Has anyone got a PS3?

Kanney

Just wondering has anyone on these forums got a PS3? Couple of questions.
Obviously opinions....
Which games you have played...
What were your first impressions after powering it on....

Anyone who can answer some of these questions, would be great. To everyone else, is anyone else a bit worried it wont be everything its cracked up to be, since everyone giving it a hard time?

McDermotX

I think there are a few lads hanging around this forum, who either have or are in the process of importing a Jap/US machine.
I imported mine towards the end of November last year (a 60gb Jap machine), although I primarily imported as a Blu-ray player in order to compare it to a standalone Panasonic.
Immediate impressions of the machine are very positive, sleek, shiny, slightly bigger than a 360 but far more impressive looking. Fingerprints get everywhere on it though, so try not to handle it too much.
Frontend of the XMB is very sleek as well, similar to a PSPs and, to be honest, more professional than the 360 cluttered dashboard. Games are displayed under the game icon and play a little intro when highlighted, Video files show under the Video tab and play as 5sec previews (very nice looking)..
The XMB continues this professional look with regards to options, settings, save games etc and is very intuitive, especially for anyone familiar with a PSP.
PS Store is as you would expect, similar enough to the Xbox marketplace, with various sections, whats new, Blu-ray trailers, PS1 games etc etc..
Downloading hasn't been an issue, GTHD (approx 650mb) etc all download as quickly as Marketplace, but currently it doesn't offer background downloading (although the 360 launched without this, so it may be worked on)
User support is excellent as well with the well documented upgradable hard disc, support for memory devices, USB External HDD (FAT32) support, optional Linux installation, Wifi etc etc etc..........unusual for a console to be so friendly towards user interaction..

Gamewise -
This is the crux for most people anyway, and the hardest decision to make..
Ridge Racer - excellent for a RR game, but anybody who has played RR6 or the PSP games is essentially buying the same game.....Rendered at 1080p/60fps

Resistance - excellent little game, very similar to Call of Duty series. Starts off a little unimpressive but most definitely picks up after 45mins or so. If you enjoy shooters, its defo a pickup little.......graphics are nice (spectacular on later levels), sound excellent, physics very impressive. Personally I felt it was a much better game than Gears of War (which I though was vastly overrated), and is right up there with COD2 etc...so I think most FPS fans would enjoy it.....Rendered at 720p/30fps
Special mention has to go to the multiplayer, only tried it a few times, but 40player matches (even over Wifi) are a real treat, very smooth, very fast, similar to PC deathmatches..

Motorstorm - stunning to look at at, excellent to play......of all the titles so far, it offers a glimpse of what the PS3 is capable of. The game is not perfect though, no multiplayer until the US/Euro release (Jap Patch?), limited presentation on the frontend etc, but these issues will be fixed by all accounts.
The game is very close in feel to the infamous target rendering, but not identical. Sort of like an arcade version of Stunt Car Racer with bells on. If online play is implemented well (the developers currently have 12player up and running), it could become a real classic.
Technically, probably the best looking game on either the PS3 or the 360, and considering its a first-gen launch window title, it beggars belief what we may be seeing in a year or two. Very fast (played in the first-person perspective), very random races (no lap is ever the same really), hectic beyond belief, especially in some of the later stages where the AI goes out of its way to ram you off course.
The game can be very frustrating though, and there is some small slowdown when 10 vehicles are having a pile-up or so, but it is easily one of the most impressive titles out there (a room full of 360 lads over Christmas couldn't put it down, and remarked on how the didn't think it would be as good as it is)........Rendered at 720p/30fps

Tekken HD (approx 10euro) and GT:HD (free) are both downloadable from the PS Store and are rendered at 1080p/60fps. Both look excellent and are well worth the time to get, especially Tekken (GT is a little old in the tooth for me)..

However, the rest of the games available are no better or worse than their 360 cousins and in this multi-platform console shootout, a lot of games are going to be similar, so it'll be up to the individual to decide if they need both machines. Both systems will have their exclusives so I can imagine a lot of gamers buying both.
However, as I mentioned in other threads, if buying a PS3 imported right now for games only, you may be a little disappointed, as the majority of the games are not anything the 360 couldn't be doing. Its also a little unfair to compare the launch games of a brand new machine to the 2nd gen games of an established console, so the strength of the PS3 may not be seen for another year or so.

