Who Will Win The Console War This Christmas

[mdvaldosta]

It’s that time of year again. Christmas shoppers are gearing up and making lists of everything that their children want. On the top of the majority of those lists you will hear things like “I want a PS3” or “I really need a Wii” or “How can I play Halo 3 online without an Xbox [...]

Read more at AfterTek.

 

[Rufinito]

I don't know anymore. For me, consoles are seriously dying out. Computers do everything a console can do and more. I might be quite disconnected, but with the rise of computers and their price drop, I'm tempted in predicting that game console sales will do down.

But then, that's probably because I'm a console hater.

EDIT: Then, we should also take in consideration the crisis.

 

[bass_man1989]

Computer prices may be dropping, but consoles are still much cheaper than a gaming rig.

 

[Mase]

I'd really like to see a day when the console wars will be over, and having only 1 console. I really don't want to spend $1000+ to buy 3 consoles so i can enjoy nintendo, sony, and microsoft games without missing out on any of them. I'd also like to see a day when instead of releasing a new console every 4/5 years, they just release graphics/storage/etc upgrades for the consoles, like they do with computers.

 

[bass_man1989]

Yeah, they tried console upgrades. It was the Sega CD... Although it would be nice to have only one console.

 

[SgtSpike]

Wii will win hands down.
360 will be close behind.
PS3 will lagggg hardcore compared to the others because they refuse to drop the price on it. Which shouldn't be a problem, as they built the console for longevity, not for immediate huge sales like the 360.

And computers are actually dying out as a gaming platform because of piracy. I really hate people who steal games off torrents because they are single-handedly destroying the computer video game industry. Fewer and fewer games are being released on the PC platform these days because the publishers and developers just do not make enough money off of them anymore. A study was done, and 25% of all software running on PCs in the US was pirated. That's staggering. That's the difference between a huge surplus and a huge deficit when you're talking budgets. And I would imagine because that report includes businesses and the software they are running, and because gamers are of a different demographic that is more likely to pirate software, that the percentage of pirated video games is much higher than that.

/end rant.

 

[bass_man1989]

Drop game prices and we can talk about reducing piracy. I have no problem spending $20.00-$30.00 for a game, but $60.00 is just too much.

As far as the original topic, Wii will win again. They're just so damn hard to come by that once a store gets them people buy them up real fast.

 

[SgtSpike]

Drop game prices and we can talk about reducing piracy. I have no problem spending $20.00-$30.00 for a game, but $60.00 is just too much.

As far as the original topic, Wii will win again. They're just so damn hard to come by that once a store gets them people buy them up real fast.

Lol... you know, you're right. While we're at it, we should drop the prices of cars too. Then I'll stop stealing them. Oh, and it's ridiculous how much they charge for shoes these days too... maybe if they dropped the price, I wouldn't take so many from the stores.

Really, I can't believe you actually try to use that as a valid argument. Stealing is stealing, I don't care what the price of the games are.

EDIT: And BTW, if there was no piracy, game producers could afford to reduce the price of games significantly, maybe even in to the $30 range. If twice as many people bought games, they could reduce the price by almost half. Material costs are virtually nil.

Also, the only way that video game makers could make a game and sell it for $20 is by either skimping out on the content or engine, or coding it crapily, or having no plot, or cutting out some other valuable material from the game (or if there were no piracy). Besides, how many hours of entertainment does a video game provide? Compared to a movie? A book? A board game? Really, the entertainment value per dollar for video games is almost always much higher than any other form of entertainment.

 

[bass_man1989]

I know it's not a good argument, but I'm broke. What can I say? I don't wanna pay $60.00 for a game that might turn out to be crap. And I know there are reviews. I read tons for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and I bought it, $20.00, and I didn't care for it. But it's twenty bucks, yeah, it sucks that I lost the money, but it's not $60.00.

 

[NicAuf]

Lol... you know, you're right. While we're at it, we should drop the prices of cars too. Then I'll stop stealing them. Oh, and it's ridiculous how much they charge for shoes these days too... maybe if they dropped the price, I wouldn't take so many from the stores.

Really, I can't believe you actually try to use that as a valid argument. Stealing is stealing, I don't care what the price of the games are.

