Grading the Sixth and Seventh Console Generations 93
GameDaily has up an article grading the current and next-gen consoles on their past and (apparently) future performance. Ratings come with an explanation, which is good because some of them seem just a bid dodgey. Only a B+ for the PS2? Really? From the article: "Considering the competition, the PS2's $129.99 price tag seems downright diminutive. The slim PS2 comes sans fan (meaning potential overheating for long-winded players) but the compact design makes it a must-have for anyone with limited space in the entertainment center. The DualShock 2 is arguably one of the best game controllers of all time and extras can be snapped up for a mere $20 for head-to-head or online multiplayer action." The Aeropause blog has a follow up on the ratings, giving you another perspective on the same consoles.
Fluff Piece. (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Skies of Arcadia, Grandia, Marvel Vs Capcom 2, Dead or Alive 2, Soul Calibur, Phantasy Star Online, Super Magnetic Neo, Power Stone, Shenmue, ikaruga, virtua Tennis, Quake 3 Arena, Mr Driller, Chu Chu Rocket, HoD2, Gunbird 2, Jet Grind Radio, Samba de Amigo, the list goes on....
I blame the fanboys that bought into Sony hype for cutting short what easily could have been the greatest console of all time, of cour
Re: (Score:1)
PS2 definitely the best mix of cost & quality (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:PS2 definitely the best mix of cost & quali (Score:2)
GameCube has a great set of games (less then PS2, but a lot more then XBox), and it is really cheap ($99 new, less than $50 used) but it's pretty well dead and Twilight Princess may well be the last game released for the console.
XBox has great homebrew applications like XBMC and all the emulators, and it has an alright set of games, but it's price is too much for such an old c
Re:PS2 definitely the best mix of cost & quali (Score:1)
Game cube $99
Wii Controller $70 (169)
Wii sports $50 (219)
+ SD Card reader ($20) (239)
+ Network adapter (20) 259
What spinoff of resident evil was there. I though RE4 was first onto the gamecube
Re:PS2 definitely the best mix of cost & quali (Score:2)
Re:PS2 definitely the best mix of cost & quali (Score:1)
And the PS2 will certainly be a project
No component cables for the PS3? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
1st through 5th generation didn't come with cables either except for the A/B tuner switch.
IIRC, Genesis and Super Nintendo required a proprietary connector that was $25+ to get composite.
You can get component cables for under $10 and 10 feet of HDMI under $16.
Re: (Score:1)
Unless something changes (article dated October 11, 2006), it looks like you only get the composite. :P
The article quoted is found here [ign.com].
Re:No component cables for the PS3? (Score:4, Informative)
I think the big deal is that it seems odd for a system to tout its HD capabilities and not come with cables to display an HD signal out of the box.
Are cables cheap? Yes. But for a $500 system (and who's only standard a/v connections are HDMI and TOSLINK), I'd expect it to at least have component cables bundled.
Re:No component cables for the PS3? (Score:4, Interesting)
The idea that you'd pay $600 for a premium version console and still have to buy accessories that it didn't include is some kind of sick joke where clowns steal my money.
Re: (Score:2)
It's easy to see why someone would be irritated that a console whose primary marketing efforts seem to
Re: (Score:1)
Does the PS3 have actual RCA jacks on the back of it? Because if it doesn't (and I don't think it does), then those $10 component cables will be totally useless. My understanding was that it's backwards compatible with the component cables for the PS2, which means that if you don't have them already you'll have to spend another ~$30 or so on the proprietary Playstation component cables (or cobble together your own using the connector from the composite cables that came with it, provided you know what each o
Composite since the NES (Score:2)
I bought my Sega Genesis used, so I can't comment on that one. But the US and European versions of the NES (Wikipedia's 3rd gen) came with an A/V cable, and the Super NES (WP's 4th gen) through GameCube (WP's 6th gen) came with a composite "MULTI OUT" cable. The PS1 and PS2 also came with Sony's variant of "MULTI OUT".
