PC Gaming is Cool And All... But...

[-Dragmire-]

I really like my XBOX and my Wii, but some games were just meant for PCs and some were meant for consoles. Deal.

There are games that are "tolerable" on consoles but there is no denying they'd be better on PC even if it means using a gamepad. Here is the thing, PC can use a gamepad if necessary, but a console cannot use a mouse if necessary, and BOY is it a necessity for some games. Any game that involves aiming.

That was one really great thing about Unreal Tournament 3 on PS3, it was mouse/keyboard compatible(probably one of the only ones, it also supported mods as well but they were a little tedious to install, they worked fine though). Not that I used the keyboard, half the controller for movement with the analogue stick and the mouse for aim/shooting, that's the best shooter setup for me

 

[ms_sunlight]

I just reinstalled Neverwinter Nights on my PC.

That is all.

 

[Eventidal]

Honestly, most of your points are kind of invalidated.

A. you can use controllers on PC. Take a wired 360 controller and install the drivers. Bam, 360 controller on PC. It works with most games that it would make sense for it to work with.

B. PCs last a lot longer these days. We're well past the days when you actually had to upgrade every few years. You can easily build a PC that can hold its own against consoles for as long as the consoles last, starting at $600. Upgrading it costs even less, as you don't have to re-buy the whole thing.

 

[zHellas]

Console, PC.

Ain't nothin but forks and spoons. There are things eaten with a fork, things eaten with a spoon, some things can be eaten with either, but no real conflict amongst silverware.

And eventually, there shall be sporks!

 

[chstens]

Straight up fact: PC's are technically better than consoles on every level. PC's can do everything a console can do. Want to play with a controller? Fine, plug in a controller. Want to use motion controls? Fine, it'll take some rigging, but you can do it. The only advantage a console has over a PC, is the price. With that said, I do prefer to play third-person shooters, actioners or platformers on console rather than PC, mostly because all of these are developed with consoles in mind, and since I don't own any wired controllers, console it is. And besides, alot of them are console exclusive. No hard feelings towards consoles, I own both an Xbox 360 and a PS3 and I use them regularily, and I own a proper gaming computer, but it is plain wrong to say that a console is better than a gaming PC in anything but price.

 

[Mark Hardigan]

I don't think any platform is inherently 'better' than another unless we're speaking entirely from a technical standpoint, in which case every platform has its own strengths and weaknesses. I just simply prefer PC because most of my favorite games are PC exclusive, and I prefer the interface of a mouse and keyboard better than a controller. With that, said, I don't dislike consoles, I just don't have the money to buy a 360 or Ps3.

 

[grumbel]

Your X360 has 512MB RAM, the lowest listed there 2GB, your basic X360 has something like 8-10GB harddrive space, that build has a 500GB harddrive, it also has a DX11 graphics card, while the X360 has an ATI Xenos (which is a hybrid between R580 and R600 from 2005-2006, those cards aren't even sold anymore for at least 3+ years). The CPU isn't exactly comparable though whatever... What I'm trying to say is that in technological terms the X360 is pretty much trash and not even worth 100$, they probably produce them for less than that by now.

Comparing console specs to PC specs is completely pointless, as what matters isn't some number on a piece of paper, but that the thing can run modern games, which the Xbox360 can and the low end PC can't.

Everything from the green area up will play almost every single game on the highest details,

Yeah, but for how long? The problem with that "look here is a cheap PC" argument is that those cheap PCs won't be good for gaming for very long. If you buy cheap, you will need upgrade a lot sooner then with an expensive box.

I don't know anyone saying that, but it is provable truth that a Mouse is a better pointing device than a controller, sciency people and the US army (gah can't find the link for that right now, but there was a study too) agree
http://gradworks.umi.com/14/67/1467132.html

An aim-bot is even better then a mouse, does that make it more fun? Precision isn't everything.

 

[-Dragmire-]

I think the "constant upgrading" is not as much a problem as upgrading the OS(thankfully it doesn't happen often) and hoping for someone to make a patch/steps to go through for a game who's creators no longer exist so it works with your system so you can play them again.

