Console gaming has a lot going for it. While elite hardcore gaming will always be the domain of PC Gaming, casual party gaming is the domain of the Consoles. There are a few more areas we need to discuss where Console gaming has a leg up above PC gaming.
This is the top 5 reasons Console gaming is better than PC gaming:
5. Trade-In Market
There is no reasonable trade-in market for PC games because the industry assumes that you pirated the game, so they collectively devalue any used PC gamed explicitly.
This is not true of Console games because they’re so difficult to pirate and you need a Modded console to even use the copies. Quite frankly, if you have the skills to pirate console games, then you have the skills to find the game images on the Internet so you probably aren’t going to buy them in the first place.
While some might argue that the trade-in market is an industry scam because they devalue used games close to 10% of new purchase price, and you’d be right… but it’s still greater than 0% and therefore a point over PC games.
4. First Release and Exclusive Content
There are whole game franchises that are exclusive to Consoles that never see the light of day on PCs. A few examples are Halo, Gran Turismo, Killzone, God of War, and Fable. While the quality of these games can be debated ad infinitum, they’re still a big bonus to the console side.
There’s also content and games that are released on consoles before released on PCs. An example is the newly released Skryim Expansion, Dawnguard as well as the previously released Skyrim Update 1.6
Edit: Oops, I meant to say newly released on XBOX because you PC mofo’s don’t get it until July 26th. My bad.
3. Big Screen Home Theater
Of course one of the main attractions for console gaming is being able to play with your friends on your home theater sitting on your sofa. This is what they were designed for. To have a similar experience on a PC would be complicated and really not the same since nothing about PC gaming is designed for more than one player on the same game on a sofa.
Console gaming is house party gaming, no way around this.
2. Consistent Game Experience
One of the bigger wins for console gaming is a consistent experience. You know that no matter what game you get, it will work on your system since the games are fine tuned just for the specific console hardware. There’s no variation within each console, so there’s no deviation from the same performance.
Yes, fine tuning means a lesser graphical experience when compared to the PC, but there’s no doubt you’re going to be playing the game out of the box rather than looking for a new video card to buy, or for some new drivers to install from nVidia / AMD.
1. It’s Cheap
The #1 reason Console gaming is better than PC gaming is Cost. Compared to the cost of entry for PC Gaming, Console games are dirt cheap.
For $200, you can pretty much buy any basic level modern console and up to $400 for all the bells and whistles.
There’s no way in hell you’ll be able jump into PC gaming for less than $900 for an entry level gaming rig.
To get the ultimate behemoth of gaming rigs with all the bells and whistles, you’re easily dropping at least $2,000.
I think it’s pretty clear that when it comes to casual gaming where you know the games are going to work without worrying about your gaming rig, Console game is by far superior to PC gaming.
Being a Console gamer will never make you Elite, but you’re never going to break out a PC at a party unless you’re a geek. Consoles will always be the life of every non-geek party.
Personally, I am a geek. LAN parties are awesome and you would never break out a console there. But when partying with non-geeks (mundanes), I break out the XBOX and it brings the awesomeness to a new level.
This article is wildly inaccurate..Point #5 is mostly true.
Point #4?
"There are whole game franchises that are exclusive to Consoles that never see the light of day on PCs. A few examples are Halo, Gran Turismo, Killzone, God of War, and Fable."Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 are both available on the PC, and all of the Fable games are available on the PC.Point #3?All it takes is an HDMI cable, or if your television/computer doesn't have HDMI all you need is a DVI to VGA to Analog converter.
Point #2 only really matters if you have a low-end PC.
Point #1 is a valid point, but your delivery seems misinformed.I built an $800 PC in September that is able to run all modern games on the highest settings without breaking a figurative sweat, and should continue to do so for atleast 2 years unless another game like Crysis (1) comes around that is just too good for the hardware. Even down the line, all I will have to do to upgrade it and last atleast another year is going to be around $100 to get a duplicate graphics card and run them SLI.
How is Console gaming cheaper? even if you are renting games over 5 years until the next console is released you easily rack up 2000+ dollars on games. With PC games you can pirate everything!
@kyle Well, if your Elite and decide to console game anyway (for whatever reason)... you can mod your console and pirate game images too. I'd still award this point to PCs due to effort level, however. Good point.
Console hardware is way too old.
You can get a PC with equivalent hardware for a ridiculously low price nowadays and you get all of the other functions a PC offers to you.
Also its not really complicated to hook a PC to a HDTV. You just need a HDMI cable, same as with consoles.
Hey so what about some pc only games? And yes a pc costs more but all true pc gamers like myself know we have steam and with that we get games a fraction of the price as a ps3 or 360. And if you wana be awsome trade in the 360 get a ps3. Dont bash the pc clearly you have no place to write this. And desktop pcs can be upgraded and last longer then a system would. Long as you have proper components you can buy a better graphics card and omg hey... Pc is cheeper long run. For the record i own a pc 360 and ps3
U Son of a bitch! How dare you point out some areas where consoles surpass PCs. Although I disagree with your entry points (prices) to get into PC gaming, consoles do provide a more consistent experience, and that is key when peddling hardware to kids.
And yes, ty publishers for assuming all PC gamers pirate your shit and leaving us with virtually no trade in market at all.
@Airborne Gamer Damn... I was sure I could slip this under the radar. I may have been accused of being a mysgynistic bad speller... but damnit if i'm not going to be balanced and reasonable with my PC vs. Console war.
I didn't expect to read something like THIS on Airborne Gamer.
@TheXboxNerdHero Nerd Hero! What's up man! Glad to see you still kicking around :)