Nabs
Member
Oh woops, missed that. I agree completely.
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People making the switch to PC, what's the common factor?
- Thread starter Mineshaft_Gap
- Start date
Oh woops, missed that. I agree completely.
I mostly agree with the idea of your argument, but it does assume a bit too much interchangeability of games IMHO. If someone is into strategy games and party-based RPGs, they won't get all that much to play in those genres even if they own every single console -- there's almost no way around PC. Conversely, if your main genre is cinematic action games, even owning a PC, Wii U, 3DS and tablet might not fully scratch that itch.
I definitely agree with that. Further, it's probably the primary reason why someone who already owns a PS4 would choose an Xbox One as their secondary platform; if you are super invested in AAA action games such that you play almost nothing else, and you have a strong preference for the traditional game pad to the exclusion of any other controller, then the Xbox One might be the best choice for you as a second system even if the system is only adding 20 or so games per year to your potential catalog when iOS or PC would add hundreds or even thousands.
That requires relatively narrow tastes, however, as would choosing Android as your second platform when your primary is iOS.
Sword Familiar
178% of NeoGAF posters don't understand statistics
Yeah, this is definitely annoying with (newer) consoles, I agree. Goodbye golden era PSN (still free on PS3, but still).
SneakyStephan
Banned
I'm happy to see so many people in this thread say that they don't want to pay for multiplayer
Denton
Member
I play on the PC because it offers me the highest overall quality of gaming experience and highest quantity of videogames that fit my tastes, namely western RPGs and immersive sims. All the other benefits are just icing.
I also own PS3 and over its lifetime I got only some 8 games, Uncharted trilogy, TLOU, RDR and few others. I do not regret its purchase, and I plan to get PS4 when it has at least 5 games for me, but who knows how long that will take.
Even then I would prefer if these games were on PC, so I could save that money spent on redundant hardware and spend it on actual games instead.
I wonder if Sony will ever fund single player western RPG. I don't think they have, so far.
I also own PS3 and over its lifetime I got only some 8 games, Uncharted trilogy, TLOU, RDR and few others. I do not regret its purchase, and I plan to get PS4 when it has at least 5 games for me, but who knows how long that will take.
Even then I would prefer if these games were on PC, so I could save that money spent on redundant hardware and spend it on actual games instead.
I wonder if Sony will ever fund single player western RPG. I don't think they have, so far.
STEAM STEAM STEAM
Just go back in time 15 years. Find some hardcore PC gamer on the streets and describe to him what the future of PC gaming will be like. You have a very sandboxed platform with several thousands of games. The games are all fairly priced. The catalog of genres is extremely diverse. The community is very dedicated and for the most part friendly. That person back than would probably collapse and foam out the mouth over such an amazing description. Steam is great and Valve has done a very good job with it over the years. I just don't see how any modern day hardcore gamer can pass on Steam. Don't get me wrong..I'm not knocking on UPlay, GOG, Origin or Battle. Those are all great gaming sources as well. I even use some of them. But Steam has just really been knocking it out of the park.
As for consoles. Well, they are slowly meeting their own demise imo. The PS360 generation was really really good and a lot of amazing games came out of it. So what did MS/Sony do? They made new consoles with no backwards compatibility. All those amazing PS360 multiplats will soon be only playable on PC. MS/Sony will eventually stop supporting and mass producing the PS360 devices. And as they go extinct a lot of games will go extinct with them because developers will only be able to port over so much to next gen. That is why so many developers are porting older games to PC today. They know if they don't than those games will practically disappear in the coming decades. Preservation is important. Backwards compatibility is too strong of a feature imo. I can boot up an old game like Half life from 1998 right now on my Windows 8.1. And enjoy the game from start to finish without a single hiccup. I can't do that on consoles without shopping around on for an old used PS2. Than shop around for discs n stuff etc. But how long will I be able to do that? eventually all this physical media will just be used to fill up landfills at some garbage dump site. The future is digital.
