Topic: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2? (Read 1815 times)

Cosmic Fur · « **on:** February 25, 2009, 04:34:16 PM »

Before people start foaming at the mouth about me talking about outdated consoles, here's the deal:

I've been out of the console scene since PS1. I played a lot of games through highschool, but once I hit university, I pretty much stopped playing console games (no time - I just played PC games on and off), and thus following the consoles that were out. Now I'm out of uni, and the gf and I get bored in the evenings, so we decided to get a cheapo used console system to play to pass the time sometimes.

We don't want to get a PS3/XBOX360/Wii because we're very casual gamers and don't have the cash to sink upwards of $300 into a console. At least not right now. Also we have an ordinary CRT TV, so we'd have to get a new TV to use those consoles too. Again, something we're a little too broke for right now.

So we want to either get a PS2 or XBOX because you can get a used one with 2 controllers and a whole bunch of games for under 100 bucks. To us, that's a sweet deal. The problem is, we don't know which one to go for. I know only the bare minimum about both these consoles. Which one won the war? I know PS2 has way more games, but does XBOX have any redeeming qualities? Can both of them play online? Can both of them play burned games (after modding of course)?

We're mainly looking for fun 2-player games. What do you suggest and why?

*Braces himself for "you're lame/cheapass/suck" comments.*

JayRoe · « **Reply #1 on:** February 25, 2009, 04:41:47 PM »

I think I'd get an Xbox for single player games and PS2 for multi, but it's just a hunch.

Applications like these may also be a factor.
http://xbmc.org/

fracicone · « **Reply #2 on:** February 25, 2009, 05:18:32 PM »

Well regarding the Wii it sure is expensive but it's not a next gen console visually so you are gonna be fine with a CRT TV.
In fact the lower 480i res of your TV will coverup all those jaggies Wii games have on HDTVs, but if money is an issue then
I guess it depends on what kind of games you prefer.
Bear in mind that since late 2005 M$ has completely dropped support for the Xbox1 so nothing noteworthy has been released
besides some EA sports games, while the PS has had a solid stream of games released like God of War 1 & 2, Persona 3 & 4, Okami, RE4, etc. (not sure if these games are all POST 2005 though), although gfx wise the Xbox is quite better and it has much better online MP.
Both consoles are easily moddable (the xbox can be soft modded, dunno about the PS2), and if you get a cheap EIDE HDD you can
stuff the Xbox with lots of games since many are 1 or 2 gb.
Just hit gamespot or metacritic and check out the best games for each console and make a decision based on that.

Moggle · « **Reply #3 on:** February 25, 2009, 08:08:51 PM »

The PS2 spanks the X-Box handily in game quantity and variety. The X-Box had better hardware, though, so its games, especially late-gen, are undeniably prettier. Yet, it's been clear for years now that the PS2 cock-slapped the competition in the last-gen console wars, so that's worth something.

However, as fracicone mentioned, if you're looking into modding a machine, then the X-Box is the far easier path to take. With the hard-drive capabilities and the easy-breezy BIOS flashing, an X-Box can be converted into a pirate box with minimal fuss. The PS2 can be soft-modded, but you'll need to know someone with an already-modded PS2 or PS2 Fat to pull off the trick on the new slim models. I've heard Swap Magic might do the trick in getting the .elf files onto the memory card, but I've never tried it that way myself. In any event, if you search around, you'll find that there are volunteers you can ship your old PS2 mem card to and they'll put the softmod software on there for you, free of charge. It's also possible to install a hard-drive into a PS2 and load ISO images, but it's really more of a pain in the ass than what it's worth -- in my opinion -- so I've always just stuck with DVDs.

Anyway, I think the PS2 is the best choice. But the X-Box made a good run and neither should really disappoint.

Cosmic Fur · « **Reply #4 on:** February 26, 2009, 05:25:20 PM »

francicone, yeah, Wii is still in the picture for us for the reason you mentioned. The thing with Wii is that we played it a few times at our friends', and the only game there that we really actually enjoy is Wii Sports, and Rock Band. All the other games don't seem to take advantage of the Wii controller properly. It's like, "we have this great new way of controlling the game, but we're clueless about how the fuck to properly utilize it to actually make it fun." So many games seem to just center around the fact that you can move the nunchuk around to do shit, which I guess is supposed to make it fun, so they make you do some stupid action a hundred times to do some simple shit. As soon as a game makes me wave the controller up and down repeatedly (making you look like you're furiously jacking off a horse) to achieve something makes me want to chuck the shit at the TV. Basically, the games treat the innovative controller as an afterthought, or even worse, they force you to use motion when simply pressing a button would work so much better. Plus, only the minority of the games don't suck balls.

As far as modding, I'm not really that interested in modding the console myself. I doubt there are torrents with any seeders left for PS2 or XBOX games by now. It'll be far easier to find a used modded one. What I'm wondering is what limitations modding has, if any.

I think PS2 is the one we'll be going with so far.

Moggle · « **Reply #5 on:** February 26, 2009, 06:44:17 PM »

You might be surprised at how strong the PS2/Xbox torrent community actually is. There are whole websites dedicated just to the preservation of these systems. It's really not too tough to pick up a torrent of, say, God of War and have it on a DVD in a matter of a few hours.

Cosmic Fur · « **Reply #6 on:** February 26, 2009, 06:49:04 PM »

Oh damn, nice. Going with modded for sure though - seems like the perfect solution to play lots of games for cheap. Any possible downsides of having a modded one? I read in a craigslist post that some dude was saying modchips can make PS2s overheat?

