Which of these consoles from the 128-bit era is your favourite?
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Retro Arena: 128-bit era consoles
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Retro Arena: 128-bit era consoles
Which of these consoles from the 128-bit era is your favourite?Last edited by Leon Retro; 14-04-2019, 07:04.Tags: None
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Overall it's the PS2, but I'm reluctant to put it ahead of the Dreamcast. In footballing terms, the Dreamcast is that star striker who plays for your team for two seasons, and scores 40 or so goals in each season. The PS2 is the striker who plays for your side for ten years, notching up around 20 goals a season. He ends up with more, but you can't help nostalgically thinking of the amazing but short-lived excitement of the 40-a-season player.
There are more games I like on the PS2, but it never had years as good as the Dreamcast's.
I don't like many Gamecube games, and my first impression of it was immense disappointment that Blue Storm wasn't a patch on Wave Race 64. I've never had an X-box, so I've only played a handful of games on backwards compatibility on later consoles. I enjoyed them though - love Crimson Skies, Panzer Dragoon Orta and Jade Empire.
1. PS2
2. Dreamcast
3. X-box
4. Gamecube
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Hardware Aesthetics
Dreamcast - Still the sexiest looking console ever made, physically just magnificent like a supermodel had a baby with a Super Nintendo
Playstation 2 - Has aged alright physically mostly due to how modern consoles have mirrored its dull design philosophy
Gamecube - I like its looks a lot but I can see why it would hamper its appeal
Xbox - I like it more than I fear I should, best system menu though
Controller
Dreamcast - I was fine with it and the VMU was a nice idea but the execution was off
Playstation 2 - It's a warhorse design so fine then as it is now
Gamecube - It's super comfortable but it reeks of the fact it was designed for a specific game and Smash fans should have let it go a very long time ago
Xbox - Was poor, got better but neither was amazing
Software
PS2 > Gamecube > Dreamcast > Xbox
PS2's library didn't always contain the best example of a port but it was without rival. Gamecube was a solid little runner and there's some great games on it that are particular to that system, Dreamcast was great to own for its software but it was arcade short experience heavy and has later been strip-mined to death by other systems including the ones in this face off. Xbox was good for 'best ports' but in a hindsight sense it has one of the shallowest 'legacy' lists of key games of any system hence its reputation being one more of it being great to run emulators on but not that worth emulating itself
Overall - It's the PS2. I can have all the soft spot I want for the others but objectively there can't be much contest for myself in what should win.
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This must be the first rhetorical poll on the forum. The only correct answer is the Dreamcast. It’s the last arcade influenced system and has blue skies in games not all the grim-dark west coast mutha fooka nonsense the marketing focus tested PS2 era cemented.
Look at all the great stuff the DC brought us - online, VGA, arcade perfect ports and a seemingly never ending homebrew scene.
Rez, Space Channel 5, Cosmic Smash, Crazy Taxi, Virtua Tennis, Mars Matrix, F355, MSR, Gigawing, Gunbird, Sonic, Headhunter, Shenmue, JSR etc. What a lineup. I suppose the creativity of Sega’s DC output was directly related to being a platform holder but who else had the bottle to put out stuff like that on a platform with a small user base? Easier to take chances on the PlayStation. And I appreciate that the DC did get lumbered with a lot of ports from the PlayStation but it was usually the best version of the game.
When the Dreamcast was discontinued and Sega became another third party publisher the console industry lost its soul.
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The answer with my heart is the GameCube as I owned one (and STILL own a Panasonic Q - beautiful hardware even if it now sounds like a jet engine taking off!). Pretty much the last “proper” console that Nintendo have made imo.
The answer with my head is the PS2. The perfect follow-up to the gamechanging PS1.
Original Xbox was a meh for me at the time although Xbox Live set the standard for proper online console gaming and it was pretty much the first console to reinvent itself as a hackable emulation powerhouse and that deserves credit.
