Online Gaming

   Are you looking to buy a video game console? With so many to choose from, how do you know which one is right for you? I hope you can use the following to decide exactly that.

   Let us start off with the usual suspects. We have the Playstation 3, the Xbox 360, the Nintendo Wii, the PSP 2000, and the Nintendo DS. The fisrt decision you need to make is weather you want a home system or a mobile system. While the Playstation 3, the Xbox 360, and the Nintendo Wii are more powerful systems with better graphics and a larger selection of games, they are tethered to your television set. The most popular mobile systems are the Sony PSP 2000 and the Nintendo DS.

   If you think that a mobile system is for you, choosing bewteen these two systems should be pretty easy since the types of games each one plays are totally different. If you want to play arcade type games such as the Madden series football games or shooter type games like Tom Clancys Rainbow Six series, you will definetly want to go with the PSP. The PSP is a hand held unit that contains the viewing screen and game controls all at the tip of your fingers. A bonus feature of the PSP is that it will also play movies in the form of mini DVD's that you can buy separately.

   Since the late 80's and early 90's, Nintendo has been one of the heavy hitters in the home video game industry. With the emergence of Sonys Playstation and Microsofts Xbox cutting into their profits, Nintendo thought it would be best to try a different approach. To be different from the other video game consoles Nintendo has made their new systems more interactive by using touch screens and motion controllers. This brings us to the Nintendo DS. The Nintendo DS is a hand held unit that flips open and allows you to use a stylus (a pen without ink) to control game play. Most of the games available for the Nintendo DS tend to be puzzle and educational type games. The Nintendo DS is a great system if you are not a hardcore gamer and are just looking to have some good clean fun.

   Nintendos' home video game system, the Nintendo Wii, is totally different from its main competitors, the Xbox 360 and the Playstation 3, mainly because of the way you control game play. The Nintendo Wii uses a two piece hand held wireless controller and a foot board (sold seperatly) that actually lets you use your body motions to control game play, rather than using a conventional hand held controller. This works very well with games developed specificly for the Nintendo Wii but, it can be a little difficult to use with some of the arcade type games that were developed for all three of the main home systems. One exception to this is "Starwars: The Force Unleashed". In this game your main weapon is a light saber which you control with your hand held controller exactly as if you were holding a light saber in your hand. To those around you watching, you will look goofy waving around an imaginary light saber but, it is a lot of fun and if you play long enough, it will give your arm a good workout. The trade off for the unique game play experience provided by these controllers is that the Wii does not posses the computing capacity that the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 have. You will find that the Wii's graphics look more "cartoonish" than other systems. For most people it is an easy decision weather you prefer graphics or the controls. Just go to the store, play the demo, and decide for yourself.

   We are now down to the biggest and baddest kids on the block, Sonys' Playstation 3 and Microsofts' Xbox 360. The Playstation 3 has been designed to be much more than a home video game console. It is also meant to be a home theater system. A built in wireless modem allows you to link up with other PS3 systems via the internet to play most of your games with or against gamers from around the world. This internet connection also allows you to purchase and download movies and games that you can save to the PS3's hard drive to be played or viewed at your convenience. One feature found only in the PS3 is its ability to play Blu Ray disks. They cost a bit more than regular DVD's but they are great for those who prefer watching their movies in HD.

   Microsofts' Xbox 360 does almost everything that the PS3 does. It will connect to the internet however, it does not have a built in wireless modem. You can use the provided data cable or buy a wireless link to do so. Once hooked up it does the same functions as the PS3. The only other difference between the PS3 and the Xbox 360 is that the Xbox 360 only plays regular DVD's and has no Blu Ray capability.

   Choosing between the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 pretty much comes down to your personal preference. They both play the same games for the most part but, each system has their own exclusive games. One of the big PS3 exclusive games is the Resistance series and one of the Xbox 360's exclusive games is the renowned Gears of War series. It is small differences like these that separate the two. I would suggest that you find out which exclusive games you prefer and go with that system. If you still can't decide, there's no rule that you can't own them all!