Blu-ray playback is excellent, easily on a par with the standalones, and the quiet playback from the PS3 is a real bonus compared to the jet-engine 360's HD-DVD playback. The console could easily pass for a standalone techincally speaking and is also the first consumer playback device to feature HDMI 1.3, which will come in handy for the advanced audio codecs when couple with the new HDMI 1.3 amps.
Onboard DTS-MA decoding and 1080p/24fps output firmwares are rumoured to be underway, so at the moment it is probably is the best BD player you can buy for its future-proofing when price is taken into account.

I've missed out on a few items wth this post, but on the whole I'm happy with the machine, BD playback is stunning, and the games will eventually show up...........its down to everybody to decide whether or not to lay down €600-650 for the same reasons.

lee_baby_simms

Great post McDermot, cheers.

Kanney

Very very good post. And exactly what I was looking for. I have very little problems about games, because I will probably only buy one at launch to test. I find that I can play and replay games a lot, for example, last year, give or take 1 or 2 games, I pretty much spent my whole year playing Pro Evo 5 and was still making transfers in my Master League up to three or four days before the release of Pro Evo 6. Bully is also one I have but havent finished.
On the subject of games, I have a Wii so wont be totally dominated by the PS3. Altho I have wanted one for sooo long.

I have watched a video on youtube where a guy went over the layout etc of the machine which I was very impressed with. (Me and My PS3, search Youtube if you want)

Moneywise, I dont really see it as much of a problem. If I wanted to I could buy one right now but would be pretty much broke. So 2 months of a partime job plus maybe donations from family members may help me out.

The menu is something that I like, being a PSP owner I'm guessing I'll understand it easily. Are videos and music playable like the PSP? .MP4 format etc.?
Again thanks McDermott, if anyone else has other views. Lemme kno!

Headshot

brilliant post McDermotX

i also have a ps3 and im hooked on it

im getting a ps3 remote and some blue ray disks some time

i have a xbox 360 too but i rather the ps3

cant stand the noise of the 360 unlike the ps3
Kanney
when your buying your ps3 watch out for customs
i got stung by them 130 euro:(

maybe if your going to America or parts of Asia you could pick one up

Resistance is one of best games out
better than Gears of war

was looking through ebay and saw this

this seller looks good
http://cgi.ebay.ie/Sony-PLAYSTATION-3-PS3-60GB-Brand-NEW-Factory-Sealed_W0QQitemZ250074424427QQihZ015QQcategoryZ62054QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

McDermotX

Yeah Kanney,
Music and Vids is very similar to the PSP..
Videos downloaded from the PS Store are in AVC format (mp4) and you can also export 1080p trailers from Quicktime Pro into an .mp4 container meaning you get a perfect translation of the .mov file. There is also various tools for converting vids, similar to the PSP.
I haven't played around with many other formats but I've read of other lads using PS3 for all their media requirements.
Music is grand, can be ripped in various formats to the HDD, and can also go off and find track/album listings etc......similar to using a PC..
DVDs are unfortunately not scaled at the moment due to the lack of internal scaler in the PS3 (may change with firmware updates), but BD playback is more than enough compensation I'm sure you'll agree:D

On the games front, should hopefully have Virtua Fighter 5 over here next month, so I'm looking forward to that.
The likes of Virtua, Heavenly Sword, Motorstorm Online etc may well be launch titles over here in March (hopeully), so the selection of games for potential buyers then may be much more attractive then than it was for early adopters.

Bottom line is that there will be games coming for the PS3 that will hopefully justify the purchase from a games point of view, in much the same way that the majority of launch titles for the 360 were muck, but now, a year later, the selection is much better.................if nowhere near approching Wii Zelda level of quality:D

I think the system will complement the 360 well, but obviously funds are an issue , in the sense that you an pick and choose your multi-platform titles (EA, GTA etc) on the basis of which is superior and have your fill of those exclusive classics (Halo 3, GT5, MGS4 etc etc).

dor83

I imported 1 too, McDermotX covered most things and I'd agree with most of what he said. Resistance is a very good game but I personally prefer Gears, Im not really a fan of FPSs, but it is defo on par with or better than any 360 FPS out at the moment. I like the XMB, mainly coz I'm used to the PSPs and its very easy to navigate. There should be alot more games out when it releases here, like VF5, Motorstorm and Oblivion and Rainbow 6, which are both very good games if you havent got them on 360. At the moment I'm playing the 360 more but the PS3 has a lot more to it than just games, its a good BD player, you can install Linux if you want and it will make it more PC like. All round I'm very happy with it and as McDermotX said the games will come, MGS4, DMC4, Mercs 2 and Killzone 2 are all down for release this year so there is alot to come.

