Windows 8 Worth & PC Gaming

[thm1223]

Hi guys,

So I'm currently running Windows 7 Ultimate on the rig in my sig, but was wondering if there are any worthwhile gains from upgrading to Windows 8. I've not gotten a chance to check out the OS, but I've heard its basically a more streamlined version of Windows 7 (kinda like how Windows 7 is a more streamlined version of Vista).

Specifically, are there any new software innovations that are/will become critical to PC gaming in the next few years? I'm currently evaluating whether or not I should upgrade or skip Windows 8 and just wait for 9. Thoughts?

 

[ImpulsE69]

It's got that touch UI so you can use it to play online video slot machines!

 

[mazeroth]

I just got a cheapie Gateway laptop to upgrade my really old one and it came with Windows 8 installed. I hate it. I'm going to be clearing it off and installing a fresh copy of Windows 7 Ultimate very soon. I've been a heavy computer user for over 20 years and when I'm lost and confused using an OS I think that's a sign that it's a POS.

 

[Red Storm]

I upgraded my laptop to Windows 8 a while ago, but I spend 99.99% of my time in the desktop mode (that 0.01% is all accidental start menu presses), so I miss Windows 7 but am too lazy to reinstall.

 

[thm1223]

Oops I just realized my title had a typo. Oh well fail.

Ya I've heard the touch UI is a bit silly, but I'm really trying to decide if anything besides that is fundamentally different/better.

 

[Elcs]

Everything underneath is nicer, snappier, faster etc. but imo there is no specific reason to upgrade at the moment. I jumped on the £25 for Win 8 x64 Pro + Media Centre deal because it was cheap and I would never go back to Windows 7 again.

I spend 99.99% of my time looking at and working in an environment identical to Win 7. People whom cannot stand the new UI are troglodytes that have not found the 'Desktop' button.

 

[GrantMeThePower]

I just had to decide between the two...went with win 7 ultimate

EDIT-reason why is because of reliability of DVR set up...the computer is our DVR and there are a lot of reported problems with Win 8.

Specifically for gaming, I probably would have gone win 8 for no reason other than it is snappier.

 

[thm1223]

Everything underneath is nicer, snappier, faster etc. but imo there is no specific reason to upgrade at the moment. I jumped on the £25 for Win 8 x64 Pro + Media Centre deal because it was cheap and I would never go back to Windows 7 again.

I spend 99.99% of my time looking at and working in an environment identical to Win 7. People whom cannot stand the new UI are troglodytes that have not found the 'Desktop' button.

Really? Are you sure they aren't crustaceans?

 

[Ricochet]

My experience is the same as Elcs.

Windows 8 is just snappier. Essentially it's W7 with an extra interface (METRO) that you don't have to deal with and go directly to desktop mode. Once you link the program folder to your taskbar it's just like 7 except underneath everything is faster and more efficient.

 

[dagamer34]

How much will you be paying for the upgrade? If it's free, sure, go ahead. If it's $100, no point in doing so.

Some universal truths so we don't need to bicker about them:
1) Using a Metro app fullscreen on a 20"+ monitor is silly (but no one is making you do it).
2) Using a Metro app docked to the side while you are on the desktop has some usefulness. Stick sports scores, Twitter feed, eBay, whatever to the side. It's only 320 pixels, so it's not that much on a 1080p monitor.
3) If you really desire the Start menu again, there are several programs to get that specific functionality back: Classic Shell, Start8, etc.
4) WinKey+X (aka Power User Menu) is awesome: http://winsupersite.com/windows-8/windows-8-feature-focus-power-user-menu
5) Windows 8 boots faster. Period.
6) There is negligible improvement in game performance: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/windows-8-gaming-performance,3331.html

For the most part, the new start screen can pretty much be ignored if you want. There's no reason to spend any significant amount of time there. I consider it to be the same as the dashboard in OS X: out of the way 99.99999% of the time, but it's there for quick info. It's where I get my weather, mail alerts, latest news, sports, finance, all without ever opening an app.

 

[RampantAndroid]

People whom cannot stand the new UI are troglodytes that have not found the 'Desktop' button.

Or people who never want to see modern UI. At all.

Like me.

http://www.stardock.com/products/start8/

 

[acx]

So far the only game I've seen modified for touch is Civ 5.

 

[hans030390]

For desktop gaming only without any sort of touch-screen capabilities, there's very little reason to go to Windows 8.

That said, I do much more than use my computer for gaming, and Windows 8 has been a nice step up from Windows 7. It's even better when you have it on multiple machines, especially if you have a tablet with it on there as well.

Anyone who can't figure out how to use Windows 8 with ease isn't giving it an honest chance. It has some new UI paradigms (compared to Windows 7, iOS, Android, etc.) that take a bit of time to figure out and get used to, but I quite like it on both KB/M and touch.

 

[Red Hawk]

I like Windows 8 just fine, and supposedly there are some "under the hood" tweaks that help with desktop application performance, laptop battery life, etc. But there's really no benefit to the PC gamer; I only upgraded because I could get it for free through Microsoft Dreamspark as part of my classes.

