Interesting question, considering two of the three haven't yet been released....
 
But, I do have high hopes for the GC - and @ $200 it comes in nicely under both of the others.
 
-bZj

Yeah, X-Box and Game Cube haven't been released yet. I am thinking about getting X-box but not sure yet. From the specs X-box looks pretty good. But Playstations 2 got a lot of good games. I don't think I will consider Game Cube since Nintendo pretty much focus their games on kids so you won't find any fighting and shooting games to be released on Game Cube.

If you ask me, don't buy any of them. In my opinion, consoles are a huge waste of money.

Why consoles aren't a waste of money, by Down8:
 
Assuming a universal $50 for each game:
 
Laptop: $1400++
REAL mouse: $40
Total cash: $1440++
Total playtime: 2-3 hrs. [unless another adapter is purchased.]
 
Portable 13" TV: $100
Gaming console: $200
Power inverter: $40
Total cash: ~$400
Total playtime: ???
 
$(400 + 50n) < $(1400 + 50n)
 
Thank you, and good night
 
-bZj

but laptop can do more stuffs than a console.
Some games can only be played on a console.
and you can't have friends playing mutiplayers game on the laptop, e.g. soccer games

XBox, as I understand it, is going to have a Pentium III 700mhz, a GeForce 3, an Nvidia NForce, and a hard drive. Well, if this is the hardware, then I can say that my computer kicks it's butt!
 
Maybe the XBox will be different, but what happens when a game needs to be patched? Or new maps or scenarios added? What if your video stops working properly?
 
Also, unlike computers, consoles are limited to perform only to the best of their ability. They cannot be upgraded like a computer can to give it the capacity to perform better. So basically you have to wait for another, better console to be released.
 
Also, speaking of cost. If we are assuming that games cost $50 and you have oh, 20 games... that would run you right around $1,000 in itself. With a PC, you COULD borrow your favorite game from a friend and burn it. 20 games for the PC COULD = $8 (the cost of blank cds). Questions regarding the legality of this are important, but the fact of the matter is that you COULD do this, and many, MANY people do.
 
And like FatFish said, pcs are not limited to games. They do EVERYTHING else.
 
This is where my opinion is developed. PCs are not "static" like consoles are, current PCs have the same processing power as the most current console (and this increases with every passing month), PCs are easily repairable if there is a problem, PC games are every bit as good if not better (in my opinion), the cost of games for the PC is thousands of dollars less than for a console (provided you do the burning thing), and finally, as FatFish said, when you are done playing your game on the PC, you can do whatever else it is you do on a computer.
 
This is how I see it. But hey that's just me. I refuse to buy a cell phone too, so maybe I'm nuts.

Ya know what else I just thought of...
 
With a PC, you can download emulators, which allow you to play Nintendo, Super Nintendo, Sega, Nintendo 64, and Playstation games. Again, there are legal issues here, but it just goes to show you how much more sensible it is to have a PC. You just have far more options.
 
Welp gotta go to work. Talk to you guys later.

I don't care for consoles too much, since they have to be connected to a TV which has a dismal resolution, and fixed refresh rate. But the XBox does show some promise. For example, one COOL thing about consoles is that the games are as bug free as they will get when released. They will have been proven to work on that combination of hardware, since that's all they have been developed/tested on. Now, the downside is that you cannot upgrade them and they are pretty much disposable technology. I think that they have their place, and I can see the attraction, I just haven't decided if I want to connect an XBox to my 45" Mitsubishi yet.
 
Oh, and as for the breakdown from Down8:
 
1. I have never seen a laptop sold without an AC power convertor
2. The laptop would have better resolution than the TV
3. The console in question would be more like $300 (and probably more, if you are saddled with having to buy a gaming bundle to get the console) rather than $200.
4. The laptop would be infinitely more portable than the console/tv combo ever would be
5. The laptop would also support true multiplayer (not lame split-screen) gaming
6. The laptop would also support broadband
7. While you can't play games from a N64 on a Playstation, some of these same games have been ported to PC (or in fact, have been ported from PC) and lets the PC enjoy a larger selection of premium games
8. You could simply scrap the idea of a laptop, and buy a decent PC for $700 that will not only play games, but will do a whole helluva lot more (as brought up previously)
 
Thank you, and good day...
 

Quote:
Maybe the XBox will be different, but what happens when a game needs to be patched?

That's the very reason why the XBox has a hard drive (well and to store saved games on).

