Xbox 360 vs Playstation 3
 

I'm debating on which system to get. I'm never been much of a console game player so I havent been following how each system is and what the pro's and con's are. I don't have a high definition tv and I dont plan on going out and buying a ton of games. I'm about a 2 games a year type of console game purchaser. Obviously the xbox 360 has been out for a while and I'm not sure when the next generation of xbox is coming so I dont want to buy one and then see it get passed by within a couple of years.

Any help would be appreciated. I tried doing a search and didn't find any straight comparisons between the two

I bought a 360 about 6 months ago and couldn't be happier. Every time news comes out about the PS3 versus the 360, things tend to go in the 360's favor. Especially, since you don't have have an HDTV, I'd say definitely 360.

I have both and play the xbox daily, haven't used the ps3 in more than a month for anything but a glorified dvd player. With Halo & NCAA both on the 360 it's no question. That's assuming you'd like Halo 3.

The 360 has a much bigger library of good games and is cheaper. Xbox Live is said to be much better than what the PS3 has to offer, but I haven't experienced that first hand.

You're going to find that the vast majority of the folks on this board will recommend the 360.

If you don't have a HDTV and therefore don't care about a Blu-Ray player, I think the 360 is an easy choice unless you are a big fan of either the Final Fantasy series or the Metal Gear Solid series.

The pros of the 360:

- Much larger library of good games right now - including some great exclusives such as Bioshock (on PC as well), Halo 3, Gears of War, Mass Effect (coming out in November) among others.
- Cheaper
- More people have one, particularly more people on here. If you like playing games against other people, this is a plus.
- Better online service, although it costs 50 dollars a year.
- So far all of the sports game have played better on the 360 than the PS3.

Cons:

- Doesn't include a HD-DVR or any other high def media player.
- Has had reliability issues in the past, but by all accounts the newer versions are on the shelves now and they are reportedly more reliable. I'd still recommend a 2 year warranty plan with it.
- Likely won't have Final Fantasy or Metal Gear Solid released for it.

PS3:

Pros:

- Final Fantasy is a great series. It likely will remain a PS3 exclusive and will likely be out in 08. Metal Gear Solid should be out in 08. God of War 3 will eventually be out and should be an exclusive to the PS3.
- Contains a Blu-Ray player which is a nice addition if you had a HDTV and wanted to buy Blu Ray discs.
- May have more raw power, but developers have said it is hard to program for so it is questionable if that will ever get taken advantage of. Also, it has the same RAM as the 360 so that may never truly be an advantage.
- Free Online gaming, but it isn't as well developed as the 360's system.

Cons:
- More expensive.
- Small library of good games right now, even fewer great exclusives out right now.
- The brand new cheaper models that are coming out have no backwards compatibility.
- Some developers may shift resources away from it if it continues to flounder in 3rd in sales. Multiple developers have publicly called for more price cuts.

Ping: Mizzou

I'm thinking mainly for a game like Assassin's Creed and the usual yrun of sports games.

Assassin's Creed will be out on both the 360 and the PS3. In the past year, most sports games have run better on the 360. Madden and NCAA have both run better on the 360. If you aren't a big fan of final fantasy or any of the other PS3 exclusives, the 360 is an easy choice in your situation.

I agree that the 360 is the better choice of the two for two reasons. Its cheaper and it has more games.

I honestly think a ps2 may be your best option if you arent much of a gamer and dont plan on picking up have a HDTV anytime soon. A friend has his 360 on a standard TV and it just doesnt look like that much of an improvement over the last gen systems IMO. I have no idea if you have a ps2 or xbox, its just something to consider.

Regarding the power of the PS3 vs. the 360 - here's a blog by a developer on both the Guitar Hero and Rockband teams: hxxp://jbooth.blogspot.com/

Pretty scathing.

Agreed, there's no reason to get a PS3 or 360 if you don't have a HDTV. The upgrades in AI and gamplay aren't exponential on either system thus far. Most of the benefit of the PS3 or 360 is in the eye candy (graphics) and you aren't going to get any of that on a standard TV.

