Okay, all the consoles are out, and people have had a chance to try them out. If someone were thinking about giving YOU a console system for the holidays, which one would you want, and why?

PS2. MGS2, DMC, GTA3 & FFX.

"PS2. MGS2, DMC, GTA3 & FFX."

Can I get an Amen?

Amen!

Can I get a Praise the Lord?

Praise the Lord!... er... sorry, for a minute there, I lost myself.

But yes, PS2 is the way to go.

I've been meaning to discuss this, and since you brought it up, here goes: I had a dream monday night that I bought an Xbox. No kidding. I really did. Which is weird, because I have no plans to buy one, nor did I have any real desire to do so (Halo notwithstanding).

Later that day I cracked the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly. Good god. These people cannot shut up about the Xbox! I counted at least six references in EW in the article text. That's strange.

Ditto for Maxim, where they gave DOA3 the highest rating of their lame four-game-review-on-a-page spread. Granted, that's not terribly surprising given the magazine's content (T&A + humor). Also, DOA2 was a big advertiser back in the day, and actually parodied the Maxim cover.

Xbox already seems to have captured the media zeitgeist that it needs to become a mindshare leader. Every MAINSTREAM article I read, the reviewers come away impressed with the thing, even though the PS2 has more blockbuster games. Something about being associated with Microsoft (and by proxy, Bill Gates), plus the power of the box, and the initial library.. it is the new new thing.

Then it really hit me. Think back to the bad old days of consoles-- I'm thinking early 80's here. Remember those comic books with the back covers showing all the video game ports of arcade games like Q-Bert, or Frogger, or whatever.. with screenshots of the C-64, Atari, Colecovision, Atari 2600, etc side-by-side on all the systems? I distinctly remember drooling over the system with the best graphics and therefore the best arcade port.

I just realized that the Xbox *is* that system. It's the one that will have the "best" version of the games.

And it's already happening: just read GameSpot's preview of SSX Tricky for Xbox. Never underestimate the power of graphics. Especially in a world where nearly half the game library is ported to all platforms.

And it's not just the graphics. Xbox is the only system that does Dolby Digital. And the only one with HDTV output. And the only one where you can rip audio tracks to the hard drive and have them play in the game. Best of all, you don't get gouged for stupid memory cards since the thing has a built in hard drive. And you can even play over the internet ALREADY with that official GameSpy support and the built in ethernet. No Microsoft involvement there. That's impressive.

Compare those abilities with the PS2 which has always looked grungy AT BEST graphically, and now somehow feels far older than a one-year old has any right to be. The perception is that PS2 is "going to be obsolete". Soon. And why risk being stuck with an end of life system a year from now? Hell, not one but TWO consoles are available that both surpass the PS2 significantly. Sony executives have gone on record saying that Microsoft has accelerated the console lifecycle; it used to be five years, now they're thinking it will be three.

And honestly, how hard will it be for microsoft to introduce Xbox 2? None of this bullshit "let's come up with our own custom wacky architecture that nobody understands and is impossible to manufacture" Sony stuff. All they need to do is gather up the latest PC hardware and stuff it into a new box. AND IT'S COMPLETELY BACKWARDS COMPATIBLE! Think about this folks. This is a HUGE deal.

Hardcore gamers may be skeptical, but I do believe the Xbox is gaining a substantial mindshare foothold with the unwashed masses. And that's the 90% of the world that really matters. I may be completely wrong about this, but I'm predicting that the Xbox will be serious competition for Sony. We may see a 50/50 split like in the days of Nintendo and Sega, with Gamecube fighting over the leftovers, Apple computer style.

"the holidays" + "DMC" =

It's Christmas time
In Hollis, Queens.
Mom's cookin' chicken
and collard greens.

Could it be that all these mainstream pubs got free Xboxes and they had to pay for a Gamecube or a PS2?

Handing 'em out like candy I tell ya'.

--Dave

It's funny, because recently EW gave a fawning three-page article on Rogue Leader and the GameCube...just goes to show that they'll print anything if they're paid enough. :)

Word.

