Washington Post: Wii comes to Thanksgiving, PS3 locked up

socrates

see my correction? made in error when looking at the name on the post. yours was below his so i amde a human error. and corrected it. sorry it to so long for my confirmation e-mail and the no edit function

and b33

Microsft did not name the exclusivity. 2kgames did. the same day ms announced it to the world it was already known as it was released in a press release from the the publisher 2kgames.

meaning no timed. its exclusive. i wonder if some of us even know what that word means. Exclusive to the xbox 360 and Games for windows . Read the press release. educate yourself

Who are you guys kidding? None of you have any friends, and lets be honest the only praise the Wii is getting is for being a "party system." I have made too many bad game purchases with the excuse of being for when the guys came over. I maybe pulled those games out twice.

I would buy a Wii if Zelda wasn't the only thing going for it. I guess we will see in the future.

MS is building a solid foundation for its system (slow, but steady) and Sony can't seem to get its crap straight.

socrates

not the same thing

Games for windows and Xbox 360 are both microsft platforms. basically its a microsoft exclusive. and if you understand games for widnows branding you know it requires vista and must use the xbox 360 controler or have it as an option to be used

Basicaly when vista launches it will merge pc gaming and xbox 360 gamers into one flagship of Ms gaming platforms. In a ayear or 2 games will have live anywhere functions, communication will be seemless from pc's to xbox 360 consoles. with xna games will run on both a xbox 360 and a vista pc with no porting.

theres a huge movement being made by ms with tis vista games and xbox 360 many fail to either see or speak about now. i think tis the latter and the reason is many are not sure ms can pull this off. I look at it like this.

xbox 360 will be like getting a dell pre made pc if you will. and vista gaming will be like building your own dell pc if you will. in the end tghey will both be gaming togetehr and have the same games. ms wins cause either way you ahve to buys a xbox 360 or vista. anyway thats another disscussion

And now, I sit back, grab an ice cold Mountain Dew, listen to something by KOMPRESSOR to drown out annoying fanboys, and watch as Sony goes through what Nintendo and Sega went through after their 10-year dominances.

In other words, sucks to be them.

"
No one has pointed out the two obvious responses to this:
"

No one has pointed them out, because they do not make sense. Nice try though.

Sounds to me like Eagle (#31) votes for Republicans.
And he's a Sony fanboy!
Surprise surprise!

Anyhow, this really doesn't surprise me at all. I was at Circuit City last night for the 5am sale (I 'dun got m'self a 32" TV that has more than just a co-ax jack!)
Anyhow, two people in line were talking about the new consoles and, over hearing them, they were both let down severely by the PS3 so far...calling it everything from "a waste of money right now" to "A piece of shit". I later ended up talking to one of them and he was VERY excited for the Wii. Mostly, like myself, for the Virtual Console, admittedly.

People are excited for the Wii and rather ho-hum for the PS3, at this point.

Frankly, there is no point in arguing who is going to "win" this generation. There are too many variable in play at this point. All the momentum is on Nintendo right now, but Sony still has the best brand name going for them (kind of). MS is the dark horse at the moment.
Any number of things could happen right now, though. Sony could price themselves out of the market (and it seems they are, judging by most people's reaction to the price) and Nintendo could fall victim to the same things they've been falling victim to for the last 10 years.

My guess is this: If Nintendo can lock in an exclusive "super-IP" (new or old) from a 3rd party, they come out on top this era easily. Otherwise, it'll go to Microsoft and fizzle into the 8th generation.

First of all, Wii is meant to be easy to use, it's designed for all ages to understand. So clearly, Wii pwns the PS3 when it comes to attracting people who hasn't played videogames before.
Second, the wii60 boys (or whatever u are) in here who says the PS3 is teh doomz, remember the PS2 launch? that console was doomed too..(so was the PS1, but let's just skip that one for now)
Point is, Sony has never been the popular one when releasing a new console, but you seem to forget that fact very fast..

And one more thing, wasn't Nintendo going for non-gamers, and NOT the typical Playstation market?
Or do nintendoboys only mention that one when sonyboys talks about their solid fanbase+powerful console?

All in all both will be just fine.

One final point:
Have any of you nintyboys seen a family playing Guitar Hero, Singstar, eyetoy or Buzz? ;)

I actually believe the journalist. He would have put down food + drinks as expenses for the article. As he doesn't play games all the time, he probably actually socialises with other people. It would have been a great laugh having your friends over to play computer games on the latest consoles whilst getting paid for it. It wouldn't be something you want to make up, it would be something you would like to do.

