Okay, Gamers.....should it be Microsoft 360, Wii or Playstation 3?

[HardWorkingDem]

If you had to buy one for your kids, which would it be?

[kat_kringle]

1. wii! n/t

[KitchenWitch]

2. Wii

If I had the money I would buy the Wii.

[Tektonik]

3. Wii

[ZombieNixon]

4. For kids, Wii, easily.

Least expensive, most kid friendly game-set, plus the motion and interactivity of the WiiMote is of extra appeal to a younger audience.

[Goblinmonger]

18. Not to mention Mario Kart is the complete shit.

What a great game. Even better with the online option.

[kick-ass-bob]

23. Thats what I played the other night.

That is a GREAT game! My friends happened into GameStop right after someone traded it in - so they lucked out. the wait on that is forever, so they said.

[Deja Q]

28. While the Mario games come across really kid-like, I have to say this:

the gameplay is phenomenal. Especially the alteration of perception; especially in Mario Galaxy -- I was skeptical because the graphics looked so "cutesy", but the only other games that match the level of perspective are flight simulators featuring upside down dogfighting... sans the planes and gunfire, of course...

I rather like the puzzles too. Forces kids to think things through. Far better than the trite "shoot, bam, thanks man!" genre of games...

[Broken_Hero]

5. PS3....

although its still way over priced in my view...but from what I've seen/played, the PS3 is the best. A side note, be sure to read up on each game system too, each one has their little bugs/issues.

[mwooldri]

6. If you can find one a Wii. My son so wants one...

... he got hooked after we visited my wife's cousin (who has one).

STILL can't find them on the shelves of stores... you've either got to ebay it or be persistent and lucky.

Mark.

[Rosie1223]

17. Check your local pawn shop

I've heard of people having to sell them for gas $$.

[Greyskye]

21. Try checking the small stores

The big box stores around here can't keep the Wii's on the shelves. We found a small family owned gaming store that always seems to have at least a few Wii's in stock, and I was on the waiting list for the Wii Fit for less then a week before I was able to pick up 2 - one for us, and one for a friend who hadn't been able to find that in the big chain stores.

Support your local small business owners! :thumbsup:

[Deja Q]

29. The place where I got mine had 7 in stock... By the time I went back a week later,

they had all been sold.

:wow:

The Wii is popular, and justly so.

[NuttyFluffers]

7. wii. easily.

far more kid friendly, great variety for young and old, and solid classics to download.

but this changes if the kids are pre-teen to teenager. at that age i'd get them a 360. however it really depends what they like, whether you will allow Xbox Live, and how lenient you are on graphic violence and how supervised you like their gaming. not that you can't get violence on every system, but just saying...

i'd but them a PS2 before i'd bother with a PS3...

[PVnRT]

8. Wii, hands down

Unless you're a graphics nut, the PS2 is fine, and they are still making new games for it.

[mainegreen]

9. The Wii is hella fun, even for adults.

Nintendo has always understood that it's about fun.

[Phoonzang]

10. 360....kids are perfectly capable

of playing more complicated games. The Wii is great for parties and such, but if I were a kid today I'd get more out of the 360 like I got more out of the PC when I was younger. Or uh...you could just get a really nice PC. :)

[Deja Q]

43. They should make more complex games for the Wii then.

The 'complex' games for the other consoles often tend to be shamelessly bloody. Call me a prude, but the "clean" aspect of the Wii is a refreshing change for the industry.

IMHO, of course.

[Pierre.Suave]

11. I don't think I would buy one for kids...

Call me crazy but I don't think I would want to encourage the kids to sit inside and play video games.

[redqueen]

13. Are you a gamer?

A parent, even?

[Pierre.Suave]

14. Yes

I am also an adult. I own a PS3 and 1 game, Gran Turismo 5 prologue...at least until the full GT5 comes out. I rarely ever play it simply because there are too many other things I would rather be doing than sitting inside playing a game. Like sailing, or going for a walk, etc...

I am not a parent, I am the favorite uncle though...

[Mutley]

16. You're not a gamer, then.

:P

My niece and nephew are being raised by one of the most hardcore gamers I've ever met in my life. They have every game system ever made, and so many games it would make your head spin. Yet they still manage to read a book and go outside to play on a regular basis.

[NuttyFluffers]

25. that's very much not a gamer.

