Is really about getting more games. The more you sale the more likely you will get a game made for your system. That is why it was so important for MS to come out early because you couldn't ignore the installed base. If you wanted to make money then you had to make game son the 360 while the PS3 or even Wii caught on. The Wii has caught on and passed it but even so not all third party have had as much success as on the 360.

If the 360 launched with he PS3 then almost all the games would have been made on the PS3 because of the PS2 having 100+ installed base it was common sense most would just migrate to the PS3.

In the end it doesn't matter this generation since the 360 has the installed base to continue to have games for a couple of more years and then like you said a new one will become available. The PS3 will also continue to do very well and will have plenty of game as well. Honestly all console owners should be happy this generation as all three systems are getting great support vs the previous generations you had a leader and the rest fighting for scrapes.

Gamerace said: Domicinator said: if the Xbox 360 ends up coming in third, it will be a smaller margin than it was with the original Xbox vs. the PS2, right?  Lol.  I can guarantee you the PS3 will NOT outsell 360 by the 100m the PS2 outsold the xbox by (and still counting). The Wii likely will, but that probably doesn't matter.

So you are basically agreeing with what he just said? Or is it a misinterpretation.

It's nice to talk about this with reasonable people for a change.  I try not to get involved with the stupidity on message boards, but reading them really bothers me sometimes.  I have been PC gaming for my whole life, and have had some consoles sprinkled in along the way as well.  (NES, SNES, 3 iterations of Gameboy, Dreamcast, etc) 

So I thought 360 would be a nice change.  I haven't owned a console in awhile, and PC gaming is taking me to the poorhouse.  Now that I am cheating on my PC with a console, I have this "What have I done?" feeling about my 360 purchase every time I see good press (followed by flame comments) about the PS3.  I want the 360 to be a viable platform until the next gen where I will either be faced with another choice of which one to buy, or I will go back to my PC full time.  I'm never going to be the kind of guy who wants to own all the consoles, so I really want the one I own to turn out as a good choice.

Domicinator said: Yeah, I get that part, but I think most projections are pointing to the fact that even if the Xbox 360 ends up coming in third, it will be a smaller margin than it was with the original Xbox vs. the PS2, right? So I would think developers would consider it a very bad move financially to stop developing for the 360 just because it lost some war that largely gets fought on web forums anyway. For example, looking at the predictions you've made, the PS3 will outsell the 360 by 6 million units at the end of the generation. I don't think developers would stop making games for a platform based on that small of a difference. And Microsoft certainly has the money to keep paying to get great exclusives. Am I wrong on any of that?

 At some level, it doesn't really matter which sells more between the PS3 and the 360. Their capabilities are similar enough that the vast majority of 3rd party support will release on both platforms, and taken as a single market, the HD consoles represent a bigger market than the Gamecube and Xbox did last gen. While the Wii is bound to steal a chunk of that support, multiplat releases on the HD consoles should provide enough returns to justify the investment.

And I'm sure each console will have a handful of tasty exclusives every year so that the grass doesn't look too much greener on the other side. 

Ahhh, talking on a decent message board makes me feel so much better about my purchase.  I think I'll celebrate by playing some Burnout: Paradise tonight.

The console wars here are just for fun. It's just a good debatable topic. If you're looking for an alternative method to PC game for cheaper, the 360 was your best choice. Most of the larger PC releases nowadays are Microsoft published and are either PC games ported to 360 or 360 games ported to the PC. A lot of third party developers on PC are porting over their games to 360 and not the PS3 for some reason. It may be the architecture of the consoles, I'm not sure. As long as you don't have to deal with the hardware issues, you'll have a blast.

Domicinator said: I do kind of feel like the 360 and PS3 fanboys are arguing about this and not even paying attention to the fact that the Wii has been an absolute phenomenon that reminds me of the NES days.  I know it caters to a much bigger crowd, but if it continues on its current path, isn't the Wii the real winner?  Wouldn't Sony and MS BOTH need to take note of that formula for the next generation?

Wii definately is the real winner, even if we would assume that it's sales would suddenly drop to GC levels, since Wiis precessor wasn't a real success. Also 360 is a winner, considering that it will gain more sales than Xbox. The only loser is PS3. The thing with the Wii is, that it's still a big question how it will eventually sell. I hasn't had any pricecuts yet, it's far too expensive for the average "casual" or the group Nintendo is expanding to, non-gamers. Wiis success may be more relevant for games on each platform (PC, 360, PS3), than either PS3 os 360 winning, mostly because of the difference between the performance of Wii and PS360. Devs that want to create games with high-end graphics (which will still be there) are nearly forced to go multiplatform between the three, instead of sticking to one platform. And i don't think PC gaming market is dying, it's just changing. I blame Steam.

Onyxmeth said: A lot of third party developers on PC are porting over their games to 360 and not the PS3 for some reason. It may be the architecture of the consoles, I'm not sure.

It's the DirectX. You don't develope any games for Windows without it and since 360 supports it, it's kinda like having common developement tools between the platforms (also M$ may have something to do with it, like less licencing fees for 3rd parties to pay for a port).

bdbdbd said: Onyxmeth said: A lot of third party developers on PC are porting over their games to 360 and not the PS3 for some reason. It may be the architecture of the consoles, I'm not sure.   It's the DirectX. You don't develope any games for Windows without it and since 360 supports it, it's kinda like having common developement tools between the platforms (also M$ may have something to do with it, like less licencing fees for 3rd parties to pay for a port).

Thanks. Good to know.

 

http://www.next-gen.biz/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=9148&Itemid=2&limit=1&limitstart=0

So what do you all make of this article? Is it valid? He spends a lot of the article praising the 360, but sort of trashes it in the last paragraph.