Remember that even if you like to see yourself as some hardcore "gamer" you weren't born like that. Personally I would prefer the opinions as non-gamers as they probably don't have the compulsion to be a fanboy as the true "gamer". I also think non-gamers have a more rounded and realistic idea of what fun is. (Believe it or not gamers, there is much more fun to be had actually socialising with real live people doing group activities then sat in isolation staring at a screen - no matter how good the game)

I can understand sticking up for your local football team or even your favourite rock band. I cannot understand what drives fanboys to defend against all reason and logic what is basically an electronic device. Give it up.

Sony only have themselves to blame. They could have released the PS3 at the same time as the XBOX360, in greater numbers, with less of a failure rate, and a lot cheaper. All because they HAD to include Blu-Ray. Not so that you the "GAMER" has a better experience. No, just so they have more numbers in the next gen DVD format war. Your being used and still you stick up for sony. I could build you a gaming PC for the same price that knocks seven shades of shit out the XBOX360 in the "NEXT GEN" stakes. Just because I don't have to include a Blu-Ray drive. Although I can throw in a x16 speed dual layer DVD writer for peanuts.

The WII does look like fun, and the 360 has better online experience for the true "gamer". Both have targeted their markets and don't compete against each other. Sony is using people to fund their next gen war. I hope they suffer for it.

Correction.

"I could build you a gaming PC for the same price that knocks seven shades of shit out the PS3 in the "NEXT GEN" stakes. Just because I don't have to include a Blu-Ray drive."

Was what I meant to say.

I know exactly what "Games for Windows" is going to be doing, and none of that is going to make the 360 anything like a pre-built PC. Nor are Games for Windows going to require (or even require the option to have) a 360 controller.

Yes, online games will play on the same networks - a technology so advanced, they've been doing it for years with FFXI on the PS2/PC. I don't understand how any of this is responsive to my point that, if I have a PC and I want Bioshock, then a 360 isn't doing anything for me.

"No one has pointed them out, because they do not make sense. Nice try though."

OH SNAP.

Damn, those things I said have totally been ground to dust. Your dismissal of them was so devestating, you didn't even have to make anything close to resembling an argument, Skillcoil! You didn't have to, say, explain exactly which big time upcoming Nintendo games *aren't* sequels...nor did you have to justify your claim that sequels are always bad! (By extention, you believe that Zelda TP, Mario Galaxy, and Metriod Prime 3 all have NOTHING "unique or interesting" in them? That's a pretty bold stance to take!) I am impressed, Skillcoil - let no one say you are not named aptly!

What is really boils down too.

The ps3 is a disappointment. The potential is lackluster. Period.

Get a wii if your just looking for some easy games and dont get that wrapped up in long play sessions and online play. Plus its a great second system. Its a bit too gamecube for a real gamer, but it complements the 360 very well.

>>>62. What is really boils down too.

The ps3 is a disappointment. The potential is lackluster. Period.

Get a wii if your just looking for some easy games and dont get that wrapped up in long play sessions and online play. Plus its a great second system. Its a bit too gamecube for a real gamer, but it complements the 360 very well.

"62. What is really boils down too.

The ps3 is a disappointment. The potential is lackluster. Period.

Get a wii if your just looking for some easy games and dont get that wrapped up in long play sessions and online play. Plus its a great second system. Its a bit too gamecube for a real gamer, but it complements the 360 very well"

I'm sure you were the first one in line at the PS3 launch..actually, I don't think so. Now why would I assume that? Because you are the perfect example of a Xbox fanboy?
Naah, why would I even concider you to be a fanboy?!

Because you want to see Sony suffer (a very valid and mature statement btw).
Nintendo fans aren't just looking for a short&easy gaming session..try to clock a Zelda game, fool!
A great SECOND system? Cuz the 360 is the main system, right? Yet another of your "valid" points..

And to finish with one of my personal favorites:
"Its a bit too gamecube for a real gamer, but it COMPLEMENTS the 360 very well"...well, I'm sure nintyboys are very grateful for your kind thoughts..

I'm not even gonna ask you to define "real gamer", cuz that my friend, you wouldn't know anything about!

I'm out

@Riz #19

The DS is a novelty item right now. Over time people will realize that they are still playing Mario and Zelda, viewing inferior graphics, and will quickly lose interest in the DS. As the PSP, its games and PS online mature, we will see which is the better, more compelling system.

#65: Yea I see what you mean about the DS. 2 years on and the novelty of seeing the DS top the sales charts week after week is certainly wearing thin.

The relatives had fun do doubt, but did they have enough fun to go out and drop $250 for a wii and $50 for a game? Or are they going to bug you to bring over your wii whenever the holidays roll around and forget about the wii for the rest of the year.

