BoosterDuck
Banned
don't forget the non-existent load times, full HD resolution, anti-aliasing, controller of choice and no online multiplayer paywall
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Why is PC gaming still considered difficult with too much tinkering?
- Thread starter Fredrik
- Start date
don't forget the non-existent load times, full HD resolution, anti-aliasing, controller of choice and no online multiplayer paywall
Don't forget mods.
Also, 1080/60 is like the minimum acceptable standard on PC. That's the starting point. Good luck finding a console game that pushes past 1080p with a framerate higher than 60fps.
Majima Everywhere System
Member
Windows gets in the way.
That's it
That's it
Lister
Banned
Yeah, emulaiton so good, they are the superior versions of the game.
TheExecutive
Member
Its a risk/benefit analysis most just dont care to take.
It's not. We need a decent PC to stay consistently above 60 for recent games.
Even my Haswell i5 nowadays gets frequent dips below 60.
Oh god, this one's amazing. Right up there with "too sterile" and "angular graphics".
Optimus Lime
(L3) + (R3) | Spartan rage activated
You are massively downplaying the obvious and considerable advantages of gaming on a PC. PC versions aren't simply about 'darker shadows and more detailed textures here and there' - they are considerably transformative experiences, which enhance the base experience in ways that are difficult to describe. Case in point: The Witcher 3 at 4k/60 completely changes the game, and your immersion in that world.
I'm very much the opposite. Playing the big AAA multiplats on console usually feels like I'm playing a compromised, restricted version of a PC game, with significant caveats on graphics, framerate, and the usual QoL stuff. See: Destiny 2, Ghost Recon: Wildlands.
The exclusives, the multiplats, the indies, the mid-tiers, the F2P - the scope of the library is one of the platform's great strengths.
Me too. I have a 1080ti-based PC hooked up to a 4K LG OLED in my living room. I run it with Xbox One controllers, a Steam Controller, a wireless mechanical keyboard and mouse.
The old 'PC gaming involves sitting at a monitor in an office chair' meme hasn't been true for a very long time.
Haswell's IPC is still very good. If you're getting framerate dips then thats on your GPU or RAM.
fluffydelusions
Member
I have an i7 4770k (not even overclocked) and have no issues with any recent games whatsoever.
Both RAM (DDR-1600 is ass now) and CPU for me. Lots of stutters and dips due to them.
Yeah i7 extra threads help a lot!
ss_lemonade
Member
I just had the wonderful idea of running 3440x1440 on my 4k TV and it's blowing me away. Better performance than 4k and a wider FOV
Even with all the settings at min? Damn son.
MotionBlue
Member
Because it is. I interact with young students(18-23) daily. The overwhelming majority of them don't know what alt-tab does. These are STEM field people. Computer literacy is frighteningly low in the general public.
ss_lemonade
Member
What games do you play? They sound like extremely CPU limited ones
Yup. MEA, DE:MD, Wildlands, Destiny 2 beta, BF1, etc all get major dips on my CPU.
hououinkyouma00
Member
The other things that makes a huge difference for console people is price. Im not downplaying the benefits of PC but a lot of people dont want to or simply cant put $1000 or more for the people with 4k/60 builds.
Both consoles, and pc have their benefits. I enjoy having both.
inb4 $60/year fee, more expensive games, etc. Its a lot easier for a lot of people to spread that cost over a few years then to drop it all at once. PSN has been getting better at sales which is nice. Xbox on the other hand...
Both consoles, and pc have their benefits. I enjoy having both.
inb4 $60/year fee, more expensive games, etc. Its a lot easier for a lot of people to spread that cost over a few years then to drop it all at once. PSN has been getting better at sales which is nice. Xbox on the other hand...
H.Protagonist
[-_-]/
I just want to put in a disc and it play. I'm not really interesting in tinkering or fiddling with settings, and because there are so many different specs and combinations that developers have to try and account for, as others have said, it seems a crapshoot on whether or not the game will even launch properly. I'm old and confused. 
