PlayStation 4 to avoid always-connected approach because "many countries don¥t have robust Internet connections."

Sony has ruled out making always-online functionality a core part of its next home console, according to an interview in the latest issue of Game Informer magazine.

Sony president of Worldwide Studios, Shuhei Yoshida, said that a constant Internet connection would not be required from users, given the differences in web services available across the globe.

¥Did we consider it? No, we didn¥t consider it," said Yoshida. "The main reason being that many countries don¥t have robust Internet connections. It makes sense for people to have Internet connections to play online games, but for offline games there are many countries that we saw [that] do not really have robust Internet.¥

Microsoft is believed to be preparing to lift the veil on its own next-generation hardware offering on May 21. Months of rumour and speculation originally suggested that the next Xbox may require users to be connected to the internet at all times. However, a recently-uncovered, leaked internal memo reportedly sent to the Xbox development team suggests that the company¥s next device will not require users to be online to watch live TV, view movies, or play single-player games.

Read and Post Comments | Get the full article at GameSpot