PlayStation 3 or XBox 360?

Other Games
1

After Christmas I’m in the mood for one of these “next-generation” console thingies. Only problem is I don’t know which one to splash my dearly beloved cash on.

I’m really not one for the so-called “console-war”. Whenever I go onto a random forum to get an answer there is a total absence of an unbiased opinion.

Games I enjoy nowadays are Silent Hill, Forbidden Siren, some RPGs, Zelda, basically more “slower games” which I can sit down and enjoy for a few random hours. Psychological horror and problem solving rate high-up in my agenda, but im partialto the odd FPS and 2D beat em’ up. That’s my all round game preferences.

I’m asking your opinion because my “hard core” gaming days are well behind me. I’m tempted to get a PlayStation 3 seeing as I already have access to a Wii and my friend has an XBox 360 which I get to play on the odd occasion I’m up.

Merry Christmas anyway to all.
Buh byes

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It all depends on what kind of games you want to play. Your best bet would be to look at a list of titles available for each system - that should help you determine the system that has the games that you want to play.

Personally, I have a 360, Wii, and PC, because those systems each had one or two games on them which I wanted to try.

If you like RPGs, then Mass Effect for 360 is quite good, and there’s also Blue Dragon (which I haven’t tried), and also Lost Odyssey on the way. The 360 has plenty of FPSs to try… Halo 3, Prey, Fear, BioShock, The Orange Box… the list goes on. Note, that most of those FPSs are also available on PC or other systems, with the exception of Halo.

The Wii of course has Zelda, and all of Nintendo’s franchise games, which you won’t be able to get anywhere else. However, if you’re looking for a huge selection of games, the Wii may not be the best console to go for. Saying that, the Wii is an excellent social console, and I’d recommend it for that purpose alone if you have gaming (or even non gaming) friends to enjoy it with. Also, the Wii, while less powerful, doesn’t look too much “worse” than the other systems if you have a standard definition TV anyway, so keep that in mind if visuals are a deciding factor. Resident Evil 4 on Wii feels like a fresh experience, although it may not enough to justify getting a new system for, as the game is also an Gamecube.

I’m a big fan of PC gaming myself, but it’s more of high end experience, and may be out of your price range. There is the odd exclusive PC game (such as Crysis, and various MMORPGs and RTSs) which are only on PC, so there’s a certain experience that you can only get with this platform. These games often “feel” better using their natural control scheme of keyboard and mouse too, although the Games for Windows brand has done an excellent job of turning the PC into a high end games console too (BioShock, for example, plays almost identical on 360 and PC with a 360 controller, but in a higher resolution).

There isn’t much of the PS3 that I want - if you like Final Fantasy or Metal Gear Solid, then that may reason enough to get one, but in that case, I would probably hold off getting one until nearer the time. For me though, there aren’t enough exclusive games to make me want to PS3, especially as I’ve already spent money on three other systems. But each to his or her own, and there may be some games that you want to play on PS3 that are unavailable on other systems.

I hope that helps somewhat. Welcome to the forums.

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From your other topic it sounds like you haven’t ever owned Panzer Dragoon Orta? If that also means you haven’t had any chance to seriously play it then it’s one minor recommendation for getting a 360, except I haven’t seen any mention of full EU backwards compatibility yet… so in your case that might not mean much yet. Although opinions are very divided on the worth of the title, it IS a quality game and every PD fan needs to at least experience it before they make their own judgement.

If it’s between the 360 or PS3 for you then I’ll mostly echo what Solo said, 360 seems the least risky choice overall right now, but if you already know some of the signature Sony exclusives could be a big deal for you then there’s no reason not to go that way either. For the most part it still comes down to a Japanese vs western bias, though even that barely counts this generation. Capcom seems a staunch ally of the 360, even Square-Enix is seriously testing the waters, so 360 is likely to solidify the “mainstream” position, and therefore have the widest library. But PS3 will still get more Japanese games, and to some extent, probably also more Europe centered titles.

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I’m going to have to go with the 360 at the moment. Though my interest in the PS3 is growing (obviously as its library continues to expand), the 360 currently has the greatest variety of quality exclusive games, and the games it does share in common with the PS3 tend to have far greater online capabilities than its PS3 counterparts, or less tech issues either way. Additionally, the 360 isn’t really showing any signs of stopping, as far as I’m concerned. The amount of games in pretty much all genres is steadily expanding, and I can’t wait to see what the coming year will hold for the console.

