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PC vs Console for gaming.

moggsy

moggsy

moggsy

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Joined
11 Dec 2006
Posts
223
No not a wind up in this category - honest :)

You can get anXbox 360 for £250 and use that for games and the PC for everything else. Some people pay this price on a new graphics card every year and I really dont understand why.

Why not have a lower spec pc for everyday and a next gen console for gaming ?

Surely it must work out cheaper even though console games are generally dearer

I'm in a bit of a dilemma on this myself. I'm getting asked by members of my family what I want for crimbo and as I've got an up to date PC (E6750 C2D chip, 2gb RAM etc) I'm thinking of upgrading my graphics card to something a bit more 'like it' - nothing mega, just in case I cant get the hang of using the keyboard & mouse for controlling gameplay. (This is my single biggest concern as I'm slow as hell on the keyboard, and you obviously need to be able to use it almost like a touch typist without looking down for your reload, shoot, (etc) keys....)

I've tended to use my son's 360 whenever he's out/in school etc for my odd bit of gaming, so I'm pretty well OK with using this for control. I've found an emulator called xpadder that you can connect up your xbox controller to your PC and use to 'map' any key to any button on the xbox controller so that might be my best bet.

Hmmmmmm :rolleyes:
 
moggsy said:
Why not have a lower spec pc for everyday and a next gen console for gaming ?
Click to expand...


'Cos most games suck to play on consoles.


Graphics on PC are way better than most games that are on consoles aswell. :D

PCs also get the best games, I dont see any Company of Heroes on the 360. :D
 
Yeah - PC's are upgradable and able to customise the gaming experience in regard to level of detail. FPS are much easier to play on the PC too. I've never owned a console myself and the only reason I would is to play fighting combat games like tekken etc.
 
Another Q or 2:

Will any keyboard/mouse combo do or do you lot use gaming versions?

I've got one PC game - Rainbow 6 - and on my 256mb HD2400, the game was choppy and jerky as hell - moving the mouse resulted in the cursor jumping from postion to position rather than smoothly flowing. Is this purely and simply coz of the graphics being not up to the mark, or the fact I've got a wireless key/mouse combo..... or a bit of both?

cheers
 
As hinted at already, there are a wealth of games that consoles just can't "do" well, with controls being the main reason.

I hate playing FPSs with a pad (having done so for years before buying my first pc), the mouse and kb being so much better. Many games wouldn't even make it to console, so limited is the control pad. Try playing a TW game for example without a mouse/kb.

In terms of costs involved, yes, it'd be nice if pc components were cheaper, but personally I don't look at my pc as being an expensive gaming machine, but rather a great all rounder.

Oh and pc games are far cheaper than their console counterparts too :)
 
Pretty much all the keys you use for PC gaming are right next to each other in an intuitive layout for their purpose. Those that are not you map to say spare buttons on your mouse (e.g grenade or dive to the floor). Strategy games on a console are a concept I will never understand, and you need a whole lot of practice to pull of headshots with a gamepad, whereas even a novice can manage it with a mouse.
BUT consoles are very good for platform style games or playing with more than one person and are catching up fast in multiplayer elements. When its done well, gaming on XBOX Live is much slicker than browsing a list of 8000 servers like in CoD4 and will find players who are as good/rubbish as you - or if the game is not popular just fail miserably.
Given the pro's and con's I therefore have both and the PC gets most of my attention.
The other factor of course is that on PC these days, you buy a game thats it it's your forever, on the console you can sell it when you are done.
Personally I think PC gaming's days are numbered the amount of money we need to spend these days to have decent rig is getting a bit mad and it's not always evident from the results why we bothered.
 
A year ago I was thinking of doing this. On reflection I'm glad I didnt as I believe that even now (never mind the cards coming out early '08) the capabilities of the super consoles are starting to, once again, pale in comparrison the newer cards.

Plus, it has to be said - though very rarely is, all things considered a decent Spec (Read not absolutely top spec) PC is better value for money than a console because of the library and other capabilties.
 
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mishima said:
... the only reason I would is to play fighting combat games like tekken etc.
Click to expand...

Same here.

I only use a console on to play fighting games, sports and racing games.


Every other type of game genre sucks on consoles really when you use a 'control pad'.
 
