[Timmie Boy]

....even though Xbox looks cool, is slightly quicker than PS2, but it will take years and years for Xbox to get anywhere near the success PS brand has had.
Surely there aren't enough game developers out there to support the best games on ALL formats.
With so many consoles the quality of games must surely be "watered down"
Microsoft can throw all the money they have to be the best, but you need the raw talent of game developers to attract the paying punters
I'm sorry but I just can't see the general public switching to xbox!
I'm sure you'll tell me different!

[brattle]

Quality doesn't necessarily mean quality. Just because the PS2 will sell the most (which it undoubtedly will) and will probably have the most games, doesn't mean it will automatically have the most that are worth playing.

The DC still has far more killer titles than the PS2 and it sold relatively sod all.

[Rock Da Bass]

Agreed. The DC easily had better games than the PS2.

The Gamecube will probably have the best games of all but sell the least, as the massmarket goes for PS2 or XBox. If Nintendo goes down the pan in the same way as Sega, who'll release innovative games/controllers etc. It certainly won't be Sony or Microsoft.

RDB

....even though Xbox looks cool, is slightly quicker than PS2, but it will take years and years for Xbox to get anywhere near the success PS brand has had.

I agree that the PS brand is solid, but I think gamers (and consumers in general) are less brand loyal than they have been in the past. I think the architecture will be the ruin of PS2. We've already seen the developers of Munch's Oddysee abandon the PS2 because it's difficult to develop for. The few hardware limitations on the system "should" mean that once Xbox catches up to the PS2, Sony will have a hard time defending against their competitor with an aging machine. Sony's best strategy would be to bury Xbox before it gets out of the gate. If they turn it into another Dreamcast (which had the best game library of any console to date), then Xbox won't get a chance to show people that it's simply a better machine than the PS2.

[ashearer]

I have to disagree with the initial comment. XBox isn't going to catch PS2 in terms of numbers of consoles sold as Sony have a huge head start in building the PS brand. However, I do think the market can support both consoles. I can't see the XBox being another Dreamcast. They have a great launch lineup, a lot of money for marketing, got their online gaming strategy right and it's easy to develop for. I believe it will do very well.

Of course, the best games come out on Nintendo but I fear for the Gamecube in Europe. The launch lineup is poor and the console is clearly aimed at kids. They really need to get a GoldenEye equivalent and the latest Mario/Zelda out quick!

[Bonesy]

I remember a time when Sega megadrive had the best game line-up, and biggest brand loyalty amongst gamers.

Didn't do much good for them in the longer run!

If anything, customer ownership is now moving away from the console manufacturers, to the game developers/licensees.

hence the X-box-only stamp. The move of the likes of MGS, Munchs' do-da and others to x-box is more damaging to Sony than any technical specs.

Of course, the best games come out on Nintendo but I fear for the Gamecube in Europe.

I'm a little worried about the Gamecube as well. Personally, I hated the N64, and thought that 90% of the games weren't fit to play. Of course, it did have Goldeneye, Zelda, and (later) Perfect Dark. Despite the mediocrity of their game library, those 3 games were so good, the system was still worth the money.

But, I think Nintendo is really out of touch with the market. The N64 should have been a CD-based system, and the GC should be a DVD-based system. They have been held afloat by several key franchises in the past, and I don't think the GC is any exception.

[brattle]

It will be always worth buying the GC just for the Nintendo exclusive games. The N64 wasn't the disaster that many people thought it was, it is still the fifth best selling home console of all time and sold more than any Sega console, Megadrive included.

The GC will easily come in second in Japan and has sold pretty well, despite an average (by Nintendo standards) release list. When the big guns come in later in the year, it should really take off in Japan and the US at the very least.

X-Box will sell well in the US, but in other territories it may struggle.

The PS2 has "won" the sales war already and nothing can stop this behemoth now. As I've said before though, sales don't mean anything when it comes to quality and shouldn't affect a persons descision over which console he buys. All three will sell enough to have a decent level of support and more and more games are appearing on all three platforms nowadays.

Just get the one whos games appeal the most, or best of all get all three .