XBOX 360 vs. PS3 vs. Wii: Game On!

[Iguana Man]

BAHH!!! THAT WAS FUNNY!

Heehee!

[MooglePorn]

I don't usually agree with him much but that one's almost spot-on.

[Pirate]

It's Official: $399 PlayStation 3 to Hit US

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/sh...to_Hit_US/1083

[umainebearman]

Originally Posted by piratehunter

It's Official: $399 PlayStation 3 to Hit US

http://www.highdefdigest.com/news/sh...to_Hit_US/1083

I can hear the little screams coming from Japan! "Pleeeeeeeeeease buy our product!! Pleeeeeease! We promise to give you subpar games, content, and online support!"

[MooglePorn]

Keep pushing that line Umaine... you don't own one and have no idea what you're talking about, but dammit... you'll bash it anyway! You stick to your principles! I admire that in a poster, really...

[Astrakan]

Instead of starting new threads every time, I figured this place is a good as any to post the monthly NPD numbers. Unless there's a common thread already? I did a search for NPD but came up empty... I can only assume search strings have to be longer than three characters.

Anyway... the highlights (quoted from 1UP) are:

- Xbox 360 was unable to retain the same sales numbers in a post-Halo 3 world, but with only a 30% drop month-to-month, Microsoft appears poised to have an extremely strong holiday season.

- In the absence of a major release, Wii sales actually increased by 18,000 from the previous month, while DS took a hardly noticeable dip.

- As for PlayStation 3? The release of Ratchet & Clank Future: Tools of Destruction appears to have little impact, as hardware sales dropped 2,000 month-to-month.

Hardware figures for October:
PlayStation 2 -- 184,000
PlayStation 3 -- 121,000
PlayStation Portable -- 286,000
Xbox 360 -- 366,000
Wii -- 519,000
Nintendo DS -- 458,000

- Software sales for October are front-loaded by Bungie's Halo 3. While October's 433,800 sales are nothing compared to September's 3.3 million, nearly half a million more is nothing to sneeze at. In fact, Halo 3's cumulative sales currently stand at 3.7 million, which outpaces the combined sales of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl at 3.6 million.

- The Orange Box turned in at a disappointing 7th place in the software top ten

- Insomniac's latest Ratchet didn't show up at all, despite having two weeks on shelves.

Software figures for October:
1. Halo 3 (Xbox 360) -- 433,800
2. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock w/ guitar (Xbox 360) -- 383, 200
3. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock w/ guitar (Wii) -- 286,300
4. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock w/ guitar (PlayStation 2) -- 271,100
5. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (Nintendo DS) -- 262,800
6. Wii Play w/ remote (Wii) -- 239,700
7. The Orange Box (Xbox 360) -- 238,400
8. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock w/o guitar (PlayStation 2) -- 231,700
9. FIFA Soccer 08 (PlayStation 2) -- 129,700
10. Brain Age 2: More Training in Minutes a Day (Nintendo DS) -- 116,900

Source: http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3164417

KM

[Astrakan]

It amazes me that the Wii continues to do so well. It's really quite impressive how perfectly Nintendo gagued the gaming appetite of the casual market.

Hell, my wife works for a huge American corporation and they've got a Wii in the break room on her floor. Every so often over lunch they have little mini Wii sports tournaments.

It's this experience that prompted her to want us to buy a Wii.

While anecdotal, I think it's a perfect example of the kind of non-gaming demographic Nintendo has managed to tap into.

KM

[MooglePorn]

Unfortunately by posting only US numbers you missed the best sales story of the week, which was the PS3 outselling the Wii in Japan. One can only hope that continues down the line (even if you dislike the PS3 any hardcore gamer should want the Wii to not be number one, in my opinion).

As for the US, the 360 should kick ass this Xmas, it certainly deserves it... I am curious to see how the PS3 will stack up next month with its lower price and holiday sales though.

[Astrakan]

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

Unfortunately by posting only US numbers you missed the best sales story of the week, which was the PS3 outselling the Wii in Japan.

