The PS5 and Xbox Series X are just a few weeks away from launch, and many gamers, including the geeks at Tom's Guide, have already made up their minds as to which next-generation gaming system they will be getting.

While one of the two next-generation consoles has proven to be the favorite among the virtual Tom's Guide office, there are plenty of people who are sitting out the launch of the new system. Some are even opting for PC-based alternatives.

So which next-generation console are Tom's Guide staffers actually buying? Here is a quick breakdown of who is buying the PS5 and Xbox Series X, and who is forgoing this round for now.

This is a tough one. While I prefer almost everything about the Xbox Series X, including design, backwards compatibility, and the Xbox ecosystem, I would prioritize the PS5 just for the exclusive software. Spider-Man: Miles Morales is my most anticipated title this fall, and while it will be available on PS4, I want to experience it in its full 4K, ray-traced glory; getting a PS5 will ensure that titles like "God of War: Ragnarok" and "Horizon" ： We also want to experience existing PS4 exclusives like "Ghost of Tsushima" on better hardware.

As someone who has a powerful gaming PC that can handle future Xbox titles like "Halo Infinite" and "Forza Motorsport", I'm not ready to suddenly get a Series X. And while I will eventually get one to experience the existing Xbox library with better graphics and performance, I will need a PS5 first to play the console exclusives I am most looking forward to.

As I wrote earlier this year, I am out of the launch party. Neither console has a launch title big enough and important enough for me to pay attention to; playing "Miles Morales" on PS4 is OK (although I need to finish "Spider-Man" on the same console). Yes, I need to finish "Control" and start "Horizon Zero Dawn": yes, I need to finish "Control" and start "Horizon: Zero Dawn".

Furthermore, the Nintendo Switch and party games like "Jackbox" and "Along Us" have proven countless times that graphical fidelity does not = fun. Trying to get a next-gen console is fun. I still enjoy the games of the not-so-long-past.

It's an interesting time to be a gamer in the Onoroff family. I am currently building a new gaming PC and have requested review units for both the Xbox Series X and PS5. Therefore, next month my apartment will be home to three state-of-the-art gaming consoles. So I've been wondering what I should buy for myself and when.

After testing these three new systems (the PC has an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070), I will know better what I want, but my gut feeling is that the PS5 is probably the right choice for me. A gaming PC would be my first choice, but a good one costs about $1,000; a really good one like the one Tom's Guide is building costs at least $1,500. That's a lot of money, especially considering that consoles cost $500 (or less) each.

That said, between the PS5 and the Xbox Series X, the PS5 gets the edge if only for "Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart."

While I have nothing against Xbox-exclusive series like "Halo," "Hellblade," or "Ori," "Ratchet & Clank " has been one of my ongoing favorite series since I picked up the first one, and "Rift Apart" is one of the few games that takes full advantage of the PS5's fast load times and rendering, and looks particularly enjoyable.

Still, a month or two more and I'll have a better idea. If Ratchet & Clank is the only major PS5 exclusive (I've already played Demon's Souls, and no matter how good the remake is, it won't radically change the experience), I can invest in a PC or Xbox Series X, or nothing.

There are several reasons why I chose not to buy a next-gen console at launch. First of all, I don't see any really exciting launch titles on either platform. Once Gran Turismo 7 launches, I will probably get a PS5. But until then, my PC handles all my gaming needs beautifully. That is, if I can get my hands on an RTX 3070.

But when it comes to choosing a new console, I'm torn: Smart Delivery, Xbox Game Pass, the large selection of titles that support cross-platform multiplayer, and especially Microsoft's excellent handling of backwards compatibility across multiple generations are big draws for me and would make choosing the PS5 difficult. In all likelihood, I will have both at some point, but when that will be is hard to predict.

Aside from the Switch, the last console I was excited about was the Xbox 360 S. I waited two years to get a PS4 and Xbox One, but I didn't even bother upgrading to 4K compatibility.

I'm sure I'll get both consoles at some point, because eventually I'll be in a situation where the games I want won't be available on the consoles I actually own. But by that time the price will have dropped several hundred dollars and the internal storage options will have increased to a more reasonable level. It worked last time and I am sure it will work again.

Also, Sony and Microsoft are going to have a hard time keeping the machines in stock, so even if they change their minds, it's unlikely we'll be able to buy them for a while anyway. Maybe I'll be tempted by the Halo Infinite edition Xbox Series X, but otherwise I'm content to wait. That way, I would be able to get both consoles without paying the cost of one small car.

The only thing I know for sure is that I will never buy a dedicated digital console unless I have no choice. The cost may go down, but I am not inclined to go all digital. I still buy CDs.

I have been loyal to the PlayStation gaming console since the PS2 and I have no intention of changing that this time around. What I will change, however, is when I actually buy a console.

I bought my PS3 as soon as it launched, but none of the titles that were initially bundled with it appealed to me very much. I ended up buying the edition that came with "Days of the Blade," which was a lot of fun. But by trying to get into the market so early, I was left on my own. So I bought a PS4 only after the PS4 Slim was released, and at that point I felt like I had missed the boat on a lot of games and was constantly playing catch-up.

The main reason I play on PlayStation consoles is for the exclusive titles. And the exclusive game I'm really looking forward to is "Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart"; I'm also interested in the remake of "Demon's Souls," but not to the same degree. That said, I imagine I will finally buy a PS5 when Insomniac Games finally unleashes their iconic duo.

Despite my decision, I must say that I am more impressed with the Xbox Series X hardware than the PS5. The smart delivery feature is a great feature, especially if you are a PC gamer. I can imagine picking up a mid-life refresh of the Series X or Series S in a few years and picking up some good titles that are better suited to console play than PC, but I can't guarantee that, just as I know I will pick up a PS5 at some point in 2021.

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