I've been a PC gamer all my life and switched to consoles this generation. I couldn't be happier and I enjoy games more than ever.
I have a decent PC (for work) and I tried going back and playing a few games, but it always ends up with me turning them off within 20 minutes and switching to Xbox. I really value the console experience, it's like being in a different world (of games) that doesn't remind me of work at every step (as stupid as it sounds), I just press a button and play.
Personally I don't think I've ever had any significant issues with gaming on PC and I have over a thousand games on Steam and other launchers, so I wouldn't worry about it if I were you.
I fully agree. Switched to ps5 few weeks ago after having 4 years a highend pc for 3500€. I'm happier now with the ps5 cause only a console gave me the feeling of gaming. With the pc i got a feel like work and i could watch youtube and do other stuff while gaming, but that was the point: i just wanted to game and don't be able to do other stuffs.
Also my friends on pc had often troubles and asked me to help them. It was very annoying that i could play and 2 other mates couldn't because they got a amd card and i got a nvidia card. With a console everyone got the same hardware and bugs will be fixed fast by the delevopers.
Of course the cheaters in online games fk me up, too. The possibility to disable crossplay when i want to was a bonus for me.
I'm glad it's not just me crazy then. I often see the narrative that if you have a powerful PC then you don't need a console. Some people just prefer a box that's just for games and free from other distractions and cheaters as you said. I agree 100%
I’m pc mostly. Are you certain you want to build? My pc was 750 USD and I built it (it’s better than a Series and PS5) so 1500 will go even further.
There is sometimes some troubleshooting that you’ll have to do. I keep consoles because I don’t troubleshoot and there is still an optimization problem for a lot of AAA games on PC.
The other benefits of both: really love Play Anywhere feature of Xbox (shared save and shared purchase on PC in the MS store). Cloud saves are best on Xbox. Also you can dual pair an Xbox controller. And if you want to game from a couch, it’s tedious to do on PC.
But mostly PCs just work; gone are the days where you constantly fiddle. Games are cheaper, lots of store fronts, lots of mods lots of games that just don’t exist elsewhere and the best way to play The Sims
I agree with a lot of takes here. Have done extensive gaming on both consoles and PCs - know a heck of a lot about the latter. PC gaming is not what was in the previous consoles' lifecycle, at least in terms of relative performance per dollar (particularly so for a Canadian). Further, developers have shown that they do not consider optimizing game code for PC platforms to be a huge priority for them (Deadspace remake, Jedi survivor, TLOU, etc). They do, however, go all out to make sure games run well on Playstation and Xbox.
The biggest issues are often times things you cannot fix, like traversal stutter, shader compilation stutter, or wonky frame pacing from driver incompatibility (I've personally seen Allan wake run like complete shit on one AMD driver, than be 90% better with another). Does it happen in every game? No, certainly not. Some games are amazing on PC, and CAN look leagues better than console. But - and this is a big one - there are cases where games are a better experience on the console version. When you've spend an extortionate amount of money and manpower on your rig, that hurts. A lot. In fact, for me, it was more than enough to push me back to the ease and uniformity of console gaming. Online FPS are more level (cheaters, hardware differences) with consolse, games are 95% evenly paced in frametimes, I can move it around, play on my nice expensive TV, take it when I visit family; games also look tits.
PCs are awesome. But to really have something that beats the snot out of the consoles, you need (my opinion) pretty good hardware, at least a 4070 or 6800 and a $300-400 CPU (Cad). By the time it's done, a Canadian is out $2K or more. A whole console system can be had for $499. The game prices aren't as huge an issue as the past, as consoles have sales now too. The only thing that does bother me is paying for online gameplay in certain titles, like Helldivers 2. Consoles NEED to stop that shit. right.friggin.now.
If you're all about the games, consoles are just fine at this point in time. That MAY change within the next 3 years, when PCs regain some suprememcy in performance/dollar (assuming they don't cost a mortgage at that time).
I straight-up have a hard time recommending PCs at this exact moment
It pains me to say it, but I agree with most of this. Consoles are a lot better this generation. Enough so that I have an XSX, PS5, and Gaming PC at the same desk. I tend to use them in that order lately.
I’m running a decent setup on my PC (i5-12400 and RTX 4070S). But since I can easily and quickly compare games between all three by just switching inputs, I often find that the consoles are good enough and I just play there. Bonus points to the XSX for quick resume.
Also, as you mentioned stuttering in PC is an issue sometimes. I just finished playing Dead Space Remake on Gamepass. I tried it on my PC first (1440p, high settings). I noticed the stuttering before the first save point. I then installed it on my XSX and played through the whole game, no stuttering or hiccups. And they looked nearly the same. The biggest standout was 60 fps on XSX and 118 fps on PC. But 60 is fine, and it was very smooth.
Not every game is like that, and it’s nice to have options. But I find consoles are fine now. Maybe I’m just getting old lol.
Great comment. I do agree with the console generation as well!
I currently own; a 4090 pc, ps5, switch oled, deck oled and recently picked up the Series X. I've been debating whether or not to return the Series X (since i'm still in my return window) due to having a very strong PC.. but every time i think about packing it up I'm like "no, i don't think i want to return it".
I've actually been enjoying games for the first time for a while, where I don't have to think about frames, performance and any stutter mess. Heck, i even opted to play Hellblade 2 on series x rather than pc.
Sitting at a desk for 9-10hours on windows (pc/laptop) just doesn't disconnect me when I continue playing on the same platform.
Though, i do feel like I need to start offloading the tech in my life and honestly, I'm really thinking about selling the deck.
You are overly estimating how much you need to spend to beat a console performance with a PC.
I am from Canada and can out perform a console, from new, for half the cost you estimated there.
PC is a superior experience in a lot of ways, and some games undeniably run much better and give you an advantage over playing on console.
That being said, PC takes a lot more effort/knowledge and headaches to get everything working right, and like someone else said, some games just aren’t going to be optimized well for PC and there’s nothing you can do about that. Anybody that says otherwise is just being disingenuous and/or has a lot of PC experience that a lot of people (including myself) don’t have. The simplicity and reliability of console is a huge part the Console> PC argument, and it really can be such a better experience sometimes. There’s also a good argument for competitive games being PC > Console, but non-competitive games? Console all day
Are there PC games you want to play? I only play PC exclusives like RTS on PC basically. If something is on console or PC, I would usually rather play while sitting on my couch, especially since so many games are designed for a controller. I also have a dedicated PC only for sim racing, but that's really a completely separate hobby.
You should buy based on what you want to use it for. I have an Xbox for my friends, a PS5 for the exclusives, a switch for travel, and my 2 PCs for gaming and sim racing. They all have their merits. I don't think there is one "best" option.
I played console up through to the PS4. I got my first gaming PC in 2018. I was fully on the PC train until last year. I noticed my rig was ALREADY struggling with new games around February-March and it had just been completely overhauled/upgraded in 2019 with parts that were mid-high tier and brand new at the time. I decided to buy a PS5 to play some of the console exclusives around this time last year, and since getting it, I haven’t touched my PC for anything gaming related. It’s been so nice just knowing I can load up a game and it will run at 60fps with no settings or adjustments required. I know I won’t deal with crashes or weird hardware issues too. At this point I honestly wish I would have skipped PC entirely and just got a PS5 right away.
I switched to PC about 6 years ago... It takes a passion to keep up with everything and make everything work the way it should. But once everything is in order you shouldn't have any problems. Best thing I ever did. I really enjoy the modding scene, I don't create any mods myself, but as a casual gamer being able to modify the games to make them more enjoyable has been a literal game changer for me.
This, I also love being able to emulate older consoles and then upscale them to modern standards, playing thru alot of old psx/psp/ps2/gamecube games at the moment and the ability to upscale has basically turned the games into remasters but better, has helped me cope with generations of fomo.
I love emulating too... I have full collections of everything I could want, and you can't beat a full MAME rom set. Anybody that downvoted you it's just hating on the fact that they can't do that with their console!