"Could it be that all these mainstream pubs got free Xboxes and they had to pay for a Gamecube or a PS2?"

Yeah, no one could possibly like an Xbox for any legitimate reason. It has to be that Microsoft is handing them out for free, kind of like Sony does. And Nintendo.

Can we work a little Dreamcast discussion into this?

I bought a Gamecube, but not because it's a superior piece of hardware. I've got young kids, and it seems like Nintendo caters to them a bit more -- though they want to distance themselves from this perception. I don't think there's much chance that the Gamecube will dominate this generation of consoles, but it's also hard to imagine that it won't carve out a decent niche.

If I were buying for myself... dunno. I'd probably pick up a used Dreamcast on EBay bundled with 10-15 good games plus accessories for around $150. That would tide me over for a year, and then I'd re-evaluate the current-generation consoles to see if there was something I couldn't live without.

BTW, the GC Monkeyball game (sort of a deluxe Marble Madness to you oldtimers) is seriously underrated even with good reviews. It's got that instant classic feel. I think it simply got the max review ratings for a simple arcade game with "Monkey" in the title. I mean, you can't give something like that a 98%, can you?

Yeah, well, reviewers said how great Crazy Taxi was, too. And after buying a copy based on these "great" reviews, I found to my dismay that the game had all the depth of minesweeper.

So color me skeptical of Sega's "great" games.

However, your advice is sound-- it's never a bad idea to wait when a console launches. Invariably the best games appear a year later, and you feel foolish for being an early adopter.

Play the consoles at stores or at friends' places. Look at the games you like, and feel the controlers in your hands. You shouldn't buy anything just because some expert or another says it's "the thing" this year; you're the one who's going to be playing the damn box for a year at least.

What games, out now and coming out in the next two to three months, interest you? Which boxes run them? What are the prices and deals you can get? What's availability? Those sorts of things will sort out the decision a bit I think.

Obviously, if you're a game freak you will want two or three consoles :-), but otherwise I really don't think you can go wrong with any of them, though you're likely to get more PS2 and Xbox games than GC games in the near term at least it seems.

Personally I don't think the PS2 looks "grungy" at all, and not everything on the Xbox is stellar, either.

What he said. Also think about why you're buying a console.

If you just want something to entertain friends that aren't console freaks when the LAN is down Dreamcast is still the way to go and it does have the broadest quality library so far. The price is definitely right.

If you're new to console gaming, like I was, PS2 is another good choice. GTA3 really rocks my world in so many ways but the prime attractions are a DVD player (which, being a caveman, I didn't already have) and compatibility with PSOne games/classics I never played before. It will also have a keyboard to go along with online access which X-Box seems to be avoiding.

X-Box, though, I really think is the best game system if you're looking forward. It has the hardware muscle and a mission statement that's all about bringing new depth to console gaming. Still, will it ever come close to what we've got on the PC already? Who knows?

Gamecube is great for kids and some say for adults, more powerful than the PS2, and it's relatively cheap.

Frankly, this is a great time to be a gamer but even a better time to be a wealthy gamer. Wish I was one. :)

"Yeah, well, reviewers said how great Crazy Taxi was, too. And after buying a copy based on these "great" reviews, I found to my dismay that the game had all the depth of minesweeper."

Jeez... Spend a quarter (or, what is it now? $0.50) at an arcade next time. Crazy Taxi was an arcade port and Sega never promised anything different from that. Y'know what? Neither did the reviews I read.

-Andrew

"And it's not just the graphics. Xbox is the only system that does Dolby Digital. And the only one with HDTV output. And the only one where you can rip audio tracks to the hard drive and have them play in the game. Best of all, you don't get gouged for stupid memory cards since the thing has a built in hard drive. And you can even play over the internet ALREADY with that official GameSpy support and the built in ethernet. No Microsoft involvement there. That's impressive."

Wumpus, can I say something and you not get mad?

Goooooood.

Ripping audio tracks to the hard drive is a mute point.

