Video Game Platforms HCI

Video game consoles have been played by millions since the early 1980s however much has changed since then, at the start of console development there where hundreds of companies where making consoles there was no one company which stood above the rest, however since then and now in the modern day two consoles stand on top of the gaming market, Xbox and PlayStation. However other platforms such as PC are becoming more popular in the years and more people are switching to PC than ever before, there is also another new, recently added platform to the gaming market, mobile gaming. This most commonly comes in the form of a smart phone however PlayStation also tried mobile gaming with their portable hand held gaming devices in the PSP series.

PlayStation

PlayStation today are one of the oldest, still going games console company originally created in 1994 with the release of their first console the PS1 PlayStation where atop of the market with millions of copies sold in the first year and 102 million copies sold since then. The PS1 was released in 1994 with a relatively new controller design this was one reason for its success. The controller was the first to feature a two handled design controller, which was later copied and changed by many other companies due to its success, companies such as Nintendo used this design in their Nintendo 64 however that featured  a three handled design. Three years after the release of the original PlayStation, another version was released still under the title of PS1, however this version had many external changes made, for one the RCA jacks were removed in the 1997 version and in the 2000 revision the parallel I/O ports where removed. The 1997 system also introduced joysticks into their controller design, this was the start of the well known PlayStation dual shock controller we know today. To use the system the user would ( if they wanted to ) In the year 2000 along with the release of their new console the 'PS2', PlayStation released a third revision of their PS1 rebranded the PSone, the console was a slim version of PS1, it also had some minor changes to the GUI and aesthetics, one change was to change to the GUI instead of the old grey block back ground it was changed to red for the memory card and yellow for CD-ROM.The hardware for the PS1 was relatively new for its time as a console;


CPU - 32-bit (33mhz)
The CPU for the time was good and fit the needs of the console, however since the release of better consoles such as the PS2, the processing power of the PS1 has become obsolete.

GPU - 32-bit R800A (33mhz)
The GPU is what powers the graphics of a game. The graphics capability again much like the processor became obsolete in the next few years.
VRAM - 1MB

RAM - 2MB

Resolution - 640x480
The resolution is very low compared to what we used now, however when the console was released this resolution is nothing new
Media - CD-ROM

Dimensions - H("1.77) D("7.28) W("10.24)

Weight: 1kg


PS2

In the year 2000 3 years since Sony released a games console, They unveiled their new flagship console the PS2. The PS2 was re-designed from the bottom up it not only in aesthetics but also in hardware. firstly the PS2 featured a new design for a user to insert a disk, no longer did the console have a flip up pop-in disc, but featured a disk tray which opened when a button on the front right of the console was pressed next to the power button, the design of the disk inserts and buttons where placed on the front instead of the top, this meant that users could place their console underneath television stands or under shelves which was ideal for the common consumer. The PS2 also could be operational and used standing upright on the side as the disc tray allowed it to, the console could be stood up on either side but was recommended by PlayStation to use the standing plate which can be purchased separately. The PS2 was a success from the start and sold more than 500,000 copies in the first day and 1.3 million in that year, later in 2012 the PS2 would soon become the most sold console of all time with 155 million sold worldwide. Many things were changed with the consoles including GUI, before with the PS1 the user would insert a disc and the game would open automatically, however the PlayStation introduced the first console GUI now when the console was turned on a menu screen shows giving the user options to load a game in the console ( if one is inside ) or to choose a memory card. The GUI was more of a clean look rather than the low resolution blocky PS1 GUI. In 2004 four years after the initial release of their second console, PlayStation released a new revised version of the PS2 named PS2 slim-line. Much like the third installment of the PS1 in 2000, the PS2 slim was extremely smaller than the original console only measuring in at 23cm wide, 15cm in depth and 2cm in height making the PS2 nearly 2/3 as small as the original console. The slim version however due to its low profile would not be able to fit a operational disk tray so instead was replaced by the PS1 style flip up and place configuration. This at first seems like the PS2 slim is impractical compared to the original PS2 which does not need space above the console to allow a lid to open, but because of the Slims small height the lid can be opened with enough room to insert a disc if it is seated in a stand which has a limiting height factor. The slim version was also much lighter than the previous console only weighing a mere 1.15lbs compared to the originals 5lbs weight. The PlayStation took a major overhaul on the hardware of the PlayStation console;

CPU - 64bit "emotion engine" (299mhz)
Since 1994 modern technology had changed a lot, for one computers themselves were getting more powerful in hardware, with that consoles had to keep up with the new ever coming hardware, the PS2 features a CPU with a clock speed of 299mhz, this is a huge overhaul from the PS1's small CPU.

