My personal view is that a PC for games is a totally shitty value for your money. I have a Mac, which has a half-dozen games (mostly gifts). I use the Mac for my work. I have a Playstation 2, which I use for games.
Now, considering that a PS2 will work 100% of the time (no patches/bugs/drivers/cruft), has a bigger screen, and pretty much the same number of games as the Windows platform (insofar as both platforms have way more excellent games than I'll ever buy).... and considering that the high-end video card you need to buy (for the PC you've already bought) costs nearly as much by itselfas a whole PS2/GC/XB.... why do you guys do it?
It's not a troll, I really want to know. Is it certain games? Keyboard-based games? The supa-bleeding-edge graphics and sound?
It's just a variant of the original poster's question, really, but I find my Mac/PS2 combination works really well. I don't want for many games.
It certainly is certain games. If you have the chance, compare sometime Unreal Tournament on a high-end PC as compared to the PS2 version. The PC version is fast, attractive, a breeze to play, and very fun. UT on a PS2 controller is a complete nightmare. And the resolution stinks.
It's also hard to imagine games like Icewind Dale, Baldur's Gate, Civilization, most RTSes, etc. working on the console. I'm not saying they don't exist on the console, but that it's hard to imagine them working.
Consoles are great for fighting, racing, and social games. They are not so great for quiet strategy games or RPGs, in my humble opinion. That may work for some people, but I just don't want to be in front of a console for hours. My thumbs get calluses and my hands (which are too big for most controllers) start aching terribly after too long. Not the case with a PC.
It's a variety of factors, but for me it mostly comes down to the kind of games. And it cuts both ways, too: I own a PS2 and a Dreamcast and I love Soul Calibur and DOA2. But I'd never imagine playing either on a PC.
What about Final Fantasy series or Chrono Cross? IMHO they are some of the best RPGs currently released. The PC versions of the Final Fantasy series apparently had poor game control. I think it's true that console games are poor for mouse oriented gaming (RTS, adventure, strategy), but they seem to be a perfectly fine medium for RPGs.
They are not so great for quiet strategy games or RPGs, in my humble opinion.
Ahem. The SNES was the console that brought forth quite some RPG classics such as Final Fantasy 6, Secret of Mana, Tales of Phantasia, etc. The Playstation series also have quite a few nice RPGs on them, all of them running quite decently. Same story for the Dreamcast. What about the PC? We only got the Baldur's Gate series and some RPGs for retards that only involve massive clicking and paying 1000+ USD on ebay for a game item. (Hello Diablo2 and mearly any MMORPG) Though I have to admit, the BG series easily rank up to the best RPGs. The lack of PC RPGs (Specifically Manga/Anime like RPGs) is making me look into buying a pretty little PS2 some time... Sadly.
But to stay on subject; I still use windows because of the fact that games simply run without much of a hassle on windows. In fact, IMHO, most things on windows are less of a hassle. If I want to change my resolution, I can do it with easy. In Linux, I'd have to shut down x, edit my config file with emacs which makes as much sense to me as ancient runes (at least I know how to save a file and quite emacs, unlike in vi) and then restart x. Besides, windows inherent insecurities aren't such a big problem when everything is neatly hidden behind a Linux firewall/NAT router...:)
Completly agreed. Consoles just don't hold a candle to the PC when it comes to games with a more intellectually challening level of gameplay. Colsoles have tried for decades to reproduce RPGs from PCs (or other general purpose computers), and have come up with what? Final Fantasy? What a joke. FF doesn't hold a candle to the story depth and complexity of gameplay of the true PC RPGs. Starting back 20+ years, you have Bard's Tale, Wizardry, Ultima (Ultima 4 is simply the best CRPG ever produced), Ultima Underworld, Might and Magic, Elder Scrolls, Magic Candle, Eye of the Beholder, Dungeon Master, and now NWN, all contributing new and interesting things to the state of CRPG art (there are of course many many more, but for me - these are the core of good CRPGs). Some of these have been poorly translated to various platforms, and without fail, they are always a pale reflection of the PC version.
Why is this? IMHO 2 reasons: 1) The more complex controls on a PC allow for a greater variety of ideas to flourish, and for more complex games to be born.