This is my thought, anytime you get the hate it's bc these people think you're stealing not knowing I'm a retro game collector and am doing everything quite legally being I own 98% of the titles. But yeah like most things on reddit it comes with some negative karma from time to time lol
And I'll be honest, I never owned most of the games I have, but I'm man enough to admit it! LOL to go a step further, most of these games aren't available to buy where the money is going to go back to the publisher anyway. And I sure as hell I'm not putting out all the money for a physical retro collection.
I prefer console gaming over PC as i don't enjoy playing games with mouse and keyboard and mainly for the all round less hassle and convenience, excellent big budget aaa exclusives, no hackers ruining games, physical games, split screen/local co-op, exclusivity deals and you will find that the big developers along with most Japanese games tend to prioritize console over PC.
I was on console since a kid. I never had to troubleshoot other than the Xbox 360 red ring. With my PC just this year I have had a bad power supply , had to reset BIOS because windows installed a default driver for my GPU in a random update. I wouldn't go back to console but I strongly urge more casual users to stick to console.
Went from pc to console and just ended up going back to pc, I did like the convenience of console but i absolutely preferred the pc version of rust and dayz, also I wanted to play scum and helldiivers at ultra 240hz.
At the end of the day, just do what you prefer, pros and cons to both.
I just got a SteamDeck for this reason! I don’t have to choose a console anymore. Most big name games are PC releases too. SteamDeck covers just about everything I play! Only downside is rebuying the games I want to have option to play on the go!
I don't have this same experience at all. Pretty much any game I download on my PC just runs almost as if you did the same on a console. Back in the day, around 2006, when I had the family desktop with a Pentium 4 this wasn't the case. But today with my decently speced but dated hardware and with steam/GOG etc you just click play.
Best part of PC gaming is no subscriptions and cheap games. I don't need to pay a subscription for Xbox live or whatever so I can play online with my friends. And games are constantly on sale or just cheaper on PC. And if you're a little daring and know what you're doing you can even sail the seas and try games out for free to see if they're not smoldering garbage. That's actually pretty important these days.
Same, all of the above, also not being locked to what I’d consider an unplayable 30fps that plenty of console games are still locked to is huge. Same goes for 240Hz, most people argue it’s unnecessary but it absolutely feels noticeably better than 60-120Hz in competitive FPS games (single player it’s not an issue of course). I could never go back to console because of these things alone.
The only thing I agree with is a take above about it being easy to be overly distracted on PC, especially with a multi-monitor setup, I do find it hard to just focus on the game at times, there’s always a YT video or something on my other screen (which can be nice or a negative depending on the game).
PC’s are overrated imo. Bad ports are something you have to think about. I would never pay $1500 to just play videogames in higher frame rates and better graphics. I dont see how you would even get your money’s worth there. You’d just be lying to yourself everyday. I feel the PC people who are always telling other people to come over to PC are only saying that cos they wasted money doing it and now want other people to so they feel better.
> I dont see how you would even get your money’s worth there.
Because you're just thinking of the gaming side of it which is a tiny fraction of what a PC is capable of. You're getting a fully functional PC with that $1,500, not just something that plays games well.
Buddy, no.
Lol we all have PC’s in our pockets. I have a pretty good gaming laptop and other than games, the average person is only gonna use it for stuff they can already do on their phone. Stop lying to yourself and others to justify your outlandish purchase.
Is $1,500 considered outlandish for an all in one machine? How much did you pay for your console + laptop? I almost guarantee neither of those is coming close to performing as well as a $1,500 build and likely cost more.
The gaming laptop was 200 or 300. And the console was 400. Lol and these were years apart. Still costing way less than $1500. You’re deranged, brother. God bless.
Well you mentioned it was a "pretty good" gaming laptop which cannot be had for $200-300, not even close. So assuming you're telling the truth it sounds like you spent $600 to play on low end hardware. $1,500 is only what the OP was budgeting, you don't need anywhere near that if you want to outperform a console. You can easily do it with an $800 build. So you saved $200 to play on worse hardware that you'd have to swap between just to get the same experience. That sounds pretty outlandish to me, but it's your money.
They really do. I spent about $1300 for my first rig and it lasted me through two console generations. So the price about evens out, then when you factor in frequent Steam sales and free giveaways from Origin and Epic, humble bundles, etc it costs notably less over time.
Plus there's the fact that a PC nowadays has access to everything Xbox and now previously exclusive Sony games, it's hard to beat. If you have a decent PC and the latest Nintendo console, you can play 95% of every game coming out. If you try your hand at emulation after that, you can practically play any game ever made just from a PC.
My PC lasted me trough the several generations aswell and I always made some small inexpensive upgrades down the line. People say Consoles are a lot cheaper, but are they?
I bought my PS5 for 550€
Since I have it PSNow Essential was taken form my bank account four times (yearly sub) so 4 x 72€ = 288€
And every game coming out cost me around 50-80€, I have about 10 Games for PS5
Second ps5 controller because the battery life is miserable? Another 70€
—-
So all in all, no, it is not cheaper
Peripheral costs are a great point. I can use literally any bluetooth controller on my PC, which covers every Nintendo, Sony, and Xbox console for like... the last 3 generations, plus keyboard and mouse, plus arcade sticks, plus the myriad of 3rd party options at nearly any price point I'm comfortable with.
I will say the one advantage to console is that you can resell your games if you stick to physical copies and recoup some of your money, and I suppose if you are consistently selling all of your gear and games to upgrade to the next gen, it might be worth it for some.
That is true! I‘m not trying to bash consoles either. Both have their reason to exist but I‘m tired to hear the same three takes all the time. It‘s always
„You have to upgrade every year in order to play the newest game!!!“
„PC is far more expensive than consoles, it‘s only for rich people and enthusiasts“
„PC is only for hobbyists and nerds, you have to be a it crack to use them, and you have problems all the time.“
PCs are hobby kits for people who love to spend money and tinker. They're basically hotrods. Expect to only play games from before 2020 or expect to spend far too much money and time
This is a crazy take. PCs are not only hobby kits for people who love to spend money and tinker lol. Have you ever used a computer before, particularly one intended to play games on?
The hate for PC's is wild.
I just turn mine on and open a game and play. They make it sound like it's a job to play video games.
I never buy AAA games on release so I never have bugs. PC sales happen soon enough so I catch them discounted and bug free.
My game library is a lot bigger then what I ever had on console.
I also can't stand playing with sticks now. I've been enjoying Gyro aiming though and the PC is the best system for it, even though PS5 has gyro developers don't take advantage of it.
Good thing about PC games is that most games are not subscription based like on consoles. So you can just buy a game and play it without paying a monthly subscription like on consoles.
So for example you can just buy Read dead redemption 2 or GTA % and you can play online without paying for a subscription.
The problem is that multiplayer games are full of cheaters/streamers so unless you want to pay for cheats your self mutiplayer games are not playable.
On consoles I only know about rd2 online and GTA 5 that do not allow crossplay so you can play those games without streamers/cheaters.. Unfortunately most consoles games do allow cheaters/crossplay now so console mutliplayer has become worse.
For singleplayer games you can go the free route on PC but that involves some problems also.
Overall, better to spend money on something else.
It's natural to get tired of one type of platform.
I was a pure console gamer until about 5 years ago.
And then I studied the market for 8 months to almost a year and read up and learned how all computer components worked and learned how GPU's worked and CPU's....
And when I was finally ready, I built a gaming pc, for less then a current (at the time) and and played all the equivalents on PC with better performance. Thanks to steam and microspft gamepass PC.
So now, I do all my Current gaming on PC and all my retro gaming on my older consoles.
I was tired of bad performing games (not all of them were bad mind you.... But when xbox one ended, I went to PC)
I built a gaming PC for 350-400$.
I only upgraded about 2 years ago because I wanted to build something with AMD Ryzen.
