Who The "Master Race" Leaves Behind: On PC Gaming And Progress

An opinion editorial about the "Master Race" subculture of PC gaming and how it may be detrimental.

[ATi_Elite]

Do you consider yourself a PC gamer primarily?

Why heck YEH, Exclusive PC Gamer!

What do you think of the community’s relationship with power?

Everyone would love to play the Crysis 3 Ultra graphics mod on ultra settings at 4k RESOLUTION but everyone's budget does not allow it.

PC Gamers are smart, they upgrade ONLY when they feel they need to and NOT because some new super graphics game or GPU has come out.

someone spending 10 hours a day playing LoL, DoatA2, or WoW or Dragon Nest will not need to upgrade and can be happily playing their games for a long time.

But if you are constantly buying the latest and greatest graphical game AND applying Graphic mods then yeh you are gonna wanna keep up.

I'm the Gotta keep up guy and I don't upgrade my GPU's that much. Maybe every 2 or 3 years but my PC pays for it. I find ways to put my PC's to work so they make me some cash to upgrade and it is worth it.

Skyrim, Crysis 3, Watch Dogs, GTAIV and many many more PC games look super great with graphics mods.

[JBSleek]

I think PC just offers the best bang for your buck in the long run and the best flexibility as a gamer.

[Timesplitter14]

God bless Steam.
God bless our endless supply of indie games.
God bless our less-accessible games that wouldn't really work on consoles like DayZ and Star Citizen.

[Hello_World]

God bless the healthy competitive scene with League of Legends, Dota 2, Counterstrike GO, Starcraft 2, Hearthstone, etc.

[papashango]

bless Lord Gaben.

[masterfox]

Burp
Burp
and Burp

God bless their inferior single player experiences.

[starchild]

I don't see how this differs from the elitism we see among all subsets of gamers. I see lots of people who think consoles like the PS4 or XB1 are the best and everything else is lacking.

Why is it when PC fanboys think their preferred platform is the best it's such a horrible thing?

[Hello_World]

Because they're right and people get bummed.

[Imalwaysright]

Because they have inferiority complex.

[starchild]

I think both of you are right. The PC is superior in objective ways that can't be argued against, so when a PC fan argues the PC is the best gaming platform it makes some console fans feel inferior and thus they label the PC fan's attitude as "elitism". Never mind the fact that they act the same exact way to other console owners (or even to PC gamers).

When people argue that a certain console platform is the best they have to resort to things that are very subjective. They say things like "console X has the best exclusives" or "console Y has the best interface" or "console Z has the best controller".

Many of the PC's advantages are simple objective facts that you can't sensibly argue against.

[uth11]

Because console elitists tend to just bash the other consoles, while the PC elitists often act like they are personally superior, using terms like 'filthy console peasants'. They are bashing the people who choose other devices. That's why they are so unwelcome.

[Hello_World]

It's a joke dude. No one is literally saying someone is a peasant or filthy.

You use words like that to troll people that defend playing on something that everyone knows isn't the premium way to game.

How can you expect silly console peasants to keep viruses off their PC and update their drivers properly when they don't even know a troll when they see one?

http://hugelolcdn.com/i700/...

http://fc04.deviantart.net/...

http://i3.kym-cdn.com/photo...

http://i2.kym-cdn.com/photo...

[Imalwaysright]

I don't know who are you trying to fool. I see PS fanboys ganging up to ridicule and be condescending towards X1 fanboys everyday on N4g.

[sungin]

pc master race
http://www.youtube.com/watc...

[Hello_World]

lol

http://media.moddb.com/imag...

http://static.giantbomb.com...

[Kane22]

as much as i love my pc. there is no way ill ever be "exclusive" to pc. its all about the games i like to play. there isn't anything wrong with owning a console a well.

[Audiggity]

Sorry, this whole concept is pure garbage. While the self described "Feminist Illuminati" who wrote it is certainly entitled to her opinion, she is spawning more of the same shallow bickering she claims to stand against.

Simply pouring gasoline over the console vs. console and PC vs. console rivalries.

