Sony has revealed the lineup of games joining the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog for January 2024.
24.12.2023 - 15:17 / theverge.com
Sony is often at its best when it’s at its weirdest, like making donut-shaped earbuds that are actually super comfy or a speaker and lamp combo that totally looks like a bong for some reason. But when it comes to the PlayStation Portal, the weirdness isn’t just in the design, it’s at the core foundation of “Why does this thing exist?”
PlayStation Remote Play is far from a new feature, and it’s something you can use with multi-purpose devices like a phone, tablet, or laptop at no additional cost. So why spend $200 on a dedicated piece of hardware for only this one feature? After spending a lot more time with the PlayStation Portal since my initial hands-on, I think I’ve finally figured it out: this thing is an air fryer.
You may be asking, “Wait, how is a gaming handheld a home cooking appliance?” Well, much like an air fryer, the Portal is a device that costs a not-insignificant amount of money that does just one thing with only one way of doing it (it streams games off your PS5 via Wi-Fi), while other multi-use devices can pull the same task (PS5 Remote Play works on Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, iPadOS, and even the PS4). And also like an air fryer, you likely already have a device that does the same thing as the Portal (many home ovens offer convection heating, which is how an air fryer cooks). But I’ll be damned if firing up some crispy chicken nuggets in 10 minutes or grabbing a quick game session while in bed aren’t the same kind of convenience.
The PlayStation Portal is all about conveniences — taking your games from your console and moving them around your house or even out into the world. However, with a reliance on Wi-Fi performance, your world of convenience comes crashing down as soon as you struggle with poor connectivity or when one of the Portal’s many strange quirks rears its ugly head.
In my time with the Portal, I’ve mostly had the “it just works” experience, especially after a post-launch software update that seemed to make some small performance improvements. I connect it to my PlayStation 5 and within a few seconds I can bring my games to most parts of my home and play them fine on the Portal’s crisp and colorful eight-inch LCD — complete with those nifty DualSense haptics.
It sounds foolproof when I sum it up like that, but booting up the Portal and connecting (the only thing it does when you turn it on) is a very “your mileage may vary” moment. It may work fine. It may not work at all. It may require some tinkering with your home network settings. I’ve been lurking in the r/PlayStationPortal subreddit to get a gist of the vibe from its community, and amid the troubleshooting help and people posting their W’s about how great their Portal works even on a roadtrip you occasionally
Sony has revealed the lineup of games joining the PlayStation Plus Game Catalog for January 2024.
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“Oh, the weather outside is frightful, but inside it’s so delightful…” As much as these words are commonly associated with winter snowstorms, inclement weather and the general harshness of the great outdoors are year-long concerns. Be you gripped in the icy embrace of winter or hit with the heat of a summer’s sun, there’s one tried and true method to keep warm or stay cool, and that’s settling in at home with video games by yourself or with friends. And when things outdoors are getting nasty, it’s the comfy games that hit that sweet spot the strongest. Whether you’re curled up on the sofa or bed, with DualSense controller or PlayStation Portal in hand, here’s some suggestions of games to boot up when you need some soothing experiences to battle the dreariness of the outside.
Despite some of the critique it received when revealed, the PlayStation Portal was seemingly one of the most sought-after items in the video game world this holiday season. Pre-orders sold out everywhere almost immediately, and stock has been hard to find ever since. A couple of retailers have been restocking the Portal post-Christmas, and even if you are lucky enough to find one, it's going to be a while before you get your hands on it.