Research Paper Suggests 20M PC Gamers Will Switch To Consoles in 3 yrs. I call BS!

[Flogger23m]

No, the 360/PS3 did not "take down" PC gaming. PC gaming was in a slump at the time as retail stores were starting to phase out their PC sections as consoles grew more and more popular. This was a trend continuing on from the previous console generation when the PS2 exploded in popularity. It wasn't even necessarily a case of people abandoning the PC either as much as it was more and more new people playing console games and spending a hell of a lot more money on them vs PC. Plus, its not like retail shops like Gamestop could buy and sell used copies so that meant they weren't really turning much of a profit on the games. It was also coupled with a huge rise in piracy as more and more people were getting access to faster internet and the lack of good availability for games (and the incredibly limited and not always great digital options) made more people turn to piracy. Then Steam started selling 3rd party games and the market grew exponentially.

It wasn't really a slump either. Consoles have been outselling PC versions for years. Since the early 2000s at least. I assume this trend goes back to the early 1990s though. Consoles were cheaper than PCs back then, less people used PCs then, and gamers were younger in those days. In the mid 90s not many adults played video/PC games. Not nearly as many as today as many of those kids who grew up playing games are now adults and still have their hobby.

This is partially why you see a "resurgence" in PC gaming. PC gaming has been smaller than console gaming for years and still is (for AAA games) but it is growing as gamers have more disposable income. PC gaming is still a very cheap hobby compared to just about anything else. For many adults $1200-2000 a year isn't a lot of money. You don't even have to be a huge gamer; it just isn't a lot of money and some people are okay with spending that to get the best experience possible. And realistically, that $1200-2000 goes down as the up front cost is high but you tend to keep monitors, peripherals for a few years at least and you can always sell off older hardware to make money back.

This was a large part of the reasoning for the PS4 Pro. While not a PC, there are many console only gamers who absolutely won't mind buying a slightly faster version of the console 3 years later because it is still cheap compared to other hobbies.

 

[lostin3d]

I still call b.s. on switching but if anything I might go back to being someone who has both. Especially in light of the spec rumor mill for the PS5. Not to mention Sony does have some great exclusives too and here's a new one I just saw:

https://www.eteknix.com/multiplayer-predator-game-announced-for-ps4/


Granted we all know how bad most alien and/or predator games have been treated in recent years(Isolation being the exception) but I'm one of those fools who always has hope.

 

[zamardii12]

As someone who has pretty much had all platforms for years I can off the top of my head think of a couple reasons why this would be...

1. The Xbox One X is a perfect example of something that PC gamers simply can't do... build a gaming PC that is capable of 4K graphics (in some cases at 60fps) for $300. Yes I have seen deals pop up online for Xbox One X consoles for right around $300, and as someone who owns a One X it's incredibly impressive what Microsoft was able to accomplish with that box for that price point. Even at $500 it's very impressive. Same goes for the PS4 Pro... the checkerboarding 4K that I see in some games... I mean the graphics seriously contend with some of the best i've ever seen on any platform; lately that includes God of War, Days Gone, and Uncharted 4 comes to mind. Truly amazing.

2. Cheating. Cheating is so fucking rampant in online PC gaming that a large amount of people I am sure would and have switched for that reason alone. I have seen and read many instances of this happening... I don't personally play online multiplayer games, but if I did that would really upset me.

3. PC Gaming is becoming more expensive. I honestly would argue with myself on this point, but the only reason I add it here is because of the RTX series cards' pricing. Just like we saw the premium cap for cell phones go over $1000 this past 2 years Nvidia has also bumped up the price for literally every card in their lineup. Yes, you don't need the best of the best to enjoy PC gaming and you should buy within a budget and catered to your system but I saw this firsthand when I bought a RTX 2080 while I still had a 1080ti. You could buy a 1080ti for $500 used that had the same performance as a $800 RTX 2080... and the 2080ti I ended up upgrading to was Titan pricing not too long ago. So something has shifted, but those of us who always need the best and cutting edge I imagine it doesn't affect too much, but it does definitely affect my thoughts about building PCs.

4. This article is bullshit... this is only here as a possibility. Analysts have been saying for years that PC gaming will die, but PC has honestly grown in the last couple years so I doubt it'll die any time soon.



