PC gaming vs console gaming: What are the advantages of each?

[dscross]

I now have the ability to do both. At the moment, I'm getting more gaming use from my computer than my PS4. It can just...do a lot more.

I can plug it into the telly and use a PS4 controller and it basically works the same but with more games
I can get nearly all the games the PS4 offers on steam if I want
I can emulate older games easily if I want
I can use duel screen
It's a laptop so I can play games anywhere with it, with a controller plugged in

I really like my PS4 for connivence - because it's already set up in my living room and you don't have to faff around to get games to run. But I've hardly touched it since I upgraded my computer tbh.

What do you all think about which you prefer and why/?

 

[sXeth]

Used/Tradeable games, social features, less setting fiddling to keep things running. I'd hazard a guess that the PS4 will have a longer lifespan then a laptop running more intensive games too, though that may vary.

That is pretty much all of it, if you've already dealt with the price points involved.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

PC gaming and console gaming are basically the same thing nowadays. Whether your games of choice are "classic" console games or "classic" PC games, you can play them on either platform nowadays whether we are talking a Souls game or Monster Hunter getting PC releases or a Divinity Original Sin, Shadow Tactics, or Cities Skylines getting console releases. Even the better graphics of PC gaming aren't really a big factor anymore due to the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X where you can choose better graphics or higher framerate along with most PC exclusives (or "classic" PC games) aren't pushing graphics (there's no more Crysis anymore basically).

Console Advantages:
-Convenient and cheap. Consoles are designed to be apart of your entertainment center so you can play on your big screen TV on your couch with a controller in hand. Yes, you can set up your PC in a living room but most people aren't going to do it and then be constantly moving your PC from office to living room and back again. Consoles and the games are cheaper. PS4s were $199 on Black Friday and even before that they could be had for like $250. Even if you buy one for MSRP, you aren't going to even build a PC for cheaper (assuming you know how to). Also, the fact that you can sell games when done with them makes games overall cheaper on consoles.
-Games just work. I fully realize PC game issues aren't nearly as bad as they used to be but you still have occasional issue and even major issue that you come across along with the fact that PC ports can be rather bad (Batman Arkham Knight). I forgot which thread an Escapist posted about only being able to get Doom 2016 to run for one weekend and it then mysteriously never working again. Stuff like that is pretty rare but it happens far more than issues with console games. The console itself doesn't really need maintenance or adware/virus scanning that a PC needs.
-You can buy physical games. You own your own games basically.
-More exclusive games.

PC Advantages:
-Graphics. Even the higher tier consoles give you a choice between better graphics or better framerate. PC you can get both obviously.
-More control options. Consoles don't really support keyboard/mouse and PC games have really good controller support as well nowadays.
-Mods and customization options. Whether you're installing mods or editing some game files yourself, you can better customize your gaming experience along with getting access to user created content.
-Bigger library with basically every PC game ever made.
-Free online play.

 

[CritialGaming]

Frankly if you can afford a decent gaming PC, then there is very little reason to own a console. Honestly the only reason to ever get a console is the few console exclusives that wont be available on PC until someone cracks the entire system and creates an emulator.

People like to say a console is more convenient but I don't think that's true. It USED to be true, when you could just put the CD or cart into the system and start playing, but now consoles act like shitty PC's and require a huge install for no fucking reason. Why can't the system run the game off the disc? What's the point of physical media if the game still has to install 86GB of data onto the system to run, and then STILL require that I have the disc in the system to run? Not to mention the downloading on a console sucks because they didn't think about data transfer via the internet whenever a console game needs a fucking update (which is all the time these days).

So no, consoles are frankly trash buckets that are only useful to play a very small selection of exclusive titles. Don't get me wrong, Playstation and Switch have some EXCELLENT exclusives. But if you aren't interested in investing in a console for those titles alone, then stick to a PC.

Also Xbone is a fucking waste of time and money and everything that comes out for the system comes to PC.

And PC's don't require you sign up for a bullshit service to play online multiplayer.

 

[CritialGaming]

-Bigger library with basically every PC game ever made.

You mean every game ever made period, right? Because with PC emulators you basically can playing every video game ever created.

 

[Xprimentyl]

PCs allow for a customizable gaming experience and ultimately a wider one with greater, long-term potential, but that comes at the cost of frequent upkeep and maintenance as better technologies come out which can get very pricey beyond any initial/upfront expense not to mention at least some rudimentary knowledge on how to (and best) do so efficiently and correctly.

Consoles on the other hand allow for still a worthy gaming experience, but at the cost of a very rigid one; what comes out of the box is what you get; you must play the games as they exist on the disc/digital download. That being said, when we buy a console game, we don?t need to look on the back of the box to ensure every aspect of our hardware is up to spec; barring any unforeseen malfunction, for my one-time purchase of the console, my Xbox will play every Xbox game I buy for it, and for a gamer like myself, that?s a fair tradeoff over the ability to tweak hardware for an optimal experience.

