PC vs Console? Which game platform better?

[Big McLargehuge]

It's all about preference.

I'm primarily a console gamer because that's what I grew up playing...I had a solid half-dozen consoles by the time a computer ever entered my house and as such whenever I see a non-JRPG game referred to as an RPG I still get confused/annoyed

Most games I want to play with a controller, and for those I always prefer playing on a console...but I also play enough Civilization and Planet Coaster to realize mouse & keyboard has their place. Unless a game is explicitly better off with mouse & keyboard I'm always going to default to the console versions, though (see: every indie game I've spent 5 minutes with on Steam and hours with on the Switch).

 

[Hammettf2b]

PC is a lot more expensive if you want to get the best gaming experience. And for someone who knows nothing about how PCs work and run, consoles are my best bet

everything is going to be more expensive for the "best" experience. Problem is, thats not a realistic comparison. Most people don't have a pc setup that will give them the "best" gaming experience. If you compare it to the latest PS4 hardware though, it will run you about the same except pc games are generally less expensive. I think people are unfairly making pc gaming a negative when it comes to price because they compare it with the latest and greatest hardware.

 

[Hammettf2b]

The only thing I don't like about PC gaming is the cheating. It ruins some games. Other than that, I get all my games on PC now except for console exclusives.

 

[Beau Knows]

I prefer PCs even for the living room, it's just perfect for having friends or family over.

Using emulators you can play all the old games (Arcade, SNES, N64, Gamecube, PS2, even Wii U...) without fumbling with changing systems and controllers. Just open LaunchBox and select from 1000's of games. Doesn't matter who comes over there is something on there for them.

You can build your PC into an HTPC case and it will look like just a regular console setup. You can launch right into Kodi on startup so that it becomes incredibly easy to use your PC with just a controller or a remote to watch movies, play games or browse the web.

You can use virtually any type of controllers you want. There's a million types of retro controllers you can use that are made for PC's like wireless SNES controllers. Or you can use adapters that let you use the actual controllers from those systems. Just bought a new console and want to play with 3 friends on your couch? You're gonna need to spend probably a couple hundred bucks to get 3 more controllers. If you buy a PC you can use whatever you have lying around or buy whatever controllers you prefer.

Doing all of this does require some setup, so to get it to that level is not as simple as just opening the box and plugging it in like a console. But once you're done I think the experience is much better.

 

[Do Make Say Think]

No wonder this is the best gaming forum I know, that PC is the clear winner (in terms of votes) seems to indicate a slightly older user base.

 

[Common Sense]

Of my top 5 games this gen, 4 of them are console exclusives. So I'll go with console.

 

[Osprey]

everything is going to be more expensive for the "best" experience. Problem is, thats not a realistic comparison. Most people don't have a pc setup that will give them the "best" gaming experience. If you compare it to the latest PS4 hardware though, it will run you about the same except pc games are generally less expensive. I think people are unfairly making pc gaming a negative when it comes to price because they compare it with the latest and greatest hardware.

I agree. PC gaming can be more expensive, but it doesn't have to be. It's only really expensive if you want to play the latest games at the highest resolution and quality settings. If you don't need that, you can lower the settings until the game runs comfortably on your hardware. That's one of the nice things about PC gaming. You rarely need to upgrade in order to play a game. With consoles, when a new generation comes out and a game is exclusive to it, you're forced to fork over hundreds of dollars to upgrade in order to play it. With PCs, there are no generations, so a game that might be exclusive to the newest console should still run on your 7-year-old PC. You may need to lower the quality settings and performance may still be less than ideal, but you can do it. A year ago, I played through the just-released Kingdom Come: Deliverance at about 20fps, give or take. It was pretty rough at times, but at least I was able to play it at all on my aging hardware. I didn't have to upgrade to play it, as I would've had to have done with a console.

 

[Osprey]

No wonder this is the best gaming forum I know, that PC is the clear winner (in terms of votes) seems to indicate a slightly older user base.

