Consoles - Why the rivalry?

[pbirkett]

I cant quite understand all of this, I mean why do people get so heated when it comes to discussions about the virtues (or lack of) of a particular console? It seems very sad to me.

I bought a PS3, because it has Blu Ray mainly, but I wouldnt go around sgging off the xbox 360 just because I have a PS3.

Why do people do this? If anything, it seems to get even more heated than what car someone gets. I've even seen people getting upset in arguments about whether they have an Intel or AMD processor or an ATI or Nvidia graphics card in their PC... Just makes me think get a life son!

Just why?

[_dobbo_]

There is no real difference with consoles than with Lambo owners saying Ferraris are for posers, Porsche owners saying TVRs are unreliable and smell like canoes, amd everyone saying BMW drivers don't know what indicators are for.

Console flame wars are usually started by someone deliberately goading the "other side". The trick is to ignore them, but most people can't, especially if they are being particularly knobbish.!

[Altrezia]

Kids can't afford both.
Kids argue.

[Digby]

Always been the same really.When i were a lad it was certain grandstand pong machines vs other makes
to start.Then it was things like Philips videopac vs Atari VCS, Vic 20's vs Acorn electrons, colecovision vs intellivision, speccy vs C64 vs amstrad, nes vs master system, SNES vs megadrive, Amiga vs Atari ST, PS1 vs saturn, Dreamcast vs....aww you get the point.If it wasn't console chat it was BMX's, if not BMX's it was Fila BJ's vs Lacoste and later on it became PC components.Playgrounds were full of such chat and sadly a lot of the blinkered 'fan boy' mentality is still alive and well today.

Many see it as a waste of time to point out the good and bad points of a certain console or games on that console based on experience etc and prefer to just start sgging stuff off.It's only the very, very rare posts you need to take notice of if you need advice.The ones on a PS3 forum for example that suggest they prefer certain elements of the 360 or a certain game on that console and vice versa.You know you are in safe, sensible hands then.Then again, such people tend to be ignored in favour of.. "it has 900 trillion flip-a-flops per second more" type posts, or the.. "wears da fsaa den?" approach.

Playground chat has spread to the internet and youtube and it's bigger, scarier and more blinkered than ever now, it will never stop either.For every fanboy who grows up and starts to weigh up the pros and cons of consoles and games, he is replaced by a thousand new blinkered numpteys who accept that a poll regarding which is best, a 360 or PS3, on a PS3 official forum, is reason enough to buy one because it won the poll.

Btw, nice write up on your lovely integra matey.If you want to see how the blinkered fan boy approach extends to almost any walk of life, go and post your only criticism about the car on a few integra forums and sit back and wait for the fireworks..

Edited by Digby on Thursday 3rd April 22:01

[LukeBird]

Because PS3's and X360's are for gayers

[BigAlinEmbra]

Geeks are very often obsessive types and won't let it go.

[RobDickinson]

BigAlinEmbra said:

Geeks are very often obsessive types and won't let it go.

++

People make choices, obviously think their choice is the right one (how could they be wrong?) so have something of themself invested in that decision & often feel the need to defend it.

On a larger scale the console that 'wins' is likely to get a much better range of software (in terms of polish and titles).

[Blue Meanie]

I have a PS3, and the only real reason I got it was for the bluray player. It also helps that GT5 will be coming out soon, 9at long last). I have 5 games in total, I haven't played them in months...

[RobDickinson]

Honestly Krazy Ken built the PS3 as some form of generic home digital entertainment device, games wasnt its primary dev target, thus the cell was supposed to handle the grahpcs too (or even 2 cells) wasnt until later they threw in the RSX when they realised the cell wasnt up to that job. Its architecture is crazy and unbalanced, difficult to develop for and expensive. It only makes a good choice as a bluray player because its effectivly subsidised.

Its definatly capable of some intresting games, esp with all that vector grunt in the back of the cell, if someone can get it out and working.

On the other side sony corp havnt played nice with their consumers over the last 10-15 years and IMO are one of the suckiest CE companies at the moment.

[MilnerR]

The console wars are generally started by poor people who can't afford both and have to justify putting months of saved Asda wages into a console.......



That should stir them up a bit

[GI Jnr]

Altrezia said:

Kids can't afford both.
Kids argue.

If you can't have both/all, you base the decision on what you consider to be superior based on your preference, therefore immediately making it "better"

[scorp]

Altrezia said:

Kids can't afford both.
Kids argue.

That's more like it. Kids have a choice of one console, once they make that choice there is no going back, and no kid wants to lose face by admitting (even to themselves) that they made the wrong decision. Enter blind zealotry.

That can be applied to a number of adults too.

Edited by scorp on Friday 4th April 10:04

[LukeBird]

I think the rivalry was intensified the moment consoles became DVD players/web browsers/music systems etc.
Rivalry was quite jokey when I were a lad and had my N64 and Mega Drive, but the moment the X-Box/PS2/GameCube were out people argued more over which did things best...
I have a Wii and a fairly decent games PC which for me offer the best combination of performance (the PC) and fun (the Wii), but I have a laptop for the web, a DVD player for watching movies and a hi-fi (and my laptop) for listening to music so the fact the Wii doesn't do some of those things doesn't bother me in the slightest.
I guess (unless you have all 3 consoles) it's jsut a compromise as they have become more and more expensive...

[scorp]

LukeBird said:

I think the rivalry was intensified the moment consoles became DVD players/web browsers/music systems etc.
Rivalry was quite jokey when I were a lad and had my N64 and Mega Drive, but the moment the X-Box/PS2/GameCube were out people argued more over which did things best...
I have a Wii and a fairly decent games PC which for me offer the best combination of performance (the PC) and fun (the Wii), but I have a laptop for the web, a DVD player for watching movies and a hi-fi (and my laptop) for listening to music so the fact the Wii doesn't do some of those things doesn't bother me in the slightest.
I guess (unless you have all 3 consoles) it's jsut a compromise as they have become more and more expensive...

The rivalry is worse these days because of the internet and the legions of keyboard warriors it has produced.

[shadowninja]

RobDickinson said:

People make choices, obviously think their choice is the right one (how could they be wrong?) so have something of themself invested in that decision & often feel the need to defend it.

Nail on head. Same with cars, PCs/Macs, clothes, watches, pens, etc. Ego keeps the economy afloat.

[LukeBird]

scorp said:

The rivalry is worse these days because of the internet and the legions of keyboard warriors it has produced.

Indeed, very true
They're such fken know-it-alls as well!

[Buster Bakdorzin]

Because the insecure human mind prefers to goad itself (and others) into believing that what it has is the best

[Mannginger]

Buster Bakdorzin said:

Because the insecure human mind who owns a pS3 prefers to goad itself (and others) into believing that what it has is the best

EFA

[Buster Bakdorzin]

Mannginger said:

Buster Bakdorzin said:

Because the insecure human mind who owns a 360 prefers to goad itself (and others) into believing that what it has is the best

EFA

[The_Jackal]

lol and I think Halo3 is crap....