It's time to start with a decision-making process. I'm not definitely in the market yet for one of the three next-gen consoles, but I will be, perhaps within the next year. This is an open post that I'll probably keep updating for a while. Keep in mind that my must-have games may not be the same as yours, though I'll welcome your suggestions.
| Positives | Negatives | Must-Have Games |
| Wii | ||
|
| Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn Metroid Prime 3: Corruption No More Heroes Okami Super Mario Galaxy Super Smash Bros. Brawl |
| XBox 360 | ||
|
| Assassin's Creed Blue Dragon BioShock Eternal Sonata Mass Effect |
| Playstation 3 | ||
| Assassin's Creed Final Fantasy XIII LittleBigPlanet Metal Gear Solid 4 Ratchet & Clank Future Uncharted: Drake's Fortune Valkyria Chronicles | |
Issues to consider:
Where will the RPG market land? Right now the Xbox seems to be leading on the quirky RPG front. Unless the install base widens significantly, it doesn't seem terribly likely that the PS3 will be as successful in that regard as the PS2 was. However, the PS3 is a likely landing place for the main Final Fantasy titles and the Tales series. The low development costs of Wii games may end up turning the 2-D RPG and strategy RPG markets to that console, even though the Gamecube was notoriously weak in the genre. Thus, the Wii may end up catching the narrow-market RPGs I often adore.
Can the HD consoles attract classic adventure games? It can't be a secret that I really like adventure games in the Zelda mold. Assuming that the X360 and PS3 split the RPG market, the clincher for either of these consoles will be success in attracting this generally ignored genre. Games like Beyond Good & Evil suggest that this genre can grow beyond the Zelda clones to include experiences of great emotional depth. Will the HD market go this way, or will the genre languish once again, save for the loving devotion of Nintendo?
Which console will generate the most interesting artistic innovations? I think the knee-jerk response here is the Wii, but it seems to me that developers have so far done much less with motion control than they could have. Instead, the Wii seems to have become a grand repository of casual-gaming shovelware, with a few truly innovative titles here and there. Despite its potential, the Wii has yet to see a game that achieves the true gestalt of emotional communication and interactivity that marks games as an artform. Does No More Heroes fill that void? And Sony Computer Entertainment cannot be ignored in this regard—Ueda's Ico and Shadow of the Colossus were some of the best art made for the last generation of consoles. Also, as the PS3 and Wii have been getting up to speed, Bioware and Irrational have started to take interesting steps on the X360. This is currently an open question, but for me it's a significant one.
And, to track my position by date:
1/30/08 - leaning towards Wii first, HD console (much) later.
2/13/08 - If the PS3 lacks backwards compatibility that is a major minus in my book. Baroque will come out on PS2, so it's no longer in the Wii column. The more I hear about Lost Odyssey the more ambivalent I feel. On the one hand I like the idea that short stories are built into the game, on the other hand I hate games that string cutscenes together using lame gameplay, not to mention that I hate hate hate amnesia as a plot device.
2/15/08 - Okami hops into the Wii category. I was underwhelmed by the gameplay on the PS2, but this is a game that would really benefit from the motion controller.
2/24/08 - Added Insult Swordfighting's controller reviews.
2/25/08 - Valkyria Chronicle looks really interesting. Into the PS3 pro column it goes.
Where will the RPG market land? Right now the Xbox seems to be leading on the quirky RPG front. Unless the install base widens significantly, it doesn't seem terribly likely that the PS3 will be as successful in that regard as the PS2 was. However, the PS3 is a likely landing place for the main Final Fantasy titles and the Tales series. The low development costs of Wii games may end up turning the 2-D RPG and strategy RPG markets to that console, even though the Gamecube was notoriously weak in the genre. Thus, the Wii may end up catching the narrow-market RPGs I often adore.
Can the HD consoles attract classic adventure games? It can't be a secret that I really like adventure games in the Zelda mold. Assuming that the X360 and PS3 split the RPG market, the clincher for either of these consoles will be success in attracting this generally ignored genre. Games like Beyond Good & Evil suggest that this genre can grow beyond the Zelda clones to include experiences of great emotional depth. Will the HD market go this way, or will the genre languish once again, save for the loving devotion of Nintendo?
Which console will generate the most interesting artistic innovations? I think the knee-jerk response here is the Wii, but it seems to me that developers have so far done much less with motion control than they could have. Instead, the Wii seems to have become a grand repository of casual-gaming shovelware, with a few truly innovative titles here and there. Despite its potential, the Wii has yet to see a game that achieves the true gestalt of emotional communication and interactivity that marks games as an artform. Does No More Heroes fill that void? And Sony Computer Entertainment cannot be ignored in this regard—Ueda's Ico and Shadow of the Colossus were some of the best art made for the last generation of consoles. Also, as the PS3 and Wii have been getting up to speed, Bioware and Irrational have started to take interesting steps on the X360. This is currently an open question, but for me it's a significant one.
And, to track my position by date:
1/30/08 - leaning towards Wii first, HD console (much) later.
2/13/08 - If the PS3 lacks backwards compatibility that is a major minus in my book. Baroque will come out on PS2, so it's no longer in the Wii column. The more I hear about Lost Odyssey the more ambivalent I feel. On the one hand I like the idea that short stories are built into the game, on the other hand I hate games that string cutscenes together using lame gameplay, not to mention that I hate hate hate amnesia as a plot device.
2/15/08 - Okami hops into the Wii category. I was underwhelmed by the gameplay on the PS2, but this is a game that would really benefit from the motion controller.
2/24/08 - Added Insult Swordfighting's controller reviews.
2/25/08 - Valkyria Chronicle looks really interesting. Into the PS3 pro column it goes.
7 comments:
I think the sequel to Tales of Symphonia is suppossed to come to the wii...
ps. eagerly awaiting your review of Revenant Wings
A Tales of Symphonia sequel on Wii would probably cause me to purchase it right away. Not many people know about the Tales series, but I thought Symphonia and Abyss were pretty freakin' awesome. Someday I should post my review of Abyss that Amazon rejected for being too long. I might wait until Matt's through with my copy and replay it first, though.
D'oh! I was clipping along quite nicely in Abyss until I started back working overtime again. Now it takes to long to start up Abyss when I can just flick a switch on the PSP and be exactly where I was the night before in Disgea which allows me to play as much or (now-a-days) as little as I see fit. Plus, I can watch TV while I play the PSP.
I award myself 3 points for the longest run-on sentence this week and may God have mercy on my soul.
Mario Galaxy is wicked fun! I know you like to have folks over to play too. In that case, you might want to consider the Rayman Raving Rabbid series. The second one is way fun with some drinks and some extra controls.
I think this may resolve the problem.
I can now actually comment on this post. This past weekend I tried out the Wii and it was the most fun I'd had playing a video game of any type in years. And all I played was the sports games that come with console. A 4.5-year-old kicked my ass at bowling, but I went par for the course at golf and beat both my opponents (one of whom was the 4.5-year-old, but I beat her dad, too!). I told the wife that I was never, ever allowed to have one of these consoles myself or I would never get anything done again.
So if you decide on the Wii, please don't hesitate to invite me over.
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