Most other threads here, especially the Game of the Year threads (in which, IIRC, only one winner out of about 20 has been a PC exclusive), have left me with the strong impression that this forum is mostly a console crowd. I imagine that most of the console gamers are just choosing not to participate in this thread, perhaps because they don't have enough experience with PC gaming to be fair. PC gamers, on the other hand, tend to be a little older and have played a fair share on consoles, so that could be why they're edging out the discussion and the poll. The fact that all 20 of us PC gamers have spoken in this thread shouldn't lead us to believe that we outnumber the 50 or more console gamers here .

 

[RandV]

It's all about preference.

I'm primarily a console gamer because that's what I grew up playing...I had a solid half-dozen consoles by the time a computer ever entered my house and as such whenever I see a non-JRPG game referred to as an RPG I still get confused/annoyed

Most games I want to play with a controller, and for those I always prefer playing on a console...but I also play enough Civilization and Planet Coaster to realize mouse & keyboard has their place. Unless a game is explicitly better off with mouse & keyboard I'm always going to default to the console versions, though (see: every indie game I've spent 5 minutes with on Steam and hours with on the Switch).

One thing I've really been impressed with on PC in the past few years is not even counting emulators we're starting to see a real good build up of JRPG's, which can be played with a controller on your couch if that's how you like it. New releases from Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Tales, Nier, Ni No Kuni, and more are all getting launched on PC. Lots of back catalogue games from old consoles and even portable (Falcom games like Ys and Trails series), as well as HD remasters. Still missing a few good titles but overall just looking at legally purchasable games PC/Steam may have the best singular library of JRPG's available.

 

[aleshemsky83]

You know I have to be honest, I hardly see any difference between 4k and 1080p, and I can get adjusted to a decently stable 30 fps even after playing with higher framerates.

What I absolutely cannot stand coming from PC to console is load times, laggy menu selection, and limited numbers of save slots.

Witcher 3 and valkyria chronicles bring this most to mind for me. Witcher 3 with the super laggy menus on console, and both games with only 7 state saves allowed meanwhile the PC versions have unlimited almost.

Don't get me started on load times. At least cut in half on PC even on super slow hard drives.

On the other hand, for me, PS4 is way, way, waaaaaaaaay cheaper, just because my library has a ton of games they loan, and the sales on the storefront are only off by a couple bucks from PC.

 

[Commander Clueless]

Of my top 5 games this gen, 4 of them are console exclusives. So I'll go with console.

A very good point. A lot of the top notch games recently have come from Sony and Nintendo first party stuff.

Most other threads here, especially the Game of the Year threads (in which, IIRC, only one winner out of about 20 has been a PC exclusive), have left me with the strong impression that this forum is mostly a console crowd. I imagine that most of the console gamers are just choosing not to participate in this thread, perhaps because they don't have enough experience with PC gaming to be fair. PC gamers, on the other hand, tend to be a little older and have played a fair share on consoles, so that could be why they're edging out the discussion and the poll. The fact that all 20 of us PC gamers have spoken in this thread shouldn't lead us to believe that we outnumber the 50 or more console gamers here .

Yeah, I think it's just because us PC people are a bunch of nerds.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

One thing I've really been impressed with on PC in the past few years is not even counting emulators we're starting to see a real good build up of JRPG's, which can be played with a controller on your couch if that's how you like it. New releases from Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy, Tales, Nier, Ni No Kuni, and more are all getting launched on PC. Lots of back catalogue games from old consoles and even portable (Falcom games like Ys and Trails series), as well as HD remasters. Still missing a few good titles but overall just looking at legally purchasable games PC/Steam may have the best singular library of JRPG's available.

*shrugs*

My computer is nowhere near my TV, my TV is better than my monitor, and my couch is preferable to spending more time in a computer chair than I already have to. I work on my computer for a living, so I'm not exactly lining up to spend my free time on it as well. My mind is just in a different place when I'm on the couch vs. in my work chair.

