Mailbag!
August 6^th, 2002

Q: I'm ready to upgrade from my PSX to a new console.  I mainly play football, golf, and RPGs.  I may buy 6 to 10 games in the next 6 months.  It seems to me for the money, you get a whole lot more with XBOX than PS2, plus I like not needing any memory cards with the XBOX.  Please give your opinion.

A: While Xbox may give you more for the same price as a PS2, it wouldn't be accurate to say that the features make it the better purchase. The main advantage that Sony's PS2 has over the Xbox is the vast quantities of games and designer support. In plain English, the PS2 will have most games and have the widest selection of titles. Xbox does have several exclusive games, but with your interests (football, golf, and RPG's) the PS2 would appear to be the better choice since most of the bigger RPG's are going to be found on the console (Xbox does have a few RPG's out and has a few big ones headed there next year). If you are interested in Online gaming, you should consider an Xbox. The Xbox's hard drive makes memory cards obsolete. I find this to be a great feature since I don't really have to manage my cards anymore. However, it should be noted that Sony supposedly has a Hard Drive attachment for the PS2 due out next year, retailing somewhere around $80. In the end, you should look at some release schedules for games on both system and pick the one that you seem more interested in. Both systems will give you good football games (though I'm not sure about golf) and both will give you some RPG's. Hopefully I've helped a little bit. If you have any further questions about this or anything else, just ask me.