: Well, that's not an issue with the PS4. It's basically the same architecture
: as the PC. Everybody already knows how to program x86. Numerous developers
: from John Carmack to Mark Rein have said that the PS4 will not only be
: very powerful, but be very easy to code for.

And I'm not sure that power will ever be put to use in a way that delivers substantially better games. Look at how budgets have ballooned. You won't be able to keep throwing more money and people at it for better and better graphics, it's the law of diminishing returns.

Whether Microsoft is too early on the technology side or hasn't perfected their implementation, things like Azure are much more likely to be the future. Shunt processes off where you can and you can have a more efficient, lighter, smaller piece of hardware at home. This would be greatly facilitated by the crumbling of the cable monopolies, which I think is far more likely in a generation or two when internet becomes as much a utility as water and gas.

PS4 is certainly aiming at gamers now, and I think that's likely to be a success in the short term. Microsoft, often criticized as lacking vision and being stodgy, seems to be skating to where the pucks going to be down the road. Question is will that gamble pay off for them in this console.