My gaming started on consoles so I have always had the consoles, and it wasn't until high school did I get my first gaming PC. I always enjoyed consoles for the exclusives I can't get anywhere else, and PC gaming has always been my favorite for first person shooters and RPGs... mostly first person games. However PC gaming has shifted a lot for me and I pretty much enjoy all titles on there now.

 

[Armenius]

Back in the Xbox 360 days updates were annoying because you launch a game and the system would inform you that it had to update (most patches were for dashboard or emulator for backwards compatible games) before you could play. Of course you could play offline if you refused the patch. Also, it had to reboot the system to update anything whether it was the game itself or the system. A lot of this was solved when the Xbox One came out. The system really does not turn off. It suspends the data on the hard drive (that is why you can power down anywhere and pick up at that spot when you turn it on) and goes into a low power state mode. During this sleep state, it downloads, updates and keeps everything up to date. Game patches themselves are not really that common on Xbox because Microsoft charges the developer $40K each patch as a deterrent from releasing buggy game.
I have to sit through updates once in a while (rare) because I elect not to have it auto download gigantic game patches.

End users also don't see many patches these days because developers are trying to move as much as possible server side so they don't have to pay the patch fee on any console.

It wasn't really a slump either. Consoles have been outselling PC versions for years. Since the early 2000s at least. I assume this trend goes back to the early 1990s though. Consoles were cheaper than PCs back then, less people used PCs then, and gamers were younger in those days. In the mid 90s not many adults played video/PC games. Not nearly as many as today as many of those kids who grew up playing games are now adults and still have their hobby.

This is partially why you see a "resurgence" in PC gaming. PC gaming has been smaller than console gaming for years and still is (for AAA games) but it is growing as gamers have more disposable income. PC gaming is still a very cheap hobby compared to just about anything else. For many adults $1200-2000 a year isn't a lot of money. You don't even have to be a huge gamer; it just isn't a lot of money and some people are okay with spending that to get the best experience possible. And realistically, that $1200-2000 goes down as the up front cost is high but you tend to keep monitors, peripherals for a few years at least and you can always sell off older hardware to make money back.

This was a large part of the reasoning for the PS4 Pro. While not a PC, there are many console only gamers who absolutely won't mind buying a slightly faster version of the console 3 years later because it is still cheap compared to other hobbies.

I think a direct comparison between PC and console gaming is possible, anyway. The demographics have always been dissimilar, and so is the market. PC gamers have a habit of latching onto a single game and sticking with it for years, while console gamers are constantly switching to the hot new thing every 4 months. So just because growth in the console space is more marked and faster does not mean the PC space is any weaker as far as volume goes. PC gamers are also more frugal, waiting for the big sales before buying games. So console gamers who are eager to jump in Day 1 are giving publishers a faster return while a PC release may be more gradual over the course of 6-18 months.

As someone who has pretty much had all platforms for years I can off the top of my head think of a couple reasons why this would be...

1. The Xbox One X is a perfect example of something that PC gamers simply can't do... build a gaming PC that is capable of 4K graphics (in some cases at 60fps) for $300. Yes I have seen deals pop up online for Xbox One X consoles for right around $300, and as someone who owns a One X it's incredibly impressive what Microsoft was able to accomplish with that box for that price point. Even at $500 it's very impressive. Same goes for the PS4 Pro... the checkerboarding 4K that I see in some games... I mean the graphics seriously contend with some of the best i've ever seen on any platform; lately that includes God of War, Days Gone, and Uncharted 4 comes to mind. Truly amazing.

2. Cheating. Cheating is so fucking rampant in online PC gaming that a large amount of people I am sure would and have switched for that reason alone. I have seen and read many instances of this happening... I don't personally play online multiplayer games, but if I did that would really upset me.

3. PC Gaming is becoming more expensive. I honestly would argue with myself on this point, but the only reason I add it here is because of the RTX series cards' pricing. Just like we saw the premium cap for cell phones go over $1000 this past 2 years Nvidia has also bumped up the price for literally every card in their lineup. Yes, you don't need the best of the best to enjoy PC gaming and you should buy within a budget and catered to your system but I saw this firsthand when I bought a RTX 2080 while I still had a 1080ti. You could buy a 1080ti for $500 used that had the same performance as a $800 RTX 2080... and the 2080ti I ended up upgrading to was Titan pricing not too long ago. So something has shifted, but those of us who always need the best and cutting edge I imagine it doesn't affect too much, but it does definitely affect my thoughts about building PCs.

