I'm not trying to start a war here. What is the allure to the consoles? What is better about playing it on a console? The only thing I can think of is that you can play it on your tv, but I'm sure there are people on these boards who have their pc wired into their tv. I have an xbox controller for my pc although I don't use it for this game.

I guess the only thing remaining is the price?

Consolers - what's the deal?

this should probably be in the general discussion forums..


now, granted i play games on both PC's and consoles, but I do play on my PC more (sadly, my PC is down for the count, need to replace it, got the parts picked out just need to save up before i can afford build it),

but i amgine some people prefer the "plug and play" functionality i assume.. I imagine maybe some less tech savvy people may not want to worry about installing, making sure drivers are up to date, reading system reqs, etc..



thats my guess anyways.. some people often argue that it costs alot of money for PC gaming, but as someone who builds his own PCs, i will say its not half as expensive as many people think

I was under the impression that, the console market was driven primarily by:

1. A perception that consoles are "cheaper" per unit of "performance" (whatever that might mean)

2. A perception that consoles are "easier" to configure and use

3. Can plug into a TV (which, of course, a PC can as well but still . . .)

I have very limited experience with them. Basically, limited to using one in a house I house sat at 10 years ago, or maybe once or twice at a hotel. I've never done the math to see how a "baseline" gaming rig actually compares to a console, but to me the additional functionality of being able to do lots of other stuff on a PC would require a console to be like 1/10th the cost of a baseline gaming PC for me to consider it a good idea.

To me it seems somehow ironic that, a large proportion of the revenue from a game like Skyrim comes from console sales, whereas it seems equally obvious that the vast majority of "community engagement" is driven by "PC-dependent" phenomena such as mods and Youtubers.

I'm pretty much exclusively a PC gamer, but I can definitely see the appeal of the simplicity consoles offer. You don't have to worry about whether a game will run poorly on your console or anything, you just stick the disk in and play.

Also, consider that the Xbox 360 was released in 2005, and there are recent releases that you can still play on it. It is almost certain that I wouldn't be able to play a game like Dragon Age: Inquisition on a computer I bought in 2005, but it was released on the 360. The idea that you don't need to constantly upgrade your console might be appealing to some.

(of course, you'd need to be pretty lucky to have a 360 from 2005 that never got the RROD...)

I've always played games on consoles, mainly because it's better for me on a large TV screen and it wouldn't feel right sitting at a desk playing a game like skyrim using keyboard buttons to control characters instead of a control stick or Dpad.

You can plug your PC into a big screen HDTV and 7.1 surround sound system and game with a controller. That's what I do. Consoles are simpler but a decent PC is much more powerful and can do anything a console can do and more. Consoles are simpler to use and slightly cheaper (but not really that much cheaper), which are their only real advantage.

I started playing on consoles with the nintendo entertainment system it was so simple just put in the game and play never worrying if my system can play it. I just want to play games not tinker with options. Though now I have a laptop with some old school games like dungeons and dragon. But I still game mostly on console.

Personal preference.

I think one reason is less hassle.
I don't have to worry about PC specs or if a controller is supported, or if I need to update drivers, etc. With consoles, you put the game in and it's going to instantly work.
Consoles also are great for "couch gaming" with a group of friends all playing the same game in the same room.

The last game I bought for PC was Oblivion, because my PC just can't run anything newer than that, but I don't really miss playing new PC games because almost everything is on console anyways.

I could but since I upgraded to Windows 10 my PCs speakers no longer work.

A combination of comfort and it's a bit more quiet to play on console in my room. I've also just never took to PC gaming.

Why PC? *shrugs*

This.

And alot has to do with what your friends play on. If everyone you know plays on Xbox, you're not going to have as much fun on the PC or Playstation unless you're willing to get new friends lol

I built my first PC when I was 12, read all the how to's and what not's ordered my stuff and figured it out along the way lol. Ever since then ive been a PC gamer (with the exception of my deployments i brought a Xbox360, because brining my PC to Afgan was just not a good idea) Almost all of my friends play on PC, a few stragglers like consoles but i dont want to play Call of Duty with them anyways lol.

I thing some things are obvious to everyone and some may not.

First:

The most obvious advantage that consoles have over the PCs is the price, so cost.

Console prices are well under 400 bucks (or even lower), and often with some games in a bundle.

A PC for running adequate the latest games can easily cost twice that much. !!!

Second:

Let's face it, a PC can be a technical nightmare sometimes compared to a console. You can take a console home and play a game within minutes.

No OS to configure or even better - not to purchase a game, and find out later that's not completely compatible with your PC's hardware.

So, at the end the game doesn't run as you would like...

Third:

installing a game on a computer is always a bit of a gamble (for some of us anyway). You never know if it's going to work until the game is ready to be played.

And even then, if you out of luck you can expect that game will crash at any moment. (Damn, those drivers again...)

Fourth:

Another thing that you can do with a consoles more easily, is playing games sitting on the couch, or playing games with friends in the same room.

While you can do that with a PC as well, a console is extremely well-suited for that.

Fifth:

Console games are more easily to rent than PC games, and more easily to return to the retailer if someone is not satisfied with that particular game.

It is difficult (or even impossible in some cases) to return a PC game, because as you all know, it's easy to be copied.

Sixth:

Games on a Console are more easily to be played because the controller. Even if it's possible to do that on a PC as well, the controller is included in the end price of the console. So less expenses.

..and sometimes you may figure out, that some games refusing to cooperate with an particular controller.