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It all boils down to the games right? I have 10+ X360 titles I wanna play and only one (Team Ico’s next game) PS3 game so if I buy a PS3 it won’t be for a long time. As for the 360 I might buy it next month, hopefully in time for the Too Human demo :anjou_love:

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Get a 360 , I own a PS3 and its a nice machine with some great games coming next year, but it can’t hold a candle to the 360 game line up (bar platformers) .

Really when it comes to games the 360 is where its at. Just don’t get a Wii, after the Jaguar its the worst console I’ve ever owned.

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Further 360 support: Rez HD is available for download through the Live Arcade. A friend of mine has a nice HDTV and a 360, so I’m fairly sure I’m going to force him to download it, even though it’s the type of game he’d never like (you should of heard his dopey comments about Panzer Dragoon Saga and Shadow of the Colossus).

On a semi-related note, I just finished the PS2 version of Rez (played it all day) and it was absolutely godly. I only had a rather pathetic shot down ratio of 77% or so for Area 5, so I’ve got a looot of practicing ahead of me in order to get the “Butterfly Ending” that I’ve been hearing about. For the first time in a long time, it would appear that I have a genuinely long-term gaming goal. I’m actually motivated to get 100% in all areas in Rez, whereas I didn’t have as much of a completionist urge with Zwei or Orta. Rez is just yummy.

But yes, anyway, the 360 is definitely still my reccomendation. The reasons to own one are ever-growing.

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360

Why?

Virtua Fighter 5 online :slight_smile:

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Since almost everyone here is saying to go with the 360, I feel inclined to offer an alternative view. While the 360 does have an excellent all-round lineup, if you simply look at the console’s exclusives then it may or may not be the console for you.

For example, platformers, as Team Andromeda mentioned, are a strong genre on the PS3. It isn?t so strong genre on the 360 and you could probably argue that the PS3 is a better choice if you were buying a console exclusively for that genre. Debatable, but worth considering.

I would argue that, despite the Wii being technically inferior to PS3 and Xbox 360, it does has a small lineup of innovative exclusive first party titles such as Super Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime 3. You may not play a lot of games, and therefore not need a large selection of titles, so the Wii’s lineup might be sufficient. Especially when you consider the price of the next generation console plus an HDTV to get the best experience out of it, the Wii is an excellent choice for the more causal gamer who wants to try something different.

The PC is still the king for MMORPGs and RTSs, and in my opinion it still beats the 360 for first person shooters due to the modable nature of the games, the freedom to play online without paying a subscription fee (although this does have some disadvantages, as Xbox Live is a very good service), and the precision of keyboard and mouse control. Games are typically cheaper on PC too (although not considerably), and many games that would cost money on Xbox Live Arcade are free to download from the net on the PC. If price is an issue, however, then the 360 is still cheaper all round, but the experience is more restricted to how Microsoft have designed it to work. I would argue that the PC gaming experience gives the user more choice in how you want to play your game (for example framerate vs graphics).

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[quote=“Solo Wing Dragon”]

I would argue that, despite the Wii being technically inferior to PS3 and Xbox 360, it does has a small lineup of innovative exclusive first party titles such as Super Mario Galaxy and Metroid Prime 3. You may not play a lot of games, and therefore not need a large selection of titles, so the Wii’s lineup might be sufficient. Especially when you consider the price of the next generation console plus an HDTV to get the best experience out of it, the Wii is an excellent choice for the more causal gamer who wants to try something different.

The PC is still the king for MMORPGs and RTSs, and in my opinion it still beats the 360 for first person shooters due to the modable nature of the games, the freedom to play online without paying a subscription fee (although this does have some disadvantages, as Xbox Live is a very good service), and the precision of keyboard and mouse control. Games are typically cheaper on PC too (although not considerably), and many games that would cost money on Xbox Live Arcade are free to download from the net on the PC. If price is an issue, however, then the 360 is still cheaper all round, but the experience is more restricted to how Microsoft have designed it to work. I would argue that the PC gaming experience gives the user more choice in how you want to play your game (for example framerate vs graphics).[/quote]

It is not fair to compare a PC to consoles and I’ve always got a bit peed off when people bring this up since the Saturn days . With the PC would need to update your harwdare every few years , you have the hastle of drivers and what not , you can fit and add new Ram/GPU at your pleasure , It is just not fair to compare both mediums.
A PC is called a PC for a reason and console is called a console for a reason , they are not the same imo .