The only legit advantage the new consoles have over PC is a few exclusive games. Most of which seem to always be very overrated and over hyped. Some are good games sure..but nothing is ever the second coming. A lot of those exclusives also will have massive budgets this time around thus creating a lot of delays. So I kinda doubt the next gen will be able to pump out as much quality games as the PS360 did. Plus the way some of these companies abuse DLC, Season passes and other stupid things like remasters also turn me off from console gaming. I purchased a PS1, PS2 and PS3 very early in their respective gens so I'm not some pc fanboy. This time around I planned on purchasing a PS4 in the future to play MGSV. But after Kojima announced a steam version I now doubt I will ever buy a console again. There is just no point. MS/Sony will have to do a lot to sell me on a console. If they add BC and get rid of online fees I might pick one up in couple years. Otherwise meh..don't really care for consoles. I would rather use that money and invest it in Oculus rift. Or maybe just buy a lot of games during steam seal. I mean seriously. $400 could buy you like 100 good games on steam if you do some smart shopping. A lot more if you just hunt bundles.
tl;dr....My Steam, Origin, GOG and games on my phone will keep me more than satisfied for next millennium. Consoles = one step forward, two steps back. Too much corporate bullshit.
Just go back in time 15 years. Find some hardcore PC gamer on the streets and describe to him what the future of PC gaming will be like. You have a very sandboxed platform with several thousands of games. The games are all fairly priced. The catalog of genres is extremely diverse. The community is very dedicated and for the most part friendly. That person back than would probably collapse and foam out the mouth over such an amazing description. Steam is great and Valve has done a very good job with it over the years. I just don't see how any modern day hardcore gamer can pass on Steam. Don't get me wrong..I'm not knocking on UPlay, GOG, Origin or Battle. Those are all great gaming sources as well. I even use some of them. But Steam has just really been knocking it out of the park.
As for consoles. Well, they are slowly meeting their own demise imo. The PS360 generation was really really good and a lot of amazing games came out of it. So what did MS/Sony do? They made new consoles with no backwards compatibility. All those amazing PS360 multiplats will soon be only playable on PC. MS/Sony will eventually stop supporting and mass producing the PS360 devices. And as they go extinct a lot of games will go extinct with them because developers will only be able to port over so much to next gen. That is why so many developers are porting older games to PC today. They know if they don't than those games will practically disappear in the coming decades. Preservation is important. Backwards compatibility is too strong of a feature imo. I can boot up an old game like Half life from 1998 right now on my Windows 8.1. And enjoy the game from start to finish without a single hiccup. I can't do that on consoles without shopping around on for an old used PS2. Than shop around for discs n stuff etc. But how long will I be able to do that? eventually all this physical media will just be used to fill up landfills at some garbage dump site. The future is digital.
The only legit advantage the new consoles have over PC is a few exclusive games. Most of which seem to always be very overrated and over hyped. Some are good games sure..but nothing is ever the second coming. A lot of those exclusives also will have massive budgets this time around thus creating a lot of delays. So I kinda doubt the next gen will be able to pump out as much quality games as the PS360 did. Plus the way some of these companies abuse DLC, Season passes and other stupid things like remasters also turn me off from console gaming. I purchased a PS1, PS2 and PS3 very early in their respective gens so I'm not some pc fanboy. This time around I planned on purchasing a PS4 in the future to play MGSV. But after Kojima announced a steam version I now doubt I will ever buy a console again. There is just no point. MS/Sony will have to do a lot to sell me on a console. If they add BC and get rid of online fees I might pick one up in couple years. Otherwise meh..don't really care for consoles. I would rather use that money and invest it in Oculus rift. Or maybe just buy a lot of games during steam seal. I mean seriously. $400 could buy you like 100 good games on steam if you do some smart shopping. A lot more if you just hunt bundles.
tl;dr....My Steam, Origin, GOG and games on my phone will keep me more than satisfied for next millennium. Consoles = one step forward, two steps back. Too much corporate bullshit.
flaxknuckles
Member
This is how I feel and why I see no reason to purchase an Xbox One or a PS4 especially with so many Publishers all of a sudden deciding to port their stuff over to PC. The few console exclusives I'll actually give a good damn about aren't worth $400+ to me.
Price, versatility, and game options were my biggest factors.
It didnt cost me that much to build my own (500 USD). Online multiplayer is free. Games are often less in price.
I can do so much more with it than game.
Game options are my biggest factor. Most of the games that interest me are on handheld, not exclusive to console or pc exclusive. The PS exclusive that could have gotten me to stick with Sony was Ratchet and Clank but I've lost enough faith in the series that it's not worth buying a console for. I watch Uncharted but I can always find a Let's Play instead of getting it for a friend to play. I have been mostly a B-tier gamer so their disappearance from console has ruined consoles for me. I like my 360 but see nothing that interests me other than Sunset Overdrive on Xb1.
I do still love my handhelds though. And my Wii U; I love the miiverse.
