That’s not to say I’ve forsaken everything else, just that I have been very pleasantly surprised, and more importantly, have played four of the best games I’ve ever played in my life. Namely God of War 3, Heavy Rain, Valkyria Chronicles and Uncharted 2, in that order. I hope to look at the games in more detail another time, and the main purpose of this article is not to compare the PS3 to other platforms, but that if you have been ignoring it, you’ve made a mistake. As I did.

From the moment you turn on the PlayStation 3 and arrive at the XrossMediaBar (pronounced cross-media bar?!), your games and the PlayStation Network Store are instantly available. Despite numerous media playback capabilities, my two favourite things to do with a games console, play games and get new games, take priority. Highlighting a Blu-Ray game or downloaded title has the awesome effect of taking over the XMB theme with a full screen wallpaper, video and/or music preview for the game. The interface really comes alive for your games and makes amassing and admiring a digital gaming collection highly enjoyable.

As I began to configure and customise my system, it was nice to be treated like an adult and have all manner of control over video and audio output, bluetooth peripherals and media playback. A nice change from the over-simplification present in most of the boxes I plug into my TV. Custom themes are a bit gimmicky, but kind of fun to celebrate releases or seasons for a short while.

One technical feature at the core of the PS3 is its Blu-Ray drive. This allows up to 50GB of data to be stored on one disc, something many PlayStation games take advantage of. It’s also become a deciding factor for certain cross-platform purchases such as L.A. Noire; available on PS3 on one shiny Blu-Ray disc, versus the 3-disc DVD Xbox 360 version. Battlefield 3 is another example, with not enough room on the retail DVD, the Xbox version requires a hefty download to add HD textures.

Where discs remain irrelevant is in the realm of digital downloads. Having shelves and shelves of classic games, I have a love-hate relationship with game downloads. I love the instant access and limitless supply (and at this point, saving the space), but I miss the tactile experience of investing in a new game, busting it out of the packaging and giving it pride of place in my collection. The PS Store has been the most successful yet in encouraging the switch.

Browsing the PlayStation Store is a joy and quite possibly the best digital delivery store I have ever used. Like the rest of the PS3, it feels like it has been designed for adults, allowing natural exploration and content discovery. Featured content is relatively discrete and content is duplicated in whatever section makes sense. It’s rare for me anywhere else to make a digital purchase for something I know little about, but the PS Store has encouraged more than a few impulse buys. Happily among that list are Wipeout HD, Flower, PixelJunk Sidescroller and Tales From Space: About a Blob. Four exclusive PlayStation Network titles I wouldn’t want to be without.

As I write this, my collection of PSN titles now sits at 69, not counting “minis” and PS One games. Some have been a momentary distraction such as the mental Noby Noby Boy, while some have captured a good deal of my gaming attention such as God of War HD. The reason for the ballooning collection is PlayStation Plus, and I mean that in every way as a compliment. I signed up for the service just prior to the infamous 2011 downtime (for which I was given Infamous?!), and love the semi-subscription nature of game delivery it provides. I now look forward to every mid-week Store update to see what I’m going to get for “free” or what discounts are available. I’d be the first to say you need a broad appreciation for games to really benefit from the service, but if you do, it’ll give you a game or two a month you can’t ignore and heavily discount some of the best titles on the store.

The PS Store is also a great resource if you are (like me) new to the PlayStation as a whole. So far God of War is the only classic I’ve tapped, but additional HD remakes like Shadow of the Colossus or PS One classics like Final Fantasy VII or Metal Gear Solid are ready and waiting when I am.

Where the PlayStation Store does let me down is the archaic installation and update processes. Thankfully background downloading of most content is available (but not on power-off), but once downloaded an installer appears. On launch, a lengthy installation process begins producing a not-so-fun progress bar for me to enjoy. But wait, launching the game will typically find a title update for more progress bars. Usually about six for separate downloads and installs. Progress bars plague the system leaving you unsure how soon you can actually play a game from making the decision you want to. Two things for Sony: First, if there has been a title update, why the hell didn’t you apply it to the title before I downloaded it? Second, please just download the update while I’m playing and let me know when it’s ready to go. PlayStation Plus actually advertises auto-updates as a premium feature, which while nice, needs to be standard.

It has been said since the console debuted, but if you are a fan of movies, the PS3 becomes a bit of a no-brainer. It is by far the best Blu-Ray player I have encountered (mainly because of its speed), but what I didn’t expect is for the audio-videophile spec to extend to the games. The lossless surround sound and visual fidelity in the opening sequence of God of War 3 or the train crash in Uncharted 2 is immense. And if you’re rocking a 3D-TV, Wipeout HD is one of the best 3D experiences I’ve had to date.

The main reason I am compelled to talk about my experience over the last year, other than it being generally pretty awesome, is that the PS3 has saved me from getting tired of the over-commercialisation surrounding gaming at the moment. Instead of being force fed self-proclaimed blockbusters, the PlayStation 3 feels like a celebration of all things gaming where indie and big-budget can happily sit side-by-side with mutual respect for each other. It seems like the PlayStation has grown up with gamers and the PS3 offers a system that can easily get out of the way of its games. I love it, and I feel stupid for ignoring it for so long.