I disagree. The gameplay itself is different in many of the next gen games. NBA 2k8 has significantly different gameplay on the 360/PS3 than it does on the PS2. Ditto for Madden, NCAA, College Hoops 2k7, etc. I played my 360 for 7-8 months on a standard definition TV and there is no doubt that the game play was different and the graphics were still improved over PS2/Xbox. Sure, with a standard def TV, the graphics aren't going to be as dazzling but they are still a big jump up from the PS2/Xbox and more importantly at least some of the games have gameplay that is a big jump up as well. Assassin's Creed, Bioshock, Mass Effect are still going to be great games whether they are played on a SDTV as opposed to a HDTV.

Go with the 360. Or a PS2 if cutting-edge graphics aren't a priority. You don't have an HDTV now, but during the life of the console, you might get one.

Edit: And I agree with EF27. Even having a SDTV like I do, there are lots of good reasons to own a 360.

So, on a standard TV would the Wii be the best choice for a new system?

Depends on if you want a party system, or if you are looking for mostly solo or online play.

It really depends on what types of games you enjoy most.

Do you have an LCD monitor? I had a 360 without an HDTV for a little over a year, but I picked up a VGA adapter for it and ran it through my monitor and it looks fantastic, so that's an option if you don't have the TV, and I would assume the PS3 has the same capability.

I have picked up a 360 elite the other week and have been hooked on NCAA 2008 and Bioshock ever since so I would definitely give the 360 a nod.

I also "cheated" and picked up a Wii for the famliy and actually find that quite addictive too, though I love the 360 for my games though.

Couldn't disagree more with regards to the sports games especially. Bill Abner wrote an article recently that is stirring up a lot of 'I agree' responses both on message boards and in the gaming media. He points out just how bad and uninspired the latest sports games are at this point.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/arti...Stagnant-State

As far as other games, they're playable, but you're paying for features in next-gen games that you simply don't get to enjoy on a standard TV. There's no need to spend $60 on a game that you can't fully enjoy all of the features you're paying for.

I've had both, got rid of my 360 for a PS3 mainly because of MLB The Show and that anything else I play I could play on either system for the most part (not big into Halo or most of the other MS exclusives.) I'm not diappointed in my decision.

Definitely would agree with that. MLB '07: The Show is the best of the baseball games available for next-gen systems.

Are you Bill's alt?

I really like FIFA 2k8, NHL 08 and NCAA 08. They play totally different on 360 then they do on PS2 or XBOX. It is a completely different engine.

Do you just talk about games, or actually play them?

Ditto for NBA 2k8 which is one of the best sports games I've ever played even with its flaws (it has several) and College Hoops 2k7. Who cares what Bill Abner thinks.

Bill Abner is consider by most to be the premier sports and gaming writer in the industry. I certainly think his article is very relevant to the discussion given the original poster's mention that he likes sports video games and that it would play a part in his decision.

I play games on all consoles, including the 360 though I don't own the 360 console I use in my home.

I wouldn't get a nex-gen system without either an HDTV or an LCD display to see the games in HD. That's me though.. I'd for a ps2.

BUT.. for the specific question asked, 360 easily over the ps3 - just look at the gaming libraries and what's to come. Shoot, you can get a nice 20" LCD for about $250 nowdays. (I had a BenQ 20" widesreen when I bought my 360, I've since upgraded to a Dell 24" LCD - games look spectacular on both) (I'm also not sure you can just hook up a ps3 to an LCD monitor since they do not support a VGA cable).

I purchased a 360 a couple months ago and have been very happy with it. And no I don't play it on a HDTV.

For me at least it's about playing NEW games. I have already played most of the good games of the last console generation and given that those consoles aren't being developed for anymore it's either buy a new system or have no games to play. Pretty simple choice.

Where did you hear or read that they are going to completely stop making games for the PS2?

Wow, I just checked IGN and there are still tons of games coming out for PS2. There definitely isn't anything coming out on the original Xbox though.

They aren't totally, but the number of releases for the PS2 is significanly decreased from previous years. Also, the enhancements on sports games on the PS2 are basically nil from previous versions.

And, I bet some of those games will only play on the PS2, and not the PS3.

I gave my PS2 away when I upgraded to the PS3, and I love that my PS3 is backwards capable, so I can still play old "Discount Bin" Ps2 games. I have no idea why Sony is making the next generation of PS3s not backwards compatable.


I'll take a 60gb PS3 that can play PS2 games over and 80gb PS3 that can only play PS3 games anyday.

