I've just assumed for a long time that a game developer would take a cue from the Guitar Hero/Rockband games and simply ship a serious roleplalying game with a keyboard/mouse combo for the PS3 or xBox 360. Hasn't happened, and I'm wondering why. Seems like it would only take one highly anticipated rpg that REQUIRED a keyboard and mouse for everybody to have one (particularly if it shipped with one for an extra $20 - 30 or something). Once everybody has one, developers need not feel restricted by the console controller, and then we all could benefit. If ever a game could pull it off, I'd think it would be Skyrim.

I'd gladly shell out some extra $. Is there some reason this wouldn't work? Are keyboards & mice just way more expensive than I'm imagining?

Why would it require a keyboard? The controllers work fine and I can imagine a lot of people actually prefer it over a mouse and keyboard.

You could buy an Eagle Eye converter I know there's a PS3 one already and they've been showing an Xbox 360 one too but I'm not sure if its released. It basically allows you to use usb M+KB on consoles.

Have you ever played a roleplaying game on a pc with a mouse/keyboard, and then tried to play it with a console controller? While it's true that some may prefer the console controller, I've found the keyboard and mouse set-up to not only be more user friendly, but also allow for much better control. DragonAge, for instance, on the PS3 was really dumbed down by trying to squeeze it into a console controller package. Maybe it was just lazy programming and they could have gotten more out of the controller, I guess I can't know that the true problem is the controller. Maybe somebody with a more advanced knowledge of programming could enlighten me.

Additionally, I feel like if console games ever want to get in on some MMO style success, they're going to need a keyboard/mouse command system so people can communicate via typing.

The problem is console games are generally games you play from your couch in front of a TV several feet away. A mouse and keyboard setup just doesn't work very well for that. That's not saying people couldn't make it work. I've known a couple who've tried. But average Joe Consolegamer isn't going to want a mouse and keyboard taking up all the real estate on the coffee table. They're also not going to want their "controller" keeping them from leaning back and relaxing while they play.

False. Console controllers are stacks better. WIN! :flamethrower:

Seriously...it's way easier getting a PC...they're not even THAT expensive as every console gamer seems to think...

Apart from the price, I swear I'll never understand those people who wants both the simplicity of the consoles and the complexity of a PC.

*shrugs* It's pretty simple really. Certain games are better with certain controllers. Guitar Hero needs a guitar. MW2 works very nicely with a standard controller. Many RPG's work better with a keyboard and mouse, particularly if you're actually trying to RP in said game with other people. If you think I want a keyboard and mouse because I want complication, I guess I don't know how to convince you otherwise, but it's really not how I see it.

And it's fairly complicated, and significantly more expensive to keep up with computer graphics. Why would I want to upgrade my exisiting machine, which barely runs Oblivion, to play Skyrim when my console can play both without a glitch. If you want to get the max graphical performance out of a new computer game, you essentially need a brand new, state of the art system + vidcard. Nothing worse than buying a game, then turning down all the graphics just so you can run it smoothly. That's the main reason I've given up on computer games. That, and they've finally started porting games like TES to consoles. : )

I suppose you're right. I guess I always assumed people who were buying these typically PC-style rpg's for the console were more interested in the pc-style of play (i.e. keyboard/mouse). But I guess maybe a lot of console players don't realize there is a difference at all, and keyboard/mouse culture shock would be too much.

Skyrim, as sad as it sounds, can hardly be considered a RPG, or at least of the complexity of isometrical ones a-la Baldur's Gate, Dragon Age 1, etc, which would really justify the addition of a keyboard + mouse. Another thing is that you're more comfortable with kb + mouse in a 1st person view game, which I agree.



Again, the typical FUD. It's not significatively more expensive, but significatively more complex. But learning to successfully upgrade or to build a new PC from raw pieces is free.

If you want a mouse and keyboard, buy Skyrim on the PC. Better graphics and mods anyway. Personally I'm getting it on my 360, because I love the feedback that a controller gives me.

Since there is no backward compatability, if you want mouse and keyboard, join the PC brigade.

No, not buying it on PC. Lots of reasons. Yes, want a mouse/keyboard option for console. I guess it doesn't have to be required, but I'm still sort of operating under the assumption that developers are slightly hamstrung when making rpg's for consoles due to the lack of a mouse/keyboard set-up. Does anybody with any intelligence have input on whether or not that assumption is even accurate?

First point is a good one. TES is not impacted as much as other RPG's would be. As for the second, I'm pretty familiar with finding good deals on computers/parts, and upgrading them so I can play the games I want to play. It isn't foreign ground for me. While I've never gotten the necessary expertise to buy a mobo seperately from power source, processor, etc. etc., I can certainly upgrade ram and vidcards, etc. I'm very comfortable with my decision to no longer bother with computer games. I don't think wanting to play certain games with a keyboard and mouse invalidates that decision. In my mind, it's just a different controller, no different that the drums for rockband or a steering wheel for a racing game or a gun for a shooter.

Have you ever tried gaming in a sofa-tv-coffetable setup? A keyboard is not compatible. better control? Yes, but no console gamer is going to be hunched over thier coffee table staring up at thier flatscreen.

