We had a similar experience with the PS3. I picked up the PS3 for cheap because GameStop sent me a rare $100-off coupon a few years into its lifecycle, so it might have only cost me $200 or $250 IIRC.
I only had a handful of games for it. Gran Turismo was the only one I recall really enjoying (the only iteration of that series that I ever owned). I also still had a 10+ year-old CRT TV which made it so you couldn't even read certain text (why upgrade to flatscreen when I was mainly a PC guy, still had some old consoles, and didn't watch any TV?)
BUT the PS3 ended up being my primary Blu-Ray and streaming device in my bachelor pad for a number of years. I didn't give it up until a few years after I got married.
On the PS2, I suspect you're right with the #1 ranking, though I didn't own one. I only had a GameCube and ended up regretting it and wishing I had a PS2 instead for the deeper library. I will observe that I find PS2-era 3D graphics to be charmingly quaint, unlike PS1 3D graphics which are brutishly primitive. In 2D terms, maybe compare it to charmingly quaint NES vs. brutishly primitive Atari 2600.
Oh maaan, playing a PS3 or 360 on a CRT TV was brutal, but I absolutely powered through 100+ hours of Oblivion on one. I truly didn't know any better.
The PS3 was a killer streaming/Blu-Ray device in the early to mid 2010s, no question.
I agree, PS2-era 3D graphics are quaint. PS1 3D graphics are like staring at some tormented child's artwork, even if the game is supposed to be cutesy. "Brutishly primitive" is an excellent phrase.
I played a metric ton of PS1. It came out right around my high school days. I remember my mom letting me play hooky from school and bought me FF7 and a brand new dual shock controller.
I still have a PS1 in my collection. I was actually just playing Road Rash yesterday.
I believe Road Rash on Sega CD, 3DO, and PS1 were all essentially the same game (but I'm sure you're right that the Sega CD version must have been way choppier). Call it "Road Rash CD".
Funny enough, I've only played the 3DO version of "Road Rash CD" because the store in my town that constantly demoed weird consoles had it set up for a long time. Pretty sure that and Gex are the only 3DO games I've played.
I think the next-gen Road Rashes are superior to the early ones, but the problem is that other driving games advanced faster. Compare Gran Turismo (or even Ridge Racer) to Top Gear, or Mario Kart 64 to SNES Mario Kart, and the advances weren't as rapid in the Road Rash series. Plus the gimmick was somewhat played out.
Almost all these consoles seem workmanlike in their design, they do what they need to do for the era they were released in and they do it well. Sony went all out with the PS3 though, at least initially. It could play almost every major media format you could throw at it, stream video, run Linux, even be used as part of supercomputing platform. It’s a level of ambition I don’t think we’ll ever see again in a games console, for better or worse.
Yeah, workmanlike, utilitarian... the PlayStation series definitely is and has only become more so. But the PS3 is a unique beast, I agree. Faulty because of its ambition. Probably why PS4 became a very basic, easy to develop for computer.
We had a similar experience with the PS3. I picked up the PS3 for cheap because GameStop sent me a rare $100-off coupon a few years into its lifecycle, so it might have only cost me $200 or $250 IIRC.
I only had a handful of games for it. Gran Turismo was the only one I recall really enjoying (the only iteration of that series that I ever owned). I also still had a 10+ year-old CRT TV which made it so you couldn't even read certain text (why upgrade to flatscreen when I was mainly a PC guy, still had some old consoles, and didn't watch any TV?)
BUT the PS3 ended up being my primary Blu-Ray and streaming device in my bachelor pad for a number of years. I didn't give it up until a few years after I got married.
On the PS2, I suspect you're right with the #1 ranking, though I didn't own one. I only had a GameCube and ended up regretting it and wishing I had a PS2 instead for the deeper library. I will observe that I find PS2-era 3D graphics to be charmingly quaint, unlike PS1 3D graphics which are brutishly primitive. In 2D terms, maybe compare it to charmingly quaint NES vs. brutishly primitive Atari 2600.
Oh maaan, playing a PS3 or 360 on a CRT TV was brutal, but I absolutely powered through 100+ hours of Oblivion on one. I truly didn't know any better.
The PS3 was a killer streaming/Blu-Ray device in the early to mid 2010s, no question.
I agree, PS2-era 3D graphics are quaint. PS1 3D graphics are like staring at some tormented child's artwork, even if the game is supposed to be cutesy. "Brutishly primitive" is an excellent phrase.
I played a metric ton of PS1. It came out right around my high school days. I remember my mom letting me play hooky from school and bought me FF7 and a brand new dual shock controller.
I still have a PS1 in my collection. I was actually just playing Road Rash yesterday.
Wow, that is an epic Mom win, haha. Super cool.
How is the PS1 Road Rash? I only remember the 16-bit games.
I’ll always be partial to road rash CD on Sega cd Because of the memories But road rash CD for the PlayStation one is vastly superior.
I believe Road Rash on Sega CD, 3DO, and PS1 were all essentially the same game (but I'm sure you're right that the Sega CD version must have been way choppier). Call it "Road Rash CD".
Funny enough, I've only played the 3DO version of "Road Rash CD" because the store in my town that constantly demoed weird consoles had it set up for a long time. Pretty sure that and Gex are the only 3DO games I've played.
I think the next-gen Road Rashes are superior to the early ones, but the problem is that other driving games advanced faster. Compare Gran Turismo (or even Ridge Racer) to Top Gear, or Mario Kart 64 to SNES Mario Kart, and the advances weren't as rapid in the Road Rash series. Plus the gimmick was somewhat played out.
Almost all these consoles seem workmanlike in their design, they do what they need to do for the era they were released in and they do it well. Sony went all out with the PS3 though, at least initially. It could play almost every major media format you could throw at it, stream video, run Linux, even be used as part of supercomputing platform. It’s a level of ambition I don’t think we’ll ever see again in a games console, for better or worse.
Yeah, workmanlike, utilitarian... the PlayStation series definitely is and has only become more so. But the PS3 is a unique beast, I agree. Faulty because of its ambition. Probably why PS4 became a very basic, easy to develop for computer.