Is PS3 still worth buying?

[admin_exported]

I was seriously considering buying a PS3 as my bluray player as i beleived my favourite game of all time, Tekken would be an exclusive to it. However upon hearing that Namco has decided to go with releasing Tekken 6 on both PS3 and Xbox360 i wondered what will be the point in buying a PS3 if the game will come out for my Xbox. Maybe i should purchase a stand alone bluray player as they seem to be getting better reviews than the PS3 for picture quality, such as the Sony 350 bluray player, which is also cheaper than the Playstation.

Also with the new media update soon ariving for the 360, which will bring it up to par with the features on the PS3 and the rumours of a add on bluray drive, what future remains for the PS3. I already have the HD DVD add and i must admit the picture looks great on my Sony LCD. HD DVD discs are also virtually pennies since the format is dead. I picked up 300 for 2 quid as opposed to 17 quid on bluray. Although bluray is a must now as its been a while since HD DVD collapsed.

I cant believe Sony would let a firm exclusive title like Tekken slip. I really dont want to purchase a PS3 just for Metal Gear Solid 4 especially when the picture doesnt compare to the newer blu ray players.

Is it the end of PS3? Can someone advise me which bluray player would be good for around the same price as a PS3 or lower. Cheers.

 

[moomin]

I have a ps3 ,and the picture quality of bluray discs on my panasonic plasma are of brilliant quality,also as the ps3 has wireless capability,it is easy to do downloads etc without having to connect ethernet cable to most of the stand alone bluray players,some do not even have an eternet connection for bluray live discs,so the ps3 is future proof,i can quite confidentaly say that the picture and sound quality the ps3 gives is superb,and you will proberly only really notice a major difference buying a decent standalone bluray disc player if you are going to connect it up to a larger screen than 50 inch or a projector say

 

[Anonymous]

My problem with the 360 as a games console is how limited it is by only having a DVD drive as standard. Look at MGS4, already the PS3 has games using dual-layered blu-rays. Say these consoles have a life-span of 4-5 years left, that means in 5 years time developers will still be limited to just the capacity of a DVD for 360 games.

 

[lobby]

I think if your planning on purchasing a lot of games for your ps3 it is worth it, and with all the other features yes for sure. As you have an Xbox 360 im sure your finding many reduced games and preowned ones about, where as the ps3 still seem to be expensive in comparison.Im lucky to have both , and find xbox live fantastic lots of friends on line, and no so many on ps3.Also like you said many of their exclusives are coming out on the xbox for example final fantasy, i bought my when the 60gb version was reduced still paying £425 with 2 games, 2 controllers and 2 blu-ray movies. Hoping for exclusives like tekken, final fantasy , metal gear solid, gran turismo etc, ive only 6 titles for ps3 and over 50 for xbox.So what it boils down to is if your gonna use it for games as well as movies, if not stick with your 360 and buy a decent blu-ray player. Panasonic bd35 would be my choice.

 

[manicm]

Personally I don't think so anymore, especially since the XBox 360 price has been reduced. Considering this Microsoft made the correct choice in not incorporating a high-def player built-in. And as a Blu-ray player the PS3 is now well surpassed.

Get an XBox 360 and Sony's BDP-350. The best of both worlds I would say.

 

[Anonymous]

Lewis201:
My problem with the 360 as a games console is how limited it is by only having a DVD drive as standard. Look at MGS4, already the PS3 has games using dual-layered blu-rays. Say these consoles have a life-span of 4-5 years left, that means in 5 years time developers will still be limited to just the capacity of a DVD for 360 games.

Yes iv heard that too, but have also read in an interview of the producer of MGS4, saying that the Xbox360 would have no problem handling the game. I guess the only reason it has remained exclusive to PS3 is because Sony has paid enough for it to remain exclusive. I mean talking about limitations of a dvd in 360, all you have to look at is Gears of War 2, iv not seen anything as good as that on either of the consoles. To be honest nothing even surpasses the first Gears of War game and thats 2 years old now. Iv played Heavenly Sword and as good as it looks its such a short game, and by noway is it greatly better looking than Ninja Gaiden 2 on the 360 whereas Heavenly Sword is on a bluray disc.

I think when it comes to movies the bluray disc does surpass the quality of dvd and the full space is required. However, when it comes to games for the current gen of consoles i believe the capacity of the dvd is more than enough considering the look, length and quality of the games that are being released for the Xbox360.

