Why PC gamers should love (or at least not hate) consoles

[Waaghpowa]

i have owned several $3000+ home build pc rigs, and i can honestly say i prefer console for performance hands down, at least the PS3 anyway. PS3 is far more stable then any computer that has equal power. Its plug and play simplicity makes it great for casual gamers as, great game line up and online support for hardcore gamers, and movies and music for "non-gamers"(yes i know your out there )< ). also your never going to see Microsoft giving out free games because they fucked it up.

I can see what most PC gamers say about overall quality being higher, but I'll definitely say that at any rate, the framerate is more consistent on a console. At times, it just feels smoother.

Consistent? Usually. Smoother? I don't think so, though there are SOME console games that manage to maintain a decent high FPS, but I don't think most of them break 30. Honestly nothing beats playing a game at a steady 60+fps. I went back to play Resistance 2, one of my favourite shooters on the PS3 because of the concept. I got a headache because the FPS was so dreadfully low by comparison. Personal opinion obviously.

 

[shrekfan246]

I didn't really include processor or memory in my calculations because most newer computers definitely have enough on that end to do solid gaming. A core 2 duo, for instance, can probably run most Unreal Engine 3 games reasonably well.

I'm also certainly not including people who "casually want to play a few games". Those people would be better off finding a flash game, facebook game, etc. I will agree that buying and installing a graphics card is not as simple as buying a console, but it's also not nearly as complex as some people would assume. Just like with many other appliances or "range in value" products, you'll go for a little bit of advice on "here's what I want to run" and most of value is just in the price and ratings. Then, as long as you have the right slot on the inside of your computer, there really is no wrong way to do it unless you somehow assume you need a soldering iron. (Yes, if you're moving on to something like the processor, it gets more complicated)

-tangent-

I would, however, like to thank the recent generation of consoles for the fact that "PC gamers always need to upgrade" is simply no longer true. Most developers are now aiming for the graphics range of the 360 and PS3, which is far below the current bar of graphics cards. Because graphics is no longer the big race, this bar is not going to be raised for a long time, and many have noticed this console generation has stuck around MUCH longer than the previous ones. Thus, many people who got an old GeForce 8800GTS many years ago will find it should still be more than adequate for current games. Today, that card costs around $50 (though it's technically discontinued)

Since I'm saying a lot in favor of PC gaming, I will just say that I just recently bought a PS3; my first next-gen console, and though it hasn't nearly turned me off PC gaming, it is pretty nice so far.

Well, I was referring more to someone who knows little-to-nothing about PC gaming but wants to try it out, sorry for not clarifying that. Though I will also thank the current generation of consoles for shifting how games are developed, because processors and graphics cards that are made these days do tend to be much more powerful than most games capitalize on.

i have owned several $3000+ home build pc rigs, and i can honestly say i prefer console for performance hands down, at least the PS3 anyway. PS3 is far more stable then any computer that has equal power. Its plug and play simplicity makes it great for casual gamers as, great game line up and online support for hardcore gamers, and movies and music for "non-gamers"(yes i know your out there )< ). also your never going to see Microsoft giving out free games because they fucked it up.

I can see what most PC gamers say about overall quality being higher, but I'll definitely say that at any rate, the framerate is more consistent on a console. At times, it just feels smoother.

This sums up my feelings in a simple way.
Consoles are certainly a more simple way for people to enter the gaming scene. You don't have to worry about whether or not your hardware will run it, you don't have to worry about whether or not there will be installation or compatibility issues (usually), and I can't say that I've ever had hardware (or software for that matter) issues with my PS3 (My 360 is only a few weeks old, not nearly long enough to know if the "Red Ring of Doom" will strike me).

 

[Feylynn]

I don't think anyone 'hates' consoles, that would be stupid.
I 'hate' people telling me I'm not allowed to like the PC better.
I like having one system that does everything.

I want to play games, talk on vent, msn, listen to music, read books, check out the news, weather, foreign culture, obscure trivia knowledge, write a book, draw a picture, surf the nets, lurk around the escapist, check webcomics and webseries, etc, etc, etc.
I want to be able to alter any setting I want, download programs, change hardware.

