XBox or PS3?

I don't think you can really go wrong with either but if you want more games I'd say xbox360 but I'll add that's what I have and I'm quite tempted now and again to buy a Ps3 for titles like Gran Turismo.

I'd say look at the titles available for each then make your mind up based on that.

 

Cant help you here (not really a console gamer) but just in case you do go for a PS3, lemme know first. I have one in excellent condition (think i used it for a totlal of less than 50 hours in the one year I've owned it) and might sell it off to you. Got it just to play BFBC2 and while the game was fun, I dont really find myself sitting down and playing on the big screen too much.

 

PS3

- Better exclusive games (IMO)
- Blue Ray player
- Web Browser
- Free online multiplayer
- Quieter
- Less likely to break

Xbox 360

- Xbox live feels better than PSN
- Bigger game library
- Your friends are probably more likely to own this console (edit - just noticed you live in India, I'm pretty sure the PS3 is more popular in Asia)
- You might prefer the controller


I'll admit I don't own an Xbox 360, but I've played one at my friend's house and I prefer my PS3. Try them both out if you can, see which one you prefer.

 

Really, the outcome of this battle depends largely on your preferences. This post might get a little lengthy, so bear with me.

I'll start with the PS3's pros. You mentioned the Blu-Ray player. This is good for several reasons: you can watch Blu-Ray titles, games designed around the PS3's system usually look better than on the 360 with all that extra space, and all recent titles can fit on a single disc, whereas some games can take up two or three discs on the 360 (L.A. Noire, for one). The PS3 used to be lacking in the online gaming department along with their online store, but I think that it's become better over the years. The PS3's user base keeps growing, which means plenty of people are online to play the newer titles. Sony's probably beating the 360 in the exclusive title range right now; Microsoft's showing at E3 this year was severely lacking. I don't know much about the PlayStation Move titles, but some PS3 games do have support for that motion controller without necessarily requiring it.

Now for the cons. The PS3 isn't exactly known for being very family-friendly; most of it's major titles are rated M, I believe, with a few straying into T and E. There are always the third-party titles to make up for that, of course. Also, some game producers fail to take full advantage of the PS3's superior hardware when developing games for the system, so it might actually look worse on the PS3 than on the 360. But those cases are becoming ever more rare. Console updates are frequent and horrendously long. Depending on the update, it can take 30 minutes for me to download and install an update, and I have an advertised 40Mbps download speed. Not cool.

A little extra information on the PS3: The controllers are basically the same form factor that they've held since the first PlayStation. They do have a built-in rechargeable battery, which is nice. They can be recharged by connecting to the PS3's USB ports using a mini-USB cable, which you'll probably have one around the house already. PSN, the online service, is free. And who doesn't like free? PSN+ is subscription-based, which is basically PSN with early access to DLC and a few free titles thrown in. You don't have to subscribe for online play.

I think I covered the PS3 pretty well, so let's move on to the 360. The XBox 360 came out first in the next-gen war, so its user-base is highly set and continues to grow with the advent of Kinect. Plenty of people online to play, if that's your thing. XBox Live is usually considered to be superior to PSN with its overall experience, allowing group chat outside of individual games and quick access to all your friends. The 360 has a huge library of titles available, despite the fact that recent exclusive numbers have dropped. I think that the 360 is considered to be more family-friendly; plenty of titles in the E to T range, with some exclusives and shooters straying into the M range. And then there's Kinect, which is automatically geared toward family experience. The new XBox 360 (the one that comes with Kinect) is very quiet and eliminates the hardware failure that used to plague many earlier 360 consoles. The interface is very streamlined and it's pretty easy to find what you're looking for.

A few cons: The controllers do not come with rechargeable battery packs. Those cost extra. Not a deal-breaker, necessarily, but it can be annoying. XBox LIVE is subscription-based if you want to play online; you can download DLC and stuff without paying, but it costs $60 for a full-year subscription to play online. The XBox 360 still uses the DVD format for its game discs, so there are cases where you will have multiple discs to play a game. Switching discs is usually very streamlined, but it can still be a hassle. "Hardcore" console exclusives have stagnated as of late, with the exception of Halo 4 and Forza Motorsport 4. The online store system uses MS Points rather than dollars and cents, which can get confusing. It's just as easy to add funds to your account, though, via credit card or gift card from a store.

My bottom line: really, I'd be careful going with either system right now. Both Microsoft and Sony are due for a console refresh sometime next year, with better hardware and, as a result, better-looking games. But, if you just can't wait, I'd say that if you're big on the overall experience and value, go for the PS3. If you really want the online experience and the family-friendly titles, go for the 360. They're both great systems; it would also be good to look at the console exclusives each system has and go with which one sounds best to you (PlayStation Move, Killzone, Uncharted, and Infamous for the PS3, Gears of War, Halo, Forza Motorsport, Fable for the 360, just to name a few).

 

"My bottom line: really, I'd be careful going with either system right now. Both Microsoft and Sony are due for a console refresh sometime next year, with better hardware"

I doubt that, if ether company were going to launch a console in 2012 it would have been announced along with the Wii U. I fully expect both companies to launch consoles in 2014, maybe one in 2013. The upgradable firmware has allowed this generation to hold out longer then the previous three and that's a good thing.

