Video Game Discussion

[neolego]

Well, I can't speak for much. My first TV was a 19inch Sony and it was good. I actually still have it and it works fine.

However, my best friend had a Vaio and he hated it. When he got married his wife had a Sony 27 inch TV and a Sony Home Theater. He didn't have problems with the TV but the Theater (with a DVD built in) would always skip when he was watching a movie. Finally he sold all his Sony products and bought a Toshiba TV and a Boss Home Theater. Haven't heard a complaint since . neo

[Logan]

Well, I am receiving a 360 for Xmas, and I had a choice to get the 360 or the Wii. In the eyes of anyone on the board who has both, did I make the right decision?

But, on a side note, my cousin got a Wii, and I will be getting my first taste of Wii on Christmas!(and I'll be getting my 1st taste of 360 too! Xmas is gonna kick ass this year!)

[Nestlé]

Logan, both systems have a lot to offer.

Being more level-headed than certain Nintendo fan boys here *cough* *neo* *cough,* I can say that I love them both and you have a lot to look forward to in 2007... LIKE HALO 3!!!!!!!

Okay, not JUST Halo 3, there's also Mass Effect, Portal, Everything that's coming out for PS3 & Loads of cool XBL Arcade games just to name a few.

[Logan]

Yeah, I'm looking forward to Halo 3, loved the first two, but the very first Halo, IMO, is one the best games EVER! I'm also looking forward to picking up Gears of War, Guitar Hero 2(comes out Q1 of 2007, I believe) and TNA Impact!

Also, I picked up WWE Smackdown vs. Raw 2007, so I will be one happy camper on Christmas Day, but I will have to divide my time between SVR2007, Ghost Recon: AW(comes with 360) and my cousin's Wii Sports.

[Nestlé]

Yeah, to be honest I really don't understand the people who loved Halo CE but hate Halo 2. After all, it's practically the same (with lots of added stuff). I understand things like Halo CE being all about the pistol and true skill, but that's essentially still there in H2 with the battle rifle.

But, don't worry all you Halo 2 haters out there... Bungie has said they're going to bring you all back in Halo 3.

[neolego]

Logan, both systems have a lot to offer.

Being more level-headed than certain Nintendo fan boys here *cough* *neo* *cough,*

Hey now, last time I looked my sig still had my Gammertag on it ;p. However, if you were to ask my Console, it isn't very happy with me right now:

neo's Xbox 360's Blog

I am a Nintendo loyal and will always be. If you asked my honest opinion of what system to buy this year, I would say Nintendo DS.......but that's for another discussion. On the topic of the Wii and 360, it's really a preference thing. To say that I would choose the Wii over my 360 isn't completely accurate. If it were, I would have traded in my 360 by now and picked up some more Wii games. The 360 is actually the best Next-Gen console on the market. Does that mean it's the most fun to play? No, I don't believe so, but as an overall package it is the best. Why?, well I'm glad that you asked. #1, it does have some awesome games already and 2007 is looking even better. Oblivion, Ghost Recon, Next-Gen Splinter Cell, Gears of War and just about every PS3 game are all great reasons to own a 360 right now. And, as Nestle mentioned, next year we are going to see Mass Effect, Halo 3, Forza, Next-Gen Star Wars (possible), and my personal favorite-Crackdown. HOWEVER, to my it's not just about the games. The 360 lets you stream music and video from your home PC (with a wireless home network), which is what I use it for more than anything. I can stream all 1200 songs that I have on my PC through my Home Theater and it plays all through the house. That is awesome. Then there is the Live Marketplace where you can download a demo (for free) of just about every game released on the 360 we well as download TV Shows and Music Videos (for a fee). And, what's more, you have the Xbox Live Arcade. Personally, XBLA has been more of a hit and miss for me. I only own 2 or 3 games, but that's just me. However, next year is going to see some great releases including talks with releasing classic Rare stuff, Banjo Kazooie anyone? The, just to put a ribon on the entire thing, it runs in HD (and the component cables are included) and it plays DVDs. Through in the fact that you can upgrade it with an add on HD-DVD player and the fact that Xbox Live is the best online service available anywhere and you cannot go wrong with the purchase of a 360. There Nestle, are you happy now .

