Hobbies & Games >
Video Game Consoles & Accessories
RSS FeedWhich is the better video game platform: Console or PC?
Results so far:
| PC | 40% | 188 votes | Total: 474 votes | |
| Console | 60% | 286 votes |
PC
Write now
Print
Invite a writer™
Add to FavoritesPCs and Gaming Consoles are both valuable resources providing many hours of entertainment value to the gaming community. Each have their pros and cons but using the PC undoubtedly provides greater value along with a broader gaming experience.
From a technical standpoint, consoles can provide a more stable gaming environment. This is due to strict production standards imposed by console manufacturers that insure the quality of the games developed for their respective machines. Coupled with the consoles focus on games alone allows the processors resources to be utilized more efficiently. Finally, the hardware in a gaming console has very little flexibility and lends to more refined development practices allowing programmers more time to focus on building the game than struggling to force it to run on a wide variety of hardware which uses varied driver technologies that aren't always compatible.
So what is it about PCs that make them a better gaming environment? While PCs might have a difficult time competing with the technical stability of a console, their flexibility offers a more rich gaming environment which allows for a wider variety of games along with an opportunity to play games which are more interactive and provide greater depth.
Many gamers put a lot of stock into graphics. While graphics can be an important facet to a game, good graphics hardly make for a great game. There are many console games that have wonderful graphics but the game play itself is so terrible very few will play. For the PC however, there are many great games that lack great graphics, some none at all, that you can find on the best game lists of many gamers. Yes, the old style text games are still alive and well: you won't find anyone playing those on a console.
Variety of games is an area consoles can never compete compared to the PC. The cost of producing console games limits the number of developers willing to invest in the process. Anyone can develop games for the PC. Development software can be downloaded at low cost and in some cases for free. There are tutorials abound offering help to the budding game developer and thus many interesting games made in the process of learning. Of course you have to sift through the garbage but that in itself can be quite an adventure. As such, for consoles you might have a few hundred games to choose from when the PC universe offers thousands of choices.
Playing games on a console tends to be very expensive. The cost of the console itself runs about the same as a decent PC by todays pricing. Factor in the cost of having to purchase the games one might play, it can add up quickly. Many PC games can be played on-line at little cost with many being free to play. Of course there are games that cost about the same as console games but the potential for a larger gaming library cannot be denied.
Another point of value earned by the PC is its usefulness to do other things besides play games. Many console gamers either have or will have a PC as well. Some PCs gamers might have a console but it isn't the norm.
Be it PC or Console gaming, you can't really lose either way, unless you are as bad a player as I tend to be. Personally though, I will stick with my PC, save a few bucks and have just as much, if not more, fun in doing it.
Learn more about this author, Joseph Branch.
Click here to send Author comments or questions.
Console
Which is better, the home PC or the games console?
Really it comes down to a matter of preference and gaming style. I will discuss the merits and faults of both the home PC and the games console.
The home PC allows a player to adapt his machine according to how well he wants to be able to play a game. For example, to run Half Life 2, one player may invest more money on a new Graphics card to run the game while another might invest more in tuning up his computer's RAM or Processor in order to achieve smoother gameplay overall.
The ability to modify your home PC to the requirements of the games you play can be quite good fun, if a little costly, as it allows you to decide exactly how well the game runs on your computer, whereas with a console there is little opportunity to upgrade a specific component of the machine as everything is built specially for the console and cannot be upgraded separately.
PC games are varying in genre, the same as those for consoles; only they tend to have better graphics and better physics engines to run the games, up until the recent release of all the next generation consoles, which are pretty much games only PCs stuffed into different shaped boxes at different specifications.
The controls for PC games tend to use the WASD key formation on the keyboard for directional movements through a game, the mouse is used for aiming and selecting, although this depends greatly on the game you play, and then there are hot key functions, such as quick save and quick selection of weapons, and other buttons for actions such as jumping, running and crouching. These controls vary per genre; generally you will only use the mouse in games such as the Sims, or Pharaoh.
PC games can also be played using a variety of controllers and joy pads which can be plugged directly into the machine, it is even possible to get adapters for the Xbox and Playstation 2 controllers and use them through a computer.
Consoles are not as easy to upgrade as PCs, unless you buy the latest model and trade in your old one. The console market is booming at the moment with the introduction of the three new, next generation consoles, the Playstation 3, the Xbox 360 and the Nintendo Wii. These consoles each bring something different to the market and target different game players.
The Xbox 360 is primarily targeted at gamers who play PC games; this is shown in the controller, which is the largest of the three consoles, and in the genres of games present on the console which tend towards the First Person Shooter types and Racing games. The graphics and physics engines for this console are impressive.
The Playstation 3 is being advertised as a media centre, showcasing some of the best graphics in games at the moment, beating the Xbox 360 only by a margin. The marketing for the PS3 was done awkwardly though and seemed to target too narrow an audience of games, an issue they have now started to rectify, and with no real, reliable backwards compatibility onboard it has lost some of its potential buyers. The Xbox 360 suffers from a similar problem with playing old Xbox games, only some of them work. This is an issue that should have been sorted and implemented so that the consoles could retain their old fan bases.
Then there is the Nintendo Wii, which was advertised as something anyone could play and enjoy playing with. The Wii has backwards compatibility as well as a shop where you can buy old games from Nintendo consoles and play them through the Wii using the Gamecube controller or a specially made controller for the Wii, which has to be brought separately unfortunately. Its main selling point is in the wireless remote which you can use to interact with the screen to point, swing or shake etc.
All three consoles have one advantage over a home PC; they are easy to get hold of. When you buy a console everything is already in it, you don't have to worry about buying a new graphics card, updating the processor or installing the correct programs to help run the game. You can buy a console, take it home, pop in a game disc and away you go. Ten minutes later, you're playing the game, usually.
Consoles also have the advantage that the controllers made for them are ergonomically tested to make sure that they are comfortable for prolonged use. Using a keyboard and mouse forces you to stretch your fingers, this is not always comfortable, especially if you are a new PC gamer. Console game controllers, especially the nunchuck and remote for the Nintendo Wii, are easy to pick up and you have a limited number of buttons to contend with that are a lot less than those on a computer keyboard.
For the new gamer it is easier by far to start out with a console. The controls aren't too intimidating, you won't crash the console because all it is designed for is games, and the machines are easy to use. You get more out of waving the Wii remote and slashing an enemy than just pressing a button on a PC.
I can see the merits of PC gaming, there is a large variety of games available, with superior graphics and games engines; it would seem to be the better choice. However games consoles won't crash because they have a virus, or run slowly because they're running a program in the background.
Consoles are reliable, fun and more social. You can sit in the same room as all your friends and play a game together. To do the same with a PC involves a lot of organisation and hassle.
Overall, I believe that consoles are better than PCs, and as the console market expands it could very well be that the console takes over from the PC and becomes the primary gaming platform!
Learn more about this author, Sora Jhannoa.
Click here to send Author comments or questions.
Difference of opinion? Debate now.
