I can finally afford a PS3 but should I bother?...got a few questions..

[Crazy Climber]

Hello

I have to admit that I really had zero interest in a PS3 up until yesterday when I played a Target Store display. It was a soccer game and man it looked/played great, I forgot how much I enjoy Sports games, probably because the Wii doesn't really have any. I always cringed at the price of a PS3, sure I have paid the same price for a near 30 year old Atari game but thats besides the point Anyways with all the bills paid and my nice little Economy Stimulus check coming this week I realistically could buy a PS3 without my Wife freaking out or having to eat spaghettio's for the next month but I have a few questions if anyone can help, I'm just not sure if it's worth plunking down that much coin if you know what I'm saying....

1 - One is $400 and one is $500, what is the difference? Memory? Is the extra $100 worth it for the better one?

2 - Here are the first games I was thinking about getting, any must haves I am forgetting that I should check out?

Uncharted

The Bigs

Motor Storm

NBA 2K8

3 - To play online do I just need an internet connection or do I have to pay some extra stupid monthly fee on top of internet charges?

4 - Are there casual gamer such as myself online or is just total fanboys that are going to waste me in a few minutes and mock me/tell me how much I suck, etc...

5 - Can you hook a keyboard up to it and surf the web just like a computer?

6 - Overall is this system "worth it" for a weekend gamer like me or am I better off just buying more Wii games?

Any help would be great, I know a lot of this stuff I could just google but I like to hear it from people I trust, Thanks

[Starscream]

1. Bigger hard drive. Up to you on space. You can always upgrade the HD later if you want (that's my plan anyways)

2. I loved Heavenly Sword and Resistance as well as Drake

3. Just a connection. Online is free but you get what you pay for (like the wii)

4. Hard to say. Not too much going on online yet

5. Yup

6. Skip the wii games and the PS3 and get a 360 if you don't have one. If you do have a 360, get the PS3.

 

Don't get me wrong, I love my PS3 but the 360 is tops in every possible way over the other 2.

[+SpiceWare]

Besides the larger drive, it has more USB ports(handy for Rock Band, no need for a USB hub), built in memory card readers and it can play PS2 games(via software emulation though,some games play well, others not so well).

 

Do you have an HDTV? The PS3 is currently one of the best Blu-Ray players out there. Sony recently updated the firmware to support the 2.0 spec.

[EricDeLee]

1 - I wouldn't spend the extra for extra HD. You can always throw a laptop hard drive in there later. If you can find one... search out the Backward compatability model PS3s. I like being able to play the PS2 and PS1 games on the PS3. Or... grab a Metal Gear Bundle when it comes out. May be a better buy with the Dual Shock 3 controller in it.

 

2 - Uncharted was great! Heavenly Sword? Ok. I can sell you my copy as I already beat it. Call of Duty 4 is a must in my opinion. The game itself is short... but the online playing is amazing. You can always add one of us to play with or against you. I'm okay... but by all means I'm not anywhere near great. GTA4 came out today, ummm... Metal Gear 4 is coming out. Lots of great games. If you have kiddos, you should get PAIN from the Playstation Store. It makes them laugh alot. Plenty of good stuff

 

3 - As mentioned above: Free

I have not used the Xbox Live... so I really can't judge. I do like the sound of FREE better than MONTHLY FEES. And after logging as much time as I have on CoD4... online... I think it does very very well for a free service. So don't get scared off by the above comments. It is still a great service and performance wise seems fine.

 

 

4 - Both... casual and hardcore are out there. When you start off in say Call of Duty 4... you play against people of the same rank/skill. So for the most part, you won't be fighting someone that has prestiged 16 times and whatnot. It is on level ground so to speak.

 

5 - Yes. Awesome! I do a lot of internet stuff on it as well.

 

6 - Not sure what is up with the above comment on this. I think the PS3 is great for the casual gamer. My fiance uses it to stream music if she is cleaning house, we watch movies, streamed video from the computer... etc etc. If It is not being used for gaming, it is still being used for something. very very good investment! I own all 3 systems and believe I've got my money worth out of this one. The others... not so much.

 

 

 

Good luck man! I think you will enjoy though once you get one.

[cimerians]

TheXbox 360 is pretty cool and I love some of the games on it but I would highly recommend a PS3 too if you have the money. Its the best blu-ray\DVD player I've ever had and you can play games on it too of course. Try to get the 80G. You want to be able to play PS2 games and also the extra space will be handy.

 

Games I played through:

Resistance

Uncharted

Ninja Gaiden Sigma

Pixel Junk Monsters

[Seob]

1 - One is $400 and one is $500, what is the difference? Memory? Is the extra $100 worth it for the better one?

True Bigger drive on the second, but don't know if it still has the extra usb ports and memory card reader and ps2 compatibility

I have the 60Gb Backwards compatible ps3, and only used it's backward compatibility once, normally i play my ps2 games on my ps2.

Also have used the memorycard reader only once. Don't need the extra usb ports, but the big plus why i bought the more expensive ps3 is because it had 2 controllers and 2 games (motorstorm, resistance)

 

2 - Here are the first games I was thinking about getting, any must haves I am forgetting that I should check out?

