Anyone still on the fence for a 360/PS3?

[courtesi96]

First and foremost it's been games/corporate behavior/quality have been holding me back.

First the games...

Nothing currently released makes me want to pick one up. The only two official titles that have my interest are Left4Dead and Colonial Marines. Colonial Marines may not even be on this list because it sounds like all the multiplayer stuff is co-op (lame.)

The other games that I hope are released is Starcraft 2 and Dawn of War 2 (both RTS.) Unfortunately these two titles are not officially slated for console consumption.

Second corporate behavior...

Back in 1999 you could buy a Sega Dreamcast w/ a keyboard and mouse and play games with them. Now it seems like pulling teeth to use these peripherals. PS3 has been better in this regard with games like Unreal Tournament having been programmed for them. But what the F*#( is up with Microsoft?


I know someone will come on here and say, "BUY A PC" Truth is, I have a semi decent Linux box that does most everything I need (web, surf, irc, e-mail, etc.) and can't see dropping a load for a gaming pc.


Anyone still on the fence for games they like?

[Nophix]

I love my 360, but I've been on the fence about a PS3 since they were released. I have never been a huge fan of the PS controllers, and the PS3 offered nothing in the way of exciting exclusives or incentives to buy one at the original relesae price. Since then, anything I really want has been released on the PC or 360 as well as the PS3. The only exclusives I have wanted to play are the Gran Turismo stuff, which isn't even fully released yet, MGS4, and Little Big Planet. So, 3 titles, 1 of which has yet to be seen. The only other thing making me want one is the BR playback, but a good BR player is now cheaper than the PS3(finally).

[skaar]

It's so cheap for a console these days, it seems more like you're shooting yourself in the foot by not bothering to purchase one if you're a gamer.

Electronic games have never been cheaper to jump in and enjoy. You're looking at a few hundred bucks for a console new and the games are basically disposable these days. So cheap to pick up a few "late" titles a few months behind the curve and just enjoy the hell out of them.

So pick yourself up a console or sit on the fence and miss a whole generation of gaming. You're not hurting anyone but yourself by not doing so.

Or maybe it's the rum talking? Who knows?

It's not a PC, it's a console. Go have fun.

[gepeto]

You know I was going to start a post today on how this year is such a great year for gaming. We have had some excellent games this year just in the past few months. There is a little something for everyone.
For me it is a great time for gaming. Each system has had a decent year. Why is it Nothing currently released makes me want to pick one up? Nothing?

[Poofta!]

i have a 360, ps3 and a gaming rig (i just exited fallout 3 after playing it for about 6 hours).

you can build a top notch gaming rig for ~800$ and definitely less depending on what you desire. this looks like the way for you since most of what you named are pc titles or at least designed with pc in mind (or best on pc).

aside from that, if you cannot find anything interesting on the consoles, then youre simply not a gamer really... that or havent given anything even a chance. find a friend with a game, rent a few top games people recommend, and spend the night playing. then make up your mind.

[ProgrammingAce]

Microsoft does not allow keyboards/mice because they do not want people to regard the 360 as a "computer". It is a gaming console. This way there is not confusion.

[Kid Ice]

It's so cheap for a console these days, it seems more like you're shooting yourself in the foot by not bothering to purchase one if you're a gamer.

Agreed. At this point it's starting to make sense to just go ahead and get all three.

[otoko]

Agreed. At this point it's starting to make sense to just go ahead and get all three.

I don't know.. I bought the Wii at release day, but I purchased my 360 not until recently.

I still haven't the money for the PS3, plus I don't really see anything I absolutely have to have for it yet. It'll probably be the one of the three I buy after the market for it has died. Like the Xbox.

(I have nothing to say... /ok)

[Kid Ice]

I don't know.. I bought the Wii at release day, but I purchased my 360 not until recently.

I still haven't the money for the PS3, plus I don't really see anything I absolutely have to have for it yet. It'll probably be the one of the three I buy after the market for it has died. Like the Xbox.

