Something I learned about PC gaming...

[LooK iTz Jinjo]

Well at least that's one of you.

Now for the rest who list "oh it's sooo expenisve" as a reason as to why PC gaming is "dying".

PC gaming isn't dying, it's just moved to digital distribution faster than consoles, therefore boxed sales of PC games are dying, which is fair enough because why do I want to pay for all the extra stuff I don't need like a box to drive to the store (pay for petrol) when I can bypass everyone bar someone like steam/XBL and save at least $10 off a brand new game.

 

[XSA37]

PC gaming may be a bit expensive sometimes, but constantly upgrading graphics, mechanics, and the promise of updates that can fix most major issues put it head and shoulders above the console gaming industry when it comes to major titles.

In addition, indie games have virtually no market on consoles, meaning that there are literally thousands of developers that go unknown who create such masterpieces as Audiosurf which are only available to PC gamers.

 

[ZombieGenesis]

Well at least that's one of you.

Now for the rest who list "oh it's sooo expenisve" as a reason as to why PC gaming is "dying".

PC gaming isn't dying, it's just moved to digital distribution faster than consoles, therefore boxed sales of PC games are dying, which is fair enough because why do I want to pay for all the extra stuff I don't need like a box to drive to the store (pay for petrol) when I can bypass everyone bar someone like steam/XBL and save at least $10 off a brand new game.

It's funny, only today I was in the highstreet going into the game shops and I thought to myself, there are NO sections for PC gaming (bar for these tiny stalls) but it's true. PC gaming has moved mostly into distribution like Steam and the entire DRM fiasco, and it's not a bad thing by any means (get the entire series of STALKER for $10? Hell yeah) but I must say I do prefer to get boxes and CD's simply because I dislke having to play my games through a third party system.

If I buy it then I own it, and can use it with or without steam installed. That's how I like it, at least.

 

[EightGaugeHippo]

I love PC gaming, its a shame my pc is 6 years old. I really need a new one, but its too expensive for me to even build it myself at the moment. It anoys me when my friend says his computer is outdated and needs to get a new one. I have warned him never to say that again.

 

[mikespoff]

Congrats and welcome.

Of course, if you need a computer at home anyway, it works out even cheaper. The only thing in my PC that's directly related to gaming is the graphics card, and even that is justified by watching DVDs on my PC - which also accounts for the 24" widescreen LCD.

 

[DeaconSawyer]

The thing is consoles and computers have large initial investments computers being larger. For games the consoles is slightly more expensive if your buying new. But they last longer then computers which will have to be upgraded where the console wont for awhile.

In the end what it comes down to is that you seem to think a computer is a larger initial investment, but it isn't.

 

[Orcus The Ultimate]

[...]

So there you go, from a previous console gamer, PC gaming isn't nearly as expensive as once thought. I'll probably be using this same build through the next console generation too. Still keeping my PS3 of course, I already paid £400 for the thing...

also you forgot that in a PC, DLC can be replaced by MODS and lots of them, 4 FREE !!!

 

[Shycte]

I'm sorry, am I missing something? £700 for a gaming PC, and you're all nodding your heads sagely and agreeing wwith how cheap that is?

A new Xbox 360 with a 250 GB hardrive costs, on Argos.co.uk, £190. That's less than a third of what your PC cost you. A 250 GB PS3 costs £285 from Argos, and that comes with two free games. I'm honestly struggling to see what exaclty is cheap about the PC option.

a pc has more uses

Well, I get get a laptop with those uses and still get in far under £700. Just saying.

I prefer consoles though, eaiser to socialize with a console in my opinion.

But as always, personal preference makes a stop at this station.

 

[Legendairy314]

For me money isn't the primary reason why I've chosen to primarily play consoles (though I won't bother digging around in my head for feasible reasons). PC gaming, console gaming, handhelds; they're all the same to me as long as you can get great games on them.

 

[sir.rutthed]

Good call man. I was in a similar situation, and actually almost to the point of buying an Alienware rig when a buddy held an intervention for me. We built basically the rig I wanted, for 500 bucks, a quarter the price. And when the parts shipped, someone goofed and sent me a free 1TB hard drive! Buying parts online is for sure worth it, and if you can't build a rig yourself get a buddy to do it. Now I have endless reasons to feel superior to console gamers and PC gamers who buy retail alike!

 

[Energylegzz]

Begin long winded rant! I like being able to go back and pick up an old console and remember the fun time I had with it and that means more to me then turning on a PC that has all those old games still on it. It feels better for me to plug in an SNES and throw a game in it then to turn on my PC and scroll down a list and launch an old game. Its not about the future with me its about the past. A PC just can't make me love it because its nothing more then a shell with a bunch of replaced parts, im saying this never having to fix a broke console including my Xbox 360. I have never looked at an old PC and said " Wow, there was so much awesome software for that machine." mainly because I can play it now, and that ruins the memories, I have a vivid memory of me and my cousin playing Pokemon Stadium on his N64 I have no memories like that about a PC. And I prefer Plugging in a second controller and handing it over to a friend then clicking an invite button on a PC. End long winded rant!

