Thinking of switching to PCs

[RCBH928]

Lately I have been exposed to PC gaming and after some thinking. I think I will seriously switch to PCs.

here are my reason:

1) 1 hardware , games from all generations. I can buy a PC and play games from maybe the 70's. ALL games. Compared to consoles, Nintendo for example, I will have to own NES-SNES-N64-GCN-and Wii .5 consoles or 1 tower?

2) PC needs only software, no hardware needed. Means buying games digital can save on shipping costs(I pay double, from US to my US PO BOX, then My US PO box to my country) . Other than saving money, no waiting time for shipment to arrive or worried about getting it lost. Also no hard to find cartridges , or hardware malfunctioning like a scratched PSX CD.

3) No memory card fails. You can backup to anything: USB stick, dropbox, cd's whatever. No similar option on N64-PSX-PS2 .

4) 1 Machine plays everything on planet earth. Different consoles play only their released for games. No Halo on PS3, no Resistance on Xbox, no Diablo on Wii. PC will playeverthing , and what it has no official release it WILL emulate!!

5) Consoles can be backward compatible but usually not all games will play, and about just 1 generation back. Consoles will offer downloadable content of retro games, but you are stuck to the selection they give you. PC is NO LIMITS. ANY GAME will work.

6)I used to have an issue that PC's won't connect to TV's and that why we need consoles. NO longer, PC connects through HDMI (or VGA) .

7) PC will accept any controller all the way back to the SNES. Consoles each need their own controller. PC can use keyboard and mouse.

PC games are cheaper. GOG has Tomb Raider 1+2+3 for $10 . If I got those on PSX, and I was in USA, it will cost me like $15 just for shipping!

9) A PC can do a lot more than a console can do, its a full OS. Consoles are limited.

10) To my surprise , many of the best games on consoles that I wanted to play had a PC release that I didn't know about.

I know I have been against the PC in another thread, but after rethinking playing older(not current) games, I realize the PC is probably the better option. Plus it shouldn't be too much to have a PC+PS3 setup.

one thing that still puzzles me is that, how does a keyboard+TV setup work. Is it as convenient as holding your ps3 controller? Or do you actually need a PC only desk in your room?

[Curlypaul]

Firstly I've got to admit that I'm not really a PC gamer, although they do have many advantages. Some remarks on your points:

1) This is not entirely true, almost all PC games will run on a modern PC but many of the older ones will take a lot of tinkering due to hardware changes over the years

3) PC storage still fails, but you are right its much easier to back up your saves than it is from a console memory card

4) See point 1, and in if you are buying modern games for the PC then you have to take into account the different capabilities of the graphics cards. They are generally better than they used to be but some cards will have problems with certain graphical effects.

I know a few people that run a gaming PC in their living rooms, normally with a wireless keyboard and mouse on the coffee table. It looks a bit our of place in the living room but as long as you don't mind that the PC games will look great on a big HD TV.

[isiolia]

one thing that still puzzles me is that, how does a keyboard+TV setup work. Is it as convenient as holding your ps3 controller? Or do you actually need a PC only desk in your room?

There are a lot of different options, and it'd depend on the game you want to play as to what would be most effective. If you want to use a keyboard/mouse setup, then having a comfortable surface to use that on is good. I doubt you'd need a proper desk though.

Another caveat for PC gaming in the living room is that many PC games are (understandably) designed to be viewed close to the screen. They may have interface elements or text that feels a bit too small if you're trying to lean back on the couch while playing.

[Breetai]

Yeah, I don't want to touch this one. All I can say is that there are good reasons why a lot of us do our console gaming on consoles.

[RyaNtheSlayA]

Yeah, I don't want to touch this one. All I can say is that there are good reasons why a lot of us do our console gaming on consoles.

And there are a lot of good reasons why having a nice PC and desk setup is also good.

Limiting to one or the other is... limiting!

[J T]

I have switched to being a PC gamer almost exclusively. When the XBox360, PS3, and Wii came out, I kept thinking I would eventually get one of them, but I just keep playing on PC. I hardly touch my older consoles anymore, though I occassionally play on the PS2 or Gamecube, which are more challenging to emulate. I have nothing against consoles, I just can only buy so much stuff.

A lot of my reasons are similar to the ones you have mentioned. I would also add:

11) PC is THE place to be for indie gaming. There are thousands more indie games on PC than on consoles, and a lot of them are free.

12) PC allows for mods. This can add a lot of life to your game or let you play an old game with some new style. As an example, just look at how good Morrowind can look after modding.

13) Fans often keep online servers running long after the game companies have abandoned their games.


That being said, there are downsides to PC gaming. I miss playing new Japanese games, which are largely on console (except for doujin games, which are largely on PC). I also find it annoying that a sizeable portion of my game collection won't run without first tweaking the game to work with my specific computer configuration. Overall though, the pros outweigh the cons and it's good to be a PC gamer.

[fastbilly1]

12) PC allows for mods. This can add a lot of life to your game or let you play an old game with some new style. As an example, just look at how good Morrowind can look after modding.

The best case in point for Mods are Counter Strike, DOTA, and Day Z. All three spurred purchasing of their base games to insane levels. Heck Day Z caused the company that created the base game to start releasing patches because it was having issues with the engine.

[sabrage]

Just do it, man. If you have the means and the desire, you really shouldn't need to convince yourself. The only downside of PC gaming is that you have to be willing to use troubleshoot the inevitable problems you're going to run into (this is Windows, after all) and that's easy when you're plugged directly into the greatest source of knowledge the world has ever known.

[J T]

that's easy when you're plugged directly into the greatest source of knowledge the world has ever known.

Racketboy.com?

[sabrage]

Youtube.