What pulls you in the direction of Sony or Microsoft (not a console wars discussion)/rant about multiplayer games

With the Sony press event happening in just a few days the hype builds for next gen. I currently have a PS3, Xbox 360, and PC that I use to play games. I feel I get more use out of my 360 and PC over my PS3. As a gamer, I am concerned about games over any other feature the next gen systems will offer. What pulls me in the direction of the Xbox is that I personally know more people that have a Xbox over a PS3. I used to have a group of 8-10 people that all played the same games. Things have changed over the years and the biggest part of the group have went there separate ways. Everyone is either playing something different or not playing at all. I think if a new multiplayer game comes out by the end of the year that catches the groups attention, we will be back playing together again. Now, most of the time, we have 2-4 people that play 2-3x a week.

I have a few things that I like about one system over the other. For the Xbox 360 I love the controller, the interface, ease of using the center button on the controller to access messages and invites, and the Xbox exclusive Gears of War. The PS3 has free online which I rarely use because I have very few friends that own a PS3, the exclusives Uncharted and upcoming The Last of Us give me a reason to play my PS3. I am very excited to see what next gen systems bring to the table. If the number of friends that I have playing either system wasn't a deciding factor, what will Microsoft or Sony show me to sway me in one direction or the other. I have already decided that I am only going to purchase one next gen system. The exclusive games could definitely make a difference in my decision.

Multiplayer games have really been on the down side of my gaming experiences as of late. I have purchased Call of Duty every year since Modern Warfare was released. I am sucked into purchasing it because it is the one game that most of my friends play. I feel like it has been a mod that releases every year as opposed to calling it a sequel. To be honest the only games that I have extensively enjoyed playing competitive multiplayer over the past few years have been Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and Gears of War 3. I missed out of Battlefield 3 because the beta was a horrible experience so none of my friends purchased it. I am just sick and tired of the run and gun FPS. When will a game come out and just have me hooked to the multiplayer? I will probably be playing Gears of War: Judgement and The Last of Us multiplayer but I have seen very little about The Last of Us and I am not so sure that Judgement (because of People Can Fly) will be that great of an online experience.

What multiplayer games will be out by the end of the year or early 2014 that have potential to have me hooked?

Rainbow Six: Patriots

Destiny

Battlefield 4

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 (it will have to change)

Respawn Entertainment's Game

Uncharted 4

I ve own the major two consoles for all generations, but Ive been pro Xbox for the last two. Sony has really pissed me off with their hardware choices. IE a 4 meg GPU/vecter units BS, and the Cell in the PS3. They just have not been dev friendly which should be a top concern. Thankfully this gen for maybe for lack of funds to do it they went mainstream with the hardware. So this gen is actually more of a toss up for me.

Only games matters to me. I don't play online on console and don't use them as a media hub either. I use my PC for multiplatform games, multiplayer and other medias.

I don't care about none of the Microsoft exclusives but i care about a lot of the PS3 exclusives. I don't think this will change much with the next-gen consoles either.

Well PS3 has free online and I prefer it's controller over the 360's, that's why I choose Sony over MS. Also I just enjoy the exclusives more, I had more fun with Killlzone than any Halo game this gen.

I prefer Sony since I like the games they put out this generation compared to what Microsoft had. Other than a coop game every now and then I don't really play any multiplayer games. A game has to do something special to get me interested in a competitive multiplayer.

I wouldn't actually care if the next consoles had no online at all. I find the vast majority of console games to have rather weak online with little longevity, unless you want to play Gears of War, Halo or Call of Duty all the time.

If I'm going to play online all the games worth playing (and usually the interesting ones) are on PC anyway where it's just better and more convenient to play with people. Always having text chat available at the minimum is great.

Having said that my Xbox 360 basically turned into a Marvel vs. Capcom machine, that game (3/Ultimate) didn't come to PC.

Rainbow Six won't be good, Ubisoft don't know how to make those games anymore. Black Arrow was the last good one and that's like 10 years old.

i have xbox 360 and ps3. i've been playing more ps3. the ps3 has free online play.

I prefer Sony because of the exclusives, free online and PS+, which is quite frankly, nothing short of fucking excellent.

I have an Xbox 360, but it's mostly just for the exclusives. I will never pay money for online play, and I will never pay money for Xbox Live just so I can pay money for Netflix. That kind of carry-on makes me dislike it on principle.

I don't know yet.

At the end of this generation, I look back and I don't really know which one I would declare "the best". I liked my 360, but I feel like I would have had almost the same experience if I'd gone PS3. It's not a clear-cut decision like it has been in the past (SNES, PS1, PS2).

But this question isn't really one I'm too concerned about now because, unless I win the lottery, I'm not getting a console at launch. Nor for another year or more.

I mainly play PC, the only reason for me to be interested in a console is for it's exclusives, Sony and Nintendo have great exclusives, Microsoft doesn't.

