Xbox 360 or PS3 (in Off-topic)

Hey all,

I know I should just search around, even just the archives here, but I have a few special circumstances in the debate, and have absolutely no fanboi left in me about it. So I wanted to start a clean thread and get some advice.

The Issue: The new GTA is out, and I just have to have it. It is the one franchise that would make me buy a new console, and is the one game that needs all that power (so I am not too non-plussed about being forced upward).

Existing: I have had my trusty PS2 for a long, long time. Like, since the Dreamcast died. I like the Playstation OK, and it has had some good, unique games (Frequency and Amplitude stand out) as well as good franchises (GTA!). PS2 will stay hooked up, so backward compatibility is not an issue. I have no Xbox games or accessories.

Hook-up: I just have a very old Toshiba 36 inch TV. I am absolutely not going to upgrade until that thing dies. It does fine and still looks good as far as I am concerned. Best input it has for this is S-Video (DVD player already takes the component ins). I know I will not be fully utilizing the Blu-Ray on the PS3, but I don't care. I might dabble with it later, but I am buying this for games, not movies, especially since my TV can't do justice to Blu-Ray anyway. (Please don't tell me to upgrade my TV on this thread, you will be instantly ignored. *smile*)

What about the Wii? Well, what about it. It doesn't play GTA. So, it doesn't meet Requirement Zero. Also, I am a relaxed game player. The thought of swinging my arms around doesn't appeal to me as much as it might for others. If I want to swing my arms I'll join a softball team.

So, should I go Xbox 360 or PS3? Both seem pretty sweet. Price for comparable units is about the same. I have gotten over my hatred of Microsoft for the most part, and the Xbox has a larger volume of highly-rated games (I imagine GTA will keep me busy for months, though, in any case). PS3 has a smaller volume, but probably still enough great titles to keep me busy as more come out (maybe?)

I'm not sure what I am looking for in advice, I just know I am not looking for:

-- Fanboy support
-- Telling me to get a new TV
-- Online play, while fun, is not a priority to me.

About the online capability, though, the ability to download new games is kind of neat.

That brings my list of important things to:

-- Reliability. Any problems out there?
-- Game library -- what is exclusive to which? Which do online downloads better?
-- Controller? Preferences? I like the PS2 controllers, but I don't really know much about the XBox ones other than they said the first XBox controllers way back in the day felt like playing with a canned ham. Still true?
-- Other thoughts?

I'm well out of the console thing; the last one I bought was the PS1, I'm currently thinking about picking up a cheap PS2 just to play Okami.

But I have one question: why not both?

(On the subject of choice, one of my oldest friends when we were discussing consoles - he has all of them... - said I should buy the xbox simply for Mass Effect, which is his favourite game for nearly ten years....)

i only got the ps3, don't have an xbox and i don't want it either, i stick to ps cuz of the good games (namely final fantasy)

Why not both? Well, $400, for one thing. These things aren't cheap. Shelf space and switch jacks are also limited (my jack handles five, and a new console will max that out: DC< PS2, Mac 1 and Mac 2 in there currently).

"Why not wait until cheaper?" would be a good, next, logical question, but the answer to that is pure selfishness and impatience. Just don't wanna wait. *smile*

But I see no reason to get both, especially when both are big enough to have the popular, main games. For example, both have Guitar Hero, Rock Band, and GTA. But PS3 has Final Fantasy (as AoD points out) and XBox has Halo. I am not sure what other titles are exclusive, so would be interested to hear. NOTE: I care not for sports games, cannot stand them.

I can't really say much about the games because I don't have either system to know but I have played a 360 and I do know that the 360 controller now is much smaller than then huge original X-Box controller. It is still bigger than the PS2 controller but i still think it is comfortable.

I completely understand the cost thing. That's one of the reasons why i stopped the console thing. Just wanted to get it out of the way!

GoW2 and Fable 2 and Oblivion. Are they for PS3 or just 360?

Good info, sp. Looks like GoW III is mentioned on PS3.IGNm but Fable and Oblivion are nowhere. Will have to see if those are things I would be interested in!

