So which should you chose? It seems regardless of which way you go, you are going to be missing out on something...but are you ?  Not really. The visual differences are so small that it requires magnification of a single frame...not like you'd ever notice!
Recently, it seems that if you change the name of your video card to that of the competition's, or at least the name that the computer gives your card, and hence the functionality the computer expects to be there so it can be properly utilized, the differences become even less.
   
All of this leaves not much in the way of choices...but in the market today, it seems if you give your dollar to the one with the deepest pockets, you'll get the greatest benefit. More games have that little Nvidia symbol that tells you Nvidia shelled out some cash, so if the majority of the titles you play have this logo...look nowhere else.

But if overclocking and modding are your thing, then ATI is the way to go...it's very easy to mod an ATI card into a better model, and getting a larger bang for your buck. Not to say that you can't with Nvidia, but reports of success are higher with ATI.
   
In the end, it really just comes down to your budget. Regardless of which you chose, performance in most situations are within a frame or two between the competition, and when one lowers prices, generally the other follows suit. In the end I bought the card that was the color that matched my system...yes, you even have choices as to color.
   
If you are looking to the future, Nvidia seems to have the most foresight, but here we are at the beginning of the year, and newer and faster products are guaranteed to emerge.

SLi has now become part of the equation.
Using two identical cards linked together to perform as a single card.

So for pure upgradability, Nvidia wins out on that one as well, though this may require a system upgade to a motherboard that supports SLI.

 If AGP is remains your choice, Nvidia's 6600GT seems a safe bet, but the 9800pro fares not too badly either. Clearly Nvidia has the advantage in the number of card types, and games supported.

Regardless of your choice, satisfaction with performance is guaranteed to only be temporary. There shouldn't be a whole lot more in the way of ground-breaking game engines for a bit. The current hardware will keep even Harry Hardcore-gamer happy....for a while.
   
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