 

[Suxnet]

My last console was a PS3 but it got only a fraction of the use my PS2 and PS1 did. I built a gaming PC a few years later mainly because you can do a lot more with a PC than just game and, since I've mostly grown out of gaming these days, I made a good choice. As far as a gaming platform goes, that comes down to preference. There are some really good console exclusives (and in time PC users will be able to play them as well through emulation) but the main point against PC was that you needed to upgrade. That criticism is no longer valid considering you have the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X now. Console wars are dumb in the end. Just play what you like.

 

[Commander Clueless]

*shrugs*

My computer is nowhere near my TV, my TV is better than my monitor, and my couch is preferable to spending more time in a computer chair than I already have to. I work on my computer for a living, so I'm not exactly lining up to spend my free time on it as well. My mind is just in a different place when I'm on the couch vs. in my work chair.

I think the take away is that PC is a viable living room console option as well, now more than ever before....depending on platform. Steam, for example, is a much better controller-supported platform (with Big Picture mode) versus other platforms.

My PC desk is very close to my TV, so I switch between desk and couch setups fairly often (perhaps not as much as I'd like, since the TV is often in use). Some people also build a separate HTPC for living room use.

It's certainly not as cheap or convenient as a console where everything is designed to work with controller, but it has its pros as well.

 

[Shareefruck]

You shouldn't be making these kinds of assessments based purely on what equipment you specifically have at home yourself, IMO.

 

[aleshemsky83]

You shouldn't be making these kinds of assessments based purely on what equipment you specifically have at home yourself, IMO.

I think it's fair to use a reasonable specced PC as a reference. Yes, a 400 dollar PC is going to run games like a dog, but I think when people discuss PC it's referencing a decent cpu and gpu for 800-900 bucks.

Perfectly fine to compare it to a console with the price difference in mind.

 

[Beau Knows]

I think it's fair to use a reasonable specced PC as a reference. Yes, a 400 dollar PC is going to run games like a dog, but I think when people discuss PC it's referencing a decent cpu and gpu for 800-900 bucks.

Perfectly fine to compare it to a console with the price difference in mind.

If we're just trying to compare the cost of a console to the cost of a PC it's not so simple anyways:

• On consoles you have to pay for online subscriptions just to play your games online. This adds up over the years. Xbox Live is $70/year CAD, after 10 years of paying that you could have bought some nice PC parts.
  
• If you want to buy your games digitally on console you have only one source to buy from making it harder to get good deals on games.
• If something breaks on your console you'll likely need to pay for repairs or replace the console, unless your skilled enough to do so yourself. On PC it's pretty simple to replace parts.
• You don't have to throw everything from your PC away every console cycle anyways. Some of your components are going to be just fine to continue using. You can replace them whenever you feel like upgrading.

 

[Commander Clueless]

everything is going to be more expensive for the "best" experience. Problem is, thats not a realistic comparison. Most people don't have a pc setup that will give them the "best" gaming experience. If you compare it to the latest PS4 hardware though, it will run you about the same except pc games are generally less expensive. I think people are unfairly making pc gaming a negative when it comes to price because they compare it with the latest and greatest hardware.

I actually think it's quite fair to count that as a negative for PC.

Even the budget range PCs (assuming you don't bargain bin build one yourself, which not everyone is interested in doing) tend to be a significant price jump over consoles (at least in Canada), and there is also a discrepancy on PC where the optimization is more difficult and often not as much a focus for the developers, so the minimum requirements to play a game on PC tend to be far higher than the actual performance of a console with that same game available.

I doubt this is the place to open the can of worms regarding my personal rants about minimum specs and optimization issues in PC gaming, but I think it's only fair to factor it in.

If we're just trying to compare the cost of a console to the cost of a PC it's not so simple anyways:

• On consoles you have to pay for online subscriptions just to play your games online. This adds up over the years. Xbox Live is $70/year CAD, after 10 years of paying that you could have bought some nice PC parts.
  
