this post was submitted on 19 Jan 2025
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Modern consoles are locked pre-built PCs. You have to pay for online. Why get a console at this point in time?
Because you can buy a consol3, plig it into the back of your TV, and be confident that it will work. You don't have to worry about system requirements, storefronts, launchers, driver updates fucking you up, etc.
Power Cable, HDMI cable, and connect to wifi - that's it.
I've been PC gaming since the mid-80s, and even I sometimes just want to sit on the couch, push the Xbox button on my controller, and get going. Is it lazy? Yes. But I work 2 jobs and get to be lazy when I get home.
Not worrying about system requirements just translates into the game not being sold for your generation of the console, and requiring multiple generations of one console to enjoy both new and old titles.
The optimization of console games really is impressive. If you took the best gaming PC possible from 2005 when the 360 launched and tried to run late-gen 360 games like Tomb Raider on it, it simply wasn't possible.
Having set hardware allowed devs to design to limitations and get a lot more performance out of the machines.
Heck - look at anything from Nintendo. I'm pretty sure my watch has more horsepower than a Switch, but Tears of the Kingdom is gorgeous.
Just want to second that. When you have predictable hardware you can do some extremely precise optimizations, timings and scheduling so you know that when a situation comes up it'll be handled and executed the exact same way. On top of that the game will always be preconfigured so that it handles almost all situations at 60fps.
It can eek out some performance even though generally having more powerful hardware always wins.
What does that have to do with now in the age of extremely cheap, large, and fast storage.
It wasn't just storage. A 2005 PC can't handle TR on minimum settings. 360 handled it on what was essentially medium despite being a less powerful machine because the devs were able to optimize for that specific hardware instead of trying to guess.
You know, like they're doing with the Steam Deck, which is absolutely a console.
Are you talking about the tomb raider that came out in 2013?
Console updates and game updates are a thing. It will work, true, it just might be downloading and installing updates for a day before it does.
And windows updates are done when you're asleep these days... There are tons of pre-built computers and laptops for people who don't care to get the best value or performance.
I haven't worried about a driver update fucking something up since before win XP.
I have however repeatedly encountered crashes of games on my ps5 in the last year, which kind of defeats your point. Consoles had that worry free stability factor to them in the 90s or early 2000s, but that's long gone.
Lol... You can do same with pc. Just needs configured 1 time.. Using a linux distribution you could boot into same interface like steam deck. You can emulate the consoles too well not newest gen but who cares. You can configure the whole PC for lazy using too...
You can get a steam deck then if you are worried about all of this and it would still be cheaper than console as well as portable.
The console argument just doesnt make any kind of logical sense.
Steam Deck has turned that around somewhat. It's pretty close to an easy console experience, amd you can play on your couch, in bed, or on a plane.
PCs can do all of this and much more.
I've been PC gaming since 8-bit computers. I eventually bought an Xbox One as my first console and a Switch some years ago. I just couldn't get into either of them after the initial novelty wore off. PC gaming is so much more convenient for me. I'm already at my PC, I just need to start a game. And I can multi-task with other apps in the background or on my second monitor. Going to the living room to play on a console on the TV, or switching inputs if I keep it attached to my PC monitor, both are too much hassle. I only ever use the XBox for Just Dance (nothing beats Kinect for it) and I've played many more hours of Switch games on an emulator on my PC than on the actual Switch.
One rebuttal: Steam Deck.
Because you can just plug it in to your TV and play. That's the target demographic.
I do that with my steam deck
Edit: I actually never bought a steam deck have a PC set up to be like one but you can just dock the steam deck and use it that way
I've thought about getting a dock for my Steam Deck, but honestly, I just either play on my desktop or Steam Deck, almost never on my TV. I also have a Switch for the TV, and I only really use it for party games.
Is a steam deck not a console?
Nah it's a PC running Linux