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Elden Ring

Read More Demon’s Souls I was a bit surprise to hear that the 2009 Gamespot Game of the Year went to Demon's Souls. What was so surprising is that the game was hardly marketed here, I mean I didn't really see any advertisement for the game nor did I read any reviews …

Yes, I’m finally playing Elden Ring, the game that literally everybody was playing in February 2022. The game went on sale on disc, so picked it up. I popped in the disc, expecting to play the game. Guess what? You can’t just put in a disc and play the game.

The game required a 50GB download/update. This might be more common than you think, as sometime the game on the disc is actually not complete. For example, if there are cut scenes or files that are too large to fit on the disc, you need to download the missing components. It just basically suck, because you can’t really play games offline.

Having said that, I’ve been offline and playing the Elden Ring game, after that one-time 50GB update. In recent news (as of today): “Microsoft is making it easier to play games on your Xbox Series X, even if it’s offline — as of the 2208 update released earlier this month, you won’t be forced to do an online compatibility check to play a game from an Xbox One disc. Instead, you can just pop the disc in, install the game, and play; no internet connection required.”

That works out just fine for me, as currently I’m only connecting online via my iPhone’s internet connection on Visible Mobile.

As for Elden Ring, playing at first was overwhelming, as the game is open world and you can wander where you like. I like that sort of game play, but I found myself getting killed a lot and I didn’t really understand all the mechanics in leveling up or farming for “souls”. I’ve played other “souls” games, starting with Demon Souls on the PS3, so I’m familiar on how they work. To be honest, I’m surprised that this sort of role-playing/action game is beloved by so many gamers… as they are very hard game. They’re so hard, that I’ve never beaten any souls games. I like playing them, but man, I generally suck at my timing for defending and attacking.

What drew me into Elden Ring is that the software developer, FromSoftware, hired George R. R. Martin (Game of Thrones) as writer. There’s actually not much of a story, but it’s clear that FromSoftware wanted a Western perspective/writing style to the game to appeal the Western market.

Anyway, I’ve been watching some masters at the game explain how you can level up faster and how they did it. It’s fascinating. You can go from level 1 to 100 in just an hour. There are obviously some exploits, but I didn’t think it was cheating.

Right now, I’m at level 15 and I’m still learning all the basics. I still suck at defense, but I’m enjoying what I already put into the game. From this point, I’m just going to take it easy and explore the world.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Weekend Gamer: Abandoning Home Internet

Read More Visible I’ve been using internet-only telephone service called Visible for three months now… and I feel I’ve experienced all the pain and strain of using their service. The short story is that this is a very inexpensive mobile service . …

I no longer have home internet. I was paying $35, then $50 a month, for home internet with a DSL company, which I won’t mention its name… but they’re nationwide. Internet was slow at 3 mbps, but it was fine for what I was doing. I wasn’t streaming HD videos (I still buy Blurays) or doing live streams.

For the first time, I decided to abandon home DSL internet. All this was made possible when I was getting unlimited data on my phone, via Visible, a company by Verizon. I know many people have problems with Visible, but I’ve been using them for over a year, and it works for me.

Of course, leaving home internet, there will be some drawbacks. None of my “internet of things” devices will work correctly now. For example “smart screens” or internet security cameras. You can still access the camera using a local network (that’s not connected to the internet), as long as you are signed into that local network. Still, it’s not convenient and these constantly connected devices won’t work properly.

The other drawback is that Visible only allows you to connect one device to your phone, using your phone’s hotspot or tethering method. I suggest you read Visible’s website for details about its hotspot restrictions…. however, you can get around the one device limit by using an iPhone (Apple uses a different method to connect devices that bypass Visible’s restriction). So in November 2021, I purchased the iPhone 13, and have been very happy with both the device and my ability to connect multiple devices.

Speaking of hotspot, there is a 5 mbps cap when you tether. That’s still faster than my old DSL service! I found that, especially when I upload files, it’s much faster than DSL.

Pricing for Visible, right now, is $25 a month for unlimited talk, text, and data. Starting in October, they are changing their prices to $30 or $45, which I previously mentioned in Sep 2022. Hey, even at the more expensive $45 (which promises a faster network and expanded network), I might be willing to pay more, especially if now I am paying for both a phone and personal internet combined. Even at $45, it would still be cheaper than my ex-DSL service.

