[pxl] Audio Update Now Available. It's been a couple of weeks since the old site was 'torn down' and this holding page was put up while the layout is being worked on. It's close to being done and sliced up with all the fun that goes into plugging it into WordPress, but, I just wanted to get a simple editorial out concerning current video game hardware.
In a past episode, I interviewed David Abram of cheapassgamer.com and the basics about what occurs with their users at that page. They scour B&M businesses and online stores looking for the cheapest prices on current and not-so-current games. In fact, once you fall back into the CAG release timeline, you end up saving a lot of money and get to enjoy as many games as you please. Now, that isn't to say they don't splurge on the occasional hot release now and again when the itch is bad, but for the most part, they practice patience.
I kind of follow that mold, to a point. I never, EVER by first-generation hardware of any console, period. PS2's were notorious for their 'Disc Read Errors', so much so there's a Disc Read Error FAQ created by owners to help troubleshoot their problems. XBOX 360's, since day one, have been nothing but a nuisance to gamers. In fact, the failure rate of 360's was recently reported at or above 30 percent. A lot of people will argue whether the actual figure is that high, however, given the high failure rate of Microsoft's second attempt at the console market, giving the press leverage to make such a claim against your product through customer outrage is a telling sign.
However, even through revisions, products seem to be unable to improve. The Nintendo DS is a prime example of this.The original DS design (a.k.a. the DS 'fat'), while being somewhat bulky and cumbersome, was pretty sturdy and rigid in its construction. The redesigned DS Lite, however wasn't as structurally sound, cracking under the simplest of conditions. Moving from aesthetics to electrical problems, when Sony redesigned the PS2 with the Slimline version, the adapters used for the new system were recalled for overheating issues.
Currently, I'm in the market for a next-gen, which I guess now is current-gen, console. The problem is, no company has provided a compelling enough reason for me to purchase any of their systems. The PS3, as of this writing, has an extremely shallow game library which doesn't warrant its price tag, even after the price drop of $100. Its appeal as a Blu-Ray player currently trumps its gaming abilities, due to its weak game library.
The XBOX 360, while it does have a good gaming library, doesn't pull at me yet due to the constant hardware issues and the incessant microtransactions imposed on players via XBOX Live. Also, save game issues with games like Crackdown and a couple of others, their QA checks seem to be slipping. While they have gone the extra mile by extending the warranty for victims of the three-rings-of-death, I'm still somewhat leary of making the purchase until it's announced that the revised hardware is on the market.
As for the Wii, well, I own a DS Lite (which has the imfamous crack reported earlier... well, not as bad as THAT one, but it's there :D) and a lot of the titles available for the Wii are either derived from the DS or just a bunch of party games. The only title that has piqued my interest is No More Heroes, being headed up by Goichi Suda.
I want to be able to run with everyone else and enjoy these next-gen titles, but, I'm also not going to become a slave to the Customer Service line of various companies to get hardware repeatedly fixed that should've been engineered and built properly the first time. Now, if hardware fails once, or even twice, that's acceptable, there's always a risk of purchasing a faulty product either due to poor handling during shipping or just a bad unit slipping through the system, and it definitely sucks when it's your time to deal with it. However, today's product quality isn't what it used to be with sending production off-shore for cheaper rates and using cheaper parts to cut corners, but 11 failures?! That's pushing it a bit, don't you think?
As someone who's part of the masses, a regular dude wanting to come in and play but not swayed simply by being the 'latest and greatest', just give me a compelling reason to sacrifice a paycheck to purchase your entertainment system. Until then... well, I'm still getting mileage out of my second PS2.
Your Master of Nerd Ceremonies,
Nick 'grayscale' Selpa