It didnt cost me that much to build my own (500 USD). Online multiplayer is free. Games are often less in price.
I can do so much more with it than game.
Game options are my biggest factor. Most of the games that interest me are on handheld, not exclusive to console or pc exclusive. The PS exclusive that could have gotten me to stick with Sony was Ratchet and Clank but I've lost enough faith in the series that it's not worth buying a console for. I watch Uncharted but I can always find a Let's Play instead of getting it for a friend to play. I have been mostly a B-tier gamer so their disappearance from console has ruined consoles for me. I like my 360 but see nothing that interests me other than Sunset Overdrive on Xb1.
I do still love my handhelds though. And my Wii U; I love the miiverse.
Polioliolio
Member
I switched when my Laptop started going. PS3 generation was bumming me out, and I wanted to play Skyrim with mods.
Games are cheaper and you don't feel like you're in line with a bunch of other schmoes to pay top dollar for disappointing incomplete games and services.
Games are cheaper and you don't feel like you're in line with a bunch of other schmoes to pay top dollar for disappointing incomplete games and services.
Its all about how much you value each exclusive. Like for me one Bloodborne is worth a hundred RTS games..and I sometimes like to play RTS games. A PS4 is also probably an upgrade over what my current PC can do. So for me it makes sense to go PS4 next rather then upgrade. I'll still have my PC to play any exclusives most of which don't tend to need a powerful system.
Moon_frogger
Member
Show me a console site that highlights even 1/10th of the creativity, diversity and sheer richness present in the current pc gaming scene and I'll take it seriously. I can't even keep up with the constant barrage of amazing, innovating stuff available on pc. No way in hell I have time for a console for a few exclusives a year that more often then not turn out dissapointing. Especially when you need to pay a subscription to unlock the full functionality. I may consider getting a wii u this gen but with gtav and metal gear solid v on the way to pc, I have no interest in consoles anymore.
Keep in mind I don't think someone owning a console is stupid, just that the exclusives argument is simply not relevant to me any more, unless you're talking about nintendo.
Polioliolio
Member
This is another thing. I can't believe console companies want you to pay for services to make this stuff happen.. Hell no.
I'm primarily a PC gamer all my life, but have also owned all Nintendo and Sony consoles for their first party wares. This will be the first generation I spend without a Sony console, thanks to their egregious greed in this matter. I get the same thing, but orders of magnitude better, for free on PC.
1. No interest in first-party titles on console with the exception of Uncharted and Phantom Dust
2. Said no interest means third parties which are porting to PC more and more (and Japanese houses that were formerly console-exclusive are getting a clue, like Konami)
3. Cheaper to wait/Steam sales without having to:
4. Buy Playstation Rental Service/X-box Live Gold to play online/get "Steam Sale" level sales. No, ma'am/sir, I don't like it. Sony could've kept me this generation but as soon as they said PSRS was needed to play online I bought myself a PC and after using the PC for the past year I can't really see myself going back.
2. Said no interest means third parties which are porting to PC more and more (and Japanese houses that were formerly console-exclusive are getting a clue, like Konami)
3. Cheaper to wait/Steam sales without having to:
4. Buy Playstation Rental Service/X-box Live Gold to play online/get "Steam Sale" level sales. No, ma'am/sir, I don't like it. Sony could've kept me this generation but as soon as they said PSRS was needed to play online I bought myself a PC and after using the PC for the past year I can't really see myself going back.
For me last gen, I switched to PC from developers lack of priority when it came to performance. When it comes to multiplatform games, anything below 60 fps is unacceptable in my opinion. It's the same shit with these new consoles, so my desire to own one of them, coupled with all the other statements made in this thread, has made me lean towards PC even more than before.
The exclusives on consoles are excellent so far, at least as fr as the Wii U is concerned.
The exclusives on consoles are excellent so far, at least as fr as the Wii U is concerned.
.
I get the normal, "I don't want to deal with PC" stuff, and think it's a plenty viable reason for not wanting to play on the platform. But if you're an enthusiast, it seems to logically follow that you'd want the best experience possible. If you like to race cars, you don't buy a Prius.
Sodding_Gamer
Member
I made the switch to PC just because it had been like 10 years since my last PC that was capable of gaming, and realised how much I had missed out. Still catching up to this day.
EDIT: I still have consoles so it wasn't as much of a switch, but more opening up my gaming library as it were.
EDIT: I still have consoles so it wasn't as much of a switch, but more opening up my gaming library as it were.
