Support NeoGAF

[bomblord1]

It's weird - now I have a gaming PC, and Steam/Humble sales have skyrocketed my games purchases way past the number of games I bought for consoles.

I have something like 125 games on Steam, 25 on Origin, 50 on GOG... it's insane.

And yet, I find myself playing less games now than when I had a console. These days when I find myself scrolling through my massive library looking for something to play I end up booting Sleeping Dogs up again instead of trying something new.

As a result, the backlog is real.

There are so many articles and research over things like this but in the end the truth is when given too many choices people just shut down instead of making a rational one.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/27/your-money/27shortcuts.html?_r=0

The solution is to stop buying so many games. Buy 1 at a time and don't buy another until you are finished with it.

 

[80s Bad Guy]

This is a super minor point, but Steam achievements are easily hacked and are of no value. So when a game is challenging and I want to earn them legit, I play the game on my PS4. Like with MGSV. At least Sony has that system locked down, relatively.

Otherwise I'll just get it where I can get the game cheapest, which is usually Steam. For some people the convenience of consoles will always be superior to the customization you can get on PC. How some gamers don't realize this in a society where McDonald's now has all day breakfast astounds me.

 

[PulseONE]

The problem be that the fanatical part of the console gaming audience that for some weird reason despises PC gaming will latch on to these few "pc master race" fanboys and paint the whole of the PC gaming community as such.

The same could be said about the "fanatical" parts of the PC Gaming audience that perpetuate the PC Gaming Master race persona, so...it's more of both sides

 

[Mabufu]

PC Master Race became a thing when all the elitists needed a self-aiding group for feeling better after they realized graphics =/= fun.

 

[thelastword]

Of course PC's are better as a platform but there's so many preferences that push people to either PC or console that it's usually just not about the hardware and ability to run games at high resolutions/framerates that matters.

I'm the same way. I have a relatively kick-ass PC (980Ti club, aw yea) but I enjoy my PS4 more. Preferences. *shrugs*

I don't think you can say that. As an individual, you can own a pretty kick ass pc and play all the latest games at 4k, but who is really going to cater to that PC you spent so much money for.

Your PC don't determine the level of visuals that you will get in games...You see, the platform is very disjointed as opposed to consoles where you cater to a common denominator, you know what you're working with across millions of consoles. Same OS, same network features and setup, same controller, in that sense, the console platform is superior. However I do agree that individually, you can own the best gaming hardware available, not that it affects the visual quality of games that the platform receives anyway.

In any case, whatever you game on, nobody should victimize or call anyone out, however, the viability of developing on consoles and returning massive profit on sales is a credit to that platform. Cue the Witcher 3 devs......

 

[Hektor]

Real gamers play games, not argue over the fucking platform. I don't play a platform, I play games.

If everybody would follow that line of thinking we would still be playing on the Commodore 64

 

[alexandros]

This is a super minor point, but Steam achievements are easily hacked and are of no value. So when a game is challenging and I want to earn them legit, I play the game on my PS4.

Can't you just, you know, not hack them?

 

[Fitts]

What is this even...

Stopped reading at some bullshit about supporting children in need instead of buying games.

 

[DarthWalden]

I play games not platforms.

I still remember playing warcraft 3 on an older PC for well over a year. It ran at maybe 15fps when there wasn't a lot of action at the lowest resolution and the lowest settings. It didn't matter to me because the game was fun and that was the only way I could play it. It used to drive people insane when I played online because i would "lag".

There are good games on consoles and platforms (and some on both) but honestly this generation I've spent about 75% of my time with console exclusives, 5% of my time with PC exclusives and probably 20% multiplatform titles so not owning a console is probably out of the question for me.

 

[Gipsy Danger]

This is a super minor point, but Steam achievements are easily hacked and are of no value. So when a game is challenging and I want to earn them legit, I play the game on my PS4. Like with MGSV. At least Sony has that system locked down, relatively.

Otherwise I'll just get it where I can get the game cheapest, which is usually Steam. For some people the convenience of consoles will always be superior to the customization you can get on PC. How some gamers don't realize this in a society where McDonald's now has all day breakfast astounds me.

Why does it matter what other people are doing with their achievements though? Steam achievements have value to me because I know that I earned them.