4. This article is bullshit... this is only here as a possibility. Analysts have been saying for years that PC gaming will die, but PC has honestly grown in the last couple years so I doubt it'll die any time soon.



My gaming started on consoles so I have always had the consoles, and it wasn't until high school did I get my first gaming PC. I always enjoyed consoles for the exclusives I can't get anywhere else, and PC gaming has always been my favorite for first person shooters and RPGs... mostly first person games. However PC gaming has shifted a lot for me and I pretty much enjoy all titles on there now.

1. Hilariously, Fallout 76 bundles are the ones you see going for $300. But I agree that even at $400 the machine is pretty good for that price point. But you can get a "4K" PC that can do the same tricks to output a 4K image for around $600. So while the entry price for the Xbox One X is cheaper, it isn't by a great amount. Don't forget to add the $80 for an Xbox Live subscription if you want to play multiplayer games.
2. Nothing but anecdotes. I have seen no data to backup the assertion that cheating on PC is any worse than on consoles.
3. The RTX cards are an outlier. It is too early to say that this is going to be a trend going forward. And frankly, if you look at the historical data you'll see hardware prices practically follow a sine wave over time. We just happen to be at the peak of it now, so a valley is sure to follow in the next few years. Still, you never have to buy the absolute best hardware to get a good gaming experience.
4. Yes, I think a recent lack of big moves in the industry that PRG serves has caused a slump in their business and they needed something to get attention in the meantime.

 

[Snowdog]

My gaming started on consoles so I have always had the consoles, and it wasn't until high school did I get my first gaming PC. I always enjoyed consoles for the exclusives I can't get anywhere else, and PC gaming has always been my favorite for first person shooters and RPGs... mostly first person games. However PC gaming has shifted a lot for me and I pretty much enjoy all titles on there now.

My Gaming also started on consoles. On a ColecoVision.

Then I saved up for a Commodore 64 since I wanted to play RPGs and Infocomm text adventures, and I haven't owned a console since then.

 

[YeuEmMaiMai]

As someone who has pretty much had all platforms for years I can off the top of my head think of a couple reasons why this would be...

1. The Xbox One X is a perfect example of something that PC gamers simply can't do... build a gaming PC that is capable of 4K graphics (in some cases at 60fps) for $300. Yes I have seen deals pop up online for Xbox One X consoles for right around $300, and as someone who owns a One X it's incredibly impressive what Microsoft was able to accomplish with that box for that price point. Even at $500 it's very impressive. Same goes for the PS4 Pro... the checkerboarding 4K that I see in some games... I mean the graphics seriously contend with some of the best i've ever seen on any platform; lately that includes God of War, Days Gone, and Uncharted 4 comes to mind. Truly amazing.

2. Cheating. Cheating is so fucking rampant in online PC gaming that a large amount of people I am sure would and have switched for that reason alone. I have seen and read many instances of this happening... I don't personally play online multiplayer games, but if I did that would really upset me.

3. PC Gaming is becoming more expensive. I honestly would argue with myself on this point, but the only reason I add it here is because of the RTX series cards' pricing. Just like we saw the premium cap for cell phones go over $1000 this past 2 years Nvidia has also bumped up the price for literally every card in their lineup. Yes, you don't need the best of the best to enjoy PC gaming and you should buy within a budget and catered to your system but I saw this firsthand when I bought a RTX 2080 while I still had a 1080ti. You could buy a 1080ti for $500 used that had the same performance as a $800 RTX 2080... and the 2080ti I ended up upgrading to was Titan pricing not too long ago. So something has shifted, but those of us who always need the best and cutting edge I imagine it doesn't affect too much, but it does definitely affect my thoughts about building PCs.

4. This article is bullshit... this is only here as a possibility. Analysts have been saying for years that PC gaming will die, but PC has honestly grown in the last couple years so I doubt it'll die any time soon.



My gaming started on consoles so I have always had the consoles, and it wasn't until high school did I get my first gaming PC. I always enjoyed consoles for the exclusives I can't get anywhere else, and PC gaming has always been my favorite for first person shooters and RPGs... mostly first person games. However PC gaming has shifted a lot for me and I pretty much enjoy all titles on there now.

1. xbox one X cannot do full featured 4K gaming....you get better performance graphics wise with PC. They have to use all sorts of system speficic tweaks to get what you have now....compare that to a current gen PC and there is no comparison. Consoles are always behind in this area.

