IGN picks PS3 as best new console of 2006
by Blake Snow 
{ Jan 16th 2007 at 11:45AM }
Hell froze over. We've got some positive Sony news today. IGN has picked the PS3 as the best new console of 2006 despite its lackluster launch and widespread criticism. Even though there were only two new consoles to choose from and despite its lack of games, IGN says the PS3 wins the best console award on potential alone:"Judging the consoles based upon a broad perspective that includes software now available and coming in the future an entirely different argument could be formulated. However, from a hardware perspective, the PS3 is by far the more interesting console. Though the launch software hasn't blown anyone away, the 360's launch titles were equally unimpressive, and the system will certainly mature. Sony's embrace of the PS3 as a computer rather than just a console, and the availability of supported Linux distributions for the console will also develop and will likely bear entirely unexpected fruit in future."
It's refreshing to see someone play Devil's Advocate, but that reads like IGN's best new computer award, not best console award. Hardware, Linux distros ... sounds exciting! Anyone else stoked for the PS3's future potential?
[Thanks, Phil]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Saint Jouten @ Jan 18th 2007 4:10AM
FIRST POST!! =D
Saint Jouten @ Jan 16th 2007 11:51AM
FIRST POST!! =D
Diman @ Jan 16th 2007 11:51AM
Now you guys report the old shit *clap* *clap*, can't get that fanboy ball rolling?
Thrawn @ Jan 16th 2007 12:33PM
As an open source and Linux advocate, I know I'm psyched about the $600+ entrance fee for developing on a PS3!!!!!!!!!111111
In fact, I'm sending my PS2 kit to the landfill as we speak.
Zoot Suit Jedi @ Jan 16th 2007 11:54AM
Further evidence that the folks over at IGN do not know how to drink responsibly.
You should write reviews BEFORE having your Appletinis.
RHP @ Jan 16th 2007 12:58PM
I don't know, just from a perspective of public perception and innovation, I say the people choose the Wii as the best new console of 2006.
Nintendo is generating some serious buzz.
But then again, I don't know anyone who has a PS3.
ZaBlanc @ Jan 16th 2007 1:53PM
Everyone keeps talking numbers and potential, but go play some Wii Bowling or Zelda and tell me that playing games on a regular controller for 5 more years still excites you.
The Wii software hasn't blown us away yet either...but just like the DS vs. PSP, people just seem to be in denial about "fun." Lost Planet got a 6.4 in EGM. See how far it gets ya?
j @ Jan 16th 2007 12:00PM
From your lead in alone. hell froze over! Proves that joystiq does not like Sony. You have been the 1st site to criticize sony for even the smallest amount of bad press, making it into this huge thing. I just cant wait, until the ps3 really kicks off and all of you M$ fanboys, start heralding sony.
razer @ Jan 16th 2007 11:55AM
360 equally unimpressive? Condemned, Kameo, DoA, CoD2 just to name a few of the great launch titles.
Granted, nothing revolutionary but not unimpressive.
Congrats to the PS3!
milly @ Jan 16th 2007 12:09PM
Man, I bet Laserdisc won that award one time.
iliketuna @ Jan 24th 2007 7:34PM
wow ign really is retarded. who the hell gives awards for future potential? you award something (anything!) based on what its accomplished, not what its plans are.
lets just give wayne gretzky's sons all the nhl mvp awards based on pedigree!
trent @ Jan 16th 2007 12:37PM
this doesnt make sense. how can they choose the best console of 2006 by using the future possibilities as the deciding factor? then its not 2006 anymore, but 2007 or 2008.
Josh @ Jan 16th 2007 11:58AM
No brainer really. From current release dates it doesn't look like my Wii is going to be getting too much errr "love" until the end of the year. However the PS3 has several big-name titles coming out between now and summer.
funkonaut @ Jan 16th 2007 1:28PM
Sounds like there's some money changing hands under the table over at IGN...
crono141 @ Jan 16th 2007 12:52PM
I like Appletinis!
Bryan @ Jan 16th 2007 12:01PM
I wonder how many ads Sony had to buy at their site to earn that recognition.
BIGGEN @ Jan 16th 2007 12:02PM
well, until the future arrives, my poor ps3 is collecting dust. it's not even shiny anymore :( but my 360 is, and has since launch, never collected dust. hm
Stu @ Jan 16th 2007 12:19PM
Unless the future potential involves it becoming a *good* system I'm not entirely interested.
