PS2 + X-box + Gamecube =Too many choices!

[Chronic]

Ok, this summer I plan to sell my DC and buy a new consol. However, I have yet to decide which to buy. PS2 would be great because I have a couple old PSX games, but not enough to be commited to that choice. I also really like GT3. However, Halo looks incredable on the X-box, and I heard great things about Gamecube.

Basicaly, since I really don't follow consol systems much anymore, which should I get? Keechie, i know what you will say, since you're INF's leading PS2 whore (for good reason), but I'm open to all systems. Price is a factor here, although not too big of one. What are the leading games for each system? What are the specs? Help me out here!

-Chronic

[Beagle_One]

Well, here's what I think.

PS2: If you like PSX games, go for it. PSX and PS2 often have the games not available on PC, and the quality is the best so far.

X-Box: Lots of PC-oriented games expected but in better graphics and faster data processing(I'm guessing, since it's a game machine). Very promising console:) The games' qualities will go beyond that of PC games for sure:)

GameCube: If you have kids of your own, go for it. If it's just for yourself and your are over 15, you might find it difficult to find a good selection of mature(blood and guts, and requiring higher brain function than walking a Mario) games:( Nintendo will always be family-friendly:)


If I were you, I'd wait after X-Box is out for a while to see what games will be available. I don't think X will become another DC but since it's completely new, I'd like to see it grow a bit before jumping on it.

[Mr. HotDog]

X-Box all the way dude! GameCub is way too childish. PS2 has a sh*t load of great games out, so I dont know. Personally I would go for the X-Box...

[Pretorious]

I sold my DC not to long ago and bought PS2. Its a very nice system w/ DVD capibilities. It is definately worth the cash, the games, the graphics, the DVD picture quality, its all there. I am sure Keiichi would agree with me <@:). And if you want to play normal PSX games you can pop those on the PS2 and go crazy!

[Keiichi]

Yeah, the PS2's backwards compatability is great for me, because the only way I can switch consoles is by pulling my television all the way out of my entertainment center and switching around the AV cables manually. I still actively play PSX games, most notably Chrono Cross, Lunar: Silver Star Story Complete, Lunar 2: Eternal Blue Complete, and Metal Gear Solid. Since it's a huge pain in the ass to pull that monster out, being able to effortlessly pop a PSX game disc into my PS2 and have it play is a great bonus.

The DVD playback isn't too bad either. I've heard people complain about some DVDs not working properly, but every disc in my library works fine. I have to admit, watching DVDs on a 20" flat-screen television from the comfort of my bed is leagues better than watching them on my 15" computer monitor while sitting in my ass-cramp-enducing chair.

-Keiichi

[DeRailer]

It's a very promising console.
Lots of great games line up, and i'm especially interested in Unreal Championship.
Another reason I might prefer the X-Box over PS2 is that... oh well, microsoft creates it. Da man got the wits, strategy and of course, money. It might be tough for MS X-Box to enter the Japanese console market though. Juz my thoughts....
Metal Gear Solid X will be out for the Box right?
Same goes for DOA3, PSO2, Halo.
Got a ques: It's is true Square might be developing for the XBox?

[Keiichi]

Nope, no Square. It was recently confirmed that Final Fantasy X & XI are both going to be PS2 exclusives, and Square currently has no plans to develop other titles for the XBOX.

-Keiichi

[DeRailer]

Ok I change my mind.
PS2 rulz!!! :D

[Eyes-Only]

Let me state this

"I am for the PS2 all the way and will wait to see what develops with the xbox before I buy one if it goes good" now I will say this

"Dont even think about the game box thingy ma chig"

I mean if you are over 10 stay far from the gamething. Or if you have more then 5 years gaming exp. Thats my piece.

[Mr. HotDog]

Ummmm... does this mean that all you people are going to give up the PC and become console junkies? Sure, I'll most likely get a X-Box when it comes out, but theres no way (I repeat: NO WAY!!!) that I'll abandon the PC.

