kvrdave

Got the new issue and they lay out the pros and cons of each. Total score out of 10 was 6.0 for PS3 and 6.4 for the Wii, so it didn't look like a landslide, but when they individually picked a winner, it was unanimous for the Wii. Basically the Wii was cheaper, inovative, has a killer app in Zelda, and the PS3 doesn't really give anything over the 360, in their opinion. The die hards said they will play the Wii until the prices come down and then get a PS3, but it was interesting stuff.

Josh H

Good. Maybe that will shut up the "EGM hates Nintendo" crap around the net.

tonyc3742

6.4? EGM hates Nintendo, they just hate PS3 more
Kidding.
What did the 360 rate at, at the same point in its lifecycle? Maybe I've been spoiled by seeing lots of 7, 8, 9 scores, but 6.4 and 6 both seem somewhat lower than I'd expect.

outer-edge

I read the article and thought the 6.0 and 6.4 were only averages of the launch game scores, not a system rating (it was listing right below a laundy list of features, etc.). I'd need to look again though to be sure.

SuperBatMan

I believe it is an average of all launch games. They seemed to be really critical of both systems launch lineups, although I've only seen the scores and not the written reviews.

I will, however, agree with their assesment. It's what I've been saying for awhile. The Nintendo Wii is something different, and cheaper, while the PS3 is nothing that much greater than the 360 but it's $200 more. With the 360 getting GTA, Guitar Hero, and the Smackdown series, I just don't see any real reason to plop down $600 on it.

tanman

What's kind of funny is that their preview article listed it as a tie and the PS3 winning on, get this, software choice.

Maybe they are just shifting with the winds?

Michael Ballack

I bet you the Red Steel review really hurt the wii's score.

Josh H

No, the preview was based on all the games in the pipe line, not just the launch games like this new feature.

So they were considering, Gran Turismo, God of War, Devil May Cry, Final Fantasy etc. versus Zelda, Mario, Metroid, Smash Bros etc.

Both systems launch lineups are sucky, but the Wii is going to get the edge because Zelda is much better reviewed than Resistance.

The Bus

I'm not going to reinvent the wheel, so I'm just going to post my thoughts.

The Wii is definitely something "apart" from the High-Def consoles. It's sort of the console version of a board game: something to break out when friends are over but less fun by yourself.

Between the PS3 and the 360, the 360 is the choice right now. PS3 has less than twenty games, only one of them is good, and many of the others one are on the 360 (and cheaper). If you're waiting until next year because you're only getting one, that's not a bad option. The PS3 hopefully will have better titles by then.

What I find hilarious are the people praising the PS3's graphics now. Yes, they're nice, but they act like they've never seen a 360 in action.

PixyJunket

God damn I'm so sick of this shit.. just fucking play the games you want to play, I'm getting tired of checking news sites and having to sift through a dozen of "stories" EVERY DAY on who some useless analyst, or worse, some nut gobbling "blogger," (or even worse, way worse, than that.. EGM *shudder*) thinks "is winning" or "will win."

*breathes out* Okay, that's a little bit better.

spainlinx0

I have to disagree with the board game comment. I'm sure many games will be tailored that way, but I doubt you would consider Zelda a game you break out when friends are over. Also don't forget that Mario and Metroid aren't really multiplayer either. There will be plenty of 1-player games to go along with the rest.

However I am really tempted to pick up a 360 with all these great Live games being released, but I just cannot justify paying 400 for a system when I don't have the gaming time anymore. Maybe after it hits 300 or 250 I'll be more willing to give it a shot.

Michael Corvin

Even with their AAA titles coming (DMC, FF, MGS), the system is NOT worth a $200 premium unless you absolutely have to own a Blu-Ray drive. That's what it all boils down to in my book.

Look at the two systems, they are basically identical in capabilities and features(xbox Live aside, and yeah yeah, wifi), but there is NO reason for a comparable GAMING system to warrant a $200 higher investment than the 360. Not to mention the list of MS exclusives is just as long, people just choose to ignore them.

Peter Moore was right, the Wii60 is the only way to go so you get the best of both gaming worlds.

darkside

I have to agree with this. I'm running into plenty of people with 360s and now with Wiis and they all seem to have nothing but praise. I'm just shocked that of all things Sony screwed up the backwards compatibility with the PS1 and PS2 games. I'm sure it will get fixed with firmware updates, but it is still shocking the console was released with a flaw like that. PS3 really has a negative image problem to deal with.

Josh H

Sony: Gamers Will Wait for PS3, Wii is a 'Novelty'
This isn't the first time Sony's discounted Nintendo.
by Patrick Klepek, 12/13/2006

At E3, both Sony and Microsoft lavished Nintendo with praise for their bold new direction because no one knew how it would perform -- PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 were sure sellers to gamers, but Wii was a question mark, so why not look good in the media? Now that Wii's out, receiving growing accolades and sellouts worldwide, at least one of those companies has changed their tune.

"We feel very confident that the PlayStation fan is going to wait until they can get a PlayStation 3. If they do pick up a Wii, it's as more of a novelty." -- Dave Karraker, senior director of corporate communications at Sony Computer Entertainment America, to the Wall Street Journal

Sony has traditionally been quick to talk down the competition, especially when they decided to enter the handheld market. Both Sony President of Worldwide Studios Phil Harrison and SCEA CEO Jack Tretton argued Nintendo DS was limiting itself to the traditional Pokemon-fueled markets.

