few weeks, more than 600,000 people have signed up, showing strong demand for this new console.”
Frankly, it is probably quite clear to most of us that there is a tremendous amount of pent-up demand for the new system, as the current console cycle has dragged on for nearly a decade.
Gamers want to update their consoles ASAP, and the real battle will obviously take place between Microsoft’s Xbox 720 (Next) and Sony’s PS4, while Nintendo’s Wii U sits somewhat passively on the sidelines.
Although the Japanese-based corporation has been somewhat parsimonious in terms of revealing specific technical specs, Sony Computer Entertainment America CEO Jack Tretton recently confirmed that the company would be “unveiling” more about the platform in recent months.
In the meantime, we do know that the PS4 will not only be a very powerful gaming machine from a hardware perspective, but also a social tool and integrated marketplace more akin to successful mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.
And according to Avalanche CTO Linus Blomberg, the PS4 is likely to bring open-world gaming to a “whole new” level.
“I’m glad Sony decided to go with 8gb RAM because it means that the PS4 will out-power most PC’s for years to come,” he said.
“”The off-the-shelf philosophy behind the architecture makes sense from a pricing and heating point of view, but it also means that Sony more easily can make incremental improvements of their system. If that’s actually their plan I don’t know, but it could help preventing the inevitable loss of market shares that the long console cycles entails,” he added.
