Post E3 Impressions: Hardware

Obviously, there is always a plethora of news coming on the heels of E3. I'll simply discuss hardware here.

Nintendo Wii: The inital price point seems to be set at $249. A 3 hour wait at E3 just to play the thing. My past experiences at E3 usually indicate that Nintendo always has good stuff happening, and this is no different. Virtual console seems a bit promising, but personally I've moved beyond simplistic play (except Super-Punch Out, I'll never get tired of that). Turbographx 16 games? Intriguing. Controller mechanics seem interesting, but may end up being gimmicky. The $249 price point is particularly interesting. It would seem that it would provide as a viable and affordable alternative to Xbox360 and PS3. I'm still a bit peeved about no official HDTV support (so far) and no HDMI output.

Playstation 3: $499 and $599 price points? The lesser version has NO HDMI, no wifi, and only a 20GB hard drive. The better version HAS HDMI, wifi, and a 60GB hard drive. Potentially crippling. The price points are actually more than the Xbox 360, which is kind of hard to believe. GT4 demo was unimpressive, MGS4 is well, Metal Gear Solid. Popular opinion of E3 indicates that Sony fubared this pretty badly.

Xbox 360: The system is already out, so I'll just comment on the HD-DVD drive and Xbox Live. $200-$300 seems fair for the add-on. It gives gamers an option to buy HD-DVD if they so choose for a cheaper price point (that is, until the prices on the players drop). Not impressed with regular progressive DVD capabilities on the 360 as it is, so I remain unmoved. Xbox Live did a great thing with releasing lots of trailers and demos for the masses to see.

Opinions: The PS3 prices are a bit much. People will still buy them once it comes out in November, but supply will again be an issue. That will put Microsoft in a great position to convert would-be PS3 buyers into 360 buyers since it will be logical that way more 360s will be available. (360s are still selling like hotcakes around here). That, and the lack of options on the PS3 is a bad, bad idea. Wii is in a great position with it's smaller pricepoint - it still feels like a Pug fighting against a Pitbull and a Mastiff, but they have Zelda, Mario, Metroid, all those classic franchises to back up on. I do forsee issues with the controllers, however.