So what is the advantage of a console?

[Broax]

I recently have seen many threads pop up about the whole PC vs. console debate and they always shift within a few posts to a PC focus, i.e. why the PC is not better than the console. It seems that PC gamers are gung-ho about how great their platform is, while console gamers are mostly just playing defense by attacking the PC.

So what is the other side? Is there any possible advantage consoles have that PCs do not? Because I honestly can't think of any. The only one I've ever seen brought out is "simplicity" and while that argument maybe had some ground to stand on in 2001 or so, it doesn't stand up at all nowadays.

I guess what I'm asking is, does the console user have any recourse in this eternal debate besides convincing us that the PC is "just as bad" as their chosen system, or do they really have some ace up their sleeve I must be missing that keeps them with consoles?

Not a troll thread, just wondering.

Consoles *ARE* simpler then pc. I'm sorry but that one is hands-down non-debatable. Ignoring the whole updating the games issue, on a console you don't have to struggle with system specs and/or game settings. That can be a bit frightening for an inexperienced user. If you buy a game for a console you just pop the disc and you know it'll probably work as expected. Also, installing patches/updates can go into one of three categories: a) easier to install then on pc (Specially if it's not an official patch, but rather some kind of crazy fix); b) just as easy to install as on PC (game loads and starts to install current patch); c) worst case scenario... No patch for some/all consoles so there's no way to fix it and you don't even bother with it, while on pc you spend a good couple of hours trying to find a fix to no success...

Setting that aside, currently there are no other advantages on owning a console (neither) except maybe if you really love some exclusive game (be it god of war or gears of war, forza or gt, etc).

I own an xbox, I love my xbox, I have around 70+ games (no pirate games either) but as PC gaming evolved, console games got stuck in an old and outdated business model. If I had to offer my advice to someone it would be "buy a midrange pc and setup a steam account".

But although PC is obviously (in my humble opinion) the strongest platform, consoles are really really easier to use and that's a big plus for a lot of people.

 

[Steephill]

Let me repeat what I said. A definite disadvantage is having to listen to the incessant gloating of PC elitists (read: you). Maybe some people don't want a 90 dollar mouse that has ten thousand buttons and a fleshlight, maybe people want something they can use with two hands.

How am I gloating? I'm simply correcting misleading info. The mouse I use costs less than $40 IE3 [http://www.amazon.com/Microsoft-B75-00113-Intellimouse-Explorer-3-0/dp/B000GOUE7O/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1347022365&sr=1-1&keywords=intellimouse+3] (about the same price as a controller) and is easy to use. If you like using controllers then great! Glad you like using them! I plan on picking one up for certain games pretty soon.

 

[ronald1840]

Advantage of playing on a console? I can lay down on the floor in my living room however I want and relax with a wireless controller. Surround-sound, widescreen TV, and I don't have to worry about spilling any drinks or snacks on a monitor.

It does everything I want it to do, and, thinking about it now, I can't find any things about the PC that I want that the console doesn't have for me. It's comfortable, easy to get into, no booting up and I can play wherever I want. I don't see myself getting a gaming PC for a long while until I get the proper funds to set the thing up and dedicate time for it. There's Steam and a lot of good exclusive titles for the PC, but I'm satisfied with what I have now.

The console is a near-perfect thing for me and with the Wii U coming this Fall, not to bash the PC or anything, but there's nothing about that screams for me to get it right now. I don't really care for graphics or video quality that much. My favorite game is a late-generation PS2 title after all.

If you have a PC and are thinking about getting a console, then go ahead. Xbox 360 has plenty of features and the PlayStation 3 has things to be enjoyed as well. I just like being able to play a good game with a group of friends layin' around not cramped infront of some monitor.

 

[blackrave]

Well it used to be noDRM and simplicity.
Now with constant updates, online passes and similar BS consoles have lost the little advantage they had over PC.
I'm not even talking about the fact that when you buy console, you actually buy plastic casing around it, while actual machine belongs to manufacturer.
When I compile my PC, I know that hardware belongs to me and no one else.
And I can do whatever I want with it.
That is main selling point for me.

 

[Knocker]

I have kids. I have a console. Kids are on console. I have my computer all to myself.

Do i win?

 

[dementis]

I play most platforms including the PC, whilst the PC is faster and has better graphics you do have to wait for games to install before playing. Whereas with a console you just slip in the disc and play.

 

[nexus]

If you are a serious gamer, you play both.. but if you're a really serious gamer, you play on the PC. Most offspring of the PC Master Race only habit consoles for the good exclusives (see: Red Dead Redemption).

Stuff gets made on PC. This is how we get things like "Minecraft", etc. The PC also acts as "the nexus". You're attached to a universe while you sit in front of it, it's unhealthy and intoxicating, but it is what it is. Console gaming is more of a novelty, and you're discouraged from communicating, being creative, or constructive. It's a one-way form of media.. it's like cable TV, people talk to you.. that's it. This forces the entire medium to be derivative of itself, relying on outside media to support it; see:Xbox Live.

PC *is* the hub, it can't be derivative. However, gaming on PC can be forced into being derivative and wholly shitty if its thematically 'console' and lacks the tools and inspiration of the "Three C's" mentioned above.

(Also, that time when I have to enter any amount of words into a console with a gamepad. Credit Card information, address, game key and DLC keys. I feel like an alien trying to interact with a primitive society, it's very annoying and a bit quaint, but the end-goal is for a good purpose.)

 

[Jimmy T. Malice]

Consoles are good because you can actually play games straight out of the box without having to get the perfect hardware configuration. Even with the right specifications some games don't even work half of the time anyway (I'm looking at YOU, Mass Effect 1).