With four ways to game in the living room or office, buyers have more options than ever before. Here's our quick guide to what separates one system from another.
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Sony PlayStation 3
Will 2009 be the year of the PS3?
Price: $399/$499
Who needs it: The Technophile
The Basics
The PS3 is well into its stride, and this year packed some superb exclusive games. Still, Sony's online service isn't as well-organized as Xbox Live, but it is free and packed with demos, and has more experimental and oddball games than Live. Also free with the system are Blu-Ray movie playback and wireless networking capability, which is built-in rather than an add-on accessory, as in the Xbox 360. The motion-sensitive Dualshock 3 wireless controllers have rechargeable batteries, and all PS3 models are HDMI compatible.
Media and Extended Entertainment Capabilities
Though not all games for the PS3 support 1080p gaming, the system is the most aggressively high-def console available. The system can upconvert standard DVDs or playback Blu-Ray discs for HD movie viewing; movies look fantastic on the system. The PS3 can also read your PC's media library and act as a media server to push content to your PSP anywhere there's an internet connection.
The Exclusive Games
LittleBigPlanet:
First in what's near-certain to be a new genre of "social platform" games, LittleBigPlanet lets you get together with friends to create and solve intricate puzzle-based levels -- then share them with the world.
Metal Gear Solid IV: Guns of the Patriots:
Snake's story comes to an end -- or does it? -- in this climactic finale to one of gaming's best-loved series.
Resistance 2:
Shooter fans really have something to get their teeth into on the PS3 this year: the critically-acclaimed Resistance 2 will take you on a journey through a dark, dismal alternate version of the 1950s, complete with alien invasions and the subjugation of the human race.
System Breakdown Continues: Nintendo Wii >>
Posted: 18 Nov 2008