To my knowledge, no console firmware(I know it's not the same) update will stop you from playing older titles. Although, you may find your alternative operating system may not work after you accepted the terms/conditions that came with the firmware update with or without reading them...

 

[jason27131]

I think the "constant upgrading" is not as much a problem as upgrading the OS(thankfully it doesn't happen often) and hoping for someone to make a patch/steps to go through for a game who's creators no longer exist so it works with your system so you can play them again.

To my knowledge, no console firmware(I know it's not the same) update will stop you from playing older titles. Although, you may find your alternative operating system may not work after you accepted the terms/conditions that came with the firmware update with or without reading them...

The games you're talking about are at least 6 or more years old. So let me riddle you this. Can you play Xbox games on the newest Xbox 360 if I were to buy one?

 

[grumbel]

Want to play with a controller? Fine, plug in a controller.

...and then find out that your game doesn't support it.

Want to use motion controls? Fine, it'll take some rigging, but you can do it.

...and it will work like crap, as no game is designed with that in mind.

The only advantage a console has over a PC, is the price.

No, the main advantage a console has over a PC is that it simply works. Plug in, boot up, insert game and you are playing within minutes. No driver updates, no OS updates, no game install, no fumbling with XPadder, no fumbling with keyboard bindings, no fumbling to find a graphic setting that is smooth and looks good, no worrying about required specs before buying a game, no forum browsing for bugs and issues, no nasty background processes that bring your game to a halt and so on.

Consoles certainly are doing their best to make the experience as shitty as it is on the PC with regular game and system updates and introductions of bugs and crashes previously unknown on consoles. But even with all those issues, a console still beats a PC by a mile when it comes to "just work".

 

[BabySinclair]

That said, consoles are cheaper initially but are outdated and have to be completely replaced. PCs cost more at the start but upgrading can be cheaper.

Let's put it this way.

I got my xbox 360 for ?250. I could buy a top-of-the-range gaming PC for about ?750/800.

If you're to upgrade your pc, say, every 3 years with new a gfx card, you're still spending more than a console in the long run, as I've already had my xbox for almost six years, and it doesn't look like I'll have to be shelling out for a new generation of console any time soon, probably not for at least two or three more years.

Edit: I'd like to add in, before anyone goes "OH BUT BUILDING YOUR OWN PC FROM THE BEGINNING IS CHEAPER HERP DERP!", it's always more expensive in Ireland because we get taxes up the arse on electronics of all kinds.

Taxes suck, Built mine for about 500 and it runs everything nicely except games that are overly graphics heavy or don't have an actual advanced graphics option but I'm not a "graphics is the shits!" kind of guy, and most the graphics heavy kinds of games are realistic shooters I don't care for to begin with (Cod/BF sacrilegious, I know.) Newegg helps a lot with keeping costs down and I just built it so we'll see later on down the road the actual costs in the long run.

 

[phantasmalWordsmith]

It always struck me as odd that consoles which are built for the main purpose of playing games are inferior to a computer which has so much other stuff but whatever I guess. I like controllers because I like the way they fit into my hands and I don't have to remember so many buttons as a keyboard. Ultimately, I just feel more at home on a console than I'll ever feel on a P

 

[teebeeohh]

you don't need to constantly upgrade your PC and if you buy lot's of new games you save between 10 and 20 bucks per game if you buy PC games, if you buy one game per month that almost makes up the cost of upgrading in the long run(unless you always want to have the latest hardware in which case gaming is reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaly expansive).
control-wise cross-platform will always be hampered by the fact that a mouse is more precise than a controller(and most competitive multiplayer titles require great precision), deal with it and stop comparing your controller with the 5$ mouse that came with your PC, if your mouse is precise enough even the "i can turn around using a controller without having to reposition my mouse"-argument is invalid because moving your mouse from the middle of the pad with a halfway decent gaming mouse will make your view spin like a little ballerina.
Then again i use a controller for every game that is not a shooter/strategy game because it's more comfortable and i don't need the extra precision, which always bites me in the ass when i have to fire a turret in ass creed.

oh and one thing: BUY A FUCKING COMFORTABLE CHAIR. it's not that hard or expansive and is a really good investment in your back. I own the exact same chair twice once for my PC and once for my PS3 (because unfortunately they are not at the same location) and i find sitting in a nice chair way more comfortable for gaming than sitting on a sofa, even for console games because sitting on a sofa i always end up arching my back and it really fucking hurts after a while.