And after that little rant , I think the Wii is the worst console I’ve ever owned since the Jaguar , and its joypad almost as bad . I just can not understand why anyone would want to the console (bar for parties)
it’s internet fuctions are behide that of the Saturns, the chipset behinde that of the X-Box , and the games line up a mix of pointless party drosh or games with pointless gimick for controls , with the odd Miracle game from NCL or Capcom

Get it for Mario finish the game and then sell the system .
If you’re a fan of platform games then PS3 is the choice (SONY always kicked MS into touch in this genre) But for online , best games line up and 3rd party support its got to be the 360 every time

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[quote=“Team Andromeda”]It is not fair to compare a PC to consoles and I’ve always got a bit peed off when people bring this up since the Saturn days . With the PC would need to update your harwdare every few years , you have the hastle of drivers and what not , you can fit and add new Ram/GPU at your pleasure , It is just not fair to compare both mediums.
A PC is called a PC for a reason and console is called a console for a reason , they are not the same imo .[/quote]

I don’t really see why the PC can’t be compared to the other next generation systems. They share many of the same games and features. This is unlike a handheld system, where multiplatform games are typically redesigned for the system. Call of Duty 4 for example, was released on PS3, Xbox 360, and PC, which in some ways makes the PC more of a direct competitor than the Wii.

The original Xbox was out for four years before the 360 came out (2001 - 2005), and a PC can last about three years without having to upgrade, so it’s not too much difference. You just have to turn the resolution down on newer games. I had my last PC between 2003 and 2006, and it ran later games like Quake 4 fine with on lower graphical settings. When a game came out that I wanted to play which couldn’t run decently on my PC (Oblivion) I had the choice of buying a new PC or upgrading my existing machine… or buy a brand new 360 + high definition screen.

While consoles are getting more complex (updates, having to sign in, etc), PC gaming is getting simpler with ideas such as Games for Windows which makes playing console-style games with a controller “just work” like on a console. Drivers and such are no where near as big of an issue as they once were and the vast majority of games will run without issues after the initial installation. Choosing the right components for a PC can be tricky, but you can buy prebuilt gaming PCs from Dell these days for reasonable price for only a little bit more than if you’d bought the parts separately.

So, looking at it like that, why wouldn’t waoko consider both the PC and 360 (if he/she could afford either)?

[quote=“Team Andromeda”]And after that little rant , I think the Wii is the worst console I’ve ever owned since the Jaguar , and its joypad almost as bad . I just can not understand why anyone would want to the console (bar for parties)
it’s internet fuctions are behide that of the Saturns, the chipset behinde that of the X-Box , and the games line up a mix of pointless party drosh or games with pointless gimick for controls , with the odd Miracle game from NCL or Capcom

Get it for Mario finish the game and then sell the system .
If you’re a fan of platform games then PS3 is the choice (SONY always kicked MS into touch in this genre) But for online , best games line up and 3rd party support its got to be the 360 every time[/quote]

The Wii is a “lesser” system technically, but it doesn’t look that bad on a standard definition TV alongside the PS3 or Xbox 360 IMO. I haven’t actually tried Metroid Prime Corruption or Mario Galaxy yet, but they’re unique titles that you can’t find anywhere else. NiGHTS is on the way too (already here for some). It doesn’t have the best lineup of the next generation systems by any means, but it’s definitely a worthy cheaper solution that has some appeal to non gamers too.

I can see why some hardcore gamers may be turned off - me, I like the idea of making the controller different so that the end product feels unique compared to the other systems. There isn’t really room for the amount of systems on the market at the moment - if they’re all the same, so designing the Wii not to be a direct competitor, makes sense. Besides, if it gives me a chance for some gaming with non gaming buddies who would find a game of Halo too complicated, then I’m all for it.

I agree that the Internet features of the Wii suck though - Wii numbers instead of names? I thought that we were passed the days of ICQ numbers…

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[quote]
I don’t really see why the PC can’t be compared to the other next generation systems. They share many of the same games and features. This is unlike a handheld system, where multiplatform games are typically redesigned for the system. Call of Duty 4 for example, was released on PS3, Xbox 360, and PC, which in some ways makes the PC more of a direct competitor than the Wii.

