So now rumors keep abounding about the next Playstation and Xbox. It's a safe bet that at E3 they'll show off their next consoles. We all know this. It's just a matter of wondering what the hell they're going to do and what games we'll see.
But let's talk about at least what's rumored right now because frankly I don't like it.
It's already rumored now that Sony patented some sort of tech that will make the console block used games from being played in it and that it's controller will have a touch screen in it.
But as for the Xbox "Durango" as it's code name is. Well here's this. http://gengame.net/2013/02/rumor-next-xbox-will-universally-include-kinect-require-mandatory-game-installs/
So let me get this straight, the next Xbox will require you to install all games, will not let you play used games on it, will require you to be connected to the internet at all time and multitask?
Congratulations Microsoft you made a PC...again.
Now before all you elitist PC gamers start bragging about how PC gaming is not dead and how superior it is and staring down from your ivory computer towers, let me explain something about us console gamers. The reason console gamers play consoles is so we don't have to deal with the annoying crap PC gamers seem fine dealing with.
I don't like the idea of having to tinker with my computer tower constantly replacing memory cards and graphics cards. I like being able to sit on my couch and play a game instead of hunched over my PC all the time. I do that all day at work. I like LOCAL MULTIPLAYER. Don't see a lot of PC games supporting that. Not even LAN support hardly anymore. I like console games because I have the freedom to trade in games I either don't like or don't want to hang onto. And over the years the nice thing about consoles was NOT having to deal with the headaches of constant patching, updating, and being able to trade in old games.
But during this last gen we've seen the consoles slowly trying to be more like computers. For a while games were leaving out local multiplayer which as shocking as this sounds, not all gamers are friendless losers. A lot of us like to have actual human interaction. Also we see more and more consoles needed to be updated and console games needing patched and more and more it seems as though the line distinguishing PCs from consoles is getting more and more nebulous.
This brings me back to my argument. Why should I bother with a PS4 or 360 when I have a perfectly good PC? You see while I don't consider myself a "PC Gamer" I do spend more time with my consoles, my husband is more of a PC gamer. When we first met, he loved playing PC games but money was tight for us and instead of putting hundreds of dollars into a suped-up gaming computer, it was more economical at the time for him to get an (original) Xbox. But now we have better jobs and more disposable income and thanks to sites like Tiger Direct and New Egg, he can get good deals on parts to build one. The PC we're currently using is a beast with six fans and even with the PS3, my husband found himself spending more time on his PC. While it's not my primary gaming platform I've spent a fair amount of time gaming on it as well. Do you really want to hear about the 3 years of my life spend in Azeroth? And I do agree that Steam is a great service that almost makes up for the inability to trade in old PC games.
When I told my husband about the rumored "abilities" of the PS4 and Xbox 720 or "Durango" or whatever. He agreed that what was the point of buying consoles that wouldn't let us play used or borrowed or rented games and if it's going to make us do all the crap we already do with our PC, what's the advantage? Kinect? Hahahahahaaha!! Exclusives? At least in terms of the next Xbox, what exclusives? I don't like shooters. Maybe with the few Sony exclusives I like but I'll see. And if my husband and I want to play stuff together, I still plan to get a WiiU because I like Mario and Zelda and that's the only way I'll get to play Mario and Zelda and it's not doing that used game blocking tech. But it appears for the forseeable future we'll be a WiiU/PC house.
You never know, E3 could roll around and Sony and Microsoft could say "hey you know those ideas we had to make our consoles not play used games and forcing you to be online all the time? Yeah we decided to think of the consumer first and not be greedy jerks on a witch hunt to stop used games." Yeah and monkeys could fly out of my ass.