 

[captain underpants]

The thing I like most about gaming on a PC is that I'm not forced to use the hardware that one company wants me to use. A console is basically stuck in time, technologically speaking. If my graphics start to chug on the latest games, I just upgrade the graphics card. The current one is a couple of years old, and about due for an upgrade. I consider a couple of hundred bucks a year to be a bargain for being able to stay reasonably current. The PS3 came out in 2006. The PC I was using in 2006, although in the same case, is a very different computer to the one I use today. They expect the PS3 to be the current-gen for at least another 3 or 4 years. I'll be upgrading my computer at least a couple more times by then.

Also, all my games run at 1080p. I can go to 3D anytime I want to upgrade my monitor, and I'm considering a triple screen setup after finding out about some freeware that'll do it (I already have some freeware headtracking and a homemade LED hat). The possibilities are endless, and only limited by my budget. Not being locked into Sony or Microsoft's rather ponderous development cycle is worth paying any price for. Obviously, I'm a bit of a tinkerer, but jeez, how can you be into computers and not be? Upgrading a PC, or even building from scratch, is about as complicated as plugging in a lamp - just match the plugs.

You can even plug one into a big TV and a gamepad and play on the couch if you so choose.

 

[RollForInitiative]

The problem with PC gaming doesn't tend to be the cost as much as it tends to be the PC itself. I still game on PC sometimes but nowhere near as frequently as I used to. It's just not worth the hassle.

 

[captain underpants]

I love PC gaming, its a shame my pc is 6 years old. I really need a new one, but its too expensive for me to even build it myself at the moment. It anoys me when my friend says his computer is outdated and needs to get a new one. I have warned him never to say that again.

That's only a year older than the XBOX 360 . You may not need an entirely new one. You may find an acceptable improvement with a bit more RAM and a midrange graphics card. You may even find a reasonable card second hand. Just note which kind of slot is on your motherboard.

 

[daltob]

my new one that's only 6 months old come next Wednesday was a upwards of $300 since all i did was take my old gfx card and put it in. thanks to newegg i got a HD5670 for around $50 and lets say i see no downside yet
thats only $350 doller computer thats better than my ps3

 

[daltob]

I love PC gaming, its a shame my pc is 6 years old. I really need a new one, but its too expensive for me to even build it myself at the moment. It anoys me when my friend says his computer is outdated and needs to get a new one. I have warned him never to say that again.

That's only a year older than the XBOX 360 . You may not need an entirely new one. You may find an acceptable improvement with a bit more RAM and a midrange graphics card. You may even find a reasonable card second hand. Just note which kind of slot is on your motherboard.

Sorry for the double post but if his mother board doesnt have pci slot thier isnt much he can do in the way of gfx cards since thats only a year younger than my old e-machine im doubtful of it

 

[captain underpants]

Money isn't the problem with PC gaming, it's the troubleshooting that turns me off of it. I buy to play, not to troubleshoot. If I buy a game and have to troubleshoot, that's annoying. If there's a problem that takes more than 2 days to fix, that's unacceptable, and I had to troubleshoot next to everything I bought for the PC.

That's a bit of a furphey. The vast majority of games I have simply install and play. A quick visit to the options screen to set my preferences, and I'm away. The only 'troubleshooting' I've ever had to do with a game is to get older ones to run in later versions of windows - usually solved with at worst a few minutes searching on google, or, more usually, with installing it on the XP build I have on the same machine.

At least I can do that. Backwards compatibility with consoles usually means keeping the old hardware around, and praying that it doesn't fail, or buying it again for the new system if they decide to release it.

With a bit of 'troubleshooting', or as I prefer 'tinkering', I can not only play pretty much any PC game ever made, I can also run any number of emulators (the Amiga one is my favourite - great days for gaming). I have the history of gaming, in playable form, at my fingertips.

 

[Iffat Nur]

Damn you guys and your awesome computers
Im still running on a crap Dimension 4600 my parents got for everyone in 2003

 

[captain underpants]

I love PC gaming, its a shame my pc is 6 years old. I really need a new one, but its too expensive for me to even build it myself at the moment. It anoys me when my friend says his computer is outdated and needs to get a new one. I have warned him never to say that again.

That's only a year older than the XBOX 360 . You may not need an entirely new one. You may find an acceptable improvement with a bit more RAM and a midrange graphics card. You may even find a reasonable card second hand. Just note which kind of slot is on your motherboard.

Sorry for the double post but if his mother board doesnt have pci slot thier isnt much he can do in the way of gfx cards since thats only a year younger than my old e-machine im doubtful of it

True enough. Then again, a new motherboard isn't a significant extra cost. I'm just saying you don't need to replace the entire machine to bring it up to date. I'd start with adding some RAM and seeing how much it helps.