Seventh:

Unlike games for consoles, you won't find many PC games that supports two players on one computer at the same time.

Eighth:

Consoles are very compact machines (especially the PS4), very portable, very light weight, and they consume less power as well.

That's not the case with an Desktop Computer, and it seems it never will be...

My 2 reasons are less hassle with the console and cost. My 5 yr old 360 finally bit the dust... 2 yr's bouncing around in a semi is a major factor to that probably...lol I can replace it for less than $200. I could replace the graphics card in my pc right now for about $100... and if I wanted to upgrade...ball park of about $300-ish with a quick search.

I like them both, but I played Skyrim since release on 360... I bought my PC,, because I wanted to add mods to my game. I am not a big gamer... I only have the TES games, Dragon Age, Fable and Red Dead Redemption ( on my husbands ps3). I also play Devil May Cry and Gear's of war ( not often on those though). I only have the TES games ( Anthology) for my PC right now.. I will get all the Dragon Age games... but probably not the others. I'll keep my 360 games...why..because it's easy to fire up the 360.

You don't have to always be on Steam/ on the Internet... I very rarely am. I don't even do 1/2 the "sync cloud updates", cause I use my phone as a hot spot for internet and it $$$$... So mostly I just do the "verify" and I'm done with steam.

Skyrim does not have an "always on" internet requirement. We only need to verify the game once after installation. After that's finished, we no longer need the internet. One of my gaming computers is a laptop and I often have my internet cable unplugged when I play Skyrim.

I've primarily played on consoles because of the following reasons:

1. It's what got me into gaming. I had a console about 2 - 3 years before I had a PC. My first videogame was Super Mario 64 on the Nintendo 64.

2. I've typically never had the money, time, or know-how to build a custom-built PC (although I do now, so it's a plan for early 2016). I still lack the know-how but I've a few friends who said they'd walk me through it.

3. I've always preferred controllers to keyboards (we've discussed this in another topic). Up until like 4 months ago, I didn't know that PC gamers could use controllers.

Due to the stagnation of most console IPs and due to my waning interest in most videogames in general, I'm going to be switching over to becoming a PC gamer probably around December - March. I think it's ultimately the best investment, especially considering I (hopefully) have gradschool looming around the corner.

I have a couple qualms with a few of these...

#1 Everyone seems to be comparing a brand new console to a completely brand new PC, when the fact of the matter is, when your console is old gen, you have to fork over $400 for a new one. When your PC is "out of date" for a new game you normally only need to upgrade one or two parts. Its easy for people to say well buy a completely new computer if your old one is out of date. That is narrow minded thinking and simply not the case 90% of the time. So price can be argued to be the same for both. Also you can argue when Steam sales go in effect you can buy your games up to 90% off.... Show me a black friday deal at walmart that had console games 90% off...

#2 Consoles have just as many problems as PC does. It all boils down to upkeep, except if your PC has a problem you can usually google and figure it out yourself. If you get the red ring of death or your console dosent work, you have to pay money for someone else to take care of the problem.

#3 There is nothing of a gamble when installing a game for PC. I have YET to hear of someone who downloaded a game on steam and it wouldn't run (excluding unstable indie games). On the contrary ive had many problems with console cd's getting scratched and never working again...

#5 Im not sure where you're going where they will let you return a console game and not a pc game. Console games can be ripped and copied JUST AS easily as pc games can. Thats why DRM is a thing.

#6 please lets not have this argument over "CONTROLLER IZ BETTER---NO MOUSE AND KEYBORD IZ BETTER" extra controllers cost just as much if not more then a mouse and keyboard

#7 Lets be real here for a second. Nobody plays split screen anymore. The internet is a thing and split screen is not. So lets just not get into this.

*deep breath* *sigh* Sorry if i seem argumentative, I cant let one sided views be undisputed....

Eh, a lot of older games are problematic on modern computers. If you download a game from late 90s from Steam, chances are it won't work that well or even at all. Especially if it's a less known game that haven't received fan-fixes/solutions or whatever.

Unfortunately, I agree. Which is a shame, cause playing multiplayer with friends/family together on the same couch is so much more fun than playing together far away from eachother. So I really wish more games had splitscreen, far too few PS3/360 games did. Nintendo is fairly good at this though.

This comic comes to mind http://www.dorkly.com/post/60844/the-ages-of-multiplayer

I definitely agree with you. It is a lot of fun to play multiplayer in the same room as someone you know. You can simulate the split screen environment with a LAN party or something, but the fact that everyone needs their own equipment/copy of the game is a drag.

I agree, which is why i am glad I never got rid of my older consoles.. I actually have an entire shelf dedicated to older games I enjoy that i can play with friends when they come over. such as Bloody Roar 2, or good ole Contra

Choice!.

OT: Actually talking about consoles, if anyone just got Halo Guardians, and plays multiplayer i have 2 REQ pack codes, if anyone wants them PM me.

Split screen. Yes, another advantage of consoles. My wife and I love playing that way.



Does your TV have speakers? If you plug your PC into your TV with an HDMI cable the sound should play on your TV speakers.

I'll become a PC gamer when...

A. Nintendo makes games on pc instead of their own dedicated console.

B. I can actually just put in a pc game without having to check numerous different settings annd whatnot just to get the thing to play without taking 30 minutes or more. With a console 99% of my games load up and play just fine in less than 20 minutes. (Though GTA 5 took a ridiculous 5 hours... =\)