Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

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Your guide to the next generation of video game consoles

The holiday season is just around the corner, which means holiday game releases will soon be flooding the market. This December looks to be one of the best gaming release seasons to date, with all three powerhouse companies—Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft—coming out with new games for their new generation of systems—PlayStation 4, Wii U and Xbox One. With the huge amount of advertising prevalent during the holiday season, making the choice of which system to buy can be a little overwhelming.

First off, let’s talk Sony. The PS4 has already sold more than 2 million consoles since its release in November. Sony has an impressive lineup of games including “Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag” and “Call of Duty: Ghosts.” While these games are also available for Xbox One, the PS4 also has independent titles that will be released in the near future. Some of the games to watch for include “The Witness,” a puzzle game on an abandoned island, and “inFAMOUS Second Son,” another installment in the “inFAMOUS” world. The games currently out this season are pretty much the same across the Microsoft-Sony divide. Nintendo, of course, is excluded from most of the overlap, but PS4’s upcoming games are promising enough to consider the PS4 a good choice for a gift this holiday season. At $399, the PS4 is in the middle of the pack for new console prices. The system itself doubles as a Blu-Ray player but is not backwards compatible. Sony does have plans to create a cloud-esque streaming system to acquire PlayStation titles from previous generations. When compared to the other two systems, the PS4 seems to be the most suitable choice if you’re on the fence about which system to get. Its price falls comfortably between the other two and has shared titles.

Now let’s look at Microsoft and the Xbox One. Microsoft continually releases stats on how many zombies have been killed in the new “Dead Rising 3” and many other random stats about other release games like “Forza 5” and “Ryse.” Although there haven’t been any sales numbers yet, these stats show that Xbox One is actually doing just fine. It’s the most expensive of the big three, weighing in with a price tag of $499. The most notable game in the release bundle is “Dead Rising 3” because who doesn’t love making weapons out of things you find on the ground and shamelessly killing zombies with them? Sharing much of the same game pool as the PS4, the Xbox One decides to match its competition by including a Blu-Ray player. This makes the choice of what system to purchase more of a preference on games that will be released on the future. Microsoft still seems to be moving in its direction of first-person shooters and explosive adventure games. It does have some interesting games coming up which do not fit the usual Microsoft standard, the most apparent being “Project Spark,” in which players create their own game and customize the world at will. Overall, the Xbox One’s price is unappealing, but that’s the only real turn-off from purchasing it. The games have a lot of promise, and Microsoft has been around long enough to know how to make ridiculously enjoyable games.

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Finally, the most family-friendly of the three consoles: the Wii U. Unlike its fellow new generation consoles, the Wii U has been on the market for over a year now. It also doesn’t really have anything new to offer this holiday season. It seems to be riding on “Pikmin 3,” the various “Super Mario Bros.” games and “The Legend of Zelda Windwaker HD.” The Wii U is the cheapest of the three systems with the basic set at $299 and the deluxe bundle at $349. Of the three, the Wii U has the most hype built around its soon-to-be-released games coming in the spring, the two biggest of those being the new “Super Smash Bros.” and “Mario Kart.” If you enjoy the general play-style of Nintendo’s games or just like a well-done multiplayer experience, get the Wii U. It’s a fair price and usually a good time with friends.

Honestly, this holiday is just build-up for a huge release in the spring. All of the systems have their own benefits, but nothing is really shining through as the absolute best system of season.

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