[OT] Which Gaming Console to buy?

[Kai Lord]

Hello everyone,

I'll probably be picking up a gaming console in the next few days or so. I'm having a really hard time deciding which one to buy. I'll mostly be playing 1-player games, though I'm not really into First-Person Shooters on consoles (so no Halo or Metroid Prime for me.)

For games, I'm kind of leaning toward the PS2 because of Metal Gear and Grand Theft Auto, and that new Ratchet and Crank game looks pretty sweet. But its my understanding that the PS2 has the weakest hardware and will soon be overshadowed by newer games coming out.

The new Zelda game looks cool, as does Splinter Cell for the X-box.

Any recommendations? Any of you own or have played multiple consoles? Which do you prefer? Thanks in advance.

 

[Ketjak]

Advice

It sort of depends on what you want from your console. each has strengths & weaknesses:

GameCube: a few very good titles among a small pile of mediocre titles. If you get deeply into a game, a new one will probably come along just as you get tired of it. Plays only GC games on proprietary media, though. Best graphics overall, IMHO - especially considering the limits on memory (24 MB + 16 MB auxiliary RAM) and storage (the disc media). SSX Tricky is one of the best games ever, I think.

PS2: Lots and lots of titles, x 10 if you count PS1 titles. Some of them are good - Metal Gear Solid is quite good, and GTA3 is wonderful! Online service launched and it's cheap if you have an AOL account. Points to Sony for forcing BMXXX to eliminate nudity. Plays DVDs out of the box, too.

Xbox: a few very bad games among a small pile of mediocre games played through the largest controller known to mankind. It comes broadband enabled and the service is launching soon if that's important to you and you have $25 per month. With a $30 remote you can play DVDs.

I'd pick either the GCN or PS2. The Xbox isn't shining and isn't likely to shine. (Gameplay is king... and they aren't as pretty as GCN, so they don't have that either.) They'll be back for Round 2, though.

 

[Creamsteak]

Based on my opinion of your statements, you should buy a PS2. You don't appear to be the kind of person I'd recommend either of the other systems for (and I own all 3 so there!).

It "might" be overshadowed... but then again the PS3's processor is in the works as we speak, so in a few years all your PS2 and PSX games will still be playable. It's years off: but your investment will retain value. You'll get all the major games, up until it becomes time for PS3. The Internet service won't match XBox, but it doesn't sound like your going to pay the $ for that anyway, so why bother considering it? It might get out-dated, but trust me when I say your enjoyment for the next two years at the least will be worth the nastalgia of playing your old games on the PS3, and the game system seems to be the easiest to just sit back and play alone. While the game-cube is fun to play around with, and the xbox is a show machine, the playstation is great for sitting back and wasting countless hours.

Microsoft will probably be backwords compatable, but Nintendo won't. It's a showy system, and friends like to watch you play. It's an awesome powerhouse, and honestly I recommend it most often. Why? Because I can enjoy the fact that they have it. It builds up our competition with each other, and although I only have 4 games, I probably play each of them 1 time per week when a particular friend is over. It's a game system for guys who don't watch sports... but like their guy time to yell at each other and the television. I love mine, but it doesn't fit your comments.

Nintendo's a great company, and they do excellent work, but they always have a flaw in their systems. With the N64, the cartridges saved load time but limited game size to 256 megabytes, severly hindering package size. You sound like a "casual" gamer, and although I like nintendo's game quality/quantity ratio, and there "classicness" you will find a Game boy is a better investment than a Gamecube. The mini-disks won't be the same size on the next installment of Nintendo system, but the game boy works with the game boy color works with the game boy advanced works with teh game boy advanced + works with the next installment as of yet unnamed... ad nauseum. In other words: Great investment for the newly developing gamer or the hardcore gamer, bad investment for the relaxed adult gamer.

Oh, and nomatter your decision: wise purchase

 

[Dragonblade]

Well, if you want a ton of games then the PS2 is your best bet.