• If you want to buy your games digitally on console you have only one source to buy from making it harder to get good deals on games.
• If something breaks on your console you'll likely need to pay for repairs or replace the console, unless your skilled enough to do so yourself. On PC it's pretty simple to replace parts.
• You don't have to throw everything from your PC away every console cycle anyways. Some of your components are going to be just fine to continue using. You can replace them whenever you feel like upgrading.

Some good points as well, although I think #3 is fairly subjective.

 

[Hammettf2b]

I actually think it's quite fair to count that as a negative for PC.

Even the budget range PCs (assuming you don't bargain bin build one yourself, which not everyone is interested in doing) tend to be a significant price jump over consoles (at least in Canada), and there is also a discrepancy on PC where the optimization is more difficult and often not as much a focus for the developers, so the minimum requirements to play a game on PC tend to be far higher than the actual performance of a console with that same game available.

I doubt this is the place to open the can of worms regarding my personal rants about minimum specs and optimization issues in PC gaming, but I think it's only fair to factor it in.



Some good points as well, although I think #3 is fairly subjective.

hmmmm... Maybe now that the consoles are at the tail end of their lifespan and don't cost as much, but when consoles get released, you can build a much more powerful pc for around the same amount of money.

 

[Commander Clueless]

hmmmm... Maybe now that the consoles are at the tail end of their lifespan and don't cost as much, but when consoles get released, you can build a much more powerful pc for around the same amount of money.

I think this might be a regional difference.

In Canada, you can't really do that without dumpster diving.


To be fair, though, we tend to pay full exchange rate (and then some) on PCs and PC parts, but get a better-than-exchange-rate deal on consoles.

 

[Hammettf2b]

I think this might be a regional difference.

In Canada, you can't really do that without dumpster diving.


To be fair, though, we tend to pay full exchange rate (and then some) on PCs and PC parts, but get a better-than-exchange-rate deal on consoles.

I guess it makes up for it with the amount you guys have to pay for games
haha, they get you guys in both markets!

 

[Jasper]

I have both as well but definitely PC overall for me. Unfortunately you can't play NHL or Zelda on the PC, which is the only reason I've got both. I'd play them on PC if I could but don't enjoy waiting or messing around with emulators.

 

[Shareefruck]

I think it's fair to use a reasonable specced PC as a reference. Yes, a 400 dollar PC is going to run games like a dog, but I think when people discuss PC it's referencing a decent cpu and gpu for 800-900 bucks.

Perfectly fine to compare it to a console with the price difference in mind.

I'm referring to comments about the PC being far away from the TV and couch for a specific poster being a factor in this discussion. That's completely arbitrary consideration.

That said, don't think the price consideration is all that meaningful. A computer is pretty much a necessary prerequisite in modern living, whether you game or not. The fact that it plays games is just an added perk.

To me, a more appropriate cost consideration would be how much you have to pay to upgrade an average PC into one that has comparable performance to a console. Not much. (and this is coming from someone who is heavily on the console > PC side of the argument)

 

[RandV]

*shrugs*

My computer is nowhere near my TV, my TV is better than my monitor, and my couch is preferable to spending more time in a computer chair than I already have to. I work on my computer for a living, so I'm not exactly lining up to spend my free time on it as well. My mind is just in a different place when I'm on the couch vs. in my work chair.

I'm just thinking about the context of the thread question here. If we're all talking about 'what works best for me' then technically someone who only has time to play during a 30 minute bus commute could say mobile is their 'best' platform, and from their perspective they'd be correct. But if you're trying to determine an overall better option (which I'm assuming), then certainly it's a valid point that you can couch game with a PC the exact same way you do with a console.

All things being equal the strongest point you can make for console, especially since it's a 3vs1, is the selection of exclusive games. Especially from Sony and Nintendo. Overall though PC still has so much more going for it.

 

[Big McLargehuge]

This thread is a solid example of why I utterly abhor PC gaming.