360 or PS3 at this point?

[Korpi]

Have thought about this before, but not until now there has been any reason to buy a HD console. I just can't figure out which console, both is out of question. Now I live with a few guys, so actually some dudebro games wouldn't be bad, but strictly local multiplayer. Originally I really hated the idea of 360 with region lock, proprietary HDD, monthly fee, Kinect & entertainment focus, advertising etc... 360 has one thing though, the god damn shmups. If there wasn't, it would be a lot easier decision to make. 360 exclusive line-up seems otherwise pretty dire. Couple like Trials Evolution and Deadly Premonition won't be exclusive anymore... not that I have a gaming PC. Would like to play Witcher 2, for example. Gears of War, Halo and such don't interest me much, but considering the current situation they might be good for local multiplayer. 360 controller would be bit nicer, if it wasn't for the d-pad (I've read it's bad). I've also read that multiplats tend to be nicer on 360, and that's pretty important.

PS3 exclusive line-up seems pretty damn good by now, although I've tried GT5 and it didn't have the magic of GT anymore. LBP felt very non-Japanese control-wise, if you know what I mean. Motorstom was quite disappointment, it lacked substance and challenging arcade controls, it felt liked it played itself. This is my problem with Sony first-party stuff, I have a feeling there's a lot of games that are just very cinematic and pretty but not game-y, and at this point in life I have very little interest in cinematic games. I play platformers, shmups, fighters, puzzle, strategy, anything that is pretty quick to get into and just play. The guys would probably like FPS, sports, beat em ups, co-op RPG hack n slash, racing etc.

Too much text... the point is in the title, with a weight on local multiplayer games and well running multiplats. Live in PAL region. Any ideas?

[dsheinem]

Live in PAL region. Any ideas?

Move.

[HurricaneSteve]

I own both but as a pure gaming machine I think the XBOX 360 is a bit better. Bigger library (cheaper too if you go the used route), seems to be more efficient hardware wise (more compact updates, interface is more responsive) and multiplats generally do favor the 360. Reliability was an issue early on but has been fixed so it shouldn't be a concern. I've gotten by with a 4GB 360 Slim for over a year now but I rarely turn it on as modern games don't do much for me and I use my PS3 more due to Netflix and Blu Ray. If you like the controller and shooters, I think the 360 would be your best bet.

[SamuraiMegas]

I love my PS3, free online FTW!

[MrPopo]

Easiest way would be to list the exclusives of each console that you're most interested in and put them side by side.

[CD AGES]

- A generous seletion of Shmups to choose from.
- A great selection of Fighters to choose from (and they usually run better on the 360).
- A better online infrastructure (I only pay $30 for 1year of XBL and its worth every penny!).
- Exclusive retro compilations (Qubed, Capcom Digital Collection, XBL Arade hits, etc.)
- VGA output capable (this a major deal for me!).
- Some decent arcade exclusives like Samurai Shodwon Sen and retail release of Battle Fantasia for dirt cheap prices.

I'm cool with my 360

[MrPopo]

- A better online infrastructure (I only pay $30 for 1year of XBL and its worth every penny!).

No, it's not. I get the same infrastructure for free on Steam.

[CD AGES]

Ok. Goodtimes.

[Betamax001]

It really depends on the types of games you like to play. I only got a 360 recently because I got one for free when I bought my new laptop and I love it. The used games are really cheap and you can get some of the older games for next to nothing at GameStop. I've only had my 360 for a few months and I have more games for it than I do PS3! I'm not sure how I feel about that. I really like the 360 controller for first person shooters and 3D action games. I got a 360 wired controller to use for emulation on my computer and Mario 64 on it was preettty damn awesome but for fighters and any sort of 2D game, the 360 controller is trash, so I prefer to play them on PS3.

Though the exclusives for the PS3 IMO are much better than the 360. I'd rather play God of War than Gears of War, but I think XBLA has better exclusives than PSN. In fact XBLA is probably what made me keep the 360 in the first place! There are some great games on there. If Xbox Live was free and the 360 controller wasn't garbage for 2D style games, I'd say 360. It really depends on what you like to play.

[irixith]

Live in PAL region. Any ideas?

Move.

I bought a Wii on launch day .. after about 2 years of relative disappointment with the initial wash of titles, I looked at PS3 & 360. Back then, it was an easy choice -- 360 -- it was way cheaper, had some great exclusive games, and XBLA was miles above what was available on PS3.

As the generation has gone on (and on, and on) PS3 in my opinion has developed into the one to have.

+Great library, with lots of cool/unique stuff on PSN. Almost everything worth playing makes its way to PSN & XBLA these days, and Sony manages to score some pretty cool exclusives.

+Free online (if online matters to you at all).

+The ability to pay in real currency, vs. arbitrary amounts of moon points.

+PlayStation+. Something like $50 nets you access to a whole shitload of free games, with new ones every month and tons of discounts. There's nothing quite like it on any other system, and if you're into playing/experiencing rather than collecting, it's easily the way to go.

+Cross play with Vita, so you can buy a title on either Vita or PS3 and get it for free on the other system. Vita support is coming to PlayStation+ too.

There's tons of reasons that the PS3 has matured into a great system, but it all boils down to the types of games you like to play -- I don't have much of an interest in shoot 'em ups, first person shooters or fighters on 360 because the d-pad on the controller is such a bad joke. I bought Pac-Man Championship Edition DX on the 360 (the last game I ever purchased on it) and found it basically unplayable due to the awful controls. When I picked up a PS3 it was the first game I bought, and I aced all the trophies in a matter of hours.

I discovered through owning a 360 that I really don't enjoy online all that much, and hated paying extra for it. I also hated feeling like I was being nickel and dimed by the accessories all the time. Then there was having to buy set amounts of points whether I wanted that many or not -- and the real kicker, the complete inability for Microsoft to handle a system transfer from my old 360 to my new, which was the final straw for me. On the PlayStation side, all I have to do is deactivate a system from my profile and activate a new one. We all hate DRM, but easy to manage DRM works for me.

This isn't meant to be fannish or trollish, I'm just trying to verbalize some of my experience with each.