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CHRISTMAS C2 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 9 DECEMBER 2018 MaltaToday broke down the options so you don't have to: if you're looking to buy a gaming system this Christmas, chances are you're looking for advice, because the mere thought of forking out €300 for the brats is already burning a hole in your pocket DAVID HUDSON MOST children these days would – scratch that – will ask for a gam- ing platform for Christmas. There's always some new trend making the rounds during this season; a cool new toy, a returning fad like Furby or spin- ning tops… but games consoles and gaming platforms are always a peren- nial favourite. And why not? Games consoles pro- vide hours of unadulterated fun and multiple universes your child can get lost in. Games can be a form of expression, a way of socialising with peers, and a learning tool. And fun for all the family. But with so many gaming systems on the market, what platform should you purchase this Christmas? Playstation 4 WE all know that the Playstation 4 is what most children would ask for. Why? The Playstation has made a name for itself with almost 25 years in the market and it is the most pow- erful console out there. Some would argue, however, that what ultimately matters are the games you'll be playing on the con- sole. The PS4 has released a range of worthy exclusives over its lifetime – God of War, Spider-Man, Uncharted 4: A Thief's End, and Detroit: Become Human, amongst others. Any experienced player would no- tice that these are story-oriented games. Their replay value is limited despite their gorgeous and intelli- gent narratives. Still, statistics show that these are the bestselling games on PS4. Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is the best-selling Playstation game of all time with over 8.7 million sales although it does have the weight of a ten-year old franchise to promote its name. With the PS4 you can also play the ever-popular FIFA games, Fortnite, Call of Duty and other multiplayer games. But for these, you'd have to purchase a yearly, online member- ship for €60 to be able to play online. Sales for the PS4 games console keep rising with 18.41 million units sold in 2016, and 21.2 million units sold in 2017. The PS4 stands to become one of the best-selling systems of all time with a total of 86 million units sold. But wait! With an approximately seven-year gap between each Playsta- tion console release, we should be ex- pecting the Playstation 5 by next year or 2020 at the very latest. You've been warned. Xbox One THE next powerful console in terms of graphics is the Xbox One. Despite this undisputed fact, sales have di- minished over time with a total number of consoles sold at 39.6 mil- lion, less than half of PS4 sales. But whether you're interested in competitive gaming or surreal sto- ry-based adventures, the Xbox One still has a lot to offer with exclusive titles of which sales are also based on franchise popularity: Halo 5, Gears of War 4, and State of Decay 2. The Xbox One also offers novelty games, with titles like Cuphead, a bizarre and dreamlike indie adven- ture with an art style based on old Disney cartoons and the high oc- tane and adrenaline-fueled online multiplayer Player Unknown's Bat- tlegrounds, a last-man-standing battle-royale based on some luck, a lot of skill and tremendous patience. Like on the PS4, most multiplay- er online games would require the Xbox Live membership for €60 per year. Since the Xbox One is a creation of Microsoft however, the two lat- ter novelty titles, while not on the better-selling PS4, are also available on the PC. Which brings us to kind-of console number three. Want to buy your kids a gaming platform for Christmas? Read this