Why Console Gaming Is Better Than PC Gaming

An eGamer journalist looks at Console Gaming and why it now has several advantages over the PC

[wallis]

The author makes the point that this article is little more than a rant. It is little more than opinion. The computer that I own, the mods that I can download for free, the astounding graphics, innovative indie market and the many many many features of steam not to mention the games I buy on it at a fraction of full price, are all facts. I'm not going to bash consoles though because I'm not so astoundingly stupid that I think that my experience of them matters as an authority, or even matters at all. Usually what makes opinion pieces, even blatantly inflammatory ones, interesting is originality or something new on the point.

Tip: if you're not saying anything new then don't say it at all. I don't know if it's the stupidity of thinking the prefix "this is my opinion" made the author think that he what he had to say was worth saying, or whether it's just the plain fucking banality of the argument used, but this article really should be forgotten.

[Volcre]

Not all rants are unhealthy. PC gaming really has suffered a lot because of developers taking their frustrations at pirates out on their fanbases.

I'm not going to lie, the ability to mod is amazing for me, but PCs sometimes do cause more problems then they solve.

[wallis]

No but normally a good opinion or argument should at least be a) worth reading, and b) grounded and objective. This is neither. Even a good rant should at least be funny.

Not to mention the needless fanboy baiting it results in. It's like a bunch of kids at McDonalds going apeshit crazy over how their burger is the best burger in the world. It doesn't matter if one of them go on to write a freaking thesis on the subject it doesn't really change the inanity of the argument.

[darthv72]

to know why either one is better than the other. There are pro's and cons to both.

To highlight, consoles are a closed system where each person who buys a copy of the game for the same platform will share the same experience.

On the PC, there is room for improvement and in some cases advantages over the other guy.

Both have their respectable place in entertainment. Why we feel the need to try and promote one over another is pointless.

Unless of course, you are not privy to both so then by all means you will defend your platform of choice.

[r40k213]

I feel like the "piracy" thing is just an excuse for developers to be lazy and develop on the much easier console platforms where not as much is asked of them. After all console piracy exists and it's arguably easier to pirate a console game than it is to pirate a PC game.

[givemeshelter]

This is another rant from a disgruntle console gamer.
Services like Steam take away from his rant.
We heard all this before as you said wallis and must of it is false.
Typical flame article

[SageHonor]

its just Flame bait. Hopefully the site doesn't get any hits

[sevilha82]

I´m a console gamer and i know that this articule is a lie.if only i could...to have a good Pc and the money and know how to bulid one i would do it in a heart beat

[nofallouthero]

great another troll article filled with half truths

[thebudgetgamer]

These articles always end up in healthy discussions, and never turn into I'm better than you.

[KwietStorm_BLM]

Not touching this one

[DivineAssault]

They both have their strengths n weaknesses.. I like both sides

[kma2k]

Wow I assumed there would be way more fighting back & forth than this.

[STK026]

I love how the author uses a low resolution side by side comparison of Dishonored to point out that there's only a small difference in graphics between the 2 versions without mentioning the video settings of the PC version as well.

He also points out that with PSN/XBL it's easier to move from one game to another with the same group of people. In my experience, this isn't true at all. On the PS3, once you leave a game, you lose all contact (by which I mean voice chat) with other people, while on PC, if you use a free VOIP program like Skype or Vent, you can keep talking while changing games. (I suppose this works for the 360 as well thanks to cross game chat).

Then the author mentions the keyboard and mouse, and says that some games work better with a gamepad. I have to agree with him on that. However, you can play games on PC with a gamepad (even the X360 and PS3 ones if you wish to do so). It's not like you're stuck with the keyboard and mouse for everything. And yes, the X360 controller on PC is plug and play.

More games on consoles? Maybe, but not nearly as many as the authors seems to think. There are still plenty of PC exclusive games coming out on PC nowadays, and not only from Valve and Blizzard. Games like the total war series, League of legends and most MMOs are still PC exclusive. Oh, and by the way, slow internet and other internet-related errors can and do happen on consoles too. Resident Evil 6 had some major issues at launch, so it's not like it's PC only.

And then he mentions the fact that you have to format your PC every couple of years, which is something you should probably do even if it's not a gaming PC, so what's the point? It's not like you're going to stop using your PC altogether just because you have a console.

Anyway, this article is, in my opinion, pretty dumb and fails to make a valid point against PC gaming. Both PC and consoles have their pros and cons, but this article doesn't point them out.

