Why All The PS3 Hate?

[Reasonable]

Fumanchu said:
Mike do you believe that these games warrant the price difference?

You're a technical specification wizard...but average joe sees Gears 2 running alongside Resistance 2 on demo units in any game retailer, then looks at the price of the consoles and something doesn't sit right.

I agree re: hardware reliability, loudness of console (which is not so much of an issue anymore with NXE), PSN free etc. - Despite all it's flaws look at the games library, of which the game reviewer concensus - metacritic shows twice as many 360 games over 90%, at least 100 more games available, more or less the same graphical fidelity (time of writing) and it's hard to be convinced that the extra $200 nets you a better GAME machine.

I now you asked MikeB, but let me give a perspective that's non-technical based on some recent experience of mine.

1) to the average Joe they do not see the additional money getting them a better GAME machine - the 360 just seems to offer the same games (more or less) for less money

2) the 'true' price of the 360 is hidden to an extent.  I say this as I know many parents (I'm one of this site's older residents!) bought one and were less than impressed to find they needed to spend another £100 plus (UK example) to get the WiFi and Live membership.  Throw in the expensive HDD and suddenly I know a fair few people realizing they weren't saving money vs a PS3 after all.

3) the additional PS3 elements that are visible just don't appeal to all gamers - this is really about BR.  If you want an HD games console plus a BR player then the PS3 looks good, but if you really aren't interested in BR or are going to hook your 360 up to a SD TV (as many are) then it doesn't matter

4) a lot of gamers aren't interested in quality of build.  Not really.  They'll gripe but they don't care if they get the games they want and online with their friends.

 

So I see two things.  One, MS does a good job making the 360 appear cheaper than it is, Sony does a poor job (IMHO) making its additional elements seem appealing, or to actively point out the 'true' cost of a 360 vs a PS3 if you want online and want to use WiFi, for example.