For those of you with high end gaming computers

[BigToque]

Many people say that the "best games" are on the PC. They've got better graphics, updates, mods, etc.

If you share this feeling, do you feel that the cost required to keep your system up-to-date is reasonable given how much better you feel computer games really are?

I personally find the cost of keeping a computer powerful enough to play games is far too expensive given the benefits I get for a PC game over a console game.

 

[Manok]

I can do my work, play a game, then check the net, then talk to my buddies through steam and fire up another TF2 match. So yes, I like my pc better than a console because it's multipurpose.

 

[Tiamat]

I don't feel that the cost is too high. My computer has lasted 5 years, it was great then, it chugs along now, but that doesnt stop me from gaming at 1920x1080, just at 30fps rather than 70fps now. (it cost 800$ then)

I'll be upgrading sometime in the near future, it will cost me about 800$.

Since I use my PC for normal tasks outside of gaming, I don't mind the cost as I use it all the time.

What do you consider is the cost for a high-end gaming box's guts? I'm not talking about ultra-high end SLI / Ultra configs mind you.

 

[MrWizzard]

Don't worry BigToque, as you get older you will figure out that even the High end computers are really not that much money compaired to other things in life.

 

[Rudee]

A lot of people upgraded their pc's to play Crysis, and didn't play for long until they either finished the game or got bored with it.

 

[homercles337]

Well, i dont know about OPie, but my "gaming rig" does a hell of a lot more than just game. All the new ram, cpu upgrades help more than just gaming. My "gaming only" upgrades tend to focus around the graphics card (like the 8800 GT sitting near my feet right now--im in my office). I definitely think its worth it because overall having a lot of computing power is a good thing.

 

[gramboh]

I dropped a lot of coin on my current rig in March 2007 (memory was expensive, $230 for 2GB, I think the 8800GTS was $489, the Canadian dollar was not on par yet etc). It was a lot of money but it was definitely worth it now that I am making enough money to justify the cost without impacting my savings. The problem I have is not enough free time to play all the games I want on it. These days I'm mostly enjoying TF2. I also use it for storing media (e.g. streaming HD movies to my TV). I don't really enjoy consoles other than our Wii for Mario Galaxy.

 

[torpid]

Originally posted by: Rudee
A lot of people upgraded their pc's to play Crysis, and didn't play for long until they either finished the game or got bored with it.

And while they were playing it, the game still performed like a dog considering the hardware they got, and looked only marginally better than other recent games.

 

[TallBill]

No, but I spent extra on my pc now to make it last for 3-4 years untill I'm done with school.

Q6600, 8800GTX, etc

 

[sutahz]

If you could use a keyboard and mouse on console I'd be more inclined to buy a console. Console's have more games availible which is why I'll probley end up buying the next generation of console. You can build a pretty cheap gameing rig these days.

 

[BigToque]

Originally posted by: Tiamat
I don't feel that the cost is too high. My computer has lasted 5 years, it was great then, it chugs along now, but that doesnt stop me from gaming at 1920x1080, just at 30fps rather than 70fps now. (it cost 800$ then)

I'll be upgrading sometime in the near future, it will cost me about 800$.

Since I use my PC for normal tasks outside of gaming, I don't mind the cost as I use it all the time.

What do you consider is the cost for a high-end gaming box's guts? I'm not talking about ultra-high end SLI / Ultra configs mind you.

I'd say a relatively high-end computer would be around $1500, and without spending anything extra, you might be able to play new games for about 2 years.

With a console I can spend $300-$400, play all the games released for it over 4 years. I can buy a $400 computer to do everything else.

So for someone like me, to have a PC, I'd be spending almost twice as much, get to play new games for about 2 years less than a console and the only additional benefit I get for the first 2 years is higher resolution, addons, mods, and maybe a few PC exclusive games. For me it just doesn't make sense.

Are you serious that 5 years ago you spent $800 on your computer, have not changed anything or spent anything else and can play games at 1920x1080? If so, I might change my opinion.

 

[meltdown75]

i want to upgrade really bad.

almost sons70 style... :Q

 

[coldmeat]

Originally posted by: TallBill
No, but I spent extra on my pc now to make it last for 3-4 years untill I'm done with school.

Q6600, 8800GTX, etc

That's exactly what I did. It cost a lot at first, but I don't think I'll need to upgrade for a while.

