What to Wait For? PS3, Xbox 360 or Wii??? The E3 Verdict
May 12 '06
The Bottom Line Give yourself $700 to spend and either buy an Xbox 360 + Wii ($650) or a brand spanking $600 PS3.
It’s tough to predict often what’s worth waiting for. In this year’s console war battle, Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony have really drawn some lines around their turf. The most notable distinguishing factor is the price. Sony has an enormously hefty tag of $600, but it comes with perhaps the most hardware of the bunch. I’ll go over each console one by one, what audience I think they are targeting, and finally give my own opinion on what I plan on waiting for. Here goes, this article is going to be mammoth:
Sony - The Former Winner Hits Hard
With a $600 price tag I can definitely see a lot of gamers hesitating on this one. I know that even though I am usually the most first guy on the Sony bandwagon, I’ll say this time around I’m more reluctant than usual. That’s not due to any weak game lineup though; Sony’s must-have titles include MGS4 and FFXIII which plenty of gamers are willing to pay $600+ for the console just to get their grubby hands on these games. That said, from the trailers Sony has shown they look amazing. However we’ve yet to see concrete release dates and actual gameplay footage. While the FFXIII trailer does reveal some amazing in-game battles other than that, how the game actually plays is still a mystery. MGS4 is even more so, all the cutscenes shown so far give no indication of who the main player is going to play and how the action will turn out (FPS style or 3rd person?).
The much waited for GTA4 has not even released screenshots, and so for the most part a lot of Sony’s best titles, like the next-gen Devil May Cry and the Resident Evil series, are still safely under wraps.
Still that does not mean Sony has a weak launch, it’s just that the launch will probably feature a lot of games that most of us are not dying for. Resident Evil, while a brief trailer was shown last E3 is still missing. What seems more established is Tekken 6, which seems not much of a jump from the former, Gran Turismo HD (which is just a higher resolution version of the former), Genji 2, Stranglehold, Brothers in Arms: Hell’s Highway and Madden 2007. There are plenty more, but I’ve mentioned the ones that are most likely to be out this year. So to be honest, Madden despite its graphics upgrade is probably going to play like the former, and as for BiA, why not just grab a PC? Even if it the graphics are great, there is nothing really revolutionary (*cough cough) here.
It’s a safe bet that the hardware at least is worth it. When Sony announced that their new controller was going to essentially be the old one but with gyroscope sensing technology they pretty much took an axe to Nintendo’s face and said, we can do what you do too. The last-minute announcement at E3 was a shocker, and probably one of the most cunning moves on their part. If they are going to price their console high, Sony is still definitely giving their gamers the latest technology.
Still I have read articles that the motion-sensing technology on the PS3 controller is not quite up to par with Nintendo’s Wii. This is true, it is nowhere as elaborate, but it does sense tilt, and elevation, meaning it’ll be useful for the most part in driving / air combat games. I doubt given the controller shape and form that it’ll be nearly as mobile and functional as the Wii-mote but props to Sony for really busting this surprise out. Sony fans will be pleased, even if the rumble pack has been removed.
What about the $500 package? The announced difference is that it has 40 gb less than the $600 one which to many of us computer users find inconsequential in our world of 500 gb computer hds. The real difference I believe has been harder to find, but I’ve heard that the $500 system will lack some wireless functionality, will not come with the new controller, and might be missing some memory slot or something. If this is true then hands down I have to say a crippled system is not worth it. It is like buying the Xbox360 without the hd. While initially it may fit, as soon as things get rolling and the HD becomes more in use, Microsoft is practically banking on you to buy the better one. The same is true of Sony’s split pricing. Later on it is likely the extra features will be needed, and any skimping on the current package could be a mistake.
Verdict?
Analysts have honestly given Sony the bad rap lately for being far too expensive, and they believe that for the most part the pricing will limit its ability to dominate console wars. I agree with this because I think for the most part people are not used to paying so much for a console, despite the ridiculously good hardware Sony is packaging.
