Gamecube or Xbox

[DanJW]

With the recent price cuts the time has finally arrived for me to own my very own 4th gen console (or whatever the hell number we're on now).

Now, I really want to want a Gamcube. A bastion from the likes of EA, a japanese square of goodness, with cute games and innovotiveness (?) applenty. Problem is, I don't know if there's much on the Cube that I would play by myself. The Pc has more than enough to keep me engrossed, with it's high end FPS, RTS, and RPG's and online play. My console will be for beating down my friends at weekends, but generally the xbox range of games seem to be more my thang. there is only so much mario franchise and cuteness that I can take.

So tell me people, does the Cube hold anything for me? Name some games (besides soul Calibur 2, which i already own for the cube - yes the game is so good that I bought it despite not owning a console to play it on). Or maybe you're more inclined to the xbox, and wish to reaffirm my present leaning.

Go!

[Chris]

I own all three consoles but only brought the Xbox to school with me and it's serving me fine (Live is a good feature, for example). However, it's still a tough call. Go to GameSpot and something and look at their top ranked games for each system, see if the Cube has enough to keep you interested. Ever played Pikmin (and/or Pikmin 2)? There's no reason I bring it up other than it is awesome and only on the Cube.

[jokemaster]

I'll say Gamecube because most of the XBOX exclusives are on PC, such as Halo, KOTOR, Crimson Skies (not the exact game, but whatever), whilst the gamecube has true exclusives. PLus, Super Smash Bros. Melee rules for playing with friends.

[Chris]

It's worth bearing in mind though that with most Xbox games that are exclusive when they launch, it generall takes quite a while for them to make it to PC. Obviously this is irrelevant for games that are already out on PC but it will affect new games. Also, just because one system has an exclusive game doesn't mean he'll like those exclusive games--the Cube's exclusives are more likely to be the "mario franchise and cuteness" he's not fond of.

Also: Psychonauts! Yes, this is coming out for PC as well, but I strongly suspect it won't be a simultaneous launch (considering how long the Xbox one has been in development and how recently the port was likely started). I think anyone can reasonably assume the Xbox controller will be better for it than a keyboard/mouse.

[Pappa]

I've only got a PS2, but if I got to choose between the other two, I'd probably go with Xbox. I'm sure the Cube's got some great games, but I've probably missed most of them, as I've only been playing the earlier games. Like Chris mentioned, Pikmin is truly awesome, and I kinda like Wind Waker as well (the parts I've played anyway) and SSBM in good company.

Still, Halo. Yep, Halo is still the main reason for me to get an Xbox. I've played it loads of times, finished a couple of times as well, but find it just as awesome every time I play it. And then you've got Ninja Gaiden, Silent Hill 2, Pro Evolution Soccer 4 (with Live support I imagine!), Shenmue 2 and some more awesome games that I can't really recall at this late hour.

Oh, and Psychonauts.

So, yeah, I'd go for the Xbox.

[Intrepid Homoludens]

It's also a good point to check out the upcoming games for each system and compare. I'm definitely looking forward to Psychonauts for Xbox partly because I'll get to play it with my niece and little nephew (he'll only watch 'cause he's a car slut and will only play racing games and such), and console is great for that plopping down on the big-ass sofa with them and grabbing the controls.

I'm also having a marvelous time with Fable. Although it's possibly porting to PC, it actually feels refreshing to just sink into the sofa and explore its world for hours. My niece is playing it too and we're comparing our heroes.

Define your choice by the kinds of games you want to experience. If most of the games you'll like are on a particular console, then go get it.

[Roderick]

It's a safe assumption that people buy the Gamecube to play Nintendo games. 3rd Party titles have little influence on the machine. So it really depends on how you look at Nintendo, their consoles and games being very rich with a special feeling that has grown over the decades. It's an acquired taste. If this sort of thing isn't your schtick, you'll probably have more fun with the X-box, seeing as it sports more games that you'll likely see on the PC (which you know you like).

[Pappa]

Btw, why is this idle banter and not general gaming?

[JimmyTheFish]

If you like original simple yet fun consoly type games get a gamecube. If you like crap that will be out on the PC next week, get a XBox.

