The PS3 eventually came good, and had the better exclusive software lineup, but the 360 was just a brilliant experience. It was the iPhone of games consoles, the jump in terms of features and user experience just felt absolutely huge over what had come before.
Having this overarching operating system that you could bring up at any time, mid-game, without quitting, to choose music from your iPod (connected over USB - OK, this feels lame in a world of Spotify, Apple Music, etc, but was brilliant in 2005), message friends, check achievements, etc, was incredible. And it worked well right from the get go.
Achievements and the Gamerscore (although I'm not personally bothered about them these days) were simply a brilliant idea in themselves that were extremely well implemented from day one, and have now become a de rigeur part of so many gaming platforms.
The pad? Friggin' awesome. It felt light years ahead of the PS2 one I'd been using. And you could turn on your console from the sofa by holding the X button! Wirelessly! Amazing.
Honestly, I dig the 360 so hard, particularly for what it was back in 2005. It was a terrific product.
Much later, I bought a Super Slim PS3, and loved it for different reasons. The slick and classy interface was more like AV equipment than a games machine, and a welcome break from the ad-fest the 360 had become, and it had tons of great exclusive software like Uncharted and Yakuza. But the 360 gets the 'personal fave' award from me. That machine blew my mind in the early years. It was wonderful.
Having this overarching operating system that you could bring up at any time, mid-game, without quitting, to choose music from your iPod (connected over USB - OK, this feels lame in a world of Spotify, Apple Music, etc, but was brilliant in 2005), message friends, check achievements, etc, was incredible. And it worked well right from the get go.
Achievements and the Gamerscore (although I'm not personally bothered about them these days) were simply a brilliant idea in themselves that were extremely well implemented from day one, and have now become a de rigeur part of so many gaming platforms.
The pad? Friggin' awesome. It felt light years ahead of the PS2 one I'd been using. And you could turn on your console from the sofa by holding the X button! Wirelessly! Amazing.
Honestly, I dig the 360 so hard, particularly for what it was back in 2005. It was a terrific product.
Much later, I bought a Super Slim PS3, and loved it for different reasons. The slick and classy interface was more like AV equipment than a games machine, and a welcome break from the ad-fest the 360 had become, and it had tons of great exclusive software like Uncharted and Yakuza. But the 360 gets the 'personal fave' award from me. That machine blew my mind in the early years. It was wonderful.
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