 

[PingSpike]

I don't even know why I upgrade...my PC is constantly in a half put together state, half the time not setup to play games. I say "I'm done for now" every time...and then I fuck it all up again two months later.

That said, building the PC is a hobby...and I never really build a high end gaming machine. I usually buy a low end processor and overclock it a little. I have rewarded myself with fairly expensive video cards after I've gotten raises in the past couple years though. I plan to scale back and just enjoy some of my games for awhile though.

 

[KeithTalent]

Cheaper than a girlfriend and a lot easier to boot up.

KT

 

[gramboh]

Originally posted by: BigToque

Originally posted by: Tiamat
I don't feel that the cost is too high. My computer has lasted 5 years, it was great then, it chugs along now, but that doesnt stop me from gaming at 1920x1080, just at 30fps rather than 70fps now. (it cost 800$ then)

I'll be upgrading sometime in the near future, it will cost me about 800$.

Since I use my PC for normal tasks outside of gaming, I don't mind the cost as I use it all the time.

What do you consider is the cost for a high-end gaming box's guts? I'm not talking about ultra-high end SLI / Ultra configs mind you.

I'd say a relatively high-end computer would be around $1500, and without spending anything extra, you might be able to play new games for about 2 years.

With a console I can spend $300-$400, play all the games released for it over 4 years. I can buy a $400 computer to do everything else.

So for someone like me, to have a PC, I'd be spending almost twice as much, get to play new games for about 2 years less than a console and the only additional benefit I get for the first 2 years is higher resolution, addons, mods, and maybe a few PC exclusive games. For me it just doesn't make sense.

Are you serious that 5 years ago you spent $800 on your computer, have not changed anything or spent anything else and can play games at 1920x1080? If so, I might change my opinion.

The problem with that is PC games outclass consoles in terms of graphics and 'scope' (see MMOs, large FPS', mods etc) very quickly. I'd argue this already happened, probably 6 months ago (e.g. PC games have better graphics than consoles). In 2 years the 360/PS3 will look horrible compared to a top end PC.

 

[ryan256]

Since my PC basically does everything (gaming, finances, email, movies, ect., ect.) no I feel the money I paid for it was a good investment. Plus I can always get open source software for free to do pretty much whatever I want. Try getting your unmodded xbox or PS3 to talk over Skype.

 

[Tiamat]

Originally posted by: BigToque

Originally posted by: Tiamat
I don't feel that the cost is too high. My computer has lasted 5 years, it was great then, it chugs along now, but that doesnt stop me from gaming at 1920x1080, just at 30fps rather than 70fps now. (it cost 800$ then)

I'll be upgrading sometime in the near future, it will cost me about 800$.

Since I use my PC for normal tasks outside of gaming, I don't mind the cost as I use it all the time.

What do you consider is the cost for a high-end gaming box's guts? I'm not talking about ultra-high end SLI / Ultra configs mind you.

I'd say a relatively high-end computer would be around $1500, and without spending anything extra, you might be able to play new games for about 2 years.

With a console I can spend $300-$400, play all the games released for it over 4 years. I can buy a $400 computer to do everything else.

So for someone like me, to have a PC, I'd be spending almost twice as much, get to play new games for about 2 years less than a console and the only additional benefit I get for the first 2 years is higher resolution, addons, mods, and maybe a few PC exclusive games. For me it just doesn't make sense.

Are you serious that 5 years ago you spent $800 on your computer, have not changed anything or spent anything else and can play games at 1920x1080? If so, I might change my opinion.

You have to build with the 5 years in mind though. I built my computer when barton core was the deal. I ended up with a T-bred-b 1800+ (overclocked to 2.2ghz) that was trayed specifically for its low voltage and high oc abilities ($50), ABIT NFS-7 v2.0 ($50), Old case, psu,hdd,optical,ATI 8500 from initial 1200$ computer 7 years ago.

1GB PC3200 ($100), Radeon 9800pro 256 (OC to XT) ($200), Raptor 74 ($250) where the only upgrades (recouped some of the funds by selling old components) which occurred 4 years ago.

I spent 1200$ 7 years ago, 100$ 5 years ago, $550 4 years ago which marks the system I use today.


