Which console to buy?! Wii U, PlayStation 4, or Xbox One? 2013 Holiday Console Buying Guide

Coffee Beans
It's not a secret that I enjoy games on Nintendo systems, and the Wii was my most played system of the last generation consoles (PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii). The Wii U has been my most played system over the last year though, and I have really enjoyed my time with the games on the system.

Every "next generation" home console system is now out in the U.S., though the newest two (PlayStation 4 and Xbox One) might be kind of hard to find right now. While the Wii U released last year and I bought it day one, I have not purchased either the PlayStation 4 or the Xbox One. Why?

Well, in short, because I'm pretty cheap. I have never purchased more than one console each generation, when they first release. I have always started with buying the lowest priced console in any new or "next" generation, and then usually pick up additional systems as their prices drop.

If you own a Wii, PlayStation 3, or Xbox 360 and are debating on buying a Wii U, PlayStation 4, or Xbox One this holiday season, which one would I recommend? Brew yourself some coffee, and take a look below at CoffeeWithGames' 2013 Holiday Console Buying Guide!

Where to buy the PS4 now? Amazon.com

Coffee Beans
If you are looking at grabbing a PlayStation 4, but didn't pre-order one, you can grab one right now (at the time of this posting anyway!). If you hop over to its Amazon.com page, HERE, you can currently grab the PlayStation 4: Launch Edition for its MSRP of only $399.99.

I'm not sure how long it will be available on Amazon.com and if it will sell out, but you can purchase it now and not have to worry with hunting one down later if you're planning on getting one before/for Christmas.

While I have a friend currently waiting to get a PS4 in line right now (Central Time Zone), I'm not planning on getting a PS4 this holiday season. The picture below is of the PS4 games my friend's wife got him as a surprise to go along with his PlayStation 4 he is about to pickup!

I'll probably wait a few months and see what the reception is before making a decision to grab one (and maybe hope for a price drop!). But I do think it's awesome to see an online retailer like Amazon.com with some PlayStation 4s in stock for launch day.

Questions
Are any of you picking up a PlayStation 4 today, or this holiday season? If so, what games are you getting with it?

Here are some more links directly to the PlayStation 4 bundles being sold on Amazon.com:

Caffeinated Thoughts on Sony's 2012 E3 Conference

Coffee Beans
     Sony's 2012 E3 press conference was last Monday night, at 9:00PM EST. While I was able to watch the first 20 minutes or so, I didn't watch much after that for the night. I was able to watch the entire conference last week though, on Thursday, thanks to the wonderful invention that is the internets and internet videos.
     What are my caffeinated thoughts about Sony's E3 press conference, and what coffee roast grade do I give the conference? Keep on reading below!

Great Game Advertising - Sony's Example with Resistance 3

Coffee Beans
     If you are a PlayStation 3 owner and you are a FPS fan, today is the release of Resistance 3 for the system.  Sony appears to be going all out with support for Resistance 3, as I was just hopping over to my YouTube account to upload a video, when I noticed a massive Resistance 3 ad at the top of YouTube.
     I have no idea how much it costs to buy ad space on YouTube, but I can imagine Sony paid a pretty penny(or two) for the spot.
     What's the Resistance 3 ad space look like, and what video is Sony using to advertise the game?  Take a look after the break!

Pre-Order/Reserve PlayStation Vita Online Now

Coffee Beans:
     UPDATE:  RESERVE IT NOW!  Sony confirmed today, October 18, 2011, that the PlayStation Vita will be released world-wide on February 22, 2012.
     Sony just announced today, November 3, that if you pre-order a special PlayStation Vita bundle, the First Edition Bundle, that you will get that bundle one week before everybody else.  The PlayStation Vita First Edition Bundle will release and ship to owners on February 15, 2012 and it costs just $349.99.  The bundle will include a PS Vita case and the PS Vita game Little Deviants.
     Click HERE to reserve the PS Vita First Edition Bundle now!

     If you were watching Sony's E3 press conference tonight, you may have been really surprised(as I was), about the price points for the PlayStation Vita(Click to pre-order now!).
     Sony announced the Vita will have two price points: one with WiFi only for $249.99, and one with WiFi an 3G service provided by AT&T for $299.99.

A PS3 FPS Release Date Confirmed - Move Support, 60+ Maps...

Coffee Beans:
     I'm now pleased to say that PS3 owners will only have to wait a little while longer to play a new FPS that has Sony Move(and Navigation) support, 60+ maps, a map editor, online multi-player, as well as a solid single-player offering.
     What game am I talking about, and when will it release?

