I've been wanting to get a PS3 for some time now, and the PS3 Slim's announcement was the perfect opportunity to do so. I've owned the Xbox 360 since Halo 3's release, but could never justify a $500 purchase for a handful of games. That's not to say I was dying to try MGS4, Little Big Planet, Valkyria Chronicles, Uncharted, and Killzone 2.I picked my console up from GameStop a few days ago and thought I would deliver my initial reaction to the system.
Overall, I'm pretty impressed. The form factor is nice, though I wish that there was a way to stack it with my 360 without blocking the 360's vents. (This is probably MSFT's fault, not Sony's). I really appreciate the drop in power consumption, (though I hear rumors that the processing power is a little lower), and also like the buttons on the front of the machine as opposed to the original PS3.
There was also a bit that I didn't like. While I appreciated the included wireless networking (Xbox 360's wireless card costs an unreal $100), I did not appreciate the fact that the unit shipped without any form of HD video output. The first night I owned the system, I had to play Valkyria Chronicles at 480p, which was terrible, and in my opinion, unacceptable.
OS-wise, the PS3 is far inferior to the 360, in my opinion. While the OS menu is clean, crisp, and easy to navigate, the icons generally lack any color and many of the themes and backgrounds available make it very difficult to read most of the native fonts. I also found the PS3's store a little hard to navigate. What I did like about the PS3 was the Home system, which, when completely implemented, should be awesome.
Software-wise, the PS3 delivers incredible values on its games. Most games that are more than a few months old can be had for $40, as compared to the 360 where most games remain at $60 for a year. Nearly all of the games that I previously mentioned (excepting Killzone 2), are at this smaller price point or lower. On top of that, multiplayer on the PS3 is free, as compared to Microsoft's $5/month Xbox Live Gold. Exclusive-wise, the 360 seems a slight advantage (I'm a big Halo fan, loved Mass Effect, enjoyed Fable II, and liked Gears of War).
Overall, I'm very happy with my purchase. While I love my 360 a little too much to give up my XBL Gold subscription, I will definitely be checking from this point on to see if a title plays better on the 360 or the PC. Although I believe that the 360 is still a better system overall, the Slim is a huge step in the right direction for Sony. At the very least, I would expect to see as many PS3s as 360s under the Christmas tree this year.
-Jon
Overall, I'm pretty impressed. The form factor is nice, though I wish that there was a way to stack it with my 360 without blocking the 360's vents. (This is probably MSFT's fault, not Sony's). I really appreciate the drop in power consumption, (though I hear rumors that the processing power is a little lower), and also like the buttons on the front of the machine as opposed to the original PS3.
There was also a bit that I didn't like. While I appreciated the included wireless networking (Xbox 360's wireless card costs an unreal $100), I did not appreciate the fact that the unit shipped without any form of HD video output. The first night I owned the system, I had to play Valkyria Chronicles at 480p, which was terrible, and in my opinion, unacceptable.
OS-wise, the PS3 is far inferior to the 360, in my opinion. While the OS menu is clean, crisp, and easy to navigate, the icons generally lack any color and many of the themes and backgrounds available make it very difficult to read most of the native fonts. I also found the PS3's store a little hard to navigate. What I did like about the PS3 was the Home system, which, when completely implemented, should be awesome.
Software-wise, the PS3 delivers incredible values on its games. Most games that are more than a few months old can be had for $40, as compared to the 360 where most games remain at $60 for a year. Nearly all of the games that I previously mentioned (excepting Killzone 2), are at this smaller price point or lower. On top of that, multiplayer on the PS3 is free, as compared to Microsoft's $5/month Xbox Live Gold. Exclusive-wise, the 360 seems a slight advantage (I'm a big Halo fan, loved Mass Effect, enjoyed Fable II, and liked Gears of War).
Overall, I'm very happy with my purchase. While I love my 360 a little too much to give up my XBL Gold subscription, I will definitely be checking from this point on to see if a title plays better on the 360 or the PC. Although I believe that the 360 is still a better system overall, the Slim is a huge step in the right direction for Sony. At the very least, I would expect to see as many PS3s as 360s under the Christmas tree this year.
-Jon
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