Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 26-30 of 225
 Truly Next Generatin Gaming November 25, 2007
Raul G. (USA)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
First a little background - I bought the Playstation 3 80gb with MotorStorm about 3 months ago. I really wanted to use the system for a while before submitting a review.
First I've got to say that the PS3 has an elegant design. It's sleek and best of all quiet. You won't hear fans or anything like that. That trend continues when you power on the system. The user interface involves a series of simple icons that let you do everything from watching a Blu-Ray movie to surfing the internet to playing your games. The interface is very Spartan, but dig down and you have quite a few options for advanced users including several options for home theaters.
Now to the important bits: Gaming. Simply put the exclusive titles on the PS3 are phenomenal, ports of games that appeared on other consoles - not so much. I've noticed that this is something that's starting to change more and more, however, it's something that everyone should be aware of.
Graphically the power of the PS3 really shines on games like Resistance: Fall of Mankind and Heavenly Sword. There are many, many others - Ratchet and Clank, Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, Warhawk and on and on.
On the control front, if you've used a Playstation before you're going to be right at home with the SIXAXIS controller. Its strange using the tilt functionality at first and some games don't support the feature, but when implemented well by the developer it really adds to the game. Plus rumble support is finally returning to Playstation with the new Dual Shock 3 controller!
Online support is fantastic and growing every week. The absolute best thing about PS3 games is that online gaming is completely free. No fees for 'silver' or 'gold' accounts or anything like that; everyone is ready to go right out of the box as long as you have a broadband internet connection.
So after 3 months I've acquired a small collection of AAA titles and I'm enjoying the system. I would highly recommend to anyone!
EDIT:
9 Months Later: After a solid 9 months of use I'm still loving my Playstation 3. I've built up a solid library of single player and multiplayer games, taken my PS3 online, use the media server option to stream music from my PC, watch Blu-ray movies and have made friends online.
First, major improvements have been made to the Playstation Network Store (PSN). The entire store is much easier to navigate and to find games, demos, themes, wallpaperes, etc.
Great titles have been released including Call of Duty 4, Metal Gear Solid 4, Grand Theft Auto 4 (that's a lot of 4's!!). I'm also happy to say that the previous problem of porting games from the other console to the PS3 has improved as well. Developers are starting to understand the machine more and really adopt their games to the PS3.
With the adoption of Blu-ray as the definitive next-generation optical media format the PS3 is also a fantastic BD movie player with an ever expanding library of movies.
Sony continues to provide great support by releasing firmware updates that improves functionality, and adds new features.
Games like Call of Duty 4, Metal Gear Online, Warhawk, Battlefield Bad Company have thriving online communities and best of all - it's completely free!
The multiplayer aspect of the PS3 is also solid with games like High Velocity Bowling and Rock Band. The use of the SIXAXIS of DualShock 3 controllers is has grown more integrated into games. For example in High Velocity Bowling you hold the controller simulating a bowling ball and actually got through the motion of a swing. Great fun as a party game with friends!
Anyway I will continue to make updates as I see necessary. So far I am extremely pleased with my PS3.
 Ah, 80 GB machine, we hardly knew thee... February 21, 2008
M. A Jenkins (West Lafayette, IN)
8 out of 12 found this review helpful
I was fortunate to pick up yesterday the now-discontinued 80 GB PS3. I'm pretty happy with the purchase, although there are some bad points to the new playstation. Still, let's begin with the good:
1) Solid construction - the machine itself is pretty damn solid. I think it weighs 10-12 pounds or so. I like the jet-black reflective color, although it looks like it hides a turn-table or something.
2) Backward compatibility - this has been beaten in the ground, but its worth mentioning. The current 40 GB model lacks backward compatibility. It's a stupid move by Sony on my part, as this feature is worth the extra bucks spent (although not worth the exhorbitant rates charged by some of the private sellers hosted by Amazon.
3) Wireless controller - man, I hate the fact that the Wii controller uses batteries. So many batteries. Wouldn't it be much simpler to have a wireless controller charge an internal battery off of the machine itself? Voila. The PS3 gets this one right.
4) Multiple use - Blu-ray is poised to dominate the home entertainment market in the next few years. If you don't believe me, just look at the recent jump in Sony's stock prices. It is very nice to get a Blu-ray player on this machine. Of course, there is a downside to this, which I'll elaborate on later, but I'm happy to have the technology. You can also load photos, music, etc. on the machine, but this is less interesting to me.
5) Great graphics - Stellar stuff. The graphical potential of this machine is almost unchartable. If it can just get off the ground (and I think it finally is, despite the buffoonery of the Sony execs), watch out. The PS3 will REALLY shine in this department.
Now, the bad:
1) Lack of software - Sony has been monumentally stupid in its wooing of 3rd party platformers, and it shows. The dearth of games on the system is unacceptable. Hope is on the horizon, but man, lots of good games have been lost to X-Box 360.