 

[viHuGi]

I'd be curious how old you are - just kind of ballpark. For me, it's the exact opposite and I'm 34. All my friends have gaming PCs, but none of them own any of the new consoles.

24 from Portugal.

Well everyone has a Pc that play games these days so, im talking about High end Pcs.

Most gamers want Fifa, Cods (Black Ops 2 has 11 milion players per month) and stuff on their Consoles, that is were the mainstream community are, there and mobile (Casual Gaming) and MOBAs these days (DoTa and Lol are insanely big with Lol having 27 milion players each day!!!).

High End Pc is a niche market just like games like Souls or BB and i could go on.

http://www.playstationlifestyle.net...lies-over-11-million-monthly-users-per-month/

http://www.gamespot.com/articles/league-of-legends-now-boasts-27-million-daily-players/1100-6417374/

Still alot of people using low res and low end hardware to play on Pc, here most people who plays on steam is on laptops but people seem to Forget that.

http://wccftech.com/steam-hardware-survey-shows-1080p-majority-intel-hd-4000-gpu/

EDIT: i forgot Counter Strike, that is pretty big these days!

 

[bomblord1]

Can't you just, you know, not hack them?

I think the point he is making that he could put a ton of effort into some hard achievement but in the end it doesn't matter because 1000 other people got it by cheating making the "You got X achievement" not mean anything to others.

 

[Stinkles]

Console gamers are not the common enemy. Modern consoles are.

I feel it's important to include this information in the article as soon as possible, since a lot of people get the wrong impression going in and don't take information to heart until they realize they're being educated rather than scolded... I should also point out that it's well-known that past consoles outperformed PCs, but that was the past. This is now. Things are different. The openness of the PC was bound to be taken advantage of eventually, and what triggered it is the stagnation of the console market. And, now that the console market has stagnated and the PC is a viable alternative, it's very possible that traditional consoles with total control under a single corporation is entirely going to vanish.

Sony and Microsoft give you an inferior system, charge you a lot of extra money for it, and make you hold on to the pieces of junk for 8 years before they give you the option of (measly) upgrades. By selling you these systems, they lock you into their overpriced ecosystem, helping them further the cycle with their ill-acquired money. They don't let you play with friends unless you pay. They don't let you play with friends that bought the other systems at all. They don't let developers directly sell you the game - they charge for dev kits and include royalties, which massively decreases their profits over that of the PC version. When you take into account the business strategy of these companies, you'll find that it's all just one big greedy systematic ripoff of uneducated consumers. They're holding your favorite games hostage on their closed platforms because they know you'll buy into it. If everyone went with a PC and disregarded this disgusting behavior, these developers wouldn't be so easily convinced to support these "next-gen" consoles. So, do yourself and the industry a favor and go with a PC. PC exists because it's an excellent platform and for no other reason than that. Nobody's advertising it. Nobody's cutting deals with Frito Lay to get it stamped on Dorito bags. Nobody's running a 'PC booth' at gaming festivals. PC exists and thrives simply because it is freaking glorious. XBox and PlayStation consoles exist because their parent corporations hijack developers (and games) that people love and cancel ports to competing platforms (other consoles as well as PC), and force fans of these games to pay a 'hardware ransom' to play it. The PC is open, cheap, customizable, and powerful. Your best interests are always at hand, no matter how arrogant some PC gamers may seem when they speak negatively of the "anti-gamer" consoles. For anyone that's offended, I am truly sorry... but if you're going to get offended over this guide then you probably had no intention of giving PC a chance in the first place. Just remember: PC gaming is superior to console gaming, but the gamers themselves are neither superior or inferior to one another: they're just people with varying degrees of understanding. Fight the misinformation, fight the false advertising, and fight the anti-gaming console monopoly. Long live freedom, long live affordable and beautiful gaming, and long live the Glorious PC Gaming Master Race!

This is a thing that exists.

No, thanks.

 

[alexandros]

Real gamers play games, not argue over the fucking platform.

Sidestepping the fact that trying to determine what a 'real gamer' is will most definitely end poorly for everyone involved, I think it is completely wrong to say that gamers shouldn't care about the platform they play games on. The core gamer in particular has I feel a responsibility to try and push the industry towards the improvement of gaming as a whole, since the mass market doesn't care about that stuff. So the choice of platform sends a powerful message, whether it is rejecting anti-consumer policies (like the xb1 drm issue) or strengthening a platform that was once considered dead (the resurgence of pc gaming).

