Over all, a pretty interesting read for those of us who want a slightly more editorial take on the console releases. However, I do disagree with some of the statements in this article.
1) The Controllers. I have held a dual shock 4, but have not yet tried out the XOne controller. The DS4 is very comfortable for me (medium/small hands), but I suspect the XOne controller will be too. I could easily see Sony taking this award purely on the back of its own low expectations rather than actual superiority. I think that Sony's improvements with the DS4 are very substantial, while MS hasn't improved on their prior design by as large a margin (they didn't need to, they had a much better controller last time around). But I also think that the touchpad has the opportunity to be a real game-changer in terms of console interaction IF sony can get devs to support it (difficult with 3rd party titles). navigating menus is always a pain in the ass with controllers, but the touchpad can change all that, using either a mouse cursor a la a laptop, or a smart-phone like touch interface (which we are all already used to). AC4 seems to be on the right path letting you scroll the map with the touch pad, I hope that keeps going. Also, how can you complain about the (crappy) packaged headset, but fail to mention that the DS4 has a standard 3.5mm jack that accepts in-line mics. That seems like the best possible option for consumers, we can all use whatever headsets we already own and like (i.e., the ones from our phones).
2) Second Screen Experience. This seemed like the worst decision in the article. XOne has a featureless second screen app that MS has been making grandiose promises about for years. PS4 has an equally useless mobile app (without the grandiose promises). . .plus the ability to remotely play your console games on a handheld device if someone else needs to use the main TV. One of these things is not like the other. . . Just an indefensible pick. Sony is offering so much more. I could understand it if remote play sucked (a la PSP remote play), but the reviews to date have been quite positive, saying that basically everything but twitch FPS play works just fine.
Finally, to those who quibbled with the launch lineup comparison, I have to agree with the escapist staff: there isn't a standout title anywhere, so at least go with XOne's larger stable of games which offer more opportunities to cater to someone's particular tastes (even if some of the exclusives, like Lococycle and Crimson Dragon, are supposedly pretty bad).
