Choosing the Right Game System

Sony and Nintendo released their new systems in time for this year' holiday shopping season. Microsoft's Xbox 360 launched last November allowing Microsoft to get a head start with avid video gamers. So, which will end up the top game system?

The Xbox 360, out for more than a year has sold over 3 million consoles in the US. The Xbox 360 did not however launch smoothly. Manufacturing of the systems started less then 3 months before the launch date which did not allow enough time to meet the demand. By the end of 2005 Microsoft had sold 900,000 consoles in North America. Microsoft already had a large fan base built up after the original Xbox which launched in November of 2001, more than 1 year after the PS2. The Xbox also had one of the most popular first-person shooters. Halo:Combat Evolved and Halo 2 drew millions of new video gamers to the Xbox to play Halo and Microsoft's Xbox Live service allows millions for subscribers to play multiplayer games online together. Gears of War, the most anticipated game of the Xbox 360, launched earlier this fall and has already sold over 2 million copies and is the most popular game on Xbox Live, surpassing Halo 2. Bungie's Halo 3 is scheduled to launch in November of 2007 and will be the last of the Halo trilogy. The Xbox 360 comes in two versions, a premium version which includes a built in hard drive, wireless controller, and many other features. The 360 also comes in a core version which comes with a wired controller, no built in hard drive and less add ons. Xbox 360 is great for the gamer who enjoys playing with friends online or playing shooting games. The Xbox 360 will also play more than 260 of the original Xbox games.

Sony's PS3 launched November 17^th of this year. As usual there were not enough system's for the demand and some Ebay users paid over $2300 to get their hands on this brand new system. The PS3 uses Blu-ray technology to play DVDs and is a cost-effective way to get a Blu-ray DVD player. Some devices that only play the Blu-ray disks cost close to $900 while the PS3 costs $499. The PS3 has sharper graphics on many of its games that can be optimized on HDTV. PS3 will have its loyal PS fans as well as some newer ones looking for the best graphics they can get. The PS3 is compatible with older PlayStation games as long as they meet the requirements. The PS3 is a great overall game console.

The Nintendo Wii took a different approach to their game console. Nintendo redid the whole controller making the controller direction sensitive. This new controller allows for a whole new experience while playing video games. The Wii now encourages people to be standing and moving their arms while playing the games instead of just their fingers. The Wii, like the PS3, is still hard to find except on Ebay where the prices are heavily inflated. The Wii, like the older Nintendo consoles, is the most family-friendly of all the game systems. Nintendo plans to have 33 games available by the end of 2006 including Wii sports, a package that includes 5 games that utilize Nintendo's Wii controller making the game more realistic. The Wii's graphics are comparable to the PS2, but the game play makes the Wii a real threat to the other two game systems. If you are undecided on what to get the Wii can be a great choice, whether you are 5 or 55 the Wii will be fun for everyone in the family.