The original Xbox was out for four years before the 360 came out (2001 - 2005), and a PC can last about three years without having to upgrade, so it’s not too much difference. You just have to turn the resolution down on newer games. I had my last PC between 2003 and 2006, and it ran later games like Quake 4 fine with on lower graphical settings. When a game came out that I wanted to play which couldn’t run decently on my PC (Oblivion) I had the choice of buying a new PC or upgrading my existing machine… or buy a brand new 360 + high definition screen.

While consoles are getting more complex (updates, having to sign in, etc), PC gaming is getting simpler with ideas such as Games for Windows which makes playing console-style games with a controller “just work” like on a console. Drivers and such are no where near as big of an issue as they once were and the vast majority of games will run without issues after the initial installation. Choosing the right components for a PC can be tricky, but you can buy prebuilt gaming PCs from Dell these days for reasonable price for only a little bit more than if you’d bought the parts separately. [/quote]

I don’t becasue like I said with a PC you can add more Ram change your graphics cards ect . Now if you bought a PC at the same time as the X-Box there’s no way you could play the likes of Splinter Cel 3 with the same levels of graphics with out a upgrade . The PC spec needed to runs consoles games like Lost Planet is Ridiculous , I never seen the point in trying to compare a PC to a console , they’re both diff platforms meant for diff users .

I don’t want to come across like I’m having a go at your views , I just thinks thier both diff machines (in trerms of the user) at the end the day

Wii graphics don’t come close the best graphics seen on the X-Box , never mind 360 not matter what TV you’re using . Prime III plays just like Prime , there’s nothing inthe gameplay that couldn’t be handled on a normal controler , same goes for most of Mario Galaxy bar the odd bit of motion control, which does your head in after a while .

And the Wii is not chepar than the 360 , Well the price diff is ?20 hardly anything these days .

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[quote=“Team Andromeda”]I don’t becasue like I said with a PC you can add more Ram change your graphics cards ect . Now if you bought a PC at the same time as the X-Box there’s no way you could play the likes of Splinter Cel 3 with the same levels of graphics with out a upgrade . The PC spec needed to runs consoles games like Lost Planet is Ridiculous , I never seen the point in trying to compare a PC to a console , they’re both diff platforms meant for diff users .

I don’t want to come across like I’m having a go at your views , I just thinks ther both diff machines (in trerms of the user) at the end the day[/quote]

Don’t worry, I don’t think you’re having a go a my views - if anything I’m the one who’s causing a stir by saying that the PC is a better platform (in some ways). It’s healthly to debate the advantages/disadvantages of each platform IMO.

Regarding a RAM upgrade, its optional as to whether you add for memory to your PC or not. You could add more memory to the Nintendo 64 as well, but that didn’t make it a requirement to use the system. The difference between a console and the PC is with the PC you can choose when you want to upgrade (and what you want to upgrade), whereas with a console you have to wait until Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo decide to upgrade their hardware. I like having that flexibility, but if you don’t want to take advantage of that you don’t have to, and just buy a new prebuilt PC every 3 years (give or take).

Using the Lost Planet example, the recommended amount of RAM is 1 GB on Windows XP. If you’re using a three year old PC you wouldn’t be running Vista. I’d bet that most gaming PCs built 3 years ago would have had 1 GB of RAM. I agree that the recommended video card (GeForce 8800) is a little steep, but it is an exception to the rule - most new PC games will still run on the Geforce 7 range fine. And I would bet, from looking at the minimum specs (GeForce 6600), that Lost Planet would run okay on a GeForce 7 on XP, so long as you knew when to turn the graphics down. This is a compromise, but if you compare the situation to a current console from three years ago (such as the Xbox 1), the game is still going to run a whole lot better on the PC. Then when you do upgrade/get a new PC later on, the game will run that much better if you go back and replay it.

The Xbox and PC are very different machines, there’s no doubt about that. Yet, so are the PC and Mac, and people always compare them as general computer systems. My point is really that the PC should at least be considered by someone like waoko when thinking about buying a gaming machine - the PC is a unique experience in both titles and features, so it would be a shame if he/she passed up the PC simply because it didn’t fit into a predefined category as to what a console is.