Nothing stands to be gained by puffing out your chest and proclaiming your preferred system. PC elitists, PS4 elitists and Xbox One elitists are all equally guilty... the PC elitists simply have more money to spend (zing!).

But, seriously, if you like games, then enjoy them. It doesn't matter what console YOU like more than another.

Focus all of that negative energy towards the games themselves. Demand more across all platforms. The less time we spend bickering, and the more time we spend playing/buying games, the better the industry does as a whole. Force software to evolve and innovate, why do we aimlessly try to convince one another that one platform is superior to another?

[annus]

A lot of the PC elitism is aimed at the consoles BECAUSE games aren't moving at the pace they should be. So many games have clearly been made to work for the console, be it control schemes, UI, gameplay decisions or the overall feel. Then you have the fact that devs aren't pushing nearly hard enough because they get the console version to be pretty good then just expect that it's "good enough" for PC, when in reality there are a lot of us with machines that are barely being pushed at all.

[Audiggity]

Again, an issue with the software and need to innovate/improve. Has nothing to do with "PC elitism".

It's tough to find a PC game I can't max out... and my rig isn't even that cutting edge/powerful/expensive.

But I still have an XBox One. They both serve their purpose.

[LightDiego]

These guys are the biggest joke on the gaming community, i play on all platforms and you must be really stupid to ignore the best exclusives that you can find only on consoles, simple as that, just look at how many awards that Sony exclusives got recently, games like Little Big Planet, Uncharted 2, Journey and The Last of Us, and Nintendo on all your history.
But you can't discuss with these guys, they never played games like Mario, Sonic, Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger and Metroid, and think that mobas are the best games ever created. xD

[Hello_World]

I have PS4 and Wii U...had PS3 and 360....those games last maybe a week?(never even that long for me) I enjoy consoles some in small amounts when an exclusive finally does release...but to pretend I would give up 95% of my gaming time I can be spending playing the top competitive games(If you're uniformed what the big competitive games are... go to Twitch.tv and look at the top 10 games at any time...PC always dominates) to play a 12 hour exclusive every once in a while...lol.

Some of us have seen the light and gaming on a console only will never be the same since I built my PC a year ago. Just not good enough(for me).

[uth11]

PC gaming is awesome at first. But the BS wears you down. Endless hardware upgrades, virus's spyware, drivers that don't quite work, games that don't quite work, etc etc etc..

I gave up PC-only gaming after many years and have more fun gaming on consoles these days

[zero_gamer]

I rarely ever run into the aforementioned problems with my gaming rig. It's not the computer that is the problem, it's your carelessness, you know, downloading pirated games or browsing shady porn sites.

I have a GTX 690, it's over two years old and still considered an enthusiast-class GPU by today's standards that is more powerful than the GPUs in both PS4 and Xbox ONE put together. I expect this card to last me until before the 9th generation consoles are released.

To get PC gaming right, it takes someone a little more educated, and a little more spending money. Having nice things require a lot from you.

[jeeves86]

uth11 - PC gaming is awesome. I've never run into issues that I couldn't fix, easily. Viruses? Have a regularly scheduled antivirus scan. Spyware? Same deal. Drivers that don't quite work? Nope - never been an issue. Games that don't work? That would be more the game's fault than the computer's.

The last time I did a major update to my PC was five years ago. And it didn't cost nearly as much as my PS3.

[aliengmr]

@uth11

That may have all been true to some degree, many years ago, but its not anymore. Not even close.

Only browse sites you trust, don't pirate games, and viruses and spyware won't happen. Worst case, you can FDisk it, which has also become much easier.

Constant hardware upgrades? Not anymore thanks to consoles holding things back and the massive influx of indies that aren't always trying to push the envelope. VR and higher res will be a reason to upgrade, but VR is a ways off and 4k hasn't replaced 1080 as "default" res.

Good on you for having more fun on consoles, it really comes down to the games. But PC gaming really isn't the way it was circa Y2K.

[user5669510]

this dude spreads this bs every chance he get and still get corrected. like we keep telling you almost everything is done automatically on pc. just like on console updates is done auto. malware and antivirus is free and scan auto.

