Gaming on Computers?

[Hiatus]

Millions of people around the world play video games on their personal computers—what are your thoughts on that? Do you play video games on PC yourself, or do you prefer to use consoles? Why? If you like gaming on computers, what PC games do you have so far? :o

As for myself, I love PC gaming. Some PCs have quite a powerful chipset, which make their graphics and sound quality ten-times better than those of traditional video game consoles. Not only that, most games on PC allow you to make your own personal modifications and share them with others. Not many console games give you that much freedom, unfortunately. It may be a bit hassle to play games with a mouse and keyboard, but you could always go out to the store and buy yourself a wired controller and use that instead.

When I was two - three years younger, my dad used to have an Alienware M15x laptop. This was specifically made for playing video games, as Alienware makes gaming computers only. It was an amazing laptop, but it had a lot of bulk though, which I didn't like. My dad used to play Call of Duty on this computer every night when he got back home from work. Before that, I had it all to myself. Dragon Age Origins, Street Fighter IV, Need for Speed: Shift, and Demigod were some games that I used to play on it. I used to play Call of Duty as well, but not as much as I do now, because I wasn't very interested in FPS games back then.

 

[Starry Windy]

I have been playing games on PC for years, and if playing owned games on emulators doesn't count, I own Empire Earth, Zuma, Sim City 2, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, Pokemon TCG Online and Pro Evolution Soccer 2012.

 

[MKGirlism]

I don't, because:
1. Keyboard + Mouse controls always fail at me while playing.
2. Every game wants different Hardware to be ran on, I just can't afford an > € 6000,- PC per month, just because a specific game wants Hardware better than my current PC has.

Reason number 2 also Applies to Android gaming, although I can still run a lot of recent stuff on my Galaxy Nexus, but Touch Screen controls are even worse.

 

[TY]

I mostly play RTS games on my computer, since imo, RTS games are made for PC gaming (playing Red Alert 3 on PS3 was the worst thing ever).
I still prefer consoles for FPS games.

 

[Nakala Pri]

Well, playing Torchlight II was pretty fun on the PC, but I prefer playing games on other consoles. Like playing Eternal Sonata and hittin' some beats by Chopin was pretty radical. :3 So yeah, I prefer other consoles. :P

 

[Ckbruin]

The only games I could think of where consoles are better than PCs would be platformers. Not to say I don't play consoles at all, I still play a bit of FPS on my Xbox 360...

I favored the console at one point in my life, but I've transitioned over into PC gaming. Keyboard + Mouse input just seems to work for me with every genre of game I've played.

 

[T!M]

I don't, because:
1. Keyboard + Mouse controls always fail at me while playing.

This.

I mostly play RTS games on my computer, since imo, RTS games are made for PC gaming (playing Red Alert 3 on PS3 was the worst thing ever).
I still prefer consoles for FPS games.

And this.

I don't like PC gaming to be honest and it sucks that their exclusive games for PC, just as it sucks that some consoles have exclusive games.

I do however enjoy RTS and MOBA's like Civilization and League of Legends.

I feel that PC MP is easier to hack and mod, I've seen so many Call of Duty MP matches where I guy get's autoaim and invincibility. It's much harder to hack and mod a console as opposed to a PC.

Console > PC, IMO.

 

[Wobbu]

I got into PC gaming during 2009 and it slowly took over my consoles. I spent $700 on a PC that can still play current games with little to no lag and decent graphic settings. There are two reasons why I prefer PC gaming: mods and sales. Steam and Origin are constantly having sales and mods allow me to replay a game as if I've never played it before. PC games that I own include Skyrim, Civ V, Mass Effect 3, Sims 3, and a lot of 2D games like Zuma.

 

[Darkroman]

I am a PC gamer through and through. I play certain console games over at friend's house and can handle using a gamepad just fine, but other than that, PC. I can do almost any genre on a PC... Fighting, FPS, simulation, RTS, platformer... whatever. Plus I got an Xbox 360 controller for my PC and that helps a lot with certain platformers and side-scrollers. I've been playing computer games since I was 4, along with the NES and Sega Genesis. I remember old gems such as Terminal Velocity, Tyrian, One Must Fall 2097 (killer soundtrack in that game), Doom, Duke Nukem, Quake, Wolfenstein (along with some Wolfenstein knockoff called Blake Stone: Aliens of Gold), C&C Red Alert, Jedi Knight: Dark Forces 2, Rogue Squadron (yes on the PC, not the N64... all gold medals using just the keyboard), Simcity 2000, and Virtual Pinball.

Plus I've got the knowledge and skill to troubleshoot computers if I ever have any issues...

 

[Legobricks]

2. Every game wants different Hardware to be ran on, I just can't afford an > € 6000,- PC per month, just because a specific game wants Hardware better than my current PC has.

