OT: Favorite Gaming Console. 1998-2020

[Ogrezilla]

I have much more respect for the Switch since I bought one...But..you're crazy

if I'm playing something more intense like Bayonetta or really any action game, I want the Pro Controller. But if I'm playing something like Dragon Quest that is just moving around and navigating menus, then give me the free hands instead. I'd love if someone would make a more substantial controller built in two parts.

Have the X-Box controllers fixed the D-pad since 360? I just can't use that thing if it needs precise directions. I have a 360 controller for my PC and mostly love it, but I was playing FF6 recently and Sabin was simply not usable. You need to do specific d-pad inputs like you would for a fighting game and I just couldn't do it with that thing. I tried playing Tekken with it too and it's just awful. I end up jumping and ducking every time I try to move. You just can't press a single direction without also hitting the adjacent direction at the same time.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Have the X-Box controllers fixed the D-pad since 360? I just can't use that thing if it needs precise directions. I have a 360 controller for my PC and mostly love it, but I was playing FF6 recently and Sabin was simply not usable. You need to do specific d-pad inputs like you would for a fighting game and I just couldn't do it with that thing. I tried playing Tekken with it too and it's just awful. I end up jumping and ducking every time I try to move. You just can't press a single direction without also hitting the adjacent direction at the same time.

The Xbone controller has the Nintendo-style + and the Elite controller has removable options. It's probably the best + pad on the market right now...but that's really not saying a ton.


As far as controller preferences go...post-SNES you can just toss whatever Nintendo wants me to use in the trash and then light it on fire. N64, GC, Wii, Wii U, Switch JoyCons...nightmares. The JoyCons wouldn't be so bad if they didn't cost $80 for balsa wood toughness...and I'd rather not play a video game than use those tiny, miserably uncomfortable bastards in any scenario.

Post-Duke controller I've preferred Microsoft's controllers, for the most part. I've never had any issues with a Microsoft controller ever and they just feel so intuitive in my hands. The Elite controller was a splurge years ago and it's basically the only reason I acknowledge the Xbone at all.

 

[Ogrezilla]

As far as controller preferences go...post-SNES you can just toss whatever Nintendo wants me to use in the trash and then light it on fire. N64, GC, Wii, Wii U, Switch JoyCons...nightmares. The JoyCons wouldn't be so bad if they didn't cost $80 for balsa wood toughness...and I'd rather not play a video game than use those tiny, miserably uncomfortable bastards in any scenario.

have you used the Wii U or Switch Pro Controllers? Both are great. I also mentioned above that I like the JoyCons, but only for super laid back games. I just like having my hands separated

The Xbone controller has the Nintendo-style + and the Elite controller has removable options. It's probably the best + pad on the market right now...but that's really not saying a ton.

Maybe I should try the XBone controller for my PC, because that's my only complaint with the 360 controller. It's great for anything where I don't use the D-pad.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

have you used the Wii U or Switch Pro Controllers? Both are great. I also mentioned above that I like the JoyCons, but only for super laid back games. I just like having my hands separated

The separated hands thing just feels weird to me. Then again I've never been able to get comfortable using a keyboard & mouse for anything, so...eh.

I use a Pro controller if I'm playing docked, but my Switch is a handheld console 95% of the time. I adore the Switch entirely because of it being a handheld on steroids.

At least motion controls are pretty much left to VR now. Nothing will make me less interested in a game than motion controls.

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

I haven't honestly even thought much about the d-pad since the fighting game days but the one on my Xbone controller has never bugged me and seems more responsive than my OG 360 controller. Which was admittedly pretty bad in the d-pad department.

I look at the Switch controllers and my mind kind of recoils a bit, if I'm being honest. Haha. But to be fair that's mostly been my response to all of Nintendo's controllers throughout the years.

 

[Ogrezilla]

The separated hands thing just feels weird to me. Then again I've never been able to get comfortable using a keyboard & mouse for anything, so...eh.

Yeah I have been using Keyboard and Mouse since I was like 10 years old playing Warcraft 2.

I use a Pro controller if I'm playing docked, but my Switch is a handheld console 95% of the time. I adore the Switch entirely because of it being a handheld on steroids.

