After the launch of the PS4 and Xbone, I find myself frequenting gaming news sites more and more. I want to see who's in the lead, what the latest titles are and what the public reception has been for each console. Inevitably, at the end of each article, in the comments section, there will be the usual fanboy wars. Proponents for both PS4 and Xbone come out in droves, whether or not the news article was for one, the other, or both, there's no avoiding it.
Surprisingly, there is also a third faction joining the fray, and their involvement is also as inevitable as fanboys on both sides of the debate. In every comments section, without exception, there will always be one, or more, poster(s) with the following comment: "both the PS4 and Xbone suck. The PC is still the best platform". I can't help but think that, in a topic which is no business of PC gamers, that comments like these come out of jealousy. Even the layest person have heard of a PS4 or an Xbox One, but few know the latest graphics cards, or even Alienware. I think the PC gamers are just envious of the hype surrounding the latest round of consoles.
But they do have a point. A gaming rig specifically designed for performance can beat the pants off even the current generation of consoles. But what I never hear, when PC fans boast of their machines, is how much the darn things costs. Because to do so would clearly give the advantage to consoles. Something I found out just recently, when my old PC broke down on me and I had to get a new one.
My new PC cost $550, before tax. You will note that its more expensive than either the PS4 or the Xbone. And for that price, the performance is modest. How modest? So modest I couldn't find more than a single review for my graphics card. I found a bunch of bench mark results, however, but it only serves to confirm just how modest my PC is for playing games. The one article on the web says it can play games like Bioshock Infinite, Battlefield 3 and Crysis 3 on low to medium settings. From there I can make an extrapolation: the card is probably as good as an Xbox 360 or a PS3, but cannot be good as PS4 or Xbone. Because if my PC and 360 can run Crysis but presumably the Xbone can do it better, then my PC cannot be as good as an Xbone. It's a loose interpretation, to be sure, but it's the best I've got.
Now, given that you can get a PS3 or a 360 for about $200 dollars during he boxing day sales, with pack in games, even(!), the PC costs a fortune in comparison. Granted, you can do more with a PC, but and extra $350+ dollars worth? I don't think so. Is the ability to surf the web or multitask really worth the extra $350? It might. There's no doubt that PCs are very versatile machines and the older consoles can't multitask worth beans. So maybe it's worth it.
But let's think ahead a little bit. If my PC is basically a 360 with a premium of $350, then wouldn't that mean a PC performing up to PS4 specs be $750? That is, $400 (the price of the PS4) plus the $350 PC premium (for versatility)? So if you want next gen console performance on PC, you'll likely be spending at lest $750 to $850 on a rig. Now that's expensive, especially given all the latest PC like features on current generation consoles. Bottom line: if you want a good PC, you pay through the nose.
That's something I never hear PC fanboys boast about.
PS. I'm aware that building your own PC costs less than buying one in stores. Good for you if you can. But there are more people out there who can't. In which case, I say, if you want to game for a good price, get a PS4!
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