Uncharted GREAT really love that game.

Motor Storm nice but i don't play it very often.

Resistance Fall of Men I think it is a good game.

GTA IV will get it next friday.

 

3 - To play online do I just need an internet connection or do I have to pay some extra stupid monthly fee on top of internet charges?

Only a internet connection is needed, online play is free.

 

4 - Are there casual gamer such as myself online or is just total fanboys that are going to waste me in a few minutes and mock me/tell me how much I suck,

Don't know haven't played online yet. But i think it will be the same as with every platform, if there are a lot of youngsters only you might get a lot of fanboy talk and thy will mock.

 

5 - Can you hook a keyboard up to it and surf the web just like a computer?

Yes, i think Unreal even supports playing it with a keyboard and mouse. You can also install a special linux distribution so your ps3 will act as a computer.

And you have the build in browser.

 

6 - Overall is this system "worth it" for a weekend gamer like me or am I better off just buying more Wii games?

My ps3 gets more play then my Wii. The Wii is for fun with friends or for fitness (have to do some kind of sport).

I was thinking of buying a xbox360 and a wii back when i was deciding what console to buy. For the price of a ps3 i could have bought the xbox360 and the wii easily and still have some money left for a game to buy. But i did coose in favor of the ps3 (got my Wii half a year later).

Mainly because of the high failure rate of the xbox360 i decide for the ps3 and haven't regret it since then.

[Starscream]

3 - As mentioned above: Free

I have not used the Xbox Live... so I really can't judge. I do like the sound of FREE better than MONTHLY FEES. And after logging as much time as I have on CoD4... online... I think it does very very well for a free service. So don't get scared off by the above comments. It is still a great service and performance wise seems fine.

 

Here is one example of what free gets you......not cool

Then there's the whole COD4 hacks and cheats online. Just 2 examples of getting what you pay for. Today, a huge game was released and people that play on Live have been enjoying it all day, people on the PS3, not so much. And I hate playing against cheaters which I can recall happening to me twice on Live in over 5 years. Not arguing with you, not trying to be "right", just stating the fact that Live is THE online service. Ya know how at rest stops you can get a free cup of coffee? It does the job and you can't expect the best coffee in the world when you get it but for a good cup of coffee, you go to DD and pay a few bucks for it and then are satisfied. I have played BOTH, Live wins hands down.

 

6 - Not sure what is up with the above comment on this. I think the PS3 is great for the casual gamer. My fiance uses it to stream music if she is cleaning house, we watch movies, streamed video from the computer... etc etc. If It is not being used for gaming, it is still being used for something. very very good investment! I own all 3 systems and believe I've got my money worth out of this one. The others... not so much.

 

Good luck man! I think you will enjoy though once you get one.

 

 

The 360 has the most diverse library of any of them. Live Arcade has tons more games available then the PS Store that cater to almost everyone. At this point, the 360 would be the best choice if you are looking for something to play but you just don't know what. As I said, I have my PS3 and I love it and wouldn't dream of not owning one. But if you wanna play some games, it can't hold up against the 360.

[moycon]

I agree with Starscream 100%.

 

If you can afford a $1,000 hit to you bank account, get both. Enjoy the Blu-Ray and the few exclusives the PS3 offers.

Otherwise if you can get one or the other and you're mostly interested in gaming. The 360 is the way to go hands down.

 

3 - To play online do I just need an internet connection or do I have to pay some extra stupid monthly fee on top of internet charges?

 

PS3 online is free, but in my opinion it's only free until they get their shit together...which they haven't yet.

You can be sure the PS network works ok for downloading things you bought from the store (altho downloading stuff and upgrades seem to take about 5 times longer than Live), just don't expect a great gaming experience using it, and once its large and stable enough to support gamers, you can bet they will charge you to use it. If you have the least bit of interest in online gaming, pay a little (it's like $4 a month or technically free if you buy a kit) and get something you can use as opposed to beta testing the PS network.

 

6 - Overall is this system "worth it" for a weekend gamer like me or am I better off just buying more Wii games?

 

The PS3 I bought was the 60Gig model for like $499.99. Was it worth it? Basing it on how much I use it to play games.

No.

I've probably gotten more use out of it watching HD movies.

PS3 is ok for the casual gamer. Some peoples fiance use it to stream music when cleaning house, watch movies, stream video from the computer... etc etc. Thing is, the 360 does all that as well and presents it better (The VLM kicks ass) plus has a crap load more games on the Live Marketplace for the casual gamer. My girlfriend eats up games like Solitaire, Uno, Brain Games etc.... With the exception of Eye of Judgement (provided I hook it up) My GF has zero interest in the PS3. Maybe it intimidates her...maybe she just hasn't come across anything that catches her fancy. I only have about 10 games from the PS store, so it's possible I haven't found one she likes. Often times I try to find stuff she would like. FLOW. The rubber duck one, the Colored Egg one (Sorry don't know the names of the games) but so far she isn't biting. I would consider her a "week-end gamer" so there ya go. Take that bit of info for what it's worth.

Edited April 30, 2008 by moycon