[mistajeff]

Good points. I'd like to see a legitimate compare/contrast article instead of this sloppy rant. How do the communication features of xbl compare to those of steam? How does the value of PlayStation plus compare to your typical summer/holiday steam sale? We all know you can use gamepads for nearly all modern Pc games, so how about comparing latency? Compare the actual exclusives of each platform. Compare the network infrastructure of online console games vs online PC games. How much can you customize your average console game vs PC game? Not just in terms of mods, but controls and graphics as well. There are some quality fxaa and smaa injectors that let you enrich a game's color palette in addition to edge-smoothing.

That's the article I want to read.

[bumnut]

I game on PC because thats why I prefer, if someone else prefers consoles thats cool too.

I feel that the author chose the worst looking PC game around at the moment to compare gaphics, not really fair imo.

[CalvinKlein]

PC + console gaming is the only real way to be a true gamer. True gamer since age of 3, ahhahahah all you casual console only or PC only game players.

[givemeshelter]

Formatting your PC once or twice a year SHOULD be done. Even with MACS.
It's a tune up and if you back up all your files, the process is so easy and painless.
Poor article...

[KingKionic]

"Next computer I’m getting is a Mac… screw over-pricing and no games, I’ll pay any amount of money for something that just flipping works…"

This guy cant be serious. This must be a joke.

[dirthurts]

That comment is quite bewildering...
I can't decide if it's ignorance, or idiocy?

[olLANDSHARKlo]

Was a PC gamer at one time, but the cheating is rampant, also the so called user add ons that PC gamers swear by, hardly ever work right, or contain viruses, and slow your PC down, and yes it slows down top of the line PC's, Also can one of you PC guys show me your set up for family and friend gatherings, and how you do this, and don't just post, we can hook our tower to our TV, I know that, I wanna see the setup please. PC gaming for me was typically for a loner, loser , or college kid with limited refunds. Will be waiting on the pics, bet I get none.

[bumnut]

PC's are not really for family/friend gatherings, thats what consoles are for.

I have my PC in a spare room to escape my family!

All of your other complaints sound like you don't know how to work a computer, again thats what consoles are for.

[Lvl_up_gamer]

My only issues with PC gaming is that there are so many hacks, glitches, mods etc that could result in one person having an advantage over their opponent simply because they are more aware of what is out there to give them that advantage.

PC just has a higher rate of possible unbalanced competition if unsupervised or monitored whereas console gaming "generally" has a balanced playing field competitive wise.

[SuperJohnny]

prefer consoles because it's cheaper and has a lot of games

[Pandamobile]

Prefer PC because it's cheaper and has a lot of games.

[josephayal]

Anyway, Every time a Exclusive classic PC game is moved over to consoles with better graphics, examples.. Fallout, crysis portal etc etc

[pr0digyZA]

Well... I ... ugh

http://media.tumblr.com/tum...

[Jakev5253]

was a console gamer my whole life 'til i started playing a few pc games here and there. eventually i fell in love with it so much i dropped 1k on building my first pc three months ago and it's such a beast for that price.

My point is, i love them both and know for a fact that there are pros and cons for both. just enjoy what makes you happy is all i have to say.

[ShaunCameron]

I don't know about better, but console gaming sure is more convenient. Plus it has the games I'm interested in playing the most.

[HeavenlySnipes]

I like PC gaming, I mostly use it to play old PS2 games or a few RPG's that I picked up.

Use my PS3 for MP gaming and exclusives.

If I were to pick however, I'd choose my PS3 only because I like the select of games on that platform more

[Somebody]

Steam. That's all I need to say when the author said about the horrendous DRM on the PC. How many singleplayer PC games that require you to log on online to play? All Ubisoft games in the last two years and Diablo 3. What happened to those games? Ubisoft buckled and threw away that DRM and no more online connection required for its games, leaving only Diablo 3. PC gamers have fought that permanent online DRM furiously and they succeeded. All the studios/publishers are either joining Stem or making their own clients. And all of them allow offline singleplayer campaign.

The only douchebag left is Diablo 3. That's not MANY PC games with permanent online connection singleplayer.

Talking about online connection...what about Sony's Gaikai and MS's own Cloud service. Both are touted as the shining features for next gen consoles and the most talk about ability is to stream games, even PC games, to the PS4 and X Box 3 from....online servers! Yes! The author claimed that singlplayer PC games that require online connection is a negative point and yet Sony and MS are doing stuff to make the next gen to do the same. I'm sure the author will be gushing about how streaming games from cloud servers are the technological wonder of the consoles. Just like how they used to smirked at PC gaming for having riddled with constant patches and praised the super high quality of console games that have to go through stringent QA test. Now they avoided that point in PC vs Consoles articles since current consoles too depend on patches - the QA tests for consoles games claim is irrelevant for this gen's argument.

[JoeSchmoh]

He's right, PC gamers had to pay a "Kings Ransom" to upgrade their PC. Right! LOL