GPU - Graphics Synthesizer (147mhz)
The onboard graphics also were upgraded to the best but cost effective. with the increase in graphics hardware, the PS2 could support larger games with better textures, AI, and objects. It could also support more 3D games compared to the PS1 this meant games developers could explore with more diverse games and could make them in more detail. Some notable games which were born on this console and the Xbox include the Call Of Duty series, Battlefield series. However for people who wanted the original games back from PS1, they a could play certain games from PS1 where compatible with the PS2.
VRAM - 4 MB

RAM - 32 MB

Resolution - 720x480, 1280x720
Media - CD-ROM - 4GB DVD

Dimensions - W(30cm) H(7cm)  D(17cm)

PS3

In November 2006 the PS3 was released in Japan and North America, and to the rest of the world in March 2007. The PlayStation 3 much like the PS2 featured a huge change in GUI, Looks, Hardware and software. One main feature with the new console in terms of the system, was the implementation of a friends list capable of 100 friends, the user could message and voice call a friend or a player would go to the friends list by pressing the new PS button while in game and could then invite friends to join the game. This was the first PlayStation system interface to feature a dedicated friends list, Although multi player was available on PS2 it was only in game, games such as Battlefield Modern Combat 2 which featured an in game friends list. Apart from the GUI of the new console had changed a lot in terms of the look, The PlayStation 3 neither used a disc tray or open top instead the user would insert the disc into an open slit in the front on the console this saved space for the user and meant the console could be placed in much smaller places. The console also featured a bigger dedicated game space hard drive, now users did not have to have memory cards. The console itself was just smaller than the PS2 however the design was more curved rather than the rectangle look of the PS2. With the PlayStation's upgrade in Hardware especially the GPU and CPU, the consoles could now achieve much better graphics and bigger more diverse games, the classic Call Of Duty and Battlefield franchise released new games for the console with better graphics and features however the backwards compatibility that the PS2 had with PS1 games only existed in one model for the PS3 this was the 60GB model which was later known to have disc reading issues and was ultimately discontinued the later version did not feature backwards compatibility, most notably multi-player. In 2009 PlayStation released a 'slim' version of their new console, which featured a new logo design, as well as notable size reduction, the console also no longer had a glossy material but was replaced by a coarse grainy plastic much like the PS2 slim. The slim also was available at first in only 120GB but later consumers could opt for a 320GB version. In 2012 PlayStation released their final revision of the PS3 named the 'PS3 super slim' the console did not have many changes other than the size, storage and aesthetics. The size was greatly reduced making it %20 lighter and %25 smaller that the PS3 slim, however was nowhere near the size of the PS2 slims reduction. The console was available on 250GB or 500GB, the last most notable change was the new disc insertion method, the user would slide a panel on top of the console to the right revealing a disc reader where the user would insert the disc and slide the panel back over, this mean that storage of the new console could be in the smallest of spaces and still be operational. The PS3 was the first PlayStation console to feature a fully wireless controller design, this revolutionised gaming. The new dual shock 3 controller was mainly different as it was fully wireless and at full charge could be gamed on for more than 12 hours before needing to charge, charging the controller was done by plugging it into the console with a micro USB lead however, controller charging docks where later available from PlayStation and other retailers most docks could fit up to two controllers.it featured a "PS" button located where the analogue on the old controllers where located. The "PS" button was used to connect the controller to the console via Bluetooth, the user could press the PS button to power the console on, in game the PS button was widely used as an overlay of the home screen menu would appear where a user could then navigate to the friends list to message friends while in the same of different games. The controller also had gyroscopic implementations allowing in some games for the player to control something by titling the controller, one game which showed of this feature was the PlayStation exclusive LittleBigPlannet where tilting the controller would make the characters head turn in different directions, however the feature was rarely used out side games like this and  generally had no use in gaming The PS3 also supported up to four other controller which could be connected to allow four player co-op however only in games which supported it, one example is PlayStations exclusive title LittleBigPlanet where four users could play together in levels on the same console, however extra controller would have to be bought as only one controller is supplied when purchasing the console. PlayStation also introduced a online store which players could access via the home screen menu, the PS store was a place where users could buy most games available on the console or could even buy movies, music or background wallpaper themes for the users home screen, add-ons for games where also sold here along with free demos. The new console also brought exclusive PlayStation games with it some including, LittleBigPlannet, Killzone, Infamous and more.