What system my friends are playing and the overall activity of the community that are playing the game is usually the deciding factor on which version of a game I get. This generation basically had me focus on the 360 than the PS3 for the entire generation. The amount of friends I have play a game online kinda flip flop between the 360 and PS3, but the 360 usually has the more active/larger playerbase.

It's a shame too, as I genuinely think that Microsoft treats their own base terribly. They charge for services that are offered free by everyone else, they nickel and dime every transaction they make, and they actively prevent developers from supporting their own games by either charging them to update or by not allowing them to release free content over LIVE. Sony isn't perfect either, but they do go above and beyond for their audience compared to MS, particularly since they released PSN+.

I've been sticking exclusively to PC/Steam for the last year. With the new systems coming out and the exclusive games they are sure to have, I will eventually start playing on consoles again. I'd like for me to play on the PS4, but like I mentioned, MS will probably do a better job of having a more active userbase to play with online. So I'll probably have to put up with Microsoft's shit next generation.

I own a PS3, Xbox and PC, but I've been mainly doing PC since I've built my own. But for consoles I always go with Sony I just think they have much better exclusives. Chances are next gen I'll pick up a PS4 after a year or two but skip on the xbox.

What initially swayed me was the fact that most of my friends 360s broke at around the time I was going to buy one. What got me to stay was the exclusives, free online, inexpensive swapable HDDs, and now PS+. I'm currently subscribed until 2015 so I'll be buying the PS4 before I consider getting the new X Box

I own at least two or three of every platform. I have no particular allegiance, but my usage/ownership probably gives a bit of insight:

Platform | Games | Last Time Played

PC | ~2,500 | Today.

360 | 300-400 | January 29th.

PS3 | 40-50 | Early 2012.

Wii | ~20 | May of 2008. (I don't even know where my Wii has been the last 3yrs, after packing it for the move to my new house. I haven't bothered unboxing it. Or even checking to see if it's in a box here. Or if it was lost or stolen along the way.)

Basically, I prefer strategy, western RPGs, RTS, and MMO games on the PC. Also, certain types of shooters. Also, games that I may have played on console previously, but whose new versions are expected to be significantly better on PC (this isn't always the case, due to shitty ports -- Dead Space 3 for example). One of these titles is Bioshock: Infinite, which I'll play on the PC despite playing the first two on 360.

I prefer COD and certain other shooters and RPGs and action games on the 360. I tend to stick to the 360, because there are more people on it.

I go to the PS3 for games that have been shown to be superior (by Digital Foundry, etc) on that platform or for exclusives.

I go to the Wii for. Uh. Well, frankly, I have probably spent less than 20 hours playing on the Wii since buying it shortly after launch.

I'll buy all of the new consoles, though I am hoping that PC gaming really does make a come back and stay and improve and that I'll be doing far less gaming on consoles these next ten years (what I expect this console cycle to be, sadly).

Free online and not sounding like a lawn mower. The interface is sluggish as fuck on the Xbox 360 too, makes it a pain to just get to the damn video games, which is why I own the console in the first place. Not for Netflix or Zune or whatever.

I got no money for another one

Only two things matter to me. Money and money. If one cost less than another, I'm more likely to go towards that one. But if one has free online and another has some bullshit extra thing you have to pay for, then fuck it. If its optional and stuff like that sure, but if its mandatory then fuck it.

Graphics actually don't mean that much to me. I always rolled my eyes at those websites that picked apart every frame and pixel looking to start a fight. As long as it looks good enough which I know is subjective, then I couldn't give a fuck less.

Controllers don't mean that much to me since your hands will get used to just about anything if you train it to.

Only thing extra that may sway me one way or another is the reliability of it.

Other side stuff like blueray or netflix may be a plus to some, but I personally couldn't care less. Maybe only if both consoles get the fundmentals right, then maybe the extra stuff would sway me one way or another.

Falcom supports the Sony Platforms. Why would I want a terrible Microsoft console?

Oh and Yakuza series.

This is the opportunity for Sony to blow me away. I've been on 360 since day one but the live subscription and the rumored focus on kinect for the next Xbox might push me toward the PS4. Now they just have to get exclusives I care about (i.e. not resistance, killzone, god of war or uncharted and more the last of us, MGS4 or demon's souls)

I only have a PS3, I am willing to stay with sony but I will wait and see to decide for next gen. Personally, I use my ps3 as blu-ray player, netflix and nfl sunday ticket. When it comes to games I play different games somewhat randamly as well the amount I spend varies from week to week. Free online was a large reason I went with sony, I will not be suprised if in next-gen systems both charge, but it could be what wins me over again. People always talk of exclusives, but I never run short on games. Maybe if you play tons of games or have more picky tastes than you need more games, but I still have a backlog including XCOM and sleeping dogs. Games themselves will probably have little to do with my desicion on next-gen. How long sony supports ps3 might have more pull than games.

After the sony press event I am still left with a few questions.

Will sony charge to play online?
What will the final price be?
When will it release?

These are the main questions that will be the deciding factor determining which next gen system I will purchase.