And a childhood with an Atari ST was impactful. I could muster some nostalgia for, say, the novelty of the GameCube. And then it started getting all nostalgic. The sense of connection between player and avatar, plus just how satisfying the world was to muck about in, made an instant convert.
I immediately handed the controls over to my games-adverse wife, who hadn’t used a controller since the Sega Genesis, and she too was instantly hooked. Not only did Astro’s Playroom successfully convince me that the DualSense was made of actual magic, but it delighted me with a product that felt as solid and enjoyable as Ratchet & Clank had ever been. By the time that torture was over, it was time for bed.įor the PlayStation 5 Digital, it was one of the most joyful, gorgeous, impressive and superbly crafted third-person action games I’ve played in forever. I spent what seemed like perhaps five months being dragged through the most tedious tutorial, one that appeared to believe no one had ever encountered the mysterious artefact that is the “First Person Shooter” before, such that every element of its conceit needed to be introduced painstakingly, glacially slowly. For the Series S, it ended up being Gears 5, which so many had suggested was worth a play. So I was set up for two different first impressions.
Ah yes, I’d read about it – some little gimmicky thing there to show off the DualSense’s fancy new tricks. But while I was waiting, what was this? A game already installed? Astro’s Playroom. (Well, on the floor next to the shelf holding the Series S - IKEA shelving can only take so much.) I went through the same process, set it up, waited for the updates, poked about in the menus, and got Miles Morales downloading. An extra week to develop a bond, establish a brand connection, perhaps even fall in love? If nothing else it had a head start, and for lack of any launch games, I ran the updates, poked around the menus, and started diving into the back catalogue of Game Pass games I’d missed for never having owned an Xbone.Ī week later, along came my PS5, and after getting over just how astonishingly big it is (you cannot know the true scale of a PS5 until you’ve been in the same room, and feared for your life should it topple over on top of you), put it right alongside Microsoft’s machine. The UK was part of the world where the PS5 launch was arbitrarily delayed by a week, meaning I had an extra seven days to get to know my Xbox Series S. But crucially, I’ve never felt any notion of loyalty. If anything, I demonstrate a woeful lack of commitment. Alongside many Nintendo devices, of the Sony and Microsoft flagships I’ve owned a PS2, Xbox 360, PS4, and in the last couple of weeks have been fortunate enough to be able to buy a PS5 Digital and Xbox Series S. Always having considered myself a PC gamer ahead of anything else, I’m console-ambivalent. I have never taken part in the Console Wars. As I finished the short delight of Astro’s Playroom, sitting back in satisfaction at having defeated those daft dinosaurs, I found myself bathing in the warm glow of affection for a quarter-century of Sony technology, reminiscing about the days of… wait, hang on? I’ve never given a toss about PlayStations before.