The Revolution has been spending a lot of time lately playing video games. The two most popular things to do here at the Bunker is to read comic books and to play video games. The Revolution got a Sony Playstation 3 back in February of this year. I decided to hold off on getting an Xbox 360 due to all the issues that Microsoft was having with its consoles.
The Revolution already had a Sony Playstation 3, but our desire for a Wii had yet to be satisfied. Seriously, finding a damn Nintendo Wii is harder than finding Moby Dick. Well, finally, The Revolution got our grubby paws on a Nintendo Wii last week. The Wii is definitely fun. But, more about that in a moment.
The only thing missing from the Bunker was an Xbox 360. Once I heard about the price cut for the Xbox 360 Premium and the rumor of a cooler running console with a HDMI output for the Xbox 360 Premium, I knew it was time to pick up this console. Despite the fact that I hate and despise the evil empire known as Microsoft. The Gamestop closest to the Bunker finally got in some of the new Premium Xbox 360 consoles with HDMI and I picked one up on Tuesday of this week.
So now, my video game playing time has seriously cut into my comic book reading time here in the Bunker. Now that I have played all three consoles, I figured I’d offer up my take on each one. Now, I’m not a fanboy of either console. I treat my video games pretty much like my comic books. I will read any comic book regardless if it is Marvel or DC or any other company. I’m not one of those comic book fans who turns up their nose at any and all DC comic books or views all Marvel comic books as mindless crap. I like video games regardless of the console. And I can appreciate each console for what they bring to the table.
What I dig the most about the Xbox 360 is the fantastic library of games for this console. This is definitely the biggest plus about the Xbox 360. I also prefer the Xbox controller to the PS3 controller. The Xbox 306 controller fits perfectly in your hand. Xbox Live is also superior to the online offerings of both the PS3 and the Wii. And at the moment, it appears that the Xbox 360 has slightly better graphics than the PS3.
What I don’t dig is the boxy generic look of the Xbox 360. Microsoft always struggles to make nice looking machines. The Xbox 360 is also louder than the Wii and the PS3. And then there is always the reliability issue. Hopefully, Microsoft truly has solved the red ring of death issue due to overheating. And as much as I enjoy the feel of the Xbox 360 controllers, they take a hit due to the fact that they run off batteries and you have to purchase a separately sold rechargeable packet if you want to go that route instead of constantly changing the two AA batteries.
Also, I find it annoying that I have to spend $350 for the console and then go out and spend another $100 buying a wireless adapter in order to get the Xbox 360 online. The PS3 and the Wii both have wireless connection built into the console. Also, if you want to watch HD DVD’s then that will be another $180 for the HD DVD player that attaches to the Xbox 360 console.
The PS3 is certainly the sleekest looking of the three consoles. I love the PS3’s Bluetooth controllers that charge up when connected to the console versus the battery powered controllers for the Xbox 360 and the Wii. Sony’s Cell processor is more of a brute than that of the Xbox 360 or the Wii. I do think that once programmers get a handle on the PS3’s system that the PS3 may eventually crank out better looking games than the Xbox 360. I also dig that the PS3 has the wireless internet connection built into the console as well as a Blu-ray player also built into the player. You also get more memory with the 60 GB PS3 than the 20GB of the Xbox Premium console and the Nintendo Wii’s 512 MB of memory.
The PS3 controller lags behind the feel of the Xbox 360 controller and the fun and originality of the Wii controller. The PS3 also has the highest price tag for the console itself and that can be tough to swallow for some people. Also, at this point in time, the PS3 also suffers from a smaller library of games.
The first thing that I love about the Nintendo Wii is its $250 price tag. The Nintendo Wii’s greatest strength is its fantastic controller. When game programmers get a good feel for how the Nintendo controller operates, the gamer gets blessed with incredible gameplay like you have with Zelda: Twilight Princess. The Wii is just an absolute blast to play. You can’t help but to start grinning like an idiot while jumping around playing the Wii.
The downside to the Wii is that it is the weakest console of the three from a technical standpoint. The Wii’s graphics are barely better than of the Nintendo Gamecube. The games are also not as “serious” or “hardcore” as what you will get over on the PS3 or the Xbox. This helps lend to the “kiddie” feel to Nintendo’s games. Also, the Nintendo’s Wii library of games pale in comparison to that of the Xbox 360.