Well i have apretty standard pc with an e6300 oced to 3.5ghz. Cost me very little a year ago. This year i bough a 3850 for £106 delivered. PC games are cheaper and at 1280*800 (usually 1680*1050) i can play any game out there at high or close to max specs (except crysis). A year down the line i can purchase another graphics card for ~£120 and this will be at a time when pc games have left consoles behind in terms of graphics.

I dont see the value of consoles other than games which are exclusive to say the xbox or playstation.
 
Have a look at the specs on a PS3 or eggbox 360, it's basically last years PC :p
Game prices is a big killer too, £20 to £30 for a new game beats £50+

Only console id think about owning (if prices drop) is the Wii :)
 
Consoles are best for action games such as beat em ups (Tekken, Virtua Fighter), racing (Forza, GT) and sports (Tennis, Football). PC's are best for FPS (Crysis, Unreal3, Oblivion) and Strategy (Supreme Commander, COH).

As for which is best? If you are buying a PC or a Console for gaming ONLY, the console wins. PS3's, 360's, and even Wii's will still play new games in 5 years. PC's will require constant upgrading and WILL cost much more to buy and keep running.

Many people prefer PC gaming because most games can be found for "free" if you know how and whereto look.

Online play is made far simpler on gaming consoles, with the 360 being king in that area (although you do have to pay for it).

Wii's are basically pants (extreme firesuit on). They are 6 year old technolgy with a few gimmicks bolted on. Excellent marketing allows them to appeal to an extremely large market, and demand... drives demand. Games are made for addictiveness rather than mind blowing graphics. My wife loves our Wii but I prefer the 360. The PS3 rarely gets played.
 
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Consoles are sold at a loss (Google it MS loose more per unit than Sony to beat them).

So they are Subsidised but the Games aint and they make cash on them as higher cost and other aspects like MS Xbox Live etc.

Also FPS Games are suited to a Mouse and KB.

Someone above said its easier to heatshot using PC controls, thats true, but its also true that if a cross platform game arrived and online where PC users played Console users, the PC users would have the upper hand and without need for autoaim, they would kill the console owners before they get a chance to take aim (IMO and a few others in Game forums).

This has been asked about 100x even in this forum so thats all Im going to add.
 
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Console games do not cost £50+. For FPS and all sort of traditional mouse/keyboard games eg RTS etc a PC is a country mile ahead. The only thing I prefer consoles for is Pro Evo and the odd exclusives.

However, given that most people do not upgrade their hardware constantly, the cost of ownership of a console is more attractive.

Despite the fact that I own all current gen consoles, I still play on my PC more.
 
My mate just got a few games for his 360, and while some like the Boxing and Racing were really really fun to play and looked great, we then tried to play COD4 and it was bad. The controls compared to a mouse and keyboard were so awkward. Even he said "man, it's hard to aim". This is why I think PC's will always be better.


1. Upgradable and Customisable.
2. Better Graphics imo (AA/AF + Overclocking + SLi, etc)
3. Do Work + Games. (Multi-task)
4. It's a more well-rounded system.

I'm not saying consoles are rubbish, they are fun but it has to be the right type of game. Sometimes I think to myself, "if only that game were out on the PC" as it would be so much better. :)
 
I’d just add that the console is slowly becoming a PC, look at the PS3, trying its best to be a multimedia PC, I’m sure the lines will blur even more with the PS4 (that’s a wild guess at the name...). if I were you I’d get a new graphics card (8800 GT). You’d then have console graphics with all the added PC stuff.
 
this may be off topic, but i want to know why do you have hd2400 in such a good pc?
get a better graphics card then decide if pc gaming is worse then console gaming.

i personally enjoy pc games on my own as i dont play online but i enjoy consoles with family and friends. the pc gets more use by the way.
 
Speaking as a person who owns both a high spec machine and an xbox 360 id say go for the pc part upgrade as the games catalogue and quality on the pc cannot be beaten. Yes it is annoying at times to upgrade year on year but thats only if you wish to play games at the highest levels of detail. The 360 is still a very good machine (quite a good multimedia machine too once the december update is out :D) however, I personally only really use it as a distraction from the PC (though mass effect is proving quite a large one :)).
 
If money forced me to choose one or the other - I would choose a console. As it is, it's nice to be able to have both because each platform has its strengths. I play FPS/RTS on the PC and Zelda, Mario, etc on console.
 
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