Last consolewar (DC, PS2, GC, XB)

[darkjak]

Well, let's discuss the previous generation of consoles. I'm making a youtube show on the subject, and I wonder on your oppinions.

 

Here's the first part:

 

The forthcoming parts will include:

 

Online play

Controllers

Software

Other

[Grazza]

Here's my opinion on all the consoles (in the order I bought them). It was a long generation and I owned all of them at some point:

 

Dreamcast

Excellent hardware but people never gave it a chance. People weren't interested in a powerful new console; they only wanted what Sony told them.

 

Here was the first console to have true arcade quality ports. Not only that, it was the first console genuinely powerful enough to have great graphics at the full resolution of an SD screen.

 

That said, Dreamcast is actually the machine that (briefly) put me off gaming! For me, the N64 had honestly elevated gaming to something it wasn't before. In comparison, I couldn't get back into the arcade style of most Dreamcast games (eg. Crazy Taxi).

 

I should have tried Skies of Arcadia and Grandia, but my big hope, Shenmue, turned out to be a very disappointing (albeit immersive) game.

 

GameCube

I didn't follow the build-up of the GameCube. I first encountered it in Currys with Luigi's Mansion and thought it was awful (I realised it was a good game when I gave it a chance)! Later though, I realised I'd have to get one, as I remembered how much I'd enjoyed Mario 64, Ocarina and Majora's Mask.

 

Well, it didn't disappoint. Mario Sunshine and Wind Waker were spectacular; the latter is still the best game ever for me. The quality of most of the other big games was extremely high (F-Zero GX springs to mind) and the machine was powerful enough to have great ports of things like Sands of Time, Spider-Man 2 and Incredible Hulk, all of which I enjoyed.

 

GameCube was by far my favourite console of last gen.

 

Xbox

Good hardware. The hard drive made a real difference and should have been a key moment in the improvement of games consoles.

 

Some great games like OutRun 2006 (my favourite racing game) and the beautiful Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath (the only FPS I've ever liked).

 

I have to say, there weren't enough Japanese style games to truly get my interest.

 

PS2

I was late to buy a PS2 and only did so in order not to miss out on a few games. It seems the weakest hardware out of the four, but its games were 2nd only to the GameCube. Shadow of the Colossus should be a new benchmark in many ways and Dragon Quest VIII is possibly the best RPG I've played.

 

Despite my early prejudice (I thought Nintendo and Sega would be best and I never thought I'd buy Sony), I actually enjoyed them in this order:

 

1. GameCube

2. PS2

3. Xbox

4. Dreamcast

 

PS - All the controllers were fine. They probably go:

 

1. GameCube

2. Xbox

3. PS2

4. Dreamcast

[MoogleViper]

Not having played the Xbox I would put them in order of;

 

1 Playstation

2 Dreamcast

3 GameCube

 

I don't really see anything on Xbox that isn't offered by PS2 or PC so I would put that at the bottom.

 

PS2 has a vast array of games with a lot of really good titles such as Ico, SOTC, FFs etc.

 

Dreamcast was the first of the generation and very powerful for the time. Not enough people gave it a chance and it has the best game series ever. Shenmue.

 

Gamecube has a somewhat limited games supply but it has the Mario games which are great and unique.

[LegoMan1031]

I never really had a PS2 till near the end. Gamecube was my life back then. I did really like the dreamcast but only had a few games for it. Back then the gamecube gave me everything i needed at the time. (apart from MGS2 & 3, which i played once i got a PS2)

[nekunando]

I got the Gamecube on my birthday 12 days after it was released.. and that was a difficult 12 days to wait

 

I have a lot of games for it, many of which gave me an incredible amount of enjoyment.. including 1080 Avalanche, F-Zero GX, Wave Race: Blue Storm, Metal Gear Solid, Metroid Prime.. and many more ..for me, the XBOX and PS2 just could not offer me the games I was looking for which is understandable considering I grew up on Super Mario World, Donkey Kong Country, Lylat Wars and many more great Nintendo games!

 

Two years ago, not long before the Wii was released, I bought my first non-Nintendo console: the XBOX. I purchased it pre-owned with a variety of games that included Ninja Gaiden, Halo, Halo 2, Panzer Dragoon, GTA 3, Project Gotham Racing 2 as well as others. However, within days I completely regretted the decision. The controller was awful (yes.. even the 'S' version) and the games just didn't feel at all special to me.. despite the high praise many of them received. To this day I still can't see what the fuss is with Halo, but maybe the 4 or 5 hours I put in wasn't enough.. though if I wasn't enjoying it that far in, I wouldn't hold out much hope for the rest. . and I can't remember much about it now!

 

The XBOX and all the games were sold (for a profit ) after about a week and with the money I bought what I should have got in the first place: a Nintendo DS.

 

So.. the XBOX wasn't my cup of tea.. was the PS2? I never owned one but, to be honest, like the XBOX, I don't feel like the games on it would mean as much to me as anything I could find on the Gamecube or, particularly, the N64 I have played many games on the console, considering everyone I knew had one, but apart from the many fantastic games of Pro Evolution Soccer with friends I just couldn't become attached to the machine.

 

2007 introduced me to ebay and many games I had missed out on in the past. I always had a desire to play the Dreamcast, partly due to the Sega Mega Drive holding a place in my heart from the 16-bit era following the countless nights of Streets of Rage, Golden Axe and Sonic at my friend's house. The internet gave me that chance.. so, last year, I hunted ebay for a good deal on a Dreamcast with a few good games and I got a very good price

 

Shenmue.. Virtua Tennis.. Jet Set Radio.. Sega Rally.. Soul Calibur.. the games are awesome! In a very short space of time, the last Sega Console grew on me almost in a way only Nintendo products have been able to do in the past.. it is a fantastic console

 

It is very easy for me to place the four consoles in order of preference.. and the list is:

 

Nintendo Gamecube

Sega Dreamcast

Sony Playstation 2

Microsoft XBox

[darkjak]

My question is the following: what other factors can you think of when it comes to what makes a console good or bad, besides what's been mentioned above?