Dreamcast for me is a weaker Saturn and I say that with one currently sitting in my home. Yes, it has obvious arcade roots (its best games are almost exclusively coin-op ports, NAOMI architecture, etc.) but to me that was always at odds with Sega’s desire to make the DC more appealing in terms of original home content and online capabilities which gave the system a confused look imo, whereas the Saturn didn’t have the problem as it knew that its bread was firmly buttered on the arcade port side of things.
Would bite the hand off of anybody who offered to trade my DC for a JPN Saturn.Last edited by Nu-Eclipse; 12-04-2019, 13:36.
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Originally posted by Marius View PostIn footballing terms, the Dreamcast is that star striker who plays for your team for two seasons, and scores 40 or so goals in each season.
Originally posted by Marius View PostThe PS2 is the striker who plays for your side for ten years, notching up around 20 goals a season. He ends up with more, but you can't help nostalgically thinking of the amazing but short-lived excitement of the 40-a-season player.
Originally posted by Marius View PostI don't like many Gamecube games, and my first impression of it was immense disappointment that Blue Storm wasn't a patch on Wave Race 64.
Originally posted by Superman Falls View PostDreamcast - like a supermodel had a baby with a Super Nintendo
Originally posted by Superman Falls View Post
Playstation 2 - Has aged alright physically mostly due to how modern consoles have mirrored its dull design philosophy
Gamecube - I like its looks a lot but I can see why it would hamper its appeal
Xbox - I like it more than I fear I should, best system menu though
Originally posted by Superman Falls View PostXbox was good for 'best ports' but in a hindsight sense it has one of the shallowest 'legacy' lists of key games of any system hence its reputation being one more of it being great to run emulators on but not that worth emulating itself
Originally posted by Superman Falls View PostOverall - It's the PS2. I can have all the soft spot I want for the others but objectively there can't be much contest for myself in what should win.
Originally posted by CMcK View PostThis must be the first rhetorical poll on the forum. The only correct answer is the Dreamcast.
Originally posted by CMcK View PostAnd I appreciate that the DC did get lumbered with a lot of ports from the PlayStation but it was usually the best version of the game.
Originally posted by Nu-Eclipse View Post
Original Xbox was a meh for me at the time although Xbox Live set the standard for proper online console gaming and it was pretty much the first console to reinvent itself as a hackable emulation powerhouse and that deserves credit.
Originally posted by Nu-Eclipse View PostWould bite the hand off of anybody who offered to trade my DC for a JPN Saturn.
Originally posted by Team Andromeda View PostOG XBox for me. Pal gamers for the 1st time treated with respect,
Softmod an Xbox for 480p and it's a beautiful sight to behold. The HDMI adapter we have works really well.Last edited by Leon Retro; 12-04-2019, 17:16.
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[QUOTE=Leon Retro;2316240
Well, Dreamcast owners were treated quite well in PAL-land. It was great how machines from that era embraced 60Hz for PAL gamers. I think the PS2 was still delivering a lot of 50Hz games though.
Softmod an Xbox for 480p and it's a beautiful sight to behold. The HDMI adapter we have works really well. [/QUOTE]
To a point , but VF 3, SEGA Rally 2 and Code Veronica only run at 50Hz. With the XBox almost every game supported full screen and 60 Hz gaming and with LIVE the wait for Pal games after the USA launch got smaller and smaller.
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I'll probably go:
PS2
Dreamcast
Gamecube
Xbox
...but the Xbox far behind the other three.
My heart wants to put the Dreamcast first because it got me into gaming again after largely losing interest in my late teens. I loved all of the arcade ports, colourful graphics and cheerful music. Realistically though, the PS2 was my main console for many years and has a great line-up that probably beats the Dreamcast in most areas. Even when it comes to shmups, I would choose Dodonpachi DOJ, Espgaluda and Gradius V over anything on the DC.
The Gamecube had the usual line-up of good first party games, but I'm not sure there are too many that rank alongside Nintendo's best ( guess some people would say F-Zero, but I was never a huge fan). The "exclusive" Capcom games turned out to be not-so-exclusive with the RE titles ending up on pretty much every system since, and Viewtiful Joe and Killer 7 also appearing on the PS2.