 

[Gipsy Danger]

I think the point he is making that he could put a ton of effort into some hard achievement but in the end it doesn't matter because 1000 other people got it by cheating making the "You got X achievement" not mean anything to others.

People shouldn't be worried what other people think of their gaming achievements and instead be happy about achieving in the first place.

 

[Yudoken]

PC gaming is great but people are able to choose different platforms which can do much less (for a higher price and other disadvantages) with the only real purpose of being a somewhat capable gaming machine.
As long as I don't have to care about console gaming (my favorite games get out on pc) I don't care about console gaming.
But there is nothing worse than console elitists, they're really annoying and don't want to understand basic stuff.
Blind brand loyalty is never good.

Spoiler

Way way worse than people who don't share the love of pc gaming by helping others and instead make fun of other pc's and consoles.

 

[80s Bad Guy]

I think the point he is making that he could put a ton of effort into some hard achievement but in the end it doesn't matter because 1000 other people got it by cheating making the "You got X achievement" not mean anything to others.

Yeah, this. I realize it's slightly OCD but I don't trust anyone's Steam profile, which makes the whole system feel slightly shallow.

Most of the time I don't care. Only a few games a year I want to be able to compare what I did with friends and know they didn't just SAM it.

 

[alexandros]

I think the point he is making that he could put a ton of effort into some hard achievement but in the end it doesn't matter because 1000 other people got it by cheating making the "You got X achievement" not mean anything to others.

So did he want to get it for himself or for bragging rights? Because other people hacking their way to an achievement doesn't in any way change the fact that we won it fair and square.

 

[JordanN]

To me, the "PC is better than consoles" will always be a dumb crusade because I can't think of what's the end goal.

If it's to try and get people to give up consoles and go PC, it's impossible. You basically have to kill every 1st party studio who is not making PC games. No one in the PC industry has the money to do this.

 

[CambriaRising]

I think the point he is making that he could put a ton of effort into some hard achievement but in the end it doesn't matter because 1000 other people got it by cheating making the "You got X achievement" not mean anything to others.

PS3 and 360 achievements can be hacked too though. There are entire sites dedicated to save-sets. Load them up and pop the achievements.

 

[ironcreed]

Mainly a console guy here and sometimes I feel like an idiot for it. Better performance, better deals, refunds for digital games on Steam, no subscription nonsense for online, a catalog of old greats and mods. A better PC gaming solution that can run all of the new stuff is a move I just have to make one of these days.

 

[ForsakenLotus]

"Pirating a game is a great way to try before you buy"

You keep telling yourself that...

 

[Fess]

If everybody would follow that line of thinking we would still be playing on the Commodore 64

I'm still doing that :/

But seriously, the first reason I bought a PC was mods and higher framerate in Skyrim. Then came the Steam summer sales. And finally the increasing percentage of multiplats on console combined with the higher framerate and better graphics on PC versions. Bonus was that I can still use a controller.
The only negatives are the higher cost.
Ironically this comes from someone that got banned for requesting PC gamers to talk outside of a thread I started about console version of Skyrim. :/

 

[watership]

This is the only argument about it that needs to happen:

I don't use the word hero very often....

 

[80s Bad Guy]

So did he want to get it for himself or for bragging rights? Because other people hacking their way to an achievement doesn't in any way change the fact that we won it fair and square.

Like beating Witcher 3 on the hardest difficulty, who knows how many people actually did that on PC. At least on PS4 I know I'm one of the few. It's not bragging rights so much as a heightened sense of satisfaction as I cry myself to sleep at night.

Also, I admit it's really trivial.

 

[Shuggananas]

"Pirating a game is a great way to try before you buy"

You keep telling yourself that...

"I swear I only pirate games to try them then I buy them if I like them" is so pathetic lol

 

[Denton]

For me the choice of gaming platform boils down to one thing - quality of experience. I want 60fps, 1080p and high graphical settings. I want mods. I want customizable controls and options. PC offers that, other platforms don't.
I own consoles strictly for games that aren't on PC. So far I got PS2 and PS3, maybe I'll get PS4 if some interesting games release for it. Horizon, don't disappoint.