Analysis: Killzone 3's February 2011 Sales Ranks with Chart

Coffee Beans:
     Killzone 3 was released on February 22, 2011 in North America on the PS3.  The game released with a "Standard" edition with a MSRP of $59.99, as well as a "Collector's" edition with a MSRP of $129.99.
     Killzone 3 was developed by Guerrilla Games, and published by Sony.  The ESRB gave Killzone 3 a "M for Mature" rating, with "Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language" listed as content for buyers to be aware of.

     Killzone 3 was Sony's biggest PS3 release in February, but how did that translate into online sales ranks?  Let's take a look!

Click chart to enlarge

Chart Information:
     The chart above shows the sales ranks for Killzone 3's Standard edition on the PS3, with ranks recorded from February 1 through February 28, 2011.  The sales ranks are reflective of pre-order sales ranks and release/post-release sales ranks for February.  All times shown on the chart were recorded as Pacific Standard Times.
     I recorded the date/time and sale rank of Killzone 3, as well as the price Amazon.com had listed, but the prices aren't listed in the chart, though I will make a few notes regarding sales ranks and prices below.
     The chart above is not designed to replace the NPD sales numbers for February, but is designed to be a supplement for the NPD February 2011 numbers, and perhaps give us an idea of what affected sales for Killzone 3 during the month, such as reviews and prices.

Highs & Lows:
     The highest recorded sale rank for Killzone 3 was #1, on February 19, February 20, February 21, and February 22; around 4:30PM, 8:10PM, 9:30PM, 7:35PM and 10:50PM respectively.  Killzone 3 was selling for $59.99 with a $20 Amazon.com Credit and Pre-Order Bonus(image below) on February 19, February 20, and February 21.  On February 22 it was selling for $59.49 with the $20 Amazon.com Credit, both times I recorded the sale rank that day.

$20 Credit and Exclusive Killzone 3 Pre-Order Bonus as recorded on 2-19-11

     The lowest recorded sale rank for Killzone 3 was #18, on February 1 around 10:50PM, and it was selling for $57.99 when the sale rank was recorded.

Monthly Averages:
     Pre-Order Average - Killzone 3's average sale rank before it released was #8, from February 1 through February 21.
     Release/Post-Release Average - Killzone 3's average Amazon.com sale rank after it released was #4, from February 22 through February 28.
     Overall Monthly Average - Killzone 3 had an overall monthly sale rank of #7, when I averaged all the Amazon.com sales ranks from February 1 through February 28.


Critical Reception:
     Killzone 3's first "professional" review scores started being published on the internet on February 3.  GameRankings.com had 13 reviews posted for Killzone 3 on February 3, and the average review score for just the internet reviews posted on February 3 for Killzone 3 was 87.91%.

     Killzone 3's current "professional" review score average is 86.94%, based on 49 reviews on GameRankings.com.
     Killzone 3's current customer review score average is 87.88%, based on 109 customer reviews on Amazon.com.
     (Current review scores recorded around 3:00PM on 3-10-11)

Agree, or disagree?

Filtered Thoughts:
     Killzone 3 saw the biggest jump in sale rank from February 2 to February 3, moving up eight spots and into Amazon.com's "Top 10" in video games.  On February 2, Killzone 3's sale rank was #14 around 9:10PM; on February 3 around 8:25PM, Killzone 3 had a sale rank of #6.
     The first reviews for Killzone 3 started being published on the internet in the 23 hours between sale rank recordings on February 2 and February 3.  I think it's pretty evident that the reviews are what caused the increase in sale rank, because the listed price for Killzone 3 was $57.99 on both February 2 and February 3; so a change in price wouldn't have been a contributing factor for either day.

     I didn't record Killzone 3 at the #1 sale rank in February, until February 19, which was also the first day I recorded Amazon.com offering the $20 Credit and Pre-Order Bonus with the game.
     February 22 was the last day I recorded Amazon.com offering the $20 Credit with Killzone 3, and February 22 was also the last day in February that I recorded Killzone 3 with the #1 Amazon Bestsellers Rank in video games.
      I find it interesting that it seems like a $20 Credit is what it took to get Killzone 3 to the #1 spot on Amazon.com in February, and as soon as the $20 Credit was removed from the orders, the game's sale rank decreased, and never reached the #1 spot again in February.
     Perhaps Killzone 3 commercials airing for the game also helped, though I don't know how many commercials Sony had, or when they started airing them.  I know THIS commercial was uploaded February 18 to Kevin Butler's YouTube account, so if it was airing on February 19, it probably helped the sale rank as well.