Kanney

@McDermot: BD Playback? Whats that?
And @ headshot: I'm not looking to Import one, I've prebooked and will be buying in March. Plus I'm not slightly worried about the games, because come October 27th (god willing) I will need no other game. Grand Theft Auto IV (whoops peed a little with excitement) Also Pro Evo Series, I really cant see problemns.

Creamy Goodness

{(-_-)}HeadShoT** wrote:

this seller looks good
http://cgi.ebay.ie/Sony-PLAYSTATION-3-PS3-60GB-Brand-NEW-Factory-Sealed_W0QQitemZ250074424427QQihZ015QQcategoryZ62054QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

i wouldn't trust it tbh.

1. the console is described as the japanese one, fair enough you might say. look at point number 2.

2. the reciept is for gamestop somewhere in arizona USA. and also is only for a reservation.

if the console is legit and is from japan why would he show a picture of a reservation receipt for gamestop in arizona?

McDermotX

Kanney wrote:

@McDermot: BD Playback? Whats that?

Blu-ray Disc Playback..
High-Definition format similar to HD-DVD......One of the main reasons for the PS3's high price..

Headshot

Cremo wrote:

i wouldn't trust it tbh.

1. the console is described as the japanese one, fair enough you might say. look at point number 2.

2. the reciept is for gamestop somewhere in arizona USA. and also is only for a reservation.

if the console is legit and is from japan why would he show a picture of a reservation receipt for gamestop in arizona?

good spot

never saw that

Kanney

I thought it was that BD, but was thinking BRD... Meh. I wont buy one of eBay, the price now going up to 630 for Ireland, may wait a few months until the Basic Package comes out. 20 GB is well enough for me,

LookingFor

I picked up one in early December from Japan, 20GB model.

Impressions of the machine - elegant, quiet, it looks the part in terms of its pricing. Very impressed with the quality of the build.

The OS - nice, simple, clean. Lacking some features the PSP has, but adds some more. Tonnes of options. There are some niggles that hopefully will be ironed out in coming updates. Love the music visualiser. Works seamlessly with my Microsoft wireless keyboard which certainly improves the experience with text entry. I'm looking forward to being able to access the XMB in-game sometime soon, hopefully.

Games:

Resistance - great, great game. Very solid online and tonnes of options. I would say it's the best on PS3, but now..

Motorstorm - .. this has been taking a lot of my time. It's single-player only in the Japanese version, but it's immense fun. Gorgeous to look at, and plays like a dream. Shades of a number of different influences in there..Mario Kart, Twisted Metal et al. Wonderful vehicle balance, as provided by the tracks themselves..which can be very wide open and leave plenty of options, somewhat SSX-like. The online in this should be a tonne of fun, so much so that I may be repurchasing it just for that when it comes out here

Ridge Racer 7 - It's ridge racer, so it'll really depend on whether you like that or not. Hard to be too impressed by it given what else is there, though.

Also picked up some demos and downloadable games:

Formula One - really pretty, but the final game looks prettier still. Will pick up the full game on its Euro release, I think.

NBA 07 - fairly fun, and it's a multiplayer demo. NBA2K7 is supposed to be better, though..

Picked up a couple of downloadable games too - Lemmings, Gripshift and Tekken DR, all of which are very fun. One thing I think that's worth pointing out about downloads on PS3 is that there is quite a lot of value there. I paid $3 for lemmings, for example, which is a total bargain. More than that, you can set things up so you can share games with 5 other people with few strings. It's a nice set up like that.

Asides from F1, looking forward to picking up Virtua Fighter 5, Virtua Tennis 3, Singstar, Heavenly Sword, GRAW2 and a couple of others in the next few months.

Oh, and Blu-ray movies are fantastic. I have Kingdom of Heaven, which looks godly, and the best I've seen so far. Also have the Mission Impossible Collection, which looks great. I didn't expect I'd turn on to Blu-ray so quickly, but I find it hard to pick up DVDs any more now.