CPU - 6 core equivalent proccessor (3.2gGhz)

GPU - reality synthesizer (500Mhz)
VRAM - 256MB

RAM - 256MB (700Mhz)

Resolution - 720x480 (SD), 1280x720 (HD), 1920x1080 (Full HD - certain titles only)
Media - CD-ROM- 25Gb BlurayDisc, 50Gb duel layer Bluray Disc
HDD - 40Gb , 60Gb , 80Gb, 120Gb, 250Gb, 500Gb
Dimensions - Original: W (32cm) H (9cm) D (27cm)  Slim :W (29cm) H (6cm) D (29cm)
Super Slim: W (29cm) H (6cm) D (23cm)

PS4

In November 2013 Sony Released their newest console to the series, the PlayStation 4. The PlayStation 4 was still not as big as an advancement as the PS3 was to the PS2, but none the less it had many new features, hardware and content to offer. First of the Playstation 4 took a completely new desgin style, instead of the smooth surfaces and curves of previous consoles, the PS4 took a modern sharp look with a flat rhombus shape from the side. the console also mixed both the textures of the PS3 orginal gloss and the slims rough texture. The disc insert was similar to the PS3 originals slide in style. Along with changes with the the consoles look the new dualshock 4 controller was re-done, the biggest change was the dissapeareance of the classic start and select buttons that we had all grown so used to, instead it was replaced by a large touch pad rectangular button. the track pad as limited use in most games, for instance in the popular GrandTheftAuto 5 the touch pad can be used for just moving around the ingame map, it also serves as a button as well. some other features on the controller are, extended bumper R2,L2 with design similar to the Xbox's 360 bumper buttons.A share buttonto the left of the new touch pad enables users to share recorded videos or stream to TwitchTV A speaker is located below the PS button this is used for a sense of surround sound and immersion, In GTA the small speaker emits police radio calls when wanted. Another helpful feature is the headphone jack on the controller this means that player no longer have to deal with long headphone wires trailing across them when they game. The aesthetic desgin of the controller was changed also, the main body of the controller is gloss with the bottom of the handles being matte.The PlayStation GUI was changed also, with it now looking more like an Xbox home screen with tiles in a horizontal layout. The PlayStation store also changed as early access games and pre-alpha games could now be played or purchased on the store as before only PC had access to early alpha games. However PlayStation now charge PS4 players to play online much like Microsoft have done since the 360 this has made many consumers steer away from PlayStation as that used to be one reason why PlayStation was better.The hardware for the PS4 was changed to the latest generation for consoles;
CPU - Quad-core 'Steamroller' (3ghz)

GPU - AMD HD 7670 (1ghz) - assisted by A10 APU
VRAM - 1GB

RAM - 8MB (700Mhz)

Resolution - 1080p/3D/60fps, 4K
Media - CD-ROM- 50Gb duel layer Bluray Disc
HDD - 250GB, 500GB
Dimensions - W (27cm) H (5cm) D (30cm)

PSP-1000

In 2004 PlayStation released a new brand of console to rival with other hand held gaming devices such as the Gameboy and the Nintendo DS gaming, the new device was called the PlayStation Portable 1000 or PSP1000, Its 4.3 inch was a draw for consumer it offered a better playing visibility and all round made handheld gaming more easier. The buttons where relatively similar to the PlayStation controller however it only featured one joystick on the left hand side of the device. Games where played either by disc which was inserted in the pop out back cover, A SD memory card was inserted into the side of the PSP via a clip which exposed the port, this is where users would keep game data or could be downloaded on the online PlayStation store. The menu and GUI was the same as that of the PlayStation GUI. The PSP was a great portable device however suffered like other handheld devices with reflective screens making playing outside difficult

PSP-2000

Later in 2007 Sony released another PSP, the PSP2000 which was more of a success than the previous device. However the PSP 2000 had very minor hardware changes with the only changes being a smaller battery to accomadate the smaller size of the PSP 2000.