My other concern is that my Xbox always want a connection. I’ve taken precautions and have ended my Xbox Game Pass in August 2022. All the games I want are on the system, and if I need to buy new games, I will have to buy a disc. Besides, it’s been proven that buying discs (especially used games), they are much, much cheaper than buying a digital copy.

In a few months, I’ll keep you updated if my experiment goes horribly wrong or if this is be the right move for me. I sometime feel like I don’t want to put all my eggs in one basket, so I will have to look around for some other alternative solution to home internet. Any suggestions?

-- Weekend Gamer

PS, by the way, Visible is not the only unlimited data in town, there’s Tello, at $30 a month for unlimited data. Tello’s restrictions is that if you go over 25GB, they throttle you to 2GB. Mint offers unlimited for $30 a month, but you have to pay 3 months in advance ($90) and they cap your hotspot to only 5GB.

If I’m really desperate to have my internet photo frame or home security cameras to connect to the internet, I would probably buy a Tello line and leave that phone at home, plugged in with the hotspot turned on. Tello doesn’t have restrictions on how many device can connect to the hotspot... so that might work. Those home security cameras probably won’t even go over their 25GB limit. Perhaps I will look into buying a Tello line in the future to see if that might work out for me.

Read more Technology.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Weekend Gamer Update (August 2022)

Read More Steam Weekend gamer here. This weekend, we will look at Steam’s Steam Deck (not to be confused with Elgato’s Stream Deck). For some months, I’ve been eyeing on the handheld AYA Neo as a … Nintendo Switch I’ve wanted the Nintendo Switch since I first heard about it last October 2016. The system launched in March 2017, but it immediately sold out everywhere. … Xbox So, I joined Game Pass. There are two price points, the $10 per month pricing is strictly for Xbox games, and the $15, called Game Pass Ultimate includes PC, EA and Xbox Gold (you need this to play online … Sony Still, you know I’m still somewhat interested in seeing the next generation of gaming consoles… and today, Sony showed up what the upcoming PS5 will look like. And holy crap, it is so ugly. …

It’s the weekend, and here’s your Weekend Gamer update.

I’ve put down my $5 to preorder my Steam Deck.

I decided to get the $400 entry model. I think that is a fantastic price, considering that I looked at similar handheld PCs, such as the Aya Neo and OneXPlayer, and they are usually $1,000 or more. Even though Steam said they are ramping up production, and it’s listed as delivery date of “October-December 2022”, but I doubt that I will get my Steam Deck until 2023. The company already announced they are working on a Steam Deck 2. I think the smart move is to just wait for the second version, as it will fix all the problems in the first version...

I think my main reason for wanting a portable PC game console is that increasingly I’m very unhappy with the performance of my Nintendo Switch. I recently launched Diablo II on the Switch and it was just unplayable. Whenever there are hundreds of enemies on screen, the Switch just crawls to a snail’s pace. The Switch desperately needs a refresh. Come on, it’s been five years already!

Also, after six months, I finally cancelled my Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. The main reason is that I honestly did not have the time to fully take advantage of Game Pass. I love the fact that I could I try out the full games that I normally wouldn’t pay money for... And for titles that would normally cost $60! It was a huge savings, but at the end of the day, I would just rather buy (and own) the games that I like. What I am trying say is that I end up just playing the games that I already paid for.

I had a problem with Game Pass removing some games when they end their license agreement with Xbox. It’s very frustrating to play a game one month and then come back a few months later only to find out that game is no longer accessible, because it left Game Pass.

The last straw that broke the camel’s back was when Microsoft announced that they will no longer be offering free downloads to Xbox 360 games in their subscription services (they simply ran out of games to give away). The one saving grace of Game Pass was that you were allowed to keep one Xbox 360 game for free (yours to keep forever!)… and it was going away as of October 1st.

Having said all those negative things, I still believe Game Pass is worth that $10 (or $15), because if you just play one game, you’ve literally made up the price of admission. It is excellent value for the money... but I didn’t have the time for it. When I find myself with more free time, I will definitely reactivate my Game Pass.