Where does this notion about hardware come from?
And €6000/month? Try self-installing upgrades for €1000/2yr after the initial setup. If you really feel the need to have a top-end system in order to run every game on maximum settings, consider that console versions of games often look worse than mid-high PC settings anyway.

 

[MKGirlism]

I didn't mean it literally, I know cheaper PCs are fine PCs for games too.
I was aiming purely on the 'Every PC has different hardware, and every game wants different Hardware' part.

 

[Dragon]

Hm, the only PC game that I legitimately play is Leauge of Legends. But sometimes there's the off chance that I'd play other things like Team Foretress 2 and Borderlands for PC. I used to play this Aladdin game for PC, and this Lion King game back when I had Windows 95, which I remember they were really fun to play! There was also this game featuring Timon and Pumbaa where you'd have to jump across things like Hippos, logs, swans, etc to get bugs. That was okay too.

 

[Darkroman]

I didn't mean it literally, I know cheaper PCs are fine PCs for games too.
I was aiming purely on the 'Every PC has different hardware, and every game wants different Hardware' part.

That's not true (at least not for the past.. I don't know, decade?). An AMD processor, or an Intel processor can play the same games no matter what... same with either an nVidia graphics card, an AMD card, or even onboard Intel graphics. They'll all play the same thing, and most games are made for Windows anyway. There are a select few of Mac only games, but that's very very little.

 

[MKGirlism]

If it was like that, then I wonder why many people can't run a certain game on a certain Graphics Setting, while many other people can.

 

[Knor]

I played console for the longest time until a few years ago, when I got my first laptop. I was HUGE into games like World of Warcraft and Minecraft, and while it was tough to pick up at first, I eventually started to get the hang of controls. I finally bought Black Ops II, my first big PC purchase, and... I don't know. It was fun, but... I think I regret not getting it for console.

I still have a ton of fun playing games like League of Legends, Garry's Mod, Minecraft, etc., but my heart resides with consoles.

 

[Ultra - Retro Reviver!]

I prefer console gaming personally, but I still like PC Gaming. I like all those NES Tribute likes "Abobo's Big Adventure" and creepypasta based games like "Pokemon Lost Silver" (even though I lost interest in the Pokemon Franchise long ago). But my personal favourite is the puzzle game, Portal! :)

Admittedly, the controls aren't the greatest, but it's an awesome game. Also Steam is just ridiculously cheap so I can get games that have been ported onto Steam that I never played, and have wanted to for a cheaper price instead of emulating it! *cough* Final Fantasy VII *cough* (Even though I'll admit, still, Final Fantasy IV is my personal favourite in the FF Franchise)

 

[Satoshi Ookami]

I've been only PC games until this year when I bought Vita and PS3. Now I'm fully into console gaming.
I do play FIFA/PES more on PC, though.
And if there's something that can be emulated, I go for that =D

 

[Darkroman]

If it was like that, then I wonder why many people can't run a certain game on a certain Graphics Setting, while many other people can.

My bad... I forgot to mention just as long as your hardware isn't TOO old... or too low end at the time you bought it... I mean, technically, up to date low-end hardware can still play any game, but for newer games, you probably will only be able to handle playing the game on low settings. Honestly, I thought your post meant total incompatibility... not performance. For a PC, compatibility is mostly in the operating system, not hardware (unless you get an ARM processor).

 

[pokemasta92]

I enjoy gaming on consoles and computers, but prefer certain genres on each.
Computers are good for RPG, simulation, and strategy while consoles are good for action/adventure, platformers, racing, shooters, and sports.
Although I do like some action/adventure and shooters on PC, but would still never play a platformer, racing, or sports game on one. RPG, simulation, and strategy are still far superior on PC.

Unlike gaming on a console, PC gaming is only as good as the system you have. When you want to game on a console you buy one for a few hundred dollars and some games. Some games are better than others, but for the most part the FPS will be high and the graphics will look really nice on current gen systems. With a PC on the other hand, you need to spend at the very least $500 in order to play modern games with every single graphic slider maxed out. On consoles they come maxed out to whatever the particular console is capable of. Yes I'm aware that gaming on PC is far superior to gaming on a console, but that's only if you spend close to $1000 or more on a computer which the average consumer can't afford or doesn't even have the knowledge on what they need to play games to their full potential.

 

[donavannj]

I tend to game more on my PC solo, but social multiplayer gaming I tend to do on the consoles. I find the shooter controls more natural for me on a console, even though I know the reaction time for a top-level PC shooter player is far higher than a top-level console player because the PC player both has more control over their human interface devices as well as a wider selection. With consoles, it's pretty much the one controller layout you're stuck with, while on PC you can get 12+ button mice that sense tiny flickers of motion and keyboards that have a blazingly fast input time and a dedicated gaming controls section as well as having an ergonomic design.

My hardware is middle of the road at this point, but it does well enough for Sim City 4 and Civilization 4, a pair of processor intensive games that even modern systems can struggle with if you skimp on the processing power each of your cores has.