Why PC Gaming Sucks

[Ginger_Warrior]

I'd have thought the "one sofa" comment would have made it blatantly obvious I wasn't referring to XBL... I was referring to that thing people do face-to-face sometimes. Y'know... Talking.

 

For what it's worth, I'd say Skype is easier to divide conversation up than XBL, simply because it takes longer to do with a controller than a keyboard/mouse. New Xbox's come with headsets included too, although that's a very minor point because PC headsets, while not necessarily included, are inexpensive.

[jasignhagj]

Dear God, you've opened the can of worms again.

 

Faux, you can't win this, no matter how valid your points are. Most people that frequent these forums probably play PC's anyway.

 

I don't mind.

 

The only point I agree with that has been made in favor of the console side is the price difference. If you don't have much money to spend, then console gaming is probably for you. If you don't mind paying a bit extra for quality, then go with PC gaming. Since most people are going to own a computer that costs at least $500 anyways, it's not a huge price difference when you look at it.

 

Just my 2 cents.

 

Just an example.

 

BF2 - released in 2009. Let's say it's around your typical "$500 budget" (which it probably isn't because the GPUs alone cost $200 back then).

 

Recommended specs:

Intel Pentium 4 2.4 GHz or AMD Athlon XP equivalent

1 GB RAM

NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 256 MB or ATi Radeon 9500 256 MB

3 GB of free hard disk space for Windows swap file and save data

 

BF3 - released 2011: Quick check off newegg.com, GTX560 costs $270, on sale for $233. Not even looking at the cost of a quad core, and the extra ram. new MB and the new OS.

 

Recommended specs:

Windows 7 64-bit

Intel or AMD quad-core

4 GB RAM

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 or AMD Radeon HD 6950

 

Two years apart...

 

Those specs are bullshit. I can play BF3 on high with 2x AA and ultra textures and never drop below 45 fps with my GTX 460.

[Bubs]

BF2 - released in 2009.

 

I found your problem.

 

Edit: those specs aren't even close to being correct.

[Alg]

For what it's worth, I'd say Skype is easier to divide conversation up than XBL, simply because it takes longer to do with a controller than a keyboard/mouse. New Xbox's come with headsets included too, although that's a very minor point because PC headsets, while not necessarily included, are inexpensive.

XBL does have one benefit over PC multiplayer between friends, though. You have just one account that does everything, and they've made the process very streamlined over the years. You don't have to go through a third party to organize voice chat between a group of friends, it's essentially worked into the game.

 

Admittedly, it's a minor benefit because, as with most things about the PC, Skype is useful for more than just gaming. There seems to be a "versatility vs. specialization" thing going on there.

[Ginger_Warrior]

You can use the Xbox for MSN too so it's an even more minor point when you consider that (given, no-one or their blind dog uses Messenger these days, but the principle of the argument still holds true... the Xbox does more than gaming too). I'm only speaking from a live tactical POV; that is, the ability to pass on information to specific people as quickly and as efficiently as possible, and in that regard they're both more-or-less equal. The thing I hate about them both however is that people who've never used radio communications in a "real life" setting always talk over each other. On a PTT set you literally can't do this; when two people are on an open channel at the same time, neither message gets through. You have to take turns.

 

Pretty annoying when Team Member A is calling out an enemy location, while Team Member B is shouting down the microphone about how his last death was BS, and Team Member C is using a Kinect and he's got his music on too loud in the background. Team Member A doesn't stand a chance in hell. It's something they could both definitely work on.

[Randox]

Maybe I am old school, but I would not consider online play to be social in the same way that sitting in front of the TV with a group of friends is social. Voice chat is great and all, but there is still no substitution for physical interaction in my eye. This however becomes an ever more moot point though as more and more games lack this feature, because to them it is lost revenue (they want all your friends to buy the games too). To quote rule 7 of the 7 commandments all video games should obey (Thou shalt let us play your game with real life friends):

 

"The advantage that consoles have over, say, PCs, is that you can play from your comfy sofa. The reason the sofa is considered the pinnacle of furniture technology is because there's room for other people on it.