[Beagle_One]

No, Mr. Hotdog, we won't give up PC or anything. We were just talking about which consoles we prefer. Besides, many of us use our PCs for more than just playing games:D

[Eyes-Only]

I couldnt give up my pc because my PC is not for games (sure I play them but I dont have a gaming PC) besides I like consoles better but I like PC games too

[Ballistophobia]

Ima get an Xbox. I couldn't care less about Square not developing for it, I can't f<b></b>uckin stomach RPGs. I crave visceral and open-ended material when it comes to gaming. I loath RPGs and RTSs more than anything, godamn another f<b></b>uckin RTS pops up everyday and those things are such garbage, bah don't get carried away with your own opinion Balli. :hmm:
F<b></b>uck DVD playback from a console, I mean when you think about it a good DVD player costs $200-$300 so if the console costed $300 what do you think you're getting? Can't play VCDs, SVCDs, or mp3s like my DVD player, probably has s<b></b>hit sound, so I will definitely not be using the Xbox for a DVD player. I, however, do agree with Keiichi that DVD playback looks like s<b></b>hit on a monitor compared to a good TV. Looks incredible on my beloved Sony 27' flat screen (me and keiichi are getting notorious for our TV bragging :D), and it has the coolest feature in the world, it's called Velocity Modulation. Only looks good on DVDs, and not all DVDs, but what it does is like adds detail somehow. Like if there was a totally white screen with an "E" in the middle, the edges would be all blurred regularly, but as you increase the VM from off to low you notice the edges getting sharper, finer, and bolder and when you put it to high it just looks amazing. Made the Matrix look about 10x better, plus my 340 watt system with a Dolby Digital decoder doesn't hurt that movie either. :D
S<b></b>hit, got off on a tangent. Well anyways, I'd keep my eye on the Xbox if I were you, it's only gonna be $300 and GC looks GAY. :)

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<small><i>Seems like I've been here before, seems so familiar. Seems like I'm slipping...into a dream within a dream. It's the way you whisper. It drags me under and takes me home...</i><small>

[DeRailer]

I think the Gamecube is aOk, It's more of a... lets say "family gamin console".
Xbox has shown a lot of POTENTIAL and can give quite a good fight to the PS2.
Now that's DC is "out" of the console war, the world's market will be big enough hold all the 3 consoles. After all these years we seem Sony Sega and Nintendo fighting it out with the NES to SNES and MegaDrive to well, MD2. that was till the first PS arrived, Nintendo and Sega starts to build better consoles to meet the challage.
Now that we have 3 "Next-Generation" console(i.e PS2 XB, GC) readied for next console war, there will obviously be more competition which is a good thing 4 us hardcore gamers since the Companies will strive to release top-notch softwares to counter the other consoles.
In my humble opinion, i believe the veteran companies like Sony and Nintendo will not lose out of the console war, but neither will Microsoft coz We all Know how MS hates to lose. With those Budgets of MS, X-Box will also emerge as ONE of the leading console. That is, in my humble opinion.

Oh heck, its a pity the DC have to go... its actually a one of the first Real console I have seem. So many quality titles at sucha short time, its almost a shame it have to go. Good thing is SEGA will still be dev. software titles(rejoice!).

[BlueSniper]

uhhh to what beagle said....

I looked at zeldaGC, Metroid, and PS (perfect shaddow) GC2. and those games looked like they were actuely some fun. nintendo is ::trying:: to get out of that family friendly mode. look at conker BFD! oh, and if you EVER played ANY turok games, you might have an upset stomach after seing a raptor start rolling on the ground skreaming because it lost its lower body. I dont think the turok games are easy either. it took me a full YEAR to beat the firs ::and best:: turok. perfect dark WAS fun... but once you get TOO good...

[Eyes-Only]

bluesniper I see what you mean about the games you mentioned but I dont believe Nintendo will ever get away from "family games" enough for me to like them....besides all the more "adult" games still look likes cartoons to me on the N64 (such as turok, Perfect dark) who knows with the cubey but I am not holding my breath....Nintendo is always family first gamers second to me (in the sense of games being the majority for 15 year olds)

[Beagle_One]

I think that Nintendo should stay family-oriented. We need them there for our young kids:)

[Chronic]

You've all helped alot. I guess game-cube is out, now it's down to PS2 and X-box, and I do beleive I will wait to see how they are and what games they have, it's better to let X-box evolve a bit before jumping onto a PS2. Thanks everybody.


BTW, does anyone know the exact specs on the X-box?