Huge Succeeded
Banned
yeeeeep
Ploid 3.0
Member
I've been messing with PC for a while now. It's my main platform this gen, and last week I almost made a big mistake on ram upgrading. I already had 2 single 4gb rams of the same kind, and I figured that I could just get 2 more single sticks of the same ram and everything would be ok. Thankfully that order was going to be shipped 3 weeks later. I found out that there is a high chance that the rams might not work together.
PC mess can get complicated easily. It can be very frustrating. You can mess up and buy parts that just don't work for your system (I have done that too). It takes a while to be comfortable with the risks.
Remember the guy that spent like $2,500 on a pc to build and spent 24 hours+ to build it?
https://youtu.be/RTMvyshcI7Q?t=1801 (such a horrifying sound when he yanks the graphics card out)
PC mess can get complicated easily. It can be very frustrating. You can mess up and buy parts that just don't work for your system (I have done that too). It takes a while to be comfortable with the risks.
Remember the guy that spent like $2,500 on a pc to build and spent 24 hours+ to build it?
https://youtu.be/RTMvyshcI7Q?t=1801 (such a horrifying sound when he yanks the graphics card out)
Huge Succeeded
Banned
let's talk about the thousands of older games which you will never have the chance to play on any other contemporary platform, instead of one of the relatively few older PC games that are also on 360 and backwards compatible on Xbox One
Freshmaker
I am Korean.
Recent Wipeout collection runs at 4k 60fps on the ps4 pro actually.
Though basic display limitations kinda prevent 4k at higher than 60fps so your claim is rather spurious.
Fluffhead14
Member
no interest in troubleshooting anything. i don't have the time for gaming much anyway - just like sitting down, pressing power and playing.
also like having netflix/amazon/hulu/blu ray all in the same place.
i just don't... care(?) enough.
also like having netflix/amazon/hulu/blu ray all in the same place.
i just don't... care(?) enough.
Fluffhead14
Member
better thread idea might be why pc gamers constantly have to espouse its virtues. much like vegans and ipa drinkers.
ss_lemonade
Member
I hate those GPU PCIe clips! I broke mine off too a few months ago because I totally forgot about it. Good thing everything still works since you can screw the GPU in place anyway to hold it. An older setup/motherboard I had wasn't too lucky. Without the clip, my PC wouldn't POST
lol I do that every day with my PC fam
Because of people like you
ME:A, Destiny 2, and Bf1 ran fine for me also with 1600 ram and. 4690k, what graphics card?
GTX1080ti, I5-4690, 16gb
Frequent dips and occasional stutters
The Tempest and Havarl in MEA were bad, BF1 multiplayer will spike down, etc. I honestly doubt your setup held a steady 60.
professor_t
Member
Hey, whoa, why you gotta drag IPA drinkers into this? We're just minding our own business, drinking the best type of beer on the planet.
As for the topic, PC gaming is amazing, but you're full of shit or in denial if you say it doesn't require tinkering. With time, the tinkering gets a lot easier (when I first started on the PC, I was completely bewildered when something went awry), but the hassles crop up much more consistently than on consoles.
That being said, it's more than worth it for me. PC is my number one platform.
It's too bad that so many people think PC is just a way to play AAA games with better graphics. PC is great because of the breadth of different types of games, many you might have never even heard of or looked at.
Also, I don't find it difficult in any way. Tinkering is really only needed for old games sometimes. Unless you consider simple stuff like updating drivers or moving a folder or something difficult or "tinkering".
Also, I don't find it difficult in any way. Tinkering is really only needed for old games sometimes. Unless you consider simple stuff like updating drivers or moving a folder or something difficult or "tinkering".
CraigerGamer
Member
I love PC gaming and when everything runs perfectly, it does compare to the ease of consoles. But when it doesn't, whooo boy.
So I recently moved to a new house. I transported my Gaming PC in the original box of the case. I moved it myself (no movers were allowed to touch it) and it was packed carefully and with extreme caution. Yet, when I booted the machine back up my CPU started overheating. It took me 3 hours to take the computer apart, test each part, reinstall and reseed the CPU, try an air cooler, etc until I isolated the issue. Then I had to figure out why my liquid cooler I bought 2 months ago had stopped working. It turned out to be a power cord issue underneath my shroud that had come off the extra USB port I had it connected to. For a good few hours though I was completely clueless and frustrated.