 

[BoredRolePlayer]

I really like my XBOX and my Wii, but some games were just meant for PCs and some were meant for consoles. Deal.

There are games that are "tolerable" on consoles but there is no denying they'd be better on PC even if it means using a gamepad. Here is the thing, PC can use a gamepad if necessary, but a console cannot use a mouse if necessary, and BOY is it a necessity for some games. Any game that involves aiming.

...The dreamcast had a mouse and keyboard...

 

[theultimateend]

Console, PC.

Ain't nothin but forks and spoons. There are things eaten with a fork, things eaten with a spoon, some things can be eaten with either, but no real conflict amongst silverware.

EDIT: Goddamn, you people and your sporks. From now on, when I tell this analogy, I'm gonna mention every utensil I can think of.

I'm assuming the 3DS is a knife since you can't really use it for much currently.

No, the main advantage a console has over a PC is that it simply works. Plug in, boot up, insert game and you are playing within minutes. No driver updates, no OS updates, no game install, no fumbling with XPadder, no fumbling with keyboard bindings, no fumbling to find a graphic setting that is smooth and looks good, no worrying about required specs before buying a game, no forum browsing for bugs and issues, no nasty background processes that bring your game to a halt and so on.

Consoles certainly are doing their best to make the experience as shitty as it is on the PC with regular game and system updates and introductions of bugs and crashes previously unknown on consoles. But even with all those issues, a console still beats a PC by a mile when it comes to "just work".

It's weird how your first paragraph says no OS updates and No Game Installs.

Then your second paragraph notes that game update and system updates are indeed part of the Console experience.

I...>_>...

I'll admit that having the game "already installed" on the disc is nice and why I like consoles, but steam has largely made the rest of your commentary irrelevant. I update drivers as much as I buy new toasters and I've only had one issue in about 4 years. When game manufacturers tell you it is "your drivers" it usually isn't.

Unless we are talking DirectX, that seems to be a bugger.

Also graphics drivers for Nvidia update pretty much automatically these days if you want them to. Same with Windows updates and anything else. So if you REALLY wanted to get technical, the main advantage is the no install in the beginning.

What was that news recently about RAGE? I can't recall, but I doubt it had anything to do with installs.

(I poke fun but tonight I'll be playing on the PS3, so I suppose console wins on my day)

 

[scott91575]

You don't need to update a PC every year or so. You only need to do it if you want to play at very high resolution with anti aliasing, etc. You could have a NVidia 7 series card with a Core Duo from 5+ years ago and get the same graphics as current consoles for console ports. There are only a handful of PC games that require newer hardware than that, and even then you are talking about DX10 level cards (like the NVidia 8 series) and Core 2 Duo from about 4 years ago.

Keyboard and mouse are way more precise than a controller for fps games. Of course, if you want, you can use an XBox controller on many games (pretty much any console port).

BTW...if you think PC games look like console games, you clearly have not seen some of the better PC games. Even developers will admit PC games are well ahead of the curve.

What consoles are is simple. Everyone has the same hardware so it's easier to develop for. In the end, consoles are pretty much PC's dedicated to gaming. If you like them, great. Yet your views on PC gaming are way off.

Its not like people don't own PCs, everyone on this forum does, its just the people who game on console actually prefer that, its not like they wish they could play on there pc, they can, they just choose not to.

Cool. Of course I have no clue what you were responding to in my post. I was pointing out his misconceptions about PC gaming.