Wait, is that Gears of War or God of War? Man, I am out of touch with current games! *laugh*

What is PS3-only? I am even seeing Final Fantasy on XBox, so I am not sure what AoD is speaking of? I don't care which console gets stuff first -- as long as it gets it, that is what matters to me, and XBox appears to have a pretty impressive library and franchise list...

i am trying to decide the same thing as I want to play GTA4 also :)

Which way are you leaning, AB? I was leaning PS3, but with the titles I am seeing on both, plus exclusive XBox ones, I am now more unsure than ever! *smile*

I am leaning towards the PS3 as it is hardware wise the better system. Xbox 360 was released earlier and therefore more games are available for that system. I say give it some time and PS3 will eventually accumulate more titles.

Okay, I have both.
I am a fanboy of sony. Always have been, always will be. You need to know that in advance because my review will have bias in it.

Xbox- Graphically, beautiful. Reliability is questionable (google search red ring of death and you'll be scared out of your mind), I do like the controller, I don't notice much difference between the two. Online play is much better, but I don't play online much.
Exclusives: Gears of war was fun, but not worth buying an Xbox for. Halo games are great, but if you've played one FPS, you've played them all, only the story changes. So why did I buy an Xbox? One reason, Ace Combat. As soon as they announced that Ace wasn't going to be on the PS3 (Which I already owned) I went out and purchased and Xbox. I probably wouldn't do it again. But the game was amazing.

PS3. Graphically, beautiful. You won't notice the difference between the two without HD. Reliability, it needs to be updated constantly, but if you don't play online, this won't really effect you. The wireless internet connection is built in, which saves you $50 bucks if you care, and all online play is free. The content is less online, but they're getting better. It was really bad when it first came out.
Exclusives: God of War III, Gran Turismo (still the greatest racing franchise of all time) Final Fantasy.
Extra: When you DO upgrade your TV, and you will someday, you'll already have a Blu-Ry player to watch HD movies. I know you don't care about this right now, but there is no such feature on the Xbox, HD-DVD is dead.

In a direct comparison, I rented Call of Duty 4 for both systems, just so I could see the difference. There is a huge difference between the two systems, but only in HD. When I plugged both systems into a non-HD television, I couldn't see the difference.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Friend of mine has:

PC
PS one
Play Station 2
PS3
Xbox
Xbox 360
Nintendo Entertainment System
SNES
Gamecube
Wii

Xbox 360! DUH!
Better price 299$ vs 449-499$?
PS3 has three SPU processors, does it not? Too bad none of its games rely on any extra power of these processors. In fact, the Xbox games often push the CPU processors farther than PS3 ever does with its glorified SPU's.
Performance, graphics, games, and the killer, online support.
Go 360, don't fall for Sony's trap!

xbox 360 hands down

people complain about red ring, but if you buy one, it comes with a waruntee and you can just ship it in and get it fixed. They even send you a prepaid box and everything so its no harm to you except a week of playing time. There was just a minor motherboard problem in a few of the earlier ones.

Also XBOX-live. besides from pc gaming xbox live has the fastest connections and most user friendly system. its pretty amazing.

lastly are the games. personally i am a fan of first person shooters, so i have halo 2 and 3, call of duty 4, rainbow 6 vegas 1 and 2, and the new gears of war is coming out soon. a few of those can be played on a ps3 but HALO 3 cant be and thats a reason on its own...

but if you are more into the final fantasy series then u might as well get a ps3 because thats the only thing microsoft does not have, as grand theft auto is now played on 360's too

PC
PS one
Play Station 2
PS3
Xbox
Xbox 360
Nintendo Entertainment System
SNES
Gamecube
Wii

I have all of these, plus an N64, Sega, Sega CD, and an Atari 2600.

JR, I am comparing the non-"Arcade" version of the 360 to the PS3, as those are more comparable.

I do agree, the PS3 is pricey. But I want the harddrive so I can experience more downloadable and saved content, and 256 MB doesn't sound like it will cut it on the 360.

DP, thanks for the review. I had no idea Ace Combat had become an Xbox exclusive (and rumors say it could be back for PS anyway). I enjoyed Ace Combat, but it got kind of silly by the time I hit 3 and 4. However, I don't doubt the dazzling graphics really bring that back.