Who here actually owns an HDTV?

Who here actually owns a sound-system that will do true Dolby Digital? Mind you, Dolby Digital is a helluva lot different than anything else you can think of.

Is the memory card issue really that big? Come on, $10 for a card? No way, don't bitch about that. No, just, don't.

Come on Wumpus, the only good point out of that entire paragraph is the fact that the Xbox already has broadband access so you can play on the internet. And that's only because it's a computer. Regardless, it does have it.

Is someone going to buy it for the HDTV or Dolby Dig.? No, probably not. Would they buy the Xbox for the broadband? Hell yes.

However, going out of my way to spend that kind of money on a console when there's two others readily available with a stock of games, you have to outweigh the good vs. the bad vs. the utterly mediocre.

And if I was to judge by your post, I'd say, "Well written. You got a free Xbox didn't you?"

"Ripping audio tracks to the hard drive is a mute point."

How so? You can rip the audio to the HD and it will play back in the game, DURING the gameplay. I know several launch titles that support this.

For example, I'm already sick as hell of the Tony Hawk 3 soundtrack. I'd love to be able to rip my Carpenters' Greatest Hits CD and listen to "We've Only Just Begun" while I bust out my next 100,000 point combo.

"Is the memory card issue really that big? Come on, $10 for a card? No way, don't bitch about that. No, just, don't."

$10? Closer to $30 with tax and so forth. And if you save a lot of games (RPG anyone?) expect to buy two. That's $60!

"Who here actually owns a sound-system that will do true Dolby Digital? Mind you, Dolby Digital is a helluva lot different than anything else you can think of."

Dolby Digital is very common even on the cheapest receivers nowadays. Lots of people have DD systems. DVD players practically require it, or else you're missing a lot of the movie audio experience.

"Who here actually owns an HDTV?"

True, HDTV has low adoption right now. But what about two or three years from now? And for those who did spring for HDTV today.. why wouldn't you want the best interface? It's like I said. Dig out your old comic books circa '82 and look at the multiplatform video game ads. See the one with the best graphics? That's the Xbox.

I dunno, I was pretty down on the Xbox for a while. But lately I'm starting to think that the public may just be getting the message Microsoft is sending: it's the best console on the market, with a decent library right now, and the games will inevitably follow.

That said, I have no plans to get one. However, I did convince a coworker that it was the best console investment, and he's getting one. So as soon as his arrives, we'll be able to play Halo in co-op, which should be a blast..

"Play the consoles at stores or at friends' places. Look at the games you like, and feel the controlers in your hands. You shouldn't buy anything just because some expert or another says it's "the thing" this year; you're the one who's going to be playing the damn box for a year at least.

What games, out now and coming out in the next two to three months, interest you? Which boxes run them? What are the prices and deals you can get? What's availability? Those sorts of things will sort out the decision a bit I think. "

Bueller? That's what I was asking about. You guys are far more clued in when it comes to upcoming releases and future value. I'd want a console for my friends to use more than me, actually, and wouldn't want to fiddle with it for several years after. From that aspect, it sounds like XBOX. We'll see...

But I'd never steal from Santa
'Cause that ain't right
So I was going home to give it
Back to him that night.

Amanpour

"Is the memory card issue really that big? Come on, $10 for a card? No way, don't bitch about that. No, just, don't."

Last I checked, it's more like $25 to $30. And the other side of the coin is this: the hard drive makes a lot of things possible that aren't feasible in memory card dependent systems. Like, I save replays of every good run I make in Amped; that would fill a memory card pretty damn quick.

I'm not saying that it's a system selling feature, but it is something to consider.

Got HDTV? Check.

Hate memory cards? Check.

Like the Dolby Digital Feature? Check.

Bought an Xbox? Check.

Yeah, I'm surprised at how much I like having the hard drive. Saving multiple seasons in Fever or NBA Live, Halo, Munch, whatever... no limits. Since I'm a bonehead about labeling things Memory Cards and VMUs were a real pain for me.

