Your opinon on your gaming consoles, and your preferred console for gaming.

[KentaRawr!]

Well, none of these on the first or second pages, so I think we need another thread about our opinions on gaming consoles today.

I can't really give an in-depth opinion on any system besides the PC or the Wii, so I'll just state my opinion on the Wii to begin, I suppose. Discussion begins!

At the time I got the Wii, it was for a pretty simple reason. I preferred the system's line-up, just like anyone would do when buying a system. But, what's happened since the Wii was released is a general lack of games. The 7 Ubisoft games turned out to be rather lack-luster, sadly, and the most fun I've gotten is from mostly Nintendo's games. They were great experiences, and I don't regret getting my system at all, but I definitely dug too far into the hype.

Don't get me wrong, I do enjoy the Wii's line-up greatly, and there are some games currently out I've yet to get that I want, such as Medal of Honor Heroes: 2, and King of Fighters '94 on the Virtual Console. But what really disappoints me is the usage of the controller by developers.

As of late, it seems as though the only effective usage of the controller comes from usage of the Sensor Bar and Pointer, an absolutely brilliant system I'd say. It's not motion-controls, but it's a new system of controlling games that works well, and is very precise in capturing your movements. The other motion sensing capabilities of the Wii Remote don't seem to be used very commonly to actually capture your motions and represent them, but rather, take specific quick motions in specific directions to represent what could have been a button-push instead. Though this hasn't proven to be necessarily a bad thing, it just makes me think of what could have been when I play a game that controls like this.

Something else I don't like is how the Wii seems to miss out on newer multi-platform titles, like Soul Calibur 4, for example. Once the Ps2 is finally dead, it seems like everything for the Wii is going to be exclusive, but it seems like companies will merely make games for the Wii to spend less on making the games themselves, and cash-in by a bit. That really sucks. Since Nintendo only has one console to cash-in on, they spend more money on their games in hopes that they sell well, and are the only ones that seem obligated to make Killer App's for the system. 3rd Parties don't seem as excited about the controller as they did before.

I feel like I'd prefer to have an X-Box 360 at this point rather than a Wii. But, still, if I could trade my Wii and my 9 games for an X-Box 360 and 9 of its games, I probably wouldn't, because then I'd miss my collection of games, 'cause I like it. But I still feel that developers haven't reached enough of the potential of the Wii Remote, and developers definitely seem to be a bit more lazy when it comes to making games for the Wii rather than the other systems.

Anyway, your opinions on your currently owned consoles?

[Cookie]

I wasn't aware that I was the only one still playing my PS2.

[KentaRawr!]

I wasn't aware that I was the only one still playing my PS2.

I couldn't squeeze "current-gen" into the title. I apologize.

[Boney King]

I wasn't aware that I was the only one still playing my PS2.

I am too, you're not alone.

[Yar]

PS2 is my preferred console.

[Bolivar]

Kentarou, I hear some of the things you've been saying about the wii. all consoles have had some time on the market, and all have a pretty good picture of where they're going, so i think maybe now we can get some good input on this.

Like you said, it's all about the games that a console has. This year I finally committed and bought myself a ps3. I've been a Sony gamer for years now and honestly, the other 2 big systems don't have a game lineup that I could see myself forsaking the ps3 for. Certain series, like FF, MGS, GTA, I know that I definately want to play the next game, and I couldn't see myself buying a system that would cause me to miss that.

Also, I kind of felt like the Wii was cashing in on novelty that was soon to wear off, and if I read it right, it seems you pointed out that the first and third party developers may have hit a brick wall for now. I love mario, zelda, starfox, but I haven't been up on any of those games on Nintendo's major consoles, I guess I could live without them.

And then there's the XBox360. I never really liked it from the start, it seems like a console of multi-platform games, the only one of which that isn't that has stood the test of time is Halo, which I really feel is a sub-par shooting game. All of the games for it seem like generic knock-offs of genres that are already starting to get redundant. It seems like there's zero ingenuity going on over there really. Plus the fact that you have to pay for a subscriptino to XBox live is very unattractive, I don't need a periodic fee when buying a game console, I think that's rediculous. Not to mention hearing so much about faulty systems, the red circle of death, people going on their 3rd try buying an XBox 360, I have 2 friends that are on their second, i've heard of games being shipped that don't play out the box, and ones that get scratched easily. I don't think i'd ever buy a 360.

The ps3 seemed like a great package, in addition to having the promising library I know i'll be going with. WiFi internet access, Blue Ray DVD player, the ability to create partitions so you can put other operating systems on it. With all the usb ports, i can surf the web with a keyboard and mouse, and play roms with my usb controller. I've been playing Final Fantasy VI on snes9x and it's worked great. Not only does the system have so many great games coming out this year, but you might as well add the NES, SNES, and Genesis libraries to that (for free) and you have one hell of a system. Over the long haul, it seems like the best purchase and it's already paying off. Plus, my usb-game controller gets picked up as a ps3 controller. So I've been real happy with it, and by the look of some titles coming out this year, it was a smart move.

[LunarWeaver]

I would have been happy with any of them, but I chose the 360 because it seemed to make me the happiest and I don't regret it at all. I really feel like Microsoft went through some great lengths to dispel of the "shooter box" reputation the first had.