[peccaui]

I own all three systems (although my Xbox was purchased in July) and recently moved, and my Gamecube sits next to my TV still in its box collecting dust while my Xbox has seen almost 100% of my gaming action over the past month (only exception has been Katamari Damacy). It makes me sad, since I really love the Gamecube but there hasn't been squat released for it with the exception of Pikmin 2 (which is halfway down a very long list of games waiting to be played ). Oh, and I haven't bought a Gamecube game since 2003 - there just hasn't been anything released that I've felt compelled to buy for it this year.

On the other hand, there are a slew of great Gamecube games coming out later this year - like Donkey Konga (if you're into that whole wacky peripheral/party/making your wallet cry thing), Paper Mario 2, Metroid Prime 2, Viewtiful Joe 2 and Unity (in theory?) whereas the Xbox has Otogi 2 and KOTOR 2 (if you're into those sorts of things) and (presumably) the best ports of multi-platform software coming later this year.

But the Gamecube has some amazing exclusives like Eternal Darkness, Animal Crossing, Metroid Prime and the usual Nintendo suspects. The first Viewtiful Joe was more than enough reason for me to own a Gamecube (well, at least until the PS2 port surfaced) and I'm still looking forward to 2005 releases like Killer 7 and Donkey Kong Jungle Beat and (well, hopefully 2005) the new Zelda.

Um... either way, I just realized that this post has far too many sequels listed on it. I just hope I'm missing some good original IPs or else I'm gonna feel depressed. And hopefully this rambling helped ya!

[Radijsje]

xbox. 4 words : jet set future radio

oh and live is superior to whatever the hell sony & nintendo have.

[Kode]

Halo. 2.

But don't listen to the silly brayings of a fanboy. Like Chris suggested, I suggest you look up the top games of both Gamecube and Xbox and decide which set of games is more your thang. Then again, like I so subtly hinted, look up future releases also in deciding which console to buy. You may enjoy now but you might end up if you decide (in the future) that you made the wrong decision.

This is precisely why I chose a PC over a Mac when I had the opportunity to decide 2 years ago. (Really, no.)

[manny_c44]

I think jet Grind Radio is one of the 10 finest games ever created...imagine my shock when playing JSRF--what a slick piece of shit. It was like EA homogenized the whole wacky Japanese experience. Absolutely awful. The gameplay was absolutely gutted of its two best things (running from the law within the level while battling the time, and DDR like motions of graffiti painting) and the graphics are worse to top it off! Shocking. Thats all I have to say about that.

Anyway, this is my advice to you: If you're the kind of person who buys a game every week or loves online multiplayer, get the Xbox. If you're the kind of person who buys games more or less on a monthly basis or less, get the gamecube.

Although I hate Halo (for reasons I'm not going into here), the Xbox is a great piece of hardware for other reasons and recieves a huge amount of third party support. Plus it will probably get Psychonauts first.... But I can tell you I've only played about 5 games in this generation of consoles that have really made feel good about being a gamer, and none of them have been on the xbox.

[Radijsje]

I prefer future over grind

Before last night i wouldve agreed on the halo dislike, but now i see the light.

playing halo with 15 other drunks on an xbox lan was fun.

[Roderick]

Maybe this will persuade you to make the Right Choice:

Now imagine half the table being occupied by a box that's large (and bulletproof) enough to register a planecrash and survive it!

Just kidding here; just wanted to take this opportunity to show the picture

[Intrepid Homoludens]

In other news, consolewise, I have no fucking clue which one I like. They all freak me out equally. I am not used to things that don't have a text interface as an option. As long as C: dir is an option I am ok. I run XP with the Macish, gratuitously purty gui turned off.

I thought the same too until I got unlimited access to my niece & neph's Xbox. That it doesn't offer you text interface is exactly part of its beauty, just plug & play. Like I said before, a console is perfect for 'no-brainer' gaming, and that's perfect for spending some time with family or friends in the same room (not half a world away online), or in my case, playing Fable with my n & n and comparing heroes. If not, I can always play alone when they're at school, or I can load up a PC game.

