[IGN Awards] Best Console of 2006

[MGS4-SS]

Console launch years only come around twice a decade or so, and they're always guaranteed to be exciting years. The 360 matured dramatically since this time last year and its second-generation titles like Gears of War and CoD3 made the PlayStation 3's job of shocking the world with its immense power rather difficult.

Nintendo's Wii launched to massive mainstream applause and a lot of hope has been placed in the potential for gaming innovation via the console's unique controller. Nintendo disappointed some, however, by choosing not embrace HDTV or to compete with Sony and Microsoft in processing power. The Wii can't even play normal DVDs.

Judging the consoles based upon a broad perspective that includes software now available and coming in the future an entirely different argument could be formulated. However, from a hardware perspective, the PS3 is by far the more interesting console. Though the launch software hasn't blown anyone away, the 360's launch titles were equally unimpressive, and the system will certainly mature. Sony's embrace of the PS3 as a computer rather than just a console, and the availability of supported Linux distributions for the console will also develop and will likely bear entirely unexpected fruit in future.

Source

[Hitman2000]

Sony's embrace of the PS3 as a computer rather than just a console

I remember when PS2 vx Xbox, this statement was thrown around by Ps2 lovers as the failure of the xbox.

Secondly:

However, from a hardware perspective, the PS3 is by far the more interesting console

It's funny when something like that is thrown around, when most people who have a clue about any type of hardware (ie not your average Ps3 fanboy who shouts teraflops) says that the x360 is evenly matched in terms of the hardware and actually beats the Ps3 in GPU comparison.

Another thing is Wii remote that is certainly an interesting piece of hardware they give Sony the award on hardware that is yet to truly beat the 360 but wont give it to the Wii based on its remote.....

Thirdly: The PS3 can get 10 billion awards and not sell a unit does this make it a success?

[sn00pie]

If you ask me the difference between buying the PS3 and 360 would be more preference than anything else. I could easily pick up a 360 premium right now for almost half the price of the PS3, but instead here I am waiting weeks and weeks to find a PS3. Why? It's just a matter of preference and fanboyism. :$

[Brandon]

Wii should have gotten it hands down. No one wants a PS3 anymore here. I'm i a big suburban town of chicago with over 150,000 people in it and I was in target yesterday, with no less then 8 PS3's in the display cases. 3 Xbox 360's and of course 0 wii's.

Wii = innovation PS3 = coping MS and Nintendo - so the true Wii60 is actually PS3

[SilentMage]

However, from a hardware perspective, the PS3 is by far the more interesting console.

How is the hardware more interesting than the Wii remote? Sure, the PS3 is probably the most technically powerful console on the market, but that doesn't make it any more interesting than a hi-end computer IMO. :no:

[NienorGT]

Ok... anyone says that the PS3 is a failure or a mistake and IGN arrives in and says that PS3 is the King Of King...

I'm a bit lost...

[The Teej]

Ahahaha...no offense to Playstation fans...but the Wii completely owned the PS3 this year. Wii can't play DVDs? PS3 can't even get to Europe. Sure, it can't do HD visuals, but look at the amount of non gamers its appealed to, and in essence broadened the market. What shoddy reasons to pick one over the other.

[MGS4-SS]

Ok... anyone says that the PS3 is a failure or a mistake and IGN arrives in and says that PS3 is the King Of King...

I'm a bit lost...

Thats why I posted this. Seemed kind of strange reading everyone saying that the PS3 was a failure and a flop, and IGN gave it the award of Best Console of this year.

[majortom1981]

I would have been happy with the 360 or the wii winning but the ps3? Come on. They are almost the same feature wise.

[Mathachew Veteran]

Mii: "With the wiimote, I swing at the ball and BLAMMO! It's out of here!"

PSYou: "Well my PS3 can do a hundred times as many calculations as yours and it's such a beast of a machine, that no one can truly tap into its nearly unlimited power. I mean c'mon, it has like nine cell processors inside of it. How is THAT not cool!?"

Mii: "So um... how does that make my games any more fun?"

PSYou: "Uh..."