2. absolutely
3. absolutely

 

[zamardii12]

1. xbox one X cannot do full featured 4K gaming....you get better performance graphics wise with PC. They have to use all sorts of system speficic tweaks to get what you have now....compare that to a current gen PC and there is no comparison. Consoles are always behind in this area.

That's entirely wrong. Just to list a handful of 4k/60fps games...

Doom
Battlefield 1
COD: WW2
Cuphead
The Evil Within 2
FIFA 18
Forza Horizon 4
Forza 7
Halo 5
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
Hitman
Killer Instinct
Project Cars 2
Rise of the Tomb Raider
Star Wars: Battlefront 2
Titanfall 2

Also there's a LOT more games that are 4K but 30fps which to me are just great as well. But the big ones being Forza 7 and Halo 5 are really impressive to see on the One X @ 60fps and 4K on a big screen.

You can see the list here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Xbox_One_X_enhanced_games

 

[Aix.]

3. PC Gaming is becoming more expensive. I honestly would argue with myself on this point, but the only reason I add it here is because of the RTX series cards' pricing. Just like we saw the premium cap for cell phones go over $1000 this past 2 years Nvidia has also bumped up the price for literally every card in their lineup. Yes, you don't need the best of the best to enjoy PC gaming and you should buy within a budget and catered to your system but I saw this firsthand when I bought a RTX 2080 while I still had a 1080ti. You could buy a 1080ti for $500 used that had the same performance as a $800 RTX 2080... and the 2080ti I ended up upgrading to was Titan pricing not too long ago. So something has shifted, but those of us who always need the best and cutting edge I imagine it doesn't affect too much, but it does definitely affect my thoughts about building PCs.

Personally I have the opposite view. We used to be so starved for power that we had to upgrade as frequently as possible just to eek out any extra performance and get a smooth experience. Those dual core, DDR2 days were great but we were always looking to get more power. Now we're upgrading to keep up with higher frame rates, higher resolutions, or both, but if you're playing at 1080p60 then hardware that is years old is completely fine. There are probably many users on this forum still gaming fine on their 2500K, and that was released in 2011. I've got a 780Ti from 2013 and that thing is still more than capable at 1080p60.

Someone dabbling in PC building has more options than ever before, IMO, and RTX is completely unnecessary to getting an experience that absolutely smokes anything available on consoles.

 

[Staples]

That's entirely wrong. Just to list a handful of 4k/60fps games...

Doom
Battlefield 1
COD: WW2
Cuphead
The Evil Within 2
FIFA 18
Forza Horizon 4
Forza 7
Halo 5
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
Hitman
Killer Instinct
Project Cars 2
Rise of the Tomb Raider
Star Wars: Battlefront 2
Titanfall 2

Also there's a LOT more games that are 4K but 30fps which to me are just great as well. But the big ones being Forza 7 and Halo 5 are really impressive to see on the One X @ 60fps and 4K on a big screen.

You can see the list here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Xbox_One_X_enhanced_games

I feel the Xbox One X is probably one of the faster releases in comparison to modern PCs. And it is a 1.5 years old. But besides this, most people compare prices. An Xbox One X is a complete system for $500 at worst and $350 on sale. Refurb units are on Ebay for $280 (I bought one for $320 before they dropped the price). You can not anywhere this performance on a comparably priced PC.

And you forgot Borderland the Handsome Collection (one of the best games of recent).

 

[Armenius]

That's entirely wrong. Just to list a handful of 4k/60fps games...

Doom
Battlefield 1
COD: WW2
Cuphead
The Evil Within 2
FIFA 18
Forza Horizon 4
Forza 7
Halo 5
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
Hitman
Killer Instinct
Project Cars 2
Rise of the Tomb Raider
Star Wars: Battlefront 2
Titanfall 2

Also there's a LOT more games that are 4K but 30fps which to me are just great as well. But the big ones being Forza 7 and Halo 5 are really impressive to see on the One X @ 60fps and 4K on a big screen.

You can see the list here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Xbox_One_X_enhanced_games

The only ones on your list that are 4K 60 FPS are Forza 7 and Killer Instinct.

