Why do you guys bother with PC gaming?

[pauldun170]

gots my joystick
gots my trackir
gots my keyboard and mouse
gots my eye candy

 

[Axon]

Ya'll just got trolled.

 

[bart1975]

$600 computer + F2P/flash web games gets you the most entertainment for your money.

 

[Carfax83]

it's pretty insane what PC gamers spend just on video cards. a video card can cost the same or more than an entire PS3/360. all these $1,000+ rigs, all the questions and research on cooling, power consumption, SSD, and so on, when you can just buy a PS3 for $250 and turn it on and be done with it.

not to mention the dearth of games for PCs in the last decade. when i did most of my gaming on a PC back in the 80s/90s, there were new titles left and right.

I think you're confusing gamers and hardware enthusiasts. Pure gamers don't really care much about building expensive rigs, because all they want to do is game, and you don't need $1,000+ rig to do that.

Hardware enthusiasts (who also tend to be gamers) on the other love building and tweaking computers on the other hand, and are much more likely to spend a lot of money on computer parts because thats their HOBBY.

If you were to add up the price of all the parts I bought to build my computer, it would easily go North of $3,000; especially if you factor in the price of the components when they first became available on the market..

But, if I had ordered my computer from a retailer instead of building it myself, it would have cost me a thousand dollars more I'd wager, so I did save money

 

[Zap]

Hello jalo2, and welcome to AnandTech Forums.

it's pretty insane what PC gamers spend just on video cards. a video card can cost the same or more than an entire PS3/360.

Where can I get a new PS3 for $90? That's how much my GTX 460 cost. I would already have a computer for non-gaming tasks, so that's how much it costs me to turn my existing computer into a gaming rig.

Ya'll just got trolled.

... perhaps.

 

[taltamir]

Hello jalo2, and welcome to AnandTech Forums.

Where can I get a new PS3 for $90? That's how much my GTX 460 cost. I would already have a computer for non-gaming tasks, so that's how much it costs me to turn my existing computer into a gaming rig.

... perhaps.

This is just so spot on.

Everyone already owns a PC. The price is then the cost to upgrade a PC from a work only machine to a gaming capable machine.
Generally speaking that means the cost of one video card.

A video card with superior performance to a console always costs less then a console does.

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2080143

The 8800GTS 640MB came out 3 days before the PS3 for 2/3 the price. It massively outperforms it. You can play games with it today on 720p with a 30fps framecap (enable vsync and set refresh rate to 30hz) and they still look better. Not to mention how modern consoles tend to have lag, texture popping, hideous 3 minute level loading times, etc...

You don't HAVE to upgrade a PC, you have the option to and many choose to. But if you never upgrade, at any point in time buying a PC gives you a better quality machine.

The consoles of today ARE PCs only with a defective by design OS (DRMed up the wazoo and stripped of useful features), and games that cost 10$ more each for the console maker's cut. Throughout their entire run, they are more expensive then a video card upgrade to something more powerful then them. And PC games always let you lower the settings.

PC games also can output to a TV and allow you to choose whether to use a joystick, mouse+keyboard, or a game controller (I have an xbox controller for the PC for when I feel like it)

Mods provide extra value in the PC. Some developers claim piracy is an issue with PC but MS banned over 1/10th of its sold consoles from live for using pirated games and those are just the ones they actually caught.

Then there is the fact that crappy unfinished buggy games now appear in console format too... all 3 current gen consoles have internet updating capability and thus most new console games are "release broken, fix never, make a sequel" just like PC games, so that loses console's their one advantage (and it was a huge advantage; actual product QC is worth paying for and was a totally legitimate argument against PC gaming as late as the PS2 era).
I own a PS2, but I will not buy a PS3 or xbox unless there is some value add proposition here. With the FALSE promise of online updating resulting in no QC combined with the more expensive yet inferior graphics and control scheme, I see no value to buying those.

 

[Midwayman]

Because it's worth it.

 

[OILFIELDTRASH]

Because console gaming sucks. I bought a ps3 and 3-4 different games and haven't played it more than 3 hours total.

Why would I? My gaming pc has nvidia 3d, superior graphics, better controls, etc..

 

[WaTaGuMp]

When porn is abundant on a console I MIGHT decide to quit with my PC.

 

[Avalon]

it's pretty insane what PC gamers spend just on video cards. a video card can cost the same or more than an entire PS3/360. all these $1,000+ rigs, all the questions and research on cooling, power consumption, SSD, and so on, when you can just buy a PS3 for $250 and turn it on and be done with it.

not to mention the dearth of games for PCs in the last decade. when i did most of my gaming on a PC back in the 80s/90s, there were new titles left and right.

I just got a $115 Geforce GTX460 and added it to my $500 PC that I built 3 years ago, that I've used for things besides gaming. If I'm going to have a PC regardless, and I can slap in a ~$120 video card that will knock around a console, why bother with a PS3? I'm not interested in the few console exclusives, and mouse control for what I play is infinitely better than an analog stick or d-pad. Not to mention, my games look and play MUCH better.

I think you're taking an extreme minority that spends a lot of money, and projecting it onto the rest of us...

 

[saratoga172]

Let's also not forget some of us use pour computers for reasons other than gaming. I've generally needed powerful computers in three past for other things such as video rendering. I just added a nice card to my system and was good to go.

But yes it's a hobby. So it's always fun getting in new parts and seeing how it effects your system.

I game on a 360 as well. I like sports games on console better personally.

 

[Dravic]

I don't see the reason to choose..

I buy my sports, fighters, hack and slash type games on the console where the controller shines. Games that don't require a ton of customization, and only a few (relatively) buttons are needed.