A console at the moment offers me basically none of that (Consoles cannot browse the internet, it's a lie, I don't believe you, I'd rather staple my hands to the inside of a toaster then use the PS3 to brose the webs), I don't even find a console more comfortable or relaxed because I have my desk set up at a couch for maximum comfort.
I also already have exclusive like LoL and WoW that demand me have a decent system why not make it a good system and play everything.

So yes I dislike having to switch my monitor and sound over to use my PS3, yes I'd far rather play on anything but a console, and yes I think PC's are better in every single aspect bar none.

But no, I don't hate Consoles, yes I will use consoles, and no I don't hate console gamers, you guys are cool.
Just don't tell me I'm 'wrong' for having different preferences and we're all friends.

If a console becomes a PC you lose your position because it's a PC.
Consoles have their core market, I'll likely always have one for exclusives, I will always prefer PC.

 

[Hobonicus]

I agree, but I don't see it as a reason to love consoles as much as a reason to believe that in the near future, all these arguments will be completely meaningless and inconsequential.

Because, if there weren't consoles, there would not be nearly as many gamers. In the future, the collective console gaming community will combine with the PC gaming community.

While that's true, I don't see how that's really a reason to love consoles. Most PC only gamers don't consider how widespread gaming is anywhere near as much as they consider the quality of games. Twilight may have gotten entire generations to pick up reading again, but that doesn't mean it should be loved by people who care about novels. An extreme example I know (I'm not necessarily comparing consoles to Twilight), but still makes the point.

Basically what TiefBlau said seems the most accurate. It doesn't change a PC gamer's current complaints about consoles so much as suggests that in the future most of those complains may be invalid. And moving from negativity to potential acceptance is no reason to automatically love something, although it may result in not hating them in the future.

 

[Leole]

-snip-

Oh, no particular reason. I just find Gamepads strictly binded with consoles, it's a personal thing. I know you could just port the game to PC and get a 30$ USB gamepad and you're set, but, personally, I wouldn't play it anywhere else.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

I would, however, like to thank the recent generation of consoles for the fact that "PC gamers always need to upgrade" is simply no longer true.

It never really was, though.

It was only marketing shills and hardware whores pushing the line to have the latest and greatest bits and pieces that made it seem that way. Now most of the marketing shills have fucked off and are currently raving about the latest in arm waving technology for consoles... and more people have realised that hardware whores have always been full of shit.

What consoles have done is given a base line of stable technology for developers to work from... which has been a double edge sword for PC gamers. Good that its kept 'minimum specs' (when they aren't talking out their arses about what they're minimum for) from raging out of control but also bad in that some devs and/or publishers have taken to thinking that sticking to the base line should be good enough for everyone.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

The biggest problem I had was trying to get Linux graphics drivers.

Yes well... either the chipset manufacturers should stop being such jerks about Linux or some of those crazy Linux geniuses who install it on their toaster should put a bit of effort into addressing the issue.

 

[TiefBlau]

I agree, but I don't see it as a reason to love consoles as much as a reason to believe that in the near future, all these arguments will be completely meaningless and inconsequential.

Because, if there weren't consoles, there would not be nearly as many gamers. In the future, the collective console gaming community will combine with the PC gaming community.

You're assuming that all PC gamers agree that they want more gamers, or at least the kind that play consoles.

In any case, you can say precisely the same about why console gamers should cherish PC gamers. It makes no difference.

To be quite honest, I don't really care. Hating someone for using a different console is like hating someone for listening to a different kind of music or believing in another religion.

Wait...shit.

 

[RhombusHatesYou]

You're assuming that all PC gamers agree that they want more gamers, or at least the kind that play consoles.

Most PC gamers aren't going to give a flying fuck except for "what impact will it have on PC gaming?"


Edit: It's like saying people should give Bobby Kotick more respect because his approach is "good for the industry". Big fucking whoop when "good for the industry" where he's concerned is almost always diametrically opposed to "good for the consumer".