• Doom - Dynamic resolution. Runs at 1440p most of the time. Never hits 4K. Has trouble maintaining 60 FPS.
• Battlefield 1 - Dynamic resolution. Single player can achieve full 4K most of the time with frame dips, but multiplayer does not to maintain 60 FPS.
• Call of Duty: WWII - Dynamic resolution. Both game modes come close to 4K a lot of the time. 60 FPS is maintained often, but there are significant sutter events throughout.
• Cuphead - It's a 2D game.
• The Evil Within 2 - Dynamic resolution up to "1800p." Game runs at a fixed 30 FPS.
• Forza Horizon 4 - 60 FPS mode runs at 1080p, while 4K mode runs at 30 FPS.
• Forza Motorsport 7 - Native 4K and 60 FPS.
• Halo 5 - Dynamic resolution on both the X- and Y- axes. Resolution varies wildly between 1152x810 up to full 4K. Details were greatly reduced compared to the original: LOD bias is a lot more positive, texture filtering was greatly reduced, more lighting was baked in, more static shadows, less reflection, etc.
• Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice - Has 3 rendering modes: High Framerate, High Resolution, Enriched Settings. All 3 use dynamic resolution. Only the High Framerate mode hits 60 FPS while achieving a max resolution of "1280p." The other two modes run at 30 FPS.
• Hitman - Has 3 rendering modes. Native 4K mode has an unlocked FPS and 30 FPS mode, with the former not going above 40 FPS in limited scenarios. High Framerate mode runs at 60 FPS and 2560x1440 resolution. The framerate suffers from frequent dips.
• Killer Instinct - Native 4K and 60 FPS. Suffers from frequent drops during certain moves and combos.
• Project CARS 2 - Dynamic resolution sticking to 1440p most of the time. Never hits 4K. Framerate is a mess, varying between 40-60 FPS often.
• Rise of the Tomb Raider - Includes 3 rendering modes: Native 4K, High Framerate, and Enriched Visuals. Only the High Framerate mode hits 60 FPS, but does so using dynamic resolution that is between "920p" and 1440p. Native 4K mode runs at a fixed 30 FPS.
• Star Wars Battlefront II - Dynamic resolution between "1800p" and 4K. Game is mostly stable at 60 FPS.
• Titanfall 2 - Dynamic resolution between 1440p and 4K, mostly hits "1800p." Maintains 60 FPS most of the time.

 

[zamardii12]

The only ones on your list that are 4K 60 FPS are Forza 7 and Killer Instinct.

• Doom - Dynamic resolution. Runs at 1440p most of the time. Never hits 4K. Has trouble maintaining 60 FPS.
• Battlefield 1 - Dynamic resolution. Single player can achieve full 4K most of the time with frame dips, but multiplayer does not to maintain 60 FPS.
• Call of Duty: WWII - Dynamic resolution. Both game modes come close to 4K a lot of the time. 60 FPS is maintained often, but there are significant sutter events throughout.
• Cuphead - It's a 2D game.
• The Evil Within 2 - Dynamic resolution up to "1800p." Game runs at a fixed 30 FPS.
• Forza Horizon 4 - 60 FPS mode runs at 1080p, while 4K mode runs at 30 FPS.
• Forza Motorsport 7 - Native 4K and 60 FPS.
• Halo 5 - Dynamic resolution on both the X- and Y- axes. Resolution varies wildly between 1152x810 up to full 4K. Details were greatly reduced compared to the original: LOD bias is a lot more positive, texture filtering was greatly reduced, more lighting was baked in, more static shadows, less reflection, etc.
• Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice - Has 3 rendering modes: High Framerate, High Resolution, Enriched Settings. All 3 use dynamic resolution. Only the High Framerate mode hits 60 FPS while achieving a max resolution of "1280p." The other two modes run at 30 FPS.
• Hitman - Has 3 rendering modes. Native 4K mode has an unlocked FPS and 30 FPS mode, with the former not going above 40 FPS in limited scenarios. High Framerate mode runs at 60 FPS and 2560x1440 resolution. The framerate suffers from frequent dips.
• Killer Instinct - Native 4K and 60 FPS. Suffers from frequent drops during certain moves and combos.
• Project CARS 2 - Dynamic resolution sticking to 1440p most of the time. Never hits 4K. Framerate is a mess, varying between 40-60 FPS often.
• Rise of the Tomb Raider - Includes 3 rendering modes: Native 4K, High Framerate, and Enriched Visuals. Only the High Framerate mode hits 60 FPS, but does so using dynamic resolution that is between "920p" and 1440p. Native 4K mode runs at a fixed 30 FPS.
• Star Wars Battlefront II - Dynamic resolution between "1800p" and 4K. Game is mostly stable at 60 FPS.
• Titanfall 2 - Dynamic resolution between 1440p and 4K, mostly hits "1800p." Maintains 60 FPS most of the time.