(I have nothing to say... /ok)

So we agree the Wii and 360 are both worth owning.

Here's what one (not necessarily *you*) might want a PS3 for:

-Blu Ray
-a better media player than the 360
-PSP support
-those few exclusives worth having....Resistance 1 + 2, Wipeout HD, Little Big Planet, MGS4, Super Stardust...surely something of interest to any gamer here

Ten years ago it was commonplace for dedicated gamers to own a PSX, N64, and a Saturn. I think a couple years ago the PS3 was too expensive and it didn't have enough exclusives...that's not the case anymore. And the whole "Wii doesn't have enough good games" thing has expired as well.

[scooterb23]

The PS3 is the only of the current systems I don't own yet. Going off of Kid Ice's list there...as it is a good one.

- I have no interest in Blu-Ray
- I have a spare computer setup as a media player, so that's a non-issue
- PSP Support could be a good thing, I don't know much about how the two are supposed to interact.
- the games aren't *quite* there for me yet. I'm still at only 3-4 games that have really made me want a PS3. I'd probably play the other big games at some point, but not many of them have really done much for me.

So, I expect to get a PS3, possibly in 09, but there need to be more games that really interest me before I'll commit to a jomp.

[Daft Punk]

I have been wanting to get a ps3 , but Im not going to buy one while there is still good ps2 games to play since they were stupid and took out backwards compatibility.

[Leo_A]

I've had a Xbox 360 for two years now, purchased a Playstation 3 today. Got the 80 gig model for 299 at Wal-Mart's sale this morning.

Sucks that it doesn't have PS2 compatibility, but its going to be hooked up to a hd display and I have a perfectly good PS2 hooked up to my sd tv still.

[Mister_Pal]

FYI the 80 gig PS3 does have some backwards compatibility with the PS2 and PsOne. They are basically doing the same thing that is being done on the 360 with sofware emulation and what not. Plus if you can get a 60 gig second hand that has almost full compatibility.

[Frankie_Says_Relax]

FYI the 80 gig PS3 does have some backwards compatibility with the PS2 and PsOne. They are basically doing the same thing that is being done on the 360 with sofware emulation and what not. Plus if you can get a 60 gig second hand that has almost full compatibility.

At the present time, no new retail PS3 SKUs have PS2 backwards compatibility.

You can still probably find one new at retail or online that does...but Sony is pretty much eliminating it for the time being.

As far as being on the fence about PS3 or 360 ... if you actually pick one or both up, you'll likely find applications and software that you really enjoy that you wouldn't otherwise have known about...sometimes it takes actual ownership to make the difference.

[kedawa]

I refuse to buy a 360 because of the ads in the Live interface and the fact that they force unwanted updates on users. I don't want to make a stupid avatar, I don't want movies on my game system, I don't want the system interface popping up during gameplay to tell me my e-penis has grown, and I refuse to pay for unfinished console software and then have to download patches to plug all the holes.
The PS3 isn't much better, and the Wii just plain sucks.
I didn't think I'd ever say this, but console gaming is almost as much of a pain in the ass as PC gaming, but without the freedom and customization that a PC offers.

To be honest, I'm just not all that impressed with any of the current systems. The graphics are getting sharper and glossier, but most games just rely on the same superficial smoke and mirrors to paint a pretty facade over the same dated gameplay and physics paradigms.

Of course there are great games coming out, there always are, but modern consoles just bring so much unwanted baggage with them that I'd rather just stick with PS2 and classic stuff.

[geneshifter]

I have a Wii, 360 and a gaming rig. I had a PS3.

For me, I used to be hardcore PC. I never had a console from the SNES generation nor the last generation. I just played PC games. I am now a console gamer primarily. I still play some PC games, mostly BF2 (which none of the console version can touch), Crysis, STALKER, Age of Empires, Company of Heroes and most other RTS games.

