I need some help...

[JoeCool]

I haven't had a game machine (other than my pc of course heh) since my atari 400.

My kids are 6 and 4 1/2 and I'm looking at getting them one for Christmas.

I personally want a X box, but since the machine isn't for me, I figured the best choice for their age would be the Game Cube

I'm leaning towards the game cube for the amount of games geared for that age range.

My question is, for those of you who have these machines, is my thinking right? Or does the PS2 and X box have the same number of child friendly games?

Any thoughts, advice is appreciated.

[wks]

I will probably be in the minority for my opinion but.......Sony playstation is the most "backed" system for game licencing, and endorsements. My BIG pet peeve with the other machines (especially nintendo) is when they come out with a new system--past systems are obsolete. Playstation made their "old" games playable in their new systems. That was a big plus for me since I owned so many games from their Ps1-now my ps2 plays them as well as their new games. Just my opinion--but you DID ask :D

[Mojo_Joe]

Hello JC...

Also had an Atari 400 (with the "McDonald's keyboard") back in the day...

I have had nearly every game system ever made (no kidding)... and we currently own a Gamecube and an Xbox (and a ton of older systems). I have three boys ages 6, 8, and 14 and their unanimous favorite is actually the Xbox, but they enjoy the Gamecube as well.

Playstation 2 is the best seller and has far and away the most games, but most of the best third party games come out for all three systems. The Playstation also (like the Xbox) doubles as a DVD player if you are one of the few people on the planet who do not have one, or perhaps if you are going to place it in the kids room for playing all those Disney DVD's. You do have to spend an extra 30 bucks for the "kit" to make the Xbox or the Playstation play DVD's though...

The Xbox is the most powerful of the three systems, and I like the built in hard drive, there are no silly memory cards to buy or for the kids to lose. You have to buy memory cards for the Playstation and the Gamecube if you want to save games, maintain high scores, and retain certain game features after the power is turned off.

The Gamecube is a little cheaper than the other two (about 50 bucks less the last time I checked) and it does have all of the Nintendo only titles like Mario, Zelda, etc... Apparently, though, it is so far behind Sony and Microsoft in sales that Nintendo (and perhaps others) may drop support for it, which would mean no more games. Nintendo has not made any statements to this effect, but they have mentioned that it has not sold anywhere near as well as expected. Of course this happens to all systems eventually, but some come and go quicker than others. (Look up the Sega Dreamcast for a recent example of this)...

As to your concerns about games for younger gamers, I guess it depends upon what your kids like. Nintendo's own titles are kind of kid friendly, but all of mine like the "adult oriented" stuff just as much (Tony Hawk Skateboarding, for example, is available for all three and is a favorite of all three kids of mine.) They all also love Halo which is an Xbox only title and this incredibly odd game called Animal Crossing which is a Nintendo only title...

You are probably right that Nintendo has more kid friendly titles as a percentage of its library, but keep in mind that the library it does have is smaller than that of either the Xbox or the Playstation (much smaller than the Playstation actually) so there may be just as many available for the other two overall...

We bought the Gamecube because my kids do like the Mario, Zelda, Kirby, and other Nintendo exclusive games and the Xbox because it was the most powerful of the three systems (which usually translates into better graphics and such)... Nintendo does seem to produce some titles unlike anyone else, (See Pikimin, Luigi's Mansion, and the previously mentioned Animal Crossing) whereas the games that come out for the Xbox and the Playstation 2 are usually pretty similar (if not often identical)...

Whatever you decide, I imagine your kids will probably be happy with any of the three.

Good Luck,

The "Other Joe"

[Mojo_Joe]

WKS beat me to the punch so to speak (I started writing and then went for a sandwich), and he makes a good point. The Playstation 2 (in addition to its own huge library) does also play Playstation 1 games.

Of course most of the Playstation 1 games are pretty darn crude compared to what is available now, but... it does play them.

To be fair though, there was no previous Xbox system and the prior Nintendo systems all used cartridges... I guess Nintendo could have figured out a way to incorporate a cartridge slot (as they sell an adapter to play Game Boy Games on the Gamecube) but they did not...

[Dave420]

how about the Phantom -it is new (it is not even out yet)but it sports the ability to play the compititions games and download games from thier website(you rent them or buy them -because as we all know once you beat a game it is not fun anymore) it has wireless connection to any broadband source -wireless keyboard and mouse -usb a P4 3gig processor 256megs of DDR and is fully upgradable.check out the video here http://www.phantom.net

[Mojo_Joe]

Sounds like it could be neat (if it sees the light of day)...

However, I would be shocked if it played anyone else's games... I am pretty sure they would get sued if it used proprietary chips from Sony, Nintendo, and/or Microsoft, and if it is going to play those games through emulation, then it will surely play them badly if at all...

I guess you never know though...