But I still won't go back to console gaming.
So I recently moved to a new house. I transported my Gaming PC in the original box of the case. I moved it myself (no movers were allowed to touch it) and it was packed carefully and with extreme caution. Yet, when I booted the machine back up my CPU started overheating. It took me 3 hours to take the computer apart, test each part, reinstall and reseed the CPU, try an air cooler, etc until I isolated the issue. Then I had to figure out why my liquid cooler I bought 2 months ago had stopped working. It turned out to be a power cord issue underneath my shroud that had come off the extra USB port I had it connected to. For a good few hours though I was completely clueless and frustrated.
But I still won't go back to console gaming.
AtomicShroom
Member
Because occurrences of people creating forum threads about how X game doesnt run properly or crashes or doesnt run at all on their capable machines and asking for help are still way too common.
Gully State
Member
Strength of the PC space isn't up rezzed triple A games. It's the ecosystem where unique and ambitious gameplay ideas are created iterated and cultivated. It's also the space where a developer can engage his or her community directly better than the other platforms. That's where the real strength of the platform is...one that even PC gamers seem to discount with all this talk about resolution and frame rate.
Dreamwriter
Member
Example of the tinkering still *needed* on PC:
I have a wireless headset, and not some niche set but Logitech G933s. If I want to use them to chat with my friends while playing my MMO (Final Fantasy XIV) while listening to game audio, I cant just turn the headphones on and go, I have to right-click the volume control in Windows, choose Playback Devices, select the G933 head phones, and click the Default Device button. I must do this every time. If I forget about it and start the game up, I cannot then enable the G933s, that will not give me game audio - the game locks in the audio that is enabled when it starts, so I must then exit the game, and *then* set the headset as the default device, then restart the game. Then when I want to go back to normal speakers, I have to do it again - turning off the headset doesnt do anything, I have to go back to Playback Devices and select my speakers (in my case, my TV set), setting them as Default Playback Device.
They also arent set as the default recording device for my gaming-related chat program, Discord, either - whenever I need to reinstall Discord, I have to go into the programs settings and tell it which device to use as the microphone and speakers.
This is just a small thing for PC users, but its one of the things casual gamers arent going to want to have to think about, and its not intuitive at all and WILL require research. Game consoles dont have this issue, headsets and speakers just work (except maybe the Switch when using headsets).
I have a wireless headset, and not some niche set but Logitech G933s. If I want to use them to chat with my friends while playing my MMO (Final Fantasy XIV) while listening to game audio, I cant just turn the headphones on and go, I have to right-click the volume control in Windows, choose Playback Devices, select the G933 head phones, and click the Default Device button. I must do this every time. If I forget about it and start the game up, I cannot then enable the G933s, that will not give me game audio - the game locks in the audio that is enabled when it starts, so I must then exit the game, and *then* set the headset as the default device, then restart the game. Then when I want to go back to normal speakers, I have to do it again - turning off the headset doesnt do anything, I have to go back to Playback Devices and select my speakers (in my case, my TV set), setting them as Default Playback Device.
They also arent set as the default recording device for my gaming-related chat program, Discord, either - whenever I need to reinstall Discord, I have to go into the programs settings and tell it which device to use as the microphone and speakers.
This is just a small thing for PC users, but its one of the things casual gamers arent going to want to have to think about, and its not intuitive at all and WILL require research. Game consoles dont have this issue, headsets and speakers just work (except maybe the Switch when using headsets).
Fredrik
Member
Yeah. I think the talk how a game doesn't run "properly" may get people not familiar with PC gaming scared, even though we're usually just talking about a game that can't lock the framerate at 60fps. They don't understand that console performance won't need any tweaking, most PC gamers are aiming for way better performance than that and sometimes without having the hardware needed which render lots of extra tweaking talk.
I can run it fine usually with High settings, mixed in with some Very high and some medium.
2blackcats
Member
Lol. Plenty of condescending gobshites in this thread though.