 

Yet, here's Grand Theft Auto IV, boasting about its robust multiplayer, and if you think "multiplayer" means inviting the gang over to play, get drunk, laugh and high-five each other until the break of dawn, too bad. You can't do that. Want to play with friends, they must be kept at arm's length, faceless at the other end of a broadband connection. Grand Theft Auto IV multiplayer is a world without hugs."

 

This trend is a large portion of why I have no desire to buy another console ever. If I am not going to be able to have the gang over anyway, then the PC runs games better, especially if I put the money from the would be console into the Cadillac of graphics cards.

[Alg]

The fact that some developers ignore splitscreen multiplayer doesn't mean that splitscreen multiplayer doesn't exist.

Quote is from Cracked, right? I think I mentioned a while ago that their gaming articles should be taken with a grain of salt (at best), this isn't an exception. Grand Theft Auto may not have had splitscreen multiplayer, but other franchises seem to focus on it: Halo and Gears of War (examples) have achievements for cooperative play, and splitscreen is more or less encouraged.

 

Sure, it's being phased out in favor of online multiplayer but for many games the option is still there, and it's fun.

[nine naked men]

Sounds like somebody just wants to screen cheat. For shame.

[Drazhor]

Both PC gaming and Consoles have their benefits and drawbacks, neither is better or worse than the other; it all comes down to your personal preferences for how you want to play your games.

I find that consoles are better for having a few friends round to mess about and have a bit of fun, nothing too serious. PC's are more for those who want a personally great gaming experience.

I dunno, that's just my little opinion on it! :)

[chenw]

I have a very unique challenge when it comes to consoles vs. PC:

 

I play consoles solely for the console exclusive games that I enjoy playing on it. The titles include Super Smash Bros., Castlevania, Resident Evil (specifically the Umbrella Chronicles), Final Fantasy, and the genres of side scrolling shoot-em up and beat-em ups.

 

None of which warranted me to having to buy an entire console for, especially if I cannot obtain English language games easily. I live in Taiwan, obtaining valid English copies of any thing is harder than simply moving to another country, thanks to region locks, I much MUCH prefer reading in English than Mandarin due to me having been educated in English for the better part of my education. Both of these factors prevents me from seriously considering getting any kind of consoles, now, or any time in the near future.

 

Besides, consoles can only be used for games, I can use PCs for other uses.

[Powerfrog]

I have a very unique challenge when it comes to consoles vs. PC:

 

I play consoles solely for the console exclusive games that I enjoy playing on it. The titles include Super Smash Bros., Castlevania, Resident Evil (specifically the Umbrella Chronicles), Final Fantasy, and the genres of side scrolling shoot-em up and beat-em ups.

 

None of which warranted me to having to buy an entire console for, especially if I cannot obtain English language games easily. I live in Taiwan, obtaining valid English copies of any thing is harder than simply moving to another country, thanks to region locks, I much MUCH prefer reading in English than Mandarin due to me having been educated in English for the better part of my education. Both of these factors prevents me from seriously considering getting any kind of consoles, now, or any time in the near future.

 

Besides, consoles can only be used for games, I can use PCs for other uses.

Just noting that all of the exclusives you mentioned can be emulated flawlessly on a decent computer. I've been playing SSBM recently (with a wireless xbox 360 controller which also works flawlessly with any PC game using a program named Pinnacle) It's perfectly legal to emulate if you own the game, FYI.

 

I spent over £1400 on my computer because it's a large part of my life, I use it for work, entertainment, socializing, my hobby(software development), research, shopping... It's a very small investment that makes my daily activities so much more pleasurable and gives me so much potential to do more than I ever could previously.

 

I felt like gravedigging because it's an interesting topic :D

[chenw]

Duly noted, but it isn't about owning the game, but owning the correct version of the game. Even if I own a Chinese version of the game, I doubt I can legally emulate an US copy for example (due to the two sides having different formats, the existence of which bothers me beyond belief).

 

I spent roughly the same on my computer two years ago, and once I get a new desk in my room i'll have it upgraded.