2) Consoles almost invariably dumb down games for mass market appeal (or to make them playable by kids). PC games have almost always been a smaller market - but one that tends to have more people who are willing to face greater complexity, and who demand more intelligence in their games then Zelda or Final Fantasy.
You've never played Persona, Carnage Heart, or Final Fantasy Tactics, have you? I think that PC gamers who say console games are for kiddys simply have not played enough console games to know any better. Which Final Fantasy games have you played, exactly?
My first console RPG was a port of Might and Magic: Secret of the Inner Sanctum, and there were NES ports of the Bards Tale, Wizardry, and three of the Ultima's. There was also a SNES port of Eye of the Beholder with mouse support no less.
As for console games being dumbed down, there sure seem to be a lot of T and M rated console games out there. Games that have very obviously been designed with older players in mind.
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To all of you who say 'Games'. (Score:4, Interesting)
My personal view is that a PC for games is a totally shitty value for your money. I have a Mac, which has a half-dozen games (mostly gifts). I use the Mac for my work. I have a Playstation 2, which I use for games.
Now, considering that a PS2 will work 100% of the time (no patches/bugs/drivers/cruft), has a bigger screen, and pretty much the same number of games as the Windows platform (insofar as both platforms have way more excellent games than I'll ever buy).... and considering that the high-end video card you need to buy (for the PC you've already bought) costs nearly as much by itselfas a whole PS2/GC/XB.... why do you guys do it?
It's not a troll, I really want to know. Is it certain games? Keyboard-based games? The supa-bleeding-edge graphics and sound?
It's just a variant of the original poster's question, really, but I find my Mac/PS2 combination works really well. I don't want for many games.
Re:To all of you who say 'Games'. (Score:5, Insightful)
It's also hard to imagine games like Icewind Dale, Baldur's Gate, Civilization, most RTSes, etc. working on the console. I'm not saying they don't exist on the console, but that it's hard to imagine them working.
Consoles are great for fighting, racing, and social games. They are not so great for quiet strategy games or RPGs, in my humble opinion. That may work for some people, but I just don't want to be in front of a console for hours. My thumbs get calluses and my hands (which are too big for most controllers) start aching terribly after too long. Not the case with a PC.
It's a variety of factors, but for me it mostly comes down to the kind of games. And it cuts both ways, too: I own a PS2 and a Dreamcast and I love Soul Calibur and DOA2. But I'd never imagine playing either on a PC.
Re:To all of you who say 'Games'. (Score:1)
Re:To all of you who say 'Games'. (Score:1)
Ahem. The SNES was the console that brought forth quite some RPG classics such as Final Fantasy 6, Secret of Mana, Tales of Phantasia, etc. The Playstation series also have quite a few nice RPGs on them, all of them running quite decently. Same story for the Dreamcast. What about the PC? We only got the Baldur's Gate series and some RPGs for retards that only involve massive clicking and paying 1000+ USD on ebay for a game item. (Hello Diablo2 and mearly any MMORPG) Though I have to admit, the BG series easily rank up to the best RPGs. The lack of PC RPGs (Specifically Manga/Anime like RPGs) is making me look into buying a pretty little PS2 some time... Sadly.
But to stay on subject; I still use windows because of the fact that games simply run without much of a hassle on windows. In fact, IMHO, most things on windows are less of a hassle. If I want to change my resolution, I can do it with easy. In Linux, I'd have to shut down x, edit my config file with emacs which makes as much sense to me as ancient runes (at least I know how to save a file and quite emacs, unlike in vi) and then restart x. Besides, windows inherent insecurities aren't such a big problem when everything is neatly hidden behind a Linux firewall/NAT router... :)
Re:To all of you who say 'Games'. (Score:2)
Why is this? IMHO 2 reasons:
1) The more complex controls on a PC allow for a greater variety of ideas to flourish, and for more complex games to be born.
2) Consoles almost invariably dumb down games for mass market appeal (or to make them playable by kids). PC games have almost always been a smaller market - but one that tends to have more people who are willing to face greater complexity, and who demand more intelligence in their games then Zelda or Final Fantasy.
Re:To all of you who say 'Games'. (Score:1)