In the gaming world, everybody is behind their PCs at all times, so there is no chance to have a beer together; or split a chocolate cake for that matter. When it comes to debates, the hottest one on the market right now, and has been for the past few years, is PCs versus consoles opera. Its hard to say how people are still not tired of expressing their hateful feelings towards one or another at every single article on the topic of hardware. My best guess would be too much free time, but you know what – that doesn’t really matter. What matters is that one side is clearly winning, and that is of course PC enthusiasts (lets leave the worn-out word “elitists” out of this).
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The graphical upgrades in the last 6+ years have been astronomical, but the hardware on consoles have been hindered by 'old tech.' If they made it easy to swap out a graphics card or add RAM it would be an easy alternative to PC gaming.
Sure, PCs will most likely always be ahead of consoles, but that doesn't mean console games aren't good - it just means they do what they can with their limitations. Reduce some of those limitations by allowing OEM hardware upgrades (a slot for RAM, a slot for graphics card - much like replacing a slim HD?) and you can improve the experience for console gamers.
It's a stretch for sure - you're adding an element of difference between the consoles at launch and later in the hardware life, but to stand stagnant the entire console life (aesthetic changes not withstanding) only hinders gamers looking for the best experience.
TL;DR: Make consoles upgradeable - aim to make most games work on every version of the console. Make AAA titles REQUIRE updates to play (ex - Halo 4 requires 8gb HD installation)
These sorts of things intimidate and confuse the average consumer, and they might feel pretty angry that they have to continually buy new components to play the latest games, because that's historically NOT something consoles do. Plus, having multiple configurations out there takes away the optimization advantage; console games would start to look worse on average in order to remain compatible with the variety of configurations out in the wild.
You need only look at things like the N64 expansion pak to see that this is not a good idea.
But yeah, i don't see this ever happening in the console world. It would be a headache for the not so tech savy people and create many problems for most.
I'd love to see some kickass android games that worked well overall.
1) Consoles are designed to be as cost effective as possible, meaning everything is soldiered in. Making upgradable machine first of all will cost more.
2) Even if they did make it upgradable, think of the bottlenecks. If you had a 5 year old motherboard, its pointless throwing in the latest graphics card on to that thing. Just too many constraints, console specific parts will be more expensive than PC versions due to royalties and not enough production, performance wont scale due to other parts being old. Why do you think companies like Intel, AMD introduce new archtectures every few years, its because new hardware can be taken advantage of.
3) Not many people will be willing to upgrade, when it comes to the PC. Millions of people who arent even gaming need parts like CPUs, Ram, Motherboards, HDs. The only part really designed for gamers is the GPU. Hence when all the other parts are made in such mass quantity it solves the problem of consumption. Its not like console makers will be using off shelf ram, CPUs etc. Hence it will cost them more to make those specific parts and then if the demand is not so great that will become a problem.
Overall i dont think its a feasible idea to make upgradable console, not only for the above reasons.
I will still pick up a next console system, but this way I satisfy one missing element consoles continuously lack for me.
And consoles already implement upgradable parts. Anyone increase their hard drive size before? That is one type of upgrade very common in PCs.
http://www.ibuypower.com/St...
I'd rather spend the couple hundred dollars more for this thing than buy a crappy alienware.
Then they become PC's and not gaming console with strict guidelines so everyone has the same experience.
"If they made it easy to swap out a graphics card or add RAM it would be an easy alternative to PC gaming."
Or it would be a PC.
If graphics are your allure I would very much say that you become a PC gamer and I'm sure you already are.
I am a PC gamer as well as a console gamer. Mostly, I was trying to find an idea that would justify a 7-10 year console life cycle with "old tech" without the games being held back by the console they are created for.
"Or it would be a PC."
Aren't they already though?
I didn't really like my comment up top after I posted it, but I figured I'd share anyway.
The mistake that the 360 / PS3 made is they didn't take the 64 bit revolution seriously and average ram usage jumped to 8 gbs.
Also, a lot of people think graphics are starting to slow due to costs to produce. So I wouldn't expect a huge jump in the next 5 years.
I think people often overestimate how much PC gaming costs nowadays.
With Moores law starting to slip, I think PC gaming will become a more viable and future-proof option for people.
But I don't think programmers are keeping up as well with the increase in technology as I haven't had to upgraded my pc in 4 years and it still handles modern games very well. A lot of people exaggerate how often a pc has to be upgraded or replaced before its obsolete.
IMO, a pc can last the same length as a generation of consoles before a single upgrade is needed. Any upgrades in that time are only luxuries. And a console still can last 5-10 years before it's time to be replaced.
I think that an upgradeable console would do wonders for the market.
only if done correctly.
for example.
a 4 stage upgrade kit like you saw in those mini rc cars at radio shack.
start with level 1. level 2 not being released for a year or so to come level 3 continuing the trend.
