Console vs. PC gaming

Technology and Gaming
#1

So, i’d really like to upgrade my existing game PC but for the kind of performance i want the cost is hard to swallow. Ideally, what i’d like, is some gargantuan core i7 overclocked 3-SLI setup with a huge HD monitor getting 100 frames / second on MW2 (which is all possible, according to Tom’s Hardware).

But all my buddies say a console gives decent performance with decent graphics at maybe 1/3 the cost of a cheap PC, much less the monster i’m lusting after.

You guys have any advice?

Option A: i might not survive to see retirement anyway. Just buy the PC i want.

Option B: i’m not the King of France. Just get a new video card.

Option C: Yeah, pad controllers suck. Get over it and buy a console.

#2

Getting 100 fps in MW2 is not that hard and you don’t need a monster computer to do it.

But if you like PC gaming and you’re able to buy a decent computer, then go for it.

#3

PRO PC:
-Less Expensive. That is a fact, if you are doing it correctly. I mean, let’s look at it objectively. A good widescreen TV, and Xbox, plus a few games, will run you well over $1200. Meanwhile a good gaming PC can be built for under $1000 (and run Crysis at full). However, most people will cry fowl, saying “Well everyone owns a TV!” If you’d like to change the rules to work with hardware most people own, let’s do this for computers too. Most people own a computer. Thus, you only upgrade the graphics card (as most modern computers are good enough for games, minus that one component) and you have a gaming computer; again, for LESS than the price of a Wii. Plus, PC games can often be found for cheaper, and have more variety from independent people, AND have free games all over the place.

-Better visuals. Overall, the look of a game will be better on a PC. Normally the overall look is decent on a console, but for all the whizzbang, go for a PC.

-Better community. Free mods, better social interaction, and usually more developer-player transparency.

PRO CONSOLE
-Pretty much guaranteed to work. You’ll never spend a minute browsing through settings to find out why something isn’t going. However, you MAY have to send in for tech support on some occasions.

-More consistent framerate. A good gaming PC will constantly get a high framerate on most games, but even those few that it won’t, like poor console ports, can be annoying.

-You can resell games (if you’re an EVIL COMMUNIST)

#4

In Soviet Russia we can resell games

#5

You messed it up. It’s:

In Soviet Russia, games sell YOU!

#6

No that’s in the real world

#7

This would be the way to go, if i was competent to put together such a machine. When i search for example setups and browse prices, it usually seems to come out to more than that.

Can you suggest a good reference to learn what components to select?

#8

Of course, just for the novelty factor i’d like one of these:

https://www.hardcorecomputer.com/

#9

I think Katana did a fairly good job of listing most of the pros and cons of each option. Being a fairly recent convert to the world of PC gaming myself, I’d recommend option A or B, mainly depending on how old your current PC is (i.e. if it’s older than 5+ years, A).

https://www.newegg.com/ <-- For parts/specs/reviews. Bookmark. This. Site. If you’re interested also subscribe to their email newsletter; they’re always having sales.

Also, this thread might be of interest, there are a lot of good tips and part recommendations for building a budget (~$750-$1000) gaming PC there. In addition, if you can tolerate a bit of shameless self indulgence, (sorry, it’s late here and I’m super tired, heading to bed right after posting this… if I wasn’t I’d actually post something new instead of linking old stuff :frowning: ) I also wrote up a quick and dirty (and rambly :zip :slight_smile: guide to selecting your initial parts.

There’s also this article and this followup, which may be of some interest, although they’re somewhat dated (AGP slots and Serial COM ports, lol :retard :slight_smile: but nevertheless they look as though they do a fairly decent job of walking you through the actual physical process of piecing everything together. :slight_smile:

#10

Yeah, that computer your looking at, probably cost a few thousand dollars, and is probably over-doing it performance wise (theres really no need for it, and if you really really want it, wait a few years, itll be $700) Any way, your kind of coming across as an idiot, its not really that hard to go to a local computer hardware store, and find the cheap good quality components you need (best buy, and a few lesser known but much cheaper and better stores) and if you dont live near one, order it online… Heres what you will need for the price range Katana is talking about,

  1. your computer, just buy a decent HP (one with windows 7 2 or more gigs of ram, and more than 300 gigs of harddrive space), or go on Newegg and get good manufacturing deals from companies that need to sell computer returns even though the computers are fine. ($200-500 dollars) (also make sure the computer has enough space/slot to fit a graphics card, and has the right cable slots, however you normally don’t need to worry)

  2. a new Power supply for your computer. Why do you need this? odds are that your new computer does not have a powerful enough power-supply to run your graphics card (they use a lot of energy) the power-supply in the computer will probably be around 300 watts, and, If we use the Nvidia 9800 for example, uses 400 watts (I think, either that or 450 watt power-supply) Now I recommend getting something a little bit abouve the minimum requirements for the power-supply, so for the Nvidia 9800’s case, get a 550 watt power-supply, just in case, which at your local computer electronics store, will be from $50-$80. To install it on to your computer, first remove your computers outer casing, then look for a big square box (it will probably be grey) with wires coming out of it (you cant miss it, it looks a lot differant than the other hardrives and the mother board in side your computer) remove it, and replace it with the new one you have.

