Thinking about retiring from PC gaming and buying a PS4

[purbeast0]

oh look another console vs pc thread. i don't think i've ever seen one of these before on this forum. very productive thread!

 

[JujuFish]

oh look another console vs pc thread. i don't think i've ever seen one of these before on this forum. very productive thread!

At least here it's actually on topic, rather than the crapfest going on in the XBox/PS4 threads.

 

[Lil Frier]

And in some cases, console games actually affect PC games. One example is Crysis. Crysis 1 in PCs actually looks better than Crysis 2, because Crysis 1 was PC-only while Crysis 2 was multi-platform, so it had to be scaled down so consoles could play it.

Well, the first one eventually made it to the 360, didn't it? As a primarily-console gamer, I wouldn't mind if games on the console got delayed a bit to ensure the best possible PC experience.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Also, how old are you? I don't have any friends who play online on consoles. I'm not calling you out, just thinking might be a difference in age.

I'm 32 and know exactly one person with anything close to a gaming PC but could probably name 10 or 12 people who own an Xbox 360 or PS3 and are waiting until there's more games to upgrade to PS4 or XB1. To them building a PC and maintaining drivers and such is not worth the time. The only usage they get from a PC is for their DJ software or paying bills. The new consoles update themselves and you just turn it on and go. They find that a lot better, less time spent doing things other than playing the games. In reality though many of them aren't the core gamer type. They aren't even casual. They are something in-between I guess.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I doubt any PC gamer will be gaming at console IQ, unless they're on the lowest settings.

heh...many people playing BF4 can't maintain high settings at 60fps. PS4 is running about that at 1080p without AA.

The reason to play on PC is not because it has better graphics, at least to me. I play on PCs for many reasons (but I also have a PS3 and play it too). Basically:
- Different types of games. In consoles, you have mostly shooters, sports games, 3rd person action, brawlers and platformers. In PC you have other genres that are lacking in consoles, like strategy games, MMOs, tactical games, adventure games.
- Cost. First, to play online you pay extra $50 or more a year in consoles. Games are also more expensive (with the price of one console game I can buy like 5 games in Steam).
- Mods. I love mods (and free mods at that).

But like I said, I also have a console and play games there too. Sometimes I spend the afternoon playing some console game, sometimes I spend the afternoon playing a PC game.

That $50/yr is on sale for $35 quite a bit and in the case of PSN+ you actually get games every month that are given away to members. With XBL Gold you get other benefits as well like access to a lot of the apps that are unavailable otherwise and Games with Gold that give you free games to keep even if you don't renew your membership down the line. It also pays for server infrastructure and maintenance. Also your 5 steam games are many times throw away titles that you don't even play except one or two in the pack. I see people all the time in the PC forum talking about a huge catalog of games they never touched. So your cost argument doesn't make sense. Quality games at launch are the same price between the two, and in the case of some titles like Dark Souls 2 you can't even play it yet but it's been out on console for a while. That's another annoyance.

 

[tygeezy]

Yeah, I have bf4 with no ao, medium on lighting, and effects with ultra only on mesh, and texture filter so I can maintain a framerate I like.

 

[Todd33]

Yes, because you have to go through all 7 steps EVERY time you want to play, right? I can cherry pick a situation or 20 where a console takes just as long just to get in game.

Actually I typically do and sometimes more steps. There are literally new drivers and Windows updates every time I boot (every week or two). I've been PC gaming for 25 years, I'm just now getting to old to put up with the nonsense.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Actually I typically do and sometimes more steps. There are literally new drivers and Windows updates every time I boot (every week or two). I've been PC gaming for 25 years, I'm just now getting to old to put up with the nonsense.

It's amazing the number of people who write off someone's personal experience because it doesn't fit their argument. Like I said, I never had issues with origin or uplay but there are people who have and they refuse to buy any game that uses those services. I'd be pretty peeved if my $60 game didn't work. I don't understand how they could have issues and I never have and sometimes I make mention of that in various threads but that's how it goes. Not everyone has the same positive experiences.