 

[Anonymous]

The PS3 is a fine gaming console and Blu Ray Player and in my opinion having seen the SONY BDPS350 and also Panasonic's BD35 players these two are only marginally better in terms of picture quality...that is if you are type of person who only watches movies with a view to picking out all the differences in detail, shading, colour saturation etc...and analysing everything you see rather than just sitting back and being entertained by what you see before you

If you want to play games and watch Blu Ray movies then it's the PS3 ..if you're not bothered about games then either of the above would be fine. Both Upscale DVD's quite well too and are slighly better than the PS3 in this respect

 

[Anonymous]

Buy a ps3 with confidence! The bluray performs great, is fully specced and future-proofed. It may not represent the best bluray performance for the money but then, that's not all that this machine does. (can't help feeling that Sony could potentially offer updates in future that will further enhance bluray performance like they have done already) Also, this a games machine first and foremost- the quality of games offered in general are as goods as what is offered by the likes of the xbox. But, the best is yet to come- when the software companies start to really get to grips with programming with the ps3's capabilities then we are really going see things fly!

I think that the xbox is a good machine but can't help feeling that this is as good as it gets for it plus i hear that they are releasing yet another xbox with wi-fi, larger hard drive and an improved hdmi output to better compete with the ps3 in particular presume. If i were an xbox owner i would be pretty annoyed with having to contemplate fleecing out more money for another machine with the extra facilities that should've been in the current one.

 

[Anonymous]

If you're on a very tight budget the PS3 would do the job, although the gaming and blu-ray are compromised, while if you buy separates, such as the Sony BDP-S350 blu-ray and an Xbox 360/Wii, you'll enjoy better image quality with your Blu-rays and better games. Which path you choose is up to you.

 

[Anonymous]

Nintendo_Fan:If you're on a very tight budget the PS3 would do the job, although the gaming and blu-ray are compromised, while if you buy separates, such as the Sony BDP-S350 blu-ray and an Xbox 360/Wii, you'll enjoy better image quality with your Blu-rays and better games. Which path you choose is up to you.

ÿ

In what way is the most powerful current games console compromised for games?ÿ

And as for BluRay, the only compromise I have found is it can get noisy if not well ventlated. The picture quality is better than all the other first gen players, and almost as good as similarly priced current players that I have seen.

ÿ

 

[Anonymous]

I have a ps3 and a wii and prefer the ps3! most of wii games are gimicky

 

[Anonymous]

garethwd:I have a ps3 and a wii and prefer the ps3! most of wii games are gimicky

ÿ

The Wii is a great machine...for parties and kids. It isn't even a next gen machine. The PS3 and the XBOX360 IMO are the first 'serious' games machines that can compete with a decent PC, and the PS3 is far more future-proof.

 

[Anonymous]

Yes you are right the wii is fun at party's but ive found the ps3 games have more substance! I suppose they both fufill the market they were intended for

 

[Anonymous]

If the Wii isn't serious then what happened to Legend of Zelda or Metroid Prime? These are massive single-player adventures that make even the most serious PS3 games look like child's play. That said, for TRULY serious gaming at a bargain price, buy a legacy system such as a Super Nintendo, as long as you're willing to sacrifice hi-tech graphics and sound.

 

[Anonymous]

I'm sorry but you can't really believe that a serious gamer is going to chose a Wii over a 360 or PS3. Nintendo market the Wii as an alternative to the other two consoles - for casual gamers and kids. Enjoy the Wii for what it is, don't pretend to yourself that it's something it's not.

 

[Anonymous]

pudley:
Nintendo_Fan:If you're on a very tight budget the PS3 would do the job, although the gaming and blu-ray are compromised, while if you buy separates, such as the Sony BDP-S350 blu-ray and an Xbox 360/Wii, you'll enjoy better image quality with your Blu-rays and better games. Which path you choose is up to you.

ÿ

In what way is the most powerful current games console compromised for games?ÿ

And as for BluRay, the only compromise I have found is it can get noisy if not well ventlated. The picture quality is better than all the other first gen players, and almost as good as similarly priced current players that I have seen.

ÿ

When saying compromised i believe he meant that there are very few decent games on the machine, and the ones that are good are direct ports over from the 360.

I dont believe current 360 owners will get angry if a new machine comes out because most consoles get updated sooner or later anyway, prime example being the ps2 which became slimmer and far few disc read errors. Even the current PS3 has had upgrades where they took out backward compatibility, reduced the hard drive to 40gb, took out a few of the ports to make it cheaper, and then increased it to 80gb and are rumoured to be releasing a 160 or 180gb model. Both Sony and Microsoft can find themselves at fault for that issue. Nintendo is the only console which has stuck to what it set out to be and neither changed or modified anything about there console. It is also rumoured that Nintendo did not release the Wii to compete with the the 360 or the PS3 but to lay foundations down for a console that will be vastly superior to both the 360 and the PS3 including all the top notch motion sensing gadgetry.