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
You can't do S-video, component, or RGB with a set of composite cables. Super NES, N64, and GameCube have all supported S-video.
RadioShack still sells a spare set of cables, though not exactly that cheap.
is anyone really that short on space? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
Arguably? (Score:2, Informative)
I'd say there's very good reasons to argue against that. Split d-pad, for one. That's a real thumbwrecker. Nonsensical button names is another big issue. And who can forget putting the analog sticks into a secondary position on a console whose manufacturer openly hates 2d games that would be the only real reason to use the dpad as the primary input?
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
As far as the article, I don't know what they were smoking, the grades they assigned seem almost completely random (and with little apparent connection to the accompanying text)!
I
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
I believe Sony had to configure their pad as they did because Nintendo has a patent [uspto.gov] on traditional 'plus' shaped d-pads.
While I dislike the split d-pad, I feel the other aspects of the DS controller are far superior to that of the GCN controller. Every button can be hit in a split second, making it perfect for twitch games.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I also don't thin
Re: (Score:2)
I guess if you have huge hands. I find the control sticks awkward to reach. On the XBox or Gamecube the D-Pad and right stick aren't used enough to be an issue, but having
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I refer to them by their original SNES designations, which always gets funny looks from the young'uns that grew up with PSX or PS2. I tend to color-code them according to the SFC controller's button colors as well (also used on the very exce
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
D-Pads and Analog Sticks (Score:2)
I think the canonical comparison would be to one of Nintendo's D-Pads. Not the one on the Cube controller, that one sucks. But compare the PS2's (or PSP's) D-Pad to the DS or N64's or SNES's D-Pad, and you'll notice the difference.
Except it very much is. For most games, you have the left thumb on the
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
The ps2 controller for me is uncomfortable after about 20 minutes of play, especially if I am using the analog stick. I'm actually quite surprised that the ps3 hasn't moved the analog stick to the same position as the xbox controller. It just seems an unnatural position for the left analog stick.
Re: Dualshock = Poor. (Score:2)
Introducing Microsoft's Cross Square Circle (Score:2)
It's a workaround for the D-pad patent that Nintendo refused to license in 1995.
I'll grant you the square, but the other three were letters: X (cross), O (circle), and D (triangle, in the form of Greek delta). In addition, you can spell the name of every Microsoft game console using just PS1 buttons: X (cross), Box (square), 360 (circle).
Re: (Score:2)
Well, other console manufacturers found better workarounds (Neo Geo Pocket) or were magically able to license the D-Pad.
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
"Hit triangle, triangle, circle, square, circle" I don't know why, but A B X Y is much easier to remember. I personally find the GameCube controller to be the most comfortable controller I've used by a long shot. However, YMMV.
Wow, talk about weak articles. (Score:3, Insightful)
It seems like as long as it's next gen you get a B+ and if it's this gen if it's sony you get a B+?
This isn't "Grading" This is "which should I buy for christmas" and the answer they give? any of them. Seriously this isn't a fluff piece, this is enuff piece. A article that is written with just "enuff" to count as an article. No one fails on it, no one wins. It's just "buy what ever you were going to buy in the first place". Personally I'd probably have graded it as follows, remember this is for a new system.
B for PS2, A- for 360, B for Wii, D for PS3, F for Gamecube, D for Xbox, B for DS, B for PSP (only because it plays music)
Re: (Score:2)
B for PS2, A for 360, A- for Wii, D for PS3, C for Gamecube, C for Xbox*, A for DS, D for PSP
*if you include modification potential, without I'd rate it a D-
Really it seems these were graded on the quantity of recent and future game releases...
