Xbox Stands Out Among Gaming Consoles

The Xbox 360 is getting old. That is to say, in the rapidly advancing field of home video gaming it’s pretty much become the senior member. Released back in 2005, Microsoft’s follow up to its overwhelmingly successful original Xbox is now the oldest game console of what can be considered the current generation. The other two big players, Sony and Nintendo, both released their competing consoles at least a year after Microsoft. But is it still the best choice in gaming systems? Many would say it is.

Microsoft beat Sony to the next level of gaming by pushing up the Xbox 360 launch date by almost a full year. This push could have been a vast mistake, had the 360 been riddled with the problems of its predecessor the Xbox. The Xbox’s complications and bugs are understandable, as it was Microsoft’s first attempt at a gaming console. Bear in mind that Microsoft, at that time, was a software/hardware designer for personal computers…not gaming systems.

The Nintendo Wii, released long after the 360, has sold roughly two thirds as many units worldwide than Microsoft’s console was able to sell. As for the third outing for the Playstation brand, well that’s just embarrassing just about everybody. Either way, Microsoft and Sony keep referring to each other as competition but claim the Wii isn’t something they consider competition. That means Microsoft gets to brag about being the best. But how is that so? The Xbox 360 is a gaming console and the Wii is a gaming console. How do these things not count as competition?

There are games on all three of the main consoles that compete directly with one another. Whatever Microsoft and Sony want to claim, if someone owns all three consoles but chooses to buy a certain game on Wii instead of the others, then it’s competition no matter how you draw it.

The PS3 is a great gaming machine but does not have the speed, capacity and support that the Xbox 360 possesses. Don’t get me wrong: the PS3 is a great gaming machine with incredible graphics and an extensive game library. However, the Xbox 360 simply has more power and versatility than the PS3.

Whether it was the fault of the Wii or the fact that people just didn’t want it, the PS 3 didn’t sell well. This means less people are using it which means a lot of the gaming experience that the Xbox 360 and PS 3 are built around are simply better with the former. With the online gaming world, for instance, would you rather play the games amongst a fan base of 30 million people with the Xbox, or less than 15 million with the PS 3?

Tennis shoes, cars, computers and even soft drinks are all about marketing. There has to be something that sets it apart from the competitors. Microsoft took the game to a new playing field and charged up the competition. There will be other consoles in the future but until that time, in my opinion, the Xbox 360 is the way to go.