Sony focuses on PC with PlayStation Now and DualShock 4 USB Wireless Adaptor
Sony's PlayStation line of home consoles have been wildly popular over the years. The fourth version, the PS4, is obviously the best from a hardware perspective, but overall the quality of games per console is matter of opinion. Obviously the PS4 will offer the best graphics, but from a gameplay and enjoyment perspective, hardware is not the final word.
Today, the console maker takes a strange turn by focusing on the PC. You see, it is bringing its existing 'PlayStation Now' cloud gaming service to Microsoft Windows. This will give PC gamers the opportunity to play some PlayStation titles on their gaming rigs. In addition, Sony is delivering a USB dongle for Windows and Mac which will enable the DualShock 4 to be used on computers running those operating systems.
Speaking of PlayStation Now for Windows, Eric Lempel, SVP at Sony explains,"this will bring a wide selection of PlayStation exclusive titles to Windows PC for the very first time, including entries in the Uncharted, God of War, and Ratchet & Clank franchises, as well as beloved PS3 games like The Last of Us and Journey. Current subscribers have a new way to access PS Now’s library of over 400 games, and the PC app provides a new way for even more gamers to discover and play the service".
Sony shares the following requirements for PlayStation Now on Windows.
- Windows 7 (SP1), 8.1 or 10
- 3.5 GHz Intel Core i3 or 3.8 GHz AMD A10 or faster
- 300 MB or more; 2 GB or more of RAM
- Sound card; USB port
"We're also introducing a new device, the DualShock 4 USB Wireless Adapter, which launches in early September for a suggested retail price of $24.99. This adapter will let you connect a DualShock 4 to PC and Mac wirelessly, and will enable every feature of the controller you know and love: buttons, analog sticks, touch pad, light bar, motion sensors, vibration, and stereo headset jack -- as long as the gaming application supports these features", says Lempel.
Can you try Playstation Now on your Windows machine today? No, sadly. Sony says it will bring the functionality to Europe first, with North Americans getting the ability 'shortly thereafter'. In other words, availability is sort of unknown. Hopefully it will hit in 2016. The USB dongle (which is shockingly large) will launch worldwide in September, however, for the reasonable price of $25.
Are you excited to play some classic PlayStation titles on your PC using a DualShock 4 controller? tell me in the comments.