Take this "broadening appeal" nonsense. Sure, it's good for publishers if they churn out games that appeal to the widest base possible... but c'mon... how many people are already bitching about the staleness and lack of originality in big budget games? How is pandering even more to the lowest common denominator going to help that? How can we go around thinking our hobby is gaining acceptance and respect when even our own industry treats us like losers who need to give way to the majority?

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

If PC gamers were to worry about consoles, then every platform should worry about everything shouldn't they. iPad users worrying about facebook apps and whatnot. I'm glad there is consumer choice, I kind of hope it stays that way rather than blurring the lines as the OP says. I happen to enjoy using many features of my PC rather than gaming, like work, spreadsheets, managing my shit basically, and yes, even other stuff that utilizes the specs for hi-spec gaming like video/sound/image editing, encoding and what have you.

The question to me still lies, is there a correlation to consoles and the wider audience causing the "dumbing-down" of FPS's and other genres, or was that something that was bound to happen anyways? (This is one issue some PC gamers seem to have, but to me is not proven to be blamed on any particular thing, rather just an inevitable trend in gaming).

If anything, PC gamers should be more afraid of cloud computing, and this tile-based OS that looks to be on the horizon, holy crap that looks bad, i honestly have nightmares about it.

 

[MajWound]

I was a PC gamer religiously until I got a 360. Then I was a 360 gamer until I built a computer. Now I'm a PC gamer who plays consoles when someone like Rockstar pulls some bullshit and refuses to make a PC version. As many problems as Steam has, I'm getting games while I sleep and I save an average of $10. And I'm cutting out Gamestop, which makes me feel like less of a hypocrite for hating them to the fucking core.

I just have two huge arguments for PC gaming:
1) A functional RTS genre (I love them but I suck at them. Damn my round eyes.)
2) Variable aim sensitivity in FPS.

If I want to do a 180, I fling the mouse across the pad. If I want to put a bead on a head four pixels wide, I can scoot the mouse by fractions of an inch. And I don't ever need to get in the game controls more than a couple times to get it right.

EDIT: Also, this may just apply to me, but everything seems to look better on my PC than on my 360. Maybe I need a better TV.

 

[Waaghpowa]

If anything, PC gamers should be more afraid of cloud computing, and this tile-based OS that looks to be on the horizon, holy crap that looks bad, i honestly have nightmares about it.

Don't think there's much to worry about as far as cloud gaming goes. Onlive as a rental service? sure, but paying full price for essentially nothing but ACCESS to the game? Don't think people will take to that very well.

 

[Smerf]

i used to be console, back in the days of the ps2. but now im a pc gamer. i dont really like consoles but thats because i cant multitask like i do on the computer. you know, play css and write a report for school at the same time.

 

[DANCEMASTERAFRO]

I generally find that PC gamers are just the same as us console people. I own both a PC & an Xbox. I like my xbox for my COD and other fps's and I find multiplayer games offered by consoles to be more acessable and the chat function on the xbox to be very functional and easily acessable (seeing as you get a mic when you buy the xbox itself). I play WoW on my PC and lets face it you couldn't transfer such a game to a console hence the need for keybinds etc. However the debate itself I find utterly pointless, we're simply trying to justify what we spend our money on, what we find engaging and what we find enjoyable. Nobody likes it when someone comes along and pisses on their parade, hence we fight over which platform is superior. Okay if you have an extremely well equipped high end gaming pc then your graphics and general game aesthetic will generally be better than my console. But in terms of acessability I would argue that my console is far easier to use and is far more user friendly compared with some pc games amount of keybinds and manuals an xbox controller is simpler and easier to pick up. Xbox live has a great community, most of my friends own xbox's so I'm never alone but then again if you're a pc gamer you'll have a similar situation no doubt. What gamers should realise is we're a community no matter what platform we play on, games are a source of fun and not an excuse to try to get one up on the other gamers across the lunch hall. Like anything from brands of soft drinks down to religion there's always gonna be someone trying to argue that theirs is better than yours but at the end of the day it's what you believe, what you enjoy and what you feel comfortable with that matters and like religious debate the world would be far better off without people arguing over what's better and just unite in the fact that we are all here sharing a similar passtime (that is life and games).