I'm the opposite. I used it handheld when I was at the airport and on the plane, but that's really it. Even when I take it to work to play during lunch I use the kickstand to set it on my desk and take the joycons out. And when I travel for work I take the dock with me to hook up to the hotel TV. If I have a TV I don't see any reason not to use it. And if I have a stable flat surface, I will use that if I don't have a TV It's why my 3DS barely got used even though there are a bunch of games for it I would be interested in playing.

At least motion controls are pretty much left to VR now. Nothing will make me less interested in a game than motion controls.

Yeah I'm mostly on board with that. Though gyro aiming (combined with the sticks) makes shooters on consoles at least tolerable compared to pure dual joysticks.

edit: that reminds me, maybe I should get the Master Chief Collection now that it's on pc.

 

[T1K]

hahahaahahah....what game you playin on that PSP?

The games sucked, but the og PSP had WiFi and a web browser. You could download videos to the external memory stick lol.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Yeah I have been using Keyboard and Mouse since I was like 10 years old playing Warcraft 2.


I'm the opposite. I used it handheld when I was at the airport and on the plane, but that's really it. Even when I take it to work to play during lunch I use the kickstand to set it on my desk and take the joycons out. And when I travel for work I take the dock with me to hook up to the hotel TV. If I have a TV I don't see any reason not to use it. And if I have a stable flat surface, I will use that if I don't have a TV It's why my 3DS barely got used even though there are a bunch of games for it I would be interested in playing.

Once you bring hotkeys into the equation my brain just shuts down. Same reason I can't remember a single fighting game combo or cheat code to save my life. That part of my brain is reserved exclusively for retaining Legends of the Hidden Temple layouts.

Getting the handheld version of things was how I eventually figured out my family was lower middle class.

 

[Ogrezilla]

Once you bring hotkeys into the equation my brain just shuts down. Same reason I can't remember a single fighting game combo or cheat code to save my life. That part of my brain is reserved exclusively for retaining Legends of the Hidden Temple layouts.

Getting the handheld version of things was how I eventually figured out my family was lower middle class.

most PC games don't really have more buttons to use than console games. You can ignore everything right of E, D, and C for most games I think. Though RTS definitely use a lot. You can play them almost entirely with the mouse if you didn't mind being less than ideal at the game, which is fine for single player.

Then there's MMO's and I used over to Y, H, and N, and used the Shift version of most of them too. Oh, and a 5 button mouse with shifts as well


I was just over that line where I had a console from each generation, albeit a year or two late. I'd get like 1 game a year for each if I didn't buy them myself with my paper route and birthday money. But we did have the computer, which I honestly don't know why we did. It wasn't me asking for it; I liked it because we had it. And nobody else really used it. It was weird.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

most PC games don't really have more buttons to use than console games. You can ignore everything right of E, D, and C for most games I think. Though RTS definitely use a lot. You can play them almost entirely with the mouse if you didn't mind being less than ideal at the game, which is fine for single player.

Then there's MMO's and I used over to Y, H, and N, and used the Shift version of most of them too. Oh, and a 5 button mouse with shifts as well

 

[Honour Over Glory]

I had gone into pc gaming until Halo came out so I will go with Xbox because I had a blast with my mates using xbconnect to do the halo multiplayer games and loser having to take a shot but we're all drunk anyway. Those were the best times with my mates.

 

[Honour Over Glory]

Probably N64 because it changed everything from what I remember. Goldeneye, Mario 64 among other games.

I'm a PC guy though. It's not really close. 240hz monitor + nice computer = not a fair comparison

I still play my n64 games and the wcw and golden eye games. THQ BABY.

 

[ZeroPucksGiven]

You don’t have the NES from 1983 on here for us old timers...so I refuse to participate in this poll...

That's where I'm at haha.
I had PS1 and it blew my mind at the time. I was a Freshman in college in 96 and played so many hours of Twisted Metal 2 I'm surprised the CD didn't wear out

My dorm neighbors down the hall and I also used to play Madden 97. Tournaments going on all the time.

 

[Fixxer]

The original Xbox was the first console I bought for myself. I did play NHL games and Tony Hawks games on it. Fight Night Round 2. Burnout 2 and 3. Also Mega man anniversary collection, Flatout, and how could I forget any Need For Speed games of the time.

 

[Ignatius]

PS2 for me and there is not a close #2 to it.

I went through two PS2 consoles over the course of a decade of being a pretty hardcore gamer from my late teens into my late 20's. I had a GameCube as well but only to play a few specific games that were not available on PS2. There are a few games that I would like to go back and play again but I think my interest would probably die quickly.