EDIT: And BTW, if there was no piracy, game producers could afford to reduce the price of games significantly, maybe even in to the $30 range. If twice as many people bought games, they could reduce the price by almost half. Material costs are virtually nil.

Also, the only way that video game makers could make a game and sell it for $20 is by either skimping out on the content or engine, or coding it crapily, or having no plot, or cutting out some other valuable material from the game (or if there were no piracy). Besides, how many hours of entertainment does a video game provide? Compared to a movie? A book? A board game? Really, the entertainment value per dollar for video games is almost always much higher than any other form of entertainment.

:24::24::24:

This reminds me of that shitty commercial that compares stealing a car and downloading a song.

:24::24::24:

 

[bass_man1989]

You wouldn't download a car?

 

[SgtSpike]

I know it's not a good argument, but I'm broke. What can I say? I don't wanna pay $60.00 for a game that might turn out to be crap. And I know there are reviews. I read tons for S.T.A.L.K.E.R. and I bought it, $20.00, and I didn't care for it. But it's twenty bucks, yeah, it sucks that I lost the money, but it's not $60.00.

Well, yeah, I agree with you there. I almost never buy a game without a recommendation from a friend or playing a demo of it myself. But the same could be said for almost any consumer item - there are lemons and there are really good quality items. It's just a matter of being smart and knowing what you are buying. :thumbup

BTW, PC games start at only $50, and usually drop in price after just a few months. There's only a couple that I've seen for more than that, and usually it's because they are collectors editions.

EDIT: And I'm not too rich either. I usually can only buy a new game every other month at best. But I make do with what I have, which is what everyone should do. I'd love to buy a new iPod, but I'm broke. Should I steal one? It's exactly the same principle.

 

[SgtSpike]

:24::24::24:

This reminds me of that shitty commercial that compares stealing a car and downloading a song.

:24::24::24:

I take it you don't agree with me...

So what would you call downloading a song, besides stealing? It's obviously not purchasing, and it's taking what isn't yours, so.... I dunno, I really can't think of anything besides stealing to relate it to.

 

[Mase]

Stealing music doesn't compare to stealing cars. Theres a Major difference in how much they cost. Cars are like thouands of dollars each, where as music CDs are like $15 each, even cheaper with individual songs from itunes, being at less than a dollar each. In my eyes, The more expensive it is, the more bad it is to steal it.

 

[bass_man1989]

When you steal music you steal from multi-billion dollar companies. When you steal a car you steal from the driver of that car, someone who may not be able to afford it.

 

[SgtSpike]

When you steal music you steal from multi-billion dollar companies. When you steal a car you steal from the driver of that car, someone who may not be able to afford it.

Let's see... how many people do those multi-billion dollar companies employee? What happens if those companies stop making a profit, and then have to lay people off? Then you haven't cost someone a car, but you've cost them a job and a livilyhood.

I don't care whether you steal a toothbrush or a car, it's all stealing, and it's all 100% wrong. Just because you're stealing from a corporation does not make it right, nor does it make it any less damaging to people, whether it's directly affecting them or whether it is down the line - it will all be paid by someone. There's no such thing as a free lunch (or free stealing).

 

[NicAuf]

Let's see... how many people do those multi-billion dollar companies employee? What happens if those companies stop making a profit, and then have to lay people off? Then you haven't cost someone a car, but you've cost them a job and a livilyhood.

I don't care whether you steal a toothbrush or a car, it's all stealing, and it's all 100% wrong. Just because you're stealing from a corporation does not make it right, nor does it make it any less damaging to people, whether it's directly affecting them or whether it is down the line - it will all be paid by someone. There's no such thing as a free lunch (or free stealing).

So you've never downloaded a song, received a burned CD, and all music you listen to is legally purchased?

 

[bass_man1989]

Yeah, burning a CD is considered stealing.

 

[SgtSpike]

So you've never downloaded a song, received a burned CD, and all music you listen to is legally purchased?

Nope, I downloaded like 23 songs when I was 14. But the rest of my music is 100% legally purchased.

 

[bass_man1989]

At least you're not a hypocrite. I've been bitched at by many people for downloading movies/games when they download songs by the thousands themselves.