My personal choice, if I were rich (yeah right), would be a PS2 (Fatal Frame, etc.) and an Xbox (Fable, Psychonauts, etc.). The only regret I'd have not getting a Cube is Windwaker, seems to be the only title I want to play on it, and that naturally could never justify my spending money on it.

[peccaui]

My personal choice, if I were rich (yeah right), would be a PS2 (Fatal Frame, etc.)

By the way, Fatal Frame 1 (and by the end of Oct., Fatal Frame 2) are also available on the Xbox.

[jokemaster]

My personal exclusive games choice, Gamecube: Zelda games, Metroid Prime 1 and 2, Pikmin, Mario 128, and Resident Evil 4.

XBOX: Halo 1 and 2, Crimson Skies, Conker: Live and Reloaded, PD0 (though that's supposed to be an XBOX 2 launch title now), Fable, Breakdown, Chronicles of Riddick, and I think that's it

[Intrepid Homoludens]

By the way, Fatal Frame 1 (and by the end of Oct., Fatal Frame 2) are also available on the Xbox.

Good.

[Jake]

Might as well point out, re: that pic, that the XBox ports of BG&E and POP:SOT have a lot nicer visual goodies than their Cube counterparts. The gameplay is obviously the same on both, but the water looks great in XBox BG&E, and Xbox POP has this crazy sort of glow about it... That said I'd recommend you don't ask my opinion since I own an XBox and a Cube and split their use about 50/50 as my primary console...

¬

[Roderick]

Hey that's interesting. I'll check out Edge next month.

Furthermore I'd like to say that I think the Gamecube controller is one of the most intuitive I've ever had the pleasure to hold. Not only are all of the buttons shaped differently so that they are discernible by touch alone, the thing also just slips into my hands so comfortably... I think I'm in love.

[Chris]

The Cube controller is quite comfortable and fairly intuitive, but there are a few things that bug me about it, an I think the Xbox controller (the S of course, not The Duke) is on the whole better designed and more versatile. For example, the Cube has that ridiculous spring-operated Z button that seems contructed that way for no particular reason, and then on top of that there isn't even a matching one on the other side--they could have just put one there for consistency's sake and then they would have had two shoulder buttons in case developers wanted them. Also, the D-pad is way too small (it's about the same size as a GBA D-pad) and again it's not clear why they did it that way. Also, the yellow c-pad (or whatever it's called) is great for some games, but seems a bit too specialized. This is my main problem with the Cube's controller: when it's good, it's great, but too often it just doesn't feel well-rounded enough.

Since Microsoft introduced the S controller, I think the Xbox has the first controller I've really liked since the PS1 controller (and the PS2 controller obviously since it's the same). It feels very solid, and the analog sticks are probably the best I've ever used. It also has plenty of buttons but isn't overwhelming. The only extra thing I think it could feasable use is two extra shoulder buttons, but that many buttons overall might be overkill.

[edlglide]

*laugh* I absolutely hate the Xbox controller; I think it's one of the most horribly designed things I've ever used. I also think the Gamecube controller is very meh.......better than the Xbox controller, but I don't especially like it. And I absolutely love the PSX/PS2 controller. It's funny how much something like that can change based on the individual.

EDIT: I completely missed the fact that you were talking about the S controller and not the Duke. While I still don't really like the S controller (I don't like the way the black and white buttons are set up), it's far better than the Duke.

[Chris]

Black and white could be better, but it's pretty much just two extra buttons that PS2 (which is more similar to the Xbox S than the Cube's controller) doesn't have. It's sort of a bonus. As it stands, they're pretty easy to get used to.

[Roderick]

I'm really going into the personal taste-area here and say that I don't like the PS[2] controller at all. For some reason it strains my hands, the edges in the side burrow into my flesh and it doesn't feel very good. Also, there's an overkill on similarly shaped and thus confusing buttons. What the fuck is up with FOUR shoulderpads? I think it only encourages developers to come up with overly complex control schemes. Anyway, the thing just doesn't rest comfortably in my hands and handling it is like a struggle for me.

You may flame me now