And Xbox Live is fun, although it's the worst online community since Al Gore invented the internet and computers so long ago. But what popular online community is actually good? It'd be better if I had more friends, but apparently you have to be a complete dumbass that raps taunts during gameplay to get anyone your list.

[Tavrobel]

The PC. Though I have four fresh games for the Wii, I just can't find the time to play anything on them. when I do have enough time during the day, it never lasts as long as I want it to, so I can only play short segments of KHII.

On the other hand, WCIII and DII are eating up all of my time.

[Rostum]

PS2. The next console I'd get is a PS3, as my girlfriend already bought us a Wii and though it is heaps of fun I am much anticipating the next instalment of Final Fantasy and Kingdom Heart games, among a few others.

So yeah, for now I spend most of my time on the PS2. Wii is great when my girlfriend and I want to stay home and just chill out, and our families love it. So it's a really great party system.

[Madame Adequate]

The one that plays the games I like to play.

So, all of them.

[Ouch!]

Since I have them all now, I don't bother to play favorites. I bought the Wii first; I have the most games for the Xbox 360; most of the games I'm looking forward to (exclusives, anyway) will be on the PS3.

[KentaRawr!]

Since you have all 3, it seems like your opinion would be one of the more insightful. Why not share?

[Namelessfengir]

i might get xbox and ps3 but i have no money so ill just steal my cousins

[Evastio]

I've always been the Nintendo kind of guy sooo...

[Ouch!]

Since you have all 3, it seems like your opinion would be one of the more insightful. :monster: Why not share?

Alright, I'll give it a whirl.

Let's start with the Wii. I bought the Wii on launch date--waited outside in the snow for it and everything. I hesitate to call the system a disappointment, but so far that's what it's turned out as for me. To be fair, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and Super Mario Galaxies are among some of the most fun games I've ever played. I was a bit disappointed by Super Paper Mario (the switch to a platformer-RPG gameplay style bothered me).

The lack of decent third-party titles for the Wii bothers me a little bit, but that's something I expected when I bought the console. When I'm honest with myself, I know I got a Wii so I could play Zelda, Mario, and Brawl. Nintendo puts out some fantastic first party games, and those three are enough to justify the console for me. I imagine many others would disagree.

Finally, ever since I've gotten the system, I've had difficulty connecting to the virtual console. Now that I'm at college, I can't connect the Wii to the internet (the University of Miami blocks connections by consoles, and I don't know how to get around it on a Wii), I wouldn't even be able to fix the connection problems with the virtual console if I wanted to.

I bought my Xbox 360 back in the beginning of September. Since then, I've been immensely satisfied with the system. The most obvious advantage the console has is its volume of games in comparison to its competition. Halo 3, Mass Effect, Bioshock, and Eternal Sonata all turned out to be fantastic games.

Xbox Live has been incredibly fun. I've never really been into online gaming outside of MMO's before, but I'm very happy with Live. By setting an alternate Mac Address to the Xbox 360, I've been able to convince my school that my Xbox is my laptop, but the NAT settings are set to strict, so I have some trouble with match-ups every so often. That's not a problem I can blame on the console itself, though.

My only gripe with the Xbox 360 right now is that it's future isn't looking particularly eventful--at least not for me. I mean, I've got Lost Odyssey pre-ordered, and I'm really looking forward to that, and Last Remnant looks cool, but since I've got a PS3 now as well, I'm not really going to count that as a point in the favor of either console.

Lastly, the PS3... well, I only bought it this past Monday, so I don't have an awful lot to say about it quite yet. I've not explored many of its capabilities beyond standard gaming. I've not tinkered with the internet settings to get it online like my Xbox 360, but that's mostly 'cause I don't have any games with online multiplayer yet.

A big advantage for the PS3, especially since Warner Brother's announcement, is its use of Blu-Ray. Since it appears Blu-Ray has come out on top as next in line to replace the DVD, that alone is good news for any PS3 owner.

I've got Ratchet and Clank Future for the PS3 right now (as well as all my old PS2 and PS titles), and it's pretty damn awesome. I've not even tried Motorstorm, and I don't really desire to either; I'm not big into racing games. I'm still viewing the PS3 as an investment at this point. A lot of its value still hasn't been entirely realized. The news about Blu-Ray is big, but other than that, I'm still waiting for a lot of future titles. FFXIII, FFvXIII, White Knight Story, God of War III, etc. The PS3 has a lot going for it, but I would still suggest holding off. The only reason I bought one because circumstances allowed me to purchase the 80GB model, an extra controller, and Ratchet and Clank Future for $260 of my own money (achieved through a combination of gifts and deals). It was a deal I couldn't really pass up.

Oh, the Six-Axis pseudo-motion-sensor-thing (whatever it's called) is about the most frustrating piece of crap ever. It's more gimmicky than the Wii mote, and as soon as I got the option to do so in R&C, I turned it off in favor of the left analogue stick.

Right now, I suppose I'd rank the consoles as follows as per personal preference:
1. Xbox 360
2. Wii
3. PS3

I imagine that the PS3 will be making a huge jump forward in the next two years. That's still a long time ahead, but it will probably surpass the Wii for me unless the Wii starts throwing out some more titles I'm interested in (next Zelda please).