2) Devotion to Blu-ray - it is my opinion that Sony is banking on the PS3 to be a Blu-ray delivery device, rather than a gaming machine. If you look at the "evolution" of the system, we've seen deletions of backward compatibility in every iteration of the system, and now it is completely gone. My opinion is that SOny thinks they can get away with this, since people will (supposedly) buy the system for its Blu-Ray player. It's a shortsighted vision - as the Wii has proven, gamers want machines...that play games. Sure, the extras are great, but I didn't buy the PS3 for its Blu-Ray.
3) Ridiculously large - did this machine REALLY need to look like it houses a turntable? It looks like something out of the 70s, with a jet-black finish.
4) Dearth of games - did I mention this already? Well, it bears repeating.
Sony will rise high with this machine, as it is a good one. They won't dominate the market anymore, which is also good, as it should cleanse the execs of the arrogance that has surrounded this system (Nintendo ran into this problem in the mid-t0-late 90s, with their 64DD debacle, as well as their loss of market share from the N64). All in all, I expect this machine to do well in the long run, as Sony realizes just how arrogant it has been in all of this. Until then, tread water.
Addendum: Don't buy a $750 80 GB machine. The backward compatibility isn't worth it. There are still some of these machines in stores (check places like Sears and Kmart, where no one seems to shop anymore), but in the end, I would just get a 40 GB machine and hold onto my PS2, rather than pay these ridiculous gougers the prices they seek.
 no games but good system October 26, 2007
R. Woodliff (Martinez,ca)
7 out of 23 found this review helpful
well i bought my ps3 at launch i was really excited for it but from launch to now theres really nothing to play on it
yeah heavenly sword is cool lair is all hype ratchet and clank seems really cool but what are we getting after that?
if you're going to get a ps3 wait till mgs 4/killzone2/final fantasy
basically wait till 2008
It's do or die for Sony in 2008, time to make your move... January 3, 2008
JOHN SPANGLER (Ohio)
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
I've had this system a year now. Honestly, I've been a bit disappointed with it. Bad system? Of course not, but I have to admit, I expected more. I've seen slow starts before, but here in early 08, I'm still getting impatient and want some killer titles.
My problem is the lack of games. For 6 months I think I saw the same games sticking around at WalMart shelves, mind you, this has nothing to do with the system, oh wait, yes it does, because you need games to play on a system, right? I don't care how much power this baby has, and I know it does, but where are my games? Hot Shots Golf has been delayed 6 times since launch day, and still nowhere in site. Metal Gear Solid, Gran Turismo, give me my games!!! But under me being so impatient and wanting mroe, I still find an awesome system under that shiny black hood.
One of my big attractions personally was the backwards compatablity. I an comfotably assume, most will want to be able to play their PS1 and Ps2 games on their ps3. I played Rayman from the PS1 for the first time and looks better than ever. The PS3 gives you the option to "smooth" or the guru term is "anti-aliasing" all the old games. It's good for older games because on the old systems games suffered from ragged and broken textures, but the PS3 marvelously smooths games out and makes them look more polished. YOu can also choose "Full screen" for old games too, which makes the games look great on owners with widescreen TVs.
Now I heard they are discontinuing backwards compatibility which is a huge blow for many, so if you can, stick with te 60 or find a 20gig one which I have which still will play all the old games out of the box. I still play my Hot Shots Golf games and they look awesome. I can only assume they are cutting it out to cut costs and make the system cheaper, but I think many will still agree, it's still a mistake...
I finally played a must have game, Uncharted - Drakes Fortune. This is what the PS3 needs. It lacks so many genres at the moment it's not even funny. I've heard of games being glitchy and even sometimes unplayable. Fear was mentioned on that list and Madden and College football couldn't even play at a smooth 60 frames per second. Other ported games have also been hammered by critics. But, it's time to move on. Glitches aside, I think the system is finally coming around as I see a bright future as ther are some awesome games coming, Devil May Cry, Metal Gear, Gran Turismo, Burnout, HOt Shots Golf 5 (finally) and many others.
Since I've had it, (over a year now) one thing holds true, it's reliable. I've used my powerful PS3 to play DVD, Blu Ray DVD, music CD's, etc, you name it, it's used contantly and did not broke down like my 360 did. Sony's system's always seemed to be made well, the PS3 is no exception.
The controllers are classic feel, but they feel cheap, and there is no "vibration" like we had in the dual shock controllers for the PS2. I heard one is in the making, as that will be nice. The 'no cables" is still a massive plus, I lvoe wireless controllers and for the most part, they seem to work, but like I said, they feel flimsy and cheap, too bad the sticker price on them doesn't agree.
Blu Ray fans will love the PS3. Mind you, I think they are bit pricey, i Mean, lets face it, the prices of blu-ray movies are off the charts, anywhere from 24.99- 40 bucks. The picture, audio, quality is awesome, but is it worth buying a movie that you may already own? I've done the latter, I buy movies I don't own or new releases. The Harry Potter collection is awesome, movies like that are must haves. Spider Man 3 and Ice Age are 2 of the best movies to see in Blu Ray in my opinion.