[Dave420]

if it taps into the pc game market (and it easily could)then the titles will be nearly endless

[JoeCool]

I appreciate all the feedback. The fact that Nintendo isn't doing that well is one of the reasons I'm looking at them (firesale's on games etc) The kids are at the age that I only want them playing non violent games (no comments from you Fragg :P )

As I have only messed around with all three (in the stores not in someone's home at length) my assumption has been that I need to be looking at Nintendo. However, I don't know if X-box/PS2 has an equal amount of children titles.

As for the phantom, it sounded interesting so I didn't some checking...http://www.ferrago.co.uk/story/1984 I think I'll hold of on that one for now...

again, tyvm for all the feedback, and I would encourage all the more feedback, as I have awhile to make up my mind :)

[JoeCool]

Hey Mojo, you still have your Atari? I still have mine (actually it is in a box at my parents somewhere) Ah yes those keyboards....I still remember putting the cassette tape in the player mutiple times trying to get a game to load...leaving it on all night to continue playing the next day because there wasn't anyway to save a game in progress......ahh the memories!

[Mojo_Joe]

I had three Atari Computers actually, and I still have one of them at my parent's house. I got an Atari 400 in about 1982 and I had a tape drive also. I remember loading Jumpman Jr. took about a half an hour or so (it was a huge 32k after all).

I later got an Atari 65XE which was a later model more or less based on the 400/800/1200xl line. I splurged on a disk drive this time, but there was not a whole heck of a lot worth getting for it and I gave it to my little brother not long thereafter. It is still sitting in a box at my parent's house.

Finally, I purchased my last Atari product, a 520 ST. It was a lot like the Commodore Amiga (which I also had) and was actually more advanced than PC's at the time (at least as far as games go). I actually sold this one to one of my buddies in the Marines who used to play the game Gunship for days at a time.

If you have any interest at all, there are a lot of interesting emulators out there that run Atari 8-bit computer programs pretty flawlessly and Atari ST and Amiga stuff fairly well also. While the games are kind of crude compared to the stuff that is out now, it is still fun to play Miner 2049er every once in a while.

[Zero Tolerance]

i suggest Xbox

there is Unreal Championship for Xbox....(which is the same as UT2k3)

hehehehehe
:D :D :D :D

[JoeCool]

miner 2049 !!!! OMG I spent sooooooo much time on that game !!!

Thanks for reminding me of the name of Jumpman, that stupid game was so glitchy I was felt so rewarded when it would finally load. I remember the 65 and 520.

I used to be a sysop and co sys of bbs's back in the day. used to spend alot of time in mud's.

[JoeCool]

Originally posted by Zero Tolerance
i suggest Xbox

there is Unreal Championship for Xbox....(which is the same as UT2k3)

hehehehehe
:D :D :D :D

yeah yeah, I'm just glad your on the other side of the country so I don't have to worry about you warping my kids!

[Mojo_Joe]

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by Zero Tolerance
i suggest Xbox

there is Unreal Championship for Xbox....(which is the same as UT2k3)

hehehehehe

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


I'm not really into FPS games, but my kids (and the droves of neighborhood kids that "live" at my house) all prefer Halo to Unreal Championship. Both are pretty good for that sort of genre, though...

[Zero Tolerance]

how DARE you mention any other FPS game in the same thread as me!

I think you need to see the smoking end of a flak cannon!

the only unreal title that i DONT like from Epic is Unreal 2 "The Awakening".....and its a decent game....just no multiplayer/online multiplayer support....which is ALL i play...so of course I wouldnt like it.....but as far as a computer game...its pretty good and a great sequal to the first Unreal game.....but at least the 1st game had multiplayer....either in box form or was a patch that was downloadable......been soo long now i forget :D

Unreal Tournament 2004 will be out next month! :D :D


PS...JoeCool.....you still could bring the kids over to the East and have a nice vacation with me :D

I put the form in REFORM SCHOOL :D

[Mojo_Joe]

Hmm... an Unreal addict, huh? Maybe you should check out Halo, it sold a lot of XBox's you know...

It is coming out for PC's soon as I hear it also.

[Mojo_Joe]

Despite the obviously "biased" opinions in this thread...

The price is dropping again so, now may or may not be a good time to get a Gamecube depending upon your perspective...

http://news.excite.com/tech/article/id/53647|technology|09-23-2003%3A%3A19%3A04|reuters.html

[Zero Tolerance]

lol...im not biased.....just no other game has the speed and gameplay of UT

actually "Return to Castle Wolfenstein" has somewhat better gfx than UT....BUT....the gameplay is wayyyyyyyyyyyyyy too slow for me to even start to enjoy it....

if i have to lift my mouse off the pad and reposition it to do a 360 degree turn....its not for me

plus i like the gameplay so fast that you are "barely" able to keep up with people in the map playing against you

[JoeCool]

I had pretty much decided on the Xbox, but that article makes me want to ge the Nintendo combo instread..hmmmm