 

[Majcric]

Double post

 

[Majcric]

heh...many people playing BF4 can't maintain high settings at 60fps. PS4 is running about that at 1080p without AA.



That $50/yr is on sale for $35 quite a bit and in the case of PSN+ you actually get games every month that are given away to members. With XBL Gold you get other benefits as well like access to a lot of the apps that are unavailable otherwise and Games with Gold that give you free games to keep even if you don't renew your membership down the line. It also pays for server infrastructure and maintenance. Also your 5 steam games are many times throw away titles that you don't even play except one or two in the pack. I see people all the time in the PC forum talking about a huge catalog of games they never touched. So your cost argument doesn't make sense. Quality games at launch are the same price between the two, and in the case of some titles like Dark Souls 2 you can't even play it yet but it's been out on console for a while. That's another annoyance.

IIRC, BF4 runs at 900p on PS4, so here we have chopped resolution. And I noticed a few of you keep dismissing the AA like it's no big deal <Insert favorite car analogy here> I won't bother going over this.
But a lot of the PC gamers that can't maintain 60fps are trying to run at the absolute max settings. They're are still plenty of graphical settings to tweak and outshine the PS4 while maintaining the target 60fps. I'm thinking a mix of medium-high settings on PC is the equivalent PS4 version.

When BF5 arrives the console version will slide back to low-medium settings as an equivalent to the PC.

 

[cmdrdredd]

IIRC, BF4 runs at 900p on PS4, so here we have chopped resolution. And I noticed a few of you keep dismissing the AA like it's no big deal <Insert favorite car analogy here> I would bother going over this.
But a lot of the PC gamers that can't maintain 60fps are trying to run at the absolute max settings. They're are still plenty of graphical settings to tweak and outshine the PS4 while maintaining the target 60fps. I'm thinking a mix of medium-high settings on PC is the equivalent PS4 version.

Nope...see above, tygeezy's post

 

[Majcric]

Nope...see above, tygeezy's post

His post is useless without System Specs. I mean of course you need to have a decent PC, I obviously assumed we were on the same page regarding this.

 

[cmdrdredd]

His post is useless without Specs. I mean of course you need to have a decent PC, I obviously assumed we were on the same page regarding this.

My point was that with the PS4 you pop it in and go. On the PC people are spending lots of time messing with settings chasing frame rates instead of playing. It isn't inconceivable that a person may just not want to try hunting down the best settings. You can call it being lazy if you want lol. I'll admit to being lazy, I just put everything on ultra and turn off MSAA. Then I go with it. I don't imagine I will be able to keep doing that forever.

 

[ImpulsE69]

I'm 32 and know exactly one person with anything close to a gaming PC but could probably name 10 or 12 people who own an Xbox 360 or PS3 and are waiting until there's more games to upgrade to PS4 or XB1. To them building a PC and maintaining drivers and such is not worth the time. The only usage they get from a PC is for their DJ software or paying bills. The new consoles update themselves and you just turn it on and go. They find that a lot better, less time spent doing things other than playing the games. In reality though many of them aren't the core gamer type. They aren't even casual. They are something in-between I guess.

Well I'm a bit older, and I know maybe 1 person who actually plays consoles online. All my friends have PC's, so it's simply a difference of demographic there. But the whole "consoles just update" is bunk. I never have issues with unwanted updates on PC. Steam runs 24/7 and it updates at like 5AM or something. Windows auto updates are off. It doesn't get any easier. The only issues I've ever had are with Ubi and their PITA software. On the flip side of the spectrum, practically everytime I turn the PS3 or 3DS on they need some sort of update before they'll let me do anything.