Before I can close though, I have to give some love to my favorite little white box. The Nintendo Wii is amazing. Last night I downloaded the Weather Channel and that is so stinkin cool. Nintendo is doing exactly what they wanted to, they are not going "Next-Gen" but they are completely "New-Gen". It's $250, that's a great value for what you are getting. My advice to any hardcore gamer is to pick up a Xbox 360 because it's worth the money. Then, save and pick up a Wii. With the Wii60, this Generation of gaming is going to be amazing. There will be games that my Wii will never be able emulate that the 360 will shine on. But, in the same vein, there will be gaming experiences that the Wii will feature that the 360 will never be able to reduce. To put them as a one versus the other isn't quite fair. It's fair to compare the 360 and the PS3, but the Wii is in a whole other class. So, while I think that getting a 360 is a great investment and you won't be sorry. I do feel that you will miss out on a lot of new and fun experiences without a Wii. So, I say enjoy your 360 this Christmas and pray for a Wii come your Birthday . neo

[handsomedevil]

Have any of our 360-owning members had any problems with their systems malfunctioning?

(not sure if I asked this previously on this board)

[neolego]

Not me, I bought mine on Launch day and haven't had 1 problem with it. neo

[The_Donster]

Knock on wood HSD, I haven't had a problem. But this is my first console since the old Nintendo w/Mario Bros. So I wouldn't know if I'm having a problem or not and I play mine quite a bit. Although with the holidays fast approaching and trying to get the house ready, I've been neglecting it more than usual

[neolego]

Oh, you'd know if you had a problem because your old Xbox would be blinking red lights at you. neo

[Nestlé]

Ummm, I talked about this earlier somewhere on this thread, but YES.

I HAVE had problems with 360. But Microsoft has been great about it.

The harsh truth is that I'm actually on my 5th 360.

Most of the breakdowns happened at launch and you shouldn't need to worry about it happening to you though.

Even if you are worried, there's always warranty. I picked up 2 extra years for $50 from microsoft. Not a bad deal.

[handsomedevil]

Ummm, I talked about this earlier somewhere on this thread, but YES.

Yeah, sorry. I was pretty sure I had asked that before, but didn't want to go through 19 pages of posts to find it since this is still a pretty active discussion...

A lot of people say to keep the 360 out of TV racks to improve ventilation. Any idea if the location was causing some of your 360 breakdowns?

[Nestlé]

It's okay HDevil, I wouldn't want to do all that back tracking either.

And I actually don't mind talking about my breakdowns. With any other system I'm sure I'd be p*ssed, but Microsoft handled me so well, that I can't complain.

They gave me free games, headsets, Hard drives, ect.

Anyways, No. The TV rack thing doesn't really do anything. Microsoft still will use it as a disclaimer, but the REAL problem with 360s overheating was that they forgot to take the insulated backing off the stiker that went next to the processor. So, as long as you weren't pushing your machine it was fine. Then when bigger games came out (like GRAW) and the 360 was having to work harder... Meltdown.

All the new machines get pretty hot. It's not a big deal.

Oh, and DO NOT BUY FANS FOR YOUR 360!!!!! Not only do they not work (Madcatz I bewlieve puts them out) they also KILL your 360!!!

I've seen it happen to 2.

[Nestlé]

Oh, sorry DeadPool. I forgot, I totally don't mind if you use my rant. I honestly feel as though Sony has betrayed a lot of people with what they've said about the PS3 (and what it actually is), and I think people need to know what it actually can do.

And so the trend continues: Virtua Fighter 5, an exclusive for PS3 announced today they'd be popping up on 360 too.

In other news, EGM's new mag had 6 of their reviewers analyze every aspect of the two systems and choose between the PS3 & Wii. The outcome was... Surprising. EVERY ONE OF THEM picked the Wii. Wow. :o

[neolego]

Surprising.........how is that Surprising ?!?! Have you played the Wii? It's amazing. The only place I see Sony winning is in the Hardware catagory, but what good is hardware without software? That's like lining up on my front lines with a gatlin gun but only have erasers in your pocket, not much help. I don't read EGM so I don't know what their catagories are, but here is what I looked at:

Hardware

-If we are going on just the console alone the PS3 wins hands down. It's HD and uses HD Blu-Ray discs. It has a 20 or 60 gig Harddrive. It "The Cell", whatever the crap that is. Sure, from a tech point of view PS3 smashes the Wii. HOWEVER has everyone forgot that from a tech point of view the PSP smashes the DS <- makes you think a little.

Software

-Even if the Wii launched with only 1 game, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, it would still own the PS3 line up 5 times over. From day one there are just so many more Wii games worth playing. Zelda, Excite Truck, Monkeyball, Rayman, Red Steel, Trauma Center, Elebits, and you can't leave out Wii Sports which is a free pack-in. Sony not only has nothing right now to cushion the blow, but I don't think they will EVER stand up in the software department.

