What game console to buy?

[ijester]

I have decided I want to buy a game console for my wife and I for christmas.

She has been bugging me for two years for one. She likes to play mostly game games, like puzzle games, some sports games(Madden 2004), etc. I however, have always been a fighting game guy when it comes to arcade stuff - Tekken, Virtua fighter, etc. and Tribes, Quake, Unreal etc on the pc.

I really like the being able to play online and find other people to play with.

I know very little about the consoles and all the modding people do and what games are available, etc. but am a very experienced computer/network/programmer.

All info would be appreciated to help me with the decision about what to buy and what mods can be done to them.

Thank you in advance

 

[LifeStealer]

Well gamecube has the best puzzle/co-op player games, some sport games, but no online play. Why not get a ps2 and then go buy a gamecube at a fleamarket o.o?

 

[LifeStealer]

She would probably like Kingdom Heart(s) for the PS2 though, its puzzle/rpgish.

 

[mitchafi]

I'd probably get a gamecube. I have one as well as a PS2 and find myself using the cube much more often. There are a lot of fun multiplayer games (Mario Kart: Double Dash comes to mind) and the graphics are pretty sharp as well. As for fighting games, it has Soul Calibur II, which is excellent. There are also some great action/adventure titles that you'd probably both like (viewtiful joe, prince of persia). And of course, you have Madden. On top of that, it's the cheapest of the consoles at around $100 with a controller and usually a game. There's also a few different themed bundles available. For FPS and RTS games it'd probably be best to use your computer if it can handle them.

 

[Wingznut]

Since you want online play, the GC is ruled out.

Sports games... For the most part, both consoles offer the same games.

Fighting games... PS2 has the Tekken series, Xbox has the Dead or Alive series. The others (i.e. Mortal Kombat) are available on both.

Shooters... Xbox has Halo 2 next month. There's really nothing of genuine quality that the PS2 offers exclusively.

Online play... Xbox Live is a much better experience than the PS2's.

Overall, the PS2 has more games. But (imho) the Xbox's best titles are much better than the PS2's best. And if the game is offered on both platforms, it's is almost ALWAYS better on the Xbox.


FYI, I own and play both consoles, along with a very capable PC... Used to own a GC, but I just never found myself playing it. At any rate, the Xbox gets the lion's share of my gaming time.

 

[otispunkmeyer]

get a PS2.....they bringing them down sized PS2's out soon arent they? they shrank the internal volume of the PS2 by 75%!!!! its soo slim, its amazing how they have made the inner workings smaller yet with same performance

 

[MercenaryForHire]

Xbox.

Edit - And I'm jealous, because your wife is bugging you to get a game console.

- M4H

 

[BW86]

get a ps2

 

[Coquito]

Get a big lcd screen along with some wireless usb controllers & run your pc games on it. The consoles are all starting to look dated. Much better resolution & modding scene on a pc anyways.

 

[KoolDrew]

It is mostly based on personal prference. Gamecube has some games she might liek but some people may think they are a bit kiddish. Another downfall of the gamecube is the lack of feutures compared to lets say xbox. The gamecube is a very powerful machine though.

The GameCube uses a 450 MHz PowerPC processor from IBM. It's far more EFFICIENT-- per CPU Clock Tick (MHz) it does more work. It far outpeforms the XBox at calculations, math, game physics in every way-- The XBox uses a VERY SLOW Pentium III Coppermine CPU. The PowerPC also does not produce as much heat at all.

Its video chip is also much beefier than the GeForce 3 used in the XBox. The XBox really IS just a comprimised PC, running a hacked version of Windows and DirectX with some USB devices attached to it. Games are forced to run at Low settings because of the weak hardware. Had Microsoft custom-designed a machine with efficient hardware like the GameCube or Dreamcast it would peform a lot better, but they really do not seem to know what they are doing in the console world.

Comparing the PS2 and the GameCube/XBox, the PS2 has a pretty fast CPU-- but its video chip is very primitive and easily outperformed by even the weak GeForce 3 in some areas. My beef with that machine is the failure-prone drive mechanics, though, not the solid state hardware on the mainboard.

So the gamecube is a very fast and powerful machine much betetr then the PS2 and xbox, but you might want to see what games she might like for what systems. And what feutures she may use. She might not need to watch DVD's and I dont think she would play games online so gamecube might be fine if you think she will lie those games.

I would probally say go with a Gamecube but you might want to0 check out some other stuff before deciding.

 

[ijester]

Get a big lcd screen along with some wireless usb controllers & run your pc games on it. The consoles are all starting to look dated. Much better resolution & modding scene on a pc anyways.

Ok, not going to buy a large LCD screen. I have a Sony 32" that is just fine for the TV. Too expensive.

I am leaning towards the XBox, although it doesn't have Tekken which is probably my all-time fav fighter. I did play a fair amount of soul caliber when it first came out though.

Do they offer arcade style controllers? You know, joystick and buttons etc.

 

[KoolDrew]

Yes I believe there are controllers like that but I never liked any of them

 

[Wahsapa]

my vote is for gamecube.

for me, online play is ment to be kept on the pc, so when looking at any console i dismiss online play as a factor for consideration.

 

[apoppin]

X-Box II

(the GPU will be ready at end of Q1 2005 . . . . guess it'll be "awhile" for the actual X-Box Next)



:roll:

But it'll BLOW -AWAY all current consoles . . .