Of the original components, the $550 + $100 + $150 of the original computer remain, thus $800 over 5 years. (Granted I got a 40$ DVD writer for christmas one year, Antec P150 another)

Overclocking gets me playable HL2 and CS:S at 1920x1080, but I am hovering at 30fps.

Unfortunately, the next upgrade requires a full system overhaul in terms of CPU, Mobo, PSU, GPU, RAM. This will probably run me 800$.

 

[Munky]

They are worth it if you chose the parts smartly. For example, my rig is about 2.5 years old, and is by no means top of the line, but instead of spending money for the latest and greatest, I just pop in a 8800gt, and I can play all the latest games at 1920x1200. Even the Crysis demo was playable without AA, but I didn't like it enough to buy the full game anyways. And, like others have mentioned, I use it for other things besides gaming, like video encoding, music production, etc...

 

[Skunkwourk]

I think the 1200 I paid for mine in 2004 when Doom 3 came out , To me it was worth it (I bought new everything, keyboard, mouse, speakers etc...). Its not exactly high end anymore but I can still run most games with med/high settings and to be honest I can't always tell the difference between med and high, or high and ultra. Since 2004 I spent an additional 200 to replace the MB and my dead 6800GT and I probably won't upgrade for a couple more years. Honestly for what I need, my old athlon xp 1500 and geforce 2 pro would suffice, but from a purely gaming perspective, if this can last me a couple more years, I will be even more pleased with my purchase.

 

[InflatableBuddha]

I wouldn't say high-end is worth it, but "bang-for your buck" mid-high end PCs definitely are. I can't justify the most expensive CPUs and graphics cards, but something a couple notches down from the top is perfect for price/performance value.

Some genres just lend themselves better to PCs (FPS, MMO, Puzzle, etc.) while some are a better experience on consoles (Sports, party games). I'm into FPS and puzzlers, so the PC is a no-brainer for me. And I use it for other day-to-day tasks, as others have mentioned.

 

[skulkingghost]

I buy a new one for about 1500 every year and sell the old parts I end up only paing about 800-900 a year for a enw pc, its worth it to me. I love playing games on the highest settings but then again I want to do video game design when I get out of college. So its all research.

 

[TehMac]

Originally posted by: MrWizzard
Don't worry BigToque, as you get older you will figure out that even the High end computers are really not that much money compaired to other things in life.

:thumbsup: pwnt.

Originally posted by: Rudee
A lot of people upgraded their pc's to play Crysis, and didn't play for long until they either finished the game or got bored with it.

A lot of other people waited, and they upgraded their PCs too, but they could also play games like Company of Heroes, Medieval 2 Total War, AoE 3 maxed out, Oblivion, max'd out (with twice the amount of AA than the shit 360), BF2 maxed out (BF2 is just about deeper than any kiddie game on the 360), Call of Duty 4 (The PC version allows for higher AA), C&C 3 (playing with a gamepad is about the dumbest thing you could do), and oh...there are more games, Empire Total War, Far Cry 2, Demigod, Bf3, etc.


So no, it's not a bad investment. I paid 1200 bucks for mine; total overhaul in 2006, and it still plays everything maxed out. That's a Dual Core AMD 4200x2 @ 2.2GHz, 2GB DDR2-800, x1900xt, new case, 500GB Seagate Hard Drive, M2N32-SLI Deluxe.

I don't feel ripped at all. It was a fantastic deal on each of these parts, and I ordered them individually and put em together.

Originally posted by: sutahz
If you could use a keyboard and mouse on console I'd be more inclined to buy a console. Console's have more games availible which is why I'll probley end up buying the next generation of console. You can build a pretty cheap gameing rig these days.

yeah, and they're all dumbed down buckets of horse shit with exceptionally retarded AI, and pixelicious graphics.

4xAA on the xbox 360, as opposed to 24xAA (or 8xAA? or even 6xAA--and that's assuming the xbox 360 can use the RAM on its graphics card as an extra 2xAA).

 

[EvilComputer92]

Oblivion in it's retail state had a completely consolized UI. Developers should design games for the PC, and then port them over to the console if they wish. This works out much better than the other way around when you have terrible console ports coming out for the PC, for example every Ubisoft game.

 

[ja1484]

Yes, because I don't just use it to game. It may not be the most efficient use of my gaming dollar, but it's about the same as a low-end PC + console, and much more usable for productivity than a basic Dell.