I prefer my consoles because they?re cheaper, easier, more convenient, and frankly, I lack the know-how under the hood of a gaming PC and, most importantly, the time, patience and desire to learn to become savvy enough to bother trying the ?PC master race? lifestyle. I?m sure it?s grand; I?m happy for any fortunate and knowledgeable enough to indulge; have at it. I?ll never argue which is ?better? because, objectively speaking, PCs will win that debate every time. But I work on a computer all day 5 days a week for a living, and that?s enough for me. For escapism, for the luxury hobby that is gaming, give me a controller, a TV and my Playskool consoles all day; anything else is doing too much in my world.

 

[Saelune]

Ah yes, the eternal Blood War rages on.

Heres the thing, I like 'console' gaming more. Buuuuut...modern consoles dont like being consoles anymore, and have become shitty for it.

The advantages of console gaming once upon a time were:
Ease of use, plug it in and get playing. Moving consoles was easy and took minutes at worse.
Instant gaming. Pop the game in and you're playing, not wasting hours or more installing a bunch of programs.
Controllers.
Consistency, especially with online gaming. Each console should work like any other of the same console.

But now ease of use is gone, you have to install even physical copies of games, and now they are pushing multiple versions of every console.

And PC games reliably have controller functionality by default, and hell, Steam has been expanding it further.

So, I still technically prefer console gaming, I just dont have much choices into pursing it these days.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

-Bigger library with basically every PC game ever made.

You mean every game ever made period, right? Because with PC emulators you basically can playing every video game ever created.

I didn't mention it just because of the legality of that. PCs can't emulate everything though, PS3 emulation is still far more miss than hit even now. And, I don't think any current-gen console has PC emulation right now.

 

[Phoenixmgs_v1legacy]

People like to say a console is more convenient but I don't think that's true. It USED to be true, when you could just put the CD or cart into the system and start playing, but now consoles act like shitty PC's and require a huge install for no fucking reason. Why can't the system run the game off the disc? What's the point of physical media if the game still has to install 86GB of data onto the system to run, and then STILL require that I have the disc in the system to run? Not to mention the downloading on a console sucks because they didn't think about data transfer via the internet whenever a console game needs a fucking update (which is all the time these days).

I'm playing within a couple minutes of popping in a disc on PS4. It's just so much easier to grab data from a hard drive than an optical disc, it's so much more convenient for developers, why not do it? I'll wait a couple minutes for that. With physical media, I can sell the game afterwards (pretty damn important to me) and you don't have to re-download the whole game again if you wanted to replay and deleted it prior. PC games are eating huge amounts of disc space too clocking in at over 100gigs. What's wrong with console downloading? I buy games on my phone via the PSN app and have it download to my PS4 in standby and it's downloaded and installed by the time I even turn on the system. Yeah, updates were a HUGE issue on PS3, but on PS4 they download in the background and YOU DON'T NEED TO UPDATE TO FUCKING PLAY THE GAME. Thus, if there's say a 20gig Day 1 patch, I'm playing the game while it downloads the update. Then, of course, future updates can be downloaded and installed while in standby mode so you'll turn on the system and see the game was updated automatically.

Lastly, why can't Steam fucking remember my password? Every time it updates, I have to reenter in my password which I never remember so I have to reset it and shit. I've now saved it in a text document so I can copy and paste it when needed.

 

[Mcgeezaks]

Consoles don't really have the same advantages they've had in the past, I feel like this gen is the worst console gen I've experienced. Less interesting exclusives and less split-screen games, 2 big advantages consoles had the past generations. I also hate how Sony/Microsoft seem to focus more on 4KAY than on performance, playing games at ~30fps is pretty much impossible for me these days.

I guess consoles are more convenient but it's not worth the trade-off if you ask me.

 

[RRal2837]

Console: You don't have to deal with Windows, Nvidia/AMD and compatibility issues.

PC: Superior performance.

 

[SSLeo]

the only thing i know, if youre using pc, basically you can play games by using emulators, while using a console, you cant

example pc gamers can play pokemon fire red while console gamers cant play a pc game like "Return of Warrior", LoL, Dota 2, or something like that they'll just wait for the games console version or something

 

[Kotaro]

Console gaming is more straightforward, but PC gaming gives you more options.
Basically if you know what you're doing, PC is the superior choice, but not everyone has the time to dedicate to figuring everything out, which is why consoles are a valid choice for a lot of people.
That's a really heavy simplification, but it's the gist of my take on it.

PCs allow for a customizable gaming experience and ultimately a wider one with greater, long-term potential, but that comes at the cost of frequent upkeep and maintenance as better technologies come out which can get very pricey beyond any initial/upfront expense not to mention at least some rudimentary knowledge on how to (and best) do so efficiently and correctly.

Consoles on the other hand allow for still a worthy gaming experience, but at the cost of a very rigid one; what comes out of the box is what you get; you must play the games as they exist on the disc/digital download. That being said, when we buy a console game, we don?t need to look on the back of the box to ensure every aspect of our hardware is up to spec; barring any unforeseen malfunction, for my one-time purchase of the console, my Xbox will play every Xbox game I buy for it, and for a gamer like myself, that?s a fair tradeoff over the ability to tweak hardware for an optimal experience.