I had forgotten about GT, though I have moved away from that (didn't even get GT3) when I discovered the Burnout series. Not sure why, but GT just got samey for me, even with the dazzling graphics.

AB, good points... I just have a hard time telling the difference between my own internal PS-bias (since it has worked for me, and PlayStation was first console I ever owned, believe it or not!) and actually looking at the facts. Then again, if the PS3 lasts me as long as the PS2 and still has enough titles to keep me happy, "dancing with the girl that brought me" has a lot of allure...

Thanks for the comments, everyone!

Where's your Dreamcast, DP? *smile*

final fantasy yes will be on both consoles, but xbox gets only ONE of the TWO FF13 titles. and many xbox titles slated to come out in 2years are being pulled secretly(rumors of another xbox in the works due to the failure of the 360 being universally defective)

now...Sut

if a console is what you want, alot comes into play regarding personal expectations.

ps3 > xbox imo

why? cause sony had a long term game plan for each console that is well mapped(backward compatability anyone?)

and you wanted to know about the Wii? well i think they are the best thing if you mod your Wii to become like a dreamcast soon to die out, but you can have every...I MEAN EVERY NINTENDO GAME on your Wii



-- Reliability. Any problems out there?
never had my ps3 crash tho ive never seen my roomates xbox 360 get the red ring of death so.....

-- Game library -- what is exclusive to which? Which do online downloads better?

there is no suchthing as exclusive really anymore, developers want to get a return and risking it on one console when a sure bet it to put it on both. for downloads my ps2 gets done faster than my roomates xbox and he was physically connected while i am wireless

-- Controller? Preferences? I like the PS2 controllers, but I don't really know much about the XBox ones other than they said the first XBox controllers way back in the day felt like playing with a canned ham. Still true?

in regards to the controller, xbox has a more comfortable feel after hours of gameplay and they are heavier with the batters, while the ps is still the same way just a touch different with the R2 L2 bumpers, ps3 is lighter in comparison. and you cant use your existing ps2 controllers or memory cards(you need to buy an adapter for your ps3 to upload your ps2 saves, i just bought one only to later return it)

-- Other thoughts? buy a PC cause xbox lost bungie at the end of halo3 and EA is trying to buy Rockstar(gta), if EA successfully buys out Rockstar i feel itll ruin the feel of the game

aside from that the downloads are ok cause you can get a taste of a new game(online/offline) but it always is about trying to get into your wallet. sony will actually save your credit card info so its as easy as possible to spend your money but you get a vault so at anytime you lose your hard drive all the purchases you made can be re downloaded

as for TV's i dont have HDTV and its ok, but my next tv is going to be a HD projector.

also..lol

sony's games make use of the hard drive by installing files to make loading faster and have less pop ups in the distance

in the case of gta4 ive been it on 360 and ps3 side by side, the pop ups are less on ps3 but xbox has more 'color' that just might of been the tv's tho

After the Sega CD, I wasn't about to give them any more money for the Dreamcast. Fool me once....

You definitely need the Hard Drive... whichever system you buy.
Oh, and for our European friends, only the PS3 has an F1 game!
GT3 was no better than GT2, but the new GT in HD looks unbelievable. I've played the demos, and they are absolutely incredible.

Great info, FKAHTK.... This thread has been great, I appreciate all the great information!

I am going to force myself to drive BY Best Buy on the way home and think this over some more... I like the wireless network aspect of the PS3, will fit fine right in with my wireless router that is only 6 feet away, but amidst a plethora of furniture and cables! *smile*

About the backwards compatibility that has been brought up, that feature only counts for the 60GB PS3.
The PS3 with 40 gig, doesn't have that.
So if you want that backwards compatibility, I suggest getting a 60 gig version if you can. Which I suspect will be very difficult as they are collector items now.

Good point, Ling... Luckily I don't have to worry, will just run everything through my lulti A/V switch with S-Video... One free slot left! *smile*

You can play for free on the PSN (playstation network) versus you have to pay subscription on XBOX Live.

I am liking what I hear there... By the way (a couple of folks have mentioned it), how does that work? It is up to the vendor to provider servers, like with some of the games on the PS2? When the game has run its course, no more online? I figures Live costs more, but that you might be able to play games for longer, even unpopular ones? Not sure of the business models at work there...

