Why are so many people against consoles?

[Duski]

I'll never understand the hate and if you look on PCMR forums like Reddit you'll see what I'm talking about. 

Two years ago I had an old-ish PC that couldn't keep up with the newer games and no money to upgrade (I would have needed to change everything: psu, mobo, ram, cpu etc) so I bought a PS4 for like 300€; it was the best decision I've ever made. I had no worries regarding whether a game would run or not, games looked great, I had and still do have access to many great exclusives like Uncharted, The Last of Us, Days gone, there's only one store etc. The only downside was the paid multiplayer which is not that bad after all, you can get some great free games depending on the month, but I eventually stopped paying when I bought my current PC. And the truth is you can't build a PC that will last you 6 years or more with only 300€. People are saying games are expensive on consoles, but there are a lot of sales and you can also buy them second hand, which is great imo. 

[Lurick]

So you're judging most people based on a few people on a subreddit?

I don't hate consoles but I don't like them either because I would rather have everything on one system as opposed to multiple systems but that's just me. I like my computer because it's more than just a gaming machine, I can do everything else from one spot as well. If I need to type up a word document or something else for school, I'm good. If I need to research something for a game, watch tutorials, etc. I'm good. If I need to check my email, browse forums, or do any number of other things, my PC has me covered and I can do all of this while gaming too. If I want to stream, I can do that too from the same machine.

[goto10]

pc has advantages

 

i personaly like both

 

you cant deny the simplicity of consoles, on pc you have to fight with virus, licenses, drivers, windows, well, alot, on consoles is all so simple

 

the lack of keyboard and mouse is what makes people hate consoles i think

[Levent]

Browsing on r/pcmr and wondering why people hate consoles is like going to a football teams meeting and asking why they hate their rival team. You should consider yourself lucky to be breathing. 

[Fakmykak]

Definitely has something to do with building it yourself. Just think about car meets. Nobody gives a damn about the guy who pulls up in a stock car that came off the showroom, but everyone crowds around the person who has a custom car they built from the ground up. 

[SoundFont]

I don't hate consoles but there's really nothing a home console can do that a PC can't. That being said, the immunity to Denuvo that consoles have is pretty compelling...

[Paddi01]

I like consoles since they are basically plug & play without having to worry about anything.

[Totallycasual]

11 hours ago, SoundFont said:

I don't hate consoles but there's really nothing a home console can do that a PC can't. That being said, the immunity to Denuvo that consoles have is pretty compelling...

My PC can't play console exclusives like the Uncharted series, The Last of Us, Spider-man etc etc (at least not legally).  I'll always have consoles so long as exclusives exist but i must say that if you take a game like Red Dead 2 and play it on a 4k TV with a top tier console it looks pretty amazing, at least on par with any currently available PC title. 

[B16CXHatch]

Ehh, I've always felt it was a superiority complex kinda thing. I used to be like that. Really though, I got started with PC cause my parents wouldn't buy me a PS2 when I was like 12 or 13 and the family PC was just what I had if I wanted to play newer games. A couple of years later though, PC was the only way to play for me. I was always seen as a geek or nerd but now I could feel superior to others cause I had built my own PC to play games on. I was getting the better experience on cross platform (I thought, at least) and I was getting better FPS games (back when PC had more exclusives). What I hadn't realized was that I was missing out on a lot of absolutely great games. Years later, I discovered that I adore JRPGs and most of them were on consoles and handhelds.

 

I was a PC snob until I was about 20 (mid 2008). I had an urge to play Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I dug out my N64 and fired it up. After finishing that playthrough, I wanted to play more 3D Zelda. I bought a used GameCube and copies of Windwaker and Twilight Princess. After beating them, I thought, "well, I've got the thing. I might as well find more for this GameCube." I then bought the game that completely killed my PC snobbery. Tales of Symphonia. Not an amazing game necessarily, but I really liked it and wanted to play more. It tapped into my interest of anime at the time. I learned it was part of the Tales series and was the only one on GameCube. So I bought a PS2 with a copy of Tales of the Abyss along with a copy of Star Ocean: Till the End of Time. From there, I bought a crap load more games. I had so many older games to play, I didn't get a PS3 until 2012.

