360 or ps3?

burble · 20th June 2008

I'm very tempted to get another console to supplement my Wii, due to the on-going drought of decent PC games, and the cost of continued upgrades to play the few that come out. However I am finding it hard to find impartial non-fanboy advice, so I figured I might get a more level-headed response here.

I'm stuck, and I'm considering flipping a coin to decide. Can anyone help me make my mind up in a more rational manner?

Cost: it'll be a massive saving on upgrading the PC, so I'll be happy whatever the bill, as long as it lasts me a few years. Of course though, I don't want to waste money: if I get a 360, is the elite worth £50 more? And why can I only find the PS3 in one version?
Games: I'm mostly after GTA IV, which runs fine on both. The 360 seems to have a better back-catalogue of quality exclusives, but the PS3 does have that little big planet around the corner, which looks fun. What are the downloadable games like?
Online play is not a major selling point for me - don't have time to compete
Blu-ray isn't a selling point; I'm in no rush to go HD, and this will not be hooked up to the TV anyway
720p, 1080i and 1080p, component or DVI cables - I have no idea what any of those mean, not in real terms. My monitor can do them all, but am I really going to notice a difference? Looks like most games would be upscaled anyway, so I don't think I care. Should I?
Is there anything else I should consider?

Thanks! Any fanboy comments welcome, as long as they are backed up by fact

JamesSykes · 20th June 2008

Considering all your points I think the 360 is the one for you. It has a great catalogue of existing games to get into and more and more the big games are coming out 360/ps3 so you don't have to worry about missing out.

On balance though both are very good. The PS3 is definitely a winner if you have a big HDTV and want to get into some blueray action because you haven't seen a film until you've watched it at 1080p on a 50+ inch tv

I have both plugged into a 22" widescreen PC monitor connected to with standard VGA, at least until I get myself a big arse TV

markcastle · 20th June 2008

Personally i'd probably go for the ps3 because of the blue-ray drive. Even though you say you're not interested in that, it is a big selling point imho.
Also.. if a few of your mates have either of those consoles then that could sway the decision... it's not great to be the only one with a 360 when everyone else has a ps3.
Whatever you do... don't run them at standard definition (you might aswell get an old xbox if doing that), games are awful on either platform at SD compared to HD. More and more games are supporting 1080p so it's worth looking at.
(I've got a 360 btw)

Neil- · 20th June 2008

ps3 all the way...

blue ray support
online play is free, and you dont need to pay some stupid subscription which youll save on in the long run, and the xbox 360 is only just getting round to storing new games onto the hard drive for quicker load times...
+ps3 cures cancer.... enough said!

JamesSykes · 20th June 2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by Neil-

online play is free

Yes but it's crap. Getting a game in GTA takes ****ing ages on the PS3. On the 360 it's 2 minutes. PS3 networking is utter shite and every game that has online play tends to be a pain in the arse to get going.

I've used both and don't bother with PS3 online anymore.

Neil- · 20th June 2008

gta gets into games really quickly for me...

aXeR · 20th June 2008

Go for the 360, XBOX Live is a good enough reason on its own IMO!

CrystalVPS · 20th June 2008

I went with the PS3 due to the blu-ray drive, only played GTA online, and that's easy enough (just doing it from the phone, very easy). Not played Burnout Paradise yet online, but I like that game too. I've only got 2 games, but I did go for the PS3 for the Blu-Ray drive, and I've had no issues. It just works, behind a NAT'ing router. I'd heartily recommend the PS3, but this is my limited view (I like "sandbox" games such as GTA or Burnout and I've not really explored any of the other games), but I've not touched my Wii since I got the PS3

Starteck2002 · 20th June 2008

360 is the one you want.... it actually has a games library of some note. PS3 on the other hand has a very limited library of games and release dates that are constantly being changed - Playstaion Home anyone? Sony continually fail to deliver the goods.

I'm a big console fan and have most consoles that have existed ('fan' may be the wrong word, 'geek' might fit better) and of all of them the 360 sees the most gameplay, gets used to play HD movies (Bluray rips) and is a pretty well thought out machine. You don't have to pay for xbox live either - silver is free. Least used is probably the Dreamcast now, followed by the PS2. Original Xbox still gets used for Burnout though :-)

*BionicInternet* · 20th June 2008

We have all 3 and its about what you want from the console. Personally, I chose the 360 First because it had more choice of games. But, the PS3 has blueray. The Wii has Mario etc.

The advice I would say, choose the console that best fits yours needs.

Starteck2002 · 20th June 2008

On a proper console forum (something like Maxconsole.com) this would have turned into a 'my PS3 is better than your Xbox360' by now - so refreshing to be able to talk about the pros and cons without getting bashed :-)

CrystalVPS · 20th June 2008

I think in short, it comes down to what you want from the console. For me, I'm glad with the PS3 and I've not looked back or regretted it. Just look at the games and features and decide for yourself. I like the fact that when I make the jump to a 720p TV, I have a blu-ray player

burble · 21st June 2008

Thanks for replying everyone, some interesting points there! And as Starteck said, an impressive lack of fanboyism

I think I'm swaying towards the 360. As far as I can tell, there's very little difference in the offline gaming experience, but the 360 edges it with online if I wanted to pay for that. It's also a bit cheaper, and it has a few exclusives I thought looked good. And as I'm a cheapskate, I won't want to pay for a live gold subscription, so I'll get to keep some of my free time and hopefully won't lose my girlfriend.

I know blu-ray is a major selling point for the ps3, and if I had an HDTV today that would probably swing it - but I won't have one for at least another couple of years, and even then I'll probably want a separate dedicated blu-ray player.

Still not 100% though. Might head into town tomorrow and see if they have any reasonable bundles that will help me make up my mind. And that way I can pretend it's an impulse buy, which is always more fun

wise · 21st June 2008

I bought the PS3 as its quiet and I can use it in the living room to avoid buying a separate blueray player! PS3 is the future, but for "now" gaming teh xbox gets it.

However - I hated the xbox controllers, never got the hange of them, but the ps3 controllers are great!

Starteck2002 · 22nd June 2008

LOL, good luck with the purchase :-) I did forget to mention the noise from the thing but you do get used to it....