Sut, regardless of console people have to be online for a game to be able to be played so the free servers on PS3 are far more worthwhile than Live, especially since the speed is definitely not slower.
BTW, PS3 also has Haze coming out soon FTW!
I've also not encountered the apparant GTA freezing problem on PS3 so far, seems an urban myth to me.

If you are getting a system for GTA than 360 is it, the 360 has exclusive downloads for it, i am not sure what it is or if it will cost you more but to get the most out of GTA than 360 is the way to go. For the PS3 version you must install about 5gigs to play it and it has been having some issues of freezing they have a patch to fix already so you may be same and it was mainly on online play

Now i only own a PS3 and have no thoughts of getting a 360. so i am not a fanboy of the 360 just thought you like to know that it has the extras. over all i say get a PS3 for the long run.

The freezing issue for GTA was not limited to PS3. It was also found on the 360. For the PS3, it was found not to affect all PS3's only certain versions.

the extra download-able content is just 'soap opera' story, you may not be NB(dude from main story) but youll be someone doing things lol(early tommi vercetti? the dude from gta3?), to be.... its just a way to spend your money on like GTA stories?

as far as online, its as easy as an e-mail account and having decent/ok internet that you can play an online shooter.

Sweet, that's cool everyone... I think I have to admit (mainly to myself) that Microsoft has come a long way, but I can't base the decision on that... I am glad there are two big players and a third, unique and powerful player (Nintendo). I probably can't really do wrong with either, but then it goes to legacy. I have Sony controllers, I have old cards, etc. I know that is how Sony "wins", but I will probably do PS3, but I need to see if I can wait. I mean, with the competition (that's good!), if I had the wherewithal to wait until January 2009, I could probably get either (the hard drive versions) for $100 less.

It's all good, and I really respect what everyone has said. This has been an illuminating thread for me. As usual, the CB community gives me what no other group can. I hope I can contribute on threads to pay that back equally.

(and I will let you know what I end up doing! *smile*)

The definitive question: Can you play Crash Bandicoot on either one?

I like the Xbox 360 much more than the PS3. To me, it has a more comfortable controller, better online service, and I like the games it carries.

I own both, but I've played my ps3 for maybe 24 hours since I've gotten it (last November *feels the cold in his bones*) and I've played my 360 alot more (too much in my opinion). That being said, I've played my 360 at least 4-5 days a week since, and I've had to replace it once (I've had it since October of 2006), and when I took it to have it replaced (had a store-bought warranty, took about 10 minutes as I went to where I bought it, I highly recommend spending $$$) they actually gave me $50 because of the price drop. Other than that, I haven't had much trouble with it at all.

I just think overall that the 360 is a better system right now. I think I'll have a lot more incentive to play the PS3 in the near future.

"the 360 has exclusive downloads for it, i am not sure what it is or if it will cost you more but to get the most out of GTA than 360 is the way to go"

The only guarantee is that the 360 will get "exclusive" extra content first. There is nothing stopping the PS3 from getting content later, and Take Two would not miss out on easy profits.

In terms of sutekh's original question, the main things to consider (imho) are:
- Online play: You said you don't really care, so this is a moot point, but the 360 is currently the best for online play, but it also costs money as MS hosts the game servers. The PS3 is slowly catching up, and PS Home should be interesting if it ever gets released. And whoever mentioned the "constant updates" to the PS3 as being a bad thing is over-reacting, it doesn't take that long to download the updates, and they provide new features and improvements.

- Game Library: Without knowing what games you like, it is hard to recommend one system over the other. Take a look at the game selection for each, look at the upcoming releases, and decide which games you prefer, and go based on that. In general: 360 is better for FPS, PS3 is better for RPGs, both have the rock band/guitar hero games, racing games, and action/adventure games. If, in the future, an exclusive for the other system is released that you desperately desire, you could always buy the system then as it will likely be much cheaper.

- Media Player: PS3 hands down. Includes Blu-Ray, and it both one of the cheapest and the best Blu-Ray player available (due to the included HD and the ability to update as the Blu-Ray specs change). Again, a moot point since you don't have HD, but maybe in the future this could be important to you.