Rob Holiday @ Jan 16th 2007 12:08PM
I am so tired of hearing "potential". I want something NOW! Few people buy something for potential. It's always "what can you do for me now." Maybe when the PS3 has some good games, then they might sell better. I'm still wondering why I bought a PS3 when 95% of my gaming time is on the 360.
Dot @ Jan 16th 2007 12:05PM
"Sony's embrace of the PS3 as a computer rather than just a console, and the availability of supported Linux distributions for the console will also develop and will likely bear entirely unexpected fruit in future."
Right, because the PS3 as an unupgradable proprietary computer-wannabe is exactly what we need!
I think I'll stick to my PC instead, thanks.
iJanda @ Jan 17th 2007 2:41PM
"I wonder how many ads Sony had to buy at their site to earn that recognition."
Probably quite a bit since they don't deserve it.
"From your lead in alone. hell froze over! Proves that joystiq does not like Sony."
No, it proves that there actually IS positive news concerning $ony in the sea of negative news. Negative news isn't Joystiq's creating. Its everywhere. PoS3 has gone to great lengths to deserve its horrendeous press lately.
Flute Suit @ Jan 16th 2007 12:07PM
I lol'd.
droptop GP @ Jan 16th 2007 12:10PM
IGN hits us with MASSIVE DAMAGE!!!
OHHHNOOooZZZZ!!!!
IT'S TEH GIANT ENEMY CRAB!!!! (oops, just a pic of a ps3)
quick!! real-time weapons change!!
RIIIIIIIIDDDDDDGGGGGEEEEE RRRRAAAAACCCCCCEEEERRRRR!!!!!!
Chris @ Jan 16th 2007 12:23PM
They also gave Okami a million awards. Might be a sleeper hit, but it was hardly one of the best games of the year. IGN's list was unimpressive as a whole in all catagories. They even said as much on their OWN podcast.
lol
Wiggydee @ Jan 16th 2007 12:16PM
Don't get me wrong, i think the PS3 has truck loads of potential, but wasn't this supposed to be an award for "the best console of 2006"?
One quote i will strongly dicagree with is "from a hardware perspective, the PS3 is by far the more interesting console." I know we have all heard it a million times, but having a new console like four times more powerfull than the previous generation has been done countless times since the beginning of game consoles. Where as (you guessed it) the wii, with keeping the console the same, but the way you play it is apparently perfectly traditional?
Congratulations to sony on the award, but they're basing the best of 2006 on whats going to happen in 2007.
elmer @ Jan 16th 2007 12:11PM
They said the same thing about PSP VS DS when they came out, and then reitterated their Sony love a year later.
iJanda @ Jan 16th 2007 12:45PM
"Proves that joystiq does not like Sony. You have been the 1st site to criticize sony for even the smallest amount of bad press, making it into this huge thing."
I hate to break it to you.... but every recognizeable blog has posted an endless stream of bad news for the PoS3. Digg.com, Kotaku, penny-arcade, joystiq, cnn, fox news, etc. etc. etc. Joystiq isn't biased. News is news. I'm sorry that some "news" breaks your little fanboy heart, but Joystiq is simply reporting gaming news. period.
If you must hate Joystiq for reporting the issues the PoS3 has endured, then you must hate every major gaming blog under the face of the sun.
Anthony D @ Jan 16th 2007 12:39PM
The PS3 is selling so badly it's not even funny. I live near the second biggest mall in the US and our Target has over 100 units in stock and hasn't sold one since 2 weeks before Christmas. Our EB games has over 40 in stock and hasn't sold one in weeks also.
On the other hand, both stores are selling Wii's and 360's almost daily.
5 of my buddies bought the 360 over the last 2 months. Sony is in trouble......F--- EM!!!
Flit @ Jan 16th 2007 12:15PM
@j:
No, just because sony hasn't had anything good to report since the launch (loss of exclusives, plethora of consoles on shelves when there shouldn't be, shoddy networking services) doesn't mean that joystiq is biased. How's Ken in bed, btw?
"...Linux distributions for the console will also develop and will likely bear entirely unexpected fruit in future"
Are they herolding the console because homebrew and 1337 haxxorz? Why else would Linux be a good thing? This is like saying the xbox won the first console war because it was moddable, or the PSP is a good system cuz you can play roms on it.
"However, from a hardware perspective PS3 is by far the more interesting console."
Can anyone explain this to me please? How is the ps3 any different from the 360? (don't say blu-ray, 1080p please, we've debated those enough). What does sony really have that is radically different from the 360. I"m honestly curious.
lucky644 @ Jan 16th 2007 12:39PM
It's refreshing to see someone play Devil's Advocate, but that reads like IGN's best new computer award, not best console award. Hardware, Linux distros ... sounds exciting! Anyone else stoked for the PS3's future potential?
