Kotor 1. Kotor 2 would be better if it weren't for all the bugs/cut content. Blame Lucasarts for being greedy as usual, forcing the game to be rushed out for Christmas.

As another poster said, NWN 2 is technically turn-based, though it has the illusion of real-time (it's turn-based going on in the background). Ditto for KotOR 1 and 2. If what you're wanting is Final Fantasy-style turn-based combat, then none of these qualify (that said, they're all great games).

While I like both games, KotOR's better in my view, despite itshorrible combat system. While ME does have a better combat system, it's not that great compared to most shooters (both those that are FPSes and 3PSes), and the side quests in it are all absolute crap. Every single one (ok, not EVERY single one ... more like 99% of them). One thing KotOR did really well was integrate every side quest into the main story, so that even if it wasn't directly related to it, it seemed that way. Or else they served a different purpose, such as character development of the NPCs. With most of ME's side quests, there's a complete disconnect between them and the main story (the latter of which is fantastic).They're all"let's go survey this planet here! find some minerals! collect some emblems and junk!" ... how much more MMOish can you get? Basically, the purpose of side quests in ME is to grind. That's it. And even those side quests that are somewhat related to the story (such as the Cerberus ones) seem more tepid. Part of it is due to the fact the inside of every building looks the same; but part of it is also because a lot of it is conveyed in text, rather than witnessed on-screen/heard through dialog (ie. you never actually see anyone from Cerberus other than random grunts, and just get text bubbles popping up when you finish the quest - though that sounds like it'll change for ME2). It's an inferior method of delivery considering thisis agame, not a novel.

And while I like the dialog system ME employs, and appreciate its cinematic quality, I do prefer having complete control over my dialog choices, actually knowing what my character says before they say it, even if I don't actually get to hear it. It's an RPG, after all.

Actually, regarding BioWare's recent games, I'd put it like this: KotOR > Jade Empire > ME. All three are great, though, and among my favorites ever.

I'd also like to know whether these have been done away with or if it's a bug, as I too havenoticed that the vote thumbs up/down on commentsappears to be missing on most news story pages. However, they don't always seem to be so; for example, they were still there when I just went to the "Kojima teaser ends in countdown timer" news story, but they're not there on the "Fallout 3 DLC" news story.

Announced: Bionic Commando, Resident Evil 5, Halo 3 ODST, Alpha Protocol, Witcher Rise of the White Wolf.

Announced but won't necessarily be out in 2009: Mass Effect 2, Final Fantasy 13, Half-Life 2 Episode Three, Dragon Age Origins.

Unnanounced but hinted at strongly by BioWare's CEO: Jade Empire 2.

Gameplay, Story, Multiplayer - Halo 3

Value - Orange Box

Graphics - Gears of War 2

I have both, and basically it comes down to a few things.

1) Whether you care about blu ray or not. If you want a blu ray player, then this is obviously a big advantage for the PS3. However, this issue is partially mitigated by the fact blu ray player prices are dropping (I've seen them as low as $200 recently), yet the PS3 remains starting at $400.

2) How much you care about online gaming. Put bluntly, Live is better than PSN. The one advantage PSN has is that it's free, for the moment. But, unfortunately, in many ways you get what you pay for. And of course if you don't care about playing online, the whole issue is moot.

3) Easily the biggest issue, which exclusives you prefer. The last two years the 360 has had the clear advantage in this category; from the looks of things, this upcoming year it might shift to Sony. Of course, as we've all seen, a lot of third-party exclusives have gone multiplatform, on both sides (Final Fantasy 13, GTA 4, BioShock, Eternal Sonata, etc.). So basically the only exclusives that can really be relied upon to stay exclusive are either a) First-party ones (Halo, God of War, Heavenly Sword, Fable, etc.) or b) Third-party ones that are funded directly by MS/Sony or done in partnership with them (here is where MS has had a huge advantage so far: Gears 1 & 2, Mass Effect, etc., compared to well, nothing much that's any good for Sony).

Here's a list of all the really good exclusives for both consoles that I'm aware of:

PS3- MGS4 (by no means guaranteed to stay that way, as it's not funded by Sony - or at least, isn't as far as I'm aware), Heavenly Sword, Uncharted, Resistance 1 & 2, LittleBigPlanet, Valkyria Chrnoicles. Sort of Ninja Gaiden Sigma (I say sort of because it's a port of an XBox game).