The opposite of not good value is PlayStation 5, which is still impossible to find in retail stores. I’ve seen a lot of Xbox Series X in stores recently. I’ve yet to see one PS5 in stores. In a move that I think is a mistake, Sony announced that they are raising prices for the PS5. While the USA is not one of the region that is getting a price hike, the announcement does not bode well.

Everything I’ve researched about PlayStation 5, from ripping people off on digital games to extra $10 charge for PS5 games to Sony blocking games from Game Pass... it tells me that PlayStation is very anti-consumer and they are only interested in profits.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Samsung UR55 UHD Monitor

Read More Xbox One and a half month into Xbox Game Pass, I’m happy to report that it is an insane deal. It doesn’t even make any sense how MicroSoft is even making money off Game Pass… the value is just that good! Sure, some games …

I recently picked up a Samsung - UR55 Series 28" IPS 4K UHD Monitor for my Xbox Series X and have been pretty happy with it.

You see, I’ve been using an old 1080p 20 inch portable monitor, and while it does the job… after a month of using it, I started seeing areas that I wanted to see improved: the built-in monitor speakers are tinny, the panel is not as bright, and image quality isn’t the best on an 1080p.

To be honest, I wanted a smaller screen, but they don’t really make 4k displays at the 20-inch size. Still, the new Samsung UR55 monitor is perfect for my needs.

The specs lists 8 million pixels at 3840 x 2160 Resolution. With HDR and AMD FreeSync support at 4 millisecond response time, they said it’s good for watching 4k movies and gaming. From what I’ve seen, it’s pretty good.

There is another feature that they highlight, and I found it really useful. The monitor has the ability to do Picture in Picture (or as Samsung lists it PBP). What this means is that the monitor can display two simultaneous sources on the monitor at the same time. You have some options, side-by-side or a small popup screen (which you can position in four areas and with varying sizes). The P-i-P is the best thing about this monitor.

The only thing that the monitor lacks are speakers… which is forgivable, because no one buys these monitors for their amazing speakers. Why would you pay for crappy speakers, so save a few dollars and not have speakers at all. Instead, what you can do is use the audio-jack out and plug it into a standard speaker (which is what I have done).

As far as inputs, it has two HDMI 2.0 and one Video Display Port. When I’m not using the monitor as an Xbox Display, it’s actually hooked up to my computer as a third monitor.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

P.S. Now that I have a decent 4k setup, I may start buying more 4k Bluray discs.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Weekend Gamer: Game Pass is still amazing

Read More Xbox So, I joined Game Pass. There are two price points, the $10 per month pricing is strictly for Xbox games, and the $15, called Game Pass Ultimate includes PC, EA and Xbox Gold (you need this to play online Xbox games) …

One and a half month into Xbox Game Pass, I’m happy to report that it is an insane deal. It doesn’t even make any sense how MicroSoft is even making money off Game Pass… the value is just that good! Sure, some games do rotate out, but there’s still enough there to keep me in the service.

I’m not at all worried about Sony’s PS Plus service (coming in June 2022), which is basically their answer to Game Pass. As I previously pointed out in last month, they’re not going to include downloadable PS3 games. This is because the architecture is so different, that the PS5 or PS4 cannot run PS3 games. Sony’s solution is to let you stream those PS3 games - which is not an option for me. My internet is not great, and I think it’s a poor solution to Sony’s PS3 problem.

Anyway, back to Game Pass. I have so many games (it’s about 400 games available on Game Pass Ultimate), that I finally got around to trying Game Pass on the PC recently. While the experience wasn’t amazing: the Xbox App on the PC that I was under the age of 18 and put restrictions on what games I could download. That was an easy fix (but why was this a problem before?)

Then the Xbox App would not sign me in, no matter what I did. After rebooting my computer, it seemed to sign in fine now. Again, why was this a problem? I see that others experienced similar problem, especially after the App updated.

So… when you get the Xbox App to actually work, it’s pretty amazing! There are certain games that are available on the PC only, such as the latest Age of Empires IV, that I need the PC App to run. Again, I’m impressed that I’m playing these $60 games, for basically free… so long as I pay for that service.

I knew that MicroSoft said that my Xbox games will be available on the PC for free, if I purchased them, but I never looked into this as I didn’t really care that much. So imagine my surprise when I see that my Xbox games that I bought showed up on the Xbox App for the PC… meaning I now I have access to the PC version of some of these games. Now, that’s cool.