1 game and rarely played is so low on the charts that it doesn't even scrape the bottom of Casual Gamer. more like a person with disposable income who occasionally likes a game or two -- a la one play on the arcade midway or a tinker run through at a friends house. that's like Haley's Comet Gamer.

i like doing other things, too, like music, dancing, crafts, reading, roller coasters, etc. but there are too many games i'd rather be inside playing than doing things outside. that's closer to what a gamer is. many of us are not sedentary, but we definitely pour more time into it than an hour or two a week.

now whether that's healthy, that's up for debate. it really depends how much time you pour into it and what you are getting out of your games. i will say gamers on average, particularly tabletop ones, are far more literate and intellectually nuanced than the vast majority of sportsmen i have personally encountered (though this probably has something to do with the amount of reading involved in several genres of games).

healthy body or healthy mind, ideally one can balance them, but it really depends on one's priorities. personally i'd prefer a healthier mind over healthier body for a young child; a healthier body is easier to recover as one gets older, but mentally we tend to get set in our ways far too early. the window to develop empathy and learn deep emotional lessons, let alone a love of literacy and knowledge, is not all that large in my experience watching my peers grow up. but then i am gamer literate so i know how to choose video games and games in general that can be strong moral and intellectual educational tools. not all parents are that literate, so they would be at a disadvantage.

[Deja Q]

47. They'll go to their neighbors and play instead

Unlike the others, the Wii is family friendly and many parents would dig a lot of its games too.

I do see your point and in many ways agree... :thumbsup:

[kentauros]

12. Pencil, paper and D&D

:)

Costs about the same after all the books and reference materials and is infinitely variable for scenarios. You can even play when the power goes out :D

[NuttyFluffers]

26. likely cheaper. all you need is about 3 books basically to run it.

Player's Handbook, GM Guide, Monster Manual, pencil, paper, and an imagination. i find that it's that last requirement that tends to fail people...

but if you're good at stories there's hardly a better educational tool. math, strategy, tactics, lawyering, literacy, economics, society, culture, morality, history, etc. if you can think it, it can be in it. it's really a tragedy popular culture associates it with negative attributes.

[kentauros]

44. That's true.

I guess I was thinking of my total "investment" over the years, including all the cool dice sets I've accumulated ;)

Haven't played in years, though. But I do agree about all the things it teaches, not to mention the in-person style of gaming, versus the massive-multi-user games so popular today. Of course, I also like some of the card games like Naval Battles or Nuclear War/Escalation :)

And then there's Risk (under "History" at the not-so-properly-working link)
"Hitler never played “Risk” when he was a kid...! ‘Cause, you know, playing “Risk,” you could never hold on to Asia. That Asian-Eastern European area, you could never hold it, could you? Seven extra men at the beginning of every go, but you couldn't fucking hold it! Australasia, that was the one! Australasia, all the purple ones! Get everyone on Papua New Guinea and just build up and build up..."

:rofl:

[Mutley]

15. A Wii is the best for kids.

And an Xbox for the adults. :D

Playstation 3 sucks.

[AlCzervik]

19. the wii, it's fun and a good workout.

[Greyskye]

20. Another Wii vote

We just got the Wii for our 10 year olds birthday. Mario Kart rocks! Wii Fit has him and I in a battle for first place - he can work up a decent sweat after 30 minutes of trying to beat my Wii Fit scores. :evilgrin:

If you are having a hard time finding a Wii, check out the small computer stores in your area. We found a local family owned store that we've bought all of our Wii stuff from, and they are selling it all at list - no price gouging!

If it's for kids, go for the Wii. It's absolutely the healthiest of the game systems out there right now. :thumbsup:

[Deja Q]

30. Awesome, precise, concise review!

:thumbsup:

[Greyskye]

33. Bite my shiny metal ass!

Oh, that was a compliment. Kinda threw me for a loop coming from Bender. :evilgrin:

[Deja Q]

34. .

:rofl:

'twas indeed a compliment!

[kick-ass-bob]

22. Wii - hands down.

Just played one at a friends house (who have all 3 that you mentioned) and by far it was the best.

[DarkTirade]

24. For kids I'd probably go with the Wii.

It's geared towards kids a little more than the other consoles, and they'd get some exercise out of it.

For a good synopsis of which consoles are good for what, I recommend checking out http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/3-Console-Rundown">Yahtzee's review of all three.

[Deja Q]

32. Bloody 'ell, that's a terrific review! Thx for the link!

:rofl:

(BTW: Sod his review, the Wii is still the b3st!)