 

I won't go into details because I think CaptainAwesome wrote a great non-biased post that pretty much covers it all bar a few nitpicks. I own both consoles and my recommendation would be the PS3 as well.

In many ways it's better. Blu-ray players occasionally need updating and if there's one that's always going to be right up to date, it's your PS3. I've had a couple of other Blu-ray players, one of them won't play Terminator Salvation and repeatedly gives me error messages after I go through the trouble of connecting it to my router, the other pauses occasionally while playing movies. On a similar note, lots of Blu-ray titles have bonus features that include online content, so having it on a console that (ideally) is online the whole time is an easy solution to that.

I'm pretty sure IMNS is a lot closer than you think

 

What kind of games do you normally play aswell? For instance halo is a great fps but if you like action/adventure then uncharted is fantastic. So your gaming preferences play into to it a bit aswell.

There are some extra stuff but being from India you can't get them. Netflix, espn etc... Are good except they are only in America. So stuff like that wont factor in.

 

360. I bought a Ps3 once, but sold it and don't miss it. The online experience is significantly better with the 360. I've always said that you get what you pay for and Xbox Live vs PSN is a prime example of that fact. Admittedly, I have a 35,000+ gamerscore with the 360 and wouldn't want to have to start over again anyway with the altogether different scoring system that the Ps3 uses.

Yes, Sony has better exclusives, but I don't like most of their exclusives. Gran Turismo is nothing special compared to Forza Motorsport. They are compareable to me. I think Resistance is "meh" as a franchise. I'm a huge racing fan, and yet Motorstorm has never gripped me. I don't like God of War at all. I don't like Metal Gear Solid either. Neither franchise is fun, IMO. Never fell in love with Socom either.

I want to like Kingdom Hearts, but the plotlines are always so convoluted. I'm a huge Parasite Eve fan and I wish Square-Enix and Sony would do more with the franchise.

I haven't played Uncharted. My sense is there's a lot of platforming involved. I hate stealth and I hate platforming.

So that pretty much leaves Killzone, but I'm not buying a Ps3 for that.

With that said, there is some older stuff out there that is now cheap and I'd be curious to play, like Heavy Rain. If there was a price drop, I might.

I love the PSP. The PSP, even right now, is still superior to the 3DS. I don't neccessarily love franchise exclusives on the PSP though.

 

It really depends what you want like everyone is saying. And both systems have hardcore games and family friendly games. 360 has Gears of War where PS3 has God of War. Ps3 has Rachet and Clank while 360 has Banjo Kazooe, Nuts and Bolts.

My friends and I play both, but we are on my PS3 most of the time. I enjoy 3rd person games that aren't super gory and I only sometimes play online.

Go to YouTube and watch trailers of the systems exclusives and see what looks like the most fun to you.

P.S. The PS3's blu-ray is a ton better than our dedicated Samsung Blu-Ray. Easier updating, hard drive, etc.

 

Spidey, Pretty sure I told you where I live months ago. Check your old PMs

I know you are in India and that's the only reason I made the offer. Just lemme know in case you do decide for a ps3 and we'll see.

 

Fine, fine. We'll settle the difference and call it an E3 2012 announcement.

My logic basically ran by the fact that each PlayStation console was separated from the last by six years. 2012 is six years from 2006, when the PS3 was released. But you're right that the firmware updates probably will delay that.

 

I had 30,000 gamerscore when I switched to PS3, now I'm working on my 14th platinum. The conversion rate is shaky, but that more or less equals about 60k so I've easily overtaken my 360 score. Gotta say I was never fond of gamerscore anyway, numbers don't really mean anything. If I told you I got a high score of one million on a random arcade game, would you know if that was any good or not? Platinum trophies however, are a clear indication that person has "mastered" the game, with gold trophies generally being difficult feats such as finishing the story, completing Hard mode, etc.

As for Live, I'm still unsure why it's better other than cross-game voice chat (which I loved, admittedly) and parties. Yes they're nice, but there's no way in hell I'd pay for those. I'm pretty sure the impression most people have when they hand over their cash is that they're paying to play multiplayer, which works perfectly well on PSN at no cost.

 

If I was buying a new console now, I would probably get a PS3: online doesn't matter to me, and its exclusives are much more interesting than those on Xbox. Plus it is a blu-ray player. The main downside I see in the PS3 is that I find the controller a bit awkward. At the time I bought my 360 I had no choice: it was approx $500 AU, much cheaper than the $1000 (!) for the recently released PS3.

 

Sony has better *full retail* exclusives. Xbox Live Arcade does beat the PSN store though.

 

Just putting it out there, 14 Platinum (excluding any other games that you have played but not platinum'd) is almost exactly equal to 14000 gamer score, given that 100% of a full retail game on XBL is 1000 GS (ex. DLC), and that cross platform achievements are the same almost every time.
Of course if you include Arcade/PSN titles, then those 14 platinum would likely equal less than 14000 GS, as each XBLA title is limited to 200 GS.

 

Yeah that's true, I guess I worded it wrong... or neglected to add some information. It doesn't take into account the 69 gold, 377 silver and 1803 bronze trophies I have.

I may only have completely finished 13 games so far, but I own almost 100 (some before trophy support was mandatory)... and I have just under 50 on Xbox. PSN titles don't include platinum trophies.