[PROMAGNUM]

as I said before, the last console I will ever buy is ps2. I have a computer for sh!t sakes give me a break. Im not even going to comment about the rest of you. :o

[Ballistophobia]

There's the holier than thou Promagnum I know, bitch. :p

GC will only be $200 but I still don't think it's worth it compared to the competition. Xbox can basically render games that look like CGI in real time, something I've been waiting forever for. The PC still isn't that good, but it's getting there.

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<small><i>Today a young man at NASA realized that all matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration. That we are all one consciousness and the universe itself, subjectively. There's no such thing as death, life is only a dream and we're just an imagination of ourselves. Here's Tom with the weather...</i></small>

[RogueLeader]

The idea that nintendo is a kid's company really isn't true. They got a bad rap for the N64's games, and I'm sure no one will deny Nintendo made a bad choice with the N64. They scared away all the good game developers because they intentionally made the N64 hard to develop for. The wanted only the best game designers to make games for it. But it backfired, and instead the good game designers just moved to the PSX because it was easier to develop for. My prediction is the Gamecube will own all the other systems. The X-box is a joke, Microsoft can't even make an operating system that works right, and they want to make a console? And using Direct X, a pitiful attempt to make a new gaming API? And based on a Windows NT kernel? X-Box will be far to weak for gaming. Its geared more towards people who want a mini-computer. The PS2 will not match either simply because its older. And if Nintendo does screw their Gamecube, they will pretty much lose all of their console customer base. All they would have left are their Game Boy customers. I don't think Nintendo would let that happen. And anyhow, have any of you seen the screenshots from the Gamecube? They look just as good as the X-box's except those are playable level of polygons, whereas the X-box screenshots arn't playable because the console couldn't sustain a game at those polycounts.

[Ballistophobia]

I hate this whole "MS can't even make an OS work right" bulls<b></b>hit. I remember the days of using 3.1 with my 486 and 4 megs of ram. I got maybe one prog to work out of ten. I hated computers then, not a f<b></b>uckin thing worked and I crashed all the time. Everyone loved MS then. Now I get more than nine out of ten to work and rarely ever crash. The only game I <i>ever</i> couldn't get to work was my friends copy of Messiah, he had a s<b></b>hitty Diamond card and he wanted to see it on my PC but it wouldn't work. I read the instructions and it said it could have voltage problems with newer cards or some s<b></b>hit.
Anyways, now almost every prog works and all people do is f<b></b>uckin complain, but does anyone do anything if it's so bad? No. Linux is a joke and Macs are not nearly as good for games.
So until you make a better OS, and I mean better while still backwards compatible, do me a favor and shut the f<b></b>uck up. :rolleyes:

Originally posted by RogueLeader
And anyhow, have any of you seen the screenshots from the Gamecube? They look just as good as the X-box's except those are playable level of polygons, whereas the X-box screenshots arn't playable because the console couldn't sustain a game at those polycounts.

Sorry but that's complete bulls<b></b>hit. The Xbox has a memory bandwidth of 6.4 gigs a sec and a CPU bandwidth of 1 gig a sec. The screenshots are "playable" as you say. I dunno where you're reading this rhetorical propaganda you're spitting all over your post, but it's implausible.

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<small><i>Today a young man at NASA realized that all matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration. That we are all one consciousness and the universe itself, subjectively. There's no such thing as death, life is only a dream and we're just an imagination of ourselves. Here's Tom with the weather...</i></small>

[EndlessInfinity]

The PS2 will not match either simply because its older
I TOTALLY disagree with you on this. Take the original PS. Look at how it basicly made a mockery out of all the other consoles out there (at least until the dc came out, but that was after 3 years, and the PS still had quality games after that).

I actually can't really say anything about the x-box. I know that it probably won't have as many followers because of it's lack of hardcore gammer support (which was one of the problems with the dc, it had small casual gamer support at the start - only its legion of devoted followers). I still personally think that the PS2 will reign over the consoles.

[DEFkon]

well, for the prospective buyer i would recomend waiting till at least the X-box arrives before dedicating yourself to a single console. The problem for the buyer is that they get bombarded with technical specs, that are useless. Technical specs don't mean jack when dealing with consoles. Does anyone know what the single most sucsessful console in gaming history has been? The gameboy. I bet that shocked you but it's true. Only know is it starting to be phased out, and games have been made for it years.