I prefer my consoles because they?re cheaper, easier, more convenient, and frankly, I lack the know-how under the hood of a gaming PC and, most importantly, the time, patience and desire to learn to become savvy enough to bother trying the ?PC master race? lifestyle. I?m sure it?s grand; I?m happy for any fortunate and knowledgeable enough to indulge; have at it. I?ll never argue which is ?better? because, objectively speaking, PCs will win that debate every time. But I work on a computer all day 5 days a week for a living, and that?s enough for me. For escapism, for the luxury hobby that is gaming, give me a controller, a TV and my Playskool consoles all day; anything else is doing too much in my world.

Basically this but in fewer words, and I'm on the PC side of things, myself (unless there's a portable version, I'll buy the PC version of a game nine times out of ten).

 

[DeliveryGodNoah_v1legacy]

It depends on the console too.

If we're talking PS4 and Xbox? They're nearly identical to a PC nowadays. The only benefit is that if there's something wrong with the experience, it's the developer's fault and not yours. And you're also stuck with that experience. Likely permanently.

If we're talking Nintendo Switch? It's really the only console that still feels like a console. And even then...it's a tablet (without any of the functionality of a tablet, which is ridiculous).
Got to give credit to handheld mode though, most games look great on the smaller screen, though the PS Vita was pushing impressive mobile graphics years before, so it's hardly revolutionary.

 

[stroopwafel]

Consoles all the way. Games work, updates are automatic, plug&play etc. PCs: compatibility issues, driver issues, the software trash heap that is steam, windows etc. I'd say the only advantage of PCs are emulators for old games.

 

[Hawki]

PC Advantages

-Cheaper software
-Modding
-Free online matchmaking/other services
-Wider library
-Upgradable/customizable

Console Advantages

-More reliable (e.g. no compatibility issues or system crashes)
-Plug-in and play
-Couch multiplayer
-Cheaper hardware
-More accessible

 

[Rangaman]

It's very simple: PC gaming is objectively better in almost every way, except for the lack of pre-owned games, the high entry cost (though that balances out over time) and the occasional "fuck you for not generating as much money as the console market" lousy port.

Console gaming, objectively, isn't as good. It's far more expensive in the long term, you always get the lowest quality...everything (except for when the PC version is a rushed out cash-grab) and you have to buy an entirely new box every 5-6 years that might play the games from your last box. Also, $60 new releases forever. Oh, and you must partake in the console wars, the second-stupidest conflict of the 21st Century (right behind Iraq).

The big selling point for consoles these days is exclusives, hence my usage of the term objective. Or, to put it another way, people willingly spent 420-450USD on a new Mario and a new Zelda last year.

What I'm trying to say is that if you want to play Horizon: Zero Dawn, buy a PS4. If absolutely none of the current gen exclusives interest you, buy a PC. As far as I'm concerned, the only console that has anything to it besides exclusives is the Switch, which works quite well as a handheld indie games machine. Sort of like the OUYA, if it were developed by people with brains.

 

[Neurotic Void Melody]

Aside from all the well versed knowledges of these pro-cons, there is a rather small unexpected glee to be found in console gaming, just by knowing that your mere humble peasant existence of your consumer choice is actively hated by a (small?) subsection of PC elite gamers because they cannot optimise their playtime fun to its absolute fullest.

I image them shaking their fists towards all console owners in impotent rage alone in their rooms as they turn solemnly back to their 1000 shitzillion ram 8k-pixel 180fps liquid nitrogen-cooled overcompensator, and sigh heavily at the thought that the megatextures on the underage girls' rendered buttocks cannot yet be implemented into their favourite popular underage girls' variety showcase game along with realistic hair physics, knowing their expensive playtime equipment can only optimise their personal enjoyment to its maximum on only a few exclusive games instead of them all, brings a brief smile to my mind.

Though to be honest I only ever remember these people exist when I go online and see them complaining, and then the thought returns; "oh yeah, I'm ruining an entire art form somehow again, aren't i? Awesome!" as it's never brought up in the rest of day-to-day life. Just doing me part for the community, sir!

 

[RobertEHouse]

PC:

Faster load times
Mods
Graphical improvements
many categories of games available
not usually limited by exclusives

'bragging rights for how powerful your PC is' .


Console :

No worries of missing '.exe' or Windows 10 hiccups .
No specs to worry about
Two nice rubber nubs to play with
Multiplayer games populations die off less.
Controller is a great projectile if under attack, or a flash light (depending on system)

 

[Warhound]

Honestly the only advantage consoles have these days are the exclusives they hold hostage because the industry is so fucked.

They had reasons for existing in the past, but not anymore unless you wanna play Halo (until MS moves that to omni platform between PC and Xbox) or whatever thing like Horizon or Last of us that PS4 has.