The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One represent the next level of graphical and technological prowess for console gaming, but one industry veteran does not believe the hardware specs for the two consoles are all that different. Shinji Mikami, the creator of the Resident Evil series and the upcoming game The Evil Within, told Edge that he considers the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One so similar that he feels that "we only need one console."
Elaborating, Mikami revealed that he feels as though making two different versions of a game is now a waste of time because the specs for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One are so similar.
"There's no real difference between them...We only need one console. Why do I have to make two versions of a game? And when Xbox One was first announced it had lower specs than PS4, but now they're almost identical. So either will do," Mikami told Edge.
While there are certainly some big differences between the two consoles, such as the Xbox One's use of Kinect and the PlayStation 4's share button, the core of the two machines is fairly similar. However, some developers have stated that the PlayStation 4 is more powerful than the Xbox One, which has prompted Microsoft to increase the GPU power of the Xbox One before it is launched in November.
Mikami's statement is backed up by Keiji Inafune from Comcept, who expressed a similar sentiment when comparing the two consoles.
"I don't think there's a major difference between them...If you get down to the tiny details then maybe each is better at one thing than the other, but it doesn't really impact the way you make a game. It's not like PS4 or Xbox One are particularly hard to develop for. Quite the opposite: you can make whatever you want on either one, and that should be enough for anyone," said Inafune.
It will be interesting to see if other developers agree with Mikami and Inafune when the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One launch and more developers begin shifting from current consoles to their next-gen replacements. Mikami's words will also add a new perspective to his upcoming game The Evil Within, as some gamers will try to see exactly how similar the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions of the game really are when it is released.