Going forward, I think I’ll only buy Xbox games, as it’s somewhat of a “two-for-one” deal for me (since the games will be available for me in two places).

One final thing about Game Pass that I didn’t know, until after I joined… it’s that you actually get to keep one or two games forever. Whatever the Xbox 360 games Game Pass/Games with Gold offers for the month, after you click on get for free, it’s yourself permanently. Seriously, I didn’t know that.

Sure the 360 games aren’t amazing (or are available for cheap), but I feel it’s such an added bonus, that I am more than happy to remain on the service for the time being.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

PlayStation Game Pass

Read More Xbox So, I joined Game Pass. There are two price points, the $10 per month pricing is strictly for Xbox games, and the $15, called Game Pass Ultimate includes PC, EA and Xbox Gold (you need this to play online Xbox games) …

Sony’s answer to Game Pass is finally here… at least in a pricing leak. According to Venture Beat, the new PlayStation Plus will include elements of PlayStation Now elements, with the three different tiers: Essential ($10), Extra ($13), and Premium ($16).

For the lowest priced, PS+ Essential, you only get three or four “free” monthly games… and the ability to play online games, just like the original PlayStation Plus.

For $3 more, you can get PS+ Extra, which includes the monthly “free” games and a game catalogue of “hundreds of older, downloadable games.”

For PS+ Premium, you get everything in Essential and Extra, plus the ability to stream PS Now games and access to “game trials” and “classic games”. To me, I read the game trial as simply a timed demo, so, to me, it’s a useless “feature”. I don’t know what the classic games will get you… maybe PlayStation One games?

The service hasn’t launched yet, but I’m curious to see how many games you will get compared to Game Pass. Currently my $15 Ultimate Game Pass gives me access to about 400 games. I don’t believe PlayStation will offer as much, but we’ll see. We do know, based on previous interviews and attitude, that new games won’t get day-one release on the PlayStation Plus service…. And that’s a real bummer. That just means that you only have access to old games.

With Game Pass, I have previously mentioned that there are only a few old games that I’m interested in checking out, the main draw for Game Pass are the new games, like Halo Infinite. I’ll be brutally honest, if Game Pass took away the new games, I know I wouldn’t bother with the service, that’s how important it is for them to include new games. If PlayStation Now Premium won’t include any new games, then I think it failed out of the gate.

There are so much we still don’t know about the new service - like will gamers have access to their PS3 games ? I still own some PS3 digital and disc games, and from what I know, I cannot play them on the PS4 and PS5 currently. With the upcoming service, I wonder if Sony will finally allow us access to our games? I hate to say it, but seeing as they up-charge $10 for PS4 to PS5 games, I wouldn’t put it pass greedy Sony to charge you $10 extra so you can play PS3 games you previously paid for.

That is the biggest difference that I’ve seen in this console generation… while Xbox won’t charge you for access to all your games (going back to the original Xbox). In fact, if you pop in an Xbox 360 disc, the new Xbox Series X will automatically download a playable version of that game (using Smart Delivery) and won’t charge you any money to play your game.

Don’t get me wrong, I would love to see Sony do better. I do still own a PS4 and PS3, which are both currently de-powered as I haven’t used them for over a year. The way I see it, if I get a PS5, I don’t want to pay $10 for each PS4 games I own… and my PS3 games, that’s up in the air (as it’s currently not compatible with PS5).

I don’t even know why I’m so interested in the new PlayStation service, I guess what I’m more interested in is competition to Xbox Game Pass. It’ll be good to see what PS will bring to the table… and how Xbox can improve their service by seeing what PS has to offer.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate

Read More Xbox Since owning the Xbox Series X, I had to do a lot of research to see if I made the right decision. It’s still hard to get your hands on the latest gaming consoles, but it seems like I am seeing the Xbox Series S …

So, I joined Game Pass.

There are two price points, the $10 per month pricing is strictly for Xbox games, and the $15, called Game Pass Ultimate includes PC, EA and Xbox Gold (you need this to play online Xbox games). Between the two prices, I thought the $15 was the better, considering you get much more for only an additional $5 extra.

