360: Out earlier (this is a massive advantage, highly understated), cheaper, more FPS games, better built when dealing with online multiplayer games. These are the reasons I feel this console did very well for the initial years. Being out earlier meant that gamers flooded to find out what the HD games would be like and they loved them. The price allowed them to remain competitive for a very, very long time. More FPS games in today's generation of gamers is a very important thing because most gamers are FPS gamers. The online multiplayer functionality was also a big boost for the multiplayer functionality of FPS games - I always felt that Halo 3 gave me a much better experience than any of the PS3 online multiplayer games, not when speaking of the actual fights but more so when speaking of how easy it was to get into a game with your friends.

PS3: More powerful, more functional, more variation in game genre/type, free online. Being out a year later meant that less people had an instant demand for this console, let alone were able to justify the asking price which the power of the PS3 was partially responsible for. The functionality, however, which was the main reason for the asking price being so much higher, was notable. It was a much better home entertainment system than the 360 when it comes to being able to do more than simply play games. The variation in games is what drew me to the console (I own both, but use the PS3 more) as while I do like FPS games, I like variation even more. The free online bit is the part that kept me using the system as I don't like having to pay to get Xbox Live. This equates to a poorer performance with online games' features but it's a sacrifice I can justify as I don't go online as often as others do.

In short, both have advantages and disadvantages depending on the gamer. I'm personally quite happy to switch between the two depending on the game. Eventually, I might even be able to justify the cost of Xbox Live again, but I doubt that will be anytime too soon as online gaming isn't my bread and butter (although I do concede that I really miss the early days of Halo 3 with Dan, Psy, Jess, Danielle and others).

The overall winner when it comes to manufacturers was, without question, Sony. Not because of anything to do with gaming, though. Sony putting the Blu-Ray into every PS3 was the driving force behind the Blu-Ray beating the HD-DVD. Sony, along with a couple of other companies, own the patent to Blu-Ray. With the advent of online downloading of movies, this may not matter a massive amount in the very-long-run, but for a good five or six years now the Blu-Ray has been king of the retail film release market. If it were not for the PS3, I'm not so sure this would have happened. Still, Microsoft have certainly advanced significantly in the US and UK markets in particular, and while they may be behind in sales by whatever marginal amount, they are still up on market share compared to where they were before this generation, and that can't be ignored.

Now the big question is whether or not the next generation of consoles can justify themselves, and we'll see where that goes!