__________________
Totally stoked about the PS3's potential to do anything but gaming ;)
J Korn @ Jan 16th 2007 3:58PM
Hey "j" quit throwing the fanboy card, you're obviously a fanboy yourself. As for criticizing Joystiq for the title, you apparently don't understand what it means. By saying "Hell has frozen over" Joystiq is implying that for once there ISN'T negative news about Sony. They aren't saying that because they hate Sony, they're using it as an expression of surprise. And I'm going to assume that since you are obviously a Sony fanboy that you conveniently forgot all the Microsoft bashing articles prior to and after the 360 launch. There were plenty. The 360 is even the console that started the whole "[insert console here] annoyances list." Just because the system you got duped into buying (by a company that has more issues than a lifetime supply of Sports Illustrated) doesn't live up to what that SAME company said it would be doesn't all of a sudden make every blog post biased.
Daniel @ Jan 16th 2007 2:03PM
As an owner of all three next-gen consoles at their respective launches, there is no way in HELL that the 360 launch lineup was as unimpressive as PS3's. Condemned, King Kong and CoD2 are all almost as good and in some ways better than Resistance, which, though it's superb, is the ONLY good game for PS3.
I really don't care about all the fanboy shite. All I'm saying is that the 360 launch lineup was decent. On that note - too bad so many of 'em wouldn't play those sweet games. PS3s, on the other hand, seem to be working just fine for the most part.
itsgreen @ Jan 16th 2007 12:34PM
lets face it, the only other new console was the Wii.. and the PS3 is more powerful (or better) than the Wii
mandarin @ Jan 16th 2007 12:38PM
THat just proves it.
IGN is just a lackey who gets paid to write articles.
Frosty22 @ Jan 16th 2007 12:49PM
Why is it that video games is the only industry that has 'fanboys'. People aren't like "omg Foxnews is totally a repub fanboy" or anything like that. People are not objective. It is not part of who we are. People will have opinions, and there ARE reasons behind those opinions. If you are screaming 'fanboy' that is because you yourself are a fanboy--obviously something got you all wiled up to start shouting "OMG YOU ARE SUCH M$
If you are not in favor of 'fanboyism' then I would recommend that you never read a newspaper, magazine, watch the news, talk to your friends, view blogs, talk to a Best Buy employee, or ever deal with anything ever that involves a person... because we are all fanboys of something.
So in closing... stfu.
Norm @ Jan 16th 2007 1:21PM
So far I'm pretty happy with all of my consoles. I see potential in the PS3, though I play my 360 and my Wii a lot more. If I didn't get a PS3 as a gift though, you better believe I would wait till that 'potential' was realized. As it is, I like them all about the same, but really...
PS3 is not really looking so hot just yet. So far the only action mine gets is Tekken 5 DR and Resistance, cause the other games don't seem interesting at all. I'm just saying you should wait for the PS3 and buy it when the great games start to roll in.
jSn @ Jan 16th 2007 12:25PM
IGN proves, as sports columnists prove daily, just because you write about it, doesn't mean you actually know anything.
The ps3 is a lame duck. There's nothing interesting about the hardware, as it's all a generation old already! Unless you count the blu-ray drive, which brings ZERO value to it as a game console. From a hardware standpoint the PS3 was released over a year ago by Microsoft. It was called the Xbox 360. Only they didn't force you to wait for and pay extra for the blu-ray drive.
Linux on the ps3 means nothing. I take that back, it means negative game sales. Because if people buy it to run linux, they aren't buying games. Which means more developers jump ship or drop exclusivity so that they can actually make money on their investment.
vidGuy @ Jan 16th 2007 12:26PM
Mmmmm... hardware. How I love to hold thee, cuddled in my arms. Don't listen to them, PS3, you are everything I need. Shush, baby, it'll be alright.
/not
Cmon. The PS3 has immense potential, even as I Wii60 owner I can admit that. But if that potential energy doesn't get converted to kinetic energy soon, the PS3 will be dead in most respects by Holidays 07.
machrc @ Jan 16th 2007 12:47PM
As a hardware standpopint of view there saying it can excel at becoming a hackers dream.. Like the PsP the pii-Three will get exciting software from the hax0r community and programming community it will be more geared towards techheads that love a free software running gaming rig that you can setup just like a cpu. The only thing I don't see it bringing is that it wont have the connectivity and community feel like MS's system. I mean the friend code on the wii is a joke, the ps3 online system other than it brought the GT demo is also a joke. Live is the future in gaming, I mean how many times have you discussed the latest game with homeone at a BBQ and not traded gamertags?