  3. Now its finally time for your graphics card. Since I do not know how the Radeon series goes, and I have only used Nvidia, I will tell you about the Nvidia graphics card series. The Nvidia graphic card series follows a pattern, that goes like this 7200, 7400, 7600, 7800, etc… and that goes all the way until the end of the 9000 series, then it goes to the 200 series, were it follows the same pattern, just with out the last 0. Now you may think that, in the Nvidia series of graphic cards, each proceeding graphics card is more powerfull than the one before it. This is not totally true, the differant series number marks new technology that they are using for the graphics card (which is usually better than the previous series) and the number after the first digit marks how power full it is,
    for example, a 9600 has better performance and is more powerfull than a 9400, but a 9400 could have the same performance as a 8400. Now this is not to say that you should get a 7800 over a 9800 since its cheaper, and has the same mark for the value of strength of the graphics card, a 9800 is still probably going to be a lot better than a 7800. The graphics card I recommend you get is a 9800, which is any where from 60-100 dollars, depending who you get it from. Make sure you atleast get a 1 gig. (it will clearly mark if it is a one gig or not so don’t worry) Installing a graphics card is pretty easy, theres a slot in your computer that is clearly marked a video card slot, you just need to screw the graphics card in the right way, and connect a few wires. After you do that, start up your computer, and the graphics card will run a installer, reboot, and walla!, you have gotten through all the tricky parts of getting your computer ready for gaming!

  4. This is pretty straight forward, get a monitor for your computer, so you can see what you are playing. It doesn’t really matter what type of monitor you get, just get one with 1680 by 1050 pixelation, and make sure it has the right cable inputs on the back (HD etc…) or else you wont be seeing your login screen for your computer, I don’t really know the cost of a monitor, I think the one I have cost a bout 200$, but I am not completely sure, again, for good deals just go to Newegg or fatwallet.

and thats about it, if you want to go really cheap and really powerful, I suggest building your own computer, its more difficult but way more rewarding.

#11

I think you are over-exaggerating.

A decent 20’ TV would cost about $120 (that would be about the same size as the monitor he would likely get for his PC), an Xbox 360 would cost about $230 and each game would be about $60. Sure he may want a bigger TV but it would still not be as expensive as you are saying. And for a rig that would not need upgrading so often it would probably cost about the same as that.

#12

No, it wouldn’t. I’ve had a quick look around and the lowest price I’ve been able to find for a generically branded 19" is $129.99. For a half decent 19" you’d want to go up to about $215.

#13

Oh really? That’s a refurbished one, but you can still get them quite cheap. A shop up my road sells 20" pc monitors for 35 quid. and anyway, it still wouldn’t cost $1200.#

EDIT: Found some more:
https://www.11cb.com/87332.html
https://www.techforless.com/cgi-bin/tech4less/SSL2006?mv_pc=google_base&tts=20100605023701
https://www.bounmis.com/store/tvem202rb.html

#14

Hey… I have…
2.0GHz dual core
512mb VGA card
1Gb RAM
What “MONSTER GAMES” can I play? Or what should I upgrade?

#15

If you post your specs you could get better recommendations from people. Like if it’s totally outdated or what alterations it would need if it’s not. Also, elaborate more on your bugdet. I don’t know much about the current state of the market because I have a decent PC and don’t need to upgrade yet but you can usually buy a fairly good PC for ~$1000 and that’s from scratch. Anything that goes upwards of that usually doesn’t offer a lot of performance increase compared to increase in prices.

Dual core but what dual core? 512mb VGA card doesn’t really say a lot too. You should say the brand/model. Size of VRAM doesn’t matter that much. Also, am I the only one who doesn’t try Crysis or some other heavy game as soon as they get a new PC? >_>

#16

I don’t try Crysis.

#17

Personally I’m PC, i will always be PC but I do own the 360 and PS3 because sometimes it’s good to kick back and just play games on a TV.

But as for hardcore gaming PC is the ONLY way to go, so suck it up and get a good one! as for expensive purchases on PC, i just spent a lot of money on a new screen so don’t worry about it.

#18

So, do any of you guys think an SLI setup is worth the money? Tom’s hardware says that basically can double your framerate.

#19

it depens on what kind of games you like. if you prefer for example racing/fighting/japanes role playing games you are better with a console. if you prefer for example strategy/simulation/western rpg’s you are better with PC. i also prefer fps on the PC - playing a shooter with a pad sucks except those who were made for a joypad.

if you got low- to mid-end cards: yes. if you got higer mid-end or high-end cards: no. because if you look around you will see that a lotta single-GPU’s now have more power than SLI-GPU’s a few months ago for a cheaper price.

#20

If you’re going to use more than one GPU, go ATi and use Crossfire. It’s cheaper and their newer cards are faster and have Direct X 11 on them.

EDIT: Hell, even if you go with one GPU, I’d still recommend ATi over NVidia. Faster, smaller, cooler-running cards for less money.

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