Banditry, or "Adam experiments with console gaming"
When the Playstation 3 and XBox 360 came out, we started to have some console game systems that could hold a candle to a PC, graphically speaking. But when I’d read about the Nintendo Revolution (which was the code name for what is now known as the Wii) I was very impressed. I thought that Nintendo’s philosophy was right on the money – don’t just play a game of price and graphics oneupmanship with Sony and Microsoft, but innovate in a very radical way (the controller) while keeping the focus on the games.
The PS3 and 360 were trying to be a poor man’s computer, with games thrown in on the side. Putting Bluray on the PS3, in retrospect, was quite the coup, because for $400 you could pick up not only a capable game system, but also a Bluray disc player. But both of those systems were so very expensive, and their games so expensive, that it just didn’t make sense to me to pick them up. I mean, these console games, you play them for a little while and then you’re done. Like 20-30h of gameplay. On a computer, you can easily get 200+ with online gaming. Heck, you can get that with free games (eg Fear, AA, ET, etc).
But the Wii was something different. Something that made me reconsider my position on console gaming. I’ve long been a computer gamer, and viewed consoles as an inferior experience. I don’t know though, because the last console I truly had was an Intellivision. I played some Super Mario when it originally came out. My wife had purchased an XBox a while back for the DVD player in it, but the racing game (Gotham Racing?) didn’t really engage me too much.
Nowadays, you’re getting things like XBox Live where the consoles are getting in on the online experience (something I started doing around 1993 – 15 years now) and so there is additional value there. Unfortunately, not only do you need an active internet connection, but you need to dole out the ducats to Microsoft to attach to their XBox Live network to play! Forget that noise.
Yet the Wii called me. I haven’t played too many computer games this year, because I’ve been active with other after-work activities, chief amongst them board gaming. I got a new TV in my bedroom a while back, and so I’ve been using a computer up there with a wireless keyboard and mouse and I’m totally loving it. The 5.1 surround sound around my bed has something to do with that as well, no doubt. So I’ve seriously considered purchasing a Wii and setting it up up there.
Yet I couldn’t stomach the thought of doling out $250 (at the very least) for the system, and then paying upwards of $50 for each and every game! The system itself isn’t worth jack without the games, and so you can view the system as an additional per-game expense. So if you have 5 Wii games at $50 bucks each, and the Wii, you’ve spent 500 bucks between 5 games, or 100 a game! Shoot me now.
The Wii and it’s games will come down in price eventually. And while the controller is innovative and alluring, the actual games for the Wii don’t seem all that standout. That’s not as bad as it sounds, however, since it also plays Gamecube games. Which is cool, because the Gamecube has got some very highly rated games.
Which brings me to my pseudo-birthday present to myself. You see, Gamestop.com sells refurbished Gamecube systems and used games. The Gamecube sells for just $30. That’s pretty awesome; the games range from $5 to $15. Lay on top of that a 25% off coupon for the used games, and you can get some serious value for the money.
Gamerankings.com is a meta-review site. You can sort the games by platform and rating.
Check it:
Metroid Prime, ranked #1, with an average score of 96%, sells for $7.
Resident Evil: 4 ranked #2, with an average score of 96%, sells for $15.
The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Walker ranked #3, with an average score of 95%, sells for $15.
Viewtiful Joe ranked #8, with an average score of 92%, sells for $5.
Prince of Persia: Sands of Time ranked #9, with an average score of 92%, sells for $13.
Super Monkey Ball ranked #21, with an average score of 89%, sells for $10.
X-Men Legends ranked #55, with an average score of 82%, sells for $7.
I was able to obtain a Gamecube system, 5 of the top 10 games for that system, a puzzle game and a dungeon-crawl style rpg for $101.17 shipped next day. That’s about $15 per game when the system, tax, shipping and handling are all figured in. Plus, should I ever decide to pick up a Wii, all of these games will be playable on it. Bonus!
Am I a bandit? I just made out like one!