PS3 Vs. Xbox 260 Vs. Wii

[Dimmu]

So, what are your thoughts on the three systems. I'm sure we all know about PS3's trouble, and how Microsoft is trying to add a crap load of modifcations and applacations to Xbox Live'.

Though I havent really heard much on the Wii latly. It seems like its staying in a good place on the popularity graph; I would assume with the games that begin to come out, it'll start to rise baby steps.


Thoughts, comments, views?

[simpson2142]

well I had the choice of those three, and I decided to get the Wii. Main reason is because it's so much cheaper, but also because I love the motion sensor controls. It's a whole new level.

[Pokerface]

A lot depends on why you're buying.

The 360 and the PS3 are (in my mind) mostly interchangable. The differences between them are pretty slight; I'd give the 360 the edge due to its home-network capabilities (if you're in a Windows house). Both are powerhouses that will run a lot of eye candy, and more than likely will have a couple of games that might make the investment seem worthwhile.

The Wii is in a class all its own. It's a lot cheaper than the other two and doesn't have the blazing speed of the others, but what it lacks there it makes up for in approachability and fun. The controls alone mean that more people can grasp the games quicker, and (in my house) the console stopped being a "Daddy toy" and became a family machine -- even my four year old autistic daughter uses it (and well).

While I might WANT a 360 or a PS3, I can't justify the expense given that it will likely be just me playing it, and I already isolate myself plenty. The Wii has been one of the better family investments we've made; I'd rank it with a Foreman grill in terms of "Appliances we use most for everyone in the family". (The previous comparison is meant to be favorable.)

[TheFeniX]

My personal opinon:

The Xbox 360: right now, the leader of the pack. A robust hardware setup, a good selection of games (ranging from eye-gougingly horrible to top-notch make you drool), and very solid Internet gaming and media setup, along with the ability for HD movies and gaming.

The Wii: A very unique system and VERY cost effective. For $250 you get the system, a wii-mote with nun-chuck, and Wii sports. Problems include a slooooow Internet browsing experience (even at the online store) and the best game for it right now came with the system (Wii Sports). It lacks anything really stellar when it comes to games. Even Zelda: TP was mediocre as far as Zelda's go. While fun and engaging, it was nothing compared to OoT.

The games just lack staying power unlike the 360. Beat Gears of War? Get online and go through it again with a buddy. MS finally realized how much fun co-operative gaming is. Crackdown: a mediocre game in of itself is made so much better by the online co-op and addition of an easy to use downloadable cheat system.

The Wii has SERIOUS potential. It just needs some games that truly take advantage of the controller (star wars lightsaber fighting game?). And I doubt Nintendo is going to "half-ass" it.

The PS3: no company on this earth (with maybe the exception of DeBeers diamonds) dredges up such a feeling of disdain and contempt in my mind as Sony. I've been hating Sony since before it was trendy to do so. Before the Killzone fiasco, before SW Galaxies. Hell, pretty much before I joined TG. Their long line of "FUs" to the gaming community in general has turned me off years ago.

That aside, the PS3 is just getting it's butt royally kicked in every sense of the word. The games are less than stellar (but it still has more top-ranked games than the Wii) and it's being out-sold by both the Wii and the 360.

Sony has a major uphill battle to get back into fighting shape. The first REAL step towards this goal (rather than telling us all we're stupid for not buying one for $600) is to cut the price down 100 bucks.

If you REALLY want a PS3, give it another year or so for the games to finally start hitting gold and hopefully for the Sony insanity to end (doubtful). It IS however a relatively cheap blu-ray player.

The thing is, both the Wii and the PS3 are fighting at a massive disadvantage to the 360. By the time they were released, MS had already worked out most of the kinks and had it's Internet gaming setup already out there scoring points. Both Nintendo and Sony have to fight just to get where MS already is.

The thing is: Sony is right where it should be, floundering. The Wii on the other hand is still giving MS a run for their money.

[gunjunkie]

You've obviously never been exposed to MS business practises then. Why don't you ask Argonaut software (who MS basically stole Direct 3d from) or companies like Caldera (DR DOS) or BeOS (very interesting story). I'd also dispute the claim that running a business unit for a multi billion dollar loss is "leading the pack". More PS2s are being sold than Xbox 360s.

I also laugh at your claims of "robust hardware setup" with a, what was it, 30-40% failure rate.

[Soulja]

Xbox360 FTW!

[TheFeniX]

Originally Posted by gunjunkie

You've obviously never been exposed to MS business practises then. Why don't you ask Argonaut software (who MS basically stole Direct 3d from) or companies like Caldera (DR DOS) or BeOS (very interesting story).

Or like how they stole Windows from Apple who stole their version from IBM?