However each and every game must have options for each spec, at that point its not about differing hardware or confusing the consumer especially if the upgrade has a big fat sticker on it that says "#4 do not insert upside down"
so in the future any little boy who deperately wants a tbox-250 can have one and play every game released for the system for half the price, albeit at lower graphical settings.
and every enthusiast, can buy level 4 when it comes out and continue enjoying the console for years to come.
a time upgrade scheme would make things far more affordable for the entry level user and a far better experience for the enthusiast.
the only condition to this all running smoothly is that every game must support all 4 configurations which is not very much in terms of development, as they would likely carry the same architecture.
stage 1 30 fps, 720p, 16 characters online
stage 2 60 fps, 1080p, 32 characters online higher texture pack too.
The games run under the stage you got. The design should be like 360 harddrive. Simple push button whole stage release add new stage.
Um yeah sega did do it. If your old enough to remember.
original: sega genesis
upgrade: sega cd
upgrade: sega 32x
It didn't work to well as I recall.
http://spong.com/article/10...
No more console upgrades or PC upgrades. all you will need is a good internet connection.
Any gamer that plays fast or even medium-paced games will notice the terrible delay with cloud gaming. And faster internet won't solve this (faster means more bandwidth, not ping). Maybe if they get enough cloud server where they have one no more than 20 miles from you, but that is just ridiculous.
Well take that and times it by a billion.
It'd destroy any company that tries to do it.
what you need to realize is consoles are ALWAYS trying to become pc's, they just cannot ever possibly keep up
who did sony just buy again....gaikai......lol....be fore everyone HATED the idea of cloud gaming....now look at them line up to talk about how awesome its going to be.....
there's been cloud gaming on pc for 5 years, and it sucks, its basically a little bit better than console graphics, theres less jaggies and true 720p always vs the sub-hd of many console games.......but is is NOTHING compared to even pc games from 2005
cloud storage
free to play
consoles will always be a generation behind pc, and thats ok, but to know the future of your favorite console maker, just look at pc right now
....well....unless your favorite console maker is nintendo, nintendo do whatever they want. i respect them for it too:)
The stuff you're talking about is simply an evolution of consoles offering more gaming options and/or styles.
Free to play wasn't capable until consoles were primarily internet-capable, which means this generation. It doesn't mean that will become the standard for console games, like so many uninformed idiots out there believe.
Cloud storage is the same: an option, and a really cool one in the event you've got games that are cross compatible like, say, The Show on PS3/Vita, or if you want to make sure your most important saves are safe from hard drive crashes. The actual games are an extension of that.
Tell me: what generation is PC on?
The point is that consoles aren't open systems. Adding your own hard drive doesn't change that. Buying a newer version of the system doesn't u[grade your old one.
Call me when I can pop open my PS3 and swap parts out for whatever I want to upgrade performance.
In my humble opinion both PC's and Consoles will, in the not-too-distant future, no longer be!.. at least not in the guise we recognise them today.
@comment#1 No no no.. it just wouldn't work in so many ways and if it were to happen we may as well buy PC's as that's what they'd be.
It would take away any benefit gleaned from consoles being fixed platforms, devs would have to cater for the lowest common denominator whilst in the other hand not bothering to push coding so far by relying on the hardware the few may have.. as with PC gaming today!
Not for a while, but it will happen.
Delusion certainly isn't going anywhere.
I hope your not disagreeing that when CD's, DVD's etc first came about people didn't say they would never replace Tapes, VHS, if so you are obviously not old enough to remember.
Vinyl, Tapes, CD's, DVD's, Blu-Ray are mediums for music and video as a game console is in a way a medium for delivering games.
And much like Blu-rays are a high quality alternative to DVDs or streaming, consoles and PCs with actual hardware are the high end gamer's option. I think there's a place for both to co-exist.
Thus I agree with what your saying.
Part of me believes that dedicated gaming devices will continue to coexist so long as we, the gamers, stick with them and make them marketable. Hell, we've been making it profitable since the 80's. Until core gaming shifts solely to a cloud device, the game console will continue to exist.
Besides, people like having physical ownership and they also like the option of selling games once they play them.
With cloud gaming and digital distribution, you can't.
I will always opt for discs rather than downloads.
With consoles just pop in the game, and if it has to install certain things then install and then just play the game. I too prefer physical media over digital and all this cloud craze that's going on now, however as a gamer I know things are rapidly changing so with time comes the inevitable.
Duh, of course PC games look better. But I don't have the 1500 bucks needed to make a "gaming" PC. You can't play the best PC games with the 400 dollar HP laptop you buy at Best Buy. And even THAT is more expensive than a console.