PSP-3000

A year later in 2008 the PSP 3000 was released which was the same size as the PSP 2000 and but had a larger battery, it also had a matte non-reflective screen which made visibility outside possible.

PSP-GO
Another year later in 2009 the PSPGO was released the design was different from the previous devices as it was an all in one design, with the screen covering the button, the screen could then be slid up to reveal the controls this made the device small and compact compared to the previous PSPs, However the screen was slightly smaller than the PSPs 4.3 inch with the GO at 3.8 inch.


PS Vita
The latest PSP released by Sony is the PS Vita, which was released to the public in 2012. The PS Vita had the latest hardware, and had drastically better hardware compared to the PSPs. The screen is a OLED 960x544 subHD, touch screen display. The device also has a touch screen back which can be used in games. The Vita re-mapped the buttons a bit as well, now the PS button along with start and select where located of to either side rather than on the bottom. The most notable change is the addition of another flat joystick, the extra joystick made games such as Uncharted which is available to the Vita more playable as the accuracy and control from the two joystick design on PlayStation's where now on the PS Vita.

Xbox
Microsoft, a company where up until 2001 was known and seen as the leading firm of computer technologies. However a lot would be about to change with the release of Microsofts Xbox. The Xbox was released in 2001 in North America and 2002 for the rest of the world. First of the controller follows similar looks to the Nintendo however this is just a coincidence as the GameCube was released later in the year. Compared to the PS1 the Xbox is considerably more bulky and heavy weighing, this is because Xbox used hardware made especially for computers, whereas PlayStation and other companies used specially built hardware made to fit consoles. The Xbox is more powerful compared to the PS1 however its not fair to compare both the first consoles of the two companies. Instead the PS2 is a better comparison. However even then the Xbox is still vastly superior, the controller is much bulkier and thicker than the PlayStation controller, Its button mapping is also different as the joysticks are located diagonally from each other, some users prefer this over the PlayStation controller.

Xbox Specifications
CPU - Intel Pentium III - 733 MHz
GPU - NVIDIA Xbox GPU (233mhz)
VRAM - N/A
RAM - 64MB
Media - 2.6 - 6.6MB CD
Resolution - 480i, 480p, 576i, 576p, 720p, 1080i
HDD - 8-10GB optional 32MB
Dimensions - W (32cm) H (10cm) D (26cm)
Weight - 3.86kg

Xbox 360
In 2005, one year before the release of the PlayStation 3, Microsoft released their second console to the world. The Xbox360 was their second console, since 2001 many things had changed from the Xbox. The first clear change was the console itself the console weight and size had decreased, as well as teh console looking generally more clean and refined. The console featured a disk tray insertion method as well as two memory unit slots and a power button. The Xbox unlike the PS3 used memory cards like teh PS1 and PS2 used to, on these game saves, downloadable content or game profiles can be stored on these, sizes of the memory cards came in 64MB, 256MB, and 512MB. Another accessories which could be purchased for the Xbox 360 was the Xbox Kinect although released five years later in 2010. The Kinect is a controller-free motion detecting Interface in which the user moves to control a character, however only certain few games implemented use for the Kinect in their games, Kinect competed with PlayStation's "PS move" motion gaming, however the user for "move" would have to hold a stick like device which controlled the game, it is generally accepted by most that Xbox's Kinect is the superior motion gaming device out of the two. The Xbox controller had a revisit as well, and the new 360 controller was much slimmer than the previous consoles controller however there was no change in button mapping, and the 360 controller was still bigger than PlayStation's dual shock controller. Xbox unlike PlayStation did not have Bluray drive this meant that some games came with multiple discs, one for multi-player and one for single player. This could be tiresome if the user has to keep switching between discs.