Point being, who cares what's inside of it? I've got a Wii and have spent so much time playing Wii sports because it is additively fun. I've barely found time to play Zelda because I'm so caught up having fun with gamers (myself, my bro-in-law) and non-gamers (wife, sis-in-law, nieces, my father-in-law of all people) that time flies right on by.

At the end of the day, your consumer will be able to do more with a Wiimote than they will with the innards of a PS3 (that includes gutting it to turn it into a grill). I have to say that I'm disappointed with IGN.

[NienorGT]

Btw, this is 2006 awards, so it's a Wii VS PS3... the 360 is not here since it was released in 2005.

@The Teej, your argument is worthless. this don't says who is better anyway and if I fellow your way to see stuf, the X360 owned anyone by being released 1 year before. Making no match for Wii or PS3...

[d3nuo]

How is the hardware more interesting than the Wii remote? Sure, the PS3 is probably the most technically powerful console on the market, but that doesn't make it any more interesting than a hi-end computer IMO. :no:

what's more interesting is the wii's lack of power. next gen? nah. "cool" remote? sure (i hate it but most people love it).. innovative? depends. i dont think so personally, but it's definitely unique and people enjoy the wii. im a man into high quality: graphics, effects, hardware, gameplay.. the only one that maintains all of these (in my opinion) is the 360. i have never been more pleased with spending the $600 for the premium and some games. the ps3 and wii severely lack in the online presence, which is what i'm heavily into: i love multiplayer games. however, some like lower quality last-gen graphics at 480p (and lack of dvd support) of the wii as a compromise for what in my opinion is a crappy controller system (again, im at the minority with this opinion around neowin).

however, i'd be more than honored to have a wii and a 360 side by side, as i do love the mario and mariokart games (old school 2-d!) but i'll never have a ps3 around these parts.

i dont understand how on earth a buggy piece of trash that looks worse than 360's graphics (dont start with the 'developers had more time with the 360 to make better games' trash coz im even talkin bout a few of the launch games (or immediately preceding launch). the online presence sucks and i cant see it improving to anywhere near what live was even a few years back. the controller is still too small and crammed, and there's no feedback and the tilt is retarded on it.

oh, but wait! it can run linux! just as i am on a computer much more powerful than the ps3 (in terms of real-world usability, especially when running an OS [RAM amount, etc])

i think i'll buy a wii and then package the wii and 360 together and sell it for as much as the 360 and i guarantee anyone without the retarded fanboyism that sony lovers have would be honored to get that package.

no, im not knocking the wii here, it's got its audience, it's just not for me (except mario etc).. but i would enjoy having one accompany my best console of the past 2 years: the 360.

shameful award :no:

[Ajapi]

I agree with this prize. Am I the first person to utter such a sacrilegious indecency in this whole thread? Support for Sony? Well, onto my post and the explanation as to why I have an opinion that differs from that of most people here.

While the Nintendo Wii is without a doubt the most innovative of the current consoles, I feel the control scheme is geared towards small children. Mind you, it is fun for a while, but I'd much rather use a traditional controller. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess is an epic title in its own right, but I am sure I would have enjoyed it much more had it used a traditional controller. And while Wii sports is certainly a creative approach at video gaming, it's not really what I'm into. Most of my friends feel the same: the Wii is going to be the system our 6 year old brothers are going to use.

Now onto the big guys: Xbox 360 vs. Playstation 3. Both are impressive wonders of engineering as they boast some pretty powerful hardware. How much can be done with each system is completely dependent on the skill of the developers and their ability to harness the most out of each architecture. My next door neighbor and best friend is lucky enough to own both, so I have had the opportunity to play them a lot. Due to availability and price gauging, these consoles are EXTREMELY expensive here in the Dominican Republic (the Wii sells for just over $450, the Xbox 360 goes for about $650, and the Playstation 3 for about $1700), but that is not the issue here :p I have played both extensively and this has been my conclusion:

Both systems rock.

Playing through Gears of War in co-op mode, arduous sessions of Rainbow Six:Vegas, and even Viva Pi?ata on the Xbox 360, I was in videogaming heaven. After popping Halo 2 in and basking in the glorious magnificence of seeing its textures get upscaled and the apparent inclusion of some anti-aliasing by the newer, more powerful system (I don't know if it really improves the graphics, but it seemed so...placebo effect?:laugh:: ), I was ready to declare it the ULTIMATE gaming machine.