I didn't know that. Very cool. Do you know if it was it due to a particular release? Like that one week where the 360 outsold the PS3 due to the release of Ace Combat 6, only to plummet down to its previous depths the week after. Hopefully it wasn't and it's a sign of things to come.

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

One can only hope that continues down the line (even if you dislike the PS3 any hardcore gamer should want the Wii to not be number one, in my opinion).

I don't dislike the PS3. I just see no reason to own one right now. Maybe next year.

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

I am curious to see how the PS3 will stack up next month with its lower price and holiday sales though.

I wouldn't hold my breath for a major comeback. I'm honestly starting to think the PS3 will finish last in North America this time around. I realize we're only a third into the current gen, but when its closest competitor outsells it by 3:1 on a regular basis, I just don't see the tide turning very fast for the PS3. If at all.

KM

[MooglePorn]

And I think you're wrong.

Also, on the PS3 and Wii side we're about 1/5th of the way in, if that.

[Astrakan]

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

Also, on the PS3 and Wii side we're about 1/5th of the way in, if that.

I guess, if you want to look at it that way.

Me, I figure the generation started with the release of the 360. Just because Sony and Nintendo released their consoles later doesn't signal a delay to the beginning of the gen.

Hmm... I wonder if we're seeing the start of split generations... Considering Sony has stated they want long life spans out of their consoles, I wonder if Microsoft will follow suit or if they'll release the next Xbox in 2010 and keep with the five year span.

I for one hope they do. I have no problems upgrading my console every five years. It's still cheaper than keeping a gaming rig up-to-date, which is one of the main reasons I even got into console gaming.

But never mind that. Considering Sony's previous release pattern, I don't see them releasing the PS4 until 2012 at the earliest. Which could mean split generations. I wonder if that's good or bad for gaming...

I imagine bad. Considering it would probably mean fewer cross platform games, which would mean lowered revenue for developers...

It'll be interesting to see what happens.

KM

[MooglePorn]

For sure.

Just because Sony has a 10 year plan for the PS3 though doesn't mean they won't release a PS4 sooner than that, especially if the PS3 continues to underperform.

One other thing, MS recently made a statement that they want the 360 to last a lot longer than the original Xbox. Now, that could just be PR fluff, but when you take into account that software sales are where the money is, and the Wii is a success with last-gen hardware, maybe both companies will be slow to move on to new hardware this time.

It'll be interesting to see at least. I for one agree with you, 5 years is a good amount of time to change hardware, otherwise PC development would get even further ahead of consoles than it already does. I just hope backwards compatability is more of an important factor for them next time, 360 games AND Live downloads included.

[Astrakan]

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

Just because Sony has a 10 year plan for the PS3 though doesn't mean they won't release a PS4 sooner than that, especially if the PS3 continues to underperform.

Sure, but between the timespan between PS1/PS2 and PS2/PS3 was 6 years, which would put the PS4 at 2012. And if Microsoft stick to a five year release schedule it would put the next Xbox at 2010.

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

One other thing, MS recently made a statement that they want the 360 to last a lot longer than the original Xbox. Now, that could just be PR fluff, but when you take into account that software sales are where the money is, and the Wii is a success with last-gen hardware, maybe both companies will be slow to move on to new hardware this time.

This does make a lot of sense. In one way I hope Sony and Microsoft release their next gen platforms at the same time (due to cross platform releases) but at the same time I don't feel like waiting a total of seven years to go on to the next generation.

For me, the best case scenario is Microsoft sticking with a five year release schedule, and Sony jumping on board simply because they don't want to split the generations and let Microsoft be without competetition for two whole years.

With regards to backwards compatibility... It's one of those features it seems would be really nice to have, but when it comes down to it I apparently don't use all that much.

I don't really play original Xbox games that much. I did right after the 360 launch and I plan on picking up a couple more Xbox games that I missed the first time around, but if the 360 hadn't been backwards compatible at all... I'm not sure I would've missed it all that much.

