Why I prefer Home Computer Gaming over Console gaming?

Not saying windows is bad all im saying is that im surprised no one has developed a dedicated to gaming os so every ounce of power from your hardware can be utilized just for gaming nothing else like.
 
so...why was this thread even created, its pretty obvious what will happen

i happen to have both a xbox 360 and a pc(although its slightly old now, it still works fine for the games play on it). atleast this way i wont miss out on exclusive games on the xbox 360 and mmorpgs/rts' on the pc. i will probably end up getting a ps3 eventually aswell when it comes down in price and it has games worth buying it for. although the xbox 360 sounds like a vacuum cleaner it also plays and scales dvds perfectly, atleast for me anyway
 
The thread is just some ppl sharing their view on a pc topic about gaming. Only way this can turn into a flame war is if ppl are daft enough to start posting about consoles are better than pcs or vice versa. There is a seperate forum for consoles so console goers should post in there instead if they wana talk about consoles.
 
drunkenmaster said:
they have a poor architecture for gaming? other than minor resources being used up by the OS and generally 1-2% of cpu power being used in the background for other programs, that ultimately makes no difference.

the gfx cards in consoles are the same(or close enough) to the versions we have at home. the cpu's, well some have been the same, P3 basically in the first xbox. yes they have fancy names but they aren't more powerful or better than PC cpu's. they just use different instruction sets but they basically work the same, program asks cpu to calculate if the bullet with set vector will hit anything, however it asks, or calculates, its still doing the same thing.

consoles aren't better value for money IMHO. you pay more for games, the console itself is subsidised so you get more for that actual money than you would buying computer parts. but everyone, and i mean everyone i know has a computer, every house, most kids/friends have their own computers aswell. the only thing you need to add to any box you build or buy is a decent gfx card. a 8800gts 320mb is a LOT more powerful than the xbox 360/ps3 gfx cards, so add a £175 card to a computer you already have and you have something much much more versatile, cheaper, and twice as powerful as a console, then games are cheaper.

i have had consoles, not many, not played them much and don't enjoy them much. basic sports "pick up and play" games i don't mind playing round a m8's once in a while, but they aren't games i can play a lot, console gaming has no lasting value for me and the hardware is often outdated before they are released(ps3) or within a few months like the xbox360. i wouldn't buy a 8800gtx the day before the G100 comes out, or the day after either.

i prefer multiplayer games where i don't lose half/ or 3/4's of the screen, i prefer to play in the comfort of my room in a nice chair without being interupted. the only real reason i see for a console is as a social gaming machine, and thats the only place i think they excel.
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Crikey people are so tetchy these days. I was only saying that the PC's architecture is not ideally suited for games. I'm a PC gamer myself, have been for years, and I'm not running it down as a gaming platform at all. However, a PCs system resources are often put to poor use in gaming. That's all I'm saying, nothing more and nothing less. I'm one of those who sees value in PC gaming and Console gaming. Both offer different experiences. It's as simple as that.
 
I started off on the BBC model B, which had some great games (I also started learning to program at about 8 or something), but got a Master System from my mum for my birthday aged 10 or something. I loved my master system and eventually traded up to a Megadrive which me and my brother spent countless hours on, playing EA Hockey, John Madden, Micromachines 2 (with the extra ports in the cartridge!). The only game I missed playing was Premier Manager 2 which Amiga owning friends had.

One summer, while I was staying with my cousin, my family got a PC. I was away for another couple of weeks and couldn't wait to get home and have a go. I got home to find, setup on the dinning room table, a DX2-66 with 4mb of memory and a copy of Doom. I was instantly sold and stayed up all night playing it. We got 1942 Pacific air war, Decent, Premier manager 2(!), Magic carpet, and then the crowning glory Command & Conquer. I soon sold my megadrive!

I haven't looked back since, PCs always seemed to lead the way in innovation. I used to remember reading in PCZone about people playing Doom with people in America using ultrafast links which weren't available to the majority of people, and dreamed of the day I could take part. We weren't allowed the internet because of the cost (subscription + phone bill) but when Wireplay came out I was allowed on for half an hour a night. It took ages to get c&c working, but that and the version of Eurofighter that came with it showed me the way forward for gaming.

I have always prefered multiplayer gaming, very few single play games (Baulders gate being one) really ever grabbed me as I take no pleasure from beating AI! I started playing Quake when the alpha was linked and eventually formed a guild (The Quake Wizzzards) which fought in all the UK leagues. It was probably the highlight of my gaming life (UKQFFL - 4 clans, 4 players each, 30 minutes, was amazing).

I have a PS2, Gamecube and DS and thought about getting a Wii but all of them have just been gathering dust the majority of the life. I like abit of Monkey ball, Bomberman or Pro Evo when you have some mates round, but generally I don't like playing on the sofa infront of the TV. The proximity when playing a PC game really makes it; the screen takes up your whole vision, the sound is perfect and right next to you, you have total control with keyboard+mouse\joystick. It just sucks me in like consoles can't.

