PlayStation has been around for almost twenty-five years now and has given us countless gaming memories. How could anyone forget the first time they turned on their PS2 and stared in awe at Shadow of the Colossus? Twenty-five years of nonstop entertainment has given way to some problems that nobody seems to want to talk about. While it’s okay to pick and choose favorites, we can all agree PlayStation has had some problems that are not being addressed. PlayStation and their fanbase have ignored these problems for far too long, excluding new gamers from certain features that are necessary in a modern gaming world.
It would seem that change isn’t part of PlayStations update anytime soon. These problems vary from annoyingly small details, such as the controller battery being a three bar system instead of a percentage, to larger issues like no backward compatibility. While some of these issues have started recently, PlayStation has plenty of other problems that people have voiced their concerns about for some time to no available. PlayStation is a good company for what it does, but ignoring or answering in ways that don’t quite feel right isn’t a good way to appease your consumers.
PlayStation has been dominating the gaming world for these past couple of years and it seems like they are on a roll with new titles such as The Last of Us Part 2 and more recently Spider-Man. That doesn’t mean that they aren’t without their fair share of problems. This list includes twenty-five problems fans have been talking about for far too long.
25 Limited Cross-Play
PC, Xbox, and even The Nintendo Switch have it. Why is Sony refusing to take a step in the right direction? Thanks to new gaming developments, many platforms have decided to merge their online communities. Instead of having to buy every console there is, you simply pick the one you prefer the most. While steps are being taken in the right direction with PlayStation allowing a Fortnite cross-play beta, it simply isn’t enough.
Why just stop at Fortnite? Why is there only one game available for cross-play? When countless other game communities have been asking for cross play for years now. The lack of action taken by PlayStation is just one of the many problems that it has.
24 Backwards Compatibility Isn’t A Thing
Another problem with PlayStation is that their classic games aren't being supported. With only twenty-five PS2 games available on the PlayStation store, it’s clear that a lot of favorite games are going unnoticed. While the PlayStation Classic has been announced with a ton of pre-installed games, this doesn’t cover the thousands of games for the PS2.
PlayStation has yet again given the wrong answer to a questions fans have been asking for a long time. How long are we going to take it before we demand PlayStation fix all of these glaring issues?
23 The Only One Worth Getting Is The PS4 Pro
There are three PS4 models currently available: the original PS4, the PS4 Slim, and the PS4 Pro. The original model for the PS4 is being slowly phased out by the PS4 Slim, and each model is available with 500GB or 1TB. That being said, the PS4 Pro is the only model available to handle 4K gaming, so why get any other version? It’s far superior to the other models available. Sure, the option to choose is nice, but there isn’t any reason to get the PS4 Slim.
22 The Greed Of Console Exclusives
Don’t get me wrong, I loved the new God of War and Horizon: Zero Dawn and played them for everything that they were worth. But has it occurred to anyone that console exclusives might be hurting some people? Growing up, I remember that wanted to play Halo with all of my friends, but couldn’t afford it because I didn’t have that console. Why are too many video games only available on the PlayStation? Why should gaming companies make you choose between your favorite game series? It doesn’t seem fair to their consumers to do that.
21 Too Little Storage Space
It seems that no matter what games your delete or what apps you decide aren’t necessary, there never appears to be enough storage space when downloading new games or updates. Often storage space seems to disappear out of thin air, and with more and more games becoming larger in size (such as Red Dead Redemption 2, which requires a total 100GB of storage), PlayStation has to come up with solutions quickly in order to appease customers.
You can, of course, buy the 1TB worth of storage space, but you will soon find yourself running out of space before you know it.
20 Lackluster PlayStation Plus Rewards
I know I’ve been in a situation where I always get excited to see what games are offered as part of PlayStation Plus for the next month. It’s all I can think about. PlayStation fans can understand my disappointment when I’m let down time and time again by the cheap, low-budget games offered. There has been maybe a handful of times where I’ve been pleasantly surprised by what I received, but only after many months of not downloading anything at all. My hopes have been crushed for the last time. I’ve since stopped caring about what is announced and only see anything about PlayStation Plus when it’s worth talking about, as should all gaming friends until PlayStation Plus picks up their act.
19 Poor Battery Display
Have you ever been playing your PlayStation only to realize the controller battery needs to be charged yet again? Most PlayStation fans have way too many times. The three bars indicate almost nothing when it comes to knowing when to plug your controller to charge. With everyone carrying phones these days with percentage numbers instead of bars, it gives the users that much more control and freedom to use that device without worrying about needing to charge it. Such a small and simple fix to a slightly annoying problem!
18 Controller Drains Too Quickly
While on the subject of batteries, can we talk about how short the battery life on the controller is? It seems like every two or three hours, I have to keep charging my controller in order to keep playing. I don’t know if there is anything that can be done to solve this problem, but for starters, they could possibly make it an option to get rid of the light bar completely or turn off the controller volume. It would at least be better than the current PlayStation dilemma, which requires tons of charging for a controller that drains too fast.
