To PS4 or not to PS4: that is the question

As soon as Christmas comes around, every mom knows the next big videogame release is the hot household topic. This year, three next-gen consoles are brawling it out in department stores and online for sales supremacy, with the $400 PS4 juggernaut surpassing already high expectations with its eye-snagging graphics, slick functionality and the promise of “over 180 games in development, more than any other console” as the strapline on its website. The console achieved over a million sales on day one, and there’s even been a three-part South Park parody on the subject! Needless to say, your kids will probably want to know more.

When you invest in a family console, you have be sure there’s will be a decent library of titles to keep everyone occupied. At the moment, the range of PS4 releases is limited, because it’s so new. The good news is, its limits include excellent franchises like FIFA, Assassin’s Creed, Call of Duty and Battlefield, who have all released quality titles in time for Christmas, as well as Sony’s PS4-exclusive release Killzone: ShadowFall. However, if your kids aren’t yet teenaged or older, there really aren’t a whole lot of age-appropriate options, except for the extremely cute looking Doki-Doki Universe, available to buy on the Playstation Store, in which you have to help a cute little robot become more human.

Let’s face it: at Christmas, things can get a little out of hand financially and with all the other demands of the season, you could be feeling the pinch. The PS4, and other popular offerings such as the Wii U and Xbox One come at a premium, so the question is: should we all have a seasonal splurge or wait until after Christmas?

It’s a split verdict, which absolutely depends on your family members. If you have older kids who've worn out their keypads playing their existing games and are clamouring for more, it could well be time to update that console, with the disclaimer that it’s a hefty investment. If your kids are younger, especially under twelve, and you don’t have a whole lot of personal  time for gaming, leave their next-gen console until they’re a little older, and it’s a little cheaper. After all, a console is for life, not just for Christmas!

Disclosure: This is a guest post.