The Xbox does have better hardware and look for it to pick up steam in the future. Even though I personally prefer the Xbox to the PS2, you just can't beat the sheer number of games available to the PS2 owner.

As the Xbox slowly builds a better library of games, look for it to gain steam in the video game market. Microsoft's deep pockets help it as well.

Microsoft is gaining a lot of experience in the videogame industry right now. I predict that the Xbox 2, whenever that comes out, will crush Sony's PS3.

Especially since Sony has been hinting that the PS3 won't even be hardware based but rather a sort of revolutionary proprietary OS that only plays games for some sort of set top PC hooked up to your TV. And you don't buy games but rather purchase them online and download them. I've heard it described as videogame DIVX.

I think it will fail big time, especially if Microsoft releases a super awesome console system. People like console systems. They don't like complicated pay per download schemes that involve the PC.

But perhaps more conservative elements of Sony marketing will win out and they will release another console. But it should be interesting to see what happens....

 

[Kai Lord]

Thanks for the feedback guys. Yes, I'm definitely a "casual" gamer. But I'd like a good sprawling game to get lost in now and then. Games like Grand Theft Auto, Metal Gear, and platform games. I'd like to try out the whole "survival horror" genre as well.

I'm definitely leaning toward a PS2, but the new Zelda looks very good, and I know there's a Metal Gear coming out for the X-Box.

If anyone in the Gamecube or X-Box camp who has tastes like my own wants to speak up now's your chance.

 

[pogre]

I own an XBOX. I wish I had a PS2. Way more games that are worth playing. I would not be overly concerned about an outdated system for the reasons mentioned above.

 

[Creamsteak]

Re: Advice

GameCube: Best graphics overall, IMHO - especially considering the limits on memory (24 MB + 16 MB auxiliary RAM) and storage (the disc media).

Xbox: a few very bad games among a small pile of mediocre games played through the largest controller known to mankind. It comes broadband enabled and the service is launching soon if that's important to you and you have $25 per month. With a $30 remote you can play DVDs.

Actually, GameCube does have great graphics overall... but not the best. Technically, the XBox, as stated before by myself, is the show machine. That's the system to have if you like to dazzle others with eye candy and show of your intimidating abilities. It doesn't fit the original poster's chosen style, but it is definitely the system if your a graphics junkie (or your friends are, as in my case).

The comment about the quantity of X-Box games isn't very valid. I thought so as well, until I noticed the ratio of games I want compared to games I'd buy. The X box weakness is that they don't produce enough 7/10 games. They produced a good 3 9/10 games, that I won't directly name because someone always chooses to disagree based on something that I think is console bashing, and I end up in a flame war... Anyway, I buy about 1 game a month, and I either buy a "favored 7" or a "9" game, and three nines and a seven is pretty consistent so far. If I only owned an Xbox, I wouldn't have a game to buy next month, because they don't have a broad enough range of "7-8" games to make up for their lack of another solid 9. Meanwhile the other two systems have the same number of 9-10s, but they have such a broad selection of 7-8s that it makes up for that...

Oh, and there are larger controls for sure: Ever seen that one that comes with the 300 dollar mech game that requires an entire table to play with? It's for the playstation! Jesus that thing is huge... not to mention: Microsoft accomodated the people that don't like the controller. They now sell the system with a completely different controller set up from what your used to. Also, the large controller is actually good for my above outlined purpose: Guys who don't watch sports, but act the same way on game night! We like heavy controllers because we are playing those games with a heavy hand. The Xbox isn't for the lone gamer, it's for the party gamer.

Oh, and Microsoft service is cheaper with MSN the same way that Playstation service is cheaper with AOL, but the original poster doesn't sound like an online gamer. Basically if you are an internet gamer, XBox is the better bet since you probably have DSL already, and your willing to shell out the cash. However, most people are not online gamers as I once was (Tribes/Half Life Baby!) So if your new into that field... get DSL anyway and go with the playstation. The online competitive environment on X-Box will be the same as joining a "l337" server all the time. Extremely good, cheap, hyperactive, trashtalking, rat bastards to fight. If you can handle them, then get the Xbox just to beat those idiots senseless...