- Graphics: Likely the PS3 (some will argue 360) but again a moot point for you.

- Controller: I haven't used the 360 controller, so I can't really comment on it, but PS controller hasn't really changed. If you like the PS2 controller, you will like the PS3 controller. The 360 controller, as I understand, has been much improved over the original X-box one (which really did suck, it was so big and heavy it should be classified as a lethal weapon). Honestly, I doubt this really matters as you will get used to either one.

- Reliability: PS3. 360 has had many problems with the "red ring of death", although MS may have finally fixed the issue, but there are still many reports of problems out there.

Basically, in your case sutekh, look at the game selection for each, and find which system has the most games, or genres of games, that you like, and buy that. You are going to use it exclusively for gaming, so look at the games. Everything else is practically irrelevant.

"The definitive question: Can you play Crash Bandicoot on either one?"

On both actually. The original can be downloaded and played on PS3 from PSN, and the newest Crash game will be released for the 360, Wii, DS, PSP and PS2 (if your PS3 has backwards compatibility, then you can also play it on the PS3).

Heh, I will leave Crash Banidcoot to my Nephew, Eric -- he still loves it. Almost as much as old-school Castlevania and Streets of Rage (I wish I were he, he could live on old Sega titles literally forever).

Thanks for the info, Xenko, good stuff. Bottom line now is I feel better because I think I really can't go wrong other than buyer's remorse, which this thread has really helped dissipate (if such a thing is possible). I need to make room on my little video game cart, though, as this is another relatively large chunk of plastic. Might just have to relocate the Dreamcast entirely, haven't played it in months (if not over a year).

Maybe tomorrow (/me's hair stands on end...EXCITING!)

keep us informed Sut... your opinion will help decide for me if I'm going to suck it up or wait for the PC version...

I find that the a lot of XBox games end up coming out on the PC anyway. I was tempted to get an XBox for a couple of titles that were then released on PC anyway. Halo 1 and 2 are out on the PC and Halo 3 has a team working on it. Viva Pinata is out on PC, etc.
To be honest, not much of the XBox's library interests me. I mostly play PC, PSP and DS games, though. I only actually own 2 PS3 games. My brother has more, but I'm to busy to play them. I don't play much PS3 because the titles are expensive (The same as the xbox, though)

If you're a fan of the Metal Gear Solid series, then you'll need a PS3 for MGS4.

Another reason I like the PS3 is that it's region free, so when my lame country doesn't get games (Because we suck or something), I can just import them from America, or Japan (I play games in Japanese - Super Robot Wars ftw)

Interesting, Daz -- I didn't even know the vid game industry had regionalized!

Not an MGS fan, in all caps or as the MgS *lol*

nov, I have cleared space on the deck, will drop by Best Buy tomorrow for the last minute decision!

You've all been great, I can't tell you how much I appreciate it!

Oh man.

If I was in your shoes, I would -have- to go Xbox360 to go for the GTA, Fable 2, Oblivion, Halo III (only for campaign, I was only a fan of multiplayer for the first Halo) and Assassin's Creed.

But that's just because I find that Xbox360 has such delightful choices...all my favorite games seem to be 360.

Some nice exclusive games for PS3:

I'll start with Metal Gear Solid 4. If you like twisted storyline and sneaky games, you'll love this game.

Grand Tourismo: Always a nice looking racing game.

Final Fantasy: I loved the Square Soft series, but personally I don't like the product Square Enix is selling us.

Devil May Cry: If you like destroying your controller because you have to keep up your combo by slicing and shooting tons of monsters, you'll like this game. Dante just rocks (main character).

Resident Evil: 2 words, kill zombies.

Silent hill: Disturbing, crazy, horror, blood, gore, scary,etc.... There is no better game to play at night with all light off.

Afrika: I don't really know what will be the gameplay of this game, but the graphics are just pure beauty

Little Big Planet: Build your own platform levels, invite some friends and have fun going through all of them.

Dynasty Warriors: If you loved the last one, you won't like the knew one :(. But I'm sure they will work on it with the next one.

I'm probably forgetting some, but these are big ones for the PS3.