     While I haven't purchased Killzone 3 myself, I know a few readers here have played the game, either through the Open Multi-Player Beta a few weeks back(like myself) or the retail version they purchased.  If you missed my FPS Friday post in February on Killzone 3, here's the video I included with the post showing an online multi-player match:


Questions:
     Do you think the Amazon.com sales ranks for Killzone 3 will be reflective of the February NPD data, with Killzone 3 being in the "Top 10" of the NPD software sold, but perhaps not in the "Top 5" for the month?
     Also, if you purchased Killzone 3, how did you purchase it: online, or in a retail store?


If anybody is interested in Killzone 3, you can see prices for both the Standard and Collector's versions on Amazon.com linked below:
  

Brewed Thoughts about E3

E3 2010 has now finished, and I watched Microsoft's, Nintendo's, and Sony's E3 conferences.
After many pots of coffee and a few days to let my thoughts brew, here are what I thought of the conferences; with Light, Medium, and Dark Roast awards(dark roast being the best, imo).

Here are my brewed thoughts about E3's big three's conferences.

Microsoft:  Microsoft started the conference by showing Call of Duty: Black Ops, Halo: Reach, Fable III, Gears of War 3 and even a new game, Kingdoms; that is being developed by Crytek.
I think Kingdoms is the most interesting of those games, even though very little is known about it.  The remainder of Microsoft's show seemed mainly focused on Kinect.  I was not impressed by anything that I saw with Kinect, as it still seems like an expensive version of the EyeToy.
I am a huge Star Wars fan, and even Microsoft's Star Wars game for Kinect does not have me interested enough to purchase a Xbox 360/Kinect at this point to play it.
Microsoft ended their conference announcing the newly designed Xbox 360, that is now in stores.
Overall:  Light Roast
              Bitter:  Too much Kinect
              Sweet:  Crytek partnership may be interesting in the
long-run

Nintendo:  Nintendo's show started with a trailer and game-play demo of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword.  Miyamoto demoed the game live on stage, and while he had technical difficulties with part of the demo, I like how the enemies in the game change defensive positions, requiring players to pay attention to which way they swing the Wii Remote.  Other games shown during Nintendo's E3 conference that stuck out to me were Kirby's Epic Yarn, Donkey Kong Country Returns, Disney Epic Mickey, and Goldeneye.
I think Kirby's Epic Yarn appears to have some great ideas implemented into the 2D platforming genre, and I look forward to finding out more about the game.
Donkey Kong Country Returns has me really excited, as I was a huge fan of the original Donkey Kong Country back on the SNES and the game-play looks nice with some great attention to details in the levels.
Disney Epic Mickey looks like it is coming along nicely in production, and I think it will be interesting to see how well the use of "paint" and "paint thinner" is used in the game.
Last, but definitely not least, was the announcement/trailer of the new Goldeneye game being developed for the Wii.  I was/am a HUGE fan of the original Goldeneye on the N64, and I will be looking for more information on this Wii version in the next few months.
Nintendo ended their conference showing/talking about the Nintendo 3DS for about 25 minutes. What they showed and talked about with the 3DS, now has me more interested in it, than I thought I would be.
Overall:  Dark Roast
                Bitter:  No Conduit 2 trailer/game-play; not a lot of third party games demoed(Disney Epic Mickey was the only one?)
                Sweet:  Lots of new games(Goldeneye!?); little sales talk(only about 2 minutes worth this year!); 3DS looks solid, with great software support

Sony:  Ten minutes into Sony's conference, the first game shown/demoed was Killzone 3; the game looks great graphically and I think the inclusion of the jet-packs will make for some interesting level designs and game-play. Before and after the Killzone 3 demo, there was a lot of talk about Sony's support of 3D.
Then, a huge time slot was allowed to talk about and show the Sony Move controller.  My issue with what they showed, was that the "live" demos on stage did not really show anything that the current Wii Remote is not capable of already.
After about an hour of Move talk, they started rolling out the more "core" games and announcements for the PS3.  They showed/announced a lot of games in the last 50 minutes of their conference.  Dead Space 2 was shown, Medal of Honor was shown; Little Big Planet 2 was demoed, Gabe Newell announced Steam coming to the PS3 with Portal 2; they showed a trailer for inFAMOUS2.
Sony's big exclusive at the end was announcing a new Twisted Metal game for the PS3.
Overall:  Medium Roast
                Bitter:  Long, with too much 3D talk, and too much Move talk; no games demoed for Move that showed why it's really different from the Wii Remote
                Sweet:  Nearly the last hour of the conference was solid, with a lot of games being shown/demoed

Questions:
What did you think of E3 this year?  Do you agree or disagree with my thoughts on the conferences?