John Carmack: PS4 and Xbox One Are "Essentially the Same"

Andy Chalk

One Flag, One Fleet, One Cat
Nov 12, 2002
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John Carmack: PS4 and Xbox One Are "Essentially the Same"


John Carmack of id Software fame says there's actually very little difference between the new consoles coming from Sony and Microsoft, but he's really not much of a fan of Kinect.

Id Software may not be the genre-dominating power it once was but John Carmack is still John Carmack and when he says something about computer stuff - zigatexels, gigapoops, teragoogles and whatnot - you can be pretty sure he knows what he's talking about. And so his comparison of the upcoming Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles during his QuakeCon keynote is especially interesting, because in terms of computational power at least, in his eyes it's pretty much a toss-up.

Carmack said he hasn't done any "really rigorous benchmarking" yet but declared that the two systems are very similar, and both very capable. "It's almost amazing how close they are in capabilities, how common they are," Carmack said. "The capabilities they give are essentially the same."

And although he said the backlash against the Xbox One was "a bit on the side of a witch hunt," he also made it clear that he's not really a fan of Kinect, knocking it for "fundamental limitations with the latency and frame rate" and saying it provides a "poor interaction" with the system. "One way that I look at it is - I used to give Apple a lot of grief about the one button mouse," he said. "Anybody working with a mouse really wants more buttons - [they're] helpful there. Kinect is sort of like a zero button mouse with a lot of latency on it."

The 2013 edition of QuakeCon [http://www.quakecon.org/] is underway now and runs until August 4.

Source: OXM [http://www.oxm.co.uk/59578/carmack-xbox-one-and-ps4-are-essentially-the-same-microsoft-witchhunt-is-unjustified/]


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mechalynx

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Mar 23, 2008
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Good to know. Wasn't going for the xbone anyway, but at least I won't have to contemplate buying the same machine twice.
 

Mumorpuger

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Apr 8, 2009
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As long as the voice capabilities are more accurate, this isn't a deal breaker for me...
 

Casual Shinji

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Jul 18, 2009
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Essentially the same... except in price.

This makes all the difference for me.
 

Ishigami

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mechalynx said:
buying the same machine twice.
Considering that both seem to be based on the same AMD technology this a rather fitting description.

The current situations (all console based on AMD technology) sort of makes me wish that there was only one console developed by Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft together in dialogue with important publishers and developers. That way I could just hand over 400 ~ 500? for one system and enjoy all the games for 5 ~ 7 years and not have the same machine with different logos on it three times?
 

Windu23

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VinLAURiA said:
So pretty much a repeat of 360 vs. PS3, then?
Not really. There were difference between the two in terms of graphics and some performance stuff. On the PS3, Capcom games, especially the fighters, have a slight but noticeable input lag, which can be a huge headache for tournament play. ME3 seems to crash a lot (at least mine does, and always in the same spots on multiple playthroughs), the multiplayer has constant issues, and there are games that just don't look as good, Bayonetta being the classic example.

If what Mr. Carmack is saying is true, then we should expect those issues to be eliminated. So, that will be a good thing. Let's hope it holds true.
 

Covarr

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May 29, 2009
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I don't always agree with Carmack's design sense, but he really knows his tech. If he says the consoles are essentially the same... I'm gonna buy the one that's $100 cheaper.

P.S. Thanks

P.P.S. Captcha: "more cowbell"
 

shirkbot

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Huh, I actually hadn't considered the lag issue with the Kinect. That's a really fair point. You have to move, the Kinekt has to see it, process it and convert it into something the game can recognize... I still want to see what people do with it, but I'll be avoiding it personally.
 

TiberiusEsuriens

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Andy Chalk said:
And although he said the backlash against the Xbox One was "a bit on the side of a witch hunt," he also made it clear that he's not really a fan of Kinect, knocking it for "fundamental limitations with the latency and frame rate" and saying it provides a "poor interaction" with the system. "One way that I look at it is - I used to give Apple a lot of grief about the one button mouse," he said. "Anybody working with a mouse really wants more buttons - [they're] helpful there. Kinect is sort of like a zero button mouse with a lot of latency on it."
This is my favorite quote of the month, thanks for sharing this! It really drives home the point, though. We can love/hate it all we want, but really as far as simple user interaction goes this is why everyone is just so meh about it.
 

ThunderCavalier

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Carmack's words put PS4 and Xbone on the same level.

Which is probably a bad thing, given how one is $100 cheaper.
 

Phrozenflame500

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ThunderCavalier said:
Carmack's words put PS4 and Xbone on the same level.

Which is probably a bad thing, given how one is $100 cheaper.
Pretty much this.

Now that the xBone has regressed on it's NSA-mandated policies, it's no different from the PS4 other then the 100$ Kinect. And I highely doubt most of their core audience wants a 100$ kinect.
 

josemlopes

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ThunderCavalier said:
Carmack's words put PS4 and Xbone on the same level.

Which is probably a bad thing, given how one is $100 cheaper.
It all comes down basicly on the Kinect.

Either way I think this is good news for ports and stuff.
 

Morsomk_v1legacy

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Jan 30, 2013
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Andy Chalk said:
zigatexels, gigapoops, teragoogles and whatnot
...Did Bill Cosby like steal your keyboard or something?

So yeah, pretty much the same, except in price and companies. Also Kinect, don't ever forget that monster. I'm personally not sure if I'm even going to bother with next gen unless its the Wii U.
 

Jadak

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Nov 4, 2008
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RatherDull said:
This is a very good thing!

No more ****ty ports!
That's not at all what any of this means... True, it will eliminate the shittiness in any ports that are shitty specifically because they are being ported to a 'lesser console' and thus have to be downgraded, but more often 'shittiness' is a consequence of attempting to overhaul the game to run in an environment other than the one it was designed and built for, and not spending the time/resources to do so to the same level of quality. Similar performance capabilities does not change that issue.
 

Baldr

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Jan 6, 2010
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I'm curious if he is talking about the Kinect 1 or the Kinect 2. By integrating the Kinect into the system, a lot of designers I've talked to said the Kinect 2 latency was a almost a non-issue now.
 

CriticalMiss

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Jan 18, 2013
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Look out John Carmack, there is an EA behind you!

I'm guessing that Rage 2 won't be using Kinect flailing to throw a wingstick then? It's probably for the best.