As far as consoles, I actually sold my PS3 a while back because of the lack of exclusives and also because the third-party games were more fun for me on XBOX Live due to the awesome multiplayer experience.

The 360 and Wii combination is it for me in terms of games and media center. I'll always keep a beefy PC rig to play a few games here and there, but for the most part I am a console gamer having switched to them for my FPS fix. The Live service and having all my friends on there just makes it much more fun for me even in spite of the RRoD. Next generation, though, if they still have crap hardware, I'm out no matter how fantastic it is. All my friends are of the same opinion so it'll be easy to migrate at that time to the PS3 or some other Nintendo console for our gaming.

So, to answer your question, I certainly understand your trepidation about consoles these days. But I think you'd like the Wii. I would suggest staying away from the 360 now and go with a PS3 since you'd be new to this generation and it'll be great someday soon. I would do the same thing if I were coming in fresh.

[Drifter 2000]

I refuse to buy a 360 because of the ads in the Live interface and the fact that they force unwanted updates on users. I don't want to make a stupid avatar, I don't want movies on my game system, I don't want the system interface popping up during gameplay to tell me my e-penis has grown

To be fair all consoles force the updates on users, movies are optional, and you can turn the achievement notice off so it doesn't pop up during game play. Avatars are optional too, but I agree that less focus on things like Avatars would be nice.

I own both the 360 and PS3 (had a Wii but sold it) and the 360 gets much more use over all. The last PS3 game I bought was MGS4, and in fact it's the last game I played on my PS3 period. I really just use it as a DVD/Blu-Ray player. The 360 gets continual play time not only from brick and mortar releases but also from the FANTASTIC XBOX Live Arcade.

The Live Arcade is a big seller for me. Lots of classic titles, new titles, and reworked classics. Pac Man Championship Edition in particular is one of my favorite games released in years, it's just superb. Duke Nukem 3D, Castle Crasher, Galaga Legions, Braid, Vigilante 8, Carcassone, etc all get major play time from me. PSN's downloadable selection is solid but doesn't really compare IMO.

That's one area you should really pay attention to, especially if you're into retro style gaming. While this generation of games has basically been rather pricey and sometimes less than stellar the area of downloadable games has really started to shine.

[kedawa]

Yeah, XBLA is by far the most tempting aspect of the 360 for me. I'd say at least half of the games that interest me on the system are XBLA games.
I'm just not happy with the direction the industry is going with mainstream releases.
I just want to flip on the power and play, and most game these days have several minutes of loading, splash-screens, intro movies, and menus to wade through before you can actually play them. I just played Gears of War 2 for the first time last night, and by the time I got to actually kill something, I could have been halfway through the first episode of Quake. It's a fun game, don't get me wrong, but it could stand to be a little more focused.
I'm also fearful of the trend toward microtransaction and DLC exploitation. There may well be a good use for these business models, but nickel and diming people that have already payed for a game just isn't right.
It also doesn't help that all of the first-party controllers are overpriced and horribly flawed in one way or another.

[scaleworm]

We have all 3 systems, just finally got a ps3 two weeks ago... found a 60 gig with the 4 usb ports up front... no emulator for me thank you in BC.

Like all 3 systems, they all 3 have good games and all 3 are useful for other apps.

USED is the way to go... got a used Wii with 4 controllers/nunchucks guitar hero super mario galaxy zelda metal slug... and a ps3 with a bluray ps3 remote monster component and two controllers for less than a new 60 gig ps3 at launch...

one word: PAWNSHOP.

gets ya all 3 rather inexpensively... (working on the halo 3 360 next...)

[shopkins]

I've had a 360 for a couple of years, but I didn't really feel any desire to get a PS3 until I got an HDTV. Now I think it would be nice to have for the BluRay and the few exclusives that look interesting, but I'm holding out until I can find a 60 gig model because I'd like to try the backward compatibility.