The thing is: I never had any respect for MS in the first place. And hate MS as much as you want: they're handling the 360 pretty well. Phenomenally well when compared to how Sony is handling the PS3.

Anyways, this talking point is pretty moot as my personal feelings about Sony. But it does give some insight into the insanity of Sony's business decisions.

I'd also dispute the claim that running a business unit for a multi billion dollar loss is "leading the pack".

Loses aside: Xbox has the coverage and the games to overrun the other two consoles. And Sony is losing more on the PS3 than the 360 (even more so with the price cut). So, even if this was a valid point, it doesn't matter.

More PS2s are being sold than Xbox 360s.

Wow, and that relates to the Wii vs 360 vs PS3... how? Hell, the Nintendo DS is pretty much outselling them all. How is that relevant?

EDIT: I misspoke. It's the Gameboy Advance that's outselling them. Which is really sad when I think about it.

EDIT2: nope I was right the first time: Here

I also laugh at your claims of "robust hardware setup" with a, what was it, 30-40% failure rate.

The failure rate of the hardware doesn't affect how much processing power the hardware has. Further, MS just extended the warranty of the 360 to three years, all expenses paid. The only thing lost is gaming time. And having dealt with the return process, I must say it was surprisingly not painful when compared to my other dealings with MS tech support.

How does anything you said contradict how the 360 is currently driving the market right now? For a competing console (compared the the 360) it's not really competing. And it's getting beat out by the little brother (the Wii).

[Evo<^|SiNz|^>]

I don't have any of the new current gen consoles (aside from the DS... does that count?). But if I could pick between the PS3, XB360 and Wii, I would definitely take the Wii. It's right in the crosshairs of my price range, it is very family friendly (important if you have a wife or kids... selling my fiancee on an XBox is a lot harder than selling her on a Wii), the virtual console for the Wii is coming out with some promising stuff, and while I'm not totally enamored with the Wiimote setup, I still think it's pretty neat.

If I want next-gen graphics, I'll stick with PC games. The price point of the PS3 is completely unreasonable for a video game console - why the hell don't they sell a version without a Blu-ray player and cut the price to $400?? I have no use for Blu-ray, it's as relevant as Laser Disc to me right now. Maybe when it emerges as a universal format, and a player costs <$200, I'll sign on.

As far as the XB360, it is solid, and the games are OK, but $400 is still to much considering the games. I've played a lot of 360 games, and I'm only mildly impressed.

[UnDeaD77]

360 Has a top notch lineup of games.

[Mosatii]

Originally Posted by UnDeaD77

360 Has a top notch lineup of games.

Which is the most important factor. One could be just as happy buying a PS3 as they would buying an Xbox 360 - considering the low number of true exclusives this go around and in the cases of those exclusives both units have very good ones.

As was said the Wii is in a class of its own. It has already sold (not just shipped) almost as many units as the Xbox 360; and on top of that it has made much more money in the process of doing so.

This generation is more Xbox 360 vs. PS3, and it's still anyone's game. Blu-Ray may still be a real winner for Sony.

[EvilTodd]

Base your purchase on the games you want (unless money's tight, then get the Wii or the thin PS2). I have an Xbox 360 because of its library. I won't be buying a PS3 anytime soon because of its library.

I'd buy a Wii tomorow (payday whee!) if I wasn't afraid that Nintendo would do the same thing they did with the N64 and let the library stagnate. If they can get four good games a year (by my opinion of course) out then I will definitely be buying one for my daughter as a way to get her into gaming.

Until she starts kicking my butt, of course. Then it's off to the basement until she is married.

[Apophis]

Originally Posted by Pokerface

A lot depends on why you're buying.

The 360 and the PS3 are (in my mind) mostly interchangable. The differences between them are pretty slight; I'd give the 360 the edge due to its home-network capabilities (if you're in a Windows house). Both are powerhouses that will run a lot of eye candy, and more than likely will have a couple of games that might make the investment seem worthwhile.

The Wii is in a class all its own. It's a lot cheaper than the other two and doesn't have the blazing speed of the others, but what it lacks there it makes up for in approachability and fun. The controls alone mean that more people can grasp the games quicker, and (in my house) the console stopped being a "Daddy toy" and became a family machine -- even my four year old autistic daughter uses it (and well).

While I might WANT a 360 or a PS3, I can't justify the expense given that it will likely be just me playing it, and I already isolate myself plenty. The Wii has been one of the better family investments we've made; I'd rank it with a Foreman grill in terms of "Appliances we use most for everyone in the family". (The previous comparison is meant to be favorable.)

What do you mean by the 360 having an edge due to home network capabilities? I think the PS3 has the 360 beat in that regard. Not only can the PS3 connect to a uPNP server (IE: FreeNAS, uPNP enabled shares and things like Windows Media Player 11) but it can stream more file formats than the 360 can. The 360 is flakey as hell even connecting to Windows Media Player or a Windows Media Center PC. In addition to that, you can easily install and run Linux on the PS3 to expand its capabilities even more.

