PS3 vs Xbox 360

        I got a PS3 for my birthday and I've had a while to play around with it. Now I don't want to get into the graphics because lets face it my Xbox is 3 years old and the PS3 is 3 weeks old so obviously the technology in the PS3 is going to be better. And I really don't want to start a nerd war since it seems like the only thing people care about and defend more then their cell phone provider's is their gaming platforms. I'm just going to give you my feelings on them both standing side to side in my house.

        There is something about the Xbox and what Microsoft has done with the achievements. you get a certain rush when you accomplish something and that little ping and bar floats on screen. It really doesn't matter in the long run but man it's exciting. PlayStation 3 has a similar reward type system called trophies that unfortunately just don't have the same feel.

         The gaming aspect is going to be rather similar. While you'll get exclusive titles for both systems. Halo, Mass Effect, Gears of War, Alan Wake etc. for the Xbox. Heavy Rain, God of War, Uncharted, Medal Gear Solid etc. for the PS3. And you could spend all day arguing which one has the better of the exclusive games. I think they both have their merit and both have titles that equally suck or rock the house. Game titles that they share are fairly similar Xbox will release levels for games that PlayStation doesn't have and Sony will release content exclusively for PlayStation.

         The real draw of these games is the online play and social/ marketplaces. While the Xbox charges a yearly fee for it's online access, PlayStation is free. This is where the main differences in the two systems comes into play. While they both allow Netflix to stream there are subtle differences that make these two special.

         Xbox delivers an incredible marketplace with a plethora of great games in both their arcade or pay to play formats. They also have tons of exclusive content, tutorials and access to online radio, TV, or social network sites. The pinball, Family Game Night, and Arcade Game room are great areas that I've spent hours doing. 

        PlayStation while lacking in the marketplace aspect it totally makes up for in their socializing area. Unlike the Xbox you can actually control your avatar. He has his own apartment, and through the marketplace you can purchase him other dwellings, that he can decorate and invite his online friends to. There are also other very fun places to take your avatar, he can go to the midway and play carnival game, or you can head over to central plaza where you can access a bowling alley along with many other social sites that allow your avatar to belly up to a bar, play arcade games, and actually meet other people without shooting them in an online gaming arena.

         So far I think they are both great systems that have enough differences to make them shine.