I've just installed Devil May Cry 4...

[loki]

Originally Posted by NokkonWud

But certainly less interactive. The all in one LIVE online and how it's embedded into the dashboard on 360 destroys anything the PC has offered thus far. Jack of all trades, master of most describes the 360.

As does the PC just as well. In fact more so at times on the PC. Don't get me wrong I am still warming up to the idea of gaming on console and would consider myself a multi platform gamer nowadays. That said, with the ease of Steam and a pretty decent voice client it actually can be as good if not better.

If I fancy a games night with my buds then we can all sit there talking about what we want on vent. Sometimes 5 sometimes 10 sometimes 20 of us. We all don't have to be playing games either to enjoy the social aspect of it. Then when you add Steam into the equation, we can all switch from Call of Duty 4 (Better on the PC multiplayer than console - FACT !!!) to Company of Heroes to Grid etc etc etc. The only thing that is missing is the achievements that XBL offers. But as were not achievement whores it's a moot point anyway. Better yet we don't even have to change a CD/DVD in the process. So to suggest that XBL destroys anything that the PC has to offer isn't necessarily correct.

Personally I have tried shooters on the PS1, PS2 & now the PS3 as well Xbox and I must say it's a more enjoyable experience for me at least on PC by any shadow of a doubt

[NokkonWud]

Steam is very poor compared to Live and just better than PSN. On PC it's a lot of seperate clients with more seperate servers. Live does it all centrally, brilliantly. I am typing this on my PS3 as my PSU blew and it takes ages with a pad.

[dirtydog]

Originally Posted by Desmo

30mins to install a game? I though it was bad when I'd start loading Commando on my Amstrad CPC464, walk down the shop for some sweets and come back 10-15 minutes later just to see it finish loading

Yeah I remember the loading times on my Commodore 64 as well. I forget how spoiled we are these days with games loading off fast hard drives in seconds!

[dirtydog]

Originally Posted by Streeteh

It's not exactly fair to compare each system as a gaming platform but then say that the games for each platform must be excluded from the discussion surely?

Best part of consoles are the huge number of utterly fantastic games that the PC doesn't offer. Metal Gear Solid 4, The Darkness, Uncharted and (so far) little big planet are the best games i've played this year, all of which aren't available on the PC. The only PC exclusive game that i can think of that has been half decent this year is Crysis: Warhead, but even that doesn't compare to the aforementioned best games.

Yeah, the PC is more powerful and produces better graphics, there's no debating that. But i'm more fussed about the actual games themselves and for that consoles win hands down. I'd rather have hundreds of hours of fun with some slight aliasing and lower res textures than dozens of hours of fun in super-slick, HDRd goodness. Luckily i get to experience the best of both worlds though .

Sorry, totally off topic.

Well this particular game is cross platform

Some cross platform games are far superior on the PC. I think of some of the cross platform driving games which are 30fps on consoles but you can run them at twice that on the PC. Also GTA IV for example, won't be 30fps on the PC and will have sharper graphics, less pop in, etc. As well as better controls.

[loki]

Originally Posted by NokkonWud

Steam is very poor compared to Live and just better than PSN. On PC it's a lot of seperate clients with more seperate servers. Live does it all centrally, brilliantly. I am typing this on my PS3 as my PSU blew and it takes ages with a pad.

That is a bit misleading though and i'm not sure that Steam is as poor as you suggest. At worst you run a game through Steam and a separate voice client so that's two app's. Valve based games have in built voice servers as do a lot of games nowadays that aren't on the Steam Platform. I stand by my point as well about Ventrilo or TeamSpeak 2. If I wan't to sit there just browsing the net or have a chat with my mates whilst I play one game and they play another I can do effortlessly. Does XBL offer the functionality of just chat (Genuine Question as I am not 100% sure). You can match make and you can set recurring events.

The other issue is that of servers. If I am not mistaken does XBL not run on a P2P service whilst PC Gaming, more often than not, is Direct Connect. In theory latency issues should be less of a problem on Direct connection rather than P2P. The exception being Left4Dead which Microsoft have committed dedicated servers to. Moreover when playing on Multiplayer FPS I like the idea off playing in servers with 16+ maybe 40-50 players at a time.

I will be in the fortunate position of having a High Spec PC, Xbox360 & PS3 by the end of next week. Gaming Nirvana. But let's not get too dismisive of PC Gaming or on the contrary platforms such as XBL or PSN being the panacea for Gaming Heaven. It goes without saying that XBL has taken gaming to a new level but it's very much a spoon fed experience. Each platform has it's own plus and minus points but I don't think its fair to suggest that PC Gaming is the poorer relation.

Apologies to DD for dragging off topic. I played DMC4 on PC and it was a pretty good experience. Graphic wise it was fantastic. Gameplay wise it was good with a controller. It was a pretty linear experience. Nice to dip your toe in and out of.