I loved my 360. Then I got a PS3. I still like the 360, but other than the refinement to the UI and Live functionality (which Sony is working on and steadily been updating the firmware on the boxes to support new features), I think I like the PS3 a whole lot more.

[Apophis]

Originally Posted by Dimmu

So, what are your thoughts on the three systems. I'm sure we all know about PS3's trouble, and how Microsoft is trying to add a crap load of modifcations and applacations to Xbox Live'.

Though I havent really heard much on the Wii latly. It seems like its staying in a good place on the popularity graph; I would assume with the games that begin to come out, it'll start to rise baby steps.


Thoughts, comments, views?

What are the PS3's trouble? Other than people being upset because it's expensive? If you look at the sales numbers for the PS3 and compare them to the initial sales numbers for the 360, they are selling a the same rate. You need to line up the launch dates to see it.

I'm more worried about the 360's troubles with the red ring of death, one billion dollar estimated loss to upgrade the warranty due to hardware issues, and customer service horror stories than I am the 360 being 500,000 units below where they had hoped to be.

Personally. I think the Wii is going to have a fairly short lifespan. It's certainly a pretty cool console though!

[Apophis]

Originally Posted by gunjunkie

You've obviously never been exposed to MS business practises then. Why don't you ask Argonaut software (who MS basically stole Direct 3d from) or companies like Caldera (DR DOS) or BeOS (very interesting story). I'd also dispute the claim that running a business unit for a multi billion dollar loss is "leading the pack". More PS2s are being sold than Xbox 360s.

I also laugh at your claims of "robust hardware setup" with a, what was it, 30-40% failure rate.

My thoughts exacty. I also have found the media integration with the 360 to be far less than "solid". I had hoped to use it extensively as a portal to get my music, digital video and photos from my home network up on the HD plasma TV upstairs but it's been more of a pain in the ass than anything else. It works sometimes, then stops for no apparent reason, requires reconfiguration, works, stops working, etc. etc. etc.

Not to mention that my 360 locks up on me fairly often. Not every time I use it, but I would say at least 60% of my sessions with it result in a lock up either going from the game to the dashboard, or when just navigating the dashboard.

Oh.. The PS3 hasn't locked up once yet. Quite happy with that. It's also considerably quieter than the 360, which I also like.

[Apophis]

Dimmu;

One thing you'll see that's rather common is people sticking up for the product they bought and usually slamming the product they didn't buy. Personally. I like both of the consoles. The 360 does have more titles but it's also been out considerably longer than the PS3.

If Microsoft keeps with tradition, the 360 only has another 3 years left on its lifespan before the SKUs get canceled along with support for the hardware. If Sony keeps with tradition, you'll see another 9+ years of development and support for the PS3.

The PS3 will get the software. There are a ton of games in the works right now and quite a number of very good releases coming this summer and fall. Yes. The hardware is more expensive than the 360. Yes, you get a Blu-Ray player. No, not everyone wants a Blu-Ray player. Sony has made a console that is far more than just a gaming console and folks that just want to play some games and nothing more don't have any appreciation for that. If you're looking for something that can expand multiple facets of your home entertainment system, the PS3 is a phenomenal bargain. Unfortunately it's just not one that everyone can afford.

The 360 IS plagued with hardware issues. When Microsoft was asked the other day if they resolved the hardware issues with the new Elite (or whatever it is) model, they completely ducked the question. They also made a statement saying that the problem really wasn't in manufacturing, which implies that the real hardware issues are in the design of the machine itself. I guess that's what happens when you try and rush your product to market to beat the other guy.

I see quite a bit of double standards here in this thread though. In the same post you'll see arguments against buying a PS3 because of it's small software library yet arguments for buying a Wii even though it has a small software library.

Yes. Sony is losing money on every PS3 sold. This is quite the norm for the industry (with the exception of the Wii). MS is losing money on every 360 sold as well. The difference between the two is simple; to my knowledge I don't think Microsoft EVER turned a profit on the original Xbox and its doubtful that they will EVER turn a profit on the 360. The same can't be said for Sony. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong with some actual numbers and references. It's too late for me to go looking them up so I have to just go off memory.

In closing; The Wii is in a class by itself. Cool product, recycled hardware, fun games that bring the family together and attract new people to the world of gaming. I think you would enjoy either the 360 or the PS3. The PS3's gonna cost you more, but it will most likely last you a LOT longer. The 360 has more games out RIGHT NOW, but are you looking for a console based only on games you can run out and buy today or do you acknowledge that new games are always coming out and there will be plenty to choose from in a fairly short period of time. That's a choice you have to make for yourself.