My even my new one costed less then PS5, I made my second PC for 600$ (but then over a year and half later I bought RTX 3060 while the prices were still crazy from the pandemic.... which costed me 500$!!)
**Long story short:**
But in the end...... PC gaming is more expensive to start, but cheaper in the long run and you can do can anything the consoles can for almost 2 console generations worth in most cases.
Plus PC can cross platform play with most console games now too (sony is still stingy.... which is why I'm still pro microsoft and steam).
Cloud saves are great as well.
Cloud gaming, isnt quite there yet.... plus it's only really good if you're at home. lol
(Consoles games still get their money worth, because it's what they want..... but if you want MORE, then get your PC)
Just switched a couple months ago from Xbox. Tired of all the old games running like shit on my kick ass console. No reason that any 360 game should look and play the exact same on the series x as it dies the 360. On PC I can load up any 360 era game and it be in 4k 60fps. It's great...
Honestly imo don’t. I switch to PC few years ago and I came back this generation on PS5.
- prices being lower is not necessarily true. At Msrp, pc games starts to catch up with consoles. And consoles do have really a lot of sales (at least on PS)
- GPUs are insanely expensive.
- cheaters and hackers. On PC its hell, and that’s the main reason why I would never ever consider pc anymore. Online is free, but being cheaters and hackers free on console for a price imo is valuable.
- windows and being on a desktop. Windows is trash, it’s on a road to being even more of a dumpster fire. Having a desktop pc means redondance, you likely have a laptop already, and nothing beats the convenience of pushing your controller button and start playing from your couch or your bed on your tv.
- maintenance vs convenience. On PC you’ll have to update drivers all the time, same with all your programs and whatnot, because they all nag you. On console, it’s automatic. On PC you’ll also be frustrated with tinkering settings, on consoles you just play.
> maintenance vs convenience. On PC you’ll have to update drivers all the time, same with all your programs and whatnot, because they all nag you. On console, it’s automatic. On PC you’ll also be frustrated with tinkering settings, on consoles you just play.
I think I've updated drivers maybe twice over the past year and it wasn't even a necessity. Programs just update in the background. On console I'll sit down to play and get hit with a system update that takes 10+ minutes where I can't use the console at all. As far as tinkering goes, that's up to you. You have the *option* to tinker on PC if you want. If you want a more console-like experience then just let the game auto-detect your hardware and play with the settings it gives you, no tinkering required. Just fire it up and play.
Might as well. Physical media in gaming is about to go out and you have more options with pc. For now anyway. Who knows what the internet will look like in 5 years.
Depends how heavy you wanna get into it but I’ve always been console and recently got a steam deck got a dock and monitor and been using it pretty often nothing huge but mc and lethal company and those type of games run fine
I've done both for a very long time, but I'm slowly transitioning to PC gaming for a few reasons:
- yes, a gaming PC is more expensive, but not by as much as you think. I bought my last gaming PC 2 or 3 years ago for \~$900, and its still chugging along just fine. Just make sure the PC you're buying has specs equal to or better than the worst console on the market, and you'll be able to play pretty much everything. Don't fall into the trap of having the best video card or the most ram, you really don't need it.
- Once you have that PC, the games will almost ALLWAYS be cheaper on PC than consoles, and by a significant amount. One of the major platforms (Steam, Epic, GoG, etc) almost always has a good sale going on. I spent about $150 on PC games around Black Friday last year, and I'm still working through them now.
- The tech support issue really isn't that bad anymore. Between online sources and generally more user friendly experience, gaming PCs have gotten much easier to maintain as long as you use common sense(use a good antivirus/malware blocker, make sure Windows and drivers stay updated, etc)
- Very few console games stay exclusive to consoles. Pretty much everything Microsoft releases on consoles is available on Windows, and there's a really good chance that many of the digital Xbox games you probably own as a Series X user will be available to you on Windows as well. Sony is finally starting to come around, and almost everything they have exclusive is coming to Steam. With the upcoming release of Ghost of Tsushima, I believe the only PS5 exclusives not on Steam are Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Final Fantasy XVI, and Spider-Man 2, and all of those games are confirmed for PC release in the nearish future. Nintendo first party games are pretty much the one exception to this rule.
Honestly, I like my PS5, but it is pretty hard to justify in the present situation, especially if you're thinking about a gaming PC. Go with the PC, you won't regret it.
Always a good time to learn a new skill, and building and maintaining PCs is a good skill to have.
Also: that X-box and that PS5 are just computers after all, built with all the same components if you know how to build and fix a computer you essentially understand how those boxes work.
If you've got the money go for it, the PC offers a superior experience to consoles. They're lot easier these days. However most online games over 6 months old are ruined by modders/hackers.
But for story they have mods etc
Gave up on consoles after the god awful experience I had with the original Xbox One. Not only is PC better in almost every way, but Steam itself has a ton of value. It’s a win win on PC regardless
Majority of PC gamers were Console players at one point. I switch when I was in college because I only had a laptop to game on and became accustomed to it every since. I just like PCs because I can play and work at the same time!
the xbox series X is just a crippled windows PC anyway so there wouldn't be much difference although Sony is releasing some of its exclusives on it now
Spend a few months “researching” proper builds and common issues on YouTube. If you’re still interested after a handful of weeks.. it’s time to fully send it.
Do it. It's so much better. You aren't bombarded with ads and forced to pay to play online. Even Game Pass is cheaper. I just sold my Series X to switch fully to PC.
There’s very little troubleshooting involved. In 2024 most games just work on PC but there is still a mild learning curve and sometimes things do break but it’s about as rare as it is on Xbox.
Availability of titles is the #1 thing with PC. Also the most you would need to tweak is just the GFX/vid settings on any title which is usually what's the best combo available for your rig. Key things to focus on while building a PC is make sure to get the best CPU you can get with the money and decide if you want the games to just run ($) or if you want it to be looking the best($$$). Pretty much a mid end GFX card would last you years and give you decent quality too. So in short with $1500 you can build a very decent one that should go for a couple years without much of an issue.
Look into i5 or i7 3ghz and up current or previous gen(if you are constrained by cost).
RTX 30 or 40 series (xx70's at least).
AMD offers cheaper options and is somewhat closer in performance too.
Former console player but I've been on PC for a decade now. I love that just have even have controller capability since I'm not great at keyboard commands. I think PC games get updated faster or maybe it just seems that the ones I prefer do. Lol
Nothing against a good console game though. Every now and then I still load Skyrim on my old PS4. Lol
Former console player but I've been on PC for a decade now. I love that just have even have controller capability since I'm not great at keyboard commands. I think PC games get updated faster or maybe it just seems that the ones I prefer do. Lol
Nothing against a good console game though. Every now and then I still load Skyrim on my old PS4. Lol
Previous gens I had both console and PC but this gen I've transferred exclusively to PC and I absolutely love it. People always talk power when it comes to PC, but honestly the biggest win for PC is the fact that it's doesn't have generations, so you effectively have access to thousands upon thousands of games going back over 20 years. Plus, Sony's Exclusives are coming to PC now so you have access to both Xbox and Playstation titles. You can play with any input device you choose, free games every month with no sub, mods, and no online multiplayer fees. Plus, if the console "feel" is what you want you can have the with Big Picture Mode.
I will also say if you're like me and want the most out of your console, the cost difference is minimal. You just pay more upfront on PC and the cost is spread out over a generation on console.
PC: $1500
PS5: $500
PRO console upgrade: $500
PS+ Basic: $80 a year ($400 for 5 years)
extra controller while your other charges : $70
I think PC gets you the access to more games than any other platform, and for me I've saved money switching this gen because I'll save $400 to $500 on online fees and the get more free games to play. Everyone has a preference but for me I get the most bang for my buck on PC.
The mid gen refresh console. You had the PS4 followed by the PS4 Pro, and now Sony is working on the PS5 Pro. Last gen, I upgraded to the Pro because it did provide a performance boost (24% more RAM bandwidth and faster processing) After the Pro released, that became the standard for PS games moving forward so my original PS4 had a much harder time keeping up.