Still in regards to the games and the graphics, I will give hats off to Sony. The graphics are top-notch and easily make Xbox 360 and most certainly the Wii look bad. They are ahead in terms of what appeals visually, but whether or not they’ll win console wars is really dependent on their game lineup, the best of which will not be out until next year.
While I am an avid Sony fan, I will say to put any purchase on hold and not make any rash decisions. PS3 will likely be in a huge buying frenzy this Christmas and it is probably more worth it to sell yours on Ebay than to pick one up, because I doubt the game selection will be that good until later.
Nintendo Wii – The cheap console for the everyday gamer
Nintendo knew it was not going to be able to take on hardware heavyweights like Microsoft and Sony so they purposely strayed away from graphics crunching specs and went for franchise titles, and “fun”. With an amazingly cheap rumored price tag of $250, Wii does have a huge step up in sheer costs. However, they are not offering nearly as much hardware strength, with no HD support, and graphics that boast only up to 3x that of the former Gamecube, makes hardware somewhat of a drag.
Still let us focus on the games, as that is the core of any system. I am actually pretty happy to say that the lineup looks good, but the unfortunate thing is that the games do not really feel all to next-generation. Metroid Prime 3 easily could have been developed for the Gamecube and just shifted to systems as graphically it nearly has no improvement. Tony Hawk’s Downtown Jam was a huge disappointment; the graphics are so grainy it looks almost pre-PS2, which is sad again for a next-gen console.
The heavy hitters are going to be Smash Brothers, which most GC gamers love, myself included. The new smash looks like it preserves much of the gameplay from the former. From first impressions the wii remote seems to have no real use and it looks like the old Gamecube controller or the non-motion sensing wii controller will be used. Graphically there isn’t a huge improvement either, and if you watch the trailer closely, the same models are actually being used from the former game, with the exception of the link model, which is taken from the newer game. The additions to the cast though are exciting, notably Solid Snake, but Kid Icarus, Zero Suit Samus and Metaknight and Wario are all very welcome additions. I doubt this game will revolutionize the series, but it most certainly looks to keep a good series going.
Red Steel I think is the hottest title Nintendo managed to come out with and uses the controller both as a light gun that senses movement and also a katana, which is far more exciting. The screenshots for the game looked amazing on first glance and the trailer seemed nothing short of mind-blowing. However, I will say that Nintendo kind of pulled a fast one here. Read the articles on actual gameplay impressions and you’ll find out the screenshots they released do not actually reflect the game’s graphics live, and if you watch a few gameplay videos from gaming companies (as well as their reports) they’ll say the trailer was doctored and the game looks nowhere as good. This is unfortunate. However what is even more unfortunate is that reports from hands-on impressions seem to indicate the controller is not nearly as accurate as the trailer makes it out to be, and even worse, the sword-fighting action that everyone has been looking forward to is pretty limited. Rather than giving the user full-movement, the user makes certain blocking or attacking motions which result in predefined blocking or slashing movements. So yes, your horizontal slash will be horizontal, but it will not be exactly as you swung it in the game. Your swing is hitting the horizontal slash button. This is a big let down, and is nowhere near the full immersion that people expected it to deliver.
The two other game notables include Super Mario Galaxy and Zelda: Twilight Princess. I am not happy with Zelda: Twilight Princess as it is essentially just the Gamecube game using the remote which I do not find really all too exciting. While it may be great to actually hookshot using a hookshot motion this means little to me. Super Mario Galaxy I say is a wild card, some people will likely love it or think it is just OK. The former 3d Marios, like Mario Sunshine, despite being all in all solid games have received less and less attention each year, and I do not think Super Mario Galaxy is really all too important.
Verdict?