Interesting and related article: http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-02-18-crysis-3-developer-crytek-on-why-its-impossible-for-next-gen-consoles-to-match-the-power-of-gaming-pcs
Interesting and unrelated article (the zombie apocalypse is at hand!): http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/02/14/biologists-create-zombie-_n_2684959.html
ol they might have put decent hardware but not exelent into the consols but pc will still drive them outa the market simple reason really they have made it easyer for people to by a pc rather then a consol now because the ps4 is gonna cost R15 000 or $1200 so then who is gonna by a ps4 when they can by a pc with decent specs that playes all games on ultra graphics + the graphics will still look better for around R6000 that is a huge leap in price compare to the pc right ? or if you have a home pc witch most people already do then you can spend the R6000 on a really decent graphics card witch will be way more powerfull then the ps4 or xbox i wont lie i am a hard core pc gamer and i love pc to bits but then my question is there is no reason to by a consol when you already have a pc + pc games are cheaper thats a fact oh and another thing if they think for one moment that they gonna beat pc in terms of hardware that is not the case at all for a simple reason really its because pc hardware is constantly comming out and pc are constantly being updated and what the ps4 and xbox are released every 6 years uhuhuhuh i dont think everything is going to go smoothly for them remember they are going up against the worlds dominating gaming system ever built. and if the ps4 and xbox 720 is like a pc then why by a xbox and ps4 if you already have a pc anyway ? i wouldnt knowing you can by a bewast of a pc for much much cheaper. oh and i almost forgot what about customization ? i mean its not as easy as customizing your pc right ? every body wants there stuff to look nice and with pc it gives you everything you need im sorry to say but i have played on consols and i dont think that consols gives me the feeling that pc does that in game xp you know its just wonderfull that feeling the graphics the customization and everything .when you have a gamming pc then you can only call your self a gamer coz it lets you stand out from the world. and i think every one wants to be noticed and with pc thats posible . :)
As crazy as it could sound consoles don't always support local multiplayer because the console isn't powerfull enough to render the game for both players (eg Dead Space 3), so paradoxically you would need more power (=PC) to play local MP.
I have the same problem, for example I find incredible that not all racing games nowadays support it , but eventually however you'll find some games suitable for local MP .
1 Like the biggest selling games are generally pc games, diablo 3 world of warcraft , starcraft and the sims. thos 4 games have sold more than any console game
well, I have come to enjoy consoles more because there are a lot of games that don't run so well on PC (lazy ports and all that) or simply aren't avaliable for them (like, almost any fighting game released in the past 6 years, every single PS3 exclusive, Red Dead Redemption...), at least in the genres I enjoy. So, I wouldn't swap consoles for a gaming PC based on that reasons, since the greatest advantage the PC is said to have are visuals, and I'm really not willing to spend abusive quantities of money on up-to-date PC pieces just so I can play a game that looks 5-7% better...and although modding is sometimes fun, it just works on games I'm really not taking seriously.
I think i ll quit gaming ..... They do their best to suck every $ in our pocket ..... Will listen we buy we can do anything with what we buy give it to some one and change with some one .... But the idea i cant do anything with what i bough is really something stupid ..... Listen stupid mind you lose ppl in this move not gaining them..... Things must be easier as we growing up not stupid as ur ideas ..... Seems things gonna be single use what about this idea ? I play the game once i finish it resale it for me to play it again .... Wish i can show u my finger now .... Sorry guys but really they use us in bad way and there should be an action for their non sense action.....
3 Like I am not a PC gamer , never really have been . My roommate on the other hand only uses a PC , I occasionally jump on every now and then, but not very often . Over the last few days I have been thinking a lot about how static consoles are (meaning you can't upgrade them like PC's ) and then I read Tbones comment about consoles holding PC games back , and it made sense . I mean , for all the power that a lot of PC's have you end up playing games that look almost identical to games made for consoles that are 7 and 8 years old . Then I started to think about PC exclusives and wondering why they don't already look next-gen , seeing as how they aren't being made with console restraints in mind ....Is it like the reason why Blizzard made WOW the way they did ? So everyone would get a chance to play , no matter the power of your PC build ? It just seems to me that PC game developers would have already been churning out amazing looking games for a few years now if they could...That's all ...Just a really , really long question ...Why don't PC games already look next gen ? and forgive my ignorance if the answer is a well known fact .....