Right now, the price is very good, but I’m seeing the writing on the wall that the price may go up late this year or next year. If you look online, Netflix and Amazon both raised their subscription prices, it just makes sense that MicroSoft will soon follow, especially since they just announced that massive buyout.

Anyway, shortly after subscribing to Game Pass, my measly 50 games went up to 480 games… which is so amazing. I can see how this is a must subscription for gaming fans on a budget or it’s something you want to give to your children.

Like Netflix, you don’t really own the game. So when you cancel your service, your Game Pass games will no longer run.

Sony’s version of Game Pass is called PlayStation Now, which ended in 2020… and they are planning on relaunching it this year under the code name Sparticus. Competition is good, but between the “stream only” PS Now and Game Pass, I would go with Game Pass any day, based on more titles and the ability to download your games.

Speaking of more titles… The 480 games sounds really impressive, however, I would say that I’m only interested in about 5% of those games. That’s because the majority of games are much older games or game genres that I don’t care for (for example sport games). Plus, some games will only run on the PC (such as the new Torchlight 3).

Regarding the older games, if you have never played them, then you’re not going to have a problem with Game Pass. In fact, I downloaded some old games, just to see what it is like on the new Series X console, and I have to say that seeing these games in upscaled 4k resolution, it’s like experiencing the game for the first.

At the end of the day, if you only play one game in Game Pass, then it’s worth it.

My plan is to keep Game Pass Ultimate until I’ve exhausted all the games I wanted to play, and then unsubscribe. We’ll see if I do unsubscribe when the day come, because I get the feeling that I might just stick to the service, because of all the perks.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

My Game Library with Game Pass

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Top 10 Reasons Xbox Series X is better than PS5

Read More Xbox After more than a year, most gaming fans still couldn’t get their hands on either the Xbox Series X or PS5. Everytime I see a news article like “PS5 in stock now at Walmart”, it’s almost sold out immediately. . ...

Since owning the Xbox Series X, I had to do a lot of research to see if I made the right decision. It’s still hard to get your hands on the latest gaming consoles, but it seems like I am seeing the Xbox Series S and Xbox Series X in retail stores, like Target… I can’t say the same for any PlayStation.

I may sound like an Xbox fanboy, but you should know that I like them both, having own PS Vita, PS3, PS4, Xbox, Xbox 360, and Xbox One S. This is the first time that I will be skipping the PlayStation 5, and I feel like I made the right choice.

Top 10 Reasons Xbox X is better than PS5

1. Game Pass
   The best value in gaming. Access to hundreds of games for $10 a month. You do have the option to purchase Game Pass games at a discount, if you prefer to own a particular title (especially since some games are removed from Game Pass from time to time).
2. Quick Resume
   This is an amazing feature. You don’t realize how cool it is to have three or four games launching right where you left off. This is especially a nice feature if you like to dabble in various games… or have other users in the house.
3. Smart Delivery
   Xbox is smart enough to know what system you are on and will deliver the game optimized for your system. This is something PS5 is still struggling with.
4. Easy Storage Expansion
   Yeah, it’s expensive, but upgrading the storage is just plug and play. On the PS5 side, you have to shop around and then you are required to open up the device.
5. Variable Refresh Rate
   There’s no screen tearing, thanks to Xbox’s variable refresh rate option. PS5 doesn’t support this.
6. Design and Hardware
   It’s a matter of preference, but I think the Xbox X looks better. It’s smaller, it’s faster, and it looks good laying flat or standing up. The PS5 is almost 1.5 times bigger than the X.
7. Health
   It’s in your settings, but you can have Xbox reminds you to take a break if you played too long. I know this isn’t a major feature, but it’s nice to know Xbox cares.
8. Cross Play
   Xbox and PC (and some Switch) can cross play with each other. PlayStation refuses to open up Cross Play, unless the developer pays Sony their blood money.
9. Backward Compatibility
   Games going back to the original Xbox will work on the X|S. On PS5, only games on PS4 will work.
10. Future
    MicroSoft purchased Bethesda, Blizzard, and Activision, meaning that some of my favorite games like Fallout, Doom, Diablo, Starcraft will likely get the Game Pass treatment… or at the very least available on Xbox first.
    