Iv been waiting a year since the PS3 came out for a decent set of games to buy the console for but it hasnt happened. All i hear is that the games are coming.. are they really?

Im quite confused as to PQ, some of you say it is almost on par with bluray players of the same value some of you say it is not, maybe the What HiFi team can help?

 

[bigblue235]

I dunno, I just think it's impossible for anyone to declare which system is 'best'. That's different things to different folk

Personally, the only system that seems in any way 'next-gen' to me is the Wii. The control system is genuinely innovative, as are the games. What's innovative about the 360 or PS3? More power? HD resolutions have been available on the PC for years, so that doesn't justify the 'next-gen' tag to me. The Wii version of PES held my attention far more than any of the other versions (of which I have PC and PS3 versions also).

If you want a console for gaming, buy the one that has the games you like!

If you want Blu-Ray then luckily with the price drops you could afford either the PS3, or the 360+standalone. Personally, I'd go for the PS3 every time, but that's just me! I just think it's a great one-box solution, and I haven't yet seen a Blu-Ray deck that performs noticeably better.

 

[Anonymous]

For me, the PS3 is still the best value all round piece of kit sitting under my TV. I have a Wii too and it's good fun at a reasonable price, but the PS3 has made me enjoy my TV so much more than I would without it. As a Blu Ray player I think it's great. Picture is still really very good indeed. As for games, well I'm satisfied. There are more than enough games for it to fill my time. Then of an evening where I just want to sit back and watch a Blu Ray, I'm sorted there too. I can very much see why some people would go for and Xbox. As a pure games console they're dead cheap now, but as a console I don't think they'll last anywhere near as long as the PS3 will.

If you were to take my PS3 away from me now, and offer me the choice of what I'd buy, I'd almost certain just buy another PS3 vs a Blu Ray player and a 360 say, so for me it's still worth buying. I don't look back at the £420 I paid when it was new and think "Oh ***, what a waste", I've been enjoying it happily since.

 

[Andy Grange]

I've got a 360 and a Wii, and I'm still thinking about buying a PS3. For one it's a very competent blu-ray player, and secondly it's an excellent media hub. It's only now that games such as PES with additional functionality to the 360 version is making me want a PS3 for gaming as well.

 

[Anonymous]

It's quite interesting to note too that on one Blu Ray Review site that they include a PS3 for Testing

 

[Anonymous]

Andy Grange:I've got a 360 and a Wii, and I'm still thinking about buying a PS3. For one it's a very competent blu-ray player, and secondly it's an excellent media hub. It's only now that games such as PES with additional functionality to the 360 version is making me want a PS3 for gaming as well.

What is the additional functionality on PES?

 

[Anonymous]

Tallyho:
It's quite interesting to note too that on one Blu Ray Review site that they include a PS3 for Testing

That website seems to be quite old as it is quoting the 60gb version of the PS3, which was the 1st model to come out here in the UK. Do they still use the PS3 for testing or do they use newer bluray players as they seem to get much better reviews than the PS3 even here.

"Sony PlayStation3 (80GB) * * * * £300
The PS3 is still a capable machine, but some of the cheaper stand-alone players offer more"

 

[Anonymous]

Namco had to move Tekken to Xbox as well as PS3 because it's a large chunk of the market.

However, from a general AV perspective, the PS3 is good value and with the recent Xbox price drops, it's not impossible that Sony could do the same in the coming months. And MGS really is pretty special ; )

For new Blu-ray player verdicts, you need to see our Awards issue - out on Thursday...

 

[Anonymous]

I bought mine for the bluray player and as a media storage unit. First thing I did was put a 320GB drive in it. Have uploaded my HD home movies and also my song collection. I do play GTA 4 & Gran tursmo (that came with it) from time to time.

I think that the BD playback is fine. It also upscales DVDs.

Boo

 

[Anonymous]

Finding this discussion most interesting. As a PC owner I've never really looked into getting an XBOX or PS3 as for my tastes the PC provides all the 'HD' gaming I need, and has been doing for some years. I do of course have a Wii for when we have guests round, because from a social standpoint it's in a league of it's own.
Now I'm not going to argue about which is best, since it's all down to taste, you either pick one PC, XBOX, PS3 or get them all.
Anyway, the one thing that had been tempting me to PS3 was that it had always been known as the best value BD player around, and you always had the option of some gaming on the side, however as I've stated I don;t need the gaming aspect really, so hearing that some of the newer players are edging ahead in the quality/price ratio is very interesting. I'll look forward to continuing developments on this thread