17 Too Many Services
Not including streaming services such as Netflix or Hulu, PlayStation offers 4 different services all with their own purpose. PlayStation Now has over 650 plus games available to stream, PlayStation Vue makes it available to watch live tv and more, PlayStation Video movies for rent or for purchase, and finally, PlayStation Music lets you listen to Spotify while you game. And did we mention that each of them costs way more than their non-PlayStation equivalents? It's getting to the point where it's not even useful to have all of them because they just take up space.
16 E3 Presentation Doesn’t Give Much to Look Forward To
We all love waking up to a new day full of new games that give us something to look forward in the next couple of months. That’s why, for gamers, E3 is the best time of year. It's like Christmas. Most video game console companies fulfilled that scratch of new games, but PlayStation's E3 conference just left me itchy still. Lots of fans were left unsatisfied with what was shown.
And just what was shown? A handful of new games announced, and new trailers for games that were already announced or were already rumored.
15 Too Many Options
With a total of 1826 games available for purchase, you have to wonder: are all of those games worth it? Not to devalue any of the games or the developers, but with that many options how can you know what is going to be fun for you?
It’s like browsing through Netflix with no end goal in mind. You have no surefire way of knowing what is going to work for you, or if you'll find anything at all. There are categories or genres, but with 1826 games, it can be a bit overwhelming choosing the right game for you.
14 Hard-To-Clean Systems
Everything gets dusty or dirty from time to time, so the PS4 isn’t any different. It is different, though, and in a bad and frustrating way. If you take it apart to clean your system and break the warranty sticker, the warranty is now void. There is nothing you can do but hope that your PlayStation doesn't get damaged, or leave it dirty. You now have to judge between having a slower system because dust is keeping it from running smoothly or breaking your safety net and possibly losing your console. PlayStation should at least tell its users how to properly clean the system.
13 Lack Of Customization Of Controllers
If you're using a controller on most other gaming consoles, you can customize it to fit your unique personality or just your style preferences. You can get colorful skins, stickers, or other accessories that really make your controller feel like your own. Not so with PlayStation's lackluster and basic ones! It's almost frustrating how simple and boring their controllers are. It can be argued that controller customization doesn't matter in the long run, but the right controller skin can make yours feel special. With PlayStation's controllers, we as gamers feel far from that.
12 No Obligations For Trophy Hunting
When you just beat your favorite new game and you can’t wait to play it again, you feel like you're on top of the world. You just can't wait to get your hands on those sweet, sweet trophies. Then you start it up again and have the thought "I wonder what the trophies are like." So you take a look and see they aren’t that bad, and several months later, the grinding is done and you get the sweet, sweet platinum trophy. Then that’s it: no reward, no extra cutscene, nothing. The only reward you really get is bragging rights.
11 Frustrating App Management
There are seven different apps that you can get for your PlayStation 4 on your mobile device. Why do we need that many when one could work out just fine? There isn't any good reason for it other than to take up more space on your phone. What's the point? It's not making customers happy, and it's not making PlayStation any money. It's useless for no good reason at all. PlayStation hits us again with another odd answer for a question that is easily answered by most.
10 Weird Rubber Thumb Sticks
Steering this rant back to the topic of controllers, there are some more serious design flaws that we would be amiss to skip over. Such as, for example, the rubber on the thumbsticks that always seem to either rub after heavy use or stays oily. What's the point of having it at all if it's just going to fall apart on us? Rubber is supposed to be durable and stretchy. How can you mess something up that badly, PlayStation? Controllers shouldn't make us feel like we have to wash ourselves after we use them.
9 Bizarrely Bright Light Bar
It’s also a frustrating thought that the light bar on the PS4 controller can only be dimmed and not turned off all the way. What's the point of it? The light is flat-out annoying at night, ruining a nice and dark gaming atmosphere as well as draining the battery. While the auxiliary input on the controller is appreciated by all players, it’s just another thing that drains the battery in the long run. We don't need that. The controllers already have enough problems with that battery as it is.
8 The PS4’s Game Library
The game library is an absolute mess, and anyone who has spent forever searching for a game they literally just bought a few months ago would say the same. Why does it take me more than five minutes to find that one game you’re looking for when it could be easily streamlined? A simple search bar would be handy or even different options rather than scrolling through all the old games until you find the one you want to play or download. Or different categories for downloadable content, wallpapers, or even additional content. The possibilities are endless, PlayStation, and yet you do nothing!
7 PlayStation Friend Management
Suppose that you have a large group of friends who all want to play something together. Difficult, but doable (in theory). You all join up in a virtual party like you planned, only to slowly realize that you can only host up to eight players inside a voice chat room. Now you’re left with the decision of which friend to drop, and nobody wants to make that decision or be the dropped friend. There has to be a better way than a highly limited friend management system that can't handle even a moderately-sized friend group.
6 Trophy Photos
Imagine this: you’re grinding away in a fighter RPG game, trying your best to get that trophy, and the boss is one hit away from being defeated. You strike, and then you wait, and then all your hard work pays off finally. You get that trophy that has been eluding you for months now, only to have the picture taken and stored away in your galley. Many don’t even know about this feature. Not all of us care about every single trophy we earn.