 

[alexandros]

To me, the "PC is better than consoles" will always be a dumb crusade because I can't think of what's the end goal.

The end goal is to fight misinformation and help people decide on a gaming platform based on actual facts and not myths or hearsay. There are legitimate reasons to choose a console over a PC for gaming, but stuff like "$2000 PC, upgrade every six months" and "coding to the metal means xb1= 3x Titans" are still lingering about and influencing gamers. PC gaming doesn't have a specific company as a spokesperson nor the millions of advertising and marketing dollars to push the advantages of the platform. Therefore ordinary pc gamers pick up the slack, which admittedly sometimes gives the impression of PC evangelism.

 

[crazysapertonight]

This is the only argument about it that needs to happen:

And then comes bloody Xbox One vs PS4 holywar)

 

[FATALITY]

"I swear I only pirate games to try them then I buy them if I like them" is so pathetic lol

yeah lol

 

[RipperGrim]

That tree is huge and I have no idea why someone would bother with it.

It's possible to make a tree for this argument because it's always exactly the same reasons brought up and it always ends with "Well I just prefer PC/consoles".

 

[Dr_Boris_Goltz]

Consoles are better in one major way:

Online player bases in terms of accessibility. COD and BF4 on PC are a million times more difficult in terms of player skill.

 

[Tain]

My biggest takeaway from that link is that it's adorable how some internet nerds get about trying to frame a stance as ~objectively true~.

I think there are scenarios where consoles make sense. I'm primarily a PC guy, and I think all dedicated-ass video game enthusiasts should have as wide of a spread of platforms as possible (to be able to play the widest range of games possible), but I get the dudes that I know that only have a PS4 or whatever. Given their living situation, their home layout, their game-playing frequency, their tastes.

 

[Manu]

The end goal is to fight misinformation and help people decide on a gaming platform based on actual facts and not myths or hearsay. There are legitimate reasons to choose a console over a PC for gaming, but stuff like "$2000 PC, upgrade every six months" and "coding to the metal means xb1= 3x Titans" are still lingering about and influencing gamers. PC gaming doesn't have a specific company as a spokesperson nor the millions of advertising and marketing dollars to push the advantages of the platform. Therefore ordinary pc gamers pick up the slack, which admittedly sometimes gives the impression of PC evangelism.

This reads like an abridged and less condescending version of my first post in this thread.

 

[UnderWaterTree]

Console gamers are not the common enemy. Modern consoles are.

I feel it's important to include this information in the article as soon as possible, since a lot of people get the wrong impression going in and don't take information to heart until they realize they're being educated rather than scolded... I should also point out that it's well-known that past consoles outperformed PCs, but that was the past. This is now. Things are different. The openness of the PC was bound to be taken advantage of eventually, and what triggered it is the stagnation of the console market. And, now that the console market has stagnated and the PC is a viable alternative, it's very possible that traditional consoles with total control under a single corporation is entirely going to vanish.

Sony and Microsoft give you an inferior system, charge you a lot of extra money for it, and make you hold on to the pieces of junk for 8 years before they give you the option of (measly) upgrades. By selling you these systems, they lock you into their overpriced ecosystem, helping them further the cycle with their ill-acquired money. They don't let you play with friends unless you pay. They don't let you play with friends that bought the other systems at all. They don't let developers directly sell you the game - they charge for dev kits and include royalties, which massively decreases their profits over that of the PC version. When you take into account the business strategy of these companies, you'll find that it's all just one big greedy systematic ripoff of uneducated consumers. They're holding your favorite games hostage on their closed platforms because they know you'll buy into it. If everyone went with a PC and disregarded this disgusting behavior, these developers wouldn't be so easily convinced to support these "next-gen" consoles. So, do yourself and the industry a favor and go with a PC. PC exists because it's an excellent platform and for no other reason than that. Nobody's advertising it. Nobody's cutting deals with Frito Lay to get it stamped on Dorito bags. Nobody's running a 'PC booth' at gaming festivals. PC exists and thrives simply because it is freaking glorious. XBox and PlayStation consoles exist because their parent corporations hijack developers (and games) that people love and cancel ports to competing platforms (other consoles as well as PC), and force fans of these games to pay a 'hardware ransom' to play it. The PC is open, cheap, customizable, and powerful. Your best interests are always at hand, no matter how arrogant some PC gamers may seem when they speak negatively of the "anti-gamer" consoles. For anyone that's offended, I am truly sorry... but if you're going to get offended over this guide then you probably had no intention of giving PC a chance in the first place. Just remember: PC gaming is superior to console gaming, but the gamers themselves are neither superior or inferior to one another: they're just people with varying degrees of understanding. Fight the misinformation, fight the false advertising, and fight the anti-gaming console monopoly. Long live freedom, long live affordable and beautiful gaming, and long live the Glorious PC Gaming Master Race!