 

Now, I still build a new PC every couple of years and I still game on them. But I also play a lot of games on consoles from NES to PS4. My thought is, get over yourself. Play video games and have fun. Doesn't matter what you play on.

[RadCazz]

Back in the day, gaming consoles had better graphics, mainly... and what with sprites and parallax scrolling backgrounds.  It took a while for pc's to catch up... sound cards (Remember Adlib and Sound Blaster?) and dedicated graphics cards came later.  Of course, I am not including the Commodore 64, but maybe you get my drift.  I liked gaming consoles because I knew that whatever game I purchased at the brick and mortar store for that specific console, would work once I got home.  For a while there, pc games wouldn't always work when you installed them at home.  There were so many compatibility issues and configuring was needed to get a game up and running.  Of course, I majorly dated myself 'coz today's pc games are much improved.  Finally, with my pc I can upgrade to the latest graphics card and enjoy graphics that surpass a current gaming console.  So, I do like both.  But today, I lean towards pc gaming and console emulation. 

[Majinhoju]

Some people are just elitist snobs, just ignore them.

PC is my preferred platform due to things like more controller options, better graphics etc.. etc.. but I still collect all the consoles I can and enjoy the console exclusives.

[PlayStation 2]

Are there genuine benefits to playing games on PC? Usually, but then again it'd all depend on what you're playing and what you want to play, and with the expenses you're going to front up for it, it had better be more adaptable.

That being said, I quit that PC elitist attitude years ago because I realized that I loved playing on my Xbox 360 and PS2 from time to time. What platform you play on doesn't bother me, it's none of my business.

[Mira Yurizaki]

People need to justify spending a lot of money.

[EldritchMoose]

Honestly, I've always seen it as the logical conclusion of the console wars that plague every generation. In any given group there is a vocal subsection who have made an investment and are not entirely satisfied with their user experience. In order to save face they end up either putting the competition down or erecting unnecessary goalposts.

 

I really don't care that my current PC does somersaults around my Gamecube, my current PC doesn't allow me to play 4-player battle mode in the best versions of Mario Kart and Smash.

[CrazieChipmunk]

@SoundFont a console cant 3d render, 3d model, 3d print, edit videos, animate, program games, film animation, barely do vr properly not full 360, a pc can create music, no restrictions what you can do, i can have anything in skyrim i want where as in consoles i have limited choice you can also emulate old games on pc. this may seem like im shilling over the pc but it really is just better for me as a gamer and 3d modeller.

 

Althoguh i own a ps4 i dont really like it, its louder than my pc(and my pc isnt even watercooled) and its just more versatile however the ps4 has some damn good exclusives.

[CrazieChipmunk]

i also forgot about the fact i can get far superior performance for the price of 300 pound today like all i need to do is plop an rx580 in and there you go i have already beaten a console with a 180pound gpu

[Ashleyyyy]

i don't dislike consoles. for modern games pc's make more sense for me because my old pc can handle the games i play fine, and it can also do everything a pc can.

 

for retro gaming i prefer consoles, simply because old pc's are a hassle to maintain and take up much more space than a console does. like, say i wanted to play some NFS underground 2. i can grab my 1999 retro pc, or i can grab my PS2. i'll choose the PS2 every time just because it's conveniant.  

[Mira Yurizaki]

10 hours ago, CrazieChipmunk said:

i also forgot about the fact i can get far superior performance for the price of 300 pound today like all i need to do is plop an rx580 in and there you go i have already beaten a console with a 180pound gpu

The Xbox One X has something akin to a RX 580 in the APU.

 

I also doubt you're throwing in a UHD Blu-Ray. Also if you're using used parts to build the PC, then no, the comparison can't be used.

[Zando_]

3 minutes ago, Mira Yurizaki said:

The Xbox One X has something akin to a RX 580 in the APU.

 

I also doubt you're throwing in a UHD Blu-Ray. Also if you're using used parts to build the PC, then no, the comparison can't be used.