But then came the Playstation 3. Plugging in that HDMI cable was almost an orgasmic feeling, as I was flooded with anxiety to try the damn system after so much waiting. After it was all set up (and looking beautiful next to its Microsoft-made brother and its Nintendo-made little cousin), we were prompted by a very elegant, cool looking interface (reminiscent of the XMB) to upgrade the system's firmware. After all that was done, I proceeded to play Fight Night Round 3 against my buddy. It wasvery> fun stuff, and the graphics were truly impressive. It was a bit underwhelming though...the system was the subject of so much hype and anticipation that we expected a bit more. Well moving on, we tried Resistance: Fall Of Man. Well well well..that> is a different story. It suddenly made him feel better about his purchase, and make me feel better about our friendship:pp It was truly an AWSOME game. Having enjoyed it thoroughly, we decided to kick up the demos. And this is the moment when he was satisfied with having spend absurd amounts of money on his system: Motorstorm and Gran Turismo HD. Whoever says the graphics aren't good, the framerates drop, gameplay sucks or ANYTHING of the sort probably hasn't player either of them. After I saw the pics here on Neowin, my reaction was "it can't bethat> good". Well, surprisingly enough, itis> that good. If these demos are any indication of what upcoming games will be like, we can expect 2007 to be onehell> of a year for console gamers.

Why do I agree with the prize? Because the Playstation 3 is, in my opinion, a treasure that hasn't gotten the chance to shine yet. These early demos are the early signs of what's to come, and it looks promising. It is a damn shame the system had such a horrible launch plagued by bugs, shortages, a bad lineup and lots of bad press. But after all is said and done, I'm sure they'll recover. Just wait till the high profile games start coming out.

A bit off topic, but I thought this might be humorous...the owner of this Playstation 3 is a die-hard Gundam fan, and let me tell you..MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM: CROSSFIRE IS WORSE THAN ANY BAD REVIEW MIGHT POSSIBLY HOPE TO CONVEY.> It is...unfun. He absolutely loved it though:pp >

/end my rant. Um...please don't flame?:pp And forgive my less-than-adequate English.

Edited December 29, 2006 by Ajapi

[Huleboeren]

what's more interesting is the wii's lack of power. next gen? nah. "cool" remote? sure (i hate it but most people love it).. innovative? depends. i dont think so personally, but it's definitely unique and people enjoy the wii. im a man into high quality: graphics, effects, hardware, gameplay.. the only one that maintains all of these (in my opinion) is the 360. i have never been more pleased with spending the $600 for the premium and some games. the ps3 and wii severely lack in the online presence, which is what i'm heavily into: i love multiplayer games. however, some like lower quality last-gen graphics at 480p (and lack of dvd support) of the wii as a compromise for what in my opinion is a crappy controller system (again, im at the minority with this opinion around neowin).

however, i'd be more than honored to have a wii and a 360 side by side, as i do love the mario and mariokart games (old school 2-d!) but i'll never have a ps3 around these parts.

i dont understand how on earth a buggy piece of trash that looks worse than 360's graphics (dont start with the 'developers had more time with the 360 to make better games' trash coz im even talkin bout a few of the launch games (or immediately preceding launch). the online presence sucks and i cant see it improving to anywhere near what live was even a few years back. the controller is still too small and crammed, and there's no feedback and the tilt is retarded on it.

oh, but wait! it can run linux! just as i am on a computer much more powerful than the ps3 (in terms of real-world usability, especially when running an OS [RAM amount, etc])

i think i'll buy a wii and then package the wii and 360 together and sell it for as much as the 360 and i guarantee anyone without the retarded fanboyism that sony lovers have would be honored to get that package.

no, im not knocking the wii here, it's got its audience, it's just not for me (except mario etc).. but i would enjoy having one accompany my best console of the past 2 years: the 360.

shameful award :no:

LISTEN TO THIS WISE MAN WHO CAN SPEAK THE 'TRUTH'

WITHOUT EVEN HAVING TO PLAY THE THING

*******

[ienhz]

Wow, this is the stupidest award category I've ever seen. Especially when you have a choice of only TWO consoles. Might have been different if the PS3, 360, Wii, DS, and PSP all came out at the same time and there was actually a point of doing this category.