This is a thing that exists.

wait what?

 

[Alo81]

Man, a lot of people on gaf have a weirdly slanted view of "arguing against something means you hate it."

This is an interesting debate to have because it helps a person understand the merits of both platforms and recognize the positives and negatives of both. Debating doesn't have to be fighting, and you can say something is better or worse than something else without being disparaging to the people who hold those beliefs.

That tree is cool OP, I added some stuff and responses to it.

 

[Steve Youngblood]

I can't begin to convey how much I hate console vs. PC arguments, as they are just an extension of the console wars I already hate. And it's mainly just because I feel like a lot of the shots are misrepresentations of what's going on. You walk in and see people anti-PC acting like every gaming rig needs to be a high end, $2000 rig where you are still doomed to bug-ridden software that doesn't work on your config. And on the flipside, you often have people on the pro PC side overplaying the ease with which one can build a budget PC that will supposedly slay consoles.

The reality to me is if you want something inexpensive and convenient, consoles have an easy to understand appeal. But if you want something not locked down and robust? Do you want more content to choose from? That's the appeal of PCs. I think the only time I find myself thinking that console proponents are "doing it wrong" is if/when I see people obsessing over the latest tech showdown thread who also aren't at least considering the PC as an option for multiplatform titles. If the tradeoffs between 900p vs 1080p or 30 fps vs 60 fps are hugely important to you, I really think the PC is something that needs to be on your radar. Firstly, game settings that don't exist on consoles mean you can choose what is and isn't important to you (i.e. change the game to low settings if you want a higher framerate or high if you can deal with a shaky framerate). Second -- and I know a lot of console players might deem this a negative but I honestly think it's a positive -- I think it's great to know that there is an option to throw money at your rig to get better performance if you want it.

I mean, I know that different targets muddies the waters and goes against the console philosophy of only having one set of specifications to optimize for. However, if I told you that a $100 - $200 hardware upgrade to your PS4 would get you Uncharted 4 at 60 fps instead of 30 fps, would you not be interested? Because those kinds of options exist on PC.

 

[derExperte]

So did he want to get it for himself or for bragging rights? Because other people hacking their way to an achievement doesn't in any way change the fact that we won it fair and square.

That's me, achievements are for my personal enjoyment, to compare them to those my friends have and maybe check how frequent they are. For me that's the beginning and end of their value, knowing that others (maybe even some friends) got them by cheating makes me scratch my head because what's the point but doesn't affect anything else. Okay, maybe except the last point but it's not like the majority does this so I'd say it's statistically insignificant. Only real bad thing is that Valve won't do any more achievement related meta-games but you don't get that on other platforms either.

 

[Chastten]

I want simplicity, and even though Steam is pretty awesome and gave PC gaming a huge push in that direction, it's not quite there yet and possibly never will be. As long as it's not really plug and play, consoles/handhelds will always be the go-to platform for me.

As much as I like Steam, out of the ~30 games I own, at least 5 gave me issues for no apparent reason. Aquaria has some issues with the X360 pad, Bang Bang Racing ran at under ~5FPS on my old computer even though it far exceeded the minimum requirements, etc etc.

Also, no Nintendo games will mean it'll never be my main platform of choice.

 

[Ashura_MX]

Stop being shit tier and get both (PC + console / all consoles you fancy) problem solved.

 

[alexandros]

This reads like an abridged and less condescending version of my first post in this thread.

Ha ha yeah, I can see the similarities.

 

[bomblord1]

Console gamers are not the common enemy. Modern consoles are.