Although... I suppose Sony's current situation with the PS2 and PS3 isn't that bad of a business model. It allows developers to continue to create PS2 games and sell them to new and existing PS2 customers, as well as those who migrate to the PS3...

Are there still new games being made for the PS2? The last one I heard of was God of War II, but I don't follow that release schedule so maybe there's stuff coming out weekly?

Anyway, this is getting long enough as it is.

KM

[MooglePorn]

The PS2 still has a massive amount of releases, it's still selling well after all, and it has a HUGE installed base. I'm not sure the exact title numbers, a lot of them are Japanese of course... I know the new Alone in the Dark recently announced a PS2 version as well, and Manhunt 2 was just released on the PS2 (with better review numbers than the Wii version).

I play a lot of old games, and I buy a lot of games on older hardware after new hardware comes out. Also, with the 360 a lot of those casual games like Pac-Man Championship Edition are timeless and will always have a place in my gaming schedule, and I don't want to pay to download them again, or have my 360 taking up an HDMI slot forever to play them.

I'm much more worried about BC for this generation going into the next than I was for the last, if that makes sense.

[Astrakan]

Well, it's been three months since I first did a gamerankings.com comparison of each console's library of games.

Here it is again:

Games scoring 90 or better
PS3: 2
Wii: 4
Xbox: 11

Games scoring 80 or better
PS3: 24
Wii: 10
Xbox: 66

Some notable changes over the last three months:

- The PS3 saw 1 new release score 90+, the Wii had 2 and the Xbox had 6.
- The PS3 added 10 games to the 80+ category, the Wii added 3, the Xbox added 12.
- One of the Wii's new 90+ releases (Super Mario Galaxy) is currently the best reviewed game of all time. And with 39 reviews at time of writing, this probably won't change.

Note: Xbox Live Arcade, Virtual Console or expansion packs are not included in these stats.

Source: http://www.gamerankings.com/itemrank...pleratings.asp

KM

[MooglePorn]

God that Mario fanboyism pisses me off.

[Astrakan]

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

God that Mario fanboyism pisses me off.

I gotta admit to sharing that feeling to a certain extent.

I just have a hard time seeing how a Mario platformer can possibly be the best game ever made.

That said, it's at the top of my gameaccess.ca rental queue now. I can't wait to see what all the fuss is about. Maybe I'll be back in a week or two crowing about how it deserves every 10/10 it's gotten.

KM

[MooglePorn]

I've played it, it's very well done, but at the end of the day it's a refined Mario game.

Saying it's that much better than BioShock, Call of Duty 4, Halo 3, Uncharted, Mass Effect, etc. is just assinine to me, as is saying it's the best game of all time.

Even if you prize gameplay over all else, even if you never tire of collecting stars, you HAVE to admit the game isn't that revolutionary, if at all revolutionary. With all the other amazing games pushing the boundries of what gaming IS, what gaming can BECOME, I can't see how a fun little platformer can be the best game ever.

Everyone in this hobby/business grew up on Nintendo, be it Mario, Link or Samus, and we all through them too much praise for every little thing they do, this being only the most recent example. The 10 out of 10 for Zelda TP was insane as well, it was a prettier Ocarina of Time.

[ganthc]

It's interesting to see that the ps3 is currently following the same release path that the 360 did at launch. Only the wii seems to be the true blockbuster of the group.

http://vgchartz.com/hwlaunch.php

[Majinblaze]

Look, it all comes down to this:
The Wii is completely uncompairable with the other two systems, but not because it's crap. Rather, because it is based an a completly different concept and, therefore, is in a category all on its own. The 360 and PS3 focus primarily on graphix, sound, video quality, and story. The wii is primarily focused on bringing a new way to play games into the scene. So to start, It is my personal opinion that gamers should own a wii AND one of the others, just to spice things up now and then. Now, as to which of the others is better, well, economically speaking, the 360 is DOING better than the ps3. I really take no sides in this battle, because I see them as relative equals, which in my opinion is the best way to see them. They both have a large variety of great games out for them and coming out for them. Though the 360's library may be temporarily larger, the PS3 has some promising releases to come. Personally, I would go for the 360 before the PS3(all i currently have is Wii, which is a blast to play!). There are more options available upon perchase for games. On a slightly related note, fanboys/girls discust me ...I cant stand it when people refuse to accept at least a small portion of empathy towards the oposing consoles.