[Huleboeren]

Wow, this is the stupidest award category I've ever seen. Especially when you have a choice of only TWO consoles. Might have been different if the PS3, 360, Wii, DS, and PSP all came out at the same time and there was actually a point of doing this category.

Best Console of 2006

[+Audioboxer Subscriber²]

My only sight into why the PS3 may have been chosen over the Wii at the moment is because I believe its seen as a more future proof console. It's early days for both and basing an award on such short time is hard. The best way to make an educated decision just now is to do a little history checking into the contenders histories.

Yeah of course the Wii is selling out everywhere, just about EVERYONE wants to try one regardless of whether or not they even like nintendo. Its something fresh and new. Hell I've never owned a nintendo console and I can't wait till one of my mates buy a Wii so I can go play it :rofl: Its not an expensive option either.

We know what the PS games franchise is like thanks to the massive catalog of games the PS1/PS2 gave us (lots of A+ titles). The gamecube and the n64 struggled a little at spewing out a constant string of good titles if you ask me and thats why both the consoles failed to be as popular as the PS/PS2.

Thats what I feel is the biggest worry for the Wii. If it can keep producing A+ titles it will succeed, if not it may end up sinking a little/a lot over the years.

Thats my view on things at the moment. So please reply intelligently if you want, but no childish insults :yes:

[MGS4-SS]

*snip*

La mitad de la gente va a ignorar esto.

You hold the true though, I can't wait for some PS3's to be available here in PR so I can buy one. The X360 keeps me playing (and FFXII on the PS2), but I need a new console soon.

[ienhz]

Best Console of 2006

Did you even read my post?

[ANova]

This forum proves how fickle fans are. Despite past history, there are those that choose to judge and bash anything that isn't an instant hit. These people obviously do not learn. I find it hilarious how only a year ago people didn't like the x360 because of its poor launch selection and typical present bugs, yet now it's suddenly bash the PS3 and praise the x360. In another year when the PS3 matures and new titles are released some people will undoubtedly change their positions once again.

From a purely technological point of view the PS3 has more memory bandwidth and the cell has alot more potential then the IBM cpu used in the x360; however, the x360's xenos is a better and more versatile GPU then the RSX. Only time will tell the outcome of how each gets used and/or how each respective company handles the features and title selection.

[spenser.d]

^^^Well aren't we just captain obvious... :rolleyes:

You come into the gamer forum to bash us for bashing things. I don't see the irony at all...

-Spenser

[Windam]

you know something.. it doesn't matter

I've seen living proof of which console is the best and that is the best to me. Same should go for all of you who want the best console. It's up to your heart to decide which is the true owner of the crown.

Other than that forums are just for additional information that has the opinions and facts laid out in front to give you some additional background.

[ANova]

^^^Well aren't we just captain obvious... :rolleyes:

You come into the gamer forum to bash us for bashing things. I don't see the irony at all...

-Spenser

Obvious huh, apparently not.

I'm not bashing, just stating facts.

[gigapixels Veteran]

Best console for me is the Wii. But I'm not going to sit here and explain myself because I really don't care what the "best" console is for anybody else.

[lazerfire]

best machine playstation 3 but mums and dads are not going to pay ?600 for it when they can wait 6 months or more to get it.

ask any one u know of later and they say there get one but wait til its cheaper.

wii yeh i brought 1 myself , yeh great fun for a few days playing with family over xmas and having a good laught but are your mum and dad gonner wanna play it 5-6 weeks later down the line.

xmas time is a family to get together and have a laught of cause there gooner play it and of cause its new and fun.

but not gonner last.

i played wii now for no stop over xmas and iam bloddy bored silly with it.

i still play it now and then but the factor is wearing fin.

playstation 3 has been out 4 -5 weeks blody hell no.1 for 10 years and people screaming its a losing .

god sake main reason xbox 360 taking off and u go on nearly every web site for dodgy stuff and u can down load the copied games .

best machine playstation 3

short term fun wii

free games of the net and a good around machine xbox 360.