The PS3 has still got it.
Speaking to gamesTM, Naughty Dog Designer Ricky Cambier shared his team's positive experience developing on the PS3 late in its life cycle. He said:
It is toward the end [of the console cycle] but we are still pushing the hardware. We bring that clear to the players and to the expectation that the PS3 is still an exceptional piece of hardware. Even at this stage we are finding new ways to push it.
Each game Naughty Dog has put out has gone one-step beyond its last. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves was downright gorgeous and four years later is still regarded as having one of the best presentations on any platform. Its successor, Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception, went even further, and this year's The Last of Us is the king of the jungle.
The Last of Us isn't just an improvement in inch-by-inch graphical fidelity, though. Its areas are more expansive and allow exploration unlike anything Naughty Dog has ever delivered before. Coupled with survival mechanics and some heart-stopping horror it's a great finale for the PS3's becoming of a last-gen system.
Sony has shown that its platforms can stand the test of time no matter the circumstances. The PS3 had an unbearably rough start, and even then Sony stuck to its word that the console would last a decade. Here we are almost seven years later and it's selling hundreds of thousands of units and consistently pushing out AAA titles. Even a new Gran Turismo is rumored to be coming soon to the system. It's eerily similar to the PS1 and PS2's later years leaving you wondering if the PS4 can do the same.