[MooglePorn]

I don't go for that "the Wii is about new and innovative gameplay" line, honestly.

Zelda and Metroid were the EXACT same games as their Gamecube and even older prequels. I mean... the EXACT same game, just new graphics, which weren't even that new since the system is old tech.

Changing the controls is not innovation, it doesn't really effect gameplay, just how you perform that gameplay. Swinging your sword by shaking your hand is still swinging your sword, the core gameplay is exactly the same.

Mario Galaxy is the best Wii title by far and it uses the Wiimote very little in the end, mainly relying on classic Mario 64 gameplay polished to a shine.

The Wii is not innovative.

[Astrakan]

I just discovered that GamingTarget.com tracks the number of exclusives released on each console. Here's their latest update:

Originally Posted by gamingtarget.com

Not much has changed since our last update in September. The Wii is still on top by a considerable margin, the Xbox 360 is in a respectable second and the PS3 once again has roughly half the number of exclusives as the second place console.

Looking over the lists, several obvious things immediately jump off the screen:
- The Wii continues to chug along, with 17 more exclusives since our last report.
- The Xbox 360 has the best reviewed exclusives.
- The number of exclusive titles currently announced for 2008 is a considerable dropoff from 2007 (or publishers are keeping their 2008 cards much closer to the chest than ever before).

Source: http://www.gamingtarget.com/article.php?artid=7934

[MooglePorn]

Does that 360 figur include games also on PC, or does it count BioShock as an "exclusive"?

[Astrakan]

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

Does that 360 figur include games also on PC, or does it count BioShock as an "exclusive"?

Good question. I had to look it up, and this is the answer according to their "eligibility rules":

1. These are “console exclusives”. So if a game appears on the PC and only one console, it is exclusive to that console. Also, because of the limitations of the DS, PSP and GBA, any game that appears on only one console and a handheld will be considered exclusive to that console.

While I think that's a fair way of doing it I'd be curious to see a chart with the PC games removed.

KM

[MooglePorn]

Most console gamers do not play games on a PC, so it sort of makes sense to count them, but at the end of the day I am often shocked at how few true exclusives the 360 really has.

[Ruined]

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

Most console gamers do not play games on a PC, so it sort of makes sense to count them, but at the end of the day I am often shocked at how few true exclusives the 360 really has.

That is by design. The 360's XNA devkit allows developers to make both a 360 version and PC version of a game with ease and little porting hardships. It is designed to make the 360 a more attractive platform for 3rd party devs as it gives them a wider (PC) audience while keeping PC gaming afloat. Great strategy IMO.

[MooglePorn]

It just makes PC gamers look at the 360 as PC-lite. I know a lot of people who are PC gamers and they want PS3s and Wiis because everything good on the 360 they already have.

If I wasn't completely annoyed with the current state of PC gaming I would say the same thing.

[Astrakan]

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

It just makes PC gamers look at the 360 as PC-lite. I know a lot of people who are PC gamers and they want PS3s and Wiis because everything good on the 360 they already have.

The PC gamers you know are a lot less snobby than the ones I know. Admittedly, I have a small sample of only a handful, but each one view console gaming with derision.

KM

[MooglePorn]

Hahaha... this is true. I guess I should have said "of the few PC gamers I know who don't hate all consoles outright, they want a PS3 or Wii."

[Ruined]

NPD numbers Nov2007

Next-gen holiday results thus far: Nintendo wins hardware, Microsoft wins software by far, Sony in last place for both categories.