I wish reporters would actually ask deeper questions then "which was more fun", of course the wii is! But will that translate into more converted gamers and $$ for Nintendo, now that is the real question.

@68, Kite:

"but did they have enough fun to go out and drop $250 for a wii and $50 for a game"

While that is an interesting point, there are a couple of things to consider:

1. They are more likey to get a Wii than a PS3 purely on their experience of the consoles. While they knew about the PS3 beforehand and were looking forward to it, they preferred playing the Wii

2. As for cost: Again, they are more likely to do this rather than $500 + $60 for the PS3. Also the extra $50 dollars isn't really fair on the Wii since the most popular game, it seems. is Wii Sports, which they get for free with the system.

Oh christ, Bioshock is PC and xbox exclusive? I wonder how long until microsoft cocks that one up and makes it xbox only...Ive been waiting for that game since it was announced.

Anyway, on topic, I dont understand this console war crap. For me it always has been and always will be which game is FUN. Thats what games are, theyre FUN. And the Wii is frigging fun. I dont care if its a remade Zelda game, or a new franchise, or a third party game as long as its FUN TO PLAY.

Just out of curiosity, that's exactly what happened to me when I (stupidly) became an early PS2 adopter. I've purchased a Dreamcast *afterwards* and actually stowed the PS2 away and have been happy like that for a few years until some quality PS2 software came out and the DC was nearing the end of its somehow short lifespan.

It's interesting to see how often history repeats...

I think that some people are missing the point when it comes to "non-gamers" picking up the Wii. Even if only 5% of those people who enjoyed the Wii pick it up then Nintendo should be commended. They will have expanded the market and that can only be good for EVERYONE involved in the industry.

Regardless of the merits of the PS3 and 360 they are both targeted toward the hard-core gamer and there is very little chance that a "non-gamer" is going to pick up either of these systems - even with the HD-DVD and Blu-Ray features.

It's okay to have a favorite system but at the end of the day the industry needs Nintendo to succeed.

Uh, Lefty -

"
and splinbter cell is going to be xbox 360 period not timed xbox 360 only.
"

This splinter cell you speak of... must be different from the Splinter Cell, Double Agent game that's out now, right? Cuz that's on every platform. Let me know which game you are reffering to...

http://search.ign.com/products?query=splinter+cell

Well I guess if you don't mind playing kiddie games (Mario 79, Mario's next adventure, Donkey Kong 44, and others) then you'll like the Wii. Personally I just don't see a single game out at this point for the Wii exclusively that I would even consider playing. I still may consider getting one, for my 6 year old, but not for me. For real gaming with great graphics, it'll be PS3 for me thanks.

For Black Friday my wife and I went to Best Buy for some of the early bird specials. I spoke to their video game sales rep and he stated that he had to restart the PS3 Kiosk four times that morning; it was about 9:30 AM. The store opened at 6 AM. We also went to Woodfield Mall in Schaumburg, IL. We visited the Sony store there and low and behold the PS3 was NOT TURNED ON. I inquired with the sales rep if she could have someone turn the Kiosk on and she stated that the unit was having 'Technical Difficulties.’ For all for those of you who don't know, Woodfield mall is located in a suburb of Chicago (Major Market) and it has 2,193,000 square feet of store space with 230 stores. I'm going to have a wait and see approach before I purchase the 60 GIG PS3 unit. I have an Xbox 360 and I really enjoy it. I also understand nothing is going to work 100% of the time. But for $900 with the configuration of accessories and games I want. I would like to see it do better out of the gate.

Full Disclosure: My Xbox 360 died on me back in late September. Microsoft did repair the unit in two and a half weeks free of charge but it was frustrating as I had just purchased NBA2K7 ($65 with tax) and it died that day. Also, my updated Xbox 360 (1080P patch released in October) does not do 1080P with my Sony Bravia 1080P TV. I know Microsoft's looking into it and will have a patch update sometime this or next year. But that pretty my stopped me from buying that HD DVD add on from Microsoft for my entertainment room this holiday. Also of note, my Sony Bravia is my second TV of that model. The first one’s HDMI ports did not work. Thank God for Costco and their excellent return policy. The second one is great and
I would recommend it HIGHLY. If you buy it from Costco (Model KDL46V251L1.)

B33 seems to forget the SHIT TONS of articles that talked all about Microsoft and Sony with BARLEY a mention of the Wii.

Bahaha, it's going to be a lot of fun watching Sony get crushed this gen, but the Sony fanboys will still have the same arguments...like with the PSP (which so totally rapes the DS!!!1111)

#4: Tomb Raider wasn't exclusive. It was available for Saturn and PC too.

