Buying my first console... looking for advice. Plz be gentle.

I have enough money to buy the XBox 360 Premium Edition as is. I'm not even considering the PS3. So I'm trying to decide between the 360 and the Wii. I think my kids (7, 4 and 1) will enjoy the games available for the Wii whereas I would prefer FPS's and RPG's that the 360 has to offer. I guess my tie breaker is this: the 360 already plays previous SW video games and will support any future releases as well. I can't seem to find any upcoming titles that the Wii will support and the only current SW game is the Lego complete saga.

So I guess ultimately my question is this will Wii have SW games in the near future? What SW games are on the horizon for the 360? Please help, the money is burning a hole in my pocket.

Mod: apologies if I have offended thee with the placement of my thread.

 

Don't worry I'll be gentle

 

That's not what you said last night.

 

You didn't ask to be gentle.

 

And now I regret it.

 

Regret it? I thought you liked it that way. :\

 

The 360 is easily the best of the 3 current consoles. The next upcoming Star Wars game, The Force Unleashed, comes out in the spring. Until then, you've got to settle with Lego Star Wars and some of the original Xbox Star Wars games.

 

We're talking about food right?

 

It is a big tossup between the two consoles, as each have very good features and also a few drawbacks.

Considering you stated the major points are what Star Wars games will be played, it's still tricky. The Nintendo Wii admittedly is being a bit neglected by LucasArts. This is due to their policy of supporting only two of the three consoles at a time. I think this is PR speak for "we hate the Gamecube". However, the Wii is backwards compatiable with the GameCube.

Now, for the Gamecube, Star Wars games are as follows:

Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader
Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike
Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
Lego Star Wars I and II (admittedly Lego Star Wars: The Complete Saga is these two games combined, so not really necessary to get the GCN games)
Bounty Hunter
The Clone Wars

Of course, if you were to get the Wii for these games, a Gamecube controller would be a required purchase.

However, there is also the Wii's Virtual Console to consider. This allows games from the NES, SNES, and Nintendo 64 days to be downloaded. That opens up a lot of classic games in the SW franchise.
However, as you said, they do not seem to be on the radar for new games. There are three games new on the horizon: The Force Unleashed (which will be on the 360), Lego Star Wars Complete Saga (on both) and Battlefront: Renegade Squadron (on PSP therefore it doesn't count in this discussion), so based on new games, 360 gets the nod. However, there is talk of LucasArts coming back to Nintendo with a lightsaber game using the Wii-Remote as the Jedi's weapon.

As for the XBox 360, backward compatiable games for the original XBox (plus new 360 ones)are as follows:

Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast
Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy
Jedi Starfighter
Knights of the Old Republic I and II
Battlefront I and II
Lego Star Wars I and II (again, just get the complete Saga)
Obi-Wan
Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
The Clone Wars
Republic Commando
and of course, the Force Unleashed (eventually)

Just take note: These are all SW games for the XBox (except Lego the complete saga and Force Unleashed). Now the XBox 360 is NOT 100% backwards compatiable, so I would research which games are included in the backwards compatiable list and which are not.

So, based on SW games, it really depends on what you are looking for. Both consoles (through their backwards compatiability) offer a lot of varied titles. As for a general viewpoint, I would actually see about investing in both consoles, if you can. The XBOX 360 is good for the newest and greatest. It's got a lot of good FPS titles and some decent RPGs as genres you enjoy (though classic Japanese style RPGs are a tad lacking - Blue Dragon supposedly isn't that good). It's also getting the Force Unleashed, one of the most anticipated SW games. However it has backwards compatiability issues and not all of the old titles may be available. One major plu is XBOX Live: if you like online play, there's no better setup.

The Wii on the other hand has a multitude of varied game genres, though most are targeted so anyone can play. This unfortunately leads to many games feeling dumbed down. Not many good FPS games (though I would highly encourage trying out Metroid Prim

 

Of course I am.

 

SkyeLightrider and timmoishere: thanks for your input.

The rest of you: thanks for coming out.

 

I'd say 360 first and when you get a chance get the Wii, it's probably better for your kids anyways...as long as groundrules are set.

 

I'd probably agree based on the knowledge that Wii are still hard to find in the US. It of course depends on your location, but where I'm at, you can't find them on shelves for more than a day. Also, right now the Wii is lacking in top titles. It has a few (most of the first party titles), but won't get a lot until Christmas this year.

That and it's your money, and the genres that you mentioned are more 360-ish. Though do note that a lot of games for the 360 are not exactly appropriate for the younger kids. Not to worry though, the consoles do have parental controls built into them based on the ESRB rating. Just set them up and you are good to go!

 

If the money's burning a hole in your pocket, get the 360 now...

And get the kids a Wii for Xmas.

Why settle on 1 system? I love my Wii and PC, but I'm still planning on getting a 360 in the next couple of months.

 

I personally recomend getting a Wii. It may come as shocking being that I have a 360. I can tell you this, the 360 is a great system but I have had to return it twice in over the course of 1 year and both times they tell me somethin might be wrong. The Wii has Zelda and that is a good RPG to tide you over for awhile(my ex has a Wii and we've played it) and it also has the new Metroid game, and that game is...awesome.

 

I would say your kids are a little young to be getting that much consideration. Honestly, I would keep the one-year-old and the four-year-old away from video games for a few more years. The seven-year-old is about old enough, but still probably too young even for a lot of Wii's premier titles (Zelda, Metroid, SSB). In any case, you don't want your kid (who's still only seven) to be playing that much, so I don't think it'll matter if the 360's got a limited library of children's titles.

 

That's a difference of opinions, though. I've played games with my little girl (she's 6 now) since she was 4, and there are very few games that she's not good at. I can't compete at Super Smash Bros., and she can toast my wife at DDR. Games have helped us with her reading, and through Zelda, Pokemon, and WoW she's already reading a couple grade levels above where she's at. When I was her age, I was still learning how to read.

But I also regulate what she plays, and how long she plays. I know some people who let their kids play day in and day out and their kids are complete wrecks. As long as you play with them, and make sure they still get outside to play so they don't turn into Cartman from the WoW episode, they'll be fine. It's all about balance, and staying involved with your kids, and not about letting the game system babysit for you.

Oh, and Grand Theft Auto is out of the question. I've played Mercenaries with the kid, and started getting a little worried every time she'd figure out a scenario, so we put that one back on the shelf.

 

The Amiga CD32 would be a good first console.

 

The DS is the greatest console ever.

 

They just announced today that Force Unleashed will be released for the Wii as well as 360 and PS3.

 

Which makes a lot of my analysis moot if all you care about is SW games, because both the 360 and the Wii get both announced console SW titles.

Now the question is, do you want dual analogs or motion control?

 

360 as your main and then sometime down the road grab a Wii for the kiddies. As is, the Wii is targeting the casuals. So don't expect a large selection of games with depth and challenge. The games your probably looking to get for yourself will be found on the 360. And for your kids you can get Viva Pinata to keep them preoccupied.