After reading all of the previews for GTA 4, for the first time I have thought about upgrading from the ps2 to the ps3. I think brand loyalty will stop most ps2 users from jumping to the 360 as most people either, wanted more incentive, or a lower price to upgrade. I think I will buy the 40G and upgrade the drive at the end of April for GTA!

As someone who waited AGES and queued til midnight to get a PS3 at launch, I have to admit that the thought of missing out on DLC and such worries me. I might get a cheapo 360 later off ebay if the DLC turns out to be something I'll feel bad missing. Would I sell my PS3? We'll see how it goes. I don't play online enough to want to pay for it but still want to have the option to waste a few hours. I did have a concern that the 360 version is slightly better graphically but then that was the case on GTA III, Vice City and San Andreas when comparing xbox and PS2 and I wasn't that fussed then. Hooray - a few hubcaps look different, big deal. Anyway, if Microsoft want to win this battle they need to tell everyone what the downloadable content is. My guess is they're holding off because it's going to be far more underwhelming than everyone is speculating and will end up making little difference.

I was considering getting a PS3, but the 50Million purchase from Microsoft of episodic content - that sounds like it will be very good, so I'm going with the 360.

Thinking back to PS2, many bought that console for its DVD capabilities.

Now, the GTA lovers of those people that have yet to go next gen will be looking which way to jump, and the factors typically considered are;

1. Console price
2. Brand loyalty
3. Exclusive GTA content

Now that the HD war (okay, skirmish) is done I think Blu-ray will be an important additional factor in the decision process.

Though some say they care not a jot about HD movies, the gadget nut on the right shoulder is going to be whispering "with PS3 you'll have an HD player AND an upscaling DVD player". This affects the perception of the console price.

The true casual GTA gamer, who picks up the game for a quick 10 minutes, may not know or care about all that HD shenanigans - but then those folk prolly don't know or care about this exclusive download content either.

I know several people who are going to buy a PS3 for GTAIV's launch. So, I aigree with you Spung. I think most GTA fans will get it for PS3/purchase PS3's just because it's the brand they started on.


Morne