I picked up the Xbox quite late on, mostly for the Sega games. I loved Outrun 2, but there wasn't much else that really gripped me. Once Outrun C2C came out for the PS2, it soon ended up back in its box. It's the only one of the four I don't own today. Maybe if it wasn't so BIG I might keep one in a cupboard somewhere
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Originally posted by Team Andromeda View PostTo a point , but VF 3, SEGA Rally 2 and Code Veronica only run at 50Hz. With the XBox almost every game supported full screen and 60 Hz gaming and with LIVE the wait for Pal games after the USA launch got smaller and smaller.Last edited by ZipZap; 13-04-2019, 12:12.
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Originally posted by Leon Retro View PostI've always thought the PS2 looks like a cheap mess. There's no finesse or charm to its design. The GameCube looks a bit like a kiddy console, but I think it's pretty cool. The Xbox is a bit too bulky, but I always appreciated how the design suited its status as the most powerful console of the era. It was very much a PC in a console case like we get with modern machines.
Special mention to the PS2 slim as well. I wish I could get a version of every console that is so small and neat.
The Dreamcast looks fine, but is very 90s console-y. I like the Gamecube, it's very Nintendo. It screams "fun"! Far nicer looking than the dull Wii/Wii-U design and branding. It doesn't fit in TV stands very well though! The Xbox is just too big and bulky for me, and I don't really like the branding; a bit like a gamer PC.Last edited by ZipZap; 13-04-2019, 12:21.
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Like others, PS2 has to be the one for me. A very broad variety of games, and it played host to the initial releases of the MGS and GTA games of that gen.
In terms of hardware design, the Dreamcast is kinda cute but a little ‘meh’ to me. There’s very little that stands out about it, it hews closely to the design of the PlayStation and Saturn - toploader in the middle, power and reset on the top and to the left and right respectively.
PS2, to me at least, had a much more interesting design. Oddly off centred when horizontal (unusual considering virtually every console up to this point had featured a symmetrical design), its sharply angular corners, front loading disc tray and discreet buttons let you know that this was intended to be a serious, futuristic piece of AV equipment.
The ability to place the machine vertically (and, in doing so with the original external HDD add on, make your console look like a mini set of Tokyo skyscrapers) was also a significant innovation that has been copied by almost every machine since.
It’s a highly distinctive design which I think was a strong expression of the message Sony wanted to communicate about the console.
I’ve said this before on here, but the GameCube was almost a perfect counterpoint - a toy box with a bright, multicoloured controller like a Bop-It!, through which Nintendo communicated that it was all about fun.
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Originally posted by Team Andromeda View PostTo a point , but VF 3, SEGA Rally 2 and Code Veronica only run at 50Hz. With the XBox almost every game supported full screen and 60 Hz gaming and with LIVE the wait for Pal games after the USA launch got smaller and smaller.
Originally posted by ZipZap View Post
My heart wants to put the Dreamcast first because it got me into gaming again after largely losing interest in my late teens. I loved all of the arcade ports, colourful graphics and cheerful music.
Originally posted by ZipZap View PostMaybe if it wasn't so BIG I might keep one in a cupboard somewhere
Originally posted by ZipZap View PostI actually think the PS2 looks quite good.
But it does have a distinct design that some people are fond of.
Originally posted by ZipZap View PostThe Dreamcast looks fine, but is very 90s console-y. I like the Gamecube, it's very Nintendo. It screams "fun"! Far nicer looking than the dull Wii/Wii-U design and branding. .
Originally posted by wakka View PostLike others, PS2 has to be the one for me. A very broad variety of games, and it played host to the initial releases of the MGS and GTA games of that gen.
Originally posted by wakka View PostI’ve said this before on here, but the GameCube was almost a perfect counterpoint - a toy box with a bright, multicoloured controller like a Bop-It!, through which Nintendo communicated that it was all about fun.Last edited by Leon Retro; 14-04-2019, 00:10.
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