I don't know much about the 360 but there's like 80% of the games are FPS and I don't like the knew kind of FPS where you can get shot 1000 time in the body, just need to hide 2 sec and your life gauge is full again. If you ask me wich console is better for FPS, I'll tell you to buy a 64 and play Golden Eye and Perfect Dark.

Now there's only 2 reason I would buy a 360, First is for Fable 2 and second is for Lost Odyssey. Why Lost Odyssey? Because the director of this game is Hironobu Sakaguchi. Who is he? He's the one who made Final Fantasy 1 to 10 and the Chrono series.

I hope this will help you with making a decision.

And on PS3 shopping, you can get old best seller ps1 ps2 games, there is a lot of expansion and adds for some games you may own and there's some nice mini games you can only download there like a tower defense game, a new kind of the old asteroid game and a lot more.

As you may have already found, I only have the PS3 so I know more about it, but the 360 must have great things about it too. This is surely a hard decision to take. Choose wisely.

Ah and Oblivion is on PS3 too, and there are adds release in the shopping area for it.

Long live aiming via mouse!

360 continues to struggle with reliability. PS3 appears to be solid in that department.

If you don't care about blu-ray then the 360's lower price point is appealing.

One overlooked 360 negative: I don't think any versions of the 360 has wifi support. So if you don't have cat5 running near it you'll need an adapter, which pretty much wipes out the cost advantage.

(I was planning to buy a 360 for Mass Effect, but the lukewarm reviews convinced me to wait for the PC version instead. It's starting to look like I'll just stick with ps3 and wii this generation.)

I'm just going to point out the down side of 360

1. The 'new' Falcon chip is only a liitle bit better than the previous, you can still get the Red ring of death... just because of this reason, I know that I won't buy it.

Also, I read in kotaku I think ? They will have a new 65 nm chip processor coming soon code-named Jasper in August... basically another new xbox 360 with less bugs (not sure if this will fix the red ring, but hopefully since it's getting ridiculous..)

2. HD dvd is dead, and MS won't support blu-ray. According to the maker of MGS 4, a 50 GB blu-ray is still not enough for the game, so.... I'm not exactly sure how 360 will survive the next 'next gen' game.

Game library wise 360 is still leading for now, but in the future (next year), I won't be so sure...

Besides, I guess you can play Fable II, etc in PC....

GTA and Assassin's creed are also on ps3 and all i will add is god of war 3 :P

Thanks for the additional comments!

As far as networking, I have a router with several open slots about 4 feet away from my shelf, and WiFi right there too. If WiFi works though, hey, one less cable. I like that convenience.

If it weren't for the reliability issues, the eventual Blu-Ray usefulness (man, I hated that format war!), and the fact that PS3 game catalog is really (finally) ramping up (and GTA will take me several months, anyway, I am a perfectionist), this would all be a lot harder. Also, if I were more into shooters it would be harder (however, I'm not really).

PS3 is getting the nod now, but purchase is still 8 hours off. *smile* I suppose anything could happen!

I havent read any of the other posts as i have a hangover, but yes, the GoW2 i was referring to was the Gears of War 2. Final Fantasy is out for Xbox but you must pay extra money for the ability to play on top of the XBL fees, and it is online only, so you must pay for Live and the monthly fee for the game.

I also hear rumors of the PS3 having freezing issues in GTA4, but supposedly they brought a patch out to help with that, not sure how much it has helped though.

The Ps3 has a slick Power button.

HECK YEAH.

Sutekh, it all depends on what games you like. There are pretty good games on both systems. I personally like the 360, but I'm kinda pissed that they don't have more "homebrew" stuff that PS3 does. Besides that, I think if you wanna play games online, the Xbox has a much more mature online multi-player networking thing setup then the PS3.

PS3 is getting some better games now, but the 360 has quite a few fun games already. Personally, I have a 360 and a Wii. Great times either way. I'm not a xbox fanboy, I'm more of a PC-enthusiast. ;)

Here's a list of PS3 exclusive titles and XBox 360 titles

Update:

PS3 is being updated, picture is humming and looks like crap. Why? Used the S-Vid cable that works great on my PS2 though my multi-switch, and it works like garbage on the PS3. I was tld (not by CB) they were compatible.

And Best Buy folks still don't know the difference between composite and component. Gotta love that!