"The idea of a handheld rivalry with Nintendo is an irrelevance. Those formats don't appear in our planning. It's not a fair comparison; not fair on them, I should stress. That sounds arrogant, maybe, but it's the truth. With the DS, it's fair to say that Nintendo stepped out of the technical race and went for a feature differentiation with the touch screen. But I fear that it won't have a lasting impact beyond that of a gimmick - so the long-lasting appeal of the platform is at peril as a direct result of that." -- Phil Harrison speaking to MCV, 08/26/2005

"We really feel like they're [Nintendo] appealing to the same audience that Game Boy has always appealed to ... They're potentially losing some of their core audience and they're not really expanding beyond that and we think we're expanding into a completely new audience as we did with PlayStation. And we'll do just what we did on PlayStation; we'll dip down to the younger consumer eventually and we'll ultimately appeal to that vastly Earth wide audience we carved out with the original PlayStation."-- Jack Tretton talking to GameDailyBIZ, 09/21/2006

Square Enix's announcement earlier this week is telling of a potentially new attitude towards game development in Japan, an attitude that has Dragon Quest jumping ship from Sony to Nintendo. With the most rapidly expanding userbase in Japan, would Sony tell Square Enix they're limiting their potential with a machine that appeals "to the same audience that Game Boy has always appealed to"?

Josh H

I had no idea how bad it was until I watched this video.

http://www.gamevideos.com/video/id/7990

Demontooth

I agree also, since I already have the Wii360 combo.

sracer

With the Autumn dashboard update and the freeware TVersity uPnP server, the 360 is finally living up to the promise of media hub (in addition to next-gen gaming). I'm using my 360 for media (photos, music, videos) nearly as much as I'm using it for gaming. (especially since the Wii is taking up a large portion of my gaming time)

Yeah, but I don't think that he thought that the Wii would have as strong of a presence as it does when he made that comment.

mh4268

It really seems to me like Sony's arrogance is going to bite them, just like it bit Nintendo a decade or so ago. Once a game company gets on top for too long they think they can do no wrong and people will just buy it because their name is on it. Sony releasing a very expensive console for videogaming (although cheap for a blu-ray player) and messing up the backward compatibility, nintendo did it with the 64 by sticking with cartridges instead of cds. I think this console battle will play out like the DS PSP battle. Sony released an uberpowerful handheld with so-so games at high price, Nintendo came out with an innovative (though at the time many thought gimmicky) at a lower price and had more fun games.

Decker

Well, I sometimes feel that Nintendo gets a bit of a pass. I'll explain : If the PS3's "Killer App" was Okami or Final Fantasy XII with some tilt sensitivity features added in, it would still be a great game, but Sony would be eviscerated for putting out a last-gen game as one of their premiere launch titles (as the 360 was a bit for PDZ and Kameo). Instead Nintendo is lavished with praise for putting out a wonderful Gamecube game as their primary Wii title. I don't really think that's being consistent.

Michael Corvin

Gameboy? Convenient he forgets the DS. Has he not seen the DS SOLD numbers trouncing his PSP SHIPPED numbers? He honestly thinks they aren't expanding that market? Seriously? He thinks his $600 Hi-def machine is attracting new consumers, particularly to the "younger consumer?" Does Sony employ anyone with half a brain anymore? Does anyone know how to NOT put their foot in their mouth at Sony?

Chris_D

Wow, that's incredibly awful. So much for flawless hardware compatibility. You can saw a lot of bad things about the 360 software compatibility (although psychonauts finally hit the list), but having the most popular xbox game, Halo 2, upgraded to widescreen 720p, along with the rest of the supported titles, doesn't look quite so bad up against backwards compatibility that makes every ps2 game look like shit. Still, it is surely something Sony can rectify down the line.

Josh H

He was saying he thinks the DS is only selling to the same old market that bought up the GB and GBA.

But of course he is still full of shit.

The PS3 price and this arrogance has brought on a full Sony boycott from me, and I loved the PS1 and PS2, and have always bought a lot of sony electronics. i.e. I currently have a Sony TV, reciever, 5.1 speakers, DVD player, CD player, car stereo and discman.

Josh H

That's true, but they do get hit about that and I do think the Wii line up sucks.

If I hadn't been able to pay for it and Zelda by trading shit in/selling games online I would have just waited and got Zelda on the GC.

But the PS3 isn't even on the radar for me with a $500-600 tag and a cookie cutter FPS games as it's only worthwhile launch title.

BravesMG

For anyone on the fence, I have the PS3, only for Blu-Ray movies pretty much. All of the speculation is correct, it's very underwhelming as a gaming machine so far. Resistance is fun, but not the Halo-esque killer launch app I'm hearing it is. I mean, I'd rather play GoW or R6:Vegas any day of the week. It's awesome for Blu-Ray though, I'm just hoping the games come through at some point.

Canis Firebrand

Sony also won't get a purchase from me for the fact that they are forcing a format war again. Its vhs vs betamax all over again. And we all know what happened to betamax. I can see the same exact thing happening with blu-ray.