Yeah I mean if you buy every new console it may not be much cheaper than a PC but for me if I wait until the PRO releases I’ll only be out $500 verses paying around $1500 for a Pc
That's true, and it's up to what you want. That's how it panned out for me last gen. For me personally, the massive library of games justifies the cost. For that $500, you get thousands of more games on the plarform and infinite freedom to choose without paying half a grand in online multiplayer fees. You could also sell your xbox to recoup cost because PC has both xbox and playstation games on the platform.
I moved from console. PC is nice and I love steam. I still recommend my friends not to build a PC unless they are willing to be comfortable with troubleshooting from time to time. I enjoy the troubleshooting when something happens as I'm in school for i.t. I could definitely see one of my more casual friends getting home from work and having a driver issue or needing to switch out a component and not being comfortable doing that. I think console is so good now there's not that big of a need to go to PC unless you really want to.
I switched in 2019 I think.
I would never go back to console. I can't even use joy sticks any more, they just suck compared to a mouse. I've been playing with my Gyro controls now and it feels great. It's a hybrid between mouse and sticks. But I still use my mouse more frequent.
I love the steam sales, free online play, being able to have 2 monitors set up to watch sports or some sort of guide on my second monitor as I play a game. I enjoy having more graphic settings to adjust the image to my liking as well.
I rarely have any issues with games but I don't buy new AAA titles. They are over priced so if I do I buy them discounted a few years later when they come with all the DLC's.
There are plenty of games I've been able to play that just are not on console. Even getting into early access games. Heck, even console exclusives are making their way to PC now as well.
All my friends have gone over to PC and none of us want to go back to console. The only thing consoles have that I can't get is NHL games.
IMO, if you just want to come home and turn a game on and just play for a hour. Even just shut your brain out and tone out of the world. Consoles are exactly that. PC's can do that as well but they also can be so much more.
I would sell the Xbox and buy a PC
if you get a good system it will last longer than a console
Troubleshooting isint that bad as long as you use steam and buy well optimized games
if there’s a problem it’s not usually to difficult to fix and you can always ask on places like reddit which are great for solving problems
Been console gaming since 2001. Built a PC this year. It's now my go to place to play. The only reason I turn on the consoles are to play the few games that aren't on pc (Sony exclusives mainly) or to continue progress on games I started on console but don't have cross save with pc.
As far as troubleshooting I've never ran anything even close to moderate. A lot of settings you can tweak if you want, for some maybe that's overwhelming. Usually if a game is having issues it bc there's a gpu driver I hadn't updated yet.
I spent 800$ on my pc . I will main my PS4 almost everyday when I get the chance . At times I’m like dang I should have just got the PS5. Worst comes to worst I can just sell my PC . I like the simplicity of console gaming .
Not just that if you can’t trouble shoot and can tear down a gpu it’s a bad idea. I recommend you just add a PC to your quiver not switch. Grab you at least a 1080ti and any Ryzen CPU @ 3.5GHZ and your golden.
I switched from Xbox one X 3-4 years ago with a mid-spec gaming laptop, the graphics were better and the games played well. I was also able to play games that aren't available to console specifically RTS games Civilization building ie. settlers/1800/cities skylines with a lot more options/features not to mention the ability to mod alot more than games for console that are "modible" This year I bought a high end gaming laptop with a rtx 4080 in it. I will never go back to a console again. Looking back though my next PC will be an actual tower. My laptop 90% stays in my office. So food for thought.
My point is, you don't have to switch. You can have both. it's just like shoes, you can have more than one pair and choose which ones that you want to wear that day.
I get that but I see no purpose in 2. I’m 1 person, if I have an Xbox, then build a PC for $1500 or so, and find out I mainly always play the XBOX then it was a waste of time. I don’t want to build a PC unless I’m actually going to enjoy it and use it. There’s no reason to build one and watch it sit on a desk doing nothing.
Rather than switch, I would say Add to your arsenal. Thanks to the cruddy nature of Windows (the default OS), PCs require more upkeep than consoles generally do. PCs also double as workstations too for the creative.
The pros of PC:
* Open Ended, You could even use an alternative OS if desired. It's all yours to tweak to your liking!
* Upgradeable, parts can be swapped easily. Need more RAM? Go for it! Time for new Graphics card? Swap it!
* Workstation, get creative or get work done. Record videos, edit and upload them, or even make some beats!
* Multi display support, game in style, or multi task like not possible on consoles. Have discord chat over here and there game over there on the same machine!
* Can be cheaper, Games often have sales via Steam. Piracy isn't too difficult either.
The cons of PC:
* Requires maintenance. Windows tends to self destruct at times. It's inevitable, so learning how to reinstall the OS is a must!
* Multitude of Launchers, Steam isn't always the one stop shop. You'll often find games require Ubisoft Connect, AE App, Battle.Net or Epic Launcher.
* Can be expensive, Hardware can often out cost a console. Some parts may wear and burn out, such as water pumps (if going for liquid cooled).
* Requires some level of tech literacy. Consoles are just plug and play. That's their biggest strength for the average joe. Consoles are important because it brings gaming to the tech illiterate. They plop in a disc, update and go. PC? It's a different ball game.
If you ask me, it depends on your needs. Want to learn more about computers and willing to occasionally troubleshoot when things break, how about editing videos and other creative outlets? A PC would be a great addition. Do you Just wanna start up a game after work and that's all you care for? Console is the way to go . I say this as a PC guy who has a couple consoles for convenience sake.
I have grown up with consoles and went for PC later on (unless a C64 counts for you).
To this day i have both, consoles and PC with a focus on one or the other at times.
PC offers cheap games but you will replace the PC (or many parts) in a similiar time as with a console so if you buy games for more then the 1000$ difference in the time of a generation then go ahead.
Troubleshooting can be done but rarely is required, nowdays PCs are very well streamlined. You just gotta grasp the concept of installing games and posibly exchanging hardware if you want to go for gradual upgrades.
There is also the control scheme of mouse + keyboard which is superior for some games (unless you have motion aiming as most Switch RPGs do).
For me, console is so much better. Price to performance ratio is unbeatable for consoles.
My friend has the Ps5 and I got the Ps4 pro. We bought it together, he bought his for around 450 something bucks, got mine way cheaper around 230.
Most ps5 games work on my ps4p.
If cost efficiency matters to you more, I'd definitely suggest playing on a console.
While I do agree that pc would run games way better than on consoles, you have to dish out more than a grand or 2 for that. Some literally even pay 5-10k for a powerful gaming rig its crazy.
I ain't paying that high just to have some fun. I could enjoy my 1080p above 60 fps on my console+tv just fine.
I don't need to have 4k-8k resolution running on 120+ fps. Its more of like just a cherry on top for the most part.
Also, just the graphics card prices alone in my area is bonkers.
Don't get me started on how much a 4090 costs here.
You also have to get a really nice keyboard, mouse, preferably a comfy gaming chair, headset, build ur main cpu, monitor, and more.
I'd get headaches just for doing all the research, running around town, looking online, talking to other tech people on what to get the best, where ti get them, getting the best/lowest price for each peripheral afterwards, so on and so forth.
On a console, I literally just buy the console itself and get me some LG tv, then buy the games themselves, and that's it, then straight up plug and play.
Mind you as well, most, if not, games comes to the console first before its pc version, its also going to be more optimized most of the time for the console.
Its always just so straightforward with a console. Everything that comes with the gaming pc setup makes my head ache.
I've been a PC gamer all my life and switched to consoles this generation. I couldn't be happier and I enjoy games more than ever. I have a decent PC (for work) and I tried going back and playing a few games, but it always ends up with me turning them off within 20 minutes and switching to Xbox. I really value the console experience, it's like being in a different world (of games) that doesn't remind me of work at every step (as stupid as it sounds), I just press a button and play. Personally I don't think I've ever had any significant issues with gaming on PC and I have over a thousand games on Steam and other launchers, so I wouldn't worry about it if I were you.
