Video game console battles
It is a never-ending war for the seventh-generation video game consoles.
Microsoft’s Xbox 360, Sony’s Playstation 3 and Nintendo’s Wii have been competing for gamers since the November 2005 release of the Xbox 360 and November 2006 release of the Playstation 3 and Wii.
According to vgchartz.com, the Nintendo Wii has the most console sales worldwide with an estimated 54.99 million systems sold. The Xbox 360 is next with 32.78 million, then the Playstation 3 with 25.74 million.
The sale differential is a direct reflection of the consoles’ prices. Best-selling Nintendo Wii also is the cheapest system at a retail price of $199.99, followed by the Xbox 360 at $299.99 and the Playstation 3, which recently had a $100 price drop to $299.99.
Student perspective
Students have their own ideas on who is winning the video game console battle.
Ferndale sophomore Kyle Funk said one of the best things about the Nintendo Wii is its general appeal for the masses, especially since it is the first console to support a motion-sensitive controller.
“I’ve always been a fan of Nintendo,” Funk said. “I’d say for hardcore gamers, you should get a 360 or PS3, but a classic gamer or a casual gamer should get a Wii.”
Though the Nintendo Wii has the most sales worldwide, Techumseh freshman Christopher Berges said he thinks the Xbox 360 is what gamers are looking for.
Berges said the first-person shooter series Halo and the Xbox Live online components are what attracted him to the Xbox 360.
“It seems like the online play is more competitive than on the PS3 and Wii,” he said. “I like the Halo series, and I heard some bad stuff about the PS3 about it not working, so I chose to get a 360.”
Game Traders employee and Royal Oak junior Justin Sczechowski said the Xbox 360 seems to be the most popular platform.
“A lot of people seem to really like the Xbox 360,” Sczechowski said. “Probably because it was cheaper when it first came out, and I feel there is a better selection of inexpensive games for it. That seems to be our biggest new shelf.”
Hardware difficulties
Sczechowski said even though the Xbox seems to be a gamer favorite, he sees people having many technical problems with the Xbox 360.
“I am actually looking into getting a PS3 just because I hear so many problems about Xbox’s like, ‘My tray won’t open,’ and, ‘It’s giving my games the ring of death,’” Sczechowski said. “That’s all I used to hear about Xbox and I hear it more now that I work here, so I’d rather get a PS3.”
The “ring of death” is a notorious general hardware failure in which three of the Xbox 360’s four lights circling the power button flash red. The error is typically unrepairable.
Lifelong gamer and Brighton sophomore Adam Marth said the Playstation 3 is all about the future.
“I think every other gaming system is inadequate for top quality game usage,” he said.