I bridge the world of platforms. I own a beast of a PC, 360, ps3, wii, dreamcast, N64....

I play TES and starcraft hunched over my desk. Rock Band, Katamari, Halo, and Modern Warfare; that's armchair territory. If a gamer plays TES on console than he isn't going to try and mount a setup in front of his couch, especially when keyboards and mice aren't his comfort zone.

Bad idea man. People play on controllers for a reason. Take that away forcefully and you piss off 90% of Bethesda's fanbase.

If you've never done that, then you've never built a PC from scratch. And if you rely on branded pre-made PC's (relying on upgrading them), it's not odd that you think they're expensive. Pre-made PC prices are WAY inflated, where if you build one from scratch you can have a much better one for the same price, or even less.



Apart from the fact that you won't get them. Or at least, included with Skyrim. Myself, I prefer to be free and have whatever accessories I want, and not leaving a multinational deciding what's good for me or what I need or not.

Okay, to build a computer from scratch capable of running Skyrim at max settings, how much would you have to spend? How long would that machine be able to continue running brand new games at max settings? I don't care how good of a deal you find, and how quickly you can put it together (assuming your time is at least as valuable as money), there is no way that over the life of it, you will even come close to spending as little as the initial $300-400 that you would for a console. And I'm giving the benefit of the doubt and assuming that all your hardware and your homemade computer has no unforeseen complications during it's lifespan (like a sound-card or video card going bad). If it is comparable, you need to start a business.

what he says is true here. I'm proud of my PC, but the maintainance since 2007 is well over the two grand mark. Now my PS3 which i got in 2007 hasn't given me one inch of a problem. And it'll play skyrim if i so chose to buy it, but i'm a fan of consevative modding so.... I pay to keep my PC up and running.

In my case...I built my PC 3 years ago. And I only had to upgrade my graphics card (200 euros) in order to be able to run Skyrim at max settings and 1080p, way more than any console will run it. And even if I didn't upgrade, I still could have been able to run it at least at console quality. I repeat, a 3 years old PC. And not even a particularly high-end one when I built it So it depends of how well you build it from the beginning.



Well, I don't expect it to run BF3 at the very max, but that game is pretty much the exception. Apart from it, I expect to max games at least an extra year. And still, I repeat that I can always put the games at console quality, without losing the advantages a PC has (especially mods ). That "max settings" statement is pretty unfair, having in mind console graphics are NEVER at max settings. Heck, they even rarely are at true 1080p (1920x1080) resolution!

And don't give me the benefit of doubt. I have issues with my PC (the startup is kinda screwed up since a lights-out I had in my house, and sometimes it can be tricky to put it ON), but apart from that (that was an external issue after all), I've never had any problems with my PC, not even viruses. 360 users can't say the same with a certain Red Ring of Death™ and overheating...Conclusion: Every system can fail one time or another

Hmmmm. I've played keyboard/mouse computer games on my couch when I wanted to use the big-screen. I guess I didn't have a lot of trouble. I certainly wasn't hunched over my coffee table or anything. I just leaned back, found a comfortable way to handle them, and away I went. I do use a mouse with a thumb-ball or whatever you call it, so maybe that makes it easier for me? But as somebody who bridges the gap as well, I guess I don't really think of console gamers and pc gamers as different types of people. I honestly always just figured we didn't get the best rpg's on consoles because of the keyboard/mouse/hard-drive situation. Maybe you're right, though, and we don't get them because console gamers and pc gamers are such vastly different sorts of gamers. . . . .

The max settings comment was very intentional, though, as the second you start lowering graphical quality, one of the major draws of pc gaming starts slipping away. I don't think it's unfair. I mean, sure, the graphics on the consoles aren't as good as a maxed out pc, but they actually improve over time, and I don't have to buy a dang thing! Programmers just figure out how to get more out of the system as they get more familiar with it.

So, how much was the initial investment 3 years ago? That, plus the 200 euros for the video card + whatever upgrades (if they're even still feasible with the main box) you need to keep things up to snuff over the next. . . what. . . 2 years? 3? 4? How long before we get a new console? It adds up. Now, I will admit not being able to mod chaps my buns, as Oscuro made Oblivion much more enjoyable for me. And we already know I prefer a mouse/keyboard. So I'm not bashing or anything, but I'm also not going back to PC games. I also had issues with crashing and such (bad with NwN2), which you can probably solve more quickly than I could, but they were intensely frustrating and another big part of why I've given up on pc gaming.

mouse and key board svck as controls.

Yeah. That's basically how I divide my games up. The ones I'd much rather play with a mouse and keyboard I get for the PC; for those where I prefer a controller, I get the console version. Modding capability is a major factor as well.

It's seems a bit redundant to turn a console into a computer, even if it's just the peripherals (but then people are already wanting modding capabilities too, along with other things that are usually just on the PC). There are some games that I just think play better on a console, and others that are better on a computer. But that's just my personal opinion.

Except that Skyrim is an Xbox port and the controls were based on a controller.

Indeed.