Recently Sony officially announced its next-generation video game console, the PlayStation 4. Everything Sony showed proves that the company means business, and this could potentially force Microsoft to delay its next console, in order to be a true contender for years to come.

The new Sony PlayStation home video game console is quite impressively loaded with social and connectivity features that are sure to get gamers interested. The games announced, while small in number, are interesting, with the only exception being Killzone: Shadow Fall, a typical Killzone game with pretty graphics and nothing else to garner curiosity.

Looking back at the announcement, it is clear Sony has done a splendid job despite not showing what the PlayStation 4 looks like. The company might have flustered a few feathers at Microsoft, as the announcement caught Redmond off guard, according to a Sony executive. With choice removed from Microsoft hands, the company is rumored to be planning an event in April where it will unveil its own next-generation offering in the form of the Xbox 720.

Now, after carefully looking at what the PlayStation 4 has to offer in terms of specifications and features, what if Microsoft is unable to match up to that? We've seen recent rumors that placed the next Xbox below the PlayStation 4 in hardware capability, rumors that appear to be true. since the person who released the information was raided by the FBI not too long ago.

The rumored next generation Xbox specs consist of an 8 core 64-bit x86 "Jaguar" AMD CPU, 800MHz AMD 7 or 8000 series GPU that clocks in 1.23 TFlops, and 8GB of DDR3 memory. The PlayStation 4, on the other hand, has an 8 core 64-bit x86 "Jaguar" AMD CPU, Radeon GPU with 18 "compute units" that clocks in 1.84 TFlops, and 8GB GDDR5 RAM.

What we have here is a PlayStation 4 system that is at least 50 percent more powerful than the rumored next generation Xbox. If this is indeed the case, Microsoft could find itself between a rock and a hard place, as it would be difficult to change much of the hardware specs to keep up with the PlayStation 4 this late in the game. The company could choose to either to take a chance and launch the next Xbox as is, or delay the console into 2014 so that more time would be had to add modifications to the hardware.

Doing so would cost Microsoft millions; it would also give Sony a few months' head start, which could put the next Xbox in a great deal of trouble. I don't believe Microsoft is willing to take that chance, however. 

We won't fully know for sure what is going on behind closed doors at Microsoft, but be sure of one thing: the PlayStation 4 is hot on the lips of everyone. If the rumored April reveal of the next generation Xbox in the pipeline comes to fruition, let's hope Microsoft is confident enough in its new box to release it in 2013, and not in 2014.