What are your thoughts on the current gen systems? Wii/PS3/X360?

[FamicomFreak]

I have none next gen consoles but I will probably pick up a ps3 in the near future because of RE5! That game is going to be awesome! I was thinking about the Wii but there aren't that many titles out there to keep me interested. The Virtual Console games are nice but I have a famicom if I want to play any old games anyways....I'll nee more than MM9 to get a wii....

[Trium Shockwave]

I've had a Wii since the January after it launched. There is a bad signal:noise ratio with the games, but when you strip all the junk away I can still rattle off a list of Wii games I still want to get. The problem with the Wii is that the technical aspects really do feel like I could be playing on a Game Cube. Especially something like an RPG that's not taking advantage of the Wii controller. However, I can't even scrounge up enough 360 or PS3 games that I'd want to play to convince me to get either system. I've even looked through the Japanese lineups, and that doesn't even help. 360 has a couple of JRPGs on it like Tales of Vesperia, but not enough quality ones to buy a console over. And I don't really like the style of RPG that Oblivion or Fallout 3 fall into, nor do I like the whole FPS scene. The Japanese seem to be shunning the 360, which means they'll have to tilt toward the PS3 for the true next-gen experience. And where the Japanese go, I go, since I mostly want to play my JRPGs and anime tie ins. But... where are the friggin games at? My friend got a PS3 for Christmas and was just telling me last night how he's barely touched it because he can't find games he likes, compared to the PS2 where any given trip to the game shop would turn up a couple of new titles.

So, basically, the Wii has good games but doesn't come off as a real next gen console. The 360 has lots of games, but not many I'm interested in. And the PS3... just doesn't have games at all. This, honestly, may be the worst console generation since the N64/PS1/Saturn. I am eager to see what Nintendo will do with its regained market dominance though. The Wii's successor, now that its technology is proven, should be something to behold.

[satoshi_matrix]

This is just a general response for those of you that dislike the 360: The 360 does do a lot of FPS (Americans love FPS) but it also does a lot of other games that don't get noticed in the sea of FPS.

Specifically for Shockwave, if you don't like FPS or the sand-box style RPG like Fallout 3 (for whatever reason, you must be crazy! jk) there are still plenty of good games to check out:

off the top of my head, I can think of

Armored Core 4
Beautiful Katamari
Burnout Paradise
Blazing Angels 2 Secret Weapons of WWII
Dead or Alive 4
Dead Rising
Earth Defense Force 2017
Fable II
Lost Planet Extreme Condition
Ninja Gaiden II
Soul Calibur IV
Tenchu Z
Tales of Vesperia

and don't forget that the 360 is also backwards compatible with many of the best Xbox 1 games, many of which can still hold their own epically when compared to the Wii.

just to name a few Xbox 1 games worth checking out for the 360:

Dead or Alive Ultimate
Dreamfall the Longest Journey
Guilty Gear X2 Reloaded
Outrun 2006

As well as all that, there are some great games on the Xbox Live Arcade worth checking out.

Finally, for those who worry or have experienced the Xbox 360 hardware failure, the infamous Red Ring of Death, this is preventable and more importantly, FIXABLE!!

First thing you should note that Elite systems made after about the middle of 2007 and Core systems made starting in 2008 will not experience this problem due to a redesign.

The cause of the RRoD is overheating. The first generations of the 360 can experience a build up of heat overtime that continues to increase until the error occurs. It happened to me. after three years.

The solution I went with was to take apart my system and apply a heatgun (a really powerful blow dryer used to remove paint) to remelt the solder balls under the CPU and GPU. There are a few tutorials on how to do this online. Once I knew what to do, the entire process from start to finish took about an hour, and the majority of that was letting the 360 cool down! Thus, the RRoD is not a death sentience. 

Once fixed, the 360 should never Red Ring again!

[Doc]

Wii: I think that the Wii is the best and strongest of the three current generation systems. Then again, I'm a Nintendo fan before I'm a fan of Microsoft, Sony or Sega, so take what I say with a grain of salt. The downloadable WiiWare, while pricey, is also really cool. Mega Man 9 is worth it to me alone. Game wise, you'll get a LOT of cool games, like Animal Crossing, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Super Mario Galaxy, and of course the incredibly fun Wii Sports. My only complaints are that I am NOT a fan of the Wii-mote system -- call me crazy, but a video game loses its fun when you have to move your arm in every different and stupid direction to get a character to move. We had someone like that years ago, it was the Power Glove, and it sucked then. I don't care what anyone says, I will NOT get used to this stupid Wiimote crap, and will do my best to stick with an actual remote controller, thank you very much.

XBox 360: To be honest, I actual enjoy playing games on this system. I am a sucker for NBA games, and Marvel: Ultimate Alliance, which has been my current favorite game at this point. The only problem is that XBox Live makes no sense to me, and I cannot hook that shit up for the life of me. Then again, I don't care too much to play online, so whatever. And on the whole "Red Ring of Death" controversy, I have to say this: no video game system should ever have such an issue that you actually have to open up your fucking system and use a heatgun. My first system was about a year old when it happened, and I barely ever used the damn thing. The whole problem was just the reason why I can't stand new hardware: you get lazy manufacturers that don't give a shit about something as common as a system OVERFREAKIN' HEATING!

