PlayStation 4 users will be left without service on the PSN network tonight due to routine maintenance.
Sony has announced that it will be carrying out maintenance at 12:30 AM local time, wherever you are in the world. PlayStation Network will be down for maintenance for around 2 hours and the outage will affect PS4, PS· PS Vita and other consoles running PSN.
PSN disruption minimal if you make PS4 primary console
Most applications will in fact still be available, but you should set your PS4 as your primary console in order to maintain maximum flexibility. For those of you who don’t know how to do it, Sony has published a handy guide.
The company released a statement which read: “We apologize for any inconvenience. We recommend activating your PS4™ as your primary console before maintenance begins so you can continue to play most games and use 3rd party services during maintenance.”
In order to do so simply follow the following instructions: “To activate your console, sign in to your PlayStation™Network profile and select [Settings] > [PlayStation™Network/Account Management] > [Activate as Your Primary PS4] > [Activate]. You only need to do this once. We strive to ensure that PlayStation™Network services are available at all times, but occasionally we must take PlayStation™Network offline to perform essential maintenance and implement feature enhancements. We are working hard to reduce the duration of each maintenance.”
Sony criticized in the past over network
Among those services which will be unavailable are account management, PlayStation video and the PlayStation store. Past experience shows that most games that require an online check will be unavailable unless you set up the PS4 as your primary console. Most games these days require some form of online check.
There is nothing for PSN users to worry about as the maintenance is part of a regular routine. The only annoying thing is that sometimes it takes a bit longer than planned for the updates to be made, however by carrying out maintenance during the night Sony is presumably hoping to reduce the disruption.
PSN has come in for criticism in the past for unreliable service and vulnerability to hacks. However that has not discouraged gamers from choosing to buy the Sony console over its main rival, the Microsoft Xbox One.
Sony and Microsoft battle it out in console market
Statistics compiled by industry tracking firm The NPD Group, the PS4 has sold more units than the Xbox One for 13 of the last 15 months. The Microsoft console sold mpre units in April and October last year thanks to the release of Quantum Break and Halo 5: Guardians, respectively.
Sony continues to command the lion’s share of the console market, which represents around $33 billion. Nintendo looks set to discontinue its Wii U console in order to focus on mobile gaming, leaving Microsoft and Sony to battle it out.
It looks as though both companies will soon release updated versions of their consoles. A rumored PlayStation 4.5/4K would likely have better processing and video output capabilities.
In order for the console to be able to handle the rumored 4K video output, Sony would have to significantly improve processing speed. By upgrading the processor the company would ensure that the new model can handle 4K while maintaining similar frame rates as the existing model.
This new processing unit would have to be supported by more RAM. While it may seem silly to make major changes to a dominant console, Sony needs to head off competition from a rumored upgrade on the Microsoft Xbox One.