@zombiedriveby MMOs have a very massive scope, and the large draw distances and similar things that make an MMO look good are more important than the polygon count, not to mention WoW has been around for a long time. Guild Wars 2 looks better than anything on console, and still has the importance on draw distance and many things on screen on top of that, so that says something. There are, however, some PC games that look really really good compared to console games. Most recently, there is Warframe. There is also Planetside 2. Battlefield 3 also looks leaps and bounds better on PC compared to console, even though they didn't go all out on the PC version.
However, there is a lack of incredible looking games from major publishers, mainly because they have been focusing on consoles, and only giving higher res textures to PC, despite being able to do more. The best use of super builds at the moment are mods. There are some mods for GTA IV, Skyrim, and more, that make the games look utterly phenomenal, and truly "next-gen" so to speak.
That's because of places like Gamestop ruined it, that's why this has to be done.. Also, PC don't really have games I liked, and they now even having less games ..Consoles still making great games Im gonna still be buying.
1 Like As much as I love PC gaming the one thing I like about consoles is I can buy and sale used games. If the rumors are true though it will be interesting to see if console gamers will accept no used games for next generation like us PC gamers have. It is kind of a scary though since they have accepted all the DLC crap that has been going on.
Can we let the "ease of access" thingy die now? I play on my PC...on my 46" plasma TV (HDMI output on the video card for the win!) whilst sitting in my prized Lay-Z-Boy.
"...I know the release of the PS4 and 720 will greatly bump up the graphics quality in pc gaming for a few years..."
Actually, from a purely hardware perspective, the Xbox 720 and PS4 are *already* less powerful than a 2012 gaming rig...and these new consoles aren't even out yet!
"...AMD's fastest current PC graphics chip, the might Radeon HD 7970, packs 2,048 cores. So even assuming everything else is equal, including clockspeeds and memory bandwidth, Sony Orbis will deliver roughly half the raw graphics grunt of a top end PC.
Again, lower operating system overheads and superior software optimisation usually allow consoles to close the gap. But there's little doubting the next brace of games consoles fall well short of the best performing current PCs, much less hardware that will be available in six month's time..."
Great blog. Lot's of info. At this point, I'm not willing to be a PC gamer. I want the ease of access instead of always needing to upgrade. I am planning a new PS3 purchase soon. PS4 will be some time in the future if it has not turned into a PC.
2 Like @waterproof9 The "don't want to constantly upgrade" point is no longer valid though. I built a powerful gaming rig 2.5 years ago for $1600. That's in Canadian dollars, and with parts bought at a local shop, not online (plus a legal copy of Windows 7). That PC- which I am gaming on right now -runs games like Borderlands 2, Guild Wars 2, Torchlight 2, Skyrim, War of the Roses, XCOM etc etc and it does so sweatlessly. I haven't bought a single upgrade for this PC since I built it in late 2010.
@Zaskaszh @waterproof9 Zaskaszh is exactly right! The old argument that console kiddies always spouted about, "but with a PC you constantly have to upgrade" has been hogwash for at least 10 years now. Just as my example...I built may last PC 4 years ago...have not done a single upgrade since and my machine still runs every game at max settings and is far superior to the capabilities of a PS3 and xbox360 put together...I WISH a game would come along that would challenge my computer, but alas all the major developers cater the performance of their games to the crappy capabilities of these stupid consoles as opposed what a far superior PC can handle.
1 Like As far as i see it having a console block used games means the death of the console, well for me anyway. I have bought SSX, Max Payne3 and a FIFA game that had problems but thankfully i could sell them on. Would never get another pre-ordered game if i knew i could not sell it on, not worth the risk. Interesting article
1 Like The reason I despise console gaming (notice I said gamING and not gamERS!) is simple really...consoles have been holding back PC gaming for years. Game designers by and large design games with the max potential of current consoles in mind only (as far as how far they can push graphics and visuals in general). The average PC now FAR FAR FAR FAR exceeds the abilities of the PS3 and the XBOX...so basically the vast majority of PC games have to be graphically "dumbed down" as to not exceed the capabilities of what consoles can handle.
