Price:
- Nintendo GameCube: Approx. $100.
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- Microsoft Xbox: Approx. $180.
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- Sony Playstation 2: Approx. $180.
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Hardware:
Hardware seems a natural place to begin. After all, we’ve been trained by the computer industry that a faster system is a better system. Yet what’s inside of a game system matters less than you might think. For the most part titles that release on all three systems offer pretty much the same game experience across the board. Where hardware does make a difference is in terms of features such as the ability to play DVD movies, or connect to the Internet. With that in mind, the Xbox is the technically superior console in terms of processing power, followed by the GameCube, and then the Playstation 2, which is a year older than the others and showing its age. It’s more complicated than that, though; let’s talk about the hardware differences that will actually effect how you play.
- Hard drive: In order to save your game progress, download extra game levels, and play certain games, you have to have enough available free memory. The GameCube and PS2 both use memory cards that are purchased separate from the system and used to save data to, much like a floppy disk. The Xbox uses an internal hard drive that is significantly larger than any available memory card. With a larger hard drive, the Xbox is capable of storing, and then playing, things like music and downloadable content (such as extra levels). The PS2 has a hard drive accessory you can purchase separately, but since it’s not integrated into the console there are very few games that utilize it, and the recent PS2 slim form factor isn’t compatible with the hard drive at all. The GameCube doesn’t offer any form of hard drive, integrated or separate, only a number of fairly large memory cards. With the Xbox, you will never have to buy additional memory; you will with either of the other systems.
- Online Connections: Connecting to the Internet, depending on the system, means that you’ll be able to play with or against other people online, download new content for your games, and participate in the online gaming community. With a built in Ethernet port, the Xbox is the easiest system to link together or get online. The PS2 can be purchased with an Ethernet and modem adapter, or the slim form factor comes with the Ethernet integrated. Microsoft has put far more money than Sony or Nintendo into guaranteeing that their games have online support, and as a consequence there is currently no game network available that remotely compares to Xbox LIVE, which is an exclusive Xbox service that helps gamers connect with others online. When you play online with the Xbox, you’ll have guaranteed voice chat, a unified network that lets you communicate with your online friends regardless of what LIVE enabled game they’re playing, and downloadable content. Neither Sony nor Nintendo have anything that compares. Nintendo, for its part, approaches the concept of “connectivity” differently; they offer extremely limited online support in favor of being able to connect the GameCube to their portable units, such as the Gameboy Advance, in order to extend gameplay. Titles that support actual online play on the GameCube are extremely limited.
- DVD Capability: It’s worth mentioning which systems are capable of playing DVDs. The PS2 ships with the ability to play DVDs straight out of the box. The Xbox has the capability if you purchase an extra DVD accessory, and the GameCube is too small to hold a DVD. Both the systems with the capability do the job about equally well, though the Xbox accessory comes with a remote.
In general, the GameCube doesn’t fair so well against either competitor in terms of hardware. While the Nintendo system is more powerful than the PS2 in terms of processing power, it falls behind on other key features. Even though the GameCube will consistently produce better looking games (and the difference is noticeable) than the PS2, there are other capabilities that the GameCube is simply lacking. What’s amazing is that I’d still, without hesitation, recommend purchasing the $100 GameCube over the more expensive Playstation 2. The reason has to do with games and creativity.