Moggle · « **Reply #7 on:** February 26, 2009, 07:49:12 PM »

I've been handling modded consoles -- though mostly Playstations of one kind or another -- since the early days of the PS1, and I've never had any of them overheat on me. I'm sure it's possible, yeah, but in my opinion it's one of those long-shot things that only happen to people who let their systems get caked in dust and/or install the chip in some asinine way. As a matter of fact, I still have my original PS2 Fat from October of 2000 with an old-ass Magic 3.1 chip in it that still runs like a raped ape to this day. And I've done nothing special with it other than blow it out with some compressed air every few months.
The only possible downside that I can think of is that there are dozens and dozens of great PS2 games, and you'll use a lot of bandwidth and burn a lot of DVDs getting and playing them. Though these days, with cheap DVDs and cheap bandwidth, it's hardly an issue for most anymore.

fracicone · « **Reply #8 on:** February 26, 2009, 07:54:03 PM »

Quote from: Cosmic Fur on February 26, 2009, 05:25:20 PM

francicone, yeah, Wii is still in the picture for us for the reason you mentioned. The thing with Wii is that we played it a few times at our friends', and the only game there that we really actually enjoy is Wii Sports, and Rock Band. All the other games don't seem to take advantage of the Wii controller properly. It's like, "we have this great new way of controlling the game, but we're clueless about how the fuck to properly utilize it to actually make it fun." So many games seem to just center around the fact that you can move the nunchuk around to do shit, which I guess is supposed to make it fun, so they make you do some stupid action a hundred times to do some simple shit. As soon as a game makes me wave the controller up and down repeatedly (making you look like you're furiously jacking off a horse) to achieve something makes me want to chuck the shit at the TV. Basically, the games treat the innovative controller as an afterthought, or even worse, they force you to use motion when simply pressing a button would work so much better. Plus, only the minority of the games don't suck balls.

As far as modding, I'm not really that interested in modding the console myself. I doubt there are torrents with any seeders left for PS2 or XBOX games by now. It'll be far easier to find a used modded one. What I'm wondering is what limitations modding has, if any.

I think PS2 is the one we'll be going with so far.

You must be a friggin' mind reader because these are EXACTLY my thoughts on the Wii.
The number of really great games for the platform is minimal, I really don't understand why the console still sells so much and
the motion control in most games are just a gimnick (try Zack & Wiki though...); I remember playing Zelda TP for a while and being
extremely disappointed by the fact that you didn't actually get to yield a sword but you just flick the control and what the sword does
has NOTHING to do with the motion you just performed with the controller, so it's actually more fun to push a button than flick the wiimote like a moron.
Still the wii has some good games like Warioware Smooth moves, Okami, Super Paper Mario and SM Galaxy (mostly 1st part titles)
and is compatible with Gamecube games so it's also an option.

Mister_s · « **Reply #9 on:** February 27, 2009, 11:31:04 AM »

As mentioned, you should totally disregard the Wii. It has nothing to do with gaming, Nintendo lost it's soul after the N64.
The PS2 wins in the games department, there is a huge amount of games playworthy. The great thing with Sony is/was, they support their shit. Because of this long support the PS2 has some brilliant games, games that pull every technical inch out of the console. The Xbox on the other hand has other strengths, ease of modding is the most noticeable one. It's also supreme as a multimedia machine, just dump your movies and music on the HDD and you're good to go. With the HDD you can also have a huge game database on the Xbox itself, no need to fuss with DVD's.
So it all depends on what you're looking for. Is it alot of gaming potential? Go for the PS2. Do you want a more allround machine? Go for the Xbox. The Xbox is huge though, that's one of the bigegst weaknessess of teh machine.

Exhumed · « **Reply #10 on:** June 02, 2010, 11:16:07 PM »

I'm going to have to agree with the above PS2 posters. Games for the thing are cheap, easily obtained for 10usd or less at pawn shops or if you mod, free online. Plus even though I myself have an old original Xbox at the house I still play around with my old PS2 much more often. It just has many more memorable and high quality games. Especially if you and your female companion are into RPG's and such.

fracicone · « **Reply #11 on:** June 03, 2010, 12:42:17 AM »

Yeah the amount of GREAT JRPGs is staggering, and even some PS1 JRPGs hold up pretty well, at least gameplay wise.

TheIsonews · « **Reply #12 on:** September 27, 2010, 02:21:30 AM »

SO which one did you end up getting?

Logger · « **Reply #13 on:** December 27, 2010, 08:00:27 AM »

Remember those awesome PS1 games you know and love and might want to replay because they'll be real cheap? Those can be re-played if you get a PS2. Watch out for memory cards if you plan on saving a lot, memory cards fill up quickly if you have a lot of games and some games like to be greedy fucks and take up 3-7 slots on your memory card.

As for modding, the PS2 has an alternative which doesn't requiring any 'chipping'.
Basically...

Insert Disc

Load Programme

Swap Disc

Play Game

It may seem more irritating having to do it whenever you want to play on a game that's copied, but you don't have to perform surgery on the PS2 at least.

To find this MagicDisc and SlideCard(a tool you need) look for 'SwapMagic'. If you know how to mess around with the insides of a console then I guess it doesn't really matter in the end.
Video of the SlideCard:

Playstation 2 will be a lot more fun, it can also play films without forcing you to buy some dumb remote. (Unless you mod the Xbox and upload firmware to it of course)

Edit
-Aww...I missed the thread completely by 6 months, hah, I hope he went with the PS2.

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Author Topic: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2? (Read 1815 times)

Cosmic Fur

Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

JayRoe

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

fracicone

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

Moggle

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

Cosmic Fur

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

Moggle

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

Cosmic Fur

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

Moggle

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

fracicone

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

Mister_s

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

Exhumed

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

fracicone

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

TheIsonews

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?

Logger

Re: Behind the Times, but... What Was Better? XBOX or PS2?