Sure, most PC ports offer higher resolutions, and some additional "eye candy" occasionally, but no where near what todays graphics cards can handle. Am I the only one that misses those days when the next big game always pushed the limits of most PCs, and went far beyond what any console could handle? Seems like it has been about 10 years that game has been released that makes a PC work to its potential...and THAT is because of the console first mentality.
I know the release of the PS4 and 720 will greatly bump up the graphics quality in pc gaming for a few years, so that is exciting in the short term, but the cylce will repeat and it wont take long before those boxes start holding back PC gaming once again.
Great blog and lots of good points made. You actually convinced and pursuaded me to defend the consoles this time around, even though I'm usually defending the PC's.
One thing I would say though is with the rumoured release of the Steam box I can see a predominantly 'Steam' run living room. It's got the benefits of PC gaming along with the ease of accessibility the consoles have.
ive only read the title but one good reason is console exclusives no? there have been some very good exclusives in the past for both consoles. (I play games on PS3, Xbox360 and PC)
1 Like @Defy_The_Fallen @Clynol Yeah I get tired of seeing constant comments of "well I saw the title but didn't read your blog but here's my opinion anyway even though your blog covered all the things I"m talking about.
2 Like Playstation has plenty of good exclusive games. From the other hand Xbox has the same games with PC (except from Halo and Gears)
The PC argument is garbage because basically no JRPGs come out for the PC. Nor any great racing sims. PC gets the big name titles, so if thats all you play then fine, but if you want any variety at all or dont want to miss a great number of gems then the pc is not the way to go.
@deltaalphagamma @IgotEpixx Xcom? FTL? CIV 5: Gods and Kings? Natural Selection 2? Crusader King II? yep no great strategy games.
@deltaalphagamma @IgotEpixx Plenty coming. COH 2 coming in March and Generals 2 coming in December. I'm sure there are few others too that I don't play. You don't need lots of strategy games because getting good at even one is hard enough. Two good strategy games is all you'll ever need at a time.
3 Like Alright guys, there's enough stupid flying around in the comments section that I must say something.
@PCGamers: There's nothing bad, silly, or frivolous about console gaming. It's actually pretty awesome. Many great games, past and present, have come out on consoles. They may not be what you like but that doesn't mean they are low quality.
Also, get over the idea that PCs have "better graphics." We don't necessarily. It depends on how recent the latest console refresh was. I don't recall my PC games looking as nice as Dreamcast games right after its launch, nor any other console. Some of the most visually dazzling games are ( and will continue to be ) console exclusive.
@ConsoleGamers: PCs aren't half as expensive or half as complicated as you think. An experienced PC shopper can get a really good PC cheaply, and it's good for most PC games for quite a number of years. Plus it can do all kinds of other stuff since it's not limited to gaming. A gaming PC, by virtue of its advanced hardware ( SSDs, fast CPU, fast RAM, ) can make mincemeat out of many productivity tasks. Modern OSs are very easy to install and quick access to Google makes PC troubleshooting an order of magnitude simpler than it was back when Quake was released.
Also, PC gaming isn't just about graphics. It's not even mostly about graphics. The modern PC gamer loves everything from tiny indie games ( most of which look like they were made for the NES if we're honest ) to games from eastern Europe that nobody has ever heard of. The days when PC gaming was mostly about the latest FPS engine are dead and gone
So, anyhow, quit hating. There's a lot that's wonderful about PCs and consoles. I mostly play PC games ( I like RTSs, M&K FPSs, and 4X Strategy Games ) but I also love more than a few recent console games.
What you guys need to do, instead, is redirect your ire towards your idiot representatives in government before they censor the living daylights out of PCs AND consoles. That's a little more productive, don't you think?
@AlpsStranger its true that some console exclusive games have great graphics but whenever there's a game that comes out on both PC and the consoles the PC version almost always comes out on top in the graphics side.