US NEXT-GEN GAME HARDWARE SALES, NOVEMBER 2007
1) Nintendo Wii - 981,000
2) Xbox 360 - 770,000
3) PlayStation 3 - 466,000

TOP 10 GAME SOFTWARE TITLES, NOVEMBER 2007
1) Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (360) - Activision (Corp) - Nov 2007 - 1.57 million
2) Super Mario Galaxy (Wii) - Nintendo - Nov 2007 - 1.12 million
3) Assassin's Creed (360) - Ubisoft - Nov 2007 - 980,000
4) Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (PS2) Activision Oct 2007 - 967,000
5) Wii Play (with remote) (Wii)- Nintendo - Feb 2007 - 564,000
6) Mass Effect (360) - Microsoft Nov 2007 - 473,000
7) Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare (PS3) - Activision Nov 2007 - 444,000
8) Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Wii) - Activision Oct 2007 - 426,000
9) Halo 3 (360) - Microsoft - Sep 2007 - 387,000
10) Assassin's Creed (PS3) - Ubisoft - Nov 2007 - 377,000

TOP 10 SOFTWARE TOTALS
1) XBOX 360 - 3.41 million games sold
2) Wii - 2.11 million games sold
3) PS3 - 0.82 million games sold

[sub780lime]

It really surprises me how high Wii Play is on this list. The games are not that great and it is not nearly as fun as Wii Sports. I think people purchases it thinking it will just have more sports, but be as good as WiiSports and it just does not compare.

[littlebib]

Originally Posted by sub780lime

It really surprises me how high Wii Play is on this list. The games are not that great and it is not nearly as fun as Wii Sports. I think people purchases it thinking it will just have more sports, but be as good as WiiSports and it just does not compare.

I bought Wii Play for the controller and figured for $10, why not get a game. In retrospect, it was a waste of $10.

[MooglePorn]

Fucking Wii... seriously.

[Wilson]

Originally Posted by MooglePorn

Fucking Wii... seriously.

I find this post very entertaining. Not fun, entertaining...yeah.

[Wilson]

Three people from my office are buying the Wii just so they have something to do with their extended families over christmas.

This thing is the Rumoli game of the future I tell ya.

[umainebearman]

Originally Posted by Wilson

Three people from my office are buying the Wii just so they have something to do with their extended families over christmas.

Don't they have tvs with a vcr hooked upto it with some old taped episodes of Dallas? I mean thats just as exciting. Unless they all get drunk while playing wii sports the novelty will be worn off pretty quick.

[Astrakan]

Originally Posted by umainebearman

Don't they have tvs with a vcr hooked upto it with some old taped episodes of Dallas? I mean thats just as exciting. Unless they all get drunk while playing wii sports the novelty will be worn off pretty quick.

That's a pretty big exaggeration. I've mentioned in the past that I'm not overly impressed by my Wii, but with its combination of motion controls and the Virtual console it's a perfect mix of new and retro, and I'm sure it's more than adequate at keeping a family entertained throughout the holidays.

Come January it'll probably be a different story. I tend to think of my Wii as I do my board games. I'm glad I have it around for when the mood strikes, but it's not something I could see myself playing every day.

KM

[Wilson]

Originally Posted by umainebearman

Don't they have tvs with a vcr hooked upto it with some old taped episodes of Dallas? I mean thats just as exciting. Unless they all get drunk while playing wii sports the novelty will be worn off pretty quick.

That would be a pretty shitty christmas, I hate Dallas. I'd rather watch druken uncle Pete flail around trying to beat down 6 year old cousin Joe in a round of Wii boxing anyday.

[MooglePorn]

Originally Posted by Astrakan

Come January it'll probably be a different story. I tend to think of my Wii as I do my board games. I'm glad I have it around for when the mood strikes, but it's not something I could see myself playing every day.

I feel the same, pretty much. I rarely ever play it but I am glad I own it... I burned through the new Metroid in a couple days and while I don't think it was super amazing it was a great game and I'm glad I could play it.

I just think the 360 and PS3 offer so much more it annoys me they're losing (especially the PS3).

[sub780lime]

Originally Posted by Astrakan

I'm glad I have it around for when the mood strikes, but it's not something I could see myself playing every day.

That how it is for me too and the mood tends to hit when my brother in law comes over and wants to play some golf.