I have had a Wii for about 2.5 years, a Move for about 3 months and the Kinect for under a week. On the Wii I have very few games as the Motion control pre-Motion Plus was just not as good as promised and hyped. It got the job done but it always felt like a lot of work, and I believe the lower graphics pushed me away. The novelty of the control system could not overcome the generation old graphics quality. While some games did a better job at managing the motion, most of them simply tried to make it work in a game where it didn't belong. Which is a shame. I think there a few great Wii games I missed.

The Move is near perfect for what it is. And I expect it to be. You are tracking a pre-defined object though space with a camera. It absolutely blows away the Wii's tracking and motion fidelity. Additionally the controllers can be placed into other peripherals such as the sharpshooter and it can be used for shooting/gun games as well as some FPS's like SOCOM and KillZone. But it also has the limitation of the Wii in that it only tracks one arm/hand per person. And you still have to hold something. Not a deal killer, but it's a valid point one can make.

The Kinect... when it was first announced I was as excited as anyone. However, I quickly began to dismiss it as reviews for the launch games (and almost all games up until the launch of Child of Eden) were sub par. Additionally there seemed to be issues with some of the tracking that lead to Kinect not supporting a few select games that Move did (Tiger woods golf, though I think Kinect support may be coming either in this game with an update or in the next iteration come the fall). And when I heard that the game that would truly cement the Kinect as a must have, Project Milo, was cancelled, I figured the Kinect was going to miss the mark just like the Wii and not deliver. But I read enough reviews/previews for the just released Child of Eden that I had to consider it. With Microsoft's announcement of a big update in the fall to improve the sensor and really improve the Kinect with a software/firmware update, I felt I had to give it a chance. I am impressed. I love it. I have only really spent time with Dance Central and Child of Eden (which are said to be two of the best in terms of well done support) but both games have me hooked. Both make great use of the tracking for menus as well as in game play. Being able to track feet and legs really lets the Kinect immerse the player more than the other two motion offerings.

I was not a believer before and while I love the Kinect, I am not going to grab every game. As with the other two systems, some developers did it right and others just put out a game with motion control shoe-horned in. I expect I will continue to be sore from Dance Central while I try to 5 star some of the crazier dances because the Kinect is better than I ever gave it credit for.

So I was finishing up my playthrough of BulletStorm on Very Hard ( achievement whore what?) and hit a snag pretty close to the end of the game where it took me probably 15 to twenty tries to get past a certain checkpoint (the one in Ch6 or 7 I believe with 1 room, 4 mini bosses and a ton of of flare guys). All the retries didn't bother me so much as I wasn't playing carefully my first several attempts but I started to feel irritated that the game hit me with a challenge so out of place. I wondered why make the game hard.
 
Up to this point the game had been a complete joke, seldom requiring much effort and the hard area WAS out of place but... To think that was hard when I had a checkpoint RIGHT there to keep restarting the area was pretty silly. Certainly not complaint worthy. Hard was no checkpoints, no quick saves. Hard is Demons Souls. Hard is Mega Man 9. Hard is Super Meat boy.
 
So am I getting old? time is certainly more of an issue for me as I am married with a new baby boy.
 
Am I getting soft with all the gifts most of todays games offer us? Probably a little. I have been playing video games since Donkey Kong first came out as an arcade game. Things have changed a LOT.
 
But hey, the more I keep playing and trying new games the more I can continue to look at what I play, how I play and keep looking to the game industry for a career someday.

So I picked up a 3DS myself on sunday, the trade-in deal for my old DS sucked me in...

I only picked up SFIV since I didn't have Super on any of my consoles. Too many folks had suggested Pilotwings was too short but I think I need s second game so perhaps on my way home one of these nights...

System:

Pros:

- 3D seems pretty cool. Haven't had any eye strain issues but I have also limited my play time.
- While the 3D camera resolution is low the 3D pics are definitely a neat novelty. I have a 3D pic of my new son on the system. It's really cool to look at. :) :)
- The included AR games definitely show some of the possibilities of the system. I definitely found the lighting impacted performance significantly. Play these games in bright light.
- The home screen functionality is really cool.
- Street Pass... the possibilities for this are very cool but it's also a con.

Cons:

- Typical so-so launch games. Might be me being picky outside of SSFIV.
- It is small and can be hard to use the d-pad withotu cramping. My hands are not all that big.
- The number of features not ready at launch. Certainly acceptable I guess but having an unfinished product is a pet peave.
- Street Pass... they REALLY need to promote this in the US. I work in Center City Philly and have gone on 40 minute walks at lunch all 3 days I have had the 3DS with no interaction from Street Pass. If Gamestop and other retailers are smart they will encourage employees to have theirs at work and on so customers come in to shop and bring the system. that should start to move around the Mii's and puzzle pieces. and it gets the user to a destination to perhaps buy more games.

SSFIV:

Pros:

- Just like the reviews, finding and playing other folks is FLAWLESS... so far.
- Graphics are beautiful for a handheld system.
- The touch screen use is smart and makes changing the button mapping easy.
- Makes use of almost every 3DS feature from Streetpass to 3D. And all are done well.

Cons:

- Small d-pad of the 3DS makes some moves pretty hard. Shoulder button locations/size also make some things difficult for really competitive play.
- A few menu otions were unclear or hard to find the firt breeze through them.

So overall I am happy and looking forward to some of the RPG's and of course Kid Icarus. We'll see how teh rest of it shakes out. I think like others I am curious to see how Street Pass pans out. I like having the excuse to go walking and exercise at lunch rather then read Giantbomb at my desk. Then I can save that reading for when I should be working.