Anyway, I share your view that both PC and consoles have pros and cons and its just up to your preferences. I haven't had a console for a very long time. My last one was a Sega Mega drive 2 that I bought in '97 and I had a Nintendo and a Atari before that. But now I'm thinking again. These rumors are not helping it though.
Yeah, my house is a WiiU/PC house nowadays, and I don't see that changing. I have a 360 and PS3, but I haven't used either of them since back in the summer, maybe even earlier. There's nothing on them that I want to play that I can't play on my PC in actual HD with a smooth frame rate. It's easier than ever to build and maintain a gaming pc, and I'm secure in the knowledge that if something goes bad I can fix it, rather than sending it off for repairs to some foreign land and hoping it's still under warranty.
The Wii U provides a completely different experience, and since I never bought a Wii, I've got a truckload of games still to play.
So yeah, I honestly can't think of anything MS or Sony could do to get me to buy their next consoles.
1 Like i came here to dislike cause this guy completely missed the point of a console's main advantage over a PC when it comes to hardware utilisation and optimisation
also, exclusives, lower cost, and more
nothing but another elitest douchbag i wouldn't want to bump online
good riddance this guy doesn't have a console
ANNND if you think about the used games part, pc doesn't support used games at all and have a really terrible useless DRM that pisses me off
and if sony won't block used games microsoft nither, simple logic.
@thequickshooter It's a bit irrelevant when the best optimized game on a console doesn't work as well as a not so optimized game on PC.
@thequickshooter Hey, it's not about elitism. A lot of PC gamers just like 4x TBSs and other genres that are nearly nonexistent on consoles.
I agree that consoles have significant hardware efficiency and ease of use advantages, so if that's what you like then have a blast.
@AlpsStranger @thequickshooter well first, some amazing PC exclusives ARE getting ported to the xbox 360 like the witcher 2 and metro 2033
you're absolutly right about RTS's, consoles bearly recive any
but halo wars is amazing,
still i don't think it's worthwhile to spend on a 2K laptop just for:
mount & blade series, company of heroes, chiverly midevil warfare, and similar games
i would IF the DRM for those games didn't exist (DRM doesn't prevent pircay, it only pisses off the legitimate customers)
but as i said, most pc games get a lazy cheap console port, which is best played on console
but i do agree that games should be made for pc, and then ported to xbox (cause PS3 can't handle it)
I with you on this. Most big time games are for everything. Exclusives are the main issue. But there arent many (exclusives) Yes there are some... But not like back in the day. Just about every other game was a exclusive.
There are at must 150 exclusives for xbox or ps3 each. Then you take out the one's that you dont like. (For me that sport, race'in and fly'in games) so down to 90. Out of that 90... we got 35 that are bad 30 are good 15 are great 10 i want to keep forever. So in the end of it life i will have 10-30 exclusives. Im am a gamer for true. But 10-30 isnt a lot. When you add the fact most game are 6-10 and at some point any online play will die off or be shut off.
If used games are blocked many will become PC/WII U user. I know i will.
@Zid96 They will never be crazy enough to block used game sales. If they do I agree that it might be a huge boon for PC gaming.
1 Like If you're a gamer, why limit yourself to one platform? I game mainly on PC, but I don't see why I can't enjoy all forms of gaming. In fact, I still pop in my N64 and PS2 from time to time, and enjoy them just as much as when I first got them.
