While there’s simply no disputing that Sony and its PS4 seem to be the center of attention at this year’s GamesCom that doesn’t mean that there’s no interesting news of the PS3 front. In fact, Day 1 of the event in Cologne, Germany played host to a number of announcements concerning the current (soon-to-be) last-gen console. Let’s face it; while some are ready to throw the PS3 under the bus in favor of the obviously fantastic PS4, it’s likely that the console still has a lot of life left in it. Anyway, enough with the delays, let’s jump right in and explore some of the notable GamesCom 2013 news for the PS3 – Day 1…
Perhaps one of the more exciting announcements for PS3 owners concerns the upcoming GTA V bundle. In short, the package will contain a copy of Grand Theft Auto V, a Pulse headset, and of course, a 500 GB PS3 console. The bundle, which is dropping in September, is also linked to a rather amazing pre-order bonus offer. For instance, if you pre-order GTA V from the PSN and you get 75% off any other Rockstar game. Needless to say, if this will be you’re interested in purchasing your first PS3 console (or perhaps you’ve neglected to play most of Rockstar’s catalog of titles up to this point), now would be a good time to consider jumping into the game, no pun intended. If that weren’t enough to get your blood boiling in excitement, Day 1 also saw Sony revealing another significant price drop for the PS3, this time to €199/$199 for a 12 GB model.
Without a doubt however, the biggest news items as far as the PS3 is concerned deal directly with the various major titles which are coming its way very soon. Rather than focus solely on the next-generation consoles like the PS4 and Xbox ONE, the major developers / players have instead decided to release PS3 compatible versions of their top-tier titles in tandem with those destined for the emerging consoles. In other words, you won’t need to purchase a PS4 to play some of the best games of the year; you’ll be able to load them up on a PS3 as well.
Day 1 of GamesCom saw many of these emerging PS3 games being directly demonstrated. First off there’s the incredible-looking “Watch Dogs” which comes off like an Assassin’s Creed-mixed-with-GTA-style-open-world-feast-for-the-senses. Speaking of Assassin’s Creed…AC IV: Black Flag was also on display in all its swashbuckling glory. Black Flag is primed to be perhaps the best AC game to date and certainly seems to be the most “open” of all the titles released in the series thus far. Rounding out the list is Battlefield 4 and Call of Duty: Ghosts, both of which are excellent-looking shooters each with its own unique perks to offer PS3 owners. Moreover, it was also announced that those who purchased these PS3 versions would also receive a limited time offer for steep discounts on their corresponding PS4 versions!
That’s all we have for you today on the PS3 front. Tune in tomorrow for Day 2 of our GamesCom coverage of PS3 news.