That's not really the entire point of this. Having playable 4K at all is impressive regardless of FPS given the performance to price ratio of the One X and PS4 Pro. The person I was responding to said "xbox one X cannot do full featured 4K gaming." What exactly are we talking about here? Is someone on this forum trying to tell me that you will find a PC that will run 4K @ 60fps for $500? I don't see anybody saying that, and my point is that even with the different rendering methods the companies use what Microsoft and Sony achieved at the price point they are at is incredibly impressive and offer a compelling, fun, and impressive 4K experience regardless of render technology.

 

[Pieter3dnow]

That's not really the entire point of this. Having playable 4K at all is impressive regardless of FPS given the performance to price ratio of the One X and PS4 Pro. The person I was responding to said "xbox one X cannot do full featured 4K gaming." What exactly are we talking about here? Is someone on this forum trying to tell me that you will find a PC that will run 4K @ 60fps for $500? I don't see anybody saying that, and my point is that even with the different rendering methods the companies use what Microsoft and Sony achieved at the price point they are at is incredibly impressive and offer a compelling, fun, and impressive 4K experience regardless of render technology.

Btw I was making the suggestion about the console cheaper alternative to 4K gaming from the start.

Not just that but the console is extracting all of the power they have from the APU this we won't ever see on the PC. The rendering options are a way to bypass certain limitations and the only way to do it without needing expensive hardware upgrades. If you look at a digital foundry video they expose how the rendering is done differently but is that why you play games ?

A PC is expensive and not bad but it suffers from drawbacks as well and those people that do not have the cash to spend on several upgrades will certainly take notice of next year consoles.

 

[eclypse]

Upgrade every year and resale the old hardware to offset the cost... longer you hold that hardware the less you'll get back.

Best way to do it but alot of work.. but you'll stay on the bleeding edge.

 

[zamardii12]

A PC is expensive and not bad but it suffers from drawbacks as well and those people that do not have the cash to spend on several upgrades will certainly take notice of next year consoles.

I also think something that people are forgetting is that because of the way consoles are made, games always end up looking better farther down the lifespan of the console. Just look at the games released when the PS3 launched and the PS3 games that came out years later. Same hardware, but better utilization of the hardware, and a better understanding of the architecture yields better graphics and performance.

 

[lostin3d]

My Gaming also started on consoles. On a ColecoVision.

Then I saved up for a Commodore 64 since I wanted to play RPGs and Infocomm text adventures, and I haven't owned a console since then.

pong>Atari(pre-vcs)>Atari 400(heavily upgraded through nearly 10 years)>Tandy 1000ex>PS(pre one)& misc hand me down used pc's+parts>PS2>1st store bought PC/P4(VPR Matrix used for almost 10 years and completely rebuilt/modified)&hand me down Xbox>Gateway FX7086(last storebought)>self builds(both in my profile/sig).

There's a few laptops towards the end of that last. In the Atari 400 days I too was playing a lot of text adventures. Anyone remember Scott Adam's? From then on it was all about the eye candy and RPG's for me as well. Haven't owned a console since the PS2 but I did go thru three of those until the slim came out. Really loved that thing. Since they'd switched to a DC power solution I was able to use it in our van with a basic cigarette adapter. At the time we had a portable DVD player with a 12" TFT screen and also had aux inputs that I plugged it into. Pretty cool for the time and back then there wasn't a laptop around that could touch that kind of gaming performance. It even lasted for some 480P and 1080i gaming until I finally gave it away. These days the pendulum has solidly swung to PC for me but seriously looking at a PS5 to supplement with when it comes out.

 

[Snowdog]

pong>Atari(pre-vcs)>Atari 400(heavily upgraded through nearly 10 years)>Tandy 1000ex>PS(pre one)& misc hand me down used pc's+parts>PS2>1st store bought PC/P4(VPR Matrix used for almost 10 years and completely rebuilt/modified)&hand me down Xbox>Gateway FX7086(last storebought)>self builds(both in my profile/sig).