At this time, sources said the Xbox 2 development kit includes a 9800XT card and platform and you can only achieve five to 10 FPS with Xbox 2 working titles.

That?s why a full developer's kit will be available in late Q1 2005. This kit will include the flagship R500 chip that will give the right measure of graphics performance.

From an aarchitectural point of view, we are talking about at least 16 pipelines powered by two TMUs (Texture Memory Units) which roughly give you twice as much power as the current X800 generation of cards that have only one TMU. This will occur only in multitexture games but nowadays all games use more then one texture per pass.

If Xbox games works at 60 FPS you can imagine that R500 will end up more then six times faster then Radeon 9800.

 

[RussianSensation]

If you want to buy now, i'd probably get Xbox. It has the best graphics, the best sound, controllers that are big enough for big hands. PS2 is good too. GC would be my last choice since I hate its controller and it doesn't have a lot of titles that stand out in terms of multiplayer. Someone disected the power and hardware of all the consoles. But lets be honest, what do you look for, the end product, being games - how they look, how they play, and how they sound. GC in this category has the worst graphics in my opinion. Xbox also has Ninja Gaiden, Halo and the sports games will be just as good as on PS2. I guess it's a toss up between Xbox and PS2.

 

[LtPage1]

xbox. if you like playing online, its really the only way to go. its also got the best games by far, and the best graphics.

 

[KoolDrew]

Originally posted by: RussianSensation
If you want to buy now, i'd probably get Xbox. It has the best graphics, the best sound, controllers that are big enough for big hands. PS2 is good too. GC would be my last choice since I hate its controller and it doesn't have a lot of titles that stand out in terms of multiplayer. Someone disected the power and hardware of all the consoles. But lets be honest, what do you look for, the end product, being games - how they look, how they play, and how they sound. GC in this category has the worst graphics in my opinion. Xbox also has Ninja Gaiden, Halo and the sports games will be just as good as on PS2. I guess it's a toss up between Xbox and PS2.

If you read my post you would realize the xbox does not have the best graphics. The gamecube easily outperforms the video card in the xbox. And best sound?? I dont notice a sound difference between any of the 3 this gen consoles? That is more dependant on the software. I do agree that the xbox controllers are the best too, but again that is based on personal preferance.

So in the end it is based on what you want. Xbox is good but she may seem to like the titles on xbox or might like the PS2. Use the info all of us have provided to amke the best decision.

Hardware wise the gamecube outperforms both xbox and PS2, game wise you will have to decide yourself. While PS2 is the worst hardware wise it has a HUGE selection of games and I know whe will like some of them. Xbox is also getting some good games thet she MAY like. As for gamecube it does not have many games I like but your wife may like them so chevck them out.

 

[gamer4life]

i was in the mall a few days ago and at EB games they had used game cubes for 50 bucks!!!!

i've played all three and i would get an xbox just because of halo2.

just get all 3!!!!

 

[Adn4n]

Do not get a ps2. I have one, and I'd kill for an Xbox. I love the FF games, but Xbox just has the better graphics and online play.

 

[kyparrish]

xbox

 

[ponyo]

Dreamcast.

 

[KoolDrew]

Originally posted by: Naustica
Dreamcast.

I would have to agree. The DC was a great system but I think he wants something newer.

i've played all three and i would get an xbox just because of halo2.

Even though Halo is a great game I don't think it would ber the sort of game his wife would want to play...

 

[raildogg]

Gamecube has awesome games and great graphics ..... PS2 is close and has lots of games but graphics arent as good. XBOX is good but im not a big fan of its games vs gamecube or ps2

 

[Wingznut]

KoolDrew... Sorry man, but I really have to disagree. I'm not aware a single game that looks better on the Gamecube than it's Xbox variant.


This quote from IGN's review of Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow pretty much sums it up...

That noted, the GameCube version is not as pretty as its Xbox predecessor. This is evidenced in three key areas: filter effects, lighting and framerate. When Fisher uses night vision goggles, the GameCube build lacks the motion-filled blur of the Xbox; the same can be written of the thermal vision. Meanwhile, all sorts of environmental lighting effects, from the headlights of the oncoming train to the shimmering of fire, have been dumbed down in the GCN port. And finally, the framerate has suffered greatly. While the fluidity is usually acceptable, in some cases, the game's motion is downright choppy. Our complaints stated, this is still one of the prettier games to grace Nintendo's system, and in our opinion that's saying a lot.

If you own an Xbox, get the Xbox version of Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow because it is the all-around better game.

Here's a quote from Gamespot regarding Madden 2005...

Graphically, the three versions are pretty predictable in that the GameCube version looks a tad better than the PS2 version, and the Xbox version looks a bit better than the GameCube version. With the addition of online play in the Xbox version of the game--coupled with the slightly better graphics than its console counterparts--the Xbox offering is definitely the one to get...

As for sound... Yes, since the Xbox supports 5.1DD in pretty much every single game, it is much superior to ProLogic II.

Imho, the ONLY reason to get a Gamecube is if you really, really, really want to play its exclusive titles (Mario, Zelda, etc.)

 

[homey297]

i have been reading reviews and comments on this for about a week now
and i think i am going to buy a xbox
now i am checking prices is this good

xbox
2 controlers
dvd remote control
1 game (dont remember what it was)
189.99 at costco