 

[renz20003]

I just got a cheapie Gateway laptop to upgrade my really old one and it came with Windows 8 installed. I hate it. I'm going to be clearing it off and installing a fresh copy of Windows 7 Ultimate very soon. I've been a heavy computer user for over 20 years and when I'm lost and confused using an OS I think that's a sign that it's a POS.

This...

The OS should detect the lack of a touchscreen and disable all the tablet based bs.

 

[soulcougher73]

I have a new laptop coming with Win 8 that has touchscreen, never used either before. But im not sure how much ill use it. I dont want finger prints on my screen. Touch screen on a laptop or desktop just seems silly to me. Keep it to phone and tablets.

 

[Maximilian]

Hi guys,

So I'm currently running Windows 7 Ultimate on the rig in my sig, but was wondering if there are any worthwhile gains from upgrading to Windows 8. I've not gotten a chance to check out the OS, but I've heard its basically a more streamlined version of Windows 7 (kinda like how Windows 7 is a more streamlined version of Vista).

Specifically, are there any new software innovations that are/will become critical to PC gaming in the next few years? I'm currently evaluating whether or not I should upgrade or skip Windows 8 and just wait for 9. Thoughts?

Short answer: No
Long answer: Noooooo

Source: I used to use 7 ultimate until I had to switch to 8 because 7 was being a dick about drivers when installing on my x79 rig. No difference between the two in gaming apart from having to install a start menu with windows 8

 

[Mem]

Hi guys,

So I'm currently running Windows 7 Ultimate on the rig in my sig, but was wondering if there are any worthwhile gains from upgrading to Windows 8. I've not gotten a chance to check out the OS, but I've heard its basically a more streamlined version of Windows 7 (kinda like how Windows 7 is a more streamlined version of Vista).

Specifically, are there any new software innovations that are/will become critical to PC gaming in the next few years? I'm currently evaluating whether or not I should upgrade or skip Windows 8 and just wait for 9. Thoughts?

Furture is always difficult to predict with regards to gaming,however looks like Win8 users if rumour is correct will be able to upgrade to Windows Blue in Summer for free,also you have plenty of free games in Microsoft Store on Win8 so another advantage especially when they are free.

Gaming wise I've had no issues with any of my games on Win8 even oldies like Baldur's Gate,Icewind Dale,KOTOR etc....Steam/Origin games I've installed all work fine even with my cpu overclock.


Basically you get no disadvantage with Win8 for gaming but gain some things like I've stated above.

I do game a lot on Win8 and its been happy gaming all the way for me.

I also agree Win8 feels snappier (in general use)then Win7 and I say this with experience from upgrading three Win7 PCs to 8 (all upgrades so not clean installs to 8).

 

[WelshBloke]

Everything underneath is nicer, snappier, faster etc...

...Specifically for gaming, I probably would have gone win 8 for no reason other than it is snappier.

Windows 8 is just snappier. Essentially it's W7 with an extra interface (METRO) that you don't have to deal with and go directly to desktop mode. Once you link the program folder to your taskbar it's just like 7 except underneath everything is faster and more efficient.

My experience is that it's not noticeably faster in usage than windows 7. I'm sure people are just mistaking that new installation feel for a faster os.

On the plus side you can set up win8 to be exactly like win7 with a little time and money.

 

[Elcs]

My experience is that it's not noticeably faster in usage than windows 7. I'm sure people are just mistaking that new installation feel for a faster os.

Impossible.

My Windows 8 installation is just an upgrade over my Windows 7 installation. No format was performed so it was not a clean installation.

Windows 8 is noticeably faster than Windows 7.

 

[hondaf17]

2) Using a Metro app docked to the side while you are on the desktop has some usefulness. Stick sports scores, Twitter feed, eBay, whatever to the side. It's only 320 pixels, so it's not that much on a 1080p monitor.

How the hell do you do this?!? I'm running triple monitors and I can't even get the metro to stay up on one monitor while I work on desktop on another. Anytime I click to desktop, or open a program in desktop mode, the Metro start menu minimizes, even though it's on a different monitor than the one I'm working on.

 

[biostud]

Impossible.

My Windows 8 installation is just an upgrade over my Windows 7 installation. No format was performed so it was not a clean installation.

Windows 8 is noticeably faster than Windows 7.

Same here.

 

[thm1223]

Same here.

What do you guys mean by faster? As in more fluid/seamless or more efficient with resources? Or both? And if the latter by how much?

 

[Red Storm]

What do you guys mean by faster? As in more fluid/seamless or more efficient with resources? Or both? And if the latter by how much?

I haven't noticed any real speed increase. I had an SSD with my Windows 7 laptop and the OS booted in ~13 seconds. It's the same with Windows 8.

 

[Elcs]

What do you guys mean by faster? As in more fluid/seamless or more efficient with resources? Or both? And if the latter by how much?

Programs open and close faster, respond faster to my actions and the whole thing feels like it is performing smoother.

One of the things I found quite strange is that webpages load faster than ever before, even in IE.