Why buy consoles?

[Azaraxzealot]

I see no reason to use a console at all. Never had one never will.
I'm a tech guy, I like tinkering with stuff. And I like modding.

The PC has superior graphics, cheaper games, modding capability, I don't have to replace the whole thing as it age, etc...

i'd like to call you out on the "cheaper games" thing.

if you don't buy from retail, you pay with your credit card, right? credit cards have interest rates, so that 49.99 you spent on the shiny new 59.99 game? it really translates to something like 70 dollars with interest, plus, with console games, you get the "pre-owned" market, which you can get games there for downwards of 20 bucks.

Also. no DRM to stop you from enjoying pre-owned or borrowed products.

No installation required (as long as you're not on PS3)

Multiplayer for most new games is better (since people make games for consoles first these days)

Couch multiplayer (ah... the Goldeneye days...)

of course with PC you get modding, all the features you "need" (like internet browsing, doing homework/work), and with emulators you can get almost any game you want.

but then again, most computers (from the get-go) are only made for work and business and not for pleasure (unless you buy a 3000 dollar one from alienware or something) otherwise, you have to make it yourself. and honestly? it's easier to skip the technobabble and learning to just buy a console and some games for it.

 

[Falseprophet]

Well, in addition to not having to continually upgrade my PC to play more or less the same games, as others have stated, my PS3 is also my Blu-ray player and streams media from my PC. Also, consoles have party games for when you have friends over--I've had several Rock Band/SingStar parties at my house. This is still one area of gaming where PCs really have nothing to offer. That said, I'm seriously looking at things like Steam and GOG to explore that Golden Age of PC gaming ca. 1996-2004 that I missed (I gave up almost all video games while I was in university until I got a PS2 in 2002).

The point there was that there are parts I never have to replace. Chassis, fans, hardrives. When you buy a new console you get new everything, whether you like it or not.

You never have to replace hard drives? What sort of magical mithril are your HDDs made from? I'm serious: I've had two external HDDs die on me, and my desktop's main drive died just last week. (And this was a month after my laptop died.) Not to mention I had to upgrade my PS3's hard drive recently for space reasons. My friends in IT have all suggested hard drives these days shouldn't be expected to last more than 3 years. (Meanwhile, my 9 year old PS2 still works great.)

 

[Wolfram23]

Because people are lazy and "can't be arsed" to spend a day learning a few very simple concepts about PCs. Well that, and/or simple preference.

As for cost... I bought an $800 TV to go with my $200 PS3 Slim. I also bought a PC last year, and spent $1000 initially for everything from case to parts and monitor, mouse, keyboard. Everything. I've upgraded since, but that intial and cheaper investment did play games just fine. I should also point out that I upgraded because I'm an "enthusiast" - IE: PCs are now my hobby. I did not do it because "new tech came out" or in any way did I have to. It ran Crysis fine at High settings... but now I can run it at Very High with 4xAA... I just wanted that max performance.

But you can build a PC for $500 these days that'll run games fine and last a few years and also offer very cheap upgrade options that will double performance if/when it's needed.

 

[PettingZOOPONY]

If 6 years ago I could have bought a gaming PC for $300 and have it play current AAA games, I would have.

That is impossible, so I stick with consoles. Plus, all you have to do to play games is put the disk in. PC gaming has hoops to jump through.

If you think you bought a gaming PC 6 years ago for $300 and it still plays current AAA games at high settings, don't bother quoting me, I won't believe you.

EDIT: Plus, the PC exclusive games that I care about are few. Civilization and Dawn of War seem to be the only big titles. Plus I can't play the newest versions of them on my old $600 PC. Sadface.

Where was the $300 console 6 years ago? I had to drop $400 on a xbox $100 on wireless another $60 so I could access my MP content not to mention a 40" LCD from 6 years ago was $2500. So for the cost a a uber bad ass PC from 10 years ago is the same I had to pay to play a console from 6 years ago.

Whoops, I was off a year. I waited to buy a 360, so replace 6 years with 5. I also payed tax, so it was $340ish perhaps?