[dirtydog]

I don't mind the thread going off topic, it ended up more interesting than a discussion of game install times anyway. Yeah DMC4 is the first DMC game I've played, I bought it on the strength of the impressive demo. I know the actual gameplay is rather simplistic and completely linear but I don't mind that for this sort of game, and the graphics are a visual treat for sure. It is a great port and runs very well even on modest hardware (before I recently upgraded my PC, the demo ran superbly on a P4 3.0 and 7600GT, a system which struggled with most other recent game releases).

[Desmo]

Guys, guys, guys...you'll never convince the other that your chosen platform is the best

It's all down to personal opinion and what factors each user puts top of their list. For me, the fixed cost and ease of use of console gaming makes it top for me. The console cost is fixed and I know I don't have to upgrade it to play the latest games. It's easy because I buy a game, pop the disc in and it plays. As a fairly casual gamer, these are my priorities. But I'd certainly not try and convince anyone that it's better than a PC for gaming.

[Davey_Pitch]

Originally Posted by dirtydog

What does a console offer that a PC doesn't, console exclusive games excepted?

Ease of use for one. I don't have to worry about making sure my hardware is up to spec, or my drivers up to date. I don't need to worry about whether I need to tweak settings to get a game to run at a certain res. I just pop the game in, sit on my comfy couch, and enjoy HD gaming on my 42" TV.

A PC can run games as well or better than a console in terms of performance

Again, perhaps, if you have a good spec PC. Not everyone can afford to spend lots of money to keep their hardware up to date, but more people can afford to drop £150 on an Xbox 360.

and also some games, particularly FPS games are more playable on a PC due to mouse support.

That's also a matter of opinion. I like FPS games on a console, especially when playing on Live. I know that when I'm getting killed (quite often really ), I'm doing so because the other guy is better. I'm not worrying about whether his mouse or keyboard are better than mine, and more suited to gaming. On consoles you're on a level playing field for nearly every game (driving games excepted, where some people have wheels).

Originally Posted by loki

If I fancy a games night with my buds then we can all sit there talking about what we want on vent. Sometimes 5 sometimes 10 sometimes 20 of us. We all don't have to be playing games either to enjoy the social aspect of it.

The new Xbox Experience (due in 12 days) will add this into the Xbox as well, with the Party system. You can all be in different games chatting away, then move through loads of games, always keeping your party together. Nice and easy.

Then when you add Steam into the equation, we can all switch from Call of Duty 4 (Better on the PC multiplayer than console - FACT !!!)

In an argument about opinion I can't believe someone has the gall to use the word "fact" The only real difference between the 2 that I'm aware of is that you can have more players in the PC multiplayer. If you prefer that, then good for you, but don't say that it's factually better for that reason. Not everyone likes huge multiplayer games, me being one of them.

Originally Posted by dirtydog

Some cross platform games are far superior on the PC. I think of some of the cross platform driving games which are 30fps on consoles but you can run them at twice that on the PC. Also GTA IV for example, won't be 30fps on the PC and will have sharper graphics, less pop in, etc. As well as better controls.

How did I know you'd throw 30FPS in there somewhere? I would have thought that the amount of times you've had that thrown back at you on OcUK would be proof enough that most people don't give a toss about it.

Anyway, as Desmo said, all of this is simply a matter of opinion. I personally prefer my consoles for gaming. Does that mean I think the PC is a bad gaming platform? Of course not, it still does some games far better (strategy games and RTS are still better on a PC IMO). However, my personal preference is consoles, and nothing anyone says is going to make me think otherwise.

[Streeteh]

Originally Posted by dirtydog

Well this particular game is cross platform

Some cross platform games are far superior on the PC. I think of some of the cross platform driving games which are 30fps on consoles but you can run them at twice that on the PC. Also GTA IV for example, won't be 30fps on the PC and will have sharper graphics, less pop in, etc. As well as better controls.

Oh i don't disagree, as i say, the PC is clearly a superior platform in terms of technical prowess. It's just that all of the best games of the year imo were console releases, if i stuck purely to the PC i would have missed out on them. That is enough for me to demote PC from the place it used to own as best gaming platform. For me the days of such epic games as TFC are gone, but not forgotten.

I do really wish developers would allow Mouse + KB support in FPS' on the PS3 though, that is the only thing i really miss.

[dirtydog]

Originally Posted by Davey_Pitch

How did I know you'd throw 30FPS in there somewhere? I would have thought that the amount of times you've had that thrown back at you on OcUK would be proof enough that most people don't give a toss about it.

I think PC gamers care about framerate, and prefer games to run well above 30fps. Although you don't care about framerate, I'm betting you would enjoy playing some of your 30fps games at 60fps. You would see and feel the difference and you'd like it IMO.

But yeah let's not turn this into another dreaded 30fps debate