While maybe chasing framerates could be a pain if you actually do that, at least you CAN. That is a big difference. Think of Dark Souls and the town that stuttered.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Well I'm a bit older, and I know maybe 1 person who actually plays consoles online. All my friends have PC's, so it's simply a difference of demographic there. But the whole "consoles just update" is bunk. I never have issues with unwanted updates on PC. Steam runs 24/7 and it updates at like 5AM or something. Windows auto updates are off. It doesn't get any easier. The only issues I've ever had are with Ubi and their PITA software. On the flip side of the spectrum, practically everytime I turn the PS3 or 3DS on they need some sort of update before they'll let me do anything.

How many times do you update the GPU drivers in a year? Those aren't automatic and some of the time the new driver is almost a necessity to get anything playable on a new title. That depends on the game and varies from texture flashing and graphical errors to extreme performance improvements. I've done the driver dance many times and it's simple and quick for me. That isn't to say everyone is going to keep up on it. The one friend I have with a decent PC that I built for him is regularly 6 months or more behind on driver versions, so the times he may actually try a new game it has some issues. New driver fixes them up but he isn't the type to keep up on it even when I told him how to check. The PS4 and XB1 update when they are in standby...you don't have to tell it to do so manually and it'll never pester you to update it. Some people have mentioned it's difficult to determine if you have already received the update which is a valid concern, especially if there was a particularly exciting addition with that update.

I really like playing games on my PC for the benefits it brings but there are drawbacks to it that affect how someone may feel about PC gaming. There are drawbacks either way, but if you can see the pros and cons of each and understand them you can make a better and more informed decision. I think that's all the OP was looking for. He saw a few potential drawbacks for PC gaming and a few potential pros for getting a PS4. Hopefully he has gained something from this back and forth to assist his decision.

 

[ImpulsE69]

How many times do you update the GPU drivers in a year? Those aren't automatic and some of the time the new driver is almost a necessity to get anything playable on a new title. That depends on the game and varies from texture flashing and graphical errors to extreme performance improvements. I've done the driver dance many times and it's simple and quick for me. That isn't to say everyone is going to keep up on it. The one friend I have with a decent PC that I built for him is regularly 6 months or more behind on driver versions, so the times he may actually try a new game it has some issues. New driver fixes them up but he isn't the type to keep up on it even when I told him how to check. The PS4 and XB1 update when they are in standby...you don't have to tell it to do so manually and it'll never pester you to update it. Some people have mentioned it's difficult to determine if you have already received the update which is a valid concern, especially if there was a particularly exciting addition with that update.

I've updated the GPU drivers 2 times in the last year. The last time being...I don't even remember when, at least 8 months. The days of "things don't work" are far long gone. Things just work, and they work fine. Just because some people need to fiddle every 5 minutes and reinstall their OS every other day doesn't mean it HAS to be done. I have systems that haven't been rebooted in a year. Sure if you are rocking a $500+ graphics set up that is bleeding edge and never worked to begin with, then yea, you are going to be always fiddling, but again, that is because of that reason. There is a huge difference between bleeding edge and proven to work. If you want things to work, you don't drop thousands on hardware. You get the cheaper been out awhile stuff that has the kinks worked out. With consoles holding back progress there is no need to do any of what people pretend needs to happen. That is from 2005.

I understand if someone isn't a computer geek and just doesn't know how to tweak things so they don't have to constantly fix things to make them work, but THAT is the reason, not because PC's are hard to use and need constant upkeep.

If they've addressed the update issues in the PS4/X1 great, that is definitely a plus.

More or less the point is, PC's are only difficult if you think you need to be bleeding edge every 5 seconds. Ya, if you are chasing framerates you could spend as much as you could etc etc, but it simply isn't necessary in this era. Practically everything can be set up to be scheduled outside of your time frames, there is no reason at all to have that concern. Consoles on the other hand (at least leading up to this gen) were actually more annoying and a step backwards because of the online stuff. I forgot to mention the Wii and how annoying it was with updates, but that is another story. As I've stated many times, I like both, but I tire of the "omg PC's are hard" comments.

