First, I am a gaming reviewer and have been for many years. We stress test our systems very heavily. We are playing on all three (the PS3, XBox 360 and Wii) pretty much constantly. If you are looking for my basic reviews of how the PS3 differs from the other two systems, I wrote that up in great detail with our initial review of the PS3 20 gig -

PlayStation 3 (20GB)

When my son went off to college, we sent that 20 gig unit with him and got ourselves the new 80 gig model (i.e. this one) to do our testing with. Here are my notes on how this upgraded PS3 differs from the previous models.

First, it is NOT BACKWARDS COMPATIBLE. This is a killer change for many people. We don't mind because we also own a PS2. However, someone who is getting a PS3 explicitly to play current and past games should not go with this one.

However, if you are NOT interested in playing old PS2 games (or don't mind having a PS2 around for that purpose) this unit is awesome. It is VERY quiet. When we play regular DVDs on our XBox 360 the fan noise on that unit is outrageous. When we play BluRays on our PS3 it is whisper silent. We play a ton of BluRays on the PS3 and the quality is head and shoulders above traditional DVD quality. Definitely anyone with a high def TV should be looking into getting a BluRay player - and the PS3 is perfect because it's cheap compared with other players plus it has the added bonus of playing games :)

There's only 2 USB ports on this, but there are so many multitap types of extensions out there that it really doesn't matter. Its built in wireless is pretty standard on consoles nowadays, but of course is quite nice.

We've been pounding heavily on this unit pretty much since it came out and it's been working like a charm. I can't say as much for our XBox 360 which is currently off at Microsoft being fixed for red-ring-of-death (our second failure in as many years).

I know some people will complain about the lack of ability to play PS2 games. However the unit is so quiet that I am MORE than happy to have made that trade-off. Again, PS2 units are cheap and you can get one for the times you want to play those games - and for all the rest of the time you can have a quiet, well playing system which is perfect for both games and for home entertainment.

Highly, highly recommended.

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UPDATE - IMPORTANT NOTE - *Before* August 2008 there was a PS3 80 gig model which WAS backwards compatible - it also was noisy and had other problems. Since market research showed Sony that people cared a lot about a reliable quiet system - and didn't care as much about playing old PS2 games - they came out with this NEW model (the one I'm reviewing here) which is NOT backwards compatible but runs much more quietly, takes less energy, etc. So these are two DIFFERENT models which are both 80 gig in storage but with different functionality. This new model released in August 2008.

Zombies and video games just seem to go hand in hand. Now, thanks to Valve, we get what is possibly the most fun zombie apocalypse to grace the world of video games. Left 4 Dead allows you to play as either a human survivor taking out hordes of the undead, or as a flesh-hungry zombie coordinating attacks to feast on your prey. Whichever role you choose, Left 4 Dead is a fun and frantic blast to play, with some of the best multiplayer offerings around today. Seriously, with a few pals in tow, the Versus and other multiplayer options are reason enough to pick this game up for alone. The single-player campaign is fun and plenty enjoyable, but the real star of the show is the game's multiplayer capabilities. The game looks and sounds spectacular, controls wonderfully, and offers enough challenge and variation to keep you coming back again and again. If there's any drawbacks to Left 4 Dead, it's that there are only four campaign maps, but it doesn't take away from the fact that the game is an absolute blast. All in all, if multiplayer and/or zombie gaming is your thing in the least, Left 4 Dead is wholeheartedly worth your time and attention.

How many DDR games can they make? DDRX brings a new, urban video-based look to the DDR game, but in the end it really comes down to if you enjoy the songs and dancing to them.

I have five DDR games and I have an area of my basement set up with the PS2, the pile of games and the dance pad. I don't tend to play "one game" (in terms of DDR). If I head downstairs to dance, I play a few songs on one game, swap games, play a few songs on the next one and so on. I get a lot of chances to compare them all against each other, the benefits and downsides of each one.

DDR X is certainly shinier than the other games. They are pushing the PS2 to its limits with the graphics here. Really, though, who is watching the graphics when they are dancing? Yes, I love having the treadmill-dancing video running for OK Go (and missed half the steps the first time I danced it because I was having so much fun watching the video). Which sort of proves my point - if you are watching or paying attention to anything other than the arrows, you'll be in trouble :)

Since the arrows really don't change from game to game, all that really matters is the song list. This is a VERY subjective judgment. We all have quite different musical tastes. For example, in DDR X there are four songs I really like - and I'm not really fond of the others. I'm sure other players will have a completely separate list of songs in this game they adore. That's why it's nice to have so many options in the game, so that you can pick out the ones you like and ignore the ones you don't like.