A 5* year old PC for less than $500 cannot run new games. End of story. Hell, I'd go so far as say a $800 PC from 5 years ago couldn't run Assassins Creed 2 (higher requirements than Crysis).

My T.V. (31" WS) is used for both console and computer. I had to spend an extra $50 for a cable long enough to reach my computer tho... damn Tiger Direct.

Never said a $500 PC would go back and read what I said, but I did build a new PC a year ago and I still have less money invested in my PC side of gaming. Console gaming in its current for that milks you for every addon and more per game, and access to your own internet its really damned expensive in the long run. So far just for me my tv was $2200 , xbox was $400 wireless was $100, $50 for live for first year. I bought 18 games the first year so thats $180 over the cost of PC titles. So my first year out of box for a HD console setup was $2930. I have purchased a additional 53 titles over the next 5 years all were off amazon for $5 over PC so thats $265 for those 5 more years of xbox live is another $300, 2 non warranty replacement consoles for 360 cost me $400 so over the years I've dropped another $965 more than would of had to going the equivalent route on PC.

Console gaming is far from cheap, its like comparing US cell phone plans were your $800 smartphone is subsidized for $199 but you pay $99.99 a month for 2 years or one in the EU were you pay the cost of the phone upfront but pay only $19.99 for the next 2 years.

 

[Arkynomicon]

I got myself a PS3 because I like the convenience of not having to worry about specs, got a bluray player, there are a lot of exclusive games that are only released on console, don't really wanna have to upgrade my computer that often,many Japanese games I wanna play never seem to be released on PC, I rather enjoy playing with a gamepad rather then mouse and keyboard, also I generally just like the simplicity of it all and not wearing my PC down by playing a lot of games on it.

Then there is also the thing that I don't have a them vs us attitude about the whole industry and not sure why I should pick a side.

 

[Koroviev]

Most of the games I like aren't available on PC. Persona 3 is on the PSP, Catherine and The Last Guardian are being released for the PS3, the Professor Layton series is on the DS, etc. That's not to say I don't enjoy playing games on the PC. I'm a huge fan of Minecraft, which I really can't imagine being as accessible on a console. That being said, I do prefer a controller to a mouse-and-keyboard setup. It probably has a lot to do with experience, but trying to maneuverer with the keyboard has always felt really awkward to me. I've had a much better time with analog sticks.

 

[Fetzenfisch]

A mediocre trained monkey can change a graphics card. or even build a whole PC i learned it with 10yrs just by reading the manual. Motherboard here, harddrive in that slot, graphics in there, ram in there, put the cables together , Profit.

Just because you know something doesn't mean everyone does, most of the people I know wouldn't know where to start replacing a graphics card I certainly wouldn't, and these people aren't stupid computers just aren't there area of expertise

Well there IS a manual as i said.3 pages with a few images,thats all you need even todays kids should be able to handle that, it takes 2 healthy hands and about 5 seconds of work, pull out old card, put in new card. And if you are unable to do that task with a manual, than you A)can't read, wich i doubt because you can write or B) just dont want to try.
(and with B i mean the word that i avoided to use in this response)

I thinks its B), about half way through reading the manual i'd just be like "Screw this" and go lay my console while lounging on the sofa with some maltesers :S

So you would stop at

"1) Open the Case of the PC
2) locate the graphics card as seen on this Image

3)pull out graphics card
4)put i......."


?[/quote]

Haha yeh I'd have the graphics card in my hand and I'd get distracted by something shiny XD
No seriously I'd probably ask someone how to do it then when they explained it I'd give up[/quote]


lets for my faith in humanities sake just agree that you would do so if you wanted to put the cables on several harddrives to connect them with the Mainboard and you don't know which is to switch on Master or Slave Mode.
If you now how get a book out of a shelf and how to put it back you can change a graphics card. It really is that easy. Can you plug out and in your consoles power cable? congratulations you can change a graphics card. Can you pull out and put in a console game cartridge? A PS memory card? its the same! nearly

 

[Skratt]

My wifes PC I got her 7 years ago is still viable today due to lifetime warranty on parts, its been updated to a quad AMD with 2 9600's in SLI for no cost to me when a part fails.