 

I also work on a computer, but due to my job and the secrecy it requires, my work and my home computer can never mix (which is, frankly, a good thing to me, as I sometimes can be a bit careless).

[Alg]

It's perfectly legal to emulate if you own the game, FYI.

[states]

I think this only really applies if you make the copy yourself, for personal use, and even then it's a gray area that came about because of a supreme court case an entirely different format (VHS recording)... Not that most people are going to do it themselves anyway. In other regions, I've got no idea how the law works (I don't really even know here).

 

...I don't really have high hopes for this thread, especially now that the topic is emulation.

[Nom]

Oh lulz I remember this thread.

 

Emulation is indeed only legal if you make the copy yourself. So no, you can't own the game and then download someone else's rom, because the very distrubtion of roms is illegal. You have to dump the files yourself.

 

Also OMFG ALG LUCINA IN YOUR SIG

[jasignhagj]

For what it's worth the chance you'll be sued for downloading ROMs is probably nonexistent.

[Giordano]

For what it's worth the chance you'll be sued for downloading ROMs is probably nonexistent.

Yeh.

 

I don't even bother mentioning the legality of these things anymore. And my friends who enjoyed the N64 emulator I mentioned would surely agree. :wink:

[nine naked men]

I had a gamecube emulator but whenever I tried to play Melee or Mario Party our games desynced, it was really annoying.

[Ren]

Oh, side note: possible memory price spike due to a fire at a main manufacturing company. PS4 seems more likely to get hit with price spikes than Xbox One, but overall, everything should/would be rising (including pc's). The difference is that most people don't need a ton of ram for pc's, and consoles going up by $50-75 is very possible. GPU's on the other hand could be getting very expensive, just because of how the market is right now. Higher-end GPU's are staying stable prices, sometimes even going up (due to inflation and whatever). There are a few companies out there that will not be affected heavily by this, but nVidia is one of the biggest names out there and likely will be. Say hello to new $1000+ GPU's?..

 

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say it's finally worth buying the cheaper stuff for sure. Usually people avoid it because it's shoddy/doesn't last quite as long due to inferior cooling systems or whatever. That's what you're mainly paying for, the quality of the ram, and the fans that come with it all.

Edited September 9, 2013 by Kimberly

[Kimberly]

Old topics can be bumped if the posts are relevant to the original discussion. As such I've hidden the recent off-topic posts and let remain the posts that actually discussed something on-point.

 

You're free to continue this discussion or, if you'd like create a new topic instead, considering the new console generations and hardware advances. I will happily lock this one and let that one take its place if that's what you guys want.

 

Shoot me a PM if you have any questions.

[DatsTrueDuude]

Piracy-DRM

 

 

These two go hand in hand. Increasing piracy leads to worse and worse DRM. Look at Diablo 3, you need to have online connection 100% of the time to even play single player.

 

 

OMG dat Picture made me LAUGH SOOO HARD... no lol and no rofl can tell you how hard I laughed^^ OMG thx dude you made my day.

 

I like PCs myself ... PC Elitism however makes me laugh^^

 

(if you like PC Gaming, and want a LOL, go here: http://hackerbot.net/106-sexy-gamer-coolness-index-sgci )

 

I think consoles are just easier to use, but PCs are better when it comes to performance, if you spend the money :)

[chenw]

Things you can do with a PC massively defeats what you can do on a Console, but yes, anyone who can follow instructions written on a book can get a working and running Console in next to no time at all, and they need to pay no attention to the specs it needs (if it says it runs on an XBox One, it can run on any One, whether it is now or 5 years down the line), and there are times I really wish PC games were like that.

 

Also, it's hard to banjax a console, it's pretty easy to do on a PC (sometimes it even banjaxes itself!).

[Nobody]

PS3 and PS4 games at the very least are not region locked.

[V O R K]

I loved SNES because it had no loading times.

 

My desktop is stronger then a PS4, shorter waiting times too.

 

/seta mouse5 "" > controllers

 

Look at all the freeware/mods people make for games, look at xbox one denying you access because the camera noticed a cat :')

[Alg]

Why won't this topic die

[V O R K]

PS: Alienware are rip-off artists.

 

lel :d