Wii (Nintendo)

The Wii has so many different random add-ons, most of which are different types of replica sports equipment to stick on to the Wii remote. Now while these are all well and good, they aren’t exactly essential. What is essential is a charger kit for your Wii remotes. Numerous companies such as 4Gamers and Nyko make these invaluable accessories, because as anyone who owns a Wii knows, the remotes rapidly drain their batteries.

Also if you have a TV that can take component connections, it is best to invest in a set of component cables as the graphics will be significantly improved. So an accessory which makes sure you’ve always got juice to play your games and one that makes them look a bit better – effective, yes. Fun? No not really.

For fun you need to look no further than Nintendo’s own range of game specific add-ons such as Wii Balance Board and the Wireless Steering Wheel. The peripherals are as you’d expect fantastically made and awesome fun. The only real downside is that they cost a bit and there is limited use for them outside the games they come bundled with (Wii Fit and Mario Kart respectively).

Xbox 360 (Microsoft)

The Xbox 360 has a few really essential accessories which (most people think) really should have been included in the console box itself. Things such as the “Play and Charge Kit” and the wireless adapter are for quite a few people greatly needed. Aside from these two things, the other things you may need are extra controllers and more chargeable battery packs.

Obviously there are some well publicized 3rd party extras and games such as the venerable Guitar Hero and Rock Band franchises now featuring guitars, microphones and drums! One really good homegrown Microsoft add-on you can get is the snappily titled “Official Xbox 360 Wireless Steering Wheel with Force Feedback“. Great on racing games such as Forza 2 or Project Gotham Racing 4
, full force feedback and the great build quality which comes from a Microsoft original.

Playstation 3 (Sony)

The PS3 doesn’t have a huge amount of peripherals at hand and most are replacements for the stock HDMI cables. Now, as the PS3 does come with a blue ray drive, the large amount of cables on offer will appeal to the home theatre nut who decided they couldn’t wait for a stand alone player to be released. Obviously there are your normal add-ons such as game pads and headsets for talking to your friends over the PSN, but one accessory you may not have considered is a wireless keyboard. Now, this may seem a bit odd to get for a games console but because of the well functioning web browser included on the PS3, and if you are in the situation where you household PC/laptop is shared this might be a good idea.