Also, because of my toddler, and my wife disliking video games in general, consoles are inconvenient to me given that I can't use the TV when I want. So I've set up the Xbox at the PC. I have a Radeon with TV/IN-OUT so the Xbox is pumping through the 21" monitor and through the 5.1 speakers. The console really does sound superior to the PS2 and even most PC games, and it certainly looks better too. Multitasking is a breeze (more convenient that ALT-Tabbing) and I can take screenshots/video at will.

Anyway, the effect of plugging a $300 console into your PC like this is a lot like when you bought your first Voodoo card and all of a sudden all those new good lookin' games became available to you. Now, if only I could use a mouse with it....

I don't miss the couch at all.

-Andrew

"I'd love to be able to rip my Carpenters' Greatest Hits CD and listen to 'We've Only Just Begun' while I bust out my next 100,000 point combo."

I would hate to imagine what Karen Carpenter's special combo move would be.

vomiting?

Wumpus said: "I do believe the Xbox is gaining a substantial mindshare foothold with the unwashed masses."

What do you mean by "mindshare"? Is that supposed to be like market share, but where the people just have heard of a product but haven't actually bought it?

"What do you mean by "mindshare"? Is that supposed to be like market share, but where the people just have heard of a product but haven't actually bought it?"

As in, it has a lot of positive buzz in the non-gaming magazines and media I've encountered recently. People who aren't hardcore gamers seem interested in it.

Like I said-- I could be wrong. Nintendo just issued that press release indicating they sold through all 500k of their initial allotment, too.

Hey guys, is there any chance that I could hook up the Game Cube to a PC monitor? If I can what is the procedure? thxs!

By the way, I'm getting the Game Cube because I feel that The Xbox resembles the PC and most of the games that will appear on the Xbox will also make it's way to the PC. But Nintendo is a whole different ball game. If you want to play Nintendo games you have to buy a Game cube. Ther is no other way around it. Also, I want to get a Game Boy Advance, and I like the fact that I can hook up the GBA to my GC and game. So the GC is all me =)

It would be really cool if the gamecube could be used not only as a gaming console, but also as a cute little purse!

Then again, like I said in the other thread, looks don't matter. For the box anyway. ;)

And this my friend's is the joys of having an open forum: You can poke and prod and even take shots at other people and get exactly the response you want.

Wumpus, you should be a salesman for Microsoft. I actually don't own a next-gen console, and when the prices are all about even, I'll probably end up getting an Xbox in the future. But here-now, I'll probably end up getting a PS2. I personally think it's the best bargain at the moment, and a great gift for Christmas for anyone. Next Christmas: Xbox. =)

"It would be really cool if the gamecube could be used not only as a gaming console, but also as a cute little purse!"

I'd rather have a cute little purse than that big black brick they call the Xbox. The gamecube is where you wanna spend your gaming dollars. Why buy the Xbox when we will see Xbox ports in the near future? The only game that I want to check out that is an Xbox exclusive is the Matrix. Anyone see a preview of this game yet? But I've all ready played a game that is very similar to the Matrix, and that is Max Payne. Dammnit, I want my Lugi!!!

Frankly, I'm seriously considering picking up a Dreamcast. It's cheap, its good, and the games generally rock. Damn Sega for abandoning it.

"Damn Sega for abandoning it."

As an admirer of Sega, I prefer that they remain in the marketplace turning out bucketloads of new games rather than going bankrupt fighting the triple-bastard threat of Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo. (Especially since they were already going under before Microsoft entered the marketplace.)

I love my Dreamcast, and have no intention of buying a newer console for a loong time.

"I love my Dreamcast, and have no intention of buying a newer console for a loong time. "

I bet you loved your old Mac Performa, too...

Not really a fair comparison, given that games on Dreamcast look pretty dang close to PS2, yet Mac Performa games are blown away by games on a modern PC (or those occasional 3D games available for the G4 Mac).

Commodore Amiga
Atari Lynx
Sega Dreamcast

R.I.P.

"Build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door."

Yeah, right.