PC vs Console Gaming
I've always been a PC gamer. When I do buy a console, it generally sits there and gathers dust. I currently don't even own a next-generation (or, I guess, a this-generation) console, although I'd like a PS3 because I have a high def TV and could use it as a Blue-Ray player.
BTW, anyone interested in buying my HD-DVD player? :)
Anyway, I prefer PC gaming for the following reasons:
- Cheaper. It seems that PC games generally have a lower retail price than their console counterparts and, moreover, they fall in price faster. I know you could make the argument that PC gaming hardware is more expensive, but this discussion gets circular and twisted very quickly due to the multi-use non-gaming capabilities of the PC. Which, indirectly, leads me to my next arguement:
--- Customizable. I love the fact that PC games are heavily modifiable. I love downloading user made content. I love updated graphics of older PC games. I love substituting my own music. And remapping the controls. And being able to choose between graphics and performance. And tweaking ini files. Console gaming always seems so constrained to me - choosing between control configuration A, B, or C doesn't cut it. Let me remap every single button if I want to.
Out of the box I didn't like Oblivion very much. With all the user-created mods and content, its a MUCH better game. I couldn't have done this with a 360.
--- Dungeons and Dragons. I grew up playing DnD, so I'm more inclined to enjoy a good western RPG instead of the Japanese style.
--- Multi-player. Admittedly, consoles have made amazing headway in this area recently. But we were stringing coax cable around our apartment back in college, to play Doom over IPX networks. That's a heck of a head start. And I enjoy MMOs, which haven't seem to taken off on consoles (probably due to lack of keyboard acceptance).
--- Keyboard and mouse FPS FTW. I know there are people in this very thread who have stated the exact opposite, but for my money the game pad absolutely sucks when it comes to FPS, a genre which I really enjoy.
--- Superior graphics - Yeah, I know this is a continual leapfrogging between console and PCs. But prior to HDTV, there was no contest between standard def TV and what a PC could do. With the current generation of consoles and HDTV, this argument is increasingly moot.
edit: typos and clarity