How in the hell did you manage that? 7 years old and some company gave you a new pc when that one died?

Register and warranty your parts right away, the CPU died after four years and they gave her the current gen socket proc in the same price range same thing when the video cards crapped out. This is why you always build your own, almost all parts come with lifetime warranties(which are usually 10 years). I have never paid for a broken or burnt part because of this in any PC I have ever owned.

Hmm, I've never seen a warranty longer than 5 years and most are 1, 2 or 3. That being said, I've only ever had motherboards fail on me, which are like 90 days or 1 year, and they fail after that of course. Comming up on 4 years for my current PC and the only reason I am considering upgrading is Battlefield 3 and Alice.

 

[Zorpheus]

Even as someone who knows the ins and outs of a computer, consoles supply the following benefits:

1) Genres available. Consoles are the best for Fighting Games, JRPGs, action games and Japanese imports. Period. There's no argument to be had here. Similarly, PCs kick ass at Strategy Games, Western RPGs and First-Person Shooters, genres I wouldn't even think of playing on a console if I had the choice.

1.5) Gimmick Systems/Games. Utilizing touch screens and motion controls in some consoles/handhelds allows for games that are nothing like PC games in gameplay. Of course, this can be both a good and a bad thing.

2) Local multiplayer. In PC games, you usually need another computer to play with your friend even if they're in the same room. Console games are designed around games that are easily played on one TV with one system.

3) TV viewing. Some things just look better on a TV that's a fair distance from you. I don't like watching TV shows on my computer, for example. But I watch a ton of TV using my PS3, whether it's DVDs/BluRays or things streamed from NetFlix or Hulu.

4) "Will the game run on it? Of course it will." Even I, with the 1337 computer skillz, have to be vaguely concerned with system requirements for a game on the PC. If a game is released for the PS3, I know it's been tested to run reasonably well on the PS3 hardware (with a few exceptions).

5) Portability. Yeah, I have a Laptop, but let's face it: Even compressed into a laptop, computer hardware is pretty bulky and inconvenient compared to a Nintendo DS or a Sony PSP. Laptops are generally far more expensive and far more prone to compatibility issues with games than a handheld system, as well.

I love my PC for games. But I love my consoles/handhelds for games, too.

 

[Levethian]

I see no reason to use a console at all. Never had one never will.
I'm a tech guy, I like tinkering with stuff. And I like modding.

The PC has superior graphics, cheaper games, modding capability, I don't have to replace the whole thing as it age, etc...

This.
I've never encountered a reason to shift to consoles. Then again I haven't had a TV for about 5 years, probably helps. Only ever owned handhelds.

Can't live without the control; modding, upgrading, customising etc. I also like to dip into games from 10-20+ years ago.

As a result I'm also reasonably knowledgeable about computers & various software. Yay.


Also I agree with 'Extra Credits' forecast for Consoles...

 

[emeraldrafael]

Cause the PC doesnt have Persona.

Also, just cause I like them better. And my PS3 as it sits now is more functional and powerful then a PC, but I've modded the shit out of it.

Don't you mean And My PC as it sits now is more functional and powerful than a PS3?

Or when you said "Then a PC" you meant your PC.

No, my PS3 is more powerful and functional then your average computer, the average gaming computer (the way I understnad it, there's a difference), and better or on par with the top of the line stuff.

 

[monkey_man]

GOD. OF. WAR.

'nuff said.
But if you won't take that, littlebigplanet, and halo, and gears of war. Al very good titles.
And I heard prototype is shit for pc, so buy that one on the p3/xbox aswell!

 

[PettingZOOPONY]

My wifes PC I got her 7 years ago is still viable today due to lifetime warranty on parts, its been updated to a quad AMD with 2 9600's in SLI for no cost to me when a part fails.

How in the hell did you manage that? 7 years old and some company gave you a new pc when that one died?