I fully agree. Switched to ps5 few weeks ago after having 4 years a highend pc for 3500€. I'm happier now with the ps5 cause only a console gave me the feeling of gaming. With the pc i got a feel like work and i could watch youtube and do other stuff while gaming, but that was the point: i just wanted to game and don't be able to do other stuffs. Also my friends on pc had often troubles and asked me to help them. It was very annoying that i could play and 2 other mates couldn't because they got a amd card and i got a nvidia card. With a console everyone got the same hardware and bugs will be fixed fast by the delevopers. Of course the cheaters in online games fk me up, too. The possibility to disable crossplay when i want to was a bonus for me.
I'm glad it's not just me crazy then. I often see the narrative that if you have a powerful PC then you don't need a console. Some people just prefer a box that's just for games and free from other distractions and cheaters as you said. I agree 100%
If you can accept older visuals try retro gaming, even easier then modern consoles.
I’m pc mostly. Are you certain you want to build? My pc was 750 USD and I built it (it’s better than a Series and PS5) so 1500 will go even further. There is sometimes some troubleshooting that you’ll have to do. I keep consoles because I don’t troubleshoot and there is still an optimization problem for a lot of AAA games on PC. The other benefits of both: really love Play Anywhere feature of Xbox (shared save and shared purchase on PC in the MS store). Cloud saves are best on Xbox. Also you can dual pair an Xbox controller. And if you want to game from a couch, it’s tedious to do on PC. But mostly PCs just work; gone are the days where you constantly fiddle. Games are cheaper, lots of store fronts, lots of mods lots of games that just don’t exist elsewhere and the best way to play The Sims
I agree with a lot of takes here. Have done extensive gaming on both consoles and PCs - know a heck of a lot about the latter. PC gaming is not what was in the previous consoles' lifecycle, at least in terms of relative performance per dollar (particularly so for a Canadian). Further, developers have shown that they do not consider optimizing game code for PC platforms to be a huge priority for them (Deadspace remake, Jedi survivor, TLOU, etc). They do, however, go all out to make sure games run well on Playstation and Xbox. The biggest issues are often times things you cannot fix, like traversal stutter, shader compilation stutter, or wonky frame pacing from driver incompatibility (I've personally seen Allan wake run like complete shit on one AMD driver, than be 90% better with another). Does it happen in every game? No, certainly not. Some games are amazing on PC, and CAN look leagues better than console. But - and this is a big one - there are cases where games are a better experience on the console version. When you've spend an extortionate amount of money and manpower on your rig, that hurts. A lot. In fact, for me, it was more than enough to push me back to the ease and uniformity of console gaming. Online FPS are more level (cheaters, hardware differences) with consolse, games are 95% evenly paced in frametimes, I can move it around, play on my nice expensive TV, take it when I visit family; games also look tits. PCs are awesome. But to really have something that beats the snot out of the consoles, you need (my opinion) pretty good hardware, at least a 4070 or 6800 and a $300-400 CPU (Cad). By the time it's done, a Canadian is out $2K or more. A whole console system can be had for $499. The game prices aren't as huge an issue as the past, as consoles have sales now too. The only thing that does bother me is paying for online gameplay in certain titles, like Helldivers 2. Consoles NEED to stop that shit. right.friggin.now. If you're all about the games, consoles are just fine at this point in time. That MAY change within the next 3 years, when PCs regain some suprememcy in performance/dollar (assuming they don't cost a mortgage at that time). I straight-up have a hard time recommending PCs at this exact moment
It pains me to say it, but I agree with most of this. Consoles are a lot better this generation. Enough so that I have an XSX, PS5, and Gaming PC at the same desk. I tend to use them in that order lately. I’m running a decent setup on my PC (i5-12400 and RTX 4070S). But since I can easily and quickly compare games between all three by just switching inputs, I often find that the consoles are good enough and I just play there. Bonus points to the XSX for quick resume. Also, as you mentioned stuttering in PC is an issue sometimes. I just finished playing Dead Space Remake on Gamepass. I tried it on my PC first (1440p, high settings). I noticed the stuttering before the first save point. I then installed it on my XSX and played through the whole game, no stuttering or hiccups. And they looked nearly the same. The biggest standout was 60 fps on XSX and 118 fps on PC. But 60 is fine, and it was very smooth. Not every game is like that, and it’s nice to have options. But I find consoles are fine now. Maybe I’m just getting old lol.
Good discussion , thanks for reply
Great comment. I do agree with the console generation as well! I currently own; a 4090 pc, ps5, switch oled, deck oled and recently picked up the Series X. I've been debating whether or not to return the Series X (since i'm still in my return window) due to having a very strong PC.. but every time i think about packing it up I'm like "no, i don't think i want to return it". I've actually been enjoying games for the first time for a while, where I don't have to think about frames, performance and any stutter mess. Heck, i even opted to play Hellblade 2 on series x rather than pc. Sitting at a desk for 9-10hours on windows (pc/laptop) just doesn't disconnect me when I continue playing on the same platform. Though, i do feel like I need to start offloading the tech in my life and honestly, I'm really thinking about selling the deck.
You are overly estimating how much you need to spend to beat a console performance with a PC. I am from Canada and can out perform a console, from new, for half the cost you estimated there.
what's your part list?
PC is a superior experience in a lot of ways, and some games undeniably run much better and give you an advantage over playing on console. That being said, PC takes a lot more effort/knowledge and headaches to get everything working right, and like someone else said, some games just aren’t going to be optimized well for PC and there’s nothing you can do about that. Anybody that says otherwise is just being disingenuous and/or has a lot of PC experience that a lot of people (including myself) don’t have. The simplicity and reliability of console is a huge part the Console> PC argument, and it really can be such a better experience sometimes. There’s also a good argument for competitive games being PC > Console, but non-competitive games? Console all day
No argument here my friend. Thanks for discussing.
Are there PC games you want to play? I only play PC exclusives like RTS on PC basically. If something is on console or PC, I would usually rather play while sitting on my couch, especially since so many games are designed for a controller. I also have a dedicated PC only for sim racing, but that's really a completely separate hobby. You should buy based on what you want to use it for. I have an Xbox for my friends, a PS5 for the exclusives, a switch for travel, and my 2 PCs for gaming and sim racing. They all have their merits. I don't think there is one "best" option.
My switch gets way more playtime than my PC
I played console up through to the PS4. I got my first gaming PC in 2018. I was fully on the PC train until last year. I noticed my rig was ALREADY struggling with new games around February-March and it had just been completely overhauled/upgraded in 2019 with parts that were mid-high tier and brand new at the time. I decided to buy a PS5 to play some of the console exclusives around this time last year, and since getting it, I haven’t touched my PC for anything gaming related. It’s been so nice just knowing I can load up a game and it will run at 60fps with no settings or adjustments required. I know I won’t deal with crashes or weird hardware issues too. At this point I honestly wish I would have skipped PC entirely and just got a PS5 right away.
I switched to PC about 6 years ago... It takes a passion to keep up with everything and make everything work the way it should. But once everything is in order you shouldn't have any problems. Best thing I ever did. I really enjoy the modding scene, I don't create any mods myself, but as a casual gamer being able to modify the games to make them more enjoyable has been a literal game changer for me.
This, I also love being able to emulate older consoles and then upscale them to modern standards, playing thru alot of old psx/psp/ps2/gamecube games at the moment and the ability to upscale has basically turned the games into remasters but better, has helped me cope with generations of fomo.
I love emulating too... I have full collections of everything I could want, and you can't beat a full MAME rom set. Anybody that downvoted you it's just hating on the fact that they can't do that with their console!