ANYWAY, It is rebooting right now, and I will try the cable that comes with it through my DVD-R that components into my TV... At least it is up and working!

More to come...

Veri, thanks for the exclusive lists... I have made my choice (obviously), but still good info!

Update:
Everything updated, the PS2 cable is definitely the problem... Used the in-box cable plugged into my DVD-R input, and things look nice. Still a bit of a "hum" that bother me, but once the games get going, no problem. Updating GTA right now, already 90%.

I like the updates, but I don't want a PC. :\ I hope it isn't bad, and I am sure 360 and PS3 are about the same anyway...

GTA is starting, gotta go. *smile*

Firmware usually only updates every 2 months or so (maybe) and game updates usually only come into play if there is something wrong with the game...

But you probably are playing GTA right now...have fun =)

Close to the end of this thread (I assume), I will leave folks with a cautionary tale.

Not about PS3s or Xboxes....

This is about clean power.

I mentioned above I didn't think my PS2 S-Video cable worked right with the PS3... I had a hum in the sound and a wave in the video.

I played GTA regardless, who wouldn't... But then I popped on the PS2 and found it was also humming! With the PS3 OFF (I mean completely off, not even standby!)! I unplugged the A/V from the PS3, and the humming stopped. Unplugged from a completely separate input on a completely different component hooked into the same set of stereo/TV components.

I though I had a noisy PS3. So I took it downstairs to another TV. Plugged it in, hooked in the A/V... Perfection. Looked and sounded great.

That was when I realized I had had the PS3 plugged into a straight outlet. This house is old. Outlets sometimes dangle and such. Can't believe I couldn't see it before (but honestly had never been burned by it in my life): Bad Power.

I came back upstairs and hooked the PS3's power cord into a spare socket under all my computer stuff (thanks Sony for long cords! That's nice!) Plugged it in, turned things on...

Perfect sound and video. Plugged in the "bad" A/V cable from the PS2...perfect as well. No noise any more.

I'm just thanking god I didn't fry my PS3 or something. Stupid old electricity in this 105 year old house! Need to be more careful. Plugging into a bad socket was throwing enough noise to foul every other input on my switch...

So, when you have problems, be sure you start at the very basics -- check the power source first. *smile*

PS3 is looking decent. I am going to enjoy re-learning GTA with stellar graphics and modeling!

Thanks to everyone!

Check out Uncharted: Drake's Fortune if you get a chance. I very much enjoyed that game, and have heard similar tone from others.

congrats Sut... I'll remember that when I plug one in my 138 year old hovel...

Hey, nov, we got my PS3 runnin' in your house. Ain't no problem with that hovel. :P

lol...yeah, should be fine now... Ironically, I have a very sore throat today, and feel like going home -- but that is such a clear case of playing hookie I can't bring myself to do it!!!! Gah! You just know I wouldn't be too sick for GTA! *smile*

138 years? Wow, and I thought my house was old!

You may want to get a power surge protector that also filters the power.

I have some in my theater and the purity of the power is very noticeable compared to my living room which draws off the regular outlet.

Yeah, the strips I am in now are higher-end power strips into a better outlet... No hum whatsoever, and both of my computers do well, too (same hookup).

I gave up on backup batteries after going through two sets of them relatively quickly -- they just bricked out. Maybe I should buy more expensive ones, but the backup just isn't worth it... Also, iMacs draw a lot of juice with the 24-inch LCD being embedded. Not as bad as trying to keep an old CRT monitor up, but still -- sucker uses a lot of juice.

I totally agree and advise about using good surge protection, and I also like to tell people to buy the octopus/squid extension strips! Those things rock! I went from 4 full conventional strips to just two of the 5-flex octopus cord thingies, and all my wall warts can spread out (also spreading out the heat they create). They aren't all that attractive, but wall warts assure nothing is attractive. *smile*

A word on the octopus, or "Power Squid" items: If you buy them, go to the auto or hardware portion of a place like Target. Do NOT go to the normal surge protector, computer, or stereo area. I kid you not, the exact same product bought as a hardware item is usually 3-5 bucks cheaper than getting the more standard grey item from the computer aisle. Sure, my squids are a strange-looking black and yellow, but I save ten bucks overall!