Two things for me.
Console games were becoming over-comoditized, big budget affairs, and the closed nature of the platform made it impossible for competition to thwart its influence. Meanwhile, last generation on Steam, you were getting mega sales numerous times a year, and a good sale at least once a week. Publishers were being rewarded for not nickle and diming their consumers, and consumers got good value.
Last gen made the jump to high definition too soon. None of my PS3 or 360 games looked all that good on my 1080p TVs, while I could optimize all my games to look good if not great on my PC.
Console games were becoming over-comoditized, big budget affairs, and the closed nature of the platform made it impossible for competition to thwart its influence. Meanwhile, last generation on Steam, you were getting mega sales numerous times a year, and a good sale at least once a week. Publishers were being rewarded for not nickle and diming their consumers, and consumers got good value.
Last gen made the jump to high definition too soon. None of my PS3 or 360 games looked all that good on my 1080p TVs, while I could optimize all my games to look good if not great on my PC.
CadetMahoney
Member
no paywall is -the- killer app.
HolyBaikal
Banned
Well, I guess I didn't really become a PC gamer because of Final Fantasy XIV. But it helped me buy a lot of PC parts.
Before that I was kind of interested in PC gaming because of MMORPGs like Aion I wanted to try. And because I want to try PlayStation 2 emulation and Gamecube emulation. But Final Fantasy XIV really helped.
Before Final Fantasy XIV most of my favourite PC games were doujin games like Touhou and Fortune Summoners. I imported a lot of doujin games before they were starting to be localized. And Fortune Summoners was one of my favourite games. I've been Touhou fan since 2006. I have lots of the games and CDs and comics and things like that.
But I could play most of them on the PC without having to buy lots of graphics cards and things like that all the time. So I spent more money on buying things like hard drives and the software than the hardware.
But Final Fantasy XIV was a really demanding game, so I had to buy lots of hardware for it.
Before that I was kind of interested in PC gaming because of MMORPGs like Aion I wanted to try. And because I want to try PlayStation 2 emulation and Gamecube emulation. But Final Fantasy XIV really helped.
Before Final Fantasy XIV most of my favourite PC games were doujin games like Touhou and Fortune Summoners. I imported a lot of doujin games before they were starting to be localized. And Fortune Summoners was one of my favourite games. I've been Touhou fan since 2006. I have lots of the games and CDs and comics and things like that.
But I could play most of them on the PC without having to buy lots of graphics cards and things like that all the time. So I spent more money on buying things like hard drives and the software than the hardware.
But Final Fantasy XIV was a really demanding game, so I had to buy lots of hardware for it.
Wolf Akela
Member
Free online for pretty much every game save some MMOs. I avoid any kind of subscription as much as possible.
Games simply run better. I can't stomach how badly some games ran on PS3/360 compared to PC (low res, low IQ, unstable sub 30FPS, etc). I'm not a graphics whore. I'm totally fine with less special effects, low res textures and so on. I just really dislike it when the game feels janky because the framerate is all over the place and the screen is blurry and full of aliasing due to low res.
Digital marketplace. You're mostly limited to each big console's own marketplace, except maybe Amazon since they sell some PSN keys. On PC, there's a lot of digital competition, and most of them even come with Steam keys. Local retail copies are usually cheaper compared to the console counterparts. Oftentimes, they're cheaper by up to 50% even at launch. The marketplace feels open. I'm not a "no steam no buy" person. I'll get it if the deal is good, although having Steam keys is always a plus.
I used to be a mostly console gamer with some PC gaming here and there (Diablo, RTS, simulation), but now I'm mostly a PC + handheld gamer. I have absolutely no interest in getting a PS4 until FFXV, KH3 and P5 get released. My consoles will just be for console exclusives. Everything else will find its way home on my PC.
Games simply run better. I can't stomach how badly some games ran on PS3/360 compared to PC (low res, low IQ, unstable sub 30FPS, etc). I'm not a graphics whore. I'm totally fine with less special effects, low res textures and so on. I just really dislike it when the game feels janky because the framerate is all over the place and the screen is blurry and full of aliasing due to low res.
Digital marketplace. You're mostly limited to each big console's own marketplace, except maybe Amazon since they sell some PSN keys. On PC, there's a lot of digital competition, and most of them even come with Steam keys. Local retail copies are usually cheaper compared to the console counterparts. Oftentimes, they're cheaper by up to 50% even at launch. The marketplace feels open. I'm not a "no steam no buy" person. I'll get it if the deal is good, although having Steam keys is always a plus.