I got to say I really am rooting partly for Nintendo this year even though I am partly disappointed with the game lineup. Still one cannot deny that their price point makes it very affordable to buy their games and system without breaking the bank although in my honest opinion I would feel like it is buying a Gamecube with a unique controller. Given that a lot of their games are just ports from in development GC projects and visually they all look rather bland, I would say the real good stuff has yet to come. I am still very skeptical of the controller. If Nintendo does not show more examples of solid free-motion gameplay I am hesitant to recommend it (I have seen the whole conference show and I am not impressed with Tennis or any of their other demonstrations). Given that Nintendo seems to be in no rush though to announce a release date yet, I’d say to wait on it. Nintendo targets most definitely the younger crowd that enjoys gaming in groups of friends. It’s affordable and because of that I would recommend it more readily over Sony’s PS3 as of the moment.
Xbox 360 – The Warpath Continues.
Microsoft had few things to say about hardware and a lot to show. They revealed an amazing trailer of in-game Gears of War which really made me say wow. It had solid graphics, looked fun to play and seemed very next-generation.
Xbox 360 has already proven itself to be a very strong contender this year. With a lower price point at $400, very strong hardware that are only slightly lower than Sony’s, HD support, and a growing library of games, it seems that the Microsoft machine is only going to continue. Their franchise titles, Fable 2 and Halo 3 were both revealed, but like Sony, they did not show much in-game action and it seems like these trailers were made just so they would have something to present at the show.
Still a lot of their games look fantastic though the titles are less recognizable. Prey, Mass Effect and Dead Rising make it clear that the Xbox 360 is not just about taking PC games and sticking them on the console (last year it was though). Now that Xbox has established its name, Xbox 360 has much more of a solid next-generation lineup than I think any of the other game consoles do at E3 this year. All their games look gorgeous, have demonstrated adequate amounts of gameplay footage and are slated to come out this year or early next.
With chockfull of 3d-shooters, Saint’s Row, Cellfactor and Too Human, just to name a few, I would say that Microsoft has the best lineup. Still it appeals only to a certain type of gamer. Most of these games seem very linear, mostly 3d person and for the most part, are solo games that demand only one player. This keeps Xbox 360 from being more of the party-style gaming that has become more popular these days, now that video gaming is becoming more social routine. Still I would be selling Microsoft short if I said that this was it did not leave room for multiple gamer games. With solid online-connectivity in place, they easily could have these shooters work online and hook up people for coop or deathmatch modes through Xbox Live.
Verdict?
With a cheap console, even selling at about $380 online and probably a price cut in the near future, Microsoft is standing on solid ground. Although the games are not franchises, it boasts a very impressive list, including GTA4 and has been getting more and more 3rd party developers to sign up on it. It still lacks the kind of Japanese developer support that Sony will continue to get and the multiplayer games that Nintendo promotes, but given its price tag, I’d say it’s looking a lot better than I ever expected Microsoft to be in the gaming world.
My Final Say:
Yes this article is long and it’s really hard to say which console is worth waiting out for. Again it’s really to each their own, if you have the money I am always tempted to recommend all three (which was my advice last console war) but this particular console war, it looks like people are most certainly going to choose one console and stick with it. Me? I’ll be waiting patiently for my three favorite series to come out (sorry Nintendo) and that would be FFXIII, MGS4 and GTA4. This means I am waiting for the PS3 but probably will not make a purchase until late next year when they possibly do a price cut and the games are released. My next bet would be Xbox 360, which given the lower price point and also the huge library of appealing next-gen games is starting to look better and better.
The Wii really has me hesitant just because I have not seen the controller “revolutionize” the gameplay nearly as much as I’ve hoped for. The doctored-up Red Steel trailer was particularly a weak point in regards to the graphical output of the system, and the myriad of games that look all too familiar to their gamecube counter parts does not seem too appealing. I do love the Metroid Prime series and would easily pick up Zelda but it just does not seem worth it yet. Nintendo has a lot more to show for before it becomes a hot console, but given its price tag, it will likely gain a decent edge in the console wars early on.
Again, it’s a very tough console war, but I am holding fast to Sony and being patient, for the most part all of us should wait. For now, it’s probably more worth it to pick up on the gems that are still being released on the older consoles, in particular God of War 2, Super Mario DS, and Zelda: Twilight Princess on the Gamecube.
-t13monkeys
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