[shy_bear]

I have been informed by my kids and hubby that the PS2 we have is no longer a good game system and it needs to be replaced. I don't play video games at all! I think the Wii is a better option b/c at least there is some physical activity with it. Hubby says the games are better on Xbox. We have 3 kids; 11,8, and 2. Any thoughts on which system is better???

[mommytoEli]

we have an xbox. is sits under our tv cabinet, and it isn't even plugged in. lol. the wii....is out, with all the games and devices bc we actually play it. i could do without hte physicality of it all bc i'm lazy...but it is fun. our kiddos 3-15 LOVE It. dh LOVES it. i LOVE it. funny enough, we actually have dh's favorite game- mario kart- on both xbox and wii...and again, the wii is the device actually plugged in. lol.

p.s. Polk undercover drug investigators play Wii during raid

right after i left this site, i ran across this article. lol. no one can resist a wii game.

[Dickons]

Hubby had PS2 and then switched to computer games and then got an XBox 360 and is so very pleased, not that it pleases me so much as it is just as big a time waster as the computer is for me...

Kind regards,
Dickons

[DannieAS]

Wii seems to be more active and it could be something the whole family could enjoy. I find with the people I know that have a Wii, it's not kids just losing themselves in an xbox/playstation game and the adults doing nothing, usually the whole family is involved and I think that's neat.

[Fran27]

I like standard video games better, so I'm not too fond of the Wii, but kids love it, so...

[thanksgivingmom]

The wii is super fun - and like others have said it really can be a whole family thing. My Dad (69) would never play a "traditional" video game, but he LOVES that mario kart! haha

We'll have family "bowling" tournaments, where everyone from my grandparents to my young nephews join in!!

[Lupin]

Note who's voting for the X-Box in your family.
The X-Box is not as "Family Friendly" as the Wii. Ok well let's put it this way our X-box doesn't get used much, since there are very very few titles available that we feel appropriate for younger children. My Uncle & Aunt feel the same way, and my Uncle probably plays their Wii more than anyone else in their family!!

My Recommendation is the Wii. This is after knowing what games are available, not based on the "Activity" level what so ever. We want our PS2 repaired, 'cause there's alot more "Family Friendly" games than the/our X-box. But we are pretty sure when we have the $$ to spare we will be getting the abhorred Wii, so we can play Video games when the kids are up again, & together. That's another aspect that the X-box really sucks in, most of the games inorder to play with someone else you need to play on-line. In other words they need a second X-box, & copy of the game, & an internet connection & to pay for the X-box Live. So not fun when you want to play with your kids!

And It probably doesn't mean much since I work at an internet-Video game cafe & we have our Gaming all on the Computers (We do have an X-Box here, but it's more of a glorified DVD player, when our TV's work) but I do work in the Field of Electronic Gaming, so get a lot of insight into these things. The only reason why we have even started contemplating a new Console at home, & the Wii is 'cause we want our son to be able to watch what we play once in a while, if not also play with us. We highly doubt we'll bother with Wii online anymore than we do now with X-box Live (on-line)

[mommytoEli]

toy story wii - Google Videos

this is my....errrr....OUR new favorite wii game. my 3 year old loves it and plays well. and i definitely did not play by myself earlier when they were all napping...ok...maybe i did.

[Shelly77]

I definitely vote for the Wii. We have both here (hubby is a game fanatic).

Here are the reasons I like the Wii better:
* The games are more active so even when playing video games inside it can be more healthy. And if you lay the free boxing game that comes as part of the Wii, it is downright exhausting and can be a workout.
* While I'm on that subject, the Wii has several very basic games that come with it.
* It's easier to play as a family or a group when you have friends over. (Extra controllers are cheaper than a second system and see below regarding controller ease of use.) We have four controllers and love it...and they all charge at once on the same "charge case" so that's easier than the XBox seems to be.
* The games are more family oriented as someone else said. There are games to ski, lay sports, play skeeeball/darts/shuffleboard, there is pacman and little kids games, there are educational games (I have "Are you smarter than a 5th grader 'cuz I'm a nerd.) Most of the games I see for XBox are sports or fighting or GrandTheftAuto-like which I don't find as appropriate for kids.
* Personally I think that the controllers are easier to figure out for the Wii. By this I mean that the feeling of bowling is natural when you use the Wii more so than "push red, up, and the second right trigger" to throw a ball on the xBox. Note for all the fanatics out there, I just made up that sequence. But the point is that the Wii controller is more logical and natural so it requires less "training" to use and less memorizing all the keys and features that the XBox seems to require.
* I personally think it's really cool on the Wii how you can create your own "mii" that looks like you. You only have to create it ocne and you can use it in all the games. I don't think you can do this with the XBox, only some games use personalized avatars and you have to create it for each game, (I think!)
* Game prices can be cheaper for the Wii. If you want, for example Madden 2009, it would be the same price regardless of game system. However, if you are looking for more generic fun, family games, there are options around $20-30 for the Wii whereas most XBox games are all $45-50. You'd have to verify this in your area, but this is my opinion and observation.