When purchasing a console have an idea what you want out of it. DVD playback might be a concern as well as internet connectivity.

I work in the entertainment retail market, and recieve a number of magazines that deal with this issue from a completely different angle. It's actually really intresting to read this articals because they're completely different from what you find in gaming magazines, and websites becaue they have a completely different target, but they're aiming in the same general direction.

Of intrest lately was a financial prediction by a number of investors and retailers for net revenue for the software (games sold) of next generation consoles for the next 5 years.

The purpose of the artical was aimed to help retailers (and investors) figure out how much space and money to devote to these games in relation to each other... but its equally intresting to me as a gamer because i think it's very important to note how much space at your local game store is going to be devoted to system X, because entertament/game companies are in it for the money so if they have to stick with one system they're going to go with the one that has the largest sales/market.

Basically if Game Cube is expected to only going to be generating 1/3 of the sales in software as PS2 then you might not want to consider it as much as you would.

For those who are intrested, for the next 5 years PS2 is expected to come in first place as far as software revenue is concenred ( means more ps2 games will be sold than other systems)

X-Box is expecected to come in second, and compete heavily in 2003 when the systems reach a level of maturity.

Game-Cube is the underdog. It's expected to relase later than the other systems so most of the gaming maket will have selected another platform, and will depend mostly on it's strong family market to drive the console despite nintendo's recent attempts to appeal to more mature audiances (conkers bad fur day, perfect dark ect. )

[RogueLeader]

Actually gamecube is being released 3 days before X-box.

[thornz]

nintendo's label as being a kid company will continue until it's biggest commodity happens not to be "pokemon"

Ballistophobia : at E3, there have been reports of viewing games on the X-Box mostly at unplayable framerates at current points in the development cycle. I also agree that newer versions of windows is much more stable than the older one, BUT THATS THE REAL PROBLEM: Microsoft is used to barreling their way into a market and selling an inferior product that they eventually make good, but at first only attract buyers due to the muscle they can put behind the product. The only problem is that in this instance, they arent going up against companies on lesser footing. Sony has a massive stake in the videogame industry as it currently stands, and enough money to protect that stake in any way possible. The X-Box is targeting the hardcore gamer, and is also trying to churn out the best games they can eke out of their system from the get go. Has anyone ever seen a truly brilliant game at the time of a systems release? Nope, cause it takes developers a while to learn how to use it to it's full potential. The X-Box is making up for this by using a long development cycle prior to release. It seems to me that microsoft is taking a lot of risks in this situation and may fall on it's face at some point. Personally, i'd wait also, but hedge my bets torwards the PS2. Of the two companies, i'd take sony to trust.

[thornz]

oh yeah, does anyone think internet play on a console is really feasable or all that worth pursuing? Wouldnt you rather have a PC? Theres no real way to make mods on a console unless it's cross compatible with a PC, thereby eliminating the ability to customize internet play (the only source would be the parent company, who would have no real financial interest in churning out more stuff for a game that they already have your $ for.)

[DEFkon]

yeah, i stand corrected on the release date of the game cube, but it's still understood to be the underdog.

personaly i really never gave much thought to multiplayer internet games, but some do sound intresting. Even though i own a PS2 myself, i still think that some of X-box's business philosphy is more sound on some issues like their policy on internet capabilities.

Basically they said "People dont want to sit on the couch and use a game pad to surf the web, or write an email. They want to connect to a fast server and play a game."

I'd have to agree with that assesment. People use a pc, or other terminal to surf and interact on the web, a gaming console's internet presence should be devoted strictly to gaming. but to tell you the truth i don't have any intrest in MP gaming with consoles. At least not right now. One of the things i like about console games are that they're usually devoted to single player experences and as a result have a more polished feel to them than some PC games or mods that are devoted to MP.

I've always viewed the internet as a double bladed edge. On one hand it offers players the abilitiy to upgrade their software, play mods, and enjoy MP games, but on the other hand it allows gaming companies to rush their flawed products to market to beat competition knowing that the bugs will be ironed out in a future patch ( hopefully) , and game designers and programers are allowed (or forced) to devote or modify the game's design to utilize MP functionality. I mean face it, some games are better off single player. ( Metal Gear Solid for example) Of course these games could be modified to be MP but i think that in many cases that would destroy the gameplay factor.