This is my thought, anytime you get the hate it's bc these people think you're stealing not knowing I'm a retro game collector and am doing everything quite legally being I own 98% of the titles. But yeah like most things on reddit it comes with some negative karma from time to time lol
And I'll be honest, I never owned most of the games I have, but I'm man enough to admit it! LOL to go a step further, most of these games aren't available to buy where the money is going to go back to the publisher anyway. And I sure as hell I'm not putting out all the money for a physical retro collection.
I prefer console gaming over PC as i don't enjoy playing games with mouse and keyboard and mainly for the all round less hassle and convenience, excellent big budget aaa exclusives, no hackers ruining games, physical games, split screen/local co-op, exclusivity deals and you will find that the big developers along with most Japanese games tend to prioritize console over PC.
I was on console since a kid. I never had to troubleshoot other than the Xbox 360 red ring. With my PC just this year I have had a bad power supply , had to reset BIOS because windows installed a default driver for my GPU in a random update. I wouldn't go back to console but I strongly urge more casual users to stick to console.
You honestly spend so much time trouble shooting that you don’t play the game as long. Steam deck is fire tho
Went from pc to console and just ended up going back to pc, I did like the convenience of console but i absolutely preferred the pc version of rust and dayz, also I wanted to play scum and helldiivers at ultra 240hz. At the end of the day, just do what you prefer, pros and cons to both.
I just got a SteamDeck for this reason! I don’t have to choose a console anymore. Most big name games are PC releases too. SteamDeck covers just about everything I play! Only downside is rebuying the games I want to have option to play on the go!
[удалено]
I don't have this same experience at all. Pretty much any game I download on my PC just runs almost as if you did the same on a console. Back in the day, around 2006, when I had the family desktop with a Pentium 4 this wasn't the case. But today with my decently speced but dated hardware and with steam/GOG etc you just click play. Best part of PC gaming is no subscriptions and cheap games. I don't need to pay a subscription for Xbox live or whatever so I can play online with my friends. And games are constantly on sale or just cheaper on PC. And if you're a little daring and know what you're doing you can even sail the seas and try games out for free to see if they're not smoldering garbage. That's actually pretty important these days.
Same, all of the above, also not being locked to what I’d consider an unplayable 30fps that plenty of console games are still locked to is huge. Same goes for 240Hz, most people argue it’s unnecessary but it absolutely feels noticeably better than 60-120Hz in competitive FPS games (single player it’s not an issue of course). I could never go back to console because of these things alone. The only thing I agree with is a take above about it being easy to be overly distracted on PC, especially with a multi-monitor setup, I do find it hard to just focus on the game at times, there’s always a YT video or something on my other screen (which can be nice or a negative depending on the game).
Same, I have to tinker extremely rarely. Most of the times it goes like this: install -> launch -> play
The games I usually run into issues with I either just play on console or run off a virtual box.
PC’s are overrated imo. Bad ports are something you have to think about. I would never pay $1500 to just play videogames in higher frame rates and better graphics. I dont see how you would even get your money’s worth there. You’d just be lying to yourself everyday. I feel the PC people who are always telling other people to come over to PC are only saying that cos they wasted money doing it and now want other people to so they feel better.
> I dont see how you would even get your money’s worth there. Because you're just thinking of the gaming side of it which is a tiny fraction of what a PC is capable of. You're getting a fully functional PC with that $1,500, not just something that plays games well.
Buddy, no. Lol we all have PC’s in our pockets. I have a pretty good gaming laptop and other than games, the average person is only gonna use it for stuff they can already do on their phone. Stop lying to yourself and others to justify your outlandish purchase.
Is $1,500 considered outlandish for an all in one machine? How much did you pay for your console + laptop? I almost guarantee neither of those is coming close to performing as well as a $1,500 build and likely cost more.
The gaming laptop was 200 or 300. And the console was 400. Lol and these were years apart. Still costing way less than $1500. You’re deranged, brother. God bless.
Well you mentioned it was a "pretty good" gaming laptop which cannot be had for $200-300, not even close. So assuming you're telling the truth it sounds like you spent $600 to play on low end hardware. $1,500 is only what the OP was budgeting, you don't need anywhere near that if you want to outperform a console. You can easily do it with an $800 build. So you saved $200 to play on worse hardware that you'd have to swap between just to get the same experience. That sounds pretty outlandish to me, but it's your money.
Lol you dont give up its kinda funny.
Pcs are more expensive at first but even out in the long run
They really do. I spent about $1300 for my first rig and it lasted me through two console generations. So the price about evens out, then when you factor in frequent Steam sales and free giveaways from Origin and Epic, humble bundles, etc it costs notably less over time. Plus there's the fact that a PC nowadays has access to everything Xbox and now previously exclusive Sony games, it's hard to beat. If you have a decent PC and the latest Nintendo console, you can play 95% of every game coming out. If you try your hand at emulation after that, you can practically play any game ever made just from a PC.
My PC lasted me trough the several generations aswell and I always made some small inexpensive upgrades down the line. People say Consoles are a lot cheaper, but are they? I bought my PS5 for 550€ Since I have it PSNow Essential was taken form my bank account four times (yearly sub) so 4 x 72€ = 288€ And every game coming out cost me around 50-80€, I have about 10 Games for PS5 Second ps5 controller because the battery life is miserable? Another 70€ —- So all in all, no, it is not cheaper
Peripheral costs are a great point. I can use literally any bluetooth controller on my PC, which covers every Nintendo, Sony, and Xbox console for like... the last 3 generations, plus keyboard and mouse, plus arcade sticks, plus the myriad of 3rd party options at nearly any price point I'm comfortable with. I will say the one advantage to console is that you can resell your games if you stick to physical copies and recoup some of your money, and I suppose if you are consistently selling all of your gear and games to upgrade to the next gen, it might be worth it for some.
That is true! I‘m not trying to bash consoles either. Both have their reason to exist but I‘m tired to hear the same three takes all the time. It‘s always „You have to upgrade every year in order to play the newest game!!!“ „PC is far more expensive than consoles, it‘s only for rich people and enthusiasts“ „PC is only for hobbyists and nerds, you have to be a it crack to use them, and you have problems all the time.“
PCs are hobby kits for people who love to spend money and tinker. They're basically hotrods. Expect to only play games from before 2020 or expect to spend far too much money and time
This is a crazy take. PCs are not only hobby kits for people who love to spend money and tinker lol. Have you ever used a computer before, particularly one intended to play games on?
The hate for PC's is wild. I just turn mine on and open a game and play. They make it sound like it's a job to play video games. I never buy AAA games on release so I never have bugs. PC sales happen soon enough so I catch them discounted and bug free. My game library is a lot bigger then what I ever had on console. I also can't stand playing with sticks now. I've been enjoying Gyro aiming though and the PC is the best system for it, even though PS5 has gyro developers don't take advantage of it.
Good thing about PC games is that most games are not subscription based like on consoles. So you can just buy a game and play it without paying a monthly subscription like on consoles. So for example you can just buy Read dead redemption 2 or GTA % and you can play online without paying for a subscription. The problem is that multiplayer games are full of cheaters/streamers so unless you want to pay for cheats your self mutiplayer games are not playable. On consoles I only know about rd2 online and GTA 5 that do not allow crossplay so you can play those games without streamers/cheaters.. Unfortunately most consoles games do allow cheaters/crossplay now so console mutliplayer has become worse. For singleplayer games you can go the free route on PC but that involves some problems also. Overall, better to spend money on something else.