The idea that the dual-shock is somehow one of the best controllers ever made is a joke in itself. It started as a SNES controller with handlebars and extra shoulder buttons. The extra shoulder buttons mean your fingers are either cramped (if
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
You claim the Xbox is over priced for 60 bucks more than the PS2, yet 200 more bucks for the PS3 is ok? So why are you telling me you would grade a 600 dollar item the same as a 400 dollar item assuming both do nearly the same thing?
Btw to the other response to my post. The DS gets a B because it's a w
Second article not "another perspective" (Score:2)
too arbitrary. (Score:2)
Wrong (Score:4, Informative)
Wrong. If you take apart a slim PS2, you'll clearly see a fan on the inside of it. However, it's very quiet, which is a good thing. But yes, it does get warm - but the fan keeps the cpu/gpu from melting.
Re: (Score:2)
Passing Grade? (Score:1)
129.99? (Score:1)
The ps2 was $399 bro, that's what I paid for my 2!
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Then you got ripped off, since it launched at 299.99! [wikipedia.org]
Re: (Score:2)
Ah, I understand now. (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
And when Sony says a 10 year life cycle, I don't buy it for a second. Even if they feel it could compete for 10 years, do you think they are going to allow themselves to be percieved as 'skipping' a console generation?
Although it would give them remarkable clout in the future, chances of it happening are next to nothing.
Hell, I'd pay $600 if they could promise me it wouldn't break within 10 years.
Re: (Score:1)
From what I understand the slim version is 'better', instead of DVDs it eats power supplies and overheats.
Re: (Score:1)
Two can play (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I actually can't because I have only seen them in the stores.
And I have no problem admitting that to some degree my grading scale is relative. How the 360 gets graded will partially depend on how the other systems do.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
Ironically, it's the PS2 that's saving Sony (Score:2)
But I realize now that it's actually the opposite. It's the PS2 that may end up saving Sony. Why?
Well, the PS3 launch was already "doomed" in the first place, due to its high cost and low availability. Most of the gamers who are interested in one, just aren't goin
Re: (Score:2)
Ha ha, wait until you want to play FFXIII and its only available on PS3. I own a 360 and have a pre-order for a Wii but I don't fool myself. By the time FFXIII is released I will have upgraded my PS2 to a PS3.
Re: (Score:2)
FFXIII is so far away (at least a year, if not more), that I find it silly to think about it now. I will probably have a PS3 by then, although it wouldn't surprise me in the least if Square drops the bombshell and announces some flavor of FFXIII becoming multi-platform. (Remember, they're not just Sony
Both Final Fantasy and XIII run on PS2 (Score:1, Offtopic)
Every Final Fantasy game in the main series except III and XI runs on a slim PS2. Even XIII is for PS2 [wikipedia.org].
Re: (Score:1, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Personally I'll be buying a PS3, when it drops to 3-400
Re: Wii will pwn Sony in Japan. (Score:1, Redundant)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
1) It's cheap.
2) It has over 1000 game and can play PS1 games if you want and can find them.
3) Most games can be got very cheap (except for new premium games).
4) New games are still coming out for this machine so it still has at least 1 to 2 years life.
Not everyone can afford a Wii or Xbox 360 or PS3 (If you can get one) in fact struggling parents looking for a present for their children would find
If thats not a fan in the slim PS2... (Score:2)
This is just silly - PS2 is the /the/ Console (Score:2)
I personally love my XBox 360 but it certainly can't match the breadth and depth of the PS2 library. Sold off my original XBox and Gamecube because they were useless.
Unless you want
"DualShock 2 is arguably one of the best" (Score:1)
Another perspective? (Score:2)
The DualShock is *not* particularly good (Score:1, Redundant)
No, it's not. It is, however, probably the one you're most used to. Maybe it's even the first controller you've ever used. but that doesn't mean that it's a good controller. The shape is extremely awkward and non-ergonomic. You can't really hold the damn thing. The dual analog sticks are useful, but they're positioned all wrong. There are about, hm... well, there's Katamari Damacy which makes use of the dual sticks' position, but for every other ga