Next-Gen is Now-Gen

In the wee small hours of this morning, gamers finally got their hands on their shiny new Xbox Ones as Microsoft finally launched their latest console up and down the country (and in 12 other territories). The excitement looming ahead of next week's PS4 launch is also palpable, and the great console war continues to rage on with both new systems launching within a week of each other.

The launch of the next-gen consoles has been too long in coming, and people are happy that something new has arrived. The current/last cycle has gone on for what feels like forever, and it's good to finally be able to look forward, knowing that developers have more flexibility when it comes to the games they create. I wonder how much compromise we've been subjected to over the last couple of years, with devs squeezing every last drop out the 360 and PS3.

Myself, I'm loving the increase in firepower, the new controllers, the refreshed visual sheen. I'm waiting until next week before I get my hands on my new PlayStation 4. I'm still undecided between Killzone and Battlefield 4, but either way I'm grabbing a snazzy shooter at launch and am looking forward to the buzz of getting a new fancy bit of kit, taking it home, and setting up ahead of a late night session.

The Xbox One that's been sitting in the office is proof that a new console can be a breath of fresh air. It doesn't really do anything that my PC can't manage already, but that hasn't stopped me thoroughly enjoying my first week on the new machine, even if I have had many late nights and early mornings as I've aimed to hit the respective embargoes for each game I've reviewed.

To see which of the Xbox One launch games I enjoyed the most, head here:

http://www.gamereactor.eu/articles/99564/Xbox+One%3A+Launch
+Reviews/

So the Xbox One is here now, and in just a few days the PS4 is set to follow. Much talk has been about which is going to be the best. I'm not sure there's going to be much in it if I'm honest. The main thing is that it's good for business. It's good for gamers. It's good for developers. Whichever side of the divide you're on, it's good times. Exciting times.