[mireaux7]

Alas, we are in the 7th generation of gaming consoles. (and have been since the xbox 360 launched back in 2005)

I usually consider myself a pretty avid gamer, borderline hardcore sometimes

I own about 10 consoles and close to 1,000 games..so im pretty affluent when it comes down to gaming

i should be ecstatic about the Wii, PS3 & 360..but for some reason,.im not

I have all 3 six gen consoles (ps2, gamecube, & xbox). Im not a fanboy, but i do tend to lean towards sony's line more than anything. (thats where most of my 6th gen investment is at)

am i somewhat phased out? or de-sensitized with gaming due to my large collection?. I dont think I am, i still play the games I own, so i wouldnt say that im done with games or whatever

The issues i see is that with every leap into the next gen of consoles, there must be others such as myself who demand a substantial improvement over the last line of systems.

what is so much better about xbox 360 over the original xbox?....

wii is great and incorporated motion detection and what not, but the graphics seem almost on-par with gamecubes. (are there really any noticeable differences between the wii version and the gamecube version of Zelda-Twilight Princess? for example)

Like i say, I dont yet own any of the 7th gen consoles..and its not that i ever would. The system I would get would be the PS3. But there are only 3 games I would really care about playing right now (Final Fantasy VII remake, MGS4 & GTA4)

Ive heard a string of rumors that the 40gb ps3 is not backward compatible with any of the psone or ps2 games...if thats true, why the hell would i want to upgrade to ps3?

..and why are there soo many ps3 40gb models available, but the availability of 60gb or 80gb is next to none (actually i heard one of these models was discountinued by sony)

but guess what? sony is releasing one of the superior ps3 models in a dazzling gun-metal grey color that is to be bundled with the release of mgs4. what a marketing ploy..bring back the superior model, just to sell a game.

if i get a ps3, its cause i waited for some things to happen first:

* for sony to release a slim model of the chunky ps3
*for the price to drop a bit
* for sony to reinstate backwards compatibility and/or bring back the models that can play the psone & ps2 games

[reiner]

I'm not quite sure either but I can say 2 things:

Online capability for multiplayer and Arcade/VC style titles is a huge leap over 6gen. The leap for 360 was less subtle, but appreciated as it abstracted online play out of game design. Nintendo still needs to catch up, but the store is a great place to pick up fun old titles.

Innovative controls. Mostly for the Wii. It's really enjoyable navigating through menus with a point and click interface, simulation of actions with the wiimote and nunchuck, and having essentially a built in light gun. I'm not quite sure why Sony even bothered trying to put motion control in the Six Axis. Their design seemed infinitely more gimmicky and "Me too" than Nintendo's.

On the other hand, I'm not sure about some of the hype. Honestly, the most beautiful game I've seen in the past year has been a PS2 title (ACE3). I attribute this to laziness of designers not having to really push the hardware they have. You know what else was incredible looking? The Gamecube Resident Evil releases. I'm not a graphics whore, but I've capped off lengthy diatribes from those who are by bringing those up. That was an example of a company using the full capabilities of a system. I've yet to see anything like that for the next gen systems.

I currently own a Wii and a 360. I had not previously owned an XBox (but always had a roommate who owned one at least). I don't regret the purchases and have spent probably a hundred bucks on just DLC. I own a number of titles for both. You know what's finally making me want to buy a PS3 at the end of this summer? Disgaea 3. A game that for all intents could be run on a PS2. In a way I don't mind. I know there will be other title I'll want to get for a PS3, but it's sad that it took me this long to care about getting one. The 360 I bought in the same manner. The Wii I actually camped for, because I wanted the release titles.

I really wish that designers would step up and push the systems. They've been given some impressive hardware, but for buyers like me, I can't be won with numbers alone. I need something to do with my box of plastic.

[Dr Lecter]

One of my housemates bought a PS3 pretty much on release, thought it was pretty decent... Until he played my 360, then he bought a 360. Enough said.

[SimeSublime]

I'm going to get a Wii. I have the cash, just no time to use it atm. Hence no rush. The only games on the 360 that caught my fancy are Bioshock, Oblivion and Mass Effect, all of which have better versions on the PC. The PS3 has completely and utterly failed to proove any worth to me, but that's a matter of opinion. Some people apparently like it for some reason.

[No Idea]

I hope I don't sound like too much of an asshole when I say this but you really just need to make up your own damn mind as to if you wish to buy the new consoles. Look at the games, do you want them? If the answer is yes, then look at the prices, if you want it that much then buy it.

For me this console generation has been fairly good but I am certainly not able to form your opinion for you.

Now for the actual questions that I can answer objectively:

The PS3 40GB model can play PS1 games but not PS2 games. Sony Discontinued both the 60 and 80 GB models of the PS3 though for MGS4 they will be creating a new line of 80GB models. Both the 60 and 80 GB models have both PS1 and PS2 emulation with the first generation 60 Models having a slightly better go at it.

Hope that answers some of your questions.