Operating Systems

-Before I make a final judgement, I've only played around with a PS3 for a few minutes, so I don't know a lot of the details of it's OS. That being said, it take on what PSP did as a media bar interface. The only benefit that you get is a built-in internet browser that is very slow compared to what a PC can do at the same speed. Wii will also get their browser tomorrow (12/22). It is yet to see what the Opera browser will be like for the Wii, but even if it's a little slow, I can't believe that it would be slower than the PS3 browser. However, that is only the tip of the iceberg. PS3 can show photos, but Photo Channel on the Wii lets you edit and customize them in many fun ways. There is also the New and Forcast Channel. They might seem like throw-away applications but I've had personal time with the Forcast channel the last few days and it rocks. It wouldn't sway me to buying the system or not, but it's a great feature and it's FREE. If the News Channel is anything like the Forcast, it's going to be awesome. There is also the Mii Channel, exclusive to the Wii. Again, this may not seem like a big deal, but it is. This things are so much fun. I start editing and I find myself in the Mii Channel for hours at a time, it's a blast. And let's not forget the best part, the Virtual Console. I'm not going to comment on the PS3 download functions because I haven't read or seen anything about it, but I will tell you that the Virtual Console ROCKS. It's early and they're aren't a lot of games right now, but even the ones that we have are sweet. Sonic, Gunstar, Mario Bros, Mario 64, Bomberman and those are just a few worth playing right now. Plus Nintendo is "rumored" to release the classic Super Mario Bros. Christmas Day. Add that together with new releases every Monday. There is just nothing on the PS3 that can compete with Wii Channels.

Online

-This may be the only area that you could gift to the PS3 and that is mainly just because it was online with games on launch. Of course, good luck trying to find someone to play with. The Wii will get there. Everyone was blasting Nintendo 2 years ago when they waited and waited to get the DS online when the PSP was online with games out of the box. Then it happened, Mario Kart came out and the rest is history. The DS online service rocks and makes you forget that people even mentioned it in the same breath as the PSP. Just wait, Nintendo will deliver and put all of your worries to rest, count on it!

Accessories

-This is mainly talking about the controllers. I think you should group the Wiimote with the "Hardware" catagory because without the Wiimote the console is useless. However, I had to throw PS3 a bone, so I split them up. The great thing is that Sony copied Nintendo and released a super sweet PS3 Motion Controller......without rumble.........that is exactly like the other PS controllers. We shouldn't even be talking about this, the Wiimote kicks the sixasis so hard that it woke up and tried to play Sega Saturn CDs. Not only does the Wiimote win, hands down, but with it's small extention port it has so much more potential. Gun, sports, steering, and fishing attachments are all going to come, plus you already have the sweet Nunchuk and Classic Controller.

The Future

-If you are looking at two sides of a coin and one side was nintendo would any of you want to be on the other side? Heck no, this company is what video games where build on. Mario, Smash Bros, Metroid, Wario, PokeMon, and BWii are all great examples of what we are going to see next year. And that's just what has been announced from Nintendo. If you could all of the 3rd party games and new Exclusives (such as Linerider) there is no way the PS3 can compete. Even with it's exclusives like Grand Theft Auto, Resident Evil, Tekken, and Assasin's Creed........oh wait, I mean exclusives like Gran Turismo. Sony's future is there, but it's very dark and very lonely.

Now, tell me again why this was so "surprising" to you . neo

[neolego]

Sorry for the double post, but "This Just In":

This year Santa is getting some competition from another jolly guy with a big belly and a red cap. We’re talking about video game icon Mario, of course. As a special holiday surprise for Wii owners from Nintendo, the original Super Mario Bros. â„¢ game for the Nintendo Entertainment System® will appear in the Wii Shop Channel and be downloadable for 500 Wii Points. Wii owners with a high-speed Internet connection can redeem Wii Points to download the game. Wii Points can be purchased in the Wii Shop Channel or at retail outlets.

The classic game will make Christmas morning extra special, just as it did more than two decades ago. Super Mario Bros. reigns as perhaps the best-known and most-played game on any video game system in history. More than 40.2 million copies of the game found their way into homes worldwide. In addition to Super Mario Bros., other top-notch offerings available on Dec. 25 include:

* Street Fighter® II: The World Warrior (Super NES®, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): This game revolutionized the fighting-game genre with characters that had unique fighting skills, speed, special moves and unique endings.

