Console VS PC Gaming (Split-off from "Come and Rant Here")

[Aguiluz]

To prevent our healthy living and healthy expression thread from being locked, I decided to try and divert the attention of the people who are debating about PC VS Console games. Healthiness is good!

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(1) You forgot that a PC can do much more then a console.

(2) Hell most games on the PS3 and 360 only run at 720p which is ultra lame.

(3) Thus to me PC gaming IS much cheaper.

(1) That's because they are two different things. Talk about a dedicated knife and a multipurpose swiss army knife. One has a giant cutting edge for that purpose (consoles) while the multipurpose one does many things (PCs), but not as good as separate dedicated screwdrivers, knives and wrenches.

(2) Ultra lame? 720p for me at least is awesome, considering that my PC runs barely at 640x480.

(3) For you, because you already have a very powerful (and expensive) engineering computer. You are all set.

[Twilight Wolf]

...how, exactly, is a keyboard and mouse a superior control scheme to a dual-analog gamepad? Sure the aiming's more accurate, but movement isn't, not by a long shot. If you press "W," you flat-out run; let go, you stop dead. With analog sticks, you can tiptoe, walk, or run, all at your convenience; I can't imagine playing a Medic with a keyboard and mouse because it'd be much tougher to keep pace with whoever I'm healing, meaning I have to consciously think about pressing and letting go of the key to keep up or slow down, whereas with an analog stick, I can just tilt it a little further or hold it back a little more. With gamepads, you also have the advantage of having every button easy to access; with a keyboard, I'm always hitting the wrong keys because I can't quite reach the right one without having to move from my WASD positioning. Then there's the comfort factor; with a gamepad, I can kick back in my comfy chair and get comfortable, whereas with a keyboard/mouse, I have to sit just right in order to play properly. Having played a lot of "Half-Life" on my PC and "Half-Life 2" on my PS3, the PS3 controls win completely for all of the reasons above.

...$800 isn't cheap by any means, especially considering you have to upgrade stuff yearly if you want to play the most recent games.

That's another part of PC gaming I don't get: Instead of just working with a standard, PC developers make games on their monster PCs and then expect people to upgrade to play it, whereas with consoles, they've got a set piece of hardware to program for, and as time goes on, they get better and better at developing for it, and as a result, games get better and better.

I can't stand how I can't just buy a game and put it in my PC knowing it'll run like I can with my PS3; I have to check the system specs on the box, compare them to my computer, and it most likely won't run. How is that better?

You can press a button to speed up or slow down with the keyboard.

But isn't it easier to push lightly to walk, then push all the way to run? (On an analog stick)

Remember how I mentioned I often hit the wrong keys on a keyboard? Probably the same story here.

If you're buying a new PC, anyways, and you'd like to play games, then $800 isn't too bad of a price. I'm talking primarily about people that will spend upwards of $800-1000 on a PC exclusively for gaming; that's why I said it wasn't cheaper.

Also, Rekarp, I don't know what PS3 games you're looking at, but many of the ones I've seen can run at 1080i or higher.

[Jongamer]

They are both Great.

Neither is the winner.

PCs are best for Shooters/RTS/MMOs/Simulations/

Yes PC gaming is Initially more expensive, but cheaper in the long run.

PC games are cheaper, and $800 for a multipurpose machine, sure beats the hell out of paying at least $300 everytime a new Console comes out for something that only plays games, and some movies. Probably the only part you would need to upgrade every once in a while, is the Graphics card.

But for consoles, there are games that just should only be played on consoles.

[Twilight Wolf]

PCs are best for Shooters/RTS/MMOs/Simulations/Any Multiplayer games

Can you tell us why, specifically, those games are better on a PC?

[Jongamer]

Mouse and Keyboard.

nuff said

[Twilight Wolf]

*Points to feelings about mouse and keyboard*

[bacteria]

Many modern console games are the same as on PC's; however, for proper gameplay, you can't beat the retro consoles. Emulation on a PC goes so far, but not far enough to replace these old masterpieces.

If you want to play the likes of Mario and similar, get a console; if you want to play a FTS you need a PC; if you want strategy games, then PC. Better still, have all!