I feel it's important to include this information in the article as soon as possible, since a lot of people get the wrong impression going in and don't take information to heart until they realize they're being educated rather than scolded... I should also point out that it's well-known that past consoles outperformed PCs, but that was the past. This is now. Things are different. The openness of the PC was bound to be taken advantage of eventually, and what triggered it is the stagnation of the console market. And, now that the console market has stagnated and the PC is a viable alternative, it's very possible that traditional consoles with total control under a single corporation is entirely going to vanish.

Sony and Microsoft give you an inferior system, charge you a lot of extra money for it, and make you hold on to the pieces of junk for 8 years before they give you the option of (measly) upgrades. By selling you these systems, they lock you into their overpriced ecosystem, helping them further the cycle with their ill-acquired money. They don't let you play with friends unless you pay. They don't let you play with friends that bought the other systems at all. They don't let developers directly sell you the game - they charge for dev kits and include royalties, which massively decreases their profits over that of the PC version. When you take into account the business strategy of these companies, you'll find that it's all just one big greedy systematic ripoff of uneducated consumers. They're holding your favorite games hostage on their closed platforms because they know you'll buy into it. If everyone went with a PC and disregarded this disgusting behavior, these developers wouldn't be so easily convinced to support these "next-gen" consoles. So, do yourself and the industry a favor and go with a PC. PC exists because it's an excellent platform and for no other reason than that. Nobody's advertising it. Nobody's cutting deals with Frito Lay to get it stamped on Dorito bags. Nobody's running a 'PC booth' at gaming festivals. PC exists and thrives simply because it is freaking glorious. XBox and PlayStation consoles exist because their parent corporations hijack developers (and games) that people love and cancel ports to competing platforms (other consoles as well as PC), and force fans of these games to pay a 'hardware ransom' to play it. The PC is open, cheap, customizable, and powerful. Your best interests are always at hand, no matter how arrogant some PC gamers may seem when they speak negatively of the "anti-gamer" consoles. For anyone that's offended, I am truly sorry... but if you're going to get offended over this guide then you probably had no intention of giving PC a chance in the first place. Just remember: PC gaming is superior to console gaming, but the gamers themselves are neither superior or inferior to one another: they're just people with varying degrees of understanding. Fight the misinformation, fight the false advertising, and fight the anti-gaming console monopoly. Long live freedom, long live affordable and beautiful gaming, and long live the Glorious PC Gaming Master Race!

This is a thing that exists.

I'm a PC gamer and this still sounds ridiculous to me lol.

 

[jaxpunk]

Consoles are better in one major way:

Online player bases in terms of accessibility. COD and BF4 on PC are a million times more difficult in terms of player skill.

Can I get a chart explaining the million times qualification you are citing?

 

[Rhys Wilde]

I used to be a big PC gamer but now after a few years my desktop is a bit old and doesn't run modern games super well. Plus a lot of newer games that have been coming out are having significant problems on the PC as well as very delayed ports, I bought MKX on release day because I love Mortal Kombat but it was extremely unplayable for like the first month, and now that it's better my interest has just been completely killed off.

I can't justify spending like $600 to upgrade my PC anyways, just seems like a lot of wasted money and time when I can just load up my PS4 and play the same game sans a few of the PC exclusive features. Plus it's a lot easier for my boyfriend to pick up and play the games I buy when he can just plop down on the couch and load it up. No awkwardly using my computer or sharing Steam accounts, installing it and hoping the game runs on his rig.

Any big PC exclusive titles like League of Legends or Counter-Strike are generally very well optimized anyways. I just don't see much of a point in keeping up with modern PC hardware, seems like such an expensive thing to do.

Additionally, physical games are great. I love having physical ownership. Even on PC I try to do it any time that I can. A lot of that stuff, as well as collector's editions and stuff like that don't even make it to PC.

 

[ViewtifulJC]

I've seen some bad ideas for threads in my time

This is near the top

 

[thelastword]

PC doesn't have friend notifications?

w0t

I play USF4 on steam, I can't just look up persons played and they can't easily message me and say GG's played or even send a salty message, I have to be their friend, you see, this is a typical example of how consoles are more integrated and much more of a close knit community of gamers. Another point, pretty much all the leaderboards on USF4 PC is hacked, points achievements, scores, leaderboard positions makes no sense. The level of accomplishment when going for certain stats or entitlements are just not the same.......There's much more stuff like that on PC, but just giving you some reasons prefer a more secure and community driven platform.