 

[tygeezy]

To elaborate on my previous post. I am running an i7 860 860 at stock (plan to oc now) 12 gb of ddr 3 1333 mhz and a geforce 480. This system runs the game quite well considering I have had it since late 2009 or early 2010.

I'm thinking with an oc of the processor and a gpu upgrade I can extend the life even further and squeeze out quite a bit more performance and iq. I have about 200 dollars in amazon credit. Money has been more tight since being laid off and finding out i am type 1.5 diabetic in december.

 

[Lil Frier]

That $50/yr is on sale for $35 quite a bit and in the case of PSN+ you actually get games every month that are given away to members. With XBL Gold you get other benefits as well like access to a lot of the apps that are unavailable otherwise and Games with Gold that give you free games to keep even if you don't renew your membership down the line. It also pays for server infrastructure and maintenance. Also your 5 steam games are many times throw away titles that you don't even play except one or two in the pack. I see people all the time in the PC forum talking about a huge catalog of games they never touched. So your cost argument doesn't make sense. Quality games at launch are the same price between the two, and in the case of some titles like Dark Souls 2 you can't even play it yet but it's been out on console for a while. That's another annoyance.

Bing rewards = Free Xbox LIVE. I don't get why people never just bite the bullet on it. I bought Powerstar Golf on my One today with Xbox money from Bing Rewards, it's a great game for $20, and using Bing got me it for free. If you've got a Microsoft account, there's no reason to NOT spend the 5 minutes/day to earn the points that in the long run will amount to more than enough to get a free month of LIVE Gold every month.

At this point, there is no reason to pay for Xbox LIVE, unless you're like me, and instead use Bing Rewards for Xbox cash to get free games (might get Trials Fusion next, as I've got enough rewards points to get another $20 in free money, and that's how much the game is).

 

[Aikouka]

5) Back to launching the game....requires EA Origin account. Get out my laptop, boot to Windows, launch KeePass, and get login and password for Origin account.
6) Enter 20 character password on tiny chicklet keyboard attached to my controller after I dig it out of one of the entertainment center drawers.

On the XBOX One, you can use Smart Glass to input text. I use KeePass as well, and what I do is go to KyPass (iOS KeePass app), copy the password, go into Smart Glass, connect to the console, paste the password into the text box and press the confirm button.

On that note, isn't there a Smart Glass app for the 360 too?

Actually I typically do and sometimes more steps. There are literally new drivers and Windows updates every time I boot (every week or two). I've been PC gaming for 25 years, I'm just now getting to old to put up with the nonsense.

They don't update drivers that often, but sure, there are Windows updates ever so often (usually every Tuesday). However, they're not always severe enough to force a restart, and it's not like you have to install them right then. Why not wait until you're going to shut off your machine to install the updates?

I've done the driver dance many times and it's simple and quick for me. That isn't to say everyone is going to keep up on it. The one friend I have with a decent PC that I built for him is regularly 6 months or more behind on driver versions, so the times he may actually try a new game it has some issues. New driver fixes them up but he isn't the type to keep up on it even when I told him how to check.

I think NVIDIA has really been pushing toward making this a lot easier on the layman. GeForce Experience will let you know if there's a new driver update and it's fairly painless to install it. I remember back in the day when driver updates meant uninstalling your current driver, restarting to an 800x600 screen, and then installing the new one. Oh, and then there was the fun time of putting all your icons back in the right spot after the 800x600 screen messed them up. 😛

GeForce Experience can even help change your graphics settings to work with your hardware. Just like with the drivers, they know that the average person isn't good with this stuff, and probably doesn't care enough to learn. Games have recommended settings, but NVIDIA's settings are based upon its GPU server farms that it uses for driver testing.

The PS4 and XB1 update when they are in standby...you don't have to tell it to do so manually and it'll never pester you to update it.

I'm pretty sure they don't. The PS4 seems to download the updates, but I'll turn it on when I know there's an update, and I have to go to the Notification Center to start the update. It's the same on my Vita. I think the X1 just downloads the update, and you have to turn the console on for it to start updating.