[Rekarp]

Which games look better? Well the easiest one is Mirror's Edge. Which on consoles has AA turned off. On the PC you can enable this option which makes the game stunning to look at. DX10 Bioshock is crazy to along with crysis if you have the horse power to run the dam game. Also all console FPSes have a slight Auto Aim to them. Halo is a great example of this (try the sniper and closely watch the aimer lol).

Granted there are some games more suited for consoles like sport games but that is really the only one. Maybe through platformers in there to.

[eagle5953]

Also, how, exactly, is a keyboard and mouse a superior control scheme to a dual-analog gamepad? Sure the aiming's more accurate, but movement isn't, not by a long shot. If you press "W," you flat-out run; let go, you stop dead. With analog sticks, you can tiptoe, walk, or run, all at your convenience; I can't imagine playing a Medic with a keyboard and mouse because it'd be much tougher to keep pace with whoever I'm healing, meaning I have to consciously think about pressing and letting go of the key to keep up or slow down, whereas with an analog stick, I can just tilt it a little further or hold it back a little more. With gamepads, you also have the advantage of having every button easy to access; with a keyboard, I'm always hitting the wrong keys because I can't quite reach the right one without having to move from my WASD positioning. Then there's the comfort factor; with a gamepad, I can kick back in my comfy chair and get comfortable, whereas with a keyboard/mouse, I have to sit just right in order to play properly. Having played a lot of "Half-Life" on my PC and "Half-Life 2" on my PS3, the PS3 controls win completely for all of the reasons above.

I agree - I don't like using the keyboard for control.

One very important concept to consider, however, is that if you do prefer a dual-analog gamepad, you can use that on your computer. Pretty much any game that allows you to map your buttons supports gamepads. I bought a wired xbox 360 controller exclusively for use in PC gaming (months before I bought a 360). I beat Portal (via PC Orange Box) with it.

I also found an adapter that allows you to use Gamecube, original Xbox, and PS1/PS2 controllers on your computer, simultaneously. It even supports wireless gamepads! I still use that so I don't have people complaining about how they can't use their favorite control scheme when gaming multiplayer. It's pretty cool. I've been debating modding it to fit inside a 3.5" slot (don't need that for floppy drives anymore).

This all being said, I very much prefer console gaming to PC gaming.

[bicostp]

PC:

Advantages-

• Runs pretty much every game ever made (up to last gen console games, 20+ years of PC titles, emulates basically anything)
• Freeware
• Free online gaming (varies by title, of course)
• Arguably more precise and versatile controls (though you can still use your console controllers one way or another, if you really wanted to)
• Better display (unless you're using HDMI on an HDTV with your console)
• Upgradable, and when you do upgrade you don't break backward compatibility for everything you already bought.
• Much more versatile overall. (Internet access, multimedia, and I guess boring work stuff too)
• Custom content. (Anywhere from custom maps to total conversion mods.)

Disadvantages-

• More complex to set up (but still not impossible)
• You're generally tied to your desk (unless you set up an HTPC)
• A bit more expensive than a console (depending on the hardware you get, but the way i see it you need a PC anyway, so you might as well get an $800 decent computer with a good graphics card instead of a $400 Sempron-powered Wal-Mart special and a $200 console.)
• No central online system (closest I can think of is Steam)

Consoles:

Advantages-

• Cheaper than PCs
• Easier to set up and use (no worrying about system requirements)
• Centralized online system (Xbox Live, PlayStation Network)
• Play in your living room on the couch

Disadvantages-

• Once the new one comes out, the old one is useless
• You have to pay to play online
• Few (if any) free titles
• 90% of consoles are tied to a garbage display (SDTV through Composite.)

[eagle5953]

Let's not forget another important distinction: consoles don't get viruses (other than Yaris for XBLA )

Also, it's not too difficult to send the video to your TV from your PC, if that's what you want. Either your TV has PC inputs or your PC has s-video or composite out, and you're set. If you're wondering why you'd want to do this on an SDTV, just consider this: if you're emulating anything 2D, it won't make a huge difference, and early 3D (N64, PS1) looks good enough too.

Look at all the virtual console games that most Wii gamers are playing on old SDTVs - not that Wii gamers care much about HDTV anyway...