[quote=“Team Andromeda”]Wii graphics don’t come close the best graphics seen on the X-Box , never mind 360 not matter what TV you’re using . Prime III plays just like Prime , there’s nothing in the gameplay that couldn’t be handled on a normal controler , same goes for most of Mario Galaxy bar the odd bit of motion control, which does your head in after a while .

And the Wii is not chepar than the 360 , Well the price diff is ?20 hardly anything these days . [/quote]

I’m with you on the gameplay thing - any of the games could be done with a controller, but the whole point of the Wii was to experience something different. Personally, I enjoy playing games like Wii Sports - it’s good to be more active when playing games, although I wouldn’t want to play something that active for long periods of time. It’s not for everyone though.

I didn’t realise the 360’s price had dropped so much. Still more expensive than a Wii when you take the harddrive into consideration, but that is a good point.

Graphics I’m still unconvinced about, as it largely depends on the game itself. Saying that, I didn’t enjoy playing games like Oblivion on a standard definition TV, because they’re designed with an HDTV in mind, whereas Wii titles tend to be designed with a standard definition TV in mind (exclusives, anyway).

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  1. Hands down.

It’s not that the PS3 isn’t good hardware either. It’s a simple matter of no decent games in sight that appeal to me coming out for it, which appears to be a recurring trend among gamers.

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Neither is really worth owning at the moment for me. At least not until Alan Wake and Silent Hill 5 arrive, and they are both doomed to make an appearance on the PC anyway where we already enjoy a small never-ending army of first person shooters.

Sorry TA, but FPS games aren’t a good enough reason to empty our pockets for a console when a PC will do the job of providing them much better while supporting more online utility.

Plus, neither console is home to WoW, so who cares?!

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[quote=“Geoffrey Duke”]
Sorry TA, but FPS games aren’t a good enough reason to empty our pockets for a console when a PC will do the job of providing them much better while supporting more online utility.

Plus, neither console is home to WoW, so who cares?![/quote]

No need to say sorry mate, I’ve always respected your views.

But there’s more to the 360 than FPS and the LIVE dash just makes setting and getting Together with mates just so much easier , not even the PC offers that (unless you pay the Live sub)

Yeah PC as WOW , but 360 has ChromHounds and VT III I know which game I 'll rather play online :slight_smile: . Sorry mate, I think SH 5 will be pants , youre better off with the quite good PSP version

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The winner owns all three consoles and a gaming PC. Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune is sweet, Mass Effect was awesome, Super Mario Galaxy is a blast, Starcraft II is around the corner, and there’s much, much more on the horizon to look forward to on all platforms.

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I’ll just wait until everything cheapens then play catch up probably. The PS3 is still selling on the mere promise of more, which isn’t enough.

Definitely check out Alan Wake though if you are interested in supernatural themed adventure games.

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[quote=“Team Andromeda”]No need to say sorry mate, I’ve always respected your views.

But there’s more to the 360 than FPS and the LIVE dash just makes setting and getting Together with mates just so much easier , not even the PC offers that (unless you pay the Live sub)

Yeah PC as WOW , but 360 has ChromHounds and VT III I know which game I 'll rather play online :slight_smile: . Sorry mate, I think SH 5 will be pants , youre better off with the quite good PSP version[/quote]

Isn’t Games for Windows Live for PC, free? I thought it only cost money to play against Xbox users.

Anyway, here are some points for and against Xbox Live:

For Xbox Live:

  • Dedicated friends list across all games
  • In game alerts/invites can come in handy for organizing games
  • Microsoft has to provide a certain level of quality control, as it is a paid service.
  • Stats across multiple games/achievements
  • You don’t have to Alt+Tab to check MSN, Jabber, etc to check to see if you have any messages.
  • Developers can focus on the game, rather than spending resources setting up their own servers.

Against Xbox Live:

  • It costs money to play online, something PC gamers aren’t used to (except for MMORPGs).
  • A single point of failure - if Xbox Live goes down, you can’t play any games online.
  • In game alerts/invites. The reason I put this in negatives as well as positives, is because I don’t always want to be interrupted in the middle of an single player story driven game, etc.
  • Some games require “Xbox compatible” routers, whereas PC games typically just require a standard internet connection.
  • The cross-game interface is a bit laggy on the 360.
  • No keyboard by default, can make it slow to communicate.

To me, having a LAN (either PCs or Xboxes) beats the online experience anyway, provided you have friends to play against. Mind you, it’s possible I could just feel that way because NZ internet isn’t particularly fast.