I just recently bought the PS3, and let me tell you, the Wii kicks it's ass. Not only is it the hit of every social gathering I've had, it doesn't take two hours to get installed. The PS3 took an hour to update, another 30 minutes to estabish an account, and then 2 hours to download the Motostorm demo. Are you kidding me. The Wii took 20 minutes to update, 10 minutes to establish an account, and 5 minutes to get a virtual console game. Even though the Wii's graphics are a little on the shoddy side, they are so much more fun than the PS3 games. Resistance, although being heavily praised, really falls flat once you play it. The game is just about every other shooter you have ever played before. The controls feel pretty slow compared to the Wii and the graphics aren't in the same league as the 360. I want my money back!

How mightily I laugh when I hear those words "true gaming begins with great graphics". No it doesn't. A game, is a game, is a game. Some are great games, some are shit. True gaming doesn't begin with more powerful consoles. It begins with well written, fun, entertaining, novel and interesting games. It has fuck all to with the size of your electronic penis. Get over the fact you may have the most powerful console on the planet. If you think that what "true gaming" is, you have no-knob.

Saying graphics equates a better gaming experience is like saying Britney Spears is a better singer than Arethra Franklin because she's prettier.

Mario games are kiddie? You may have a point... after all, all the Mario franchise did was revolutionize the responsiveness of controls for both the 2D and 3D eras... a small step for man when compared to the giant leap for mankind that is "real-time weapon changes" ::rolls eyes::

Hahahahahahahahaahahaha

I remember many people saying "I can't wait for the PS3/Wii to be released so these fanboy flame wars will stop"

Man, those people must feel stupid right now
The only time these flame wars will be resolved is: Never (remember, the Turbo Grafx16 still pwns your sucky-ass Genesis with those gay-ass games)

Its also funny that us Nintendo fanboys seem to be panicking due to the fact that our "Electronic Penis" is clearly smaller
While other fanboys seem to be panicking that the guy with the smallest "penis" seems to have all the media hype and momentum (although the PSP had all the momentum initially too, and we all know how that came out)

socrates

GAMES FOR WINDOWS BRANDING has a few requirements.

1. all games must support 64 bit processors
2. must support all xbox 360 peripherials. Headsets, controlers, racing wheel
3. must be able ot be launched from inside media center
qand theres more but i will let you read that

with xna and Live anywhere ms is merging its 2 platforms. if you fail to see it thats on you. Read more closely on the branding.
1. they want specialty store displaying ie gamestop
2. new game boxes look just like xbox 360 games just with a diff top stripe thats says GAMES FOR WINDOWS
3.working playable demos like we see 360 kiosks

now some links and info from them
"It must support an "Easy Install" option that installs the title on your PC in the fewest possible steps and mouse clicks.
It must install an icon and associated information into the Windows Vista Games Explorer.
It must be compatible with the Xbox 360 common controller.
It must install and run properly on x64 versions of Windows Vista (though the game itself can be 32-bit).
It must support widescreen resolutions, such as 1680 x 1050."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Games_for_Windows

NOW YOU KNOW SOCRATES

Socrates

And to answer your question you still have to buy the $200.00 vista operating system to run BIOSHOCK.

Guess who makes vista? yeah Microsoft.
Who makes the xbox 360? Yeah Microsoft

They are either supplying you the heardware or an os to run the games that fall under their platform of Microsft Gaming. That was my point. they are making money off you either way and thats how they plan to be successful. both games will be pretty identical and with xna all the dev has to do is write the code. xna makes it hardware specific and takes care of the elg work

Now you can start to see how the pc branding and xbox 360 are getting closer to being one communtiy. Than you add live anywhere and the hardware gets blurred and gamers connect no matter what system. and not just some mmo style connect. i am talking voice chat, messaging, video chat the whole thing and hardware does not matter. thats microsfts goal. they are a software company afterall.

UNDERSTAND?

@28 Riz.

I disagree that the PS3's motion sensors are more accurate than the Wii's or in any way superior. For accuracy, there just isn't any real way to compare them since you would need to use both controllers in the same game on the same system to see how each ranks. Much like how reviewers judge gaming mice on computers by playing the same game on the same computer but using the different mice. For motion sensitivity, the PS3 controllers only handle tilt functions while the Wii handles tilt as well as position and motion tracking.

Blu-Ray as many have said until they're blue in the face (pun intended) is going to be a huge bonus if it falls flat and loses out to HD-DVD. Until that market sorts itself out, Blu-Ray is not as big an advantage as the fanboys would have you believe. Don't get me wrong, I actually believe the Blu-Ray format is superior but it's not guaranteed to win over HD-DVD. And if you need to see any past examples look up Beta vs VHS.