There's a few laptops towards the end of that last. In the Atari 400 days I too was playing a lot of text adventures. Anyone remember Scott Adam's? From then on it was all about the eye candy and RPG's for me as well. Haven't owned a console since the PS2 but I did go thru three of those until the slim came out. Really loved that thing. Since they'd switched to a DC power solution I was able to use it in our van with a basic cigarette adapter. At the time we had a portable DVD player with a 12" TFT screen and also had aux inputs that I plugged it into. Pretty cool for the time and back then there wasn't a laptop around that could touch that kind of gaming performance. It even lasted for some 480P and 1080i gaming until I finally gave it away. These days the pendulum has solidly swung to PC for me but seriously looking at a PS5 to supplement with when it comes out.

Yes! I played a number of Scott Adams adventures back in those days. I always remember in one the first text adventures I ever played, getting stuck trying to get by a bear. I think I found out later the solution was to feed it some specific thing, but at the time, I typed in "Scream" in frustration, and it freaked out the bear, and I got by. It was a rush to finally get by that spot...

One thing good about those days, was no internet (wait, what?). With no internet you had to figure things out when stuck. It took longer, but it was more rewarding. I finished all of Zork I, with no hints, but by the time I played Zork 2, I think I was using bulletin boards for hints, and it wasn't quite the same.

RPGs were also a lot harder(yeah I'm an old man, get off my lawn). I finished the original "Bards Tale" on the C64. Back then you had to do all your own mapping on paper. Mangar's tower was a nightmare, of wandering the into teleporters in the dark. But again so rewarding when you crack it.

I played at Arcades, and Pong, Atari VCS, Intellivision at friends houses before saving up for my ColecoVision.

ColecoVision -> C64 -> Amiga -> AMD 486...

 

[DukenukemX]

As someone who has pretty much had all platforms for years I can off the top of my head think of a couple reasons why this would be...

1. The Xbox One X is a perfect example of something that PC gamers simply can't do... build a gaming PC that is capable of 4K graphics (in some cases at 60fps) for $300. Yes I have seen deals pop up online for Xbox One X consoles for right around $300, and as someone who owns a One X it's incredibly impressive what Microsoft was able to accomplish with that box for that price point. Even at $500 it's very impressive. Same goes for the PS4 Pro... the checkerboarding 4K that I see in some games... I mean the graphics seriously contend with some of the best i've ever seen on any platform; lately that includes God of War, Days Gone, and Uncharted 4 comes to mind. Truly amazing.

The Xbox One X is going for $400 on Amazon, so I'd say it's now a $400 console. Also there's the Potato Masker Pro.

2. Cheating. Cheating is so fucking rampant in online PC gaming that a large amount of people I am sure would and have switched for that reason alone. I have seen and read many instances of this happening... I don't personally play online multiplayer games, but if I did that would really upset me.

If you think people don't cheat on console then you're ill informed. The consoles have long been hacked and people also use a lag switch as well.

3. PC Gaming is becoming more expensive. I honestly would argue with myself on this point, but the only reason I add it here is because of the RTX series cards' pricing. Just like we saw the premium cap for cell phones go over $1000 this past 2 years Nvidia has also bumped up the price for literally every card in their lineup. Yes, you don't need the best of the best to enjoy PC gaming and you should buy within a budget and catered to your system but I saw this firsthand when I bought a RTX 2080 while I still had a 1080ti. You could buy a 1080ti for $500 used that had the same performance as a $800 RTX 2080... and the 2080ti I ended up upgrading to was Titan pricing not too long ago. So something has shifted, but those of us who always need the best and cutting edge I imagine it doesn't affect too much, but it does definitely affect my thoughts about building PCs.

Hence why we may end up in a situation where our PC's can't play Crysis again. A GeForce 8800 Ultra was nearly $700 back in 2007 and now we have an RTX 2080 for the same price. AMD is not better here as well.

 

[YeuEmMaiMai]

That's not really the entire point of this. Having playable 4K at all is impressive regardless of FPS given the performance to price ratio of the One X and PS4 Pro. The person I was responding to said "xbox one X cannot do full featured 4K gaming." What exactly are we talking about here? Is someone on this forum trying to tell me that you will find a PC that will run 4K @ 60fps for $500? I don't see anybody saying that, and my point is that even with the different rendering methods the companies use what Microsoft and Sony achieved at the price point they are at is incredibly impressive and offer a compelling, fun, and impressive 4K experience regardless of render technology.

that is not 4K playable, that's dynamic res swapping and lying about it by saying it is 4K

 

[Private_Ops]

Cause I'm totally gonna switch to a "one trick pony". My "PC" is can do all a console does and more.

