Game Informer highlights the pros and cons of online console play comparing Xbox Live, the PlayStation Network, and WiiConnect24 side-by-side as is. If you have the luxury of owning and experiencing every service, not much is new here. But it's a good and balanced read, nonetheless, for the uninitiated.As you can expect, Xbox Live is highly acclaimed in the comparison though both Sony's and Nintendo's offering are given handicaps for their being new to the party. And while Sony is experiencing growing pains, Game Informer believes the company has the resources to deliver an "Xbox Live--at no extra charge," and who's against not having to pay monthly service fees for a comparable network?
With regards to Nintendo, no one really knows what the company has up its sleeve (if anything) as they currently don't support online gameplay. But there is a glimmer of hope; Nintendo is planning to release four new first-party games this year all reportedly supporting "online play." While not a lot, this is a first for a company that has yet to publish an online-enabled console game (only Sega did for GameCube). But those 16-digit console codes have us sweating the potential.