 

[cmdrdredd]

Bing rewards = Free Xbox LIVE. I don't get why people never just bite the bullet on it. I bought Powerstar Golf on my One today with Xbox money from Bing Rewards, it's a great game for $20, and using Bing got me it for free. If you've got a Microsoft account, there's no reason to NOT spend the 5 minutes/day to earn the points that in the long run will amount to more than enough to get a free month of LIVE Gold every month.

At this point, there is no reason to pay for Xbox LIVE, unless you're like me, and instead use Bing Rewards for Xbox cash to get free games (might get Trials Fusion next, as I've got enough rewards points to get another $20 in free money, and that's how much the game is).

I have xbox live for a further 3 years and PSN+ for 4 because I bought a bunch of cards on the cheap through sickdeals or similar.

 

[cmdrdredd]

I think NVIDIA has really been pushing toward making this a lot easier on the layman. GeForce Experience will let you know if there's a new driver update and it's fairly painless to install it. I remember back in the day when driver updates meant uninstalling your current driver, restarting to an 800x600 screen, and then installing the new one. Oh, and then there was the fun time of putting all your icons back in the right spot after the 800x600 screen messed them up. 😛

GeForce Experience can even help change your graphics settings to work with your hardware. Just like with the drivers, they know that the average person isn't good with this stuff, and probably doesn't care enough to learn. Games have recommended settings, but NVIDIA's settings are based upon its GPU server farms that it uses for driver testing.



I'm pretty sure they don't. The PS4 seems to download the updates, but I'll turn it on when I know there's an update, and I have to go to the Notification Center to start the update. It's the same on my Vita. I think the X1 just downloads the update, and you have to turn the console on for it to start updating.

Yeah but he has an AMD card, not Nvidia. So he can't use geforce experience. Supposedly there is something similar available or coming for AMD but he doesn't have it in any case.

The XB1 will update completely autonomously when it's in standby mode if you tick the appropriate option. It will shut the system down completely after the update too so that's how you know it did it, the "xbox on" voice command will not work. The PS4 will check at a certain time, I don't know what time. However, it will only check once a day for whatever reason while in standby. PS4 firmware updates require you to say ok for some reason, but game updates for me are always automatic and I don't have to have my system on. For example, Infamous and zen pinball 2 updated at 5:21AM on Friday, I wasn't up yet. I also didn't have the console on, it was in standby.

 

[American Gunner]

I have been a console player my whole life. I just bought a pc about a month ago and instantly upgraded to a nvidia gtx 750. I will say that while I love how well my pc runs games, WoW being the one I mainly play, I still miss sitting on my big recliner and playing games on my 60 inch tv. The only reason why I am not doing that right now is because I have played everything I want to play on the consoles and nothing good will be coming out for awhile.

 

[sweenish]

I have been a console player my whole life. I just bought a pc about a month ago and instantly upgraded to a nvidia gtx 750. I will say that while I love how well my pc runs games, WoW being the one I mainly play, I still miss sitting on my big recliner and playing games on my 60 inch tv. The only reason why I am not doing that right now is because I have played everything I want to play on the consoles and nothing good will be coming out for awhile.

Computers plug directly into tv's. You're not playing WoW on it only because you don't want to. Nothing is stopping you but yourself. I hate this argument.

Also, this thread is now a giant circlejerk. Probably time for a mod to shut it down.

 

[purbeast0]

Computers plug directly into tv's. You're not playing WoW on it only because you don't want to. Nothing is stopping you but yourself. I hate this argument.

Also, this thread is now a giant circlejerk. Probably time for a mod to shut it down.

playing a game with a mouse and keyboard plugged into a pc simply is not logistical for many people who want to play it in a family room or ht sitting in a recliner with their feet up.

 

[ImpulsE69]

I agree. I do it quite a bit, and it isn't hard to set up these days, but for most people it isn't practical for day to day use.