The PS3 in 2023

[mrkonasoni]

I remember playing with the PS3 quite a lot back then, but certainly, it shows the age of being one of the first HD consoles in the market.

And, well, I agree with the catalog of games doesn't age that well, after all, it started that era of generic shooter games and grey-palette games.

But is still nostalgic and I still love the menu, it's interesting how little details can be such special.

The console is also easier to hack than ever, so I guess that is a plus.
Anyway, it's a rough console but had a lot of stuff that ended up making it memorable and nostalgic.

[kypherion]

I stuck an SSD in my PS3. The gains are marginal, especially given it's a 240gb Kingston and not a 1tb Samsung one, but there is a small boost. Tested on Castlevania: Harmony of Despair.

Honestly it seems like a pretty good deal to me. Having one means you either own a PS3 and Ps2 in one or a PS3 and ps1 in one.

Sure, the disc based media is slow but has it ever been fast?

Don't get me wrong the original retail price of $599 USD was ridiculous. Actually more expensive than a PS5 currently. That, along with disabling the 8th core and the wonderful CELL ARCHITECTURE, definitely paints a picture of the PS3's flaws.

With that being said you've got some pretty cool exclusives. The Ninja Gaiden Sigma remasters, Asura's Wrath, 3D Dot Game Heroes, that one japan exclusive .hack//versus fighting game, God of War, Metal Gear... Ratchet and clank!

The console has its issues but overall if you're looking to play some great games the PS3 has some great choices. The backwards compatibility helps the device keep up even with some other flaws. Given the fact the PS4 can't play Ps3 games WELL, (and assuming you're against emulation), I think it's a worthwhile purchase, but to each their own.

[cambionn]

Still use my PS3 regularly for PS3 and a few PS1 games. Got a separate PS2 for those games. I'm not too much into most modern games (but that's just taste really), and the ones I like I can play on PC or Switch so I haven't felt much need to buy the PS4 and PS5.

I don't mind the resolution. The lack of 1080p never bothered me really, but then I also play on my old PS2 which most of the time can't so widescreen without stretching out so I end up with black bars and a square screen.

When I bought this PS3 a few years ago it was ridiculously slow and the harddrive was making noises. Turned out it still had the original HDD with a production date 5 years before release inside . It was worn out, I was surprised it was still alive really. Replaced it with a 1TB Samsung SSD and it's been running smooth since. But maybe I just have low standards since I don't own the newer consoles. But I can say the difference is real at least, even the issues often mentioned online with crashes and corrupt saves in Dragon Age Inquisition disappeared. Considering these are reported to show up while moving around during auto-save, I can only assume it stems from the HDD being to slow to save the game while continuing to play. It makes me wonder how much other issues would have been caused by old slow HDDs.

About the controller, which model do you have? Between my the DS1, DS2, 3 DS3, and DS4 I have (the later only used on PC and Switch), the DS2 actually feels the cheapest to me together with 1 DS3 (CECHZC2E A1). The plastic feels thinner/weaker to me and the whole controller feels less sturdy compared to the DS1, while the other 2 DS3 (CECHZC2E & CECHZC2U) are quite nice and I would place it just a bit below de DS1. All are fine with me over al tho, I have no real issues with any. I have more dislike for XBOX controllers, but that's more because they're too big for my tiny hands (I was already sad the DS4 was getting bigger) and because I prefer both joysticks at the bottom.