Register and warranty your parts right away, the CPU died after four years and they gave her the current gen socket proc in the same price range same thing when the video cards crapped out. This is why you always build your own, almost all parts come with lifetime warranties(which are usually 10 years). I have never paid for a broken or burnt part because of this in any PC I have ever owned.

Hmm, I've never seen a warranty longer than 5 years and most are 1, 2 or 3. That being said, I've only ever had motherboards fail on me, which are like 90 days or 1 year, and they fail after that of course. Comming up on 4 years for my current PC and the only reason I am considering upgrading is Battlefield 3 and Alice.

Look for the Double lifetimes thats how you get the 10 years, XFX is one company that normally has them all the time, my new EVGA board also came with a double lifetime but I think I got that because I was a existing customer registering a new product.

 

[starwarsgeek]

For me, the exclusives are a big deal. This is especially true for Nintendo platforms, since their games are not going to end up on the PC. Also, I don't know a lot about computers, so I'd have to do a lot of self-education to get a dedicated gaming-PC.


By next generation, I'll probably invest in one and a Nintendo console, though. The only 360 exclusives I was really interested in were the Halo games, and Bungie's moved on, so the quality of future titles is uncertain, and just about every other game I own on the 360 was also available on the PS3 or PC. If this trend continues, I probably won't need the next Xbox.

 

[windlenot]

I don't even have a PC. I'm a mac kinda guy. I like my controllers.

 

[Fidelias]

Well, for me it's because I just distrust my computer to play games. I mean, I play a lot of games on it, but in the back of my head, I'm always worried that it's going to crash.

Also, whenever you get a game for computer, not only do you have to install it, but you have to check that there aren't countless little things you have to do to make sure it plays correctly.

Especially if you use Vista, Vista hates games...

 

[Silas13013]

Usually because they don't understand PC gaming I guess? I saw someone on here saying something about not being able to play AS2 on a $300 6 year old PC. Well I can one up you, a 10 year old PC that can run it that, (at the time) was less than $200. Now granted, it was refurbished so that cut the price down and windows 7 made it a lot easier now that the OS isn't fat but all that was required was a few sticks of RAM ( <$100) and a graphics card (~$100). So, I now have a PC that has been running for 10 years at a cost of about $400 and can still run crysis. Now I know you will say "can it run it on high?" and I guess you win there because it can only handle medium graphics. The rig is shoing its age unfortunatly but since it came from the era of the ps2 and game cube, I think I'll be ok.

Anyway, I used to be a console gamer. I own every playstation system, every Nintendo system except the SNES, and both of the xbox consoles. Every single one sits in my basement collecting dust next to my computers. I have built 5 of the things now, for various reasons, and I have not looked back. Even for parties I don't use them anymore, everyone just brings over their PC. Now, this is a personal choice. I LAN almost every weekend. It works for me. I've converted a good number of my friends to PC gaming as well. It works for us. Some people don't like it though and that's fine. I know most people wouldn't have been able to do what I did with my old PC because they can't be bothered, I am an electrical engineer after all. Most of my friends used to think building a PC was hard, until I showed them. It's literally "plug the cord with a specificly shapped end into the hole that is designed to fit it". It's actually very hard to mess up a computer if you can fit the square block into the square hole. But agian, some people can't be bothered.

tl;dr:
It's because people don't want to take the time to learn something new, and it works. We all have different tastes and console vs pc gaming doesn't really matter, just do what you like and have fun with it.

 

[PettingZOOPONY]

Well, for me it's because I just distrust my computer to play games. I mean, I play a lot of games on it, but in the back of my head, I'm always worried that it's going to crash.

Also, whenever you get a game for computer, not only do you have to install it, but you have to check that there aren't countless little things you have to do to make sure it plays correctly.

Especially if you use Vista, Vista hates games...

I use to be like that until I played Morrowind on the Xbox and realized that it is more to do with the Dev's than anything. Or the fact Vista can travel in time and is trying to destroy all gaming with its overloaded kernel.

 

[gussy1z]

a PC is way cheaper

 

[teh_Canape]

in my opinion, because PC ports are getting shittier with the time