Not to mention the Xbone X uses that 580 level GPU a lot better than most PC games will. Due to there being around 4 hardware configs (Xbone, Xbone X, PS4, PS4 Pro), or only 2 for platform exclusives (though some Xbox exclusives are bleeding over to PC), devs usually tweak and optimize games extremely well for the hardware, something they can't do on PC due to the sheer number of hardware combos. There's a lot of pros and cons to PCs and consoles, but consoles can often win on sheer value, since they usually include a controller and most people already have a TV, making them pretty much just plug and play. PCs can do a lot more, but consoles are very convenient if all you wanna do is game and watch some movies. I still think playing FPS titles on 30fps is a hella yikes though, and I personally suck with a controller so I've stuck with PC. 

[Majinhoju]

Consoles are still the most convenient for a living room setup.  Power on with your controller and off you go.  One single storefront, no jumping between Epic, Steam, Origin, Blizzard launcher etc...  You might have to wait a bit for patching if you haven't played your system in ages but overall consoles are still more convenient.

[CrazieChipmunk]

@Majinhoju i know its not out yet but GOG galaxy 2 is promising

[PlayStation 2]

I wanna chime in a little more on why consoles are very appealing to more people than a PC is:

Ever tried using a controller on a PC? Unless you're using a Steam Controller (in which if you are, you're fucking insane), it's almost impossible to do normal things unless you're running specific things that do support controllers, and that usually doesn't include browsers. Yeah, there's things like Kodi and Steam's Big Picture mode, but coming from someone who's used the latter, it can be very clunky and kinda slow even on good hardware, especially the browser.

On a console, you can do just about everything with just the controller. And lemme tell you, that's far more preferable compared to having to use a mediocre game launcher to do web browsing with a controller.

[Zando_]

44 minutes ago, Majinhoju said:

Consoles are still the most convenient for a living room setup.  Power on with your controller and off you go.  One single storefront, no jumping between Epic, Steam, Origin, Blizzard launcher etc...  You might have to wait a bit for patching if you haven't played your system in ages but overall consoles are still more convenient.

That and depending on the console they can do some pretty nuts stuff. I have a Nintendo Switch, for the $300 + multiple $60 games that cost me, I could get a PC with a lot more on paper performance and just run BOTW in CEMU on that with (probably) better framerates and mod support. But I can't slap my PC in my pocket. I can't leave it off for two weeks, pick it up, tap a button 3 times, then be back exactly where I was with no stuttering or anything at all (seriously, the Switch blows me away every time I do this). I've gotta boot up the PC, open all my apps, use those apps to open the games I want to play, then load into the menu, then load my save file, then I can game. Consoles can't do as much as PCs, but what they can do they do very very well. 

[steelo]

19 minutes ago, Zando Bob said:

That and depending on the console they can do some pretty nuts stuff. I have a Nintendo Switch, for the $300 + multiple $60 games that cost me, I could get a PC with a lot more on paper performance and just run BOTW in CEMU on that with (probably) better framerates and mod support. But I can't slap my PC in my pocket. I can't leave it off for two weeks, pick it up, tap a button 3 times, then be back exactly where I was with no stuttering or anything at all (seriously, the Switch blows me away every time I do this). I've gotta boot up the PC, open all my apps, use those apps to open the games I want to play, then load into the menu, then load my save file, then I can game. Consoles can't do as much as PCs, but what they can do they do very very well. 

For me, I like being able to customize and upgrade components. With that said, my wife bought me a XB1 when it was first released and I really enjoyed playing the Witcher 3. At the time, I didn't have a PC powerful enough to run it. Lately though, it hasn't been touched in about 6 months. The games just seem to be 'rinse and repeat' using the same engines and same dynamics - There just aren't any console games that seem interesting to me. I am really into VR games now and PC/Oculus is the best option for me.

 

My 2 cents.

[svpracer98]

I think the biggest thing against consoles is the under 13 crowd screaming into their mic and the very closed software. I'll admit that the xbox has lost this generation badly, especially pushing all their exclusives to PC where those who can get past the Microsoft Store would much rather play. But there is a very strong argument to keep the ol' PS4/ Switch dusted off as they know how to keep people on by offering EXCLUSIVES. And while our phones can keep us entertained, remote play with a Vita (or enjoying a handheld game) or taking the entire unit (Switch) with you is definitly more comfortable than burning a hole in your lap/ table with an inadequately cooled device. Nintendo has also realized that many people like to play "old school" multiplayer on the couch, with (physical) friends.