PS3: The biggest appeal is that it has BluRay, so you don't have to spend a bunch of money on what is the crappiest current generation media player I've ever experienced. And I've seen and used a Betamax player. It makes the movie sound louder... oooohhh shit AMAZING I WANT TO SPEND 63543265354763547 DOLLARSOMG. Who cares if a movie sounds louder and more like in a theater? Quite frankly, if it sounds good and the picture is decent, it's good to me. I just don't understand the appeal of spending extra money for a format that makes things sound annoyingly loud. But maybe that's just me.

[133MHz]

the infamous Red Ring of Death, this is preventable

That if preventable means getting a free heat gun with your Xbox 360 purchase.

[nintendodork]

I'd like to make a couple of points...

Armored Core 4
Beautiful Katamari
Burnout Paradise
Blazing Angels 2 Secret Weapons of WWII
Dead or Alive 4
Dead Rising
Earth Defense Force 2017
Fable II
Lost Planet Extreme Condition
Ninja Gaiden II
Soul Calibur IV
Tenchu Z
Tales of Vesperia

Most of those games are on or sequels to games that were original to other companies/systems and released on other systems (PS3)

and don't forget that the 360 is also backwards compatible with many of the best Xbox 1 games, many of which can still hold their own

Not all games are compatible, and that's also only if you buy a certain kind of 360 I believe..You can play all Gamecube games on the Wii

Finally, for those who worry or have experienced the Xbox 360 hardware failure, the infamous Red Ring of Death, this is preventable and more importantly, FIXABLE!!

First thing you should note that Elite systems made after about the middle of 2007 and Core systems made starting in 2008 will not experience this problem due to a redesign.

The cause of the RRoD is overheating. The first generations of the 360 can experience a build up of heat overtime that continues to increase until the error occurs. It happened to me. after three years.

The solution I went with was to take apart my system and apply a heatgun (a really powerful blow dryer used to remove paint) to remelt the solder balls under the CPU and GPU. There are a few tutorials on how to do this online. Once I knew what to do, the entire process from start to finish took about an hour, and the majority of that was letting the 360 cool down! Thus, the RRoD is not a death sentience.

Once fixed, the 360 should never Red Ring again!

If I bought a 360 at launch, I sure as hell wouldn't want to shell out another $250-$400 for a console I already have.

If I instead choose to fix the console, I have two options.  Sending it to M$ or fixing it myself with tools that I may not already have, and have to go buy those.  If I send it to M$, it will take a little under a month to fix and will cost money. ( The amount I'm not sure)

If I fix it myself, I may have to buy tools, and it may not be safe, plus, there isn't even a guarantee that I'll only have to do this once.


Also, to set up HD and Xbox Live on top of any arcade games I want to buy...will cost me more money

If I buy a Wii, I don't have to worry about the RRoD, Nintendo Customer Service is easier to work with, and (In my case) costs less (I got my Wii repaired for free)

Online play is free (for now), so all I have to pay for is Virtual Console games

IMO, this is how it goes

1. Wii
2. PS3
3. Xbox 360

Oh, and one more thing...
PS3 and 360 games are more expensive than Wii games 

[mobiusclimber]

If I bought a 360 at launch, I sure as hell wouldn't want to shell out another $250-$400 for a console I already have.

Microsoft will fix/replace your 360 so long as you don't void the warranty. Which is why you should NEVER open up your 360 and use a heat gun on it. (BTW, this whole deal w/ M$ is a LOT better than how Sony handled the DREs with their PS2.)

[FamicomFreak]

My friend's 360 is already showing signs of dying....man I'm just waiting the call from him saying "My xbox is showing the damn red ring of death!!"

[son_ov_hades]

Everyone I know that has a 360 has gotten the red ring at least once.

[mobiusclimber]

Everyone I know that has a 360 has gotten the red ring at least once.

Well you know ME and I haven't. =p Tho I'm sure you meant IRL. Yeah it's pretty crappy that they sent out so many ticking time bombs, but I gotta wonder if this is worse than the other failures we've seen in the past or if it's just gotten more press or what. (Both the PS2 and the Dreamcast, as well as I guess the PS1, had high failure rates at launch.)

[Rob64]

The Wii will come out on top, hype or not. Nintendo just make quality games. Master Chief can't compete with Zelda or Mario, and neither can the Final Fantasy series. I own only nintendo consoles as of today, I got rid of the xbox because it's just garabage, I get bored with it too easy. Nintendo keeps me in, and that's why they will stay on top for a while: they know how to play their cards, they've been around before sony and microsoft entered the console market so nintendo has an advantage. Good games come to those who wait, which is why I am okay with there being no zelda or mario game this year.

[133MHz]

they know how to play their cards

Of course, they've been playing cards since the 19th century

[Rob64]

Very funny 133MHz, but they beat out Sega and their b.s., so they could posibly beat out sony and microsoft at some point.

[son_ov_hades]

Everyone I know that has a 360 has gotten the red ring at least once.

Well you know ME and I haven't. =p Tho I'm sure you meant IRL. Yeah it's pretty crappy that they sent out so many ticking time bombs, but I gotta wonder if this is worse than the other failures we've seen in the past or if it's just gotten more press or what. (Both the PS2 and the Dreamcast, as well as I guess the PS1, had high failure rates at launch.)

Yeah I meant IRL, though most of them got the 360 shortly after it came out.

[nintendodork]

If I bought a 360 at launch, I sure as hell wouldn't want to shell out another $250-$400 for a console I already have.

Microsoft will fix/replace your 360 so long as you don't void the warranty. Which is why you should NEVER open up your 360 and use a heat gun on it. (BTW, this whole deal w/ M$ is a LOT better than how Sony handled the DREs with their PS2.)

Nintendo is still better