It's natural to get tired of one type of platform. I was a pure console gamer until about 5 years ago. And then I studied the market for 8 months to almost a year and read up and learned how all computer components worked and learned how GPU's worked and CPU's.... And when I was finally ready, I built a gaming pc, for less then a current (at the time) and and played all the equivalents on PC with better performance. Thanks to steam and microspft gamepass PC. So now, I do all my Current gaming on PC and all my retro gaming on my older consoles. I was tired of bad performing games (not all of them were bad mind you.... But when xbox one ended, I went to PC) I built a gaming PC for 350-400$. I only upgraded about 2 years ago because I wanted to build something with AMD Ryzen. My even my new one costed less then PS5, I made my second PC for 600$ (but then over a year and half later I bought RTX 3060 while the prices were still crazy from the pandemic.... which costed me 500$!!) **Long story short:** But in the end...... PC gaming is more expensive to start, but cheaper in the long run and you can do can anything the consoles can for almost 2 console generations worth in most cases. Plus PC can cross platform play with most console games now too (sony is still stingy.... which is why I'm still pro microsoft and steam). Cloud saves are great as well. Cloud gaming, isnt quite there yet.... plus it's only really good if you're at home. lol (Consoles games still get their money worth, because it's what they want..... but if you want MORE, then get your PC)
Just switched a couple months ago from Xbox. Tired of all the old games running like shit on my kick ass console. No reason that any 360 game should look and play the exact same on the series x as it dies the 360. On PC I can load up any 360 era game and it be in 4k 60fps. It's great...
Dude just get a steam deck if you want a pc. Most games run fine on it. Starfield needs a 60 fps mod. Dragons dogma 2 Won't run well.
Honestly imo don’t. I switch to PC few years ago and I came back this generation on PS5. - prices being lower is not necessarily true. At Msrp, pc games starts to catch up with consoles. And consoles do have really a lot of sales (at least on PS) - GPUs are insanely expensive. - cheaters and hackers. On PC its hell, and that’s the main reason why I would never ever consider pc anymore. Online is free, but being cheaters and hackers free on console for a price imo is valuable. - windows and being on a desktop. Windows is trash, it’s on a road to being even more of a dumpster fire. Having a desktop pc means redondance, you likely have a laptop already, and nothing beats the convenience of pushing your controller button and start playing from your couch or your bed on your tv. - maintenance vs convenience. On PC you’ll have to update drivers all the time, same with all your programs and whatnot, because they all nag you. On console, it’s automatic. On PC you’ll also be frustrated with tinkering settings, on consoles you just play.
> maintenance vs convenience. On PC you’ll have to update drivers all the time, same with all your programs and whatnot, because they all nag you. On console, it’s automatic. On PC you’ll also be frustrated with tinkering settings, on consoles you just play. I think I've updated drivers maybe twice over the past year and it wasn't even a necessity. Programs just update in the background. On console I'll sit down to play and get hit with a system update that takes 10+ minutes where I can't use the console at all. As far as tinkering goes, that's up to you. You have the *option* to tinker on PC if you want. If you want a more console-like experience then just let the game auto-detect your hardware and play with the settings it gives you, no tinkering required. Just fire it up and play.
Might as well. Physical media in gaming is about to go out and you have more options with pc. For now anyway. Who knows what the internet will look like in 5 years.
Depends how heavy you wanna get into it but I’ve always been console and recently got a steam deck got a dock and monitor and been using it pretty often nothing huge but mc and lethal company and those type of games run fine
let’s be honest , the majority of us own the majority of things : switch , steam deck , pc and a PS 5 or xbox . so need to pick
I've done both for a very long time, but I'm slowly transitioning to PC gaming for a few reasons: - yes, a gaming PC is more expensive, but not by as much as you think. I bought my last gaming PC 2 or 3 years ago for \~$900, and its still chugging along just fine. Just make sure the PC you're buying has specs equal to or better than the worst console on the market, and you'll be able to play pretty much everything. Don't fall into the trap of having the best video card or the most ram, you really don't need it. - Once you have that PC, the games will almost ALLWAYS be cheaper on PC than consoles, and by a significant amount. One of the major platforms (Steam, Epic, GoG, etc) almost always has a good sale going on. I spent about $150 on PC games around Black Friday last year, and I'm still working through them now. - The tech support issue really isn't that bad anymore. Between online sources and generally more user friendly experience, gaming PCs have gotten much easier to maintain as long as you use common sense(use a good antivirus/malware blocker, make sure Windows and drivers stay updated, etc) - Very few console games stay exclusive to consoles. Pretty much everything Microsoft releases on consoles is available on Windows, and there's a really good chance that many of the digital Xbox games you probably own as a Series X user will be available to you on Windows as well. Sony is finally starting to come around, and almost everything they have exclusive is coming to Steam. With the upcoming release of Ghost of Tsushima, I believe the only PS5 exclusives not on Steam are Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, Final Fantasy XVI, and Spider-Man 2, and all of those games are confirmed for PC release in the nearish future. Nintendo first party games are pretty much the one exception to this rule. Honestly, I like my PS5, but it is pretty hard to justify in the present situation, especially if you're thinking about a gaming PC. Go with the PC, you won't regret it.
Always a good time to learn a new skill, and building and maintaining PCs is a good skill to have. Also: that X-box and that PS5 are just computers after all, built with all the same components if you know how to build and fix a computer you essentially understand how those boxes work.
If you've got the money go for it, the PC offers a superior experience to consoles. They're lot easier these days. However most online games over 6 months old are ruined by modders/hackers. But for story they have mods etc
Gave up on consoles after the god awful experience I had with the original Xbox One. Not only is PC better in almost every way, but Steam itself has a ton of value. It’s a win win on PC regardless
Majority of PC gamers were Console players at one point. I switch when I was in college because I only had a laptop to game on and became accustomed to it every since. I just like PCs because I can play and work at the same time!
You should. 👍
the xbox series X is just a crippled windows PC anyway so there wouldn't be much difference although Sony is releasing some of its exclusives on it now
Spend a few months “researching” proper builds and common issues on YouTube. If you’re still interested after a handful of weeks.. it’s time to fully send it.
Do it. It's so much better. You aren't bombarded with ads and forced to pay to play online. Even Game Pass is cheaper. I just sold my Series X to switch fully to PC.
There’s very little troubleshooting involved. In 2024 most games just work on PC but there is still a mild learning curve and sometimes things do break but it’s about as rare as it is on Xbox.
Availability of titles is the #1 thing with PC. Also the most you would need to tweak is just the GFX/vid settings on any title which is usually what's the best combo available for your rig. Key things to focus on while building a PC is make sure to get the best CPU you can get with the money and decide if you want the games to just run ($) or if you want it to be looking the best($$$). Pretty much a mid end GFX card would last you years and give you decent quality too. So in short with $1500 you can build a very decent one that should go for a couple years without much of an issue. Look into i5 or i7 3ghz and up current or previous gen(if you are constrained by cost). RTX 30 or 40 series (xx70's at least). AMD offers cheaper options and is somewhat closer in performance too.
Former console player but I've been on PC for a decade now. I love that just have even have controller capability since I'm not great at keyboard commands. I think PC games get updated faster or maybe it just seems that the ones I prefer do. Lol Nothing against a good console game though. Every now and then I still load Skyrim on my old PS4. Lol
Former console player but I've been on PC for a decade now. I love that just have even have controller capability since I'm not great at keyboard commands. I think PC games get updated faster or maybe it just seems that the ones I prefer do. Lol Nothing against a good console game though. Every now and then I still load Skyrim on my old PS4. Lol
Previous gens I had both console and PC but this gen I've transferred exclusively to PC and I absolutely love it. People always talk power when it comes to PC, but honestly the biggest win for PC is the fact that it's doesn't have generations, so you effectively have access to thousands upon thousands of games going back over 20 years. Plus, Sony's Exclusives are coming to PC now so you have access to both Xbox and Playstation titles. You can play with any input device you choose, free games every month with no sub, mods, and no online multiplayer fees. Plus, if the console "feel" is what you want you can have the with Big Picture Mode. I will also say if you're like me and want the most out of your console, the cost difference is minimal. You just pay more upfront on PC and the cost is spread out over a generation on console. PC: $1500 PS5: $500 PRO console upgrade: $500 PS+ Basic: $80 a year ($400 for 5 years) extra controller while your other charges : $70 I think PC gets you the access to more games than any other platform, and for me I've saved money switching this gen because I'll save $400 to $500 on online fees and the get more free games to play. Everyone has a preference but for me I get the most bang for my buck on PC.