Everything else I like to play on a real PC.

 

[happy medium]

it's pretty insane what PC gamers spend just on video cards. a video card can cost the same or more than an entire PS3/360. all these $1,000+ rigs, all the questions and research on cooling, power consumption, SSD, and so on, when you can just buy a PS3 for $250 and turn it on and be done with it.

not to mention the dearth of games for PCs in the last decade. when i did most of my gaming on a PC back in the 80s/90s, there were new titles left and right.

I ,for one, am gonna answer your question honestly.

Most people spend that much just to say they have the faster hardware.

AA , motion blur, special lighting effects, ect. ect. ect are all bullshit.
Give me a game that makes me wanna play till 3 in the morning when I have to get up at 6am and all those little graphic effects things are forgotten.

The truth is give me a xbox 720 with 2x the graphic power and 50% more cpu power (than a 360) with a mouse, keyboard , flight stick setup @1080p, internet access, and I would drop my computer for gaming needs in a second.

I'm sure many will share my opinion when it comes to gaming.

As far as video encoding or most other tasks of this nature, a good overclocked quad core is fast enough for the average user. My q9550 can encode and burn a movie in under 20 min.
A computer for these needs would be cheap for the average user.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Obviously you have not played PC games anytime in the last few years if you think there is a lack of quality PC games. I will agree with you that we PC gamers don't have enough games.:'(

I will admit that a console is easier to use. No patches, no viruses, etc. But once you have a good PC, you really can't go back to nerfed games.

They release patches for console games all the time.

 

[saratoga172]

As far as video encoding or most other tasks of this nature, a good overclocked quad core is fast enough for the average user. My q9550 can encode and burn a movie in under 20 min.
A computer for these needs would be cheap for the average user.

True but keep in mind. The only thing missing from that system to make it a very competant gamer is a decent graphics card. 200 or so will get you nice card. That's cheaper than going in for a 300 console

 

[lehtv]

Most people spend that much just to say they have the faster hardware.

AA , motion blur, special lighting effects, ect. ect. ect are all bullshit.

 

[notty22]

I'm a fan of both.
Owned many consoles and used to ride my bike to go play Asteroids, Space Invaders and Pac-man.
Consoles brought gaming home.
They have leaped over each other many times in the last 20 years.

 

[toyota]

I like the idea of consoles but until I can get console games for the pc prices I do on Steam then I will probably not be a console only gamer. plus many of the issues we have to put with on pc are impacting consoles nowadays.

 

[NTAC]

I like the idea of consoles but until I can get console games for the pc prices I do on Steam then I will probably not be a console only gamer. plus many of the issues we have to put with on pc are impacting consoles nowadays.

Good point, cloud gaming storage has changed everything for me. I don't have to store CDs and cases and all that crap anymore.

And the deals you get on some games are insane.. .I think Bioshock 2 is $4.99 on Steam now.. No shipping no nothing, you click a button, it downloads and you can play.

Your saves and everything are stored there, you can go to any PC and play your library of games, there's just no substitute.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

Until I can buy hardware upgrades for my consoles so that I'm not stuck with 1280x720 @ 30fps or 60fps with massive frame drops but could actually play at 1920x1080 or higher with up to 120fps on a 120Hz screen or better then there's no way I'd ever want to downgrade my experience. Also keyboard and mouse support is a must.

Then we have to consider that the software for PC gaming can be so much cheaper far sooner if you can hold off from buying titles on release day.

Sure, the console hardware is only ~$250, but after forking over for all the peripherals and being charged $60 a pop for games with price breaks few and far between, I could spend $1000 on a new PC rig and one holiday Steam sale later I've broken even with a console + buying all the physical discs that take forever to see a permanent price cut.

 

[NIGELG]

I ,for one, am gonna answer your question honestly.

Most people spend that much just to say they have the faster hardware.

AA , motion blur, special lighting effects, ect. ect. ect are all bullshit.
Give me a game that makes me wanna play till 3 in the morning when I have to get up at 6am and all those little graphic effects things are forgotten.

The truth is give me a xbox 720 with 2x the graphic power and 50% more cpu power (than a 360) with a mouse, keyboard , flight stick setup @1080p, internet access, and I would drop my computer for gaming needs in a second.

I'm sure many will share my opinion when it comes to gaming.

As far as video encoding or most other tasks of this nature, a good overclocked quad core is fast enough for the average user. My q9550 can encode and burn a movie in under 20 min.
A computer for these needs would be cheap for the average user.

No,No,No and No.

 

[mooncancook]

Most people need a $500 level pc anyway, spending an additional $500 will turn it into a great gaming machine. And with PC you have the choice of spend more for superior graphics or spend less for console level graphics. With console you don't have a choice.

With PC you have to invest more on hardware. You'll need to upgrade but you'll keep some hardware. With console you can't upgrade or keep parts, you have to buy a complete new console when a new one is released. On the other hand you'll save a lot of money on games compared to consoles. PC also has much better backward compatibility on software so you can still play some great classic pc games from gog.

 

[Will Robinson]

1.Agreed Nigel(+2)...if only he could have those requirements met.....
2.If we could connect up and play against Console boys it would take about 2 mins for them to discover why we prefer the PC for gaming..it would be a massacre.

 

[soccerballtux]

OP

lol

 

[greenhawk]

it is all relitive. Take for example how many people need a mobile phone as the local price for the recently released iPhone was $1000 for out right purchase.

Though I must add that I do find it funny when people want to compair console price to PC and forget to add in the case of the TV with the console when talking about "from buying to using" prices.