I don't think I will ever go back to console gaming, some games are fun for a quick blast, but theres nothing like sitting down about 11am Sunday afternoon with the intention of building something from scratch and taking over the whole world!!
 
What makes me love PCs so much

(IMO)

They are the ultimate multi media device.

They also the ultimate piece of kit for those that like homebrew software.

They are a pride a joy as you can put them together yourself allowing to put a bit of you own heart and soul into it.

They're the ultimate system for games as the PC is constantly evolving and you can keep you PC updated for a few years by just changing the odd part in it in turn this mean games improve dramatically in very short perodes of time. The games can also be improved increased and modded.

Once apon a time you had consoles and PCs. Now you have consoles trying to compete with what the PC does best which it will never be able to accomplish. Saying that Nintendo still stick to being a true game console manufacture and I think that is what makes them so appealing. As I want to play console games on a console not I wish I was a PC games.
 
Probably think I'm silly but PC gaming to me has the "total control" feel that's quite frankly, completely missing on consoles. Yeah, its more complex and gives you a lot of hassle but in return you get more depth and fidelity in games.
 
skullman said:
So whats taking so long?
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It's a major concern for the software publishers. Especially with increasing broadband speeds making it easier to download large titles. The market for PC games is only a fraction of the console market so already your working on a tight margin. And if your margin is being eroded by piracy then as a business you may think "what's the point".

Which is why you see a lot more games released for consoles than the PC, and why you are seeing console games taking years to be released on the PC. And a lot more console to PC ports...

And as long as piracy is so rampant then it can only get worse. You can hurry it up if you want, just boot up a p2p bitorrent client and off you go.
 
SkeeterPSA said:
Consoles games are easy to copy/download etc, i heard. So that argument about pc piracy is out of the window there aint it?
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You need a chipped/modded console to play copied games. And this involves opening up your console and possibly bricking it in the process. It's a lot easier to copy a crack from a folder than it is to open up your xbox and insert a bypass chip or flash some firmware. So no, my argument isn't out of the window.

http://www.xploder.net/pc/news/2298/Piracy-is-killing-PC-gaming---Id.htm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6449421.stm
 
I have been a pc gamer for many years but the price of having to keep upgrading my pc once a year i could not really afford to carry this on

£400 on just a grahics card is nearly the price of a ps3, The games on a console are a bit more money than pc yes but having to spend £££,s on ya pc to play todays games on full settings is way more.

Iv sold my gaming pc, now have a laptop/360 and come friday a ps3 and im more than happy.
 
Darkaber said:
Iv sold my gaming pc, now have a laptop/360 and come friday a ps3 and im more than happy.
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Yup, that's the way I'm going, too. PC has been downgraded about 3 months ago and just waiting for the next revision of Macbook to come out.
 
There is of course a place in gaming for both PC's and consoles, they both have their pros and cons.

I am a PC gamer, always have been, always will be. I like tinkering and tweaking too much and PC's give you the ability to customise your gaming experience more at the expense of many blue screens...been a while since I've had a General Protection Fault mind, bring them back Microsoft, we've all grown up with them...lol.

Starting in 1984 with the honorable Speccy then rapidly onto the first PC for the masses, an 086 processor at 8Mhz in 1986! Anyway, brief history if my memory recalls correctly, this was the evolution for me...

Spectrum
Amstrad PC1640 (086 @ 8Mhz)
286 SX @ 16 Mhz
386 SX @ 33 Mhz
turn it into a DX by adding the maths coprocessor
486 SX
486 DX2 @66Mhz
Pentium 100 Mhz (wow this was revolutionary, good overclockers too!)
Cyrix 166Mhz (this was a mistake)
Pentium Pro
AMD K5
First of the Celerons
AMD K6
AMD Thunderbird
AMD Skt 939
AMD Skt AM2
Core2Duo (current machine)

That's it I think...have to say, happier with Intel than AMD now!

So, pc for games is my vote!
 
Why I prefer Home Computer Gaming over Console gaming?

I would say:

I love FPS & Strategy games using a keyboard & mouse

Im a big fan of the championship manager series (now football manager) and i love how you can completely customize it (unable to do on other platforms). Also other games like oblivion, gta sa, pro evo etc and how much better you can make them look.

Im not a fan of control pads when playing games except on sports games (e.g. pro evo, fifa, gran turismo etc). This can still be done on a pc as well as consoles.

A pc provides other services that consoles do not provide e.g. internet access, storage and viewing of multimedia files, uni work etc (i know this has nothing to do with gaming but it does when it comes to spending money)

Also i built my first pc last september and i felt great because i was able to build something that does all of the above.

I must say how good gears of war looked on my brothers HD TV. I had a go and it was good but i prefer the gameplay on games like HL2, FarCry etc with a keyboard & mouse.
 
I prefer PC gaming to Console gaming due to the better game play and the better graphics. I love the fact you can listen to music while playing, minimize and browse the net while dead in CS:S etc etc.....
 
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