PS3 vs Old Skool PC Gaming

[craigy72]

Hello All,

I guess you could call me a retro PC gamer, I originate from the days of Battlefield 1942, Counterstrike 1.6, WC3 etc I'm sure like the rest of you. I remember the days of using Clanbase to organise clan matches and struggling to find a decent server. You should know what I'm talking about.

Times have changed some what now with in my opinion the consoles taking over the industry. I have a PS3 myself and have recently just sold my Xbox 360. My issue is that I have yet to re create what used to be online gaming with the consoles, the use of the controller I think takes the skill of out of precision shooting and it becoming more of a spray and prey approach. With the lack of keyboard and mouse support in the games in the PS3 I'm left with the decision whether or not to go and buy a decent gaming PC.

The question is, is it worth it? What is actually the difference in gfx's etc these days between a £500-600 PC and a PS3? The reason I ask this is because I havent seen a high spec PC running a game for some years now. Im assuming everyone on here will be FOR pc but considering the cost is there any point?

Providing I have a 40 inch HD Tv which the PS3 is hooked up too, Im sure it would cost even more than 500 - 600 to get the same / similar resolution.

Thoughts please! Thanks Craig

 

[da_mic_1530]

arr clanbase...the memories of such a useless website

Well imo its not worth all that cash just for a Mouse and keyboard

I used to play Cod online, but then PC gaming got to expensive and I got a 360, still miss it sometimes but it's too expensive.

Will add more later when I can be bothered

 

[orderoftheflame]

Horses for courses in my opinion.

There are games I'd get for the PC that I wouldn't concider on my PS3 or 360, and vice versa.

I wouldn't say that the use of joypads takes the skill out of playing at all though, it just requires you to apply a different set of skills, and it's certainly anything but spray and pray when you play against a group skilled people.

A keyboard and mouse is not the be all and end all of gaming.

 

[ikillbears]

i dont know for certain but im sure you could build your self a pc with that spec and still be able to play. As you said the gfx probably wont be much different at that price. But surely thats not the point is it? As you said you like the precision etc + its easier to get into servers you want and irc helps community matters some what

P.S. Clanbase did suck utterly!

 

[reflux]

PS3 uses a GeForce 7800, or roughly the same, so a decent gaming PC is going to be considerably more powerful.

 

[Richeh]

Ah yes clanbase, lived on that website for many years playing a game called Tactical Ops, was even an admin for a few cups!

I think there is skill in console FPS just not AS much as on a PC.

The above comment re the 7800 is completely out of context though, build a PC with the same internal specs as a PS3 and the PS3 will wipe the floor with it, the PS3 is completely streamlined and the Cell is much more powerful than your basic PC CPU.

 

[LabR@t]

too many variation is pcs so games are not coded so efficiently so ps3 has better visuals on a spec vs spec

pc still better in the long run, but saying that having bought a ps3 a few months ago it getting more play time than my pc ([email protected] + 8800GTX) looking forward to killzone2

 

[sswats]

A Pad is hardly pray and spray. They both take a certain amount of skill. Just on the PC you do tend to find the more hardcore FPS players who've grown up with Quake 3, counterstrike and unreal. So to compete with them you have to be more skillful but i don't think its got much to do with the controls.

 

[domthecondom]

PC gaming is still amaiizing, appart of hacking noobs,

I hate FPS on Consoles and don't play them on my PS3 =] but some games just suck on PC like Driving and fighting games, LBP would suck major on pc

Keep the PS3 for fun games and PC for FPS lovley =]

 

[reflux]

The above comment re the 7800 is completely out of context though, build a PC with the same internal specs as a PS3 and the PS3 will wipe the floor with it, the PS3 is completely streamlined and the Cell is much more powerful than your basic PC CPU.

How do you define a powerful CPU? Cell is an amazing piece of technology, but you can't compare two completely different architectures, and therefore, you're the one who's taken it out of context Sure, a PC of the same spec would be beaten, but you'd be used 3-4 year old technology and it would cost you less than the PS3.

For £600, you can build a PC that's graphically four or so times more powerful than the PS3, and of course it can be used for other things as well, other than gaming/multimedia.

Don't get me wrong, I like the console, it's a great piece of kit - but let's present a balanced argument here shall we?

 

[McManicMan]

why would anyone want to spend £600 on a pc when for around £300 you could have a PS3 and Killzone 2, or even cheaper a xbox360 and COD4 for £200....madness

 

[reflux]

Because it does a lot more, the graphics are better, and there is a larger selection of better (although I admit this is subjective) games.

I bought a 360 over the summer, and sold it two months later. It just doesn't have the selection of games, the online community, or the ability to mod games, and you have to pay to play online which fails, to be honest

You get what you pay for basically.

 

[orderoftheflame]

It just doesn't have the selection of games, [or] the online community

These made me lol.

As far I'm concerened the consoles can equal the PC for a selection of current games, especially with all the arcade and community titles on the Xbox.

