 This is Dante DiRazzo with The Verge. The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 have launched, heralding the arrival of Next Gen. For many game publishers, this means having to release four different versions of the same title across two generations of consoles. But what does that mean for you? The next generation is supposed to represent something we can't see or do with our current technology. Is this first batch of games up to the task? The biggest boast of any new console is graphics, and right now, Next Gen primarily means higher resolutions and more complete worlds. We've tested a number of new titles, and across the board we've seen improved lighting, fewer jagged edges, and more detail both near and far. Assassin's Creed 4 is a great example of this. Just look at the more nuanced shadows in the water and how the island's trees and plants are filled out. In Battlefield 4, we see vastly improved lighting on dynamic range, as well as added details like flocks of seagulls and new building models. And, best of all, these launch games are far more responsive on new consoles thanks to higher framerates. These are relatively minor improvements, but at least there's a meaningful difference between the next and last gen versions. Other games are unattractive no matter what platform you choose. Call of Duty Ghosts and Madden 25, for example, feature bland textures and unimpressive effects. In contrast, NBA 2K14 is far from a simple port. You can see the huge visual upgrade in everything from players' faces in uniforms to the crowd and reflections on the court. Ultimately, a lot of these games fall into a grey area. Better than before, but not wildly so. For people looking to justify a brand new console, these in-betweeners may seem disappointing, but it's not fair to judge the PS4 and Xbox One on these games alone. When you look at games truly built for new consoles compared to their previous gen counterparts, the visuals are striking. The cars in Forza 5 are photorealistic and motion blur gives a true sense of speed compared to Forza 4 on the Xbox 360. Similarly, Killzone Shadow Fall stuns with incredible lighting effects and high resolution environments that far surpass Killzone 3. There is no reason why we shouldn't expect to see similar advancements in more games over the next few years, especially once developers leave the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 behind. So, will the future of gaming be more visually stunning? Absolutely. But is it worth buying into yet? That is not so clear.
 This is Dante DiRazzo with The Verge. The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 have launched,
 heralding the arrival of Next Gen. For many game publishers, this means having to release
 four different versions of the same title across two generations of consoles. But what
 does that mean for you? The next generation is supposed to represent something we can't
 see or do with our current technology. Is this first batch of games up to the task?
 The biggest boast of any new console is graphics, and right now, Next Gen primarily means higher
 resolutions and more complete worlds. We've tested a number of new titles, and across
 the board we've seen improved lighting, fewer jagged edges, and more detail both near and
 far. Assassin's Creed 4 is a great example of this. Just look at the more nuanced shadows
 in the water and how the island's trees and plants are filled out. In Battlefield 4, we
 see vastly improved lighting on dynamic range, as well as added details like flocks of seagulls
 and new building models. And, best of all, these launch games are far more responsive
 on new consoles thanks to higher framerates. These are relatively minor improvements, but
 at least there's a meaningful difference between the next and last gen versions. Other
 games are unattractive no matter what platform you choose. Call of Duty Ghosts and Madden
 25, for example, feature bland textures and unimpressive effects. In contrast, NBA 2K14
 is far from a simple port. You can see the huge visual upgrade in everything from players'
 faces in uniforms to the crowd and reflections on the court. Ultimately, a lot of these games
 fall into a grey area. Better than before, but not wildly so. For people looking to justify
 a brand new console, these in-betweeners may seem disappointing, but it's not fair to
 judge the PS4 and Xbox One on these games alone. When you look at games truly built
 for new consoles compared to their previous gen counterparts, the visuals are striking.
 The cars in Forza 5 are photorealistic and motion blur gives a true sense of speed compared
 to Forza 4 on the Xbox 360. Similarly, Killzone Shadow Fall stuns with incredible lighting
 effects and high resolution environments that far surpass Killzone 3. There is no reason
 why we shouldn't expect to see similar advancements in more games over the next few years, especially
 once developers leave the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 behind. So, will the future of gaming be
 more visually stunning? Absolutely. But is it worth buying into yet? That is not so clear.