[Grazza]

My question is the following: what other factors can you think of when it comes to what makes a console good or bad, besides what's been mentioned above?

 

For me, it's purely the quality of the exclusives plus the ability to have decent ports of the multi-format games.

[Columnar]

I too owned all four of the last-gen consoles and for me, the Dreamcast was by far the best of the bunch. I can only imagine what the games would have looked like if the DC had had a proper life cycle, as by 2001, you could see developers were really getting to grips with the hardware and it would have been amazing to see games like Splinter Cell on Dreamcast. I honestly think the later games of the generation would have looked and played just as good as the PS2 versions.

 

I love GameCube (even more than Wii) and it was the Resident Evil series going exclusively to GC that made me buy one. I had never owned a Nintendo console before so discovering the likes of Mario, Zelda & Metroid really blew my mind. The Xbox was OK, too many FPS for my liking although I suppose was a natural progression for a lot of DC owners because of the vast amounts of exclusive Sega games on the format, and as for PS2, well it had a hand in the death of my beloved DC so I'll leave it at that.

 

I think what makes a console special is definitely the games and exclusives. I was (and still am) a Sega fanboy, so it was always a foregone conclusion that I would get a DC because I loved their games. The online elements were also a big plus point for me - the first time I ever went onto the internet was through the Dreamcast. I don't care what a machine looks like or who makes it - if the games I want are there, then I'm sold.

[tapedeck]

My question is the following: what other factors can you think of when it comes to what makes a console good or bad?

 

The ability for the machine to happily suprise me is a massive thing when I buy a console. Something Nintendo have done time and time again - whether it's by the games or the console itself.

 

Mind you, it seems that there are a lot of great gaming suprises coming as of late. Even things like Little Big Planet's sharing of content is a great suprise, and then there are high-def graphics which are obvioulsy instant "supriiiise" moments.

 

All console manufacturers and developers are pushing out more suprises than ever these days, yet for my money it's still Nintendo who have the biggest ability to really suprise me when playing.

[darkjak]

Well, it's time for the secnd part of the last gen comparsion:

 

What do you think?

[RoadKill]

Dreamcast = winrar

[LostOverThere]

Personally I skipped last generation. After buying my Nintendo 64 late in the game, it kept me occupied right up to around 2005 when I felt a new console was in need. That turned out to be the Wii for me.

 

Overall, I didn't think the Gamecube lived up to the Nintendo 64's expectations, and I was ashamed that I missed out on trying the Dreamcast.

[Pookiablo]

Xbox was the greatest console of the last generation and it really didn't get the credit it deserved. There were some excellent games, Xbox Live was a really solid service and it was probably the closest you got to playing some epic PC games without having to own a decent PC. My only gripe was that it got killed off too soon and for that matter, far too quickly (games disappeared from the shops in no time whatsoever!). When you look at the last batch of games being released for it, (Halo 2, Half-Life 2, Doom 3), it really did seem like it was the first time developers were truly unlocking the real power of the machine. A great shame.

 

Best controller was the Gamecube one, just so so so so darn comfy!

[Hellfire]

OK this was kinda bumpy, but whatever.

GC was the best by far for me. No contest at all, awesome controller, awesome games, awesome design, awesome hardware. WW, TP, SMS, Monkey Ball, Rogue Squadron, Luigi's Mansion, Eternal Darkness, RE4, etc... Win

 

DC was freaking amazing and much better than PS2 when they were both going at it, unfortunately, its early death robbed it of many opportunities, so as much as I love it, saying it's the best last gen is something I really can't agree with and can't view it as anything else but rose tinted glasses. Shenmue I and II, Space Channel 5, Rez, Crazy Taxi, Headhunter, MSR, JSR, Chu Chu Rocket,... Aaah memories ^^

 

PS2 is really great, but I think it got a lot, and I really mean a lot of undeserved praise for most of its er... active life cycle. Most great games came out pretty late, asides from that it was mostly generic multiplatform games and even more generic J-RPGs. Today though, it's one hell of a console with a lot of fantastic games like SoTC, DQVIII, GoW I and II, FFXII, Disagaea, Guitaroo Man, God Hand, Okami, Persona, etc. It has the Wii and PSP to thank for being alive today too.

 

I can't bring myself to like Xbox. I got it really really cheap, but I just can't see that many games that I like, I honestly can't. At the time I had a competent PC, so I didn't even need to bother with the Xbox versions not to mention that I don't care that much about online and most of its top games didn't do it for me. Jade Empire is nice but bores the hell out of me, KOTOR is awesome, but, like I said, PC, Halo 2 is great, Ninja Gaiden is really good (a bit overrated in my eyes), Fable is goodish, PGR is great and Full Spectrum Warrior is great if you like the genre. Couldn't get much into Riddick, I think people got a little amazed because of the graphics and overreacted, JSRF is great, although not as good as the 1st, PD Orta is awesome, Otogi is entertaining and I'm trying to remember the name of a somewhat unknown A-RPG that people who know it praise but I couldn't like... Anyway, the worst of the bunch to me.

[RoadKill]

1) Dreamcast

[Nicktendo]

I'm trying to remember the name of a somewhat unknown A-RPG that people who know it praise but I couldn't like... Anyway, the worst of the bunch to me.

 

Was it Morrowind? Prequel to Oblivion and better in every single way !