I really doubt it unless there are frametime charts for those segments. Haswell i5 (non-K) can hit 60+ lots of times, 100+ even, but equally plenty are dips to way below 60 and stutters.
I have a question for all of you.
You buy a game on PC. Your PC isn't capable of full ultra settings but can do much more than the consoles. After you began playing it, you notice framerate is fluctuating a little too much in the first area (let's say above 60fps in average but drops to mid-40 when there is, let's say, some water in your FOV). You go to settings and lower the water setting, you're good. Second area, there's no water but the framerate goes to low-40fps consistently, you lower some other things, you're good. Third area, ton of water, but it is more linear so you have 70fps on average with peaks well above that. You enable vsync or whatever locks the game to 60fps but you try to readjust settings because you feel you have room for better. 60fps you're good to go. 4th area, ton of water but it's a town, return to low-40fps in some part of it, but locked 60 in some other parts...
What did you pay for? Some times your hardware can't keep with it, other times it can punch well above what you render. Who do you blame? 100% of the time you'll blame devs for the unoptimized mess. So, what devs do?
User performance settings are a trap.
You buy a game on PC. Your PC isn't capable of full ultra settings but can do much more than the consoles. After you began playing it, you notice framerate is fluctuating a little too much in the first area (let's say above 60fps in average but drops to mid-40 when there is, let's say, some water in your FOV). You go to settings and lower the water setting, you're good. Second area, there's no water but the framerate goes to low-40fps consistently, you lower some other things, you're good. Third area, ton of water, but it is more linear so you have 70fps on average with peaks well above that. You enable vsync or whatever locks the game to 60fps but you try to readjust settings because you feel you have room for better. 60fps you're good to go. 4th area, ton of water but it's a town, return to low-40fps in some part of it, but locked 60 in some other parts...
What did you pay for? Some times your hardware can't keep with it, other times it can punch well above what you render. Who do you blame? 100% of the time you'll blame devs for the unoptimized mess. So, what devs do?
User performance settings are a trap.
I'm a PC and Switch gamer, there is nothing to say, PC is indeed more "complex" for mainstream gamers, and console are easier to use, that said who wanna play on PC play on PC who wanna play on console play on console, no one is right no one is wrong, just personal choices and needs. end
I find console to be far more user friendly and intuitive. There's no requirement to trigger firmware updates, game updates happen in the background and there's virtually no need to pamper the hardware with drivers, tweaks and upgrades.
Developers can target the hardware more specifically, checkerboard rendering being the a good example of this.
Don't get me wrong, I used to PC game a lot and I owe a lot fo my best experiences to PC games, especially RPGs like Baldurs Gate. I'm no fool either (Network Engineer) but I simply don't have the energy for it now that I have a family to balance too.
Couple that with the benefits of a nice couch and great controllers (Xbox). It's a no brainer for me.
Still love you PC GAF.
Developers can target the hardware more specifically, checkerboard rendering being the a good example of this.
Don't get me wrong, I used to PC game a lot and I owe a lot fo my best experiences to PC games, especially RPGs like Baldurs Gate. I'm no fool either (Network Engineer) but I simply don't have the energy for it now that I have a family to balance too.
Couple that with the benefits of a nice couch and great controllers (Xbox). It's a no brainer for me.
Still love you PC GAF.
Couches and controllers aren't console exclusive though.
Sändersson
Member
Agreed. On my current build the only problems ive encountered had to with rgbs. Jesus christ what a bad time to jump on the rgb train. xD I have three different programs simultaniously running to control gpu, waterblock and ram leds. Obviously trident's software isnt supposed to work with cam software but for some reason it mostly does.
My message to beginners out there: get a decent air cooler and stay the f### away from rgbs.
Sändersson
Member
Gotta love me dem microsoft exclusive couches and xbox controllers which totally dont work for pc's.
Its almost like raising walls and roof as pc exclusive features. Consoles being a "no brainer" for you is fine amd dandy, but this weird justification is really annoying.
CelticKnight
Member
How do you play primarily mouse + keyboard games on a couch? I've thought about hooking my PC up to my TV but any non joypad games just seems awkward to play.