hyalineskies

I’ve never really been a hardcore gamer. Sure, I can hold my own against the average geek in Dance Dance Revolution, Counter-Strike, Halo, and Super Smash Bros., but gaming has never been more to me than a diversion from the task at hand. This philosophy is probably why I have never (intentionally) gone to purchase a coveted game console on its release date, although I just happened upon the second shipments of the PlayStation 2 and the Game Boy Advance SP. I didn’t even own an original PlayStation until a year after its release. I didn’t even acquire my latest console, the Xbox 360, until July 2006, eight months after its official release. Since then, my Xbox has largely been unused; I have never opened Ghost Recon and Call of Duty 2 has left the Xbox’s drive once to play a movie.

In sharp contrast to my own gaming habits (or evident lack thereof,) I’ve been left amazed at the prices fetched by Sony’s PlayStation 3, whereas three days ago the console was fetching an average price of $1,959.73 on eBay. (My own bid, in comparison, was a measly six cents.) The nearly two thousand-dollar figure is approximately three times their retail price, leaving me wondering what type of consumer is shelling out such funds for what is, no matter what the hype, an upgraded PlayStation 2. While I’m sure that a few unlucky hardcore gamers are gladly paying for the consoles, I’m siding with GamePro.com commenter CHERUB2G’s analysis of the common eBay demographic: the majority of PS3 sales are to parents during the Christmas season.

I’m not a parent, and I really don’t understand a lot of the thought processes of parents, but if I had a child old enough to play most of the PlayStation 3’s launch titles, that same child is most likely old enough to understand demand theory. It’s at this point when I’d just tell my kid that luck is what will determine the acquisition of the PlayStation 3, and just because one is accessible at an outrageous price doesn’t make it a viable option. If someone’s child yells, screams, and pulls a massive public stunt because they can’t get a PlayStation 3, there are obviously other parenting issues at stake that a video game console won’t solve. (Sometimes I wonder if the parents pay the excessive premium for these goods not so much to appease their own offspring but rather to show some type of superiority over other parents unwilling to make such a sacrifice. This seems a far more likely case.)

I’m not even particularly impressed with what the PlayStation 3 delivers, either. After some time with one at Target (during which a pudgy, prepubescent boy scowled at me for using a machine he believed was rightfully his,) the console’s graphics seem little improved over that of its competitors. The controller format is still wildly uncomfortable, and for the cost of a PS3 it does nothing to actually add anything more than extra bling to the gaming experience. All in all, the PS3 seems awfully overhyped.

In stark contrast to the PS3, both in price and hype, the real winner this holiday season seems to be the underdog. Nintendo’s Wii is absolutely golden. The interface, both on- and off-screen, is immensely easy. The controller system is absolutely revolutionary, and what seems would be an awfully unintuitive interface concept is delightfully easy to grasp. Meanwhile, the physical motions required by the Wii add a dimension to gameplay that bashing buttons and joysticks just can’t match. With Nintendo’s usual game titles being oriented toward relatively clean fun, the Wii makes the gaming experience appeal to a much broader audience. Don’t just take my word for it, either; BoingBoing author Mark Frauenfelder seems to share much of the same love for the Wii.

Meanwhile, the MSRP $249 Wii is selling for only $50-70 over its store price on eBay, meaning that one could buy roughly six Wiis (or is the plural Wii?) for the price of one PlayStation 3. The Wii is so cool that it seems almost odd that it isn’t gaining the same hype as the PS3 (but do note that the Wii is sold out nationwide.) Although the PS3 does beat the pants off of the Wii in terms of graphics, it’s still nothing interesting in terms of interface or innovation. Price aside, if I was a parent, I’d be buying a Wii for my kid. I might just have to buy one for the kid in myself.