1 Like me for most of gen I always had a PC and like 2 other consoles and a handheld but my PC was crap I had a lennvo laptop with a intel centrono processor and 2 gigs of ddr2 it was enough for me to play WoW and TF2 and a lot of other RTS. I'd always enjoyed gaming on my PC even with the crappy graphics but I was always jelly for PC owners cwho can play cryisis with awesome graphics. And yes I spent a whole a lot of time on my Xbox 360 Wii and DS but my 360 was my main gaming machine I'd played my RPGs and other actions games on it. It was not in till 3 years ago I saw the power of steam with constant sales and a great community really made me think about my Xbox 360 I was getting Fed up to pay 60 dollars a years for basic service and the cool inde titles that I like on the Xbox summer arcade moved to PC anyway and the fact that the Xbox really lost many of their exclusives in fact the only exclusive they have now is Halo and Froza which where games I could live with out and my Wii and DS was not really cutting it for time. after my summer Job I had before I went my 11th year of high school I had plenty of cash to build a PC ( I had a college trust on my name and we had a extra car that I drove instead) so I decide to put a $1000 on parts for the new desktop which was biggest gamble I have ever took but I'd never regretted it. While Building it I had friends who helped and I was really shocked how Ez it was. It seemed like just putting stuff in the right place but putting thermal Pasting on the processor that dose take some skill to do right but not much. Ever since then I'd always enjoyed upgrading it ( I am really techky guy ) and seeing the results brings joy. The constant sales on steam holy crap if you look at my library steam now you'll be shocked how much games I had in the course of 3 years. And for those who say PC have no exclusives you are dead wrong PC has entire genres that are exclusive and compays like Value and Blizzard and much thanks to the amazing inde devs really make the PC a awesome plat form. And I can not forget to mention Moding, which lead to one the most popular game of all time, League Of Legends and BTW that is a PC exclusive. Now I days I just upgraded to GTX 680 for gaming and 3D modeling and I am blown away again. But I still play console I loved the PS3 when I got a extra one from a friend, and I got a Wii U too and its awesome for my set up. Oh I have to mention I never Really had a living room to play my console games since 6 years ago when we moved so I always had every thing in my room and still do. I cant tell you how awesome it is to use the Wii U table for browsing and You Tube when laying in bed and have it displayed on the TV. Anyway I know I went way overboard. But I like to tell people the reason why I love PC gaming and the people who are bias towards it are simply wrong. Now a day you can build a Rig as low as 350$ not including the monitors which can be around like $150. And the advent of the Steam box really showed how influential how Pc gaming has become . Any way I love almost all consoles PC and Nintindo are like top 2 but I had spent way more time on the PC and handhelds in my entire life. ( sorry for long and pointless comment)
I built my PC over a year ago and never spent a moment "tinkering over my tower". Built it once and it's been playing games, browsing internet, watching videos, doing homework ever since. I only recently replaced my graphics card not because I had to, but because I wanted to.
Don't assume we spend all day hunkered over our PCs constantly repairing it. Also, PC games are generally less expensive than console versions.
And another thing, if you think PC gaming is expensive, please do some research. I can build a decent gaming PC that will outperform a PS3 for only $500-$1000 and it will not only play games, but do everything a...get ready for this, computer can do.
@GhostOfSparta4 Well, no gamer wants a "decent" PC. Otherwise you might as well spend a heck of a lot les for and get a console. If you're going to build a good future proof pc you gotta spend more than $500-$1000. To me, unless you want a future proofed pc, whats the point? Mine can run pretty much anything if not everything out there in max settings, and thats nice but I also have a PS3 and am still able to appreciate what its technology is capable of. Plus theres something just more comfortable and more immersing when playing a game on a console rather than pc. Honestly this console vs PC war is so unnecessary, I think it just depends on the experience you are looking for.
@DeathwachMarineI spent 800 dollars on my computer and I have a gtx 670 ftw 1TB WD black HDD best ivy bridge i5 and 8 gb of corsair vengence ram and water cooling oh and a 800 watt corsair g series power supply and 6 fans.
I also have a PS3 and wasn't bashing consoles in any way, I'm just pointing out that PC gaming isn't for hardcore elitists and isn't expensive at all to build. You're right about future-proofing but you have to remember, technology is improving at an accelerated pace. In a few years, your graphics card will be outdated and the same goes for consoles. Sony and Microsoft won't be able stick with each generation as long as they did with the PS2 and Xbox.