So should you buy a PS3? Well, if you want game selection, lets face it, Wii and 360 have the Ps3 beat right now in early 08. But 08 looks like a watermark year for the system. However, they are removing "backwards compatibility" which I believe that is huge mistake, I mean, do people want to buy a system without being able to play their collection of PS2 and PS1 games? Me personally, I bought my system just for that reason, I have 40 pS2 and 25 PS1 games and they play great. If you lose that ability, it's a big knock. Sure, the system price drops in the process, but what to do with those games we can't play? If you can find one (the 60 gig) or classic 20 gig, you can play them out of the box, if you go for the 80, remember that will not have the BC ability. However, if you're just wanting to play PS3 games, then go for the 80 gig, the more the merrier. 08 looks to be agood year, lets face it, 07 was horirble for Sony, the games were weak at best with only a few exceptions. I say go for it if you have the dough, just expect a while for games to finally get released but expect some good games this summer.
Now great for children and standard-def DVDs January 25, 2008
Fritz Zwicky
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
I'm a long-time PC gamer now fed up with the runaway system demands for new games and simultaneously running anti-malware apps. So I turned to the console market. I have a three-year old in the house, and most of the games for PS3 and XBOX 360 appeared less than toddler-friendly. The Wii seemed much better for the family, and the non-standard controller looked like fun. But, the Wii doesn't deliver hi-def video, and it seemed like a waste of a perfectly good HDTV.
I selfishly decided the console would be for me exclusively, and so I bought a PS3. The performance is exceptional, and the controller is a huge improvement over those available for other consoles. However, other reviewers have extolled the virtues of the PS3 for, say, teens and older. I'd like to review the PS3 as the parent of a three-year old.
Firstly, if you have kids under, say, 7 yrs old, you have Disney/Pixar DVDs. I have been frustrated watching "Cars" on our standard def DVD player, because our HDTV reveals undersampling artifacts: straight-lines appear jagged or pixelated, and grillwork or screens show moire patterns. The PS3 with recent (free) software updates performs anti-aliasing on standard def DVD videos, effectively upgrading DVD resolution to near-HD, and the undersampling errors are gone! Powerlines and pinstripes look straight without "jaggies," and the DVD-resolution video might as well be Blu-Ray to my aging eyes. In general, all of our standard-def DVDs look much better on the PS3 compared to our older Sony DVD player.
Of course, now we have the option of playing Blu-Ray discs as well, and, at the time of this writing, the competing HD-DVD format appears to be losing the battle. We haven't tried Blu-Ray movies yet, so I cannot review the performance.
Turning to games: most of the games available on the market really aren't appropriate for the 7 and under crowd. Motorstorm, which ships with the console, shows drivers being thrown from vehicles and disappearing under other vehicles with (thankfully) no added blood and gore, but it is a disturbing image, and I steer my son away from it (although he loves watching the cars race).
However, there are now several, very affordable games available on-line that are very family friendly. For example, there is the addicting "Toy Home" game (available for < 10 dollars on-line), in which you steer a toy car through a domestic obstacle course made up of kitchen utensils, dominos, toys, etc. You use your controller like a steering wheel in Wii-like fashion; that is, you literally tilt and turn the controller like a steering wheel to steer the car (that option is also available in more advanced games). I can also recommend an asteroids-like game called "Super Stardust HD" which, to toddler eyes looks like a lot of pretty fireworks. These games are appropriate for toddlers to watch (pediatricians might argue), and in a couple of years I suspect my son will be able to play them himself.
On that note, I should point out that there are games that young children can play, or at least interact with. Sony recently released at a very reasonable price the "Playstation Eye," which is really just a USB webcam with a built in microphone. You can use the camera for web-conferencing with other PS3 owners and making movies with software available for free on-line, but the real fun is using the camera to control games. There are now a handful of very affordable (under 10 dollars) games or interactive exercises available on-line that you control with your hand or body motions. For example, in the new release "Mesmerize," you can choose from several screensaver-like patterns to display on the TV. Then, you control and alter the patterns on your TV screen simply by dancing around in front of the camera or by making sounds. My son loves to jump up and down and run past the camera to move patterns of glowing dots around on the screen, and then he runs up to the TV and claps or shouts ("Booo!"), and all of the dots restore to their original pattern.
There are also games where you use hand motions to control a flock of blackbirds around a painted Japanese landscape (very relaxing), interact with fish in an HD fishtank, or control a giant pinball around a towering maze.
I should add: we also watch YouTube videos using the built-in browser and stream videos and music from our PC media library over our wireless network. It was very easy to set up through the Windows Media Player.
To sum up, Wii no longer corners the market on family-friendly games and unique controllers. With the PS3, you can access very friendly games and control them with body motions alone -- no controller! Your aging Pixar DVDs will look better on your HDTV, and you will be able to play the Disney catalog of Blu-Ray DVDs.
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