For the record, I have an XBox 360 and a Wii, and I enjoy both immensely.

[madc0w]

Well RTS's are much better for PC because you can easily traverse the map. You can go to exactly where you need, and attack just what you want.
Shooters are better just because of mouse. It makes it much more natural to play, and if you watch people play, it makes them look better, not as jerky shooting and spraying.
Simulations are due to the ability of the hardware to upgarde making them better and more realistic, and the fact that you can get multiple peripherals to make your experience more realistic.
I prefer PC's for their usefulness, versitility and the games. Their is a variety of old/free games to download, or mods for TF2. The ability to mod or do DLC is also amazing, allowing your game to continue retaining its value. Also, you do so much more on a PC. I can play music WELL (the xbox media player is crap, and is slow to boot) and store a ton of data. I can talk to my friends while playing, or download things on bittorrent. I can do so much more than just game, and improve my gaming experience.
Also the controller/Keyboard-Mouse argument is dumb. You can use a controller on the PC. I have for geometry wars, since its a million times better for that. But the keyboard also allows much more flexibility, having so many more buttons. Imagine playing WoW on a controller. Its impossible. But playing any console game is possible on a keyboard, excluding wii games that have extensive use of the accelerometer.

[bicostp]

Let's not forget another important distinction: consoles don't get viruses

Neither do PCs if you know what the hell you're doing with them (No, really. If you didn't use a PC for general Internet browsing, only for boxed retail PC games, it wouldn't get viruses either.)

Look at all the virtual console games that most Wii gamers are playing on old SDTVs - not that Wii gamers care much about HDTV anyway...

EDIT:

Here's a big one- BACKWARDS COMPATIBILITY! I can still run Wolf 3D on my computer. Now try shoving a Mario Bros cart into a Wii.

Nope, you can't do that. But you CAN buy Super Mario Bros. again for $5 (or whatever they charge for a nearly 25 year old game)!

[XCVG]

The only console shooter I have is GoldenEye (wait I have Perfect Dark also) so the analog stick movement is moot (I use Dpad). The stick is just plain awkward for aiming. Also a gamepad simply does NOT HAVE ENOUGH BUTTONS for shooters and many other genres. RTS is a great example of this.

Twilight Wolf- if you keep hitting the wrong keys get a different keyboard. Try some out at the store and buy the one that you like the 'feel' of.

PCs get viruses less than you think. I barely maintain my PC and I've only gotten one (technically scamware). As long as you stay away from the crappy side of the web and keep your antivirus up to date you're good.

Rekarp, eagle, and Jongamer all bring up important points, btw.

Here's a big one- BACKWARDS COMPATIBILITY! I can still run Wolf 3D on my computer. Now try shoving a Mario Bros cart into a Wii.

[eagle5953]

Here's a big one- BACKWARDS COMPATIBILITY! I can still run Wolf 3D on my computer. Now try shoving a Mario Bros cart into a Wii.

Still some backwards compatibility issues, mostly with stuff programmed for Win95 that XP doesn't like. Of course, DOSBox virtually eliminates that (in both senses of the word).

Haven't played a shooter with a mouse, so it is not 'natural' to me to do so. Easier on the wrist anyway to use a gamepad, like the XBox 360 wired.

The only console shooter I have is GoldenEye (wait I have Perfect Dark also) so the analog stick movement is moot (I use Dpad). The stick is just plain awkward for aiming. Also a gamepad simply does NOT HAVE ENOUGH BUTTONS for shooters and many other genres. RTS is a great example of this.

How many buttons does one need to play a shooter? Take the XBox 360 controller: 4 face buttons, 2 stick buttons, 4 way Dpad, 2 triggers, and the start and back buttons. Total: 14 buttons and two sticks. Using a conventional keyboard/mouse setup, you've got four directions using WASD, the equivalent of one thumbstick (mouse), and two function buttons (mouse buttons). If you include the keys next to WASD (QEZXC), that's 5 additional buttons. Even if you include RFV, that's 8 buttons. Using any other buttons involves moving your hand from 'home.'

Unless you demand to be able to do every single possible function, a good gamepad should be quite sufficient. Just map the other functions to the keyboard (and choose ones that you will use when you aren't getting shot at.)