YOU ARE RUNNING OUT OF AMMO.

i seriously wonder do you go "im tire of consoles i hate FW updates and game updates. when i play a game that have a bug. i just think ill just stick to gaming on my phone less hassle"

i can guess NO. you still play your console like we all do.

YOU PS FANBOYS STOP SPREADING YOUR BS.

[jeeves86]

Dude...just because one is a PC gamer doesn't mean that they've always been a PC gamer and have never played games from consoles. C'mon...

[DefenderOfDoom2]

Well as console gamer, the PC just has way more games then consoles! The consoles do get some good exclusives. but the PC has way more video games to play!

[aliengmr]

I disagree entirely with this article. Sure there's the internet being "The Internet" but that's a separate issue.

I just don't think the "issue" being discussed is an actual issue. There's no fracturing of the community based on who has the most beastly rig. Seriously, there are no games that require that and no developers targeting that. And even if there were, PC games have settings for a reason.

Point is that what rig another PC gamer has zero impact on my experience and is really only an epeen measuring device. Let them hoot and holler about the "Master Race", it really doesn't matter in the end.

Also, if it sells hardware, then that's actually a good thing. If no one were buying the latest and greatest, that would actually be bad.

EDIT: In regards to Mac Gaming, I'm old school, you don't buy a Mac to play games, you play games on a Mac because that is what you have available. Sorry Mac gamers, but really, no one is answering the "What kind of rig should I get?" question with "Get a Mac!!". You want trendy? Get a Mac. You want to game? get a PC.

TL;DR
It's really a non-issue, beyond being annoyed by it.

[Volkama]

Quite right, the author is making a mountain out of a molehill. Right now the image quality niches available in PC gaming (higher res, multi-display, stereoscopic, high refresh) provide so many options for scaling performance that catering for high-end enthusiasts is almost natural. Devs can target a mid-high 1080p baseline experience, and high end rigs still get plenty to chew on because of these niches.

Also, note that this is a gaming website. The only Macs we talk about come from McDonalds :)

[--bienio--]

Good to know:) Pc rules!!!;)

[BenRage3]

I liked the article, and for the most part agree with what was said. PC is my primary home gaming system (my 3ds goes everywhere with me), but I too dislike the PC master race subculture. As a joke, it is hilarious; but let's be honest here, some of these "PC elitists" really do think they are better than other people, and I find that sort of behavior contemptible.

Although I didn't read all of the comments here, I am surprised how many people take issue with the article. Besides the inconsistent claim about ubisoft, the author has some interesting arguments. Graphics do seem to be the focus of everything gaming these days. Look at the front page of n4g and one of the top stories is always mentioning resolutions. So many studios focus on graphics,and sound at the cost of creativity and new ideas. Are the new generation of games playing any different than the last? All I'm seeing is a new coat of paint for the same types of games. It's not healthy for the industry. It's turning into hollywood, where there seems to be a lack of original stories, and instead we are spoon fed remake after remake, sequel after sequel.

[aliengmr]

The author was making the case that:

1. PC gamers as a whole think they are genetically superior, and that it needs to be stopped before we...do something...I don't know. That simply isn't true. Its a joke, but in the end its meant to hype a platform that saw a mass exodus years back.

2. That the tech "arms race" is somehow a bad thing. Its simply not. With out it neither ATI or Nvidia would have much reason to keep pushing the limit and thus stagnating the hardware industry.

Wanting shiny graphics is not limited to PC gamers either. The companies making AAA multiplats aren't focused on pushing the visuals for PC, but for ALL platforms and mostly consoles for that matter.

Also, the PC indie games are big now and they aren't pushing the "visual limit", but focusing on what you just described.

This really is a non-issue the article is discussing. PC gamers aren't going to start enslaving console gamers powered by some new GPU from nvidia. The fact that the author even approached the "literal" regarding the whole "master race" thing is pretty insulting.

[BenRage3]

Thank you so much for clarifying that. I don't know what I would do without people like you to keep me in check.