I used to be a mostly console gamer with some PC gaming here and there (Diablo, RTS, simulation), but now I'm mostly a PC + handheld gamer. I have absolutely no interest in getting a PS4 until FFXV, KH3 and P5 get released. My consoles will just be for console exclusives. Everything else will find its way home on my PC.
XShadows69
Member
Most of my friends play on pc which is a huge factor for me.
The fact that I can hook it up to my hd tv and play games like a console is amazing and having friends over for a game of mario party using dolphin is so much fun.
The fact that I can hook it up to my hd tv and play games like a console is amazing and having friends over for a game of mario party using dolphin is so much fun.
It may be laughable to you, but not to people like myself. There's nothing wrong with PC gaming, but this statement of yours is kind of ridiculous. The reasons why they have exclusives on consoles is to differentiate themselves from each other.
I'm mostly a fan of Nintendo's exclusives, as well as Sony's exclusives & Japanese 3rd party games because they're very interesting & have been a part of most of my gaming life when I was a small child (as well as Sega & Arcades in general).
That's one of the reasons why I stick to Nintendo's products, & Playstation products, & why I want PS4 (as well as Nintendo) to succeed, for tons of exclusives & more Japanese 3rd party support.
I agree. Plus most games on PC consist of FPS's, MOBA's, & MMORPG's (which I'm not even a fan of, especially not on sports games, except racing).
Frank Jaeger
Member
Although I haven't played WoW for well over a year now, my friends are still PC gamers.
Want/need a beefy PC for some computational chemistry stuff.
The upgrade from the previous point is just a good graphic card.
The extra for the good PC is quickly paid of by PC game prices.
Tradition? Was always a PC enthusiast, although I'm spending a lot less these days.
Have a PS4 for the exclusives and have been playing it non-stop (LoUR) since I came back from vacation in the beginning of August.
In the end I'm a gamer first and with titles like MGSV doing the jump to PC there is little to no excuse to not have one.
Want/need a beefy PC for some computational chemistry stuff.
The upgrade from the previous point is just a good graphic card.
The extra for the good PC is quickly paid of by PC game prices.
Tradition? Was always a PC enthusiast, although I'm spending a lot less these days.
Have a PS4 for the exclusives and have been playing it non-stop (LoUR) since I came back from vacation in the beginning of August.
In the end I'm a gamer first and with titles like MGSV doing the jump to PC there is little to no excuse to not have one.
It has a lot of those sure, but it also lots of RPGs, TBS, RTS, racing, horror, simulation, ARPG, survival, creation, platformers. It has by far the most diverse library you can get right now, saying it mostly consists of those three genres is like saying consoles consist of shooters.
Wiktor
Member
Well...most games on consoles are shooters of various kinds and the genre plays better on mouse, so I guess this kind of explains why so few pc gamers bother with consoles.
Louis Cyphre
Banned
I see no reason for Japanese developers supporting the PC more, as they should since we have companies like Nintendo who seem hell bent on region locking. The PC also has the most diverse library out there. Problem is a lot of games don't get a lot of exposure.
That's the beauty of PC gaming, there really is no end in possibilities pertaining to controls either.
MrNyarlathotep
Banned
I guess its true that the RTS is dead, that MOBA has fully supplanted it in the "all Pc games are this" generalisations.
PureYeti
Member
Access to older games
Console port
Mods
Cheaper sale
Patches/Support (well some games I play has more support than console)
Digital backlog. Physical copies are taking up space.
Free Online
Steam sales and PS Plus convince me to move to digital gaming. I don't feel like getting the ps4/xbone. Wii U is the only one I want to get.
Console port
Mods
Cheaper sale
Patches/Support (well some games I play has more support than console)
Digital backlog. Physical copies are taking up space.
Free Online
Steam sales and PS Plus convince me to move to digital gaming. I don't feel like getting the ps4/xbone. Wii U is the only one I want to get.
Tidus_Great
Banned
I think ps4 and wii u both offer unique exclusives to be worthwhile
then the third platform is basically PC vs. xbone which offer about 99.9% the same games so I usually go with PC because free online and cheaper games.
then the third platform is basically PC vs. xbone which offer about 99.9% the same games so I usually go with PC because free online and cheaper games.
Yeah, I forgot about those. I happen to have a list of my favorite genres here, including TBS's, stealth/strategy games (like Tenchu 1 & 2), & some horror games.