I have spent plenty of time playing all three consoles and I have to say that I enjoy all of them for their own reasons. But, most people aren’t going to purchase all three consoles. So, which console do I think is the best bang for the buck? Hardcore gamers are going to gnash their teeth and froth at the mouth for me saying this but, it is the Nintendo Wii that is the best bang for the buck.
The Nintendo Wii sets you back a mere $250 and is tons of fun pure and simple. No, the Nintendo Wii won’t satisfy the hardcore gamer, but it will be more than enough for your average video game fan. Plus, the Wii is the gaming console that you have the best chance of getting your girlfriend to play with you. Even people that rarely play video games can’t help enjoying the Wii’s unbridled fun. And the Nintendo Wii gets the player more involved into the gaming experience than the PS3 and the Xbox 360. When video games first broke onto the scene, they were nothing more than silly and goofy games that supplied people with plenty of mindless fun. And that is just what the Wii does.
Now, the fact is that serious gamers just aren’t going to be satisfied with what the Nintendo Wii has to offer. So for them it comes down to buying either the PS3 or the Xbox 360. Now, between these two consoles which one is the better buy? It is the PS3. I know that sounds shocking, but hear me out. The PS3 constantly gets banged on for being so expensive, but it is very deceptive how much “cheaper” the Xbox 360 is compared to the PS3. The PS3 60 GB console with a Blu-ray player and built-in wireless internet connection costs you $499.
Yeah, the $350 base price for an Xbox 360 Premium is cheaper than the PS3, but that is comparing apples to oranges. To make the Xbox 360 Premium comparable with the PS3 you will have to spend an additional $100 for a wireless internet adapter. You will then have to shell out another $180 for the HD DVD player. That brings the total for a properly outfitted Xbox 360 Premium to a total of $630. That means you pay $130 for the Xbox 360 and still get 40 GB of memory less than the comparable PS3.
Or you could opt for the Xbox 360 Elite with 120 GB of memory for $450. Throw on top of that the cost for the wireless internet adapter and the HD DVD drive and that will come to a grand total of $730 for a console equivalent to the PS3 except you get an additional 60 GB of memory with the Xbox 360 Elite. Hmmm, pay an extra $230 for an additional 60 GB of memory over the PS3? No thanks. I’ll pass.
Now, even though I feel that the Wii is the best overall buy and that the PS3 is a better buy than the Xbox 360, the fact remains that there is no one truly superior console. Despite what the video game snobs may say, it is impossible to state unequivocally that one of these three consoles is better than the other ones.
The fact remains that it all depends on what you want. If you are a casual gamer then go for the Nintendo Wii. It is cheap and you will be more than satisfied with the amount of fun that it provides.
If you are a serious gamer then it comes down to the Xbox 360 and the PS3. If you are going to use the console to play movies as well as play video games and are willing to wait for the PS3’s eventual growth of their video game library, then the PS3 is the better buy.
However, if you have no interest in playing moves and just want to use it for video games alone and want an immediate large library of video games then go with the Xbox 360.
Personally, just like I enjoy what Marvel and DC bring to the table in terms of the comic book industry, I also enjoy each of these three video game consoles for what they bring to the video game industry.
2 thoughts on “Video Game Console War: Wii v. PS3 v. Xbox”
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You rotten punks with your wii’s and your PS3’s and you 360’s. Let me tell you something> When I was a kid, we only had eight bits, and we were darn happy for them. None of this 3,000,000 bit machines that we have now, no sir. Back then, the deigners had to make every frame count.
And another thing, we had real games back then. Mario brother, Zelda, Bibble Booble. Those were classics. Save the princess, thats what it’s all about. And there was real music. You could hum the Zelda theme all day long, lets see you do that with these new fangled games and there flashy soundtracks.
And one more thing, we had resal controllers back then, jump and shoot, thats all youi need. Today’s contollers look like the cockpite of a spaceshuttle. I was playing a 360 with a kid form shul, and you need an engernerring degree just to know how to move.
Thinks went downhill after that Nintdendo 64 came along. I’m going for a Nap!
For both the hard-core gamer and the casual, DS is the system to get.
For the former croud, you get things like Metroid Hunters, Contra 4, Ninja Gaiden Duel Swords, Mario Kart DS.
For the latter, the best selling NIntendogs, Brain Age, and Animal Crossing among countless others.
And oh yeah, that one little game called Phoenix Wright, which is only the greatest game known to man.
AND both the system and games are cheap, and unlike its younger console brother its really easy to play online and many of its games support the feature.