David004 @ Jan 16th 2007 12:48PM
"However, from a hardware perspective, the PS3 is by far the more interesting console."
So? The hardware of the PS2 was complete shit and still won. IGN really has lost their minds. From a GAME PLAYING perspective the Wii blows the PS3 out of the water. Oh that's right we don't care about the video games on a fucknig video game site!
logikil @ Jan 16th 2007 12:36PM
razer:
Likewise i wonder why people rag on the 360 launch titles. In the past few launches (Xbox, GC, PS2, PS3, Wii and 360) the 360 definitely had the most well rounded launch. Anyway, I don't blame IGN for their pick. I mean based on future potential and online alone, the PS3 is definitely the better of the two systems.
I am somewhat surprised that IGN took that route to give there opinion. Anyway, I can see why they made the pick though.
NintendoFanbot @ Jan 16th 2007 12:57PM
"Sony's embrace of the PS3 as a computer rather than just a console"
As if that's really worth rewarding. What if a company's really dedicated to making games? If they spend all their time making money on making games, do they have to do provide more for things they DON'T make money on?
People don't want to spend any of their slacker time on a 'mini-game' console but gush over monotonous PC media traits?
Bullshit. Sony peddled this months ago and IGN fell for it.
painpainpain @ Jan 16th 2007 7:50PM
Totally undeserved - IGN have been blinded by the Sony branded headlights and not took into account all the terrible things which the PS3 has spawned thus far. If anything, the Wii should of took the accolade of console of 2006. I get the feeling this is all damage limitation on Sony's part.
trent @ Jan 16th 2007 1:25PM
more powerful = better
LOL
bigd7387 @ Jan 16th 2007 1:15PM
Potential. Since when do I play Potential as a game? PC qualities? Best new system should be the Wii followed by PS3, Best new Low end PC.
rats @ Jan 16th 2007 1:41PM
WHAT THE EF?
Josh @ Jan 16th 2007 1:07PM
"As an open source and Linux advocate, I know I'm psyched about the $600+ entrance fee for developing on a PS3!!!!!!!!!111111"
You must be really excited about the price of XNA, then.
Flit @ Jan 16th 2007 12:46PM
"lets face it, the only other new console was the Wii.. and the PS3 is more powerful (or better) than the Wii"
Yes, because this argument worked for.....
The first Xbox
The Gamecube (yes, it is more powerful than the ps2, go look at RE4)
The Dreamcast
Intellivision
Alienware Computers
And many many more consoles that were outpowering their counterparts that ended up losing their respective console war.
Tim Marman @ Jan 16th 2007 11:35PM
Agree with razer (#4). COD2 was an awesome title... and then of course we had a few post-launch titles worth talking about (GRAW, Oblivion to name a few).
The problem with comparing the 360's launch titles with the PS3's launch titles is that the competitive landscape is different today than it was in Nov 2005. The 360 has the advantage of being out there with an established user base and second-generation games. It *IS* fair to compare the 360's second-gen games with the PS3's launch titles because that's the choice consumers have today. In doing so, they have in effect canceled out the PS3's horsepower advantage by delivering second-gen games that look as good as the initial batch of PS3 games. And when the second-gen games come for the PS3, we'll have those third round of Xbox games.
Friends in the game development industry tell me the 360 is infinitely easier to develop on - and the XNA effort is prime example of that. Anyone who can program in .NET can develop something that will compile and run on the Xbox 360. Of course, this should come as no surprise since one MIcrosoft's key strengths is the creation of platforms through excellent developer tools and well-designed APIs.
On top of this, the Xbox is cheaper and more readily available. Having the external HD drive means they are not bound to the success of either format, and yet can always integrate down the road if and when there is a clear winner. (Personally, I think they are betting on digital delivery, and I think that's the long-term winner here).
The PS3 should not be compared to the Wii because they are targeting different demographics. At the end of the day, this way comes down to the 360 vs. the PS3, and I personally think Microsoft will "win" this round primarily because of that head start.
sheppy @ Jan 16th 2007 1:46PM
Anthony D, what town are you in. I'm calling those stores and calling bullshit on your claim. When even Meijers in my small as town manages to sell about 3 PS3's a week, I highly doubt the "second largest mall in the US" would have not a single sales for weeks.