Still to this day I play through a few SNES games on an emulator maybe once a year. Chrono Trigger and Super Metroid are two games I never get tired of playing and trying new things with.

 

[Harvey Birdman]

I’ll break this down into two different choices. The game console I have the most nostalgia for is the Super Nintendo. By far and large if I start thinking about old titles that were a big part of my childhood I instantly think of the SNES, and also the NES. But I was very young for the NES, like barely 4.

The game console I played the most titles, spent the most time playing on, and had some of my favorite titles. PS2. I spent countless hours playing the PS2. From Metal Gear, to Tekken, to Final Fantasy, and so on. Some of my favorite titles of those series and more were on the PS1, but the insane amount of time I spent playing games on the PS2 probably makes it my favorite console.

So...

Nostalgia: SNES
Most Played: PS2

 

[Scandale du Jour]

The first XBOX because KOTOR.

My favourite ever is SNES.

 

[Ginormousthumbs]

360. Tons of weed, Halo & Gears multiplayer.

My all time favorite system was the Sega CD.

 

[Ignatius]

I’ll break this down into two different choices. The game console I have the most nostalgia for is the Super Nintendo. By far and large if I start thinking about old titles that were a big part of my childhood I instantly think of the SNES, and also the NES. But I was very young for the NES, like barely 4.

The game console I played the most titles, spent the most time playing on, and had some of my favorite titles. PS2. I spent countless hours playing the PS2. From Metal Gear, to Tekken, to Final Fantasy, and so on. Some of my favorite titles of those series and more were on the PS1, but the insane amount of time I spent playing games on the PS2 probably makes it my favorite console.

So...

Nostalgia: SNES
Most Played: PS2

These are my sentiments as well. I played my SNES to the point that it ceased to function and then I got a PS1 that surprisingly still functions well to this day. That held me over until I got a PS2 and then I wore two of those consoles out. I pretty much stopped hardcore gaming after that and just play classic NES and SNES games occasionally on emulator now.

 

[Rakell67]

I only had the Playstation 2 from that list. I do however still have my Atari 2600 and it’s currently hooked up in my garage.

 

[Tender Rip]

Amiga 500. Its the only consol I ever owned. Back when a joystick wasn't you know what.

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Amiga 500. Its the only consol I ever owned. Back when a joystick wasn't you know what.

This is fascinating to me. I owned a 500 as well. Two, actually... as the years went on.

I always considered it a computer, though. Though I guess in many ways the Amiga blurs the lines.

Hell I probably spent more time in Deluxe Paint than I did playing games... well... maybe.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

Amiga 500. Its the only consol I ever owned. Back when a joystick wasn't you know what.

So...you've never owned a console.

I'll be honest, my knowledge of Amiga ends at it being a Commodore brand that was used by a lot of animators in the early days of computer animation.

Remember any particular games, TR? I'm interested in this stuff. My dad busted out the old Macintosh II when I asked for a computer in 1997. It was a mean joke, but it had Where In the World Is Carmen Sandiego? so I was happy for a couple weeks.

 

[BlindWillyMcHurt]

Much of the appeal of gaming on the Amiga was that the graphics and especially sounds were just... miles better than anything else at the time.

As far as exclusives go... they actually didn't have many of note, IMO.

I played the hell out of all the Lucasarts games (Maniac Mansion, the Indiana Jones games, Loom and of course Monkey Island), It Came From The Desert I and II, Syndicate, Lemmings, Cannon Fodder, Simon The Sorcerer, Populous, Pirates!, Colonization, Fire Power, Eye of The Beholder, The Faery Tale Adventure and a whole slew of sims like Wings, F/A-18 Interceptor, Knights of The Sky, F-19 Stealth Fighter and racing games like Test Drive because I was a weird kid.

Stuff I never tried out but should have are Beneath A Steel Sky, Railroad Tycoon, Elite, Worms, Benefactor, The Settlers, Another World and Out of This World.

Maybe I'll d/l an emulator. But usually when I deep dive back that far in time the results are decidedly mixed.

 

[Andy99]

Also the Atari 2600 is not on here...my friend from school had one in 1980 and I’d go over his house to play Pong all the time...yes folks, I was there at the invention of video games...and the wheel..and fire..