Why is XBLA significantly better than PSN?

[MrGFunk]

The majority of people state Live is much better PSN, like not even in the same league, but i've yet to hear examples of why.
I'm really looking for people who've had experience with both.

Although, I've played plenty of Xbox but i've never been online.
I find PSN pretty good - no lag/dropouts.
I'd like to know what is in this massive gap of appreciation.

I'm not asking which is better, I'm asking why?

 

[Dechef]

Fanboys, that's why.

 

[Baby Tea]

You know, I'm not sure.
I've often heard the same argument. Now, for the record, I'm a 360 owner and LIVE subscriber. I greatly enjoy XBL, and it completely suits my needs. But I wouldn't mind hearing some of these 'examples' myself.

EDIT: I'm also not one to trash the PS3. It's not for me, but it's certainly a good console. So I'm interested in the examples out of curiosity, not for fuel for the fan-boy wars.

 

[Dudemeister]

Well I have both a PS3 and a 360 and to be honest, I can't really say what it is that makes the difference.
People say there is next to no lag on XBL but I've never actually lagged on PSN either.

 

[Fenring]

From what I've heard, the party system, which is awesome.

 

[gmer412]

Well, you pay for the XBLA, so it must be better. Right? RIGHT? No? Damn.
I prefer the PSN (although I own a 360) because it's free.

 

[MrGFunk]

Fanboys, that's why.

You may as well have written "FIRST!"
Are you saying that you don't know of any reasons except people's preference?

 

[Mr.Pandah]

Fanboys, that's why.

You may as well have written "FIRST!"
Are you saying that you don't know of any reasons except people's preference?

That is because there are no other real reasons other than people's preferences.

 

[Baby Tea]

From what I've heard, the party system, which is awesome.

This could be a great reason, actually. The party system is fantastic, though admittedly pretty new.

Nothing like that on the PSN?

 

[Fightbulb]

Well, for one thing, XBLA offers demos for all Arcade games, something that PSN doesn't do, if I'm not mistaken.

 

[Yog Sothoth]

Xbox Live is simply a more robust system. They have advanced tools in place for party chats, match-making and player avoidance/preference. While I don't have any experience using Sony's online system, from what I've heard it simply doesn't have most of these features.

Also, some developers, like Valve, provide dedicated servers for their games on Live.

 

[MrGFunk]

From what I've heard, the party system, which is awesome.

This could be a great reason, actually. The party system is fantastic, though admittedly pretty new.

Nothing like that on the PSN?

I'm gonna sound dumb but as I've said I've never used Live. What is the 'Party System'?

 

[Aries_Split]

From what I've heard, the party system, which is awesome.

That and the general fact that XBLA is LARGER than the PSN, so while the games aren't exactly BETTER, it has a LARGER amount of GOOD games than the PSN.

The PSN is a fine piece of software in it's own right.

 

[Eagle Est1986]

I use both and I can honestly say that I can't find much difference. On my connection at home, I find PSN to be slightly faster, but that's about it. I know I don't feel like I'm getting value for money with Live, that's for sure.

 

[Undeadpope]

I cannot give you why but I can give you my opinion.

It doesnt matter(this isn't directed toward anyone just my thoughts on this subject).
Whichever console you have I am sure both have Pros and Cons but in my opinion unless there was some easily choosen winner,its not even worth arguing and you should just enjoy your online play and stop trying to say "mine is better than yours".

 

[Baby Tea]

From what I've heard, the party system, which is awesome.

This could be a great reason, actually. The party system is fantastic, though admittedly pretty new.

Nothing like that on the PSN?

I'm gonna sound dumb but as I've said I've never used Live. What is the 'Party System'?

The Party system let's me add up to 5 other friends into a 'party'. Once in this party, we are able to chat with each other, regardless of what game we're playing, or what we're doing on the console. So I could be playing Forza 2 (Which I do and love!) with another friend who is in the party, and another friend who wants to talk could be playing, say, Fable 2. All of us talking, even when during loading screens or when in completely different games.
It's also handy because then you don't have to listen to other people who can be loud and annoying.

 

[Susan Arendt]

Whether it's "significantly" better or not, I can't say, but here's why I prefer it:

1. Netflix (a relatively new addition, to be fair)
2. I find it far easier to locate content on XBL than PSN. Navigating the PSN is frequently frustrating and annoying.
3. All XBLA games have demos that are downloaded from the same location as the full version of the game. The demos for PSN games -- when they exist -- are in a separate location from the full version.

The content on both is excellent and as I rarely play online, I can't vouch for lag issues.

 

[Space Spoons]

At this point, I wouldn't say it's viewed as better because it really is. Rather, it's because simply more people have an Xbox and Live. It doesn't matter how good PSN is compared to XBLA if there aren't enough people to spread the word.

 

[The Wooster]

Speedwise I've always found Xbox live a lot faster than PSN, purchasing games without a credit card is a lot easier as well. I'm also not fond of PSN's interface which, like the psp's, is more trendy and cool looking than functional. At least it isn't bathed in advertisements though.

When it comes to actual content though it's a bit of a mix up. Microsoft has, via clever "investments" managed to secure some very good exclusive DLC and some awesome Live games. PSN on the other hand seems to have a larger selection of quality games (older ps1 titles included) and, in my opinion, takes more risks when it comes to the type of content available (arty games such as Flower, straight up weird games such as 'the last guy' and outright arty art with content like 'Lurk in Shadows'

All in all I'm very impressed with PSN, now if only the downloads didn't take a fucking age.