Oh, and there is a way to "bypass" the 30 dollar remote... but I don't think it is legal. I'll leave it at that. And I didn't do that, I bought the remote.... and it is a slightly better DVD player than the PS2 (better options with the remote basically, no big deal honestly)....

Hope that helps...

 

[Ketjak]

Not Zelda

[snip]I'm definitely leaning toward a PS2, but the new Zelda looks very good, and I know there's a Metal Gear coming out for the X-Box.[snip]

I'm told by a tester friend in the area (Nintendo is down the street) that the new Zelda sucks. If that's your sole reason for buying a GameCube, think again.

I considered all the consoles and play them all. I got a GameCube. Pikmin and SSX Tricky own. The GCN version of SSX Tricky is much, much better than the PS2 version.

Those games - and Eternal Darkness, apparently - are the reason to own a GCN. Well worth it, days of game play, and beautiful game design (if you're a game designer, you understand).

- Ketjak

edit: corrected spelling of "area." Grr.

 

[Creamsteak]

Especially since Sony has been hinting that the PS3 won't even be hardware based but rather a sort of revolutionary proprietary OS that only plays games for some sort of set top PC hooked up to your TV. And you don't buy games but rather purchase them online and download them. I've heard it described as videogame DIVX.

I agree... if they do endeavor in that direction they will crush themselves. And not to mention, they are not gearing the community correctly. If they want us to become online junkie gamers, they should force us into that vein without doing something we don't like (downloading huge files and being forced to pay for DSL service).

Where did you hear about that, though? I really must wonder about the credebility, because I don't think they are THAT incredibly stupid. In order to make that plan succeed they would need to promote globolization of online gaming (IE: reduce prices, make it more playable, have free demos of everything, make the community feel full and heartful instead of l337, etc.)

Vehhh... I don't remember the name, but there is a certan official for the company that thinks his style of gaming is everyone's. He is an active gamer and all, but according to the one article on him that I read -he's an online shooter junkie... and therefore thinks that's where everyone else is going. Of course, this story was geared towards making him look like an idiot... so you never really know, do you?

 

[Creamsteak]

Re: Not Zelda

I'm told by a tester friend in the area (Nintendo is down the street) that the new Zelda sucks. If that's your sole reason for buying a GameCube, think again.

Those games - and Eternal Darkness, apparently - are the reason to own a GCN. Well worth it, days of game play, and beautiful game design (if you're a game designer, you understand).
edit: corrected spelling of "area." Grr.

Yes... I'd have to say I don't like the total switch to platforming Zelda is taking. I kinda wish they would have focused more on keeping the RP value up above the platform value, but that doesn't seem to be the focus. Ocarina of Time enchanted me (till the ending...), A Link to the Past had me enthralled when I killed Aghanim and reaized it was only 1/3rd of the game, but Majora's mask was disappointingly without plot IMO. There were the usual puzzles, enemies, bosses, weapons and items... without the motivation to get them all for any reason other than "getting them all."

Also, I get more game time out of my GBA (though apparently the ROM market really hurts the GBA market by cutting out the purchases) than my gamecube I play the GBA more because the games lend themselves better towards solo play, and exploration. Dragon Warrior and Metroid Prime are fun to play for 15 minutes to explore a new area, and then save and put it away. The gamecube calls me for a good 4 hours in order to really accomplish everything I want... but I get bored after 2... which is bad for me. The system is fantastic however, and it will outlast the "handheld" game systems, the way they are going. Handheld games are constantly being "stolen" and turned into Roms the day they come out. It's theft that so many roms of Metroid Fusion were downloaded, and so few copies were bought. It's a good game, but they could kill the professional development of the hand-held games by continuing to do this crap. That makes me feel horrible... thinking about how screwed those designers are because of some computer savvy expert's tricks...