I'm really glad they continue to come out with games for the PS2 to continue out the DDR game line. I like the steps and songs in my various DDR games and am always glad to be able to add more games into my workout mix. I'm sure at some point with the PS3 they'll come out with a DDR that lets you download songs and old step sets from the old DDR games, and at that point I might convert up to the PS3. In the meantime, though, this is a great option. I definitely recommend anyone who wants to get a good balance and cardio workout to look into DDR, look at the song set list for each one and choose a few that you enjoy. DDR isn't about just having one and playing only it all the time. It's about having a few, with songs you like, and enjoying the songs.

DDRX is definitely a great addition to the library. Well recommended.

My real reason for playing this game is both simple and embarassing. I bought it used for my PS2 only to discover it had trouble plaing on my old model. It then sat gathering dust until I bought my PS3. So after an uncertain futre, it has become the first test of the PS3's interplatform compatability.

Heaven knows what I expected when I cranked up the game - certainly the lavish explosion of graphics and action that appeared. It's easy to see, once you start playing, why this game quickly became a favorite of platform and action advention players alike. And even I, someone who prefers the RPG genre, was quickly drawn into the experience. the people who put this game together knew how to get the most out of a PS2.

You find yourself in a mythical version of Greek mythology as Kratos, a Apartan warrion who, in a moment of rashness, promised his soul to Aries if the god would save his life. Aries comes through, but abuses Kratos' trust, tricking him into the destruction of his own family. Kratos desperately seeks to forget the horrors of his misdeeds, and, when offered an opportunity to seek out and destroy Aries, snaps up the opportunity.

This is going to drag you through an unending supply of Greek scenery - hacking, maiming, and generally slaughtering everything you meet. You will get new weapons and magic, power them up, and generally run a bloodbath for the 40 hours or so it takes to play through. This kind of exhuberant athleticism accompanied by flying parts is sheer fun. Lots of puzzles must also be solved and some incredible bosses. You're going to die a lot in the process, but the game generally puts you back someplace reasonably convenient.

I don't think you can go wrong with God of War, and I can testifiy that it survives the trip to the PS3 without a hiccup.

Here's an interesting combination. Take your basic action/adventure platform game, throw in a stealth kill element, set it in a reasonable accurate semblance of the Middle East during the Crusades and you have a game that surprised me enough to merit two playthrus. Keep in mind that this is not a favorite ganre of mine. I thinks the tidbits of fairly accurate eleventh Century history and the lavish illustration and animation are what drew me in, and the glorious fun of slaughtering Knights Templar and punching out irritating beggars kept me going.

You are actually two players. One is Desmond Miles, and escapee from the modern Assassin Cult, who falls into the hands of the Abstergo Corporation. Tis huge drug company wants one thing - Desmond's DNA memories of one of his ancestors. And this is your second character - Altair, a true assassin who fumbles a treasure hunt for an ancient artifact hidden under Solomon's Temple so badly that he is stripped of all rank by his master and given a string of assassination assignments so that he might prove himself again. There is a common thread running through the men he is sent to kill, and thereby hangs a tale.

The Desmond episodes are really pretty lifeless. Considering that he is being subjected to a machine that forces him to relive his genetic memories, and will certainly be killed once the secret is pried out of his cells, Desmond is almost passive in his acceptance of his fate. Fortunately, you will spend little time in the present. Altair may be a cold and calculating protagonist, but he makes up for it in his potential proficiency as a killer and a thief. You will leap about cities, ride wildly through the desert, and, incidentally, experience some breathtaking scenery. The assassinations require as much skill in planning and approach as they do bladework and brute force.

Be warned though, the complaints about the missions being repetitive are not unmerited. Each quest means a run through the desert, and a set of mapping and information gathering activities that vary only because the three main settings (Damascus, Acre, and Jerusalem) are different. The only real variations are the assassinations. But all the activity, in which you can set the pace instead of the evil game designer is fun, assuming you like slaughter. And if you don't, this isn't really the game for you. The assassinations are all different though and there are moments of great satisfaction when a villain impales himself on your hidden dagger.

Another plus for the game is it's historical context. Most of us Westerners have a vision of the Crusades as a collection of heroic deeds by white Anglo-Saxon Catholics in hard shells. The truth is much more complex than that, and Assassin's Creed makes it clear that there was a good deal more corruption and cruelty (by all the participants) than there was heroism. I found this eye opening, and this may be the first game to awaken my normally dormant interest in history.

The game plays well on the Sony PS3. I experienced only a few hang-ups and action is quite fluid, although load times can be atrocious. I did discover one feature that exists in the XBOX 360 version that isn't in the PS3 game -- one the XBOX the game keeps track of your achievements, major and minor, and assigns you a score. It's a minor lack, but one I would have enjoyed having.