Can somebody please cut through all the techspeak?

[TMaj1972]

(Forgive me if this is/has been discussed elsewhere; I haven't seen it yet if it has.)

I've been digging around trying to get this information, but nobody seems to be talking about it very much. I am a hardcore sports gamer who gets into some racing (Burnout, Midnight Club, Project Gotham) and adventure (Splinter Cell) sometimes. I have regular (non-HD) TVs with a surround sound receiver setup, etc. I'm not going high def anytime soon, and am not the least bit interested in surfing the web or staring at my friends while I'm playing a game. Since I don't understand teraflops or anything close to that, could somebody please give me an unbiased answer as to whether the 360 or the PS3 is the best choice a regular guy like me? I know it's completely a matter of personal choice, but I'd really appreciate anyone who can recommend one way or the other (or, that can tell me that, for pure gaming/online purposes, the systems are pretty much the same.) I'm definitely going to get a next gen console, and both seem to be really good. I just don't know how to cut through all of the biases and techspeak to figure out just what these systems can do, so I can make a choice based on WHAT I AM REASONABLY EXPECTING TO USE (the capacity to play great games with awesome graphics and better engines), and not what the machine will theoretically be capable of (which may not be of any relevance to me at all). Any help for a regular guy who just loves to play games?

[ludacris06]

Re: Can somebody please cut through all the techspeak?

As of now, the Xbox 360 sounds like the system to get.

But, I'm a fan of Sony's third party games, so I stick with Sony's consoles.

[Hooe]

Re: Can somebody please cut through all the techspeak?

It might help you to hear my perspective on the matter, which I've said a couple times but I'll say again.

From a hardware standpoint, I look at both and say that both machines are gonna be able to produce graphics that blow this generation's machines out of the water. I personally am not picky over how many levels of anti-aliasing and normal mapping one machine can do vs how many another machine can do or anything like that; both are gonna produce darn good looking and sounding games.

A major deciding factor for me is what software will be available on which system exclusively. I'm kinda torn at this point, as I've grown accustomed to this generation's Forza Motorsport and WWE Smackdown series, which appear exclusively on opposite systems.

The other factor, a crucial one, is the inclusion of a hard drive. After having bought an XBOX, I have found that for me personally, having a custom soundtrack and virtually unlimited save space for replays, playbooks, story modes, and the like is a huge plus for Microsoft's offering. The PS2, and unless I heard wrong the PS3, won't really effectively support a hard drive, leaving us with memory cards as the primary storage medium, again.

Overall, I'm leaning XBOX360 right now, but getting back to your point I ignore all the techno geek-speak. I'm not interested in which system is more powerful than the other, cuz both are gonna be able to push some polygons. It's just really a matter of preference for software and overall user-friendliness, which is all your opinion.

[Tha Dynasty]

Re: Can somebody please cut through all the techspeak?

Its all personal taste. Regardless of what you hear both system will be equal when it comes out. IMO PS3 might be the better system. I think Microsoft is actually making a mistake coming out earlier then PS3 but thats just me. Its really what your looking for. The specs and tech stuff are practically the same on both systems. I dont think you can really go wrong with either systems

[Brian_OS]

Re: Can somebody please cut through all the techspeak?

This is an easy question to answer........ Throwing out all the HD mumbo jumbo, all you have to do is look at the titles that are currently on each system and decide which system suits your tastes. Innovation is pretty much dead in the video game world so we willl be seeing alot of todays games ported over in a shiny new wrapper.