Just to continue the discussion:
 
1) The XBox will be releasing game patches - if you doubt this, then you are a truely blind Microsoftie.
2) The extra adpter I was refering to was a car adapter, not AC.
3) If I just want to play games, the extra utility of a PC would be useless.
4) My Dreamcast has a broadband adapter available [$100!?!], and you can bet the XBox will too.
5) I have more than one DC game that was burned here, so the "free" PC game comment is irrelavant [www.dccopyworld.com].
6) Hell, I can go the other way and run Linux on my DC if I want [ http://www.linuxdevices.com/articles/AT7466555948.html].
7) To play multiplayer games on PCs, every player has to have to have a PC, thus raising your initial costs per player - consoles are minimum 2-players, with a max of 4+.
8) The use of the nForce chipset would effectively pre-empt any use of a GF3, or would just be a waste of silicon, as the nForce has an IGP [integrated graphic processor] consiting of a GF2MX [ http://hardocp.com/articles/nforce/]. I don't know what will be in the XBox though.
9) Laptops cannot be easily [or inexpensively] upgraded, so they fail similar to a console in this respect.
10) N.E.S. FOREVER!!!
 
Originally, I was just relaying that it's easier to play multiplayer games on the road with a console/TV combo, or to take it to a friend's house, than would be the case with a laptop [extra LAN gear, etc.]. I guess I should say that the last console I bought was a Sega CD, and I'm in no hurry to buy a console, although my brother does have a PSX and a DC. The DC is the best console on the market right now, but it had terrible support form the get-go [much like the Sega CD - like 20 total games - baaad Sega]. PS2 blows [comparitively] except that is backwards compatible with PSX games.
 
Just my food for though,
-bZj

OK, I think I see what you are aiming for, but...
 
1. The console market has been used to not having patches for so long (and since there are quite a bit of console developers looking at the XBox) I would imagine that the XBox would have to work in the same vein. But then again, my original comment was aimed at support of the unit, and if there are going to be patches then that's just one more reason not to bother...
 
2. Why would I want a car adapter? Are the prices of the TV and Console adjusted for this item as well?
 
3. Basically, with the cost of the console (to cover the cost of a broadband adapter since there is a perceived *need* for patches, not to mention a monthly fee for Internet or network access to GET the patches in the first place) then the PC would be more attractive. Not to mention that it can do more than play the 20 games or so that's available (as per your comment on the Sega platforms).
 
4. Covered in "3".
 
5. Aren't those hacked and clipped so a regular CD can be used? Or are they, in fact, complete and in tact? Personally, I make backups of every CD that I get (at work and at home) since I have had a couple get scuffed for one reason or another (or just plain lost). I just use the burn, install from that, and keep the master in the box that the software came in. If you can do complete backups on your games for the DC (or PS2 or XBox, since those are the more recent platforms we would be working with) then I would look at it further. Oh, and what would you backup the DC games with anyway? A PC? Hmmm...
 
6. Just get the PC and dual boot, the DC cannot and will not ever do as much as a PC, yet its cost with all of the "optional" (read: needed) hardware is running rather close to that of a PC. Plus, the DC is the only one that can do this, right? However, you did mention that you only wanted to play games on the console, right?
 
7. The difference is, that you can play MP for pretty much any game anytime you want, without having to wait for people to come over (or you dragging your console/controller set to their place). Plus, MP gaming on the 13" portable that you spoke would be just plain ridiculous (kinda hard to hide from the enemy when he/she is sitting right next to you). Also, MP gaming on console can really slow down an already resource intensive game (how does q3a run in 4 way deathmatch? Not that I care, since I play with 8 or more peeps at a shot anyway). BUT, sniping/camping does become much harder, so there's one selling point...
 
8. The nForce chipset will more than likely run like a GeForce MX at best (and is currently performing at lower than expected levels in current silicon). I would still imagine that the GF3 would be used. But if not, that PC sure is getting more attractive...
 
9. What can you upgrade on a console that is so much easier than a laptop? Memory? HD (oh, sorry, prolly don't have one of those do ya? )? OS? CPU (Can you upgrade one of those in a console?)?
 
10. As a doorstop, absolutely!
 
I was a console fan, but I got tired of how easily the platforms would get changed and you would simply lose support for it. Technology is simply moving too fast (which is a good thing) to ask developers to keep working on outdated platforms.

Ayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy- MEN!!

Good points clutch. I can't think of much that hasn't been covered between us. Maybe that others could still surf the web, etc., while playing a game on a console. Oh, and the "power inverter" was the adjustment for playing the console in the car. The burned DC games are full on 'backups' - complete in every form. The Playstation had to be modded to allow for burned games, but the DC does not.
 
-bZj

Consoles are nice, I would just like a platform that supports the games I want to play. Unfortunately, I have seen games that I like across multiple consoles and I don't have the desire to buy one of each console to play the games I like. Usually I can find these games on PC, so it works out well.

Now that, my friends, is how a discussion/argument should take place. Well done guys!