I'm not on either side of this "debate". People should play whatever they like. But console gamers need to stop pretending that PC graphics are not the best available and PC gamers need to stop pretending like consoles are not the cheapest option for decent gaming. The dumb middle ground is iOS gaming: more expensive than consoles and unable to provide the visuals that PCs can. Its lose, lose.
and here it is from ken himself when he discussed making the ps3 upgradeable through ram and other means or combining them accros networks. im sure others can find even better articles but this was just one of many where he wanted to make the ps3 have the ability to upgraded later in its life.
http://spong.com/article/10...
Oh no ! He won't be able to share his chocolate cake with his welfare buddy anymore. What a fu****g bum. who gives a crap where consoles go. Get a pc and be done with. It's where all devs would go if that were to happen.
um...
Microsoft’s $6.2 Billion Writedown Shows It’s Losing War With Google
Jul 4, 2012 4:45 AM EDT
Fighting for online advertising dominance with Google, Microsoft bought aQuantive in 2007—and wrote down almost the entire $6.3 billion purchase price Monday. Matthew Zeitlin on Microsoft’s next field of battle.
Nice attempt at sarcasm. The funny thing about sarcasm is you need to be right, when you comment, for it to work.
Way to leave the "costs a lot more" hanging there. You don't have a "right" way to respond to that.
PCs have always had growth potential that consoles don't
They have always been technically "superior"
With the right parts, they have always been able to render smoother animations, higher fps, sharper textures and overall just better graphics
And you shouldn't be threatened by this because it is nothing new.
Message to PC "enthusiasts"
----------------------------
Does this "debate" really benefit anybody other than people who just like to stir up a ruckus for "trolling" purposes? Does it get more devs to build a PC version of a certain game from the ground up instead of merely porting it? Does it get more devs interested in developing exclusively for PC? Does it have any effect whatsoever on your hobby to be this way? How does it benefit you to call somebody a "peasant" because of what they play their games on?
Message to console only players
----------------------------- --
People are gonna talk smack, it's what they do. Whether it be about a superior gaming experience, a favorite team beating a rival or really anything at all that could even feasibly be considered a competition...and it's really not a big deal. You can let it go. You don't have to shout back at them for being assholes (especially because they always destroy you in these dookie flinging contests), let them SHINE brightly for the humble to see so that they may turn their backs in disgust. Thier opinion of you and what you play on does not affect your gaming experience. Just because some internet trolls tell you that consoles are dead and they are the master race doesn't make it so... because none of this really matters. The industry doesn't care about this debate. Assholes are going to be assholes no matter what you do so just let it go. This certainly doesn't benefit you and when you shout back at them, you make yourselves look just as bad, especially when your facts are wrong as they most often are.
There's nothing to gain here by conducting ourselves as we have been for the last few years and I know that personally, I want to improve who I am and how I conduct myself. I've made inflammatory remarks in the past, I've been guilty of the same dook slinging that I am condemning in this post and you know what? I regret most of it. I don't want to be like that.
We don't have to be like that. There are greater possibilities than those that the industry would like us to believe. You should be taking your anger out on the developers who decided to give you a port instead of the PC gaming experience you have come to love. You should band together and strike back against greedy publishers. You should STAND TOGETHER no matter what.
We are all gamers, no? Can anybody deny that? Maybe you should experience the best of both before you can understand that they have their rightful place in this world and in your homes. For one or the other to die would be a detriment to gaming in general.
PCs built it or upgrade an OEM and turn it into a gaming PC
Consoles just buy plug and Play.
PCs deal with drivers, blue screens of death, and five or four years later buy new parts that are compatible with the motherboard you own
Consoles deal with overheating issues, baloney decisions made by the corporation that owns the console, lots and lots of restrictions that some problems can only be solved through a desktop PC.
That's it yes today's consoles are software upgradeable and in the case of the xbox 360 hardware upgradeable compare launch xbox 360 with elite and slim in the case of the PS3 is hardware downgradeable look at launch PS3, 80gb PS3, and slim PS3. So
This eliminates the whole consoles are cheaper than PCs and accessibility argument out of the window. I do want to point out how is downgrading a system good and why did customers participated in downgrading their PS3's that doesn't make any sense.
Today's consoles required the games to be installed in the hard drive with the xbox 360 to ensure the DVD discs don't get warpy, or scratched, and in the case of the PS3 due to the low speed of the blu-ray drive. Patching and updating say console games is a must and you cannot play a game without updating or patching say game.
So yes and its sad today's consoles are PCs a shame really.
And that is why most PC gamers are 40 year old obese guys pouting about their graphics cards allday and living with their parents ;) This article is right about one thing though, my console isnt going anywhere and will stay connected to my TV for a long long time.
And I would choose to play with 40 year old obese guys over little children screaming through their microphones and calling everyone a faggot and cheater, any day.
Enjoy your time with the kids.