    

Top 5 Reasons PS5 is better

1. Exclusive Games
   Games like God of War will only run on the PS5… however, Sony is releasing some of their titles on the PC a few years after it was released on the PlayStation. Also Sony said that all their exclusive games will cost you $69, a $10 markup from a standard PS5 game or Xbox new games.
2. Dual Sense Controller
   Everyone raves about the new controller, with its haptic feedback, microphone, and adaptive triggers… but the downside is that older controllers won’t work on the PS5.
3. Virtual Reality
   If VR is your thing, only Sony offers this experience. Of course, it is wired and it’s expensive… plus, it sounds like you need to plug in the old PS4 camera and PS4 controllers (for the useless lightbar) for it to function.
4. Standard NVME expansion
   Most NVME cards (with heatsink) will work on the PS5, however adding it in will requires you to open up your console and you may void your warranty if you really mess up. With Xbox you only have one option - the Seagate expansion card, and it’s not cheap.
5. Longer recording limit
   I’m not interested in recording my game play, so I don’t really care for this feature, but for those who are streamers, the PS5 is the better option.
   
   

To be honest, I had a tough time coming up with 5 PS5 features that beats Xbox… but I had to include them to be absolutely fair.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Xbox Series X|S Accessories

Read More Xbox After more than a year, most gaming fans still couldn’t get their hands on either the Xbox Series X or PS5. Every time I see a news article like “PS5 in stock now at Walmart”, it’s almost sold out immediately. . ...

For $500, the Xbox Series X is a good value. Sure, you can spend more for a gaming PC, which admittedly can be use for various other things, such as productivity software, but it’s going to cost you much more than $500.

If you break down the components:

1 TB SSD ($120)

AMD Zen 2 CPU ($300)

16 GB GDDR6 SDRAM ($100)

Ultra HD Blu-ray ($100)

Xbox Game Controller ($60)

This isn’t even taken into account the custom motherboard and super quiet fans and design. I believe Xbox is losing money on every console they sell… but as you know, they will make back the money as they’ve now locked you into their ecosystem.

Once you’re locked in, you’re going to have to consider some of Xbox’s accessories, to take your gaming to the next level. This is where they are going to make money off of you.

Xbox Game Pass ($10 per month)

Seagate Expansion Card (1TB for $220, 2TB for $399)

Xbox Elite Controller 2 ($180)

Headset ($50 for wired, $149 for wireless)

Rechargeable Batteries ($10)

Halo Keyboard ($179)

Halo Mouse ($79)

The good news is that you don’t really need these accessories, and better news, if you have an older Xbox One or Xbox 360 accessory, you can use them for the new Xbox Series X. The only exception is the Seagate Expansion Card, which only exists on the X|S.

Like the PC, MicroSoft’s approach to backward compatibility is pretty amazing. All, or most, previous Xbox games and accessories will work on the X|S… something you don’t see that on the PlayStation (PS3 or earlier games won’t run on PS5) or Nintendo Switch (you have to pay full price for previous Nintendo games). No one wants to pay full price again for a game they previously purchased. That’s why I was blown away when I saw that all the games I bought from Xbox (going back from the original Xbox), just appeared on my account and that I can play them with no issues on the X.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Comparing the current gaming consoles

Read More Xbox With the console war coming up this Holiday 2020. Let’s talk about the new Xbox Series and PS5… and possibly the dark horse in the race, Nintendo Switch. . ...

So now that I’ve settled in with the Xbox Series X, I am surprisingly pleased with its performance. MicroSoft set out to build the fastest console in the world, and I think they achieved it. You see, they were so embarrassed because their last-gen Xbox One were underpowered compared to the PS4, that they were determine to beat their competitor with this console cycle.

If you are in the market for a new console, I am certainly recommending the Xbox. I feel with the purchase of Bethesda, Activision, and Blizzard, that the future looks healthy for any Xbox fan.

As for the PS5, I personally think it looks ugly. They’ve only gave users the option to add their own SSD in October 2020, while the Xbox had the hot-swappable Seagate PCIe 4.0 Storage in July 2020. I know the new storage is expensive, but the ability to pop it out and moving the storage to another Xbox is amazing.