You also have to remember that PCs aren't only for gaming, so you cant really compare the cost of a gaming PC to a console. The only thing you should be comparing are the graphics card, processor and memory. Even then, your processor and memory will give you a good 5 years if not more of service before you have to replace them. Graphics card, maybe 3 years before you have to replace in order to get the best quality graphics.
Plus, a "decent" graphics card still beats a PS3/360 and costs about $300.
Haha absolutely right but when I said decent, I meant a GTX 660TI, which will still run most games on max ;)
Soon, it'll be much cheaper to game on PC than console, because we'll reach a point where consoles will become obsolete within a few years, and you have to shell out another ~$400 for the PS5.
I'll still get a PS4 though...eventually...when the price drops to a $200 bundle.
@GhostOfSparta4 What you say is ture. I was just adressing other comments with a few different comments, and I didn't want to copy/paste my previous one in all the other comment chains lol. Its really for anyone who read it. I wasn't just reffereing to the accelerated pace of technological improvement, mainly just the quality and longevity of what you're buying in trems of gamers considering building a pc. Basically what I was saying is that, if you're looking to build a new pc for games and modding (which I know is the reason most console players wan't a pc for), you should (actually, you need to) spend the dough and future proof the thing, I mean you don't just want better than consle quality in a pc, you wan't MAX on everything...and you're going to want that for as long as possible right? Otherwise why not just wait for the next gen consoles? As you say, a "decent" graphics card still costs about $300. I don't care what anyone says, you're going to want a good gaming pc and a good gaming rig is pretty damn expensive. But hey, you shell out the money and theres just a ton of perks. Thats why I did it, but I still enjoy my PS3.
@GhostOfSparta4 I have a gaming rig that outperformed the PS3 3 years ago, but now I play all games on low.
Well, of course. The rate at which technology is moving right now is insane, if you want to keep up you'll have to play at the same old quality or get a better rig. You don't have to upgrade though, that's your choice.
In the end, you can stick with your 3 year old rig and you'll still have better performance than a PS3
That's what you may think, but did you know there's a button that lowers the quality in most games? Crazy, right?
You can't build a rig and expect it to perform the same after 3 years at higher quality. You can, however, lower the quality to the same level as it was a few years ago so your video card can run it. Have you seen the graphics of Crysis on consoles? Not so great. I loved my PS3 (RIP) but I know it can't run today's games at max quality.
As for $500-$1000 3 times to keep up, that's completely false. In 1.5 years, I didn't upgrade at all and didn't have to for another year or so, unless I wanted to keep up with the MAX setting during that time (which I don't care to). I only recently upgraded my GTX 580 to a 670 to take advantage of the lowered heat and power use, for $200.
I didn't have to, I could have kept my 580 and enjoyed it for another 1-2 years at high quality, but I had extra cash at the time so I did. Again, I wasn't forced to upgrade, I even could have kept it for another 5 years, only that would mean I would have to play at medium settings, which you're already doing with consoles.
meh.. Build same specs as new console, or even TWICE the specs as any of the new cosoles.. give it 3 years, and your PC wont run the same games that those consoles can.
if I'm not making sense... look at crysis - the system requires for PC are way up - so is the quality
to simplify.. you got to keep upgrading your PC to play the Same games that a console can w/o upgrading. Quality is different, but price is way less
imo GG and good job on paying 500-1000 for a PC three times over in my 360's lifespan. I can play crysis just fine with sufficient quality to enjoy it.
I wish I could pay that much myself, but money doesn't sprout in the soil around here, for me at least.
Because it costs almost the same as a console but you're getting much higher quality on PC, even with the "minimum".
If you're going to mainly be a PC gamer, why would you go for the minimum, even if you're barely playing above console quality. There's no point in it. Save up the money and build a good rig.
@Halloll @GhostOfSparta4 Maybe you need a new graphics card? I mean hell even my 5 year old laptop with a 9800m GTS in it (~25$) can run games better than my PS3 and Xbox and obviously it looks better too.
Unfortunately, most developers spend more time on console graphics and make a bad port for PC. Even with a better rig, it wouldn't make a huge difference.