So, I support Wii rather than Xbox.

[mondk]

We bought the Wii after several recommendations for the Wii Fit game on here/this forum. We love it! I suck at Mario Kart but I don't play games unless Brad is here to play with me. I haven't used the Wii Fit stuff very much yet; Brad will have to teach me and that stepper thing you stand on is hard for me to maneuver on the carpet, but Brad is always standing up and sword fighting or boxing, bowling, tennis, basketball on it so you have to move with it. I vote for the Wii!

Blessings, Michelle

[dantheape]

In a family setting, the wii is by far the better choice. You have a great mix of easy to play games for the younger kids, and if the older kids/dad want to play something more "grown up" you always have games like Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess and The Conduit.

Don't forget that the wii is backwards compatable with the library of gamecube games. This expands your options greatly giving you access to the stellar Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker and several mario party games. The best part? Gamecube games are incredibly cheap! you can get 3 or 4 gamecube games for the price of one wii game and still have change left over for a memory card.

just my two pennies

[megaphonemo]

We just played with our Wii last night!! my 4 year old beat my DH at beach volleyball, and then I creamed DH at bowling. What I like is that you can get some games for like $20 that have a bunch of different sports on them.... Like the one we just bought has frisbee golf, bocce football, soccer, volleyball and cricket on it..... It really is fun!!

someone suggested the HSM dancing game before - Santa will most likely bring that... (and the Beatles Rock band!!!)

[mnmomma]

My family has both and we go through phases, but the xbox 360 is the most consistently played system in our house. My DH and stepson really get into role-playing games with realistic graphics. For these types of games, the xbox is a lot better and has more game choices. Also, if they're used to PS2, the xbox will probably feel more familiar as the controller is more similar than that used for the Wii. We really enjoy our Wii too, but don't play it as often.

[mdesi]

We have an X Box, and I will echo the being online part to play with other family members. DH, DS, and nephew play in together in different rooms.

Nephew has the Wii at his house, and it is better for playing together. There is one unintended consequence though. Some of the more "aggressive" games, boxing, some of the games involving lite sabers do have the unitended of consequence of little boys re-enacting them, quite well, without the Wii. I don't allow my nephew to play the boxing game, but someone has.

[BrandyHagz]

I think it really depends on the age of those playing it. You've got quite an age spread there and honestly, I don't know that you'd be able to get one system that would work for them all.

We have:

PSOne
PS2
PS3
Xbox
Xbox 360
GameCube
Wii

The only one currently plugged in (since April) is the 360 – this is for my son (14) and my husband (14 @ heart). Wait – that’s a lie – we have the PS3 also, because we watch BluRay disks on it.

The Wii would be, in my opinion, a downgrade from the PS2. The games they have and the type of play is just more…kid-like. I don’t know that your PS2’ers will find it as fun. We didn’t.

We got the PS3 because we wanted BluRay. We have a few games for it – but we mostly play PS2 games on it.

The boys (DH and DS) have always been partial to the Xbox platform and prefer it over the others – that’s why we got the 360.

We got the Wii because last Thanksgiving, at a friends, DS was having a blast playing with everyone – sadly, that didn’t carry over to the home environment – and now, I think I’ll just list the (only played once, still in original packaging, works like brand new) Wii on Craigslist..

Chances are, you can get used models on places like Craigslist and get both platforms for the same price that you’d pay for one brand new. That’s something to consider, given your wide age span.