There are many features that the PS5 lacks (such as quick resume), however, PS5 have some advantages of its own. One of which is their new Dual Sense controllers, which has adaptive triggers. Unfortunately, the downside is that previous PS4 controllers will not work on the PS5. I have heard from players that loved the adaptive triggers at first… but after playing it for a while, they just disable it because it got annoying.

The two dark horses in this race is the popular Nintendo Switch and the upcoming Steam Deck. Both are for the handheld market, however both can be docked and become gaming consoles for your television. I’m really interested in the Steam Deck, because I have a massive Steam PC game library and would love to just start playing on day one. However, given the lack of inventory, I doubt I could get my hands on one.

I know comparing the Switch to the Xbox and PS5 is an unfair comparison, but if you have to include them as they are in the gaming market. Plus, you never know with Nintendo… they may release a Super Switch and it might be comparable to the new Xbox. If you want the fastest or the best, you definitely do NOT want the Switch. The Switch’s hardware remains unchanged since 2017, and it shows. Modern games struggles on the system, opening up the Nintendo Marketplace is a slow process. Everything about the hardware of the Switch sucks… yet everybody loves the Switch.

To be honest, even though the Switch is the least expensive of the consoles, I feel like it’s way overpriced. For $50 less, you can get the Xbox Series S… which I did not listed below, because I felt the Series S has a different market. I feel if you want a Game Pass machine, the Xbox Series S is a deal, because at $299 it’s basically a “base model” or starter edition of the Series X. My biggest complaint about the Series S is that it is digital-only, which means you can only buy games from the Xbox Marketplace. With a machine with an optical disc drive, you have the option of buying a game at retailer. I would have to say that most games are cheaper (usually on sale) if you buy them on disc, especially if there is a sale or if you buy it used.

So below, I’m breaking down the gaming consoles for comparison. As usual, “green” is good, and “red” is bad.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

Compare	Xbox Series X	PS5 (Disc)	Steam Deck	Switch OLED
Price:	$499	$499	$649 (starts at $399)	$349
Release Date:	10 Nov 2020	12 Nov 2020	25 Feb 2022	08 Oct 2021
Optical Disc	Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray, DVD, CD	Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray, DVD	None	None
CPU/GPU	AMD Zen 2 CPU, 8 Cores @ 3.8 GHz / RDNA 2, 52 CUs @ 1.825 GHz	AMD Zen 2 CPU, 8 cores @ 3.5 GHz / RDNA 2 , 36 Cus @ 2.23 GHz	Zen 2, 4-core, 8-threads @ 2.4–3.5 GHz	ARM 4 Cortex-A57 cores @ 1.02 GHz
Memory	16 GB GDDR6 SDRAM (10 GB @ 560 GB/s, 6 GB @ 336 GB/s)	16 GB of GDDR6 SDRAM (448 GB/s)	16 GB LPDDR5 @ 5500 MT/s	4 GB LPDDR4 @ 1331/1600 MHz
Storage	1 TB PCIe Gen 4 custom NVMe SSD with Storage Expansion Card option or external HDD	825 GB solid-state drive with upgradeable NVMe M.2 SSD, or external HDD	512 GB NVMe SSD (base model 64 GB eMMC) (with additional expandable external SD)	64 GB (with additional expandable external SD)
Resolution	4K up to 8k	4K up to 8k	720p (Docked: 8k)	720p (Docked: 1080p)
Backward Compatible	Majority of all Xbox Games, works with previous controllers and accessories	Most PS4 games will work on PS5, does not work with previous controllers	Works with any PC game	No previous Nintendo games will work on the Switch
Portability	Game streaming via Game Pass and xCloud (additional cost)	Game streaming via PlayStation Now (additional cost)	Yes, portable gaming	Yes, portable gaming
Controllers	Standard Xbox Controller with removable batteries	Dual Sense Controller with adaptive triggers and non-removable rechargeable batteries	Standard portable controllers	Removable Joy Cons, includes gyroscopes and ability to become two smaller controllers
Sound	Project Acoustics 3D Audio, Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, 7.1 surround sound	Tempest Engine 3D Audio, Dolby Atmos, DTS:X, 7.1 surround sound	Stereo speakers (docked: Digital output)	Linear PCM 2.0 ch stereo speakers (Docked: Linear PCM 5.1 ch)

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