360 - Gears 1 & 2, Halo 3, Mass Effect, Fable 2, Dead Rising (another 3rd-party game that might not stay exclusive - in fact, I think there's a Wii edition coming, if I'm not mistaken), Crackdown, Lost Odyssey, Tales of Vesperia, Ninja Gaiden 2. Sort of Tomb Raider Legend and Call of Duty 2 (I say sort of for the last 2 cause they're on last-gen consoles, too).

Coming this year (or at least, coming at some point down the road):

360 - GTA 4 expansion (DLC), Fable 2 DLC, Halo Wars, Halo 3 expansion, Star Ocean 4 (exclusive at the moment; may change), Splinter Cell 5, Kingdom Under Fire 2, Alan Wake (if this ever gets released - and who knows, the rate it's going, it'll probably be crap like Too Human), Tomb Raider Underworld DLC. (MS is banking heavily on DLC this year, for whatever reason)

PS3 - God of War 3, Uncharted 2, Killzone 2, Final Fantasy Vs. 13 (exclusive at the moment; may change), White Knight Chronicles

? - Mass Effect 2 (1 was MS exclusive, but since EA bought BioWare, who knows what'll happen with this). These are all the ones I'm aware of; there are probably more on both sides, but you get the idea. It's simply a question of what games (or type of games) you prefer.

The other thing to keep in mind is how games that are on both systems perform. In many cases, they run or look better on the 360. Not always (e.g., Oblivion, Eternal Sonata), but often (e.g. Orange Box, almost any EA game). I'm not a computer techie by any means, but it's my understanding that the PS3 is harder to program for for whatever reason. Maybe developers use this as an excuse for lazy ports (here's looking at you, Orange Box) but regardless, the fact remains that in many cases there is a discrepancy in quality between multiplatform games.

On another note, if you care about backwards compatibility, then you should know that a) newer PS3s are not BC with PS2 at all, only PS1. Of course, if you can find an older PS3, then that problem is solved. Sony removed the BC to make people buy more PS3 games, as well as save $ on each console manufactured. 360, on the other hand, is BC with about half of the XBox's library, but it runs most of the XBox's better titles (Prince of Persia 2 & 3, and MGS 2 are about the only AAA titles I can think of that aren't BC). The quality of the BC varies; stuff like Halo or Jade Empire run perfectly; other things, like KotOR 1 & 2 are barely playable.

Finally, yes the 360 has a high failure rate (at least, the older models. Though if MS is to be believed - which of course they probably aren't - then they've finally solved the RROD problem with the new "jasper" models). However, the process of getting your repair/replacement console isn't nearly the horror story that many people make it out to be. I had mine replaced recently, and the whole thing took about two and a half weeks, and about an hour to re-register all my DLC on the new console. Not exactly the most difficult thing I'll ever go through.

So that, in a nutshell, is everything you need to consider. Personally, I use my 360 more than my PS3 to play games, as I prefer the 360's exclusives (though Sony has some very good ones, too). But if blu ray is your first priority, well, then obviously the PS3 is the way to go, if you've got the dough for it.

If you are gonna get a PS3, you may wanna wait, as Sony is rumored to be dropping the price around March or so (of course, they're denying it with all the usual "we have no plans blah blah blah" BS). But, quite simply, if they don't wanna get too far in the hole to MS, they're gonna have to drop the price at some point.

There are two potential "love scenes" in Mass Effect. Both can be skipped, if you so choose. That first one can occur even if you're not intending for it (or expecting it) to happen (with the "Consort" - I forget her name - on the Citadel.) If you don't want it, don't choose anything on the bottom part of the dialogue wheel when you're speaking with her when finishing her quest. The second scene occurs at the fulfillment of the "romantic subplot" element of the game, irrespective of who you're doing it with. There is an option in the dialogue indicating that you don't want to do it with them then; I am unsure if the achievement for finishing the romantic storyline will trigger if this is picked.

All that said, what you get with them is relatively tame. Somewhat worse than what's in, say, GTA 4, but nowhere near something like God of War or the Witcher, or most Hollywood films, which have actual nudity (here there's a glimpse of half a bare butt). If you want to skip them, however, there's definitely that option.