Existing gaming libraries, give 360 the nod. But the level of quality exclusives is larger for the PS3 in 2008. God of War 3, Final Fantasy XIII, Final Fantasy XIII Versus, Metal Gear Solid 4, and Gran Turismo 5 are all AAA titles and system sellers along with new versions of Motorstorm and Resistance.

FYI.....the 80 GB PS3 can play roughly 70% of the PS2 games. Granted, it's not as good as the 60 GB machine, but it does still have a good amount of backward compatibility. The 40 GB machine is the one that has no PS2 backwards compatibility.

I bought a PS3 yesterday and already have a 360 (which I'll probably sell now). No question that the 360 has better games right now, and perhaps always will with the head start it had, but I've come to the realisation that the only games that hold my attention any more are sport titles, and being in Australia means that no college games get released over here, meaning that the PS3's lack of region coding was finally enough to get me to bite the bullet and shell out the dosh.

No, MLB Power Pros is better and is available for Wii (and PS2 for that matter).

I like some of the things he writes, but I wouldn't say he is the premier sports and gaming writer. He is a guy just like us that plays games.

MLB Power Pros displays in 480i and is a PS2 port to the Wii. It's not a next-gen game, but I do agree with you that it is a great baseball game.

To strictly answer the question of 360 vs. PS3, the answer is: 360.

If you want to drag other systems in because of the non-HDTV issue, it gets cloudier (I agree that 360/PS3 don't really shine on a normal TV, but what type of games you want to play is still a huge factor).

I'd say you can't really go wrong with a 360.

Who do you think is a better gaming writer right now? Just curious.

You didn't say "best next-gen baseball game" you said "best baseball game available for next-gen systems". :p

haha

:)

I play the PS2 version on my PS3, but I wouldn't use the words 'next gen' with it.

Heck I would say EaglesFan27 or the other host of guys we have on this board. I like some of the things they say and some I don't agree with. I generally fall more online with the guys here then most other places.

The guy Clay at OS is usually pretty close to what I like also.

dont you guys get it next-gen means hyper-realistic grafix only

I play my 360 on my monitor now through VGA cables, but before that I played in a standard TV. The only real drawback was that it's hard to read the text in some games on a standard TV, but other than that, it's not a big deal. Obviously it looks a lot better on a monitor or HDTV, but if you are not one of those types that needs to play every PC game with all of the settings turned to max, you can live with 360/PS3 on a standard TV. There is still a giant leap in difference between the 360/PS3 and the XBox/PS2 in terms of graphics when on a standard TV.

The responses seem to be favoring the xbox 360. What price should I be looking to pay for the xbox 360 as well as the playstation 3? I would assumet hat the standard price I would find at bext buy would hold true across the board?

Again, it's all about what YOU as the person purchasing the console like, gaming wise.

I have NO desire to play FF or GT 5.

I would like to play MLB The Show, MGS 4 - that's about it for ps3 games.

On the 360, I'll take the better framerate in the NHL series and APF. I'll also take Bioshock, Halo 3 and Mass Effect. There are also the games that both systems share.. too many to name.

It's pretty clear for ME, the 360 is the perfect choice.

I don't give two shits who makes the console, I just go where the games are that interest me.

Pretty much all places have the same price unless you catch a sale. It depends upon which model of the 360 you want. The Core doesn't have a hard drive, but is the cheapest. I'd recommend with going with the Pro edition which should run 349 at most places and has a 20 GB Harddrive. If you think you are going to use your 360 as a DVR or to download a lot of media, then I'd go with the elite which has a bigger hard drive. Also, I think very soon (maybe this week?) the pro version is going to come bundled with 2 very good games, Forza 2 and Marvel Ultimate Alliance, so I'd be looking for that.

Edit the pro bundle is already out apparently according to this story with picture:
http://kotaku.com/gaming/spotted/xbo...ild-315866.php

Not sure anyone has said that the maker of the console should matter. Your game preference should be the main factor. As I mentioned before, the 360 right now has the larger library, but you mentioned that the games upcoming favored the 360 and that's simply not the case. It doesn't favor the PS3 either. There's a lot of big titles coming on both consoles in the upcoming year. The PS3 still has a few exclusives for this year for that matter. The 360 has most of its holiday exclusives already out with Mass Effect still to come.

Im guessing this is it?

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=7934351

Yep, that is it. Best deal out there in my opinion.