The dificulty in programming the PS3 has reared it's ugly head and impacted one of the bigged titles in console gaming; Madden Football 08'. The X-box 360 version of the title runs at sixty frames per second while the PS3 version only runs at 30.

Check out this video for a direct head to head comparison. The two versions of the game are shown playing at various speeds. You can clearly see the difference between them. The PS3 version has a lot more blurring. In the 25% speed comparison the PS3 is only putting out 7 1/2 frames per second!

The debate over what exactly all this means is raging. The PS3s hardware is clearly superior, but programmers had more time to make the X-box 360 version and are much more familliar with programming for the system. Players automatically jump to the defense of their system, but there is no arguing 30 FPS is better then 60! As you play the game for countless hours you are training your brain to see those tiny little differences and extremely brief subliminal cues. At the highest level of competetive play I imagine there will be a tremendous difference in the way the two versions are treated.

I automatically thought of GTA IV when I heard this news, because the recent delay of that game was pinned squarely on problems coding it for the PS3. Are they trying to overcome a simmilar problem before the launch? Will every big game available on both systems be superior for the X-box due to the same underlying causes? Only time will tell. I'd buy an X-box though if I were picking up one of these two systems.