[DarkTirade]

35. In another review he points out that the consoles that are out right now are all about equally good

and then he compares them to different breeds of dogs... the Wii is a small yappy one who can get annoying at times but is fun to play with. The PS3 is like a large breed, not as excitable but loyal and friendly, and 360 is like a midsized dog that can do most everything, but occasionally pisses itself and dies. :P

[Deja Q]

27. Sing along with me! It's "Wii, Wii, Wii, Wii, all the way home!"

Bloody love my Wii!

Wii Sports, Wii Fit, Wii Ski, Zelda, Mario Galaxy, Lego Indiana Jones... forget the other systems, Nintendo actually innovated game play and made it accessible to more people AND keeping it family friendly.

Unless you like big-time violence, in which case Xbox and PS3 might suit you better.

Find a store that has demos of the 3 systems. But Nintendo never ceases to renew itself and surprise. (their Wiimote controllers are a triumph in engineering too - very realistic responses to the sports games that support them...)

[Kutjara]

31. As an owner of all three...

...I'd say the 360 for range of games and the excellent online multiplayer capabilities; the PS3 as a cheap(ish) Bluray player that also has some nice games on it (but nowhere near enough), and the Wii for silly, uncomplicated, fun (although there's a lot of crappy shovelware on the market, so you have to be more discerning about which games you buy).

[Mike Daniels]

48. I have the 360 and PS3

and the PS3 spends more time as a less expensive HDVD player than as a gaming unit.

The problem is that it's almost 2 years into its life cycle and the PS3 still has very few exclusives that are worth playing.

On the plus side, I was able to get rid of the actual PS2 console since I have one of the backward compatible versions of the PS3.

[reyd reid reed]

36. We bought the wii

No question, really. Now if we could just find Mario Kart. Looks like fun and it would distract them from Guitar Hero.

[Deja Q]

46. amazon.com

?

[reyd reid reed]

51. I haven't checked there recently...

last time we looked for the game was a few weeks ago and I couldn't find it in stock anywhere. That's when we caved and bought Guitar Hero....which the kids absolutely love but which is driving me up the wall and 'round the bend. When you add that game to my 14-year-old and his buddy practicing in the basement (fortunately they're pretty good...but now they've set up a drum set down there to go with the guitar and the bass -- and they're adding vocals. They need to find a vocalist 'cause, bless their li'l pea-pickin' hearts, that's one thing they ain't got), I'm a basket case most days. Coming to work is a respite.

Thank god for cool neighbors.

[Anarcho-Socialist]

37. Nintendo Wii

[MrSlayer]

38. PS3 has the most power.

If they are little kids go with Wii. If they are older, PS3 is the way to go.

[crimsonblue]

39. get them a computer

there are some good cheapos out there.. the asus eee pc, for one.

[Duer 157099]

40. None of the above!

It will destroy your and their lives, really, resist the temptation to be absorbed by the borg!

I hate the xbox360 piece of shit I gave my son.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

41. I love the Wii!

I don't have kids, but my husband and I love the wii. You can actually work up a pretty good sweat playing tennis, boxing, etc.

[Greyskye]

42. My 10 y.o. keeps knocking me out.

I try to follow the instructions on avoiding punches and throwing them - he just flails about wildly. Knocks me out every time. :( But at least he's getting a terrific workout, and that's what I care about. :rofl:

[MsKandice01]

49. I haven't beat our 5-year-old in boxing yet....

My husband beat him ONE time and he was quite proud of himself. I actually have a video of it...

http://s15.photobucket.com/albums/a400/mskandice/?action=view¤t=005-1.flv

As you can see, he was quite intense. LOL

[Greyskye]

50. How cute!

Someday I'll beat my kid too.


Hmmm, that didn't come out quite right... :hide:

[Norwood]

45. If its for kids, buy the Wii hands down

The 360 is a great system as well but to me works best for those like 14 and older. Powerful system, great game selection, and not as expensive as a PS3.

The PS3 to me is the system to buy if you're a serious gamer and want the most powerful system available.

[taterguy]

52. I don't think you have kids at all

You just want a console for yourself but won't admit it. :)

ps: My vote is for Xbox but it all depends on what games you play.

The Xbox is perfect for RockBand, since it easily connects to SurroundSound and lets you buy new songs online every week.

[Maddy McCall]

53. Wii! We love our Wii!

My son and I play together all the time.

You'll LOVE it!