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The story
A thread blew up on 5ch’s Hardware/Industry (“Geha”) board over a new Sony commercial. Its catchphrase, “Anytime, anywhere,” echoes Nintendo Switch’s own tagline, “Anytime, anywhere, with anyone.” But tucked in the corner of the screen is a tiny disclaimer: “WiFi required.” Posters clashed over whether the disclaimer’s tiny font size amounts to a “scam ad,” while others countered that with a pocket WiFi router or a 5G connection it actually works fine — sparking a broader debate about connection quality and lag.
What people said
But can you really play it anywhere you want? I doubt it.
Sounds like something Hiroyuki would say.
You can't actually play it anytime, anywhere.
In the summer ad, they were playing it on the train.
The Switch's concept is "Anytime, anywhere, with anyone."
Sony couldn't rip off the local co-op sharing part, so theirs is "Anytime, anywhere, alone."
it's not standalone, so how can you play it "anytime, anywhere"?
Are we supposed to keep a pocket WiFi router glued to our body at all times?
And even then, I hear the lag outside is so bad it's unplayable.
Even just tethering off your phone works surprisingly fine.
"WiFi required." So tiny lmaooo
They're fully committed to deceiving people lol
They're not technically lying.
That's Sony for you.
Using hard-to-read white text is probably intentional too.
No way lol
They lie with a straight face.
"Any second now! Any second now!"
I'm saying this because I actually own one.
Whether it's tethering matters less than whether it's 5G. Even at home, 4G doesn't cut it.
Feels like one of those sketchy water-cooler installation companies (the ones that bury the catch in fine print).
*WiFi required
↑ in microscopic text, this is just too much lol
Classic reliable Sony magic. The "8K" label on the PS5 box quietly vanished the same way.
Why does this guy assume every single game needs an internet connection?
Multi-player titles that use NSO (Nintendo Switch Online) are pretty much dead anyway.
Huh? What era are you even talking about?
So you don't actually own one, huh…
↓ Even the carrier's own notice says this:
Important Notice:
Even within the service area, in places where signal has trouble reaching (indoors, in vehicles, underground, in tunnels, in the shadow of buildings, mountainous areas, etc.), you may be unable to connect or may experience reduced speeds. Service may also be unavailable even on high floors of tall buildings or apartments with an open view. Please be aware of this in advance.
You know about the 5GHz band, right? It's less prone to interference.
Even with a solid connection, video streaming works totally fine (since it can buffer).
But anything that needs real responsiveness turns to garbage instantly because of latency and packet loss.
In other words, mobile data is a non-starter for remote play.
If that were actually solved, you wouldn't get that awkward delay when a TV anchor talks to a remote correspondent.
Apparently it still lags even when both conditions are met.
Sure, you might bring it along to share-play with friends — but what's the point of playing solo online outside your house? Don't you have a home?
Are you still stuck on that fantasy?
Background and Key Points of the Debate
Since its 2017 launch, the Nintendo Switch has held “Anytime, anywhere, with anyone” as its unifying concept, with portability — the ability to play complete games on the console alone — as its core selling point. Sony’s products, by contrast, largely depend on remote play or cloud streaming, which tends to require a connection once you step outside the house. The thread’s dispute centered on two points: first, that the ad’s slogan echoes the Switch’s own wording, and second, that the actual condition of use — “WiFi required” — is displayed in text far smaller than the main copy. The former is really just a similarity in advertising phrasing, and the latter is a fairly standard convention for fine-print disclaimers across the industry, so calling it outright “fraud” may be overstating it. Opinions were also split on how necessary a pocket WiFi router really is and how usable a 5G connection is in practice, since the experience varies a lot depending on one’s carrier plan and location.
*This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Hardware/Industry, aka “Geha”) thread “[Sad News] Sony PlayStation Starts Running Ads That Ripped Off Nintendo Switch’s Concept lol.”
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