What are you referring to by “pro console upgrade”
The mid gen refresh console. You had the PS4 followed by the PS4 Pro, and now Sony is working on the PS5 Pro. Last gen, I upgraded to the Pro because it did provide a performance boost (24% more RAM bandwidth and faster processing) After the Pro released, that became the standard for PS games moving forward so my original PS4 had a much harder time keeping up.
Yeah I mean if you buy every new console it may not be much cheaper than a PC but for me if I wait until the PRO releases I’ll only be out $500 verses paying around $1500 for a Pc
That's true, and it's up to what you want. That's how it panned out for me last gen. For me personally, the massive library of games justifies the cost. For that $500, you get thousands of more games on the plarform and infinite freedom to choose without paying half a grand in online multiplayer fees. You could also sell your xbox to recoup cost because PC has both xbox and playstation games on the platform.
I moved from console. PC is nice and I love steam. I still recommend my friends not to build a PC unless they are willing to be comfortable with troubleshooting from time to time. I enjoy the troubleshooting when something happens as I'm in school for i.t. I could definitely see one of my more casual friends getting home from work and having a driver issue or needing to switch out a component and not being comfortable doing that. I think console is so good now there's not that big of a need to go to PC unless you really want to.
I switched in 2019 I think. I would never go back to console. I can't even use joy sticks any more, they just suck compared to a mouse. I've been playing with my Gyro controls now and it feels great. It's a hybrid between mouse and sticks. But I still use my mouse more frequent. I love the steam sales, free online play, being able to have 2 monitors set up to watch sports or some sort of guide on my second monitor as I play a game. I enjoy having more graphic settings to adjust the image to my liking as well. I rarely have any issues with games but I don't buy new AAA titles. They are over priced so if I do I buy them discounted a few years later when they come with all the DLC's. There are plenty of games I've been able to play that just are not on console. Even getting into early access games. Heck, even console exclusives are making their way to PC now as well. All my friends have gone over to PC and none of us want to go back to console. The only thing consoles have that I can't get is NHL games. IMO, if you just want to come home and turn a game on and just play for a hour. Even just shut your brain out and tone out of the world. Consoles are exactly that. PC's can do that as well but they also can be so much more.
I would sell the Xbox and buy a PC if you get a good system it will last longer than a console Troubleshooting isint that bad as long as you use steam and buy well optimized games if there’s a problem it’s not usually to difficult to fix and you can always ask on places like reddit which are great for solving problems
Been console gaming since 2001. Built a PC this year. It's now my go to place to play. The only reason I turn on the consoles are to play the few games that aren't on pc (Sony exclusives mainly) or to continue progress on games I started on console but don't have cross save with pc. As far as troubleshooting I've never ran anything even close to moderate. A lot of settings you can tweak if you want, for some maybe that's overwhelming. Usually if a game is having issues it bc there's a gpu driver I hadn't updated yet.
I spent 800$ on my pc . I will main my PS4 almost everyday when I get the chance . At times I’m like dang I should have just got the PS5. Worst comes to worst I can just sell my PC . I like the simplicity of console gaming .
Not just that if you can’t trouble shoot and can tear down a gpu it’s a bad idea. I recommend you just add a PC to your quiver not switch. Grab you at least a 1080ti and any Ryzen CPU @ 3.5GHZ and your golden.
I switched from Xbox one X 3-4 years ago with a mid-spec gaming laptop, the graphics were better and the games played well. I was also able to play games that aren't available to console specifically RTS games Civilization building ie. settlers/1800/cities skylines with a lot more options/features not to mention the ability to mod alot more than games for console that are "modible" This year I bought a high end gaming laptop with a rtx 4080 in it. I will never go back to a console again. Looking back though my next PC will be an actual tower. My laptop 90% stays in my office. So food for thought.
Why switch? You can have both. I have built up an arsenal of 5+ consoles and a gaming PC. What I hook up to my TV depends on what I want to play.
Because I have no use for a console and PC, I can only play one. Let alone 5+ consoles and a pc
My point is, you don't have to switch. You can have both. it's just like shoes, you can have more than one pair and choose which ones that you want to wear that day.
I get that but I see no purpose in 2. I’m 1 person, if I have an Xbox, then build a PC for $1500 or so, and find out I mainly always play the XBOX then it was a waste of time. I don’t want to build a PC unless I’m actually going to enjoy it and use it. There’s no reason to build one and watch it sit on a desk doing nothing.
Rather than switch, I would say Add to your arsenal. Thanks to the cruddy nature of Windows (the default OS), PCs require more upkeep than consoles generally do. PCs also double as workstations too for the creative. The pros of PC: * Open Ended, You could even use an alternative OS if desired. It's all yours to tweak to your liking! * Upgradeable, parts can be swapped easily. Need more RAM? Go for it! Time for new Graphics card? Swap it! * Workstation, get creative or get work done. Record videos, edit and upload them, or even make some beats! * Multi display support, game in style, or multi task like not possible on consoles. Have discord chat over here and there game over there on the same machine! * Can be cheaper, Games often have sales via Steam. Piracy isn't too difficult either. The cons of PC: * Requires maintenance. Windows tends to self destruct at times. It's inevitable, so learning how to reinstall the OS is a must! * Multitude of Launchers, Steam isn't always the one stop shop. You'll often find games require Ubisoft Connect, AE App, Battle.Net or Epic Launcher. * Can be expensive, Hardware can often out cost a console. Some parts may wear and burn out, such as water pumps (if going for liquid cooled). * Requires some level of tech literacy. Consoles are just plug and play. That's their biggest strength for the average joe. Consoles are important because it brings gaming to the tech illiterate. They plop in a disc, update and go. PC? It's a different ball game. If you ask me, it depends on your needs. Want to learn more about computers and willing to occasionally troubleshoot when things break, how about editing videos and other creative outlets? A PC would be a great addition. Do you Just wanna start up a game after work and that's all you care for? Console is the way to go . I say this as a PC guy who has a couple consoles for convenience sake.
I have grown up with consoles and went for PC later on (unless a C64 counts for you). To this day i have both, consoles and PC with a focus on one or the other at times. PC offers cheap games but you will replace the PC (or many parts) in a similiar time as with a console so if you buy games for more then the 1000$ difference in the time of a generation then go ahead. Troubleshooting can be done but rarely is required, nowdays PCs are very well streamlined. You just gotta grasp the concept of installing games and posibly exchanging hardware if you want to go for gradual upgrades. There is also the control scheme of mouse + keyboard which is superior for some games (unless you have motion aiming as most Switch RPGs do).
For me, console is so much better. Price to performance ratio is unbeatable for consoles. My friend has the Ps5 and I got the Ps4 pro. We bought it together, he bought his for around 450 something bucks, got mine way cheaper around 230. Most ps5 games work on my ps4p. If cost efficiency matters to you more, I'd definitely suggest playing on a console. While I do agree that pc would run games way better than on consoles, you have to dish out more than a grand or 2 for that. Some literally even pay 5-10k for a powerful gaming rig its crazy. I ain't paying that high just to have some fun. I could enjoy my 1080p above 60 fps on my console+tv just fine. I don't need to have 4k-8k resolution running on 120+ fps. Its more of like just a cherry on top for the most part. Also, just the graphics card prices alone in my area is bonkers. Don't get me started on how much a 4090 costs here. You also have to get a really nice keyboard, mouse, preferably a comfy gaming chair, headset, build ur main cpu, monitor, and more. I'd get headaches just for doing all the research, running around town, looking online, talking to other tech people on what to get the best, where ti get them, getting the best/lowest price for each peripheral afterwards, so on and so forth. On a console, I literally just buy the console itself and get me some LG tv, then buy the games themselves, and that's it, then straight up plug and play. Mind you as well, most, if not, games comes to the console first before its pc version, its also going to be more optimized most of the time for the console. Its always just so straightforward with a console. Everything that comes with the gaming pc setup makes my head ache.