And as for the Xbox not having an online community, I'm not even going to get started...

As for being able to do a lot more? I'm sure most people have access to some form of a PC nowdays, if I was going to buy a "gaming machine" of some description, the fact that I can use word and browse the net on a PC wouldn't swing me in that direction if I could already do it.

 

[Kainz]

Because it does a lot more, the graphics are better, and there is a larger selection of better (although I admit this is subjective) games.

I bought a 360 over the summer, and sold it two months later. It just doesn't have the selection of games, the online community, or the ability to mod games, and you have to pay to play online which fails, to be honest

You get what you pay for basically.

Remember you cannot compare a PC's GPU vs's a consoles one. It's variable hardware vs fixed hardware and the latter for gaming will mostly 'win' for obvious reasons.

So you could have a pile of poop nvidia FX series card in a console and it'll still pump out quality visuals to make your jaw drop - because the devs can work more easily with a fixed hardware set.

I've just bought me a 1GB 4870 other than the fact that I was loaded and bored of my 8800GTX. What do I play on it? Fallout 3, and Age of Empires 3 lol. My pc - a 4GB overclocked E6600 running at 3.7ghz just doesn't compare to a lot of the titles I've run on my 360. I'd love to see Dead Rising on the pc one day and luckily DR2 is on the way.

 

[ojste]

if you exclusively play fps and rts, pc is your best option. the console does every other genre better though

 

[reflux]

And as for the Xbox not having an online community, I'm not even going to get started...

It might have one, but it's dwarved by the PC community. And, let's be honest, there are a hell of a lot of whiny pre-teen n00bs on there.

My pc - an overclocked E6600 running at 3.7ghz just doesn't compare to a lot of the titles I've run on my 360. I'd love to see Dead Rising on the pc one day and luckily DR2 is on the way.

I'm very surprised by that. I've run CoD4 and Left4Dead on a 37'' 1080p TV, and they both look awful, with jaggy edges and low-res textures. Bioshock is the only game that is indistinguishable between PC and console, that I've seen.

Fixed hardware might be handy for devs, but it doesn't get any better over time. It might make developers work harder, but it also holds them back. There's nothing new to program for; no new peaks to be reached.

if you exclusively play fps and rts, pc is your best option. the console does every other genre better though

I don't see how. There are a lot of race sims that are only available on the PC (and no, GT is not a sim ). The PC also has the biggest selection of control methods of any platform. The 360 controller is compatible for example.

The main genres that the PC misses out on are fighting games, some sports games and JRPGs. That's a shame (I really want to play Skate 2 ) but the superior experience on the PC makes up for it IMO.

 

[n1kunj]

PC gaming doesn't have to be expensive in any way, above rig will set you back £400 (inc case) and will easily be able to produce 1920x1080, near enough maxed quality graphics. It may not be top of the range but it's not bad at all. It's £100 more than your average PS3 and will do much more.

And as for console pads for FPSs, don;t get me started My few experiences with consoles and shooters have led me to believe that auto aim does all the work for you online, pretty much eliminating a lot of the skill needed when all you have to do is aim in the general direction.

 

[Parmesan]

I started off gaming on the PC, playing CSS and Battlefield modern combat, but due to cost I have since moved to console gaming on a 360.

I found both consoles and PC's and require skill to play FPS's games, I actually found it a hell of a lot easier to use a mouse and keyboard to begin with, but now I much prefer a 360 control pad.

Not all games on consoles can just be played spray and pray style, I thoroughly enjoy playing the hardcore modes on COD4 on-line, and you really need to play this mode properly.

On the graphics side of things, I picked up my 360 for around 200 quid with a couple of games, and my new HD telly for around 300 quid, so a total of 500 quid. not sure if you could even build a decent gaming PC for this money these days, but there is always the thought that in 3-6 months time the hardware you have is going to be out of date and you will need to upgrade. Now I know the 360 wont be around for ever and they will bring a new console out but that could be a couple of years yet.

So spend 500 quid and get a console and telly that will last a few years... Or spend 600-700 quid on a reasonable PC and need to upgrade in a years time. I know where my vote goes.

 

[reflux]

So spend 500 quid and get a console and telly that will last a few years... Or spend 600-700 quid on a reasonable PC and need to upgrade in a years time. I know where my vote goes.

You don't need to upgrade every year. A lot of people here are still running 8800GTXs and X1950s - cards that are two to three years old.

People always claim that upgrading is such a pressing disadvantage on a PC, but most gamers upgrade because of technolust, not because they actually have to.

 

[ojste]

The main genres that the PC misses out on are fighting games, some sports games and JRPGs. That's a shame (I really want to play Skate 2 ) but the superior experience on the PC makes up for it IMO.

PC better:
fps
rts
mmo
simulaltors (racing/flight etc)

console better:
action
adventure
jrpg
platform
sports
beat em ups
music rhythm
racing

bottom line is they both cater for very different people. you would be playing the same games in most cases for pc/console except for the crossovers in fps.