Xbox 360 Specifications
CPU - Xenon triple-core 64-bit (3.2Ghz)
GPU - Xenos ATI-chipset
VRAM - N/A
RAM - 512MB GDDR3
Media Storage - 6.8GB - 7.8GB DVD
Resolution - 
HDD - 20GB, 60GB, 120GB, 250GB, 320GB
Dimensions - W (30cm) H (8cm) D (25m)
Weight - 3.5 kg

Xbox One

in 2013 Microsoft released their newest console the Xbox One, To compete with Sony's new PS4. On release the Xbox One was a complete change compared to the Xbox 360, the main body of the Xbox One was a change it was much larger than the 360 and had a more robust look, as it was more of a block. The console featured a gloss and grill sort of texture. the new console also got rid of the disk tray and was replaced by a slide in method which the PS3 and PS4 utilized. The controller itself took some changes also, the controller was now fully wireless and the user did not have to buy an adapter like the 360 if they wanted wireless. the controller also took a new design and now had a matte finish with gloss on top of the controller with the new Xbox logo. The console could also be bought with a new kinect for a little extra. The Xbox system was the main change in the new console. Firstly the Xbox featured a new voice command that was useful but could sometimes be hard to use. The console runs on two operating systems as well, one for running games and another modified windows 8 operating system for running apps and media. the layout of the home screen is similar to that of the new windows 8. The Xbox much like PS4 also featured a streaming service where players could either record gameplay with a press of a button on the controller or they could stream live to twitch or other live streaming services. However the live stream, and voice command could only be used if the user had the paid subscription of Xbox Live.

CPU - 8-Core AMD custom CPU (1.75Ghz)
GPU - Unknown GPU (853Mhz)
VRAM - N/A
RAM - 8GB DDR3
Media Storage - N/A
Resolution - 720p, 1080p , 4K (only on games which support 4K)
HDD - 500GB
Dimensions - W (27cm) H (7cm) D (33m)
Weight - 3.18 kg

PC

Consoles have been played by millions for decades, however PC gaming has always been there, but was always played by few and was mainly hidden in the shadows of the vast console market. This does not mean however that PC was inferior, but actually quite the opposite, In the past 20 years PC has excelled far further than console in terms of hardware and quality. First of however it is not really fair to compare consoles and PC as they are two entireley different machines. With PC hardware is not limited as users can create their own PC and chose the best most up to date hardware, they can also update it whenever they want or if better hardware comes out whereas consoles are limited as to when the manufactures release the console. Because of this Consoles and PCs cannot be compared as there is no one single computer to compare. However PC gaming has many benefits over console gaming. Firstly more diverse choices in how the user plays the game, they can use keyboard and mouse or can connect any type of controllers. PC games a truly played in HD, unlike consoles which boast HD they cannot actually support full HD on most games. Another bonus to PC is that the user is not tied to a network, this is good because if there is something wrong with PSN servers or Xbox servers users will not be able to play online, and servers have been down a few times most notably on PSN in 2011 when anonymous attacked PSN, on PC you are connected to a broadband and most of the time the broadband will not get attacked or crash. Many PC gamers today download their games from "Steam" a online gaming community/store where player can buy games and download them much like PSN. However Steam has special sales around the year which can lower AAA titles to a low price, this rarely happens on consoles. The main draw to play on PC is the vastly superior and better graphics. PC was the only platform which could play on early development games or pre-alphas up until 2013 when the next gen consoles could also download a few early access games. Consoles owe alot to PC most of the new console development is inspired or copied from PC, this can clearly be seen by Microsoft with the sudden increase in other media such as YouTube and internet searches, as PC serves as a platform for games and can do a lot more,such as work on documents or browse the internet easily with out using a controller which is unusual.

Mobile

Mobile gaming is fairly new to the gaming market, Early in the 21st century the world of mobile gaming was small and only consisted on a few games on candy bar like phones, games such as snake, space invaders and Tetris. However with the upcoming popularity in touch screen smart phones, games developers would have a new platform to port their games to. The mobile gaming market really blew up in 2008 when app stores where added to mobile OS's such as Androids PlayStore and Apples AppStore. This meant games developers could now sell their games their and they did with notable games such as doodle jump and AngryBirds being the most popular in the starting years. However the mobile market is now very big with tonnes of games from quiz's to racing games, puzzle games. However the mobile market is very different to console in the way games are played most of the time it is done by swiping such as with candy crush or the user presses touch screen keys to control something, for example in a quiz there are keys. Mobile gaming is much better now than it used to be, and can easily be compared to portable devices such as the PSP, but in my opinion the PSP is a device meant for gaming so it will be better, a phone is not designed for gaming.