 

[TiefBlau]

Most PC gamers aren't going to give a flying fuck except for "what impact will it have on PC gaming?"

Well, I for one have plenty of friends that I'd like to LAN party with.

Edit: It's like saying people should give Bobby Kotick more respect because his approach is "good for the industry". Big fucking whoop when "good for the industry" where he's concerned is almost always diametrically opposed to "good for the consumer".

That's not economically, linguistically, or historically correct.

Also, while it's true that Kotick should be skinned and raped, his existence is still a sign of a healthy industry, in the same way obesity epidemics are a sign of a well-fed country.

Take this "broadening appeal" nonsense. Sure, it's good for publishers if they churn out games that appeal to the widest base possible... but c'mon... how many people are already bitching about the staleness and lack of originality in big budget games? How is pandering even more to the lowest common denominator going to help that? How can we go around thinking our hobby is gaining acceptance and respect when even our own industry treats us like losers who need to give way to the majority?

Say what you want, but I guarantee you we wouldn't have the choices, the technology, or the budget that we have for games today if gaming didn't have a larger audience, and no amount of cries for the nonexistent "good old days" of gaming is going to change that.

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

If anything, PC gamers should be more afraid of cloud computing, and this tile-based OS that looks to be on the horizon, holy crap that looks bad, i honestly have nightmares about it.

Don't think there's much to worry about as far as cloud gaming goes. Onlive as a rental service? sure, but paying full price for essentially nothing but ACCESS to the game? Don't think people will take to that very well.

Hope you're right, it does sound ridiculous, so I'm just keeping my fingers crossed they don't come up with some other creative pricing scheme in order to have the general population running just 'terminals' in their homes. What with modern DRM, it's been a while since the days of just owning a game, installing it and playing it whenever you want, on any system, without having to be online and updated and what have you. (Kind of like playing CD's in your car). Which is something that console gaming still has going for it.

 

[Jegsimmons]

maby in the future consoles and PCs will combine in one big cluster fuck of win!!

 

[Waaghpowa]

If anything, PC gamers should be more afraid of cloud computing, and this tile-based OS that looks to be on the horizon, holy crap that looks bad, i honestly have nightmares about it.

Don't think there's much to worry about as far as cloud gaming goes. Onlive as a rental service? sure, but paying full price for essentially nothing but ACCESS to the game? Don't think people will take to that very well.

Hope you're right, it does sound ridiculous, so I'm just keeping my fingers crossed they don't come up with some other creative pricing scheme in order to have the general population running just 'terminals' in their homes. What with modern DRM, it's been a while since the days of just owning a game, installing it and playing it whenever you want, on any system, without having to be online and updated and what have you. (Kind of like playing CD's in your car). Which is something that console gaming still has going for it.

Cloud gaming wont catch on for a long time until certain things happen:
1) they set up servers somewhere OTHER than the USA
2) Internet connections become faster and more affordable
3) Other nations adopt the unlimited data allowance scheme, which I can tell you living in Canada, will not happen any time soon.
4) like you said, make it affordable, because who the fuck in their right mind would pay full price for access to the game?!

Consoles may have the whole "You just need a disc" thing going for them now, but with the way technology is going and how consoles are basically mutating into these restrictive game only computers, it wont be long till they start implementing the same serial cod registration system that they do for PC games, since they will get easier and easier to pirate. And we all know how paranoid publishers and developers have been with piracy lately.

Edit: I just wanted to point out that I can't find any information as far as Onlives financial success, so either they're not doing well and don't want to go public with is, or they just want to keep it quiet in general. The latest thing with Red Faction Armageddon demo being Onlive only might be a sign they're desperate.

 

[Waaghpowa]

Been saying it for years.

However, the downside is that they aren't becoming PC's. They are becoming Macs! Boxes with hardware which cannot be changed, and is all bog standards, sold at high prices with software that is limited to the one system.

Yep. Consoles are becoming Macs, and that is a very very very bad thing.

QFT and also what I've been thinking for years now.