* Super Castlevania® IV (Super NES, 1 player, 800 Wii Points): Simon Belmont uses his trusty whip to fight the powers of evil on his way to Dracula’s Castle.

* Toe Jam & Earl (Sega Genesis, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): Two fun-loving aliens crash on Earth and must find 10 pieces of their spaceship so they can get back home to Planet Funkotron.

* R-TYPE® (TurboGrafx16, 1-2 players, 800 Wii Points): This is a completely faithful port - right down to the character details - of the famous shooting-game masterpiece.

Games available on Jan. 1 include:

* Baseball (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Play nine innings of fierce sandlot competition with classic NES graphics.

* Urban Champion (NES, 1-2 players, 500 Wii Points): Don’t let the big, bad bully of the neighborhood push you around! Players fight for the right to walk the street.

In just five weeks the library of classic games available through the Wii Shop Channel has grown to 33 titles. Every Monday at 9 a.m. Pacific, Nintendo adds more classic games to the channel. For detailed information about each game, visit Nintendo’s Online Press Room at press.nintendo.com. For more information about Wii, please visit Wii.com.

Source: gonintendo.com

Merry, Merry Christmas indeed. I know that I'm getting at least 2 Wii Point Cards in my stocking and they are going to get a workout Christmas day . neo

[Nestlé]

I'm not saying I wouldn't have picked the Wii Neo (which I would have). I'm just saying it was surprising that NO ONE picked the PS3. The console wars ALWAYS have people on EVERY side of the spectrum. It's just weird that they ALL picked the Wii, that's all.

[Logan]

Hey Neo, you mentioned the system to buy this year was the DS, well I got that covered in the form of a DS Lite.

[handsomedevil]

What's the Wii Points to dollars conversion end up being? You could probably get NES Baseball for about a buck if you really wanted it. Why fill your Wii with craptastic "classic" games? (and do you save them to a memory card or something?)

Zelda, Metroid, Mario, etc. make sense, but Urban Champion? C'mon...

I did take the Wii Sports Bowling for a few frames tonight at MicroCenter and I must say I was impressed. Especially after I got the spin going on the ball...

[AdyCarter]

I still think the Wii novelty will wear off, still tempted with one but after getting burned with the Cube Im waiting a good year till I consider buying one.

The 360 does everything I need a console to do, and more.

[luke314pi]

I am posting this from my Wii.

The trial version of the Opera browser is available now!

[Nestlé]

Cool luke! I'll check that out!

HDevil, I agree actually. Only an elite few will make it on my Wii (Old Mario Karts maybe). As for memory, it has a Hard Drive, but can also use your standard SD card.

Ady, I happened to like the GC, but I understand where you're coming from. You're probably not missing a lot waiting a year anyways.

Oh, but BTW. EGM gave Zelda a perfect score. 3 tens. One of like 10 games EVER to recieve the score.

(Others were: Metal Gear Solid, Halo, Halo 2, Grand Theft Auto 3 (I think), Zelda Ocarina of Time, Metroid Prime, Zalda Majora's Mask &Gran Turismo 2 (I think).)

Neo, you were talking about not reading EGM? I personally love them. The have 3 reviewers on each game, to give you variety on points of view. Also they're unbiased, having spoken out publicly against certain game companies trying to bribe reviewers into giving their games higher scores.

[handsomedevil]

What's the Wii Points to dollars conversion end up being?

Any of you Wii-tards got an answer?

BREAKING NEWS: Microsoft is increasing the factory warranty on all 360s to 1 year! That's good news. In addition to the factory warranty I believe that there is an extended warranty offer packed in with the units. Can anyone confirm this? If so, how much is it per year?

[neolego]

OK first I`d like to say I`m writing from my Wii!

The browser is awesome!!!

And as a proud Wii-tard, I can tell you that Wii points break down to 1 cent. 500 Wii points = $5.00. neo

[minivenom]

I know the big money, fancy next-gen consoles have dominated most of the discussion here, but I wanted to chime in that anyone with a DS (best system on the market, in my opinion) without Elite Beat Agents really needs to try it out.

I bought it for my youngest son and we spent several hours playing it yesterday. Up to 4 people can play with one game card and some of the songs are incredibly hard to keep up with. Great fun, and super cheesy (but still funny) storylines. It's funny when you mess up, and it's super cool when you get through a really tough part. Highly recommended.