I go for "bang for the buck". If you didn't game on your PC, how much PC would you need? Personally, I can't get DSL or Cable here, so on-line gaming is out. My oldest son prefers RPGs, so how much horsepower does that require anyway? Youngest son loves Q3, UT and any FPS, but without on-line gaming, there's still no need for top end stuff.
So, with money saved by not buying $300.00 video cards and CPUs etc., there's plenty left over for a console in every room and the van to boot! No crashing, patching or upgrading. A new console just cycles in and the lowest one goes into the van. Best of all worlds. Once cable or DSL gets here, we'll see what's what. The X-Box may turn gaming upside down anyway by then. Like I said, you don't need a cutting edge PC if you aren't planning to game on it...