Less than a week after I've gotten a high-def television, and I'm already strongly considering a PS3. It's amazing what the winning of a format war can do for a console. Since Blu-Ray is the apparent winner, I took a peek online at Blu-Ray players and their ratings. Seems that the PS3 is amongst the highest rated, and amongst the lowest priced. I was going to drop $100 on an upconverting DVD player, but since it seems the PS3 does that too, I figure there may be no need. But I've long believed that the XBox 360 is the superior console, so I figure I'll lay down all the plusses and minuses of each here.
Obviously, the biggest factor here is the Blu-Ray player, since that's the primary reason I'm looking at a PS3 in the first place. The 360 plays DVDs, but has no integrated high-def player, and it's had some serious hardware issues with the dreaded red ring of death. The 360 retails for $280 - $350, probably due to the lack of an integrated high-def player, whereas the PS3 retails for $400 - $600. Of course, the backward compatibility offered by the higher end model is hardly worth it if you already own a PS2.
Probably the single biggest lure for me in getting a 360 would be the fact that my brother Sean and my friend Mark own 360s, and with all the online offerings, I'd be able to play games with them online. Maybe even Brandon would be up for the occasional game of Uno.
It's hard to be enthusiastic about the Playstation Network when I've heard so many good things about XBox Live Arcade. Off the top of my head, I know I'd love to play Carcasonne, Setlers of Catan, and Rez HD, but I have no idea about any good PSN games. So let's take a look.
Aside from Carcasonne, Setlers of Catan, and Rez HD, there's the hit Geometry Wars, but I've got very little interest in that. Pac Man: Championship Edition sounds like something I'd really enjoy too, as does Uno. And although I've got a pristine PS1 copy, the fact that they sell Castlevania: Symphony of the Night over XBLA makes me want to buy it again. And the upcoming Penny Arcade Adventures: On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness is coming to XBox Live Arcade.
So let's take a look at what the Playstation Network has to offer. Fl0w. Don't really know what that is, but it's gotten some good word of mouth. Hmm. I can get Castlevania: Symphony of the Night here too. Seems like that's really about it though. At least for things that interest me. Wow. Xbox really wins on downloadable content.
So out of the two, which has games I'd more like to play? I'll exclude games that I can play or have already played on the PC. I've played Oblivion and Bioshock on the PC, and I plan on playing Assassins Creed, Gears of War, and Mass Effect on the PC too. So I won't take those games into account. That said, the XBox 360 games I know I'd like to check out are Dead Rising and Eternal Sonata. I've got no interest in Halo 3, Ghost Recon, or any racing games. And on Playstation 3? Uhh... Uncharted: Drake's Fortune? Maybe Resistance: Fall of Man? I really can't think of much else. Guess that's the biggest reason I haven't bought a console. No games I really want. There are more good games I haven't played on the Playstation 2! Final Fantasy 12, Metal Gear Solid 3, and Lunar Knights to start. I'm also stuck on a really difficult fight in God of War 2 because I'm too stubborn to switch to "easy" difficulty.
But let's take a look at what's in the future for XBox 360 and PS3, in terms of games. The 360 has Mirror's Edge, which sounds pretty cool. Other than that, I really don't know. But the PS3 seems to finally be hitting a stride. I'm expecting Metal Gear Solid 4, Little Big Planet, Resident Evil 5, and eventually God of War 3. And I've also heard that Heavy Rain (sequel to Indigo Prophecy) will be a PS3 exclusive.
With all that in mind, I'll probably buy a PS3 within the next few weeks. Word on the street is that the PS3 is relevant again. Doesn't seem worth it to drop all that money for the 60GB model, so I'll go for the $400 bare-bones version. Still not cheap, but now that we've got the HDTV, it's hard to not splurge for the high-def player.