With the holiday season fast approaching, this is the time where one starts to cringe when they think of what is to become of their poor wallets.  Between all the gifts for family and friends, girlfriends, wives, dogs and cats of course, the word “savings” is a tabooed one as quite a few of us will either be left with the bare minimums or drowning in debt all together.  And if you’re a gamer, budgeting around the holidays is even trickier as this is normally when the very big-hitter titles come out and they’re not necessarily cheap either; 2 games and you’re looking at at least $130.00 after taxes.  That number goes up considerably if you’re now upgrading to the current gen, meaning that you not only have to purchase the games, but will also have to shell out some cash for the console as well. Well if you are that gamer that has finally decided to make the plunge and adopt the current gen, I have some great reasons for you as to why you should pick up a PS3 this holiday season.

The God Of War Saga  ($39.99)

The God Of War Saga follows Kratos as he wreaks havoc and bring Chaos to the doorsteps of the Gods of Olympus.  For only $40.00 you get five games: God of War and God Of War II ( both PS2 games Remastered in HD), God of War III which is a full PS3 game and one of the most graphically impressive games of this generation, and God of War Origins which includes both Ghost of Sparta and Chains of Olympus, both remastered in HD and featuring Stereoscopic 3D.

The inFAMOUS Collection ($39.99)

“With great power comes great responsibility” Or so they say…

If tomorrow you woke up with surprising new superpowers, would you use it for good, or for evil?  inFAMOUS Collection follows the path of Cole McGrath who was just a regular human being going on about his everyday life until one day, a package changed his life forever.  Boasting an open-world playground filled with bad guys and Super Villains, the inFAMOUS  Collections, with includes inFAMOUS, inFAMOUS 2, and inFAMOUS: Blood Festival, will allows you to become either the city’s most beloved Super-Hero, or it’s most feared Villain, the choice of course is yours.  But don’t worry too much, because no matter which you choose, it is bound to be an electrifying experience.

The Killzone Trilogy ($39.99)

Gorgeous!

Name the top 5 best looking titles to come out this generation and Killzone 2 and 3 are bound to make that list.  With it’s gritty war atmosphere, jaw dropping graphics and intoxicating gameplay, the Killzone Collection is offering it’s nostalgic past, present and future with the release of Killzone, Killzone 2, and Killzone 3.  If you’re a fan of FPS shooters, then this collection is a must-buy if you’re going to own a PS3, as  quality and quantity don’t come much cheaper than this.

The Assassin’s Creed: Ezio’s Trilogy ($39.99)

Feeling like taking a trip down memory lane and exploring and witnessing past events as they happened? Even changing the course of history while you’re at it?  It’s pretty simple actually; you see this fancy bed looking thing over there in the middle of the room? Yeah we simply have to hook you up to it and we can then send you back in time and you get the chance to navigate through your ancestor’s memories in this open world setting and experience first hand what it feels like to be the world’s greatest assassin. Pretty cool right?  The newly announced Assassin’s Creed: Ezio’s Trilogy gives you the opportunity to catch up on the world of Assassin’s Creed, following Ezio’s journey spanning across 3 games starting with Assassin’s Creed 2, Assassin’s Creed Revelations, and Assassin’s Creed Brotherhood.  The newest entry to the franchise, Assassin’s Creed 3, will hit stores on October 30th and Ezio’s Trilogy will hit stores shortly afterwards on November 12.

The Resistance Collection ($39.99)

resistancecollectionart

Another collection for the FPS Shooter fans who are trigger happy.  The resistance world is dark, creepy, and full of twists and turns into dark places that you don’t really want to be in.  Earth is being invaded by what seems like an alien species and you’re part of the few humans left with the task of saving mankind.  Though this newly announced collection does not have a release date yet, we do know that it will include all 3 games in the series with Resistance: Fall of Man, Resistance 2 and 3. And we also know that it will be available this winter, bringing some  much-needed heat to your living room with some intense FPS action shooting.

 PlayStation Plus

I have, for the longest time, always been very skeptical of any subscription services offered on consoles as I always believed them to be a greedy business practice trying to force gamer’s hands and pockets into paying more for an already expensive hobby.  Well today I can tell you without a doubt that PlayStation Plus has changed my heart and mind on the topic; the business model in play here has the gamers in mind first.  I could go on and on about the benefits of being a PS Plus member, but instead I’m just going to try and explain to you why PlayStation Plus is the biggest reason why you should own a PS3 this holiday season.   I know I’ve just listed about 17 games for the price  of 3 ($200.00 total), but I’m asking you to forget all that for a second.  I’m telling you that with PlayStation Plus, you can walk into a store and buy a PS3 and not purchase a single game with it; then come home, hook up your PS3 to the internet, sign up for PlayStation Plus, and you’re guaranteed to be playing at least one new game every month of the year at no extra cost to you.

There is nothing like the PlayStation Plus service out there on consoles, and as far as I know, it is the only service that actually pays for itself from the minute you get it.  So when you decide to make that jump and get your PS3, you’ll come back later and thank me (though you should really be thanking Sony) for referring you to it, and you’ll never look back.  The value for your money here is second to none and as a gamer, that’s a very welcome change.

Will you be making the jump this holiday season? Or is that fence still offering a comfortable place for your doubts after some 6 years and counting?