For months now, Sony Online Entertainment has maintained that PlanetSide 2's PlayStation 4 beta would begin sometime in 2014. Now in mid-November, that window is closing rapidly. So will PS4 players get to play SOE's popular MMO shooter before the end of the year?
According to creative director Matt Higby, yes. Speaking to Eurogamer, Higby said a beta will launch on PS4 by the end of the year. Though he didn't offer any specific date, more information is expected to be announced during December's PlayStation Experience in Las Vegas. SOE is also hosting a PlanetSide 2 anniversary event (for the PC version) next week where more details about the PS4 version will be shared, but it's a mystery as to what they will show.
"As much as it sounds like we're blowing smoke, we're working hard to release a game that feels like a full-on console experience and not just like a port," Higby explained. "So it's taken us quite a long time to re-jigger our user interface and our controls. There's a lot that needs to get done."
I last played PlanetSide 2 on PS4 in August. At the time, the game looked great and played smoothly, but there was still much work to be done on the user interface. Earlier this month, Higby showed off the latest UI screenshots. Although many of them looked pretty close to finished, Higby pointed out that they still need to implement the purchase flow for in-game microtransactions.
Higby also reiterated that PlanetSide 2 is running at 1080p on the PS4, while the team is still shooting for 60 frames per second. "We're trying to get a solid frame-rate," he said. "So if we go to 30 it'll be because we want to maintain a completely solid 30fps. But that's the optimization we're working on right now. And we're still grinding on it." Higby noted that the client is "running at well over 60fps," but gets "bogged down" in really big fights. With PlanetSide 2 being an MMO with an emphasis on big-team combat, you can see how this would be a problem.
PlanetSide 2 will be playable on PS4 at PlayStation event, but SOE isn't hosting a panel of any sort. So will they announce a beta date at the event, or will they surprise us all during next week's anniversary livestream?
