THG 2003 Holiday Buyer's Guide

Console Systems For The Holidays

Many will consider purchasing console systems this holiday season, and the competition among the "big three" (Microsoft's Xbox, Sony's PlayStation and Nintendo's Gamecube) for market dominance continues to heat up. The offers from all three have created much confusion in the minds of the average consumer.

Our pick this holiday season is, as it was last season, the Microsoft Xbox for teens and adults; while we continue to recommend the Nintendo Gamecube for kids, as well as for those looking for a deal this holiday season.

While it is still hard for some to admit, the Xbox has made significant in roads into the market place. With the addition of Xbox Live and a good selection of gaming titles for the second year in a row we selected Xbox in our holiday shoppers guide. Next time will it be Xbox Next?

The Xbox continues to gain momentum and popularity among gamers with the release of excellent titles that are available exclusively for Xbox. Games such as "Crimson Skies High Road To Revenge," "Top Spin," "Project Gotham 2 Racing," among others are a good example of what Xbox is capable of doing. When you add the excellent enhanced Xbox Live support to the equation, it is clear that the Xbox has much to offer gamers until its new version of Xbox Next arrives.

The price of the Xbox continues hover at about $189 and is bundled with "Star Wars: The Clone Wars" and "Tetris Worlds," as well as a two month subscription to Xbox Live, an online gaming mode. Other bundled deals for Xbox exist at local retailers as well, so shop around for the best deal.

The Gamecube, on the other hand, is a budget gamers' dream at only $99. US. For $99, you get the Gamecube console, one controller plus the connecting cables. While this does not include any bundled titles, it does offer a much lower cost, which will allow gamers to pick up a few titles on the cheap. We expect support for the Gamecube to continue for some time, so buyer's should not be concerned with a falling off of new software titles anytime soon. The Gamecube is still the only system that offers a complete offering of Nintendo-branded characters that will appeal to all of the gamers that grew up with earlier versions of Nintendo systems. Nintendo still has the overall best selection of offerings that are targeted at younger players, and with the price of the Gamecube base unit lowered to $99, it should continue to be a very popular gift this holiday season.