Editorial
Feb 17, 2011
Social Game Tracking: Raptr vs Playfire
You have Facebook and Twitter for forming social networks of friends, family, etc. Now there are an even tighter focus on the social networks: videogames. There is now Raptr and Playfire vying for your attention. Raptr has been around a while, and just recently hit 6 million users. Playfire is currently in beta, and might have what it takes to steal some of those users. I will cover all aspects of the service and the options at your disposal. But ultimately, this is my opinion and it will be up to you, as far as preferences go. So let’s get started:
RAPTR
Features – “See what your Xbox, PS3, Steam, and Xfire friends are playing. Chat in-game across popular IM and gaming services. Create a comprehensive gaming profile based on your games and achievements.”
Pros
- It is free to sign-up for an account.
- Add manual accounts outside of Xbox, Steam, and PS3.
- Compare achievements and time played against other Raptr friends.
- Can disable Flash and specific games from being tracked.
- Able to choose HOW to share your gaming.
- Create multiple gamer cards for forums and websites.
- Available FREE iPhone app.
Cons
- Requires Raptr client to be running on your PC for PC and PS3 gaming to be updated.
- Only Raptr friends can compare data.
- No app availability for Android, Blackberry, or Windows Phone.
- Lack of themes for profile. No custom images.
PLAYFIRE
Features – “Get a profile, with in-game stats, custom themes, favorite genre graphs and more. Track all your favorite games, and be notified of new discussion, videos, news stories etc for the games you care about. Follow your friends and online buddies, and stay up to date with what all your buddies are playing, saying and doing.”
Pros
- It is free to sign-up for an account.
- No client to install.
- Separate points and awards system within Playfire.
- User-generated content: Create quizzes, questions, a group/clan, or even make events.
- Display games on a bookshelf and assign a custom shelf texture.
- Themes are well design and have plenty to choose from.
- Check-off what games you own, beat, favorite, and/or are playing now.
Cons
- Only Playfire friends can compare data.
- Does not connect/post to Facebook or Twitter.
- You have to add games and platforms manually.
- Xbox 360 syncing for achievements is down (currently).
- Create-A-Widget (gamer card) doesn’t work properly. PS3 only.
VERDICT: RAPTR
While most of the features are not working, I am hopeful for the future of Playfire service. However, Raptr has most of what you want from a gaming service and links flawlessly to your regular social networks like Facebook and Twitter. Raptr just gives you more control over how and what you share of your games. Playfire might get there one day soon, but they aren’t yet.
UPDATE: It is worth noting that in the next 2 weeks Playfire will be getting an overhaul and more of it’s features like quizzes, guilds, will go away on this update. But will return at a later time. So I am more in favor of Raptr at this point because they aren’t in a state of flux with their features.