The graphics of the PS3 is sure going to look spiffy on the SDTV's that the overwhelming majority of households own. Not to mention that the PS3 games for the next year or so doesn't look much better than Xbox 360 games. By the time developers harness the power of the PS3 it may have already lost the battle.

The Wii is sort of like a Gamecube with a motion sensitive controller but to dismiss it because of that is rediculous. It is more powerful than a GC, by how much we as gamers don't truly know. We might as well dismiss HDTV resolutions cause it's just SDTV with more pixels. Or dismiss the Geforce 7900 video cards cause they're just speed bumped 7800's. Let's also dismiss the latest ATI and Intel CPU's cause all they are are updated CPU's based on a decades old i386 architecture. Why don't we dismiss all three CPU in all three next gen gaming consoles cause they're just different variations on the decades old PowerPC architecture.

@30 Eagle.

Just because you don't like the views presented by a journalist or think he can't think for himself doesn't mean it is so. If these journalist are doing such a crappy job that means you must think you can do better. If so, go take away their jobs and write something interesting for us to read. If not, stop badmouthing people you don't even know.



For everyone saying the Wii is "only for the non gamers" you have to realize that non gamers vastly outnumber the gamers. If Wii is drawing a few percentage of the overall non gamer crowd and Sony and MS both split most of the gamer crowd, it likely means Nintendo wins this round. Yes really. That's what happened with the PSP. Look at the sales numbers, the DS is almost always outselling the PSP and in some places like Japan, it is constantly doing so at a 5 to 1 ration.

And the Nintendo kiddie image is overrated. It is an image that came from Sony's marketing department that was perpetuated ad infinitum by the press and now by Sony fanboys. The truth is that while there is indeed a certain kiddie image to Nintendo games, some of their games are actually for mature gamers and even their kiddie games can be insantly difficult. As weird as it seems, Mario Sunshine was one of the hardest games I have ever played if you're trying to complete all the challenges. Yes, Nintendo makes a lot of sequels but look at what they have done with their sequels. Mario 64 is a sequel in many respects but at the same time it provided a completely new game playing experience to the public that was not available on any platform or in any game at that time. Similarly, Nintendo has moved some of it's other franchises in new directions that make them completely different from their predecessors.

This is the generation where Sony gives away their lead

--

Nah, I'd say Nintendo took it... They killed Sony with the DS and now with the Wii... give credit where it's due.

MS? Let me know when they make their first dime.

@50

lol. So u were willing to buy the 360 for perfect dark zero. Zedla TP is the first good game on the wii and its at launch and according to gamerankings, is the 3rd greatest game ever made. I have a 360 at my house (its my younger bros)and if i remember correctly my ds got more play time during its long drought. Oh and answer me this, whats the best 360 title thats not rated M. have fun with your shit ass FPS console.

I have people over all the time and we always play multiplayer games, wii bowling is a big hit right now. Party system is a good idea, that's the way to get the most fun out of it.

It is kind of sad that the comments to follow have degenerated to another system war rhetorics. It seem many have lost the message from the article. Those who are passionate about video games shouldn't really care about the opinion from a journalist from the Washington Post as to what is a 'better' game console. Most likely this journalist has clocked less than 1% of total time compared to more gamers. The article is more important with regard to giving us an idea how the non-gamers will react to the two gaming systems. If the market share is going to expand to the non-gamers, which system will they chose? The journalist gave us a little snippet of few non-gamer's reactions. Unfortunately, perceptions more often have bigger impact than truth. With the Washington Post reaching more non-gamers, this article may affect the public perception of the two consoles more than an accurate list of pro's and con's for each system found in some gaming magazine or website.

As a blogger posted on this very site said, you can't even review the Wii in the same category as the PS3 and the XB360 because its just a GameCube with a new controller.

No you are wrong the Wii has Xbox graphics. Nintendo does not want to be compared to Sony or Microsoft. I personally find nothing wrong with what all three companies are doing. Sony has their niche, Microsoft does to, and Nintendo has a new idea. Everyone needs to stop bashing the consoles. This is pretty much just a flame war.

The article doesn't really trash the PS3 so much as it says the Wii is really fun. It's telling you what you already know....it's a great mainstream system for gamers, and casual gamers alike. If you are hardcore, it's the perfect compliment to a 360, or a PS3. Just make sure to stick with the Wii exclusive titles because you know the cross platform stuff will look horrible compared to the 360 or PS3 versions.