2008 Woodie Awards
PS3 vs. Wii: The Aftermath
By: Ryan Stone
Issue date: 2/7/07 Section: Entertainment & Features
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Ryan Stone
Visual Arts Editor
It's been roughly two months since the Sony PS3 and the Nintendo Wii went head to head in one of the most talked about console battles. When both were released, lines could bee seen outside of Wal-mart Supercenters and Best Buy retailers for days, people waiting in the cold and rain trying to get their hands on the two most coveted pieces of hardware since the release of the video iPod.
The PS3 released on Friday, Nov. 17 with lots of fanfare. People were shot and stampeded in some places just to get their hand on the slick black piece of HD goodness. Immediately after release, eBay had a massive insurgence of PS3's on sale. By some estimates one of every two PS3's sold went directly to eBay. Some people returned their PS3's after being scammed multiple times. The PS3 sold a measly 1,198,644 units as of now, according to Nexgenwars.com.
Immediately after release Sony was hounded by backward compatibility problems. Gamers wishing to play older PS2 games were sometimes met with problems and could not play a select number of games. Only a few weeks after launch, more problem reports started coming in. Some HD gamers were having problems actually playing in high definition. As the problems continued to surface, many found that older high definition televisions didn't have the ability to play in high definition.
The many issues the PS3 has encountered doesn't concur that people haven't enjoyed theirs. Many gamers have enjoyed system, but will they continue to? As of right now, there is a rather meager launch lineup and more and more companies are jumping ship on the console due to production costs.
Enter the oddly named Nintendo Wii. The Wii launched much more quietly than the much talked about PS3. Immediately after release, people started talking about the motion sensitive system, and many enjoyed it. Many owner testimonials stated their parents who had never played video games enjoyed a rousing game of bowling or knockout brawl in boxing.
The Wii was not without blemish though. Many news outlets ran stories of "flying wiimotes." After the talk of the town became broken plasma televison sets, the Wii started flying off the shelf. The Wii was nowhere to be seen and is still a rarity.
Now the dust has settled, the PS3 can be bought at a number of video game system retailers. It shipped less than the Wii and now is readily available. The Wii is shipped more and there are still people who wait overnight in search of the coveted system.
Visual Arts Editor
It's been roughly two months since the Sony PS3 and the Nintendo Wii went head to head in one of the most talked about console battles. When both were released, lines could bee seen outside of Wal-mart Supercenters and Best Buy retailers for days, people waiting in the cold and rain trying to get their hands on the two most coveted pieces of hardware since the release of the video iPod.
The PS3 released on Friday, Nov. 17 with lots of fanfare. People were shot and stampeded in some places just to get their hand on the slick black piece of HD goodness. Immediately after release, eBay had a massive insurgence of PS3's on sale. By some estimates one of every two PS3's sold went directly to eBay. Some people returned their PS3's after being scammed multiple times. The PS3 sold a measly 1,198,644 units as of now, according to Nexgenwars.com.
Immediately after release Sony was hounded by backward compatibility problems. Gamers wishing to play older PS2 games were sometimes met with problems and could not play a select number of games. Only a few weeks after launch, more problem reports started coming in. Some HD gamers were having problems actually playing in high definition. As the problems continued to surface, many found that older high definition televisions didn't have the ability to play in high definition.
The many issues the PS3 has encountered doesn't concur that people haven't enjoyed theirs. Many gamers have enjoyed system, but will they continue to? As of right now, there is a rather meager launch lineup and more and more companies are jumping ship on the console due to production costs.
Enter the oddly named Nintendo Wii. The Wii launched much more quietly than the much talked about PS3. Immediately after release, people started talking about the motion sensitive system, and many enjoyed it. Many owner testimonials stated their parents who had never played video games enjoyed a rousing game of bowling or knockout brawl in boxing.
The Wii was not without blemish though. Many news outlets ran stories of "flying wiimotes." After the talk of the town became broken plasma televison sets, the Wii started flying off the shelf. The Wii was nowhere to be seen and is still a rarity.
Now the dust has settled, the PS3 can be bought at a number of video game system retailers. It shipped less than the Wii and now is readily available. The Wii is shipped more and there are still people who wait overnight in search of the coveted system.
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