 

[lostin3d]

Yes! I played a number of Scott Adams adventures back in those days. I always remember in one the first text adventures I ever played, getting stuck trying to get by a bear. I think I found out later the solution was to feed it some specific thing, but at the time, I typed in "Scream" in frustration, and it freaked out the bear, and I got by. It was a rush to finally get by that spot...

One thing good about those days, was no internet (wait, what?). With no internet you had to figure things out when stuck. It took longer, but it was more rewarding. I finished all of Zork I, with no hints, but by the time I played Zork 2, I think I was using bulletin boards for hints, and it wasn't quite the same.

RPGs were also a lot harder(yeah I'm an old man, get off my lawn). I finished the original "Bards Tale" on the C64. Back then you had to do all your own mapping on paper. Mangar's tower was a nightmare, of wandering the into teleporters in the dark. But again so rewarding when you crack it.

I played at Arcades, and Pong, Atari VCS, Intellivision at friends houses before saving up for my ColecoVision.

ColecoVision -> C64 -> Amiga -> AMD 486...

Pretty much the same for me except my friends had the Commodore/Apple stuff. I remember one had a Z80 and we'd play The Hobbit. Another had a TI994a there was a D&D RPG but can't remember the name anymore. Yeah back then if you couldn't figure something out then you'd have to shelve the game and hopefully either run into someone who knew something or scrounge Compute! or other magazines for a mention. Could be a lot of fun though typing commands just to see what the game would do. Finished Zork 1-3, Ultima III&IV, some Wizardry, and many more on the Atari 400. My first dungeon crawler was Telengard. Did Bard's Tale and M&M on the Tandy.

Good times back then. Much less petty behavior. Sure we each had our favorites and rivalry but for the most part we were just happy to have anything. It was genuinely fun seeing what each system could do.

 

[Snowdog]

I was pretty much the first of my friends to move from consoles to computer. C-64 really swept our community. One of my friends parents bought him a Ti994a, and we made fun of it a lot.

 

[M76]

Well casual gamers may switch to console, but I wouldn't consider them PC gamers to begin with.

 

[raz-0]

Don't drink the marketing koolaid honey.

They shot their wad with 4k - which was never legit 4K60 but uprezzed bullshit - now they're looking to latch onto whatever buzzwords they can - raytracing, 8K, VR ("we really mean it this time"), all driven by a peashooter AMD APU yet again

It's real simple. It looks better than the last version or it doesn't.

Currently, consoles dictate just how good a title can look, at least polygon wise. PC may get higher resolution options and higher res textures, and maybe some post processing tweaks that consoles don't get, but as the last gen proved, they weren't interested in taxing bleeding edge, or even middle of the road PC gaming systems until new consoles dropped.

At the moment, to possess that marginal lead over consoles, the entry fee is rising radically. We went from $700 at the tick to $1100 at the tock and will be looking at doubling prices by the next tick? That's fucking insane, and for most people it isn't a need, it's a want. They will buy what they can afford even if it is crappier. If you have to resort to "technically crappier, but it's hard for you to perceive that in actual use", then that will be some dire shit for the PC gaming world.

PEople who used to be pc gaming elites will be downgraded to consoles. Consoles will become the new middle class as those with no budget get turned into the filthy streaming peasants. At least unless something changes in incomes or pricing of components.

 

[eclypse]

Pc hardware advances faster then consoles.. so consoles will always be behind PC's capabilities.

Consoles will need to refresh every 2 years to keep up.

It is what it is..

I got into PC's originally as a kid cause I wanted better games then the consoles had.. (Atari 600/800 and comadore 64, first pc in 94) still I had all the consoles as I didnt want to be limited.. and I guess I'm the same today even though I dont touch consoles anymore.. just my son.

Always wanted games to be as good as the arcade. That dream came true with the neo geo gold system as it was identical hardware as the arcade cabs.

Now theirs no more arcades to chase thanks to more advanced consoles killing them off.

I hope consoles can keep up.. but I wont be changing till I can use a keyboard and mouse.

Soon everyone will be doing 4k @ 144hz and then a year from now prob 8k.

 

[Staples]

Oh, there are arcades but most the games are these crappy ticket games where you push one button and if you time it right, you will 1000 tickets. There are some racing video games and shooting games and that is all. Nothing like in the 90s.