Console gamers are not the common enemy. Modern consoles are.

I feel it's important to include this information in the article as soon as possible, since a lot of people get the wrong impression going in and don't take information to heart until they realize they're being educated rather than scolded... I should also point out that it's well-known that past consoles outperformed PCs, but that was the past. This is now. Things are different. The openness of the PC was bound to be taken advantage of eventually, and what triggered it is the stagnation of the console market. And, now that the console market has stagnated and the PC is a viable alternative, it's very possible that traditional consoles with total control under a single corporation is entirely going to vanish.

Sony and Microsoft give you an inferior system, charge you a lot of extra money for it, and make you hold on to the pieces of junk for 8 years before they give you the option of (measly) upgrades. By selling you these systems, they lock you into their overpriced ecosystem, helping them further the cycle with their ill-acquired money. They don't let you play with friends unless you pay. They don't let you play with friends that bought the other systems at all. They don't let developers directly sell you the game - they charge for dev kits and include royalties, which massively decreases their profits over that of the PC version. When you take into account the business strategy of these companies, you'll find that it's all just one big greedy systematic ripoff of uneducated consumers. They're holding your favorite games hostage on their closed platforms because they know you'll buy into it. If everyone went with a PC and disregarded this disgusting behavior, these developers wouldn't be so easily convinced to support these "next-gen" consoles. So, do yourself and the industry a favor and go with a PC. PC exists because it's an excellent platform and for no other reason than that. Nobody's advertising it. Nobody's cutting deals with Frito Lay to get it stamped on Dorito bags. Nobody's running a 'PC booth' at gaming festivals. PC exists and thrives simply because it is freaking glorious. XBox and PlayStation consoles exist because their parent corporations hijack developers (and games) that people love and cancel ports to competing platforms (other consoles as well as PC), and force fans of these games to pay a 'hardware ransom' to play it. The PC is open, cheap, customizable, and powerful. Your best interests are always at hand, no matter how arrogant some PC gamers may seem when they speak negatively of the "anti-gamer" consoles. For anyone that's offended, I am truly sorry... but if you're going to get offended over this guide then you probably had no intention of giving PC a chance in the first place. Just remember: PC gaming is superior to console gaming, but the gamers themselves are neither superior or inferior to one another: they're just people with varying degrees of understanding. Fight the misinformation, fight the false advertising, and fight the anti-gaming console monopoly. Long live freedom, long live affordable and beautiful gaming, and long live the Glorious PC Gaming Master Race!

This is a thing that exists.

Man, thank heavens you didn't write that, I kept reading and laughing and saying this can't be real, then I peaked at the link at the end before finishing...realizing this must be some type of meme. Funny stuff though.....

 

[Dr_Boris_Goltz]

Can I get a chart explaining the million times qualification you are citing?

 

[inm8num2]

I can't begin to fathom the amount of energy people waste on being preoccupied with how other people play video games.

 

[pastrami]

I think the only time I find myself thinking that console proponents are "doing it wrong" is if/when I see people obsessing over the latest tech showdown thread who also aren't at least considering the PC as an option for multiplatform titles. If the tradeoffs between 900p vs 1080p or 30 fps vs 60 fps are hugely important to you, I really think the PC is something that needs to be on your radar.

I don't think that's entirely fair. It reads to me that you are saying that console gamers shouldn't argue about minor differences between the consoles because if they care that much, they would spend a little more and get a nicer PC.

But that's like saying I can't argue that a Mazda 3 is more fun to drive than a Chevy Cruze because if I care that much about horsepower and handling, I should have spent a little more and gotten a Subaru WRX.

 

[Denton]

I mean, I know that different targets muddies the waters and goes against the console philosophy of only having one set of specifications to optimize for. However, if I told you that a $100 - $200 hardware upgrade to your PS4 would get you Uncharted 4 at 60 fps instead of 30 fps, would you not be interested? Because those kinds of options exist on PC.

That last paragraph sums up nicely why I dislike console exclusives even as a console owner... every game that is forever locked down to low framerate, zero modability etc on obsolete platform is a loss for the industry. I am looking at you, Red Dead Redemption.