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Definitely.

14 (12.8%)

Only for this current generation.

5 (4.6%)

I think the console is on it's way out but the PC is not on it's way back in.

2 (1.8%)

It's a possibility.

12 (11%)

Undecided.

2 (1.8%)

Probably not.

12 (11%)

I think the PC is on it's way back in but the console isn't on it's way out.

42 (38.5%)

Definitely not.

6 (5.5%)

Other.

3 (2.8%)

Don't care. / View poll.

11 (10.1%)

Total Members Voted: 109

[Cthulhu]

Nah, this was just one guy who got enough gold to buy everything worth buying on the AH and sell it for inflated prices.  He eventually got banned for disrupting the economy but not after he made over a billion gold and completely fucked the AH.  Prices were still wild when I quit, at least two years after he did that.

[Astral]

Eh, computers are making a bit of a comeback in the form of cheaper, high quality indie games. But there's too many Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo fanboys for console to die out completely at the moment; perhaps when a phone can imitate the abilities of a new generation console will we see consoles truly fall.

Casual games (AKA: 99 cent iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch) in general are the biggest thing right now, though. Soon people are going to expect one device to do everything, rather than shelling out $500 on three separate devices. But that's what we're moving to anyway; PDAs and a bunch of other miscellaneous functionality has been consolidated into phones already.

[Soulwynd]

I was going to make a big post, but what I will say in one line is somehow much nicer than the big logical emotion-free post.


Good luck if you ever get to college.

[Shadowlord]

Nah, this was just one guy who got enough gold to buy everything worth buying on the AH and sell it for inflated prices.  He eventually got banned for disrupting the economy but not after he made over a billion gold and completely fucked the AH.  Prices were still wild when I quit, at least two years after he did that.

What? They ban you for being a Magnificent Bastard and a supervillain?

[Haschel]

I was pleasantly surprised at the tone this thread was keeping, but then it seemed to trip and fall after the first few initial posts. Anything I wanted to say has already been said by others though; Consoles and PCs are different things, PCs are seeing a bit of a rise in certain areas but consoles aren't really declining etc.

The one advantage consoles will always have over the PC is that every game, even those launched many years after the console's initial launch, will run on the console; whereas with the PC developers tend to add new shaders and crap which may render the PC one purchased a year or two ago incompatible (unless you fork out the cash for a part that may make it work... woe be unto he who owns a laptop!)... but hey, check out the game's new ultra realistic specs of dirt!!! (What!? Your PC can't handle the dirt!? Well, you can lower the settings... but that will make the game look like a N64 game because we didn't bother with older shaders or textures!)

If developers want folks to purchase more games on the PC vs the console, they need to stop treating their games like tech demos (instead focus on compatibility!) and (like a previous poster mentioned) curtail intrusive copy-protection.

I wanted to single this out specifically however, because it's something I'm dealing with right now. Trying to play older PC games on new hardware has to be one of the must frustrating gaming experiences ever, combined with the fact that your PC will still become outdated and unable to play newer games as well.

[SalmonGod]

I wanted to single this out specifically however, because it's something I'm dealing with right now. Trying to play older PC games on new hardware has to be one of the must frustrating gaming experiences ever, combined with the fact that your PC will still become outdated and unable to play newer games as well.

I don't get this argument, personally. 

Backwards compatibility on consoles is a relatively recent thing, and often fairly shitty.  PS2 was the first to really do it.  PS3 often has major issues with it.  Microsoft and Nintendo are currently on their first generation of consoles to bother with it, and they only go back one generation.

And this completely ignores the fact that there's no inter-compatibility between consoles.  You can't play a PS3 game on a Wii.  Period.

PC is and always will be PC.  Yeah, playing classic games from the 90's on Windows 7 might take some work, but at least it's possible.  I don't get why this is a criticism in favor of consoles, when the same level of freedom is literally impossible there.

[Grakelin]

I don't think the PC ever fell. What are you guys talking about. This is an expanding industry, like anything else in an economic model such as our own. An increase in games on a console is unlikely to result in a decrease in games on the PC for the same reason that an increase in strawberries isn't going to make it impossible to find corn.

I've never observed that either industry was really declining, save for the 2008 recession, but if anybody has any professionally done (ie, not from an indy review blog) articles which say otherwise, please bring them forward.

[Detrevni|inverteD]

PCs and consoles will always coexist as they have done since the dawn of video gaming.

[Haschel]

I've never had an issue with backwards compatibility on any console that supported it, though I'm aware it was a hit-or-miss issue during the first few months of the PS3 (Xbox is outside my realm of experience). At this particular moment in time however, both the PS1 and PS2 catalog are fairly well covered save for a minor bug here and there.

PC is and always will be PC.  Yeah, playing classic games from the 90's on Windows 7 might take some work, but at least it's possible.  I don't get why this is a criticism in favor of consoles, when the same level of freedom is literally impossible there.

While the PC will always be a PC, that doesn't address the fact that the technology inside each and every system is different, and constantly changing unlike a console. The difference here is support for these changes: while not every console will support the decision of backwards compatibility, you at least get a general indication of what may or may not be supported. On the PC however, if an older game gets left by the wayside it's basically never going to see the light of day aside from a handful of die-hard supporters in the public that may be willing to help others, with limited success.

I've been trying to play Beyond Good & Evil on my PC and it's been a colossal headache. I managed to get it to a playable degree, but I had to force it into using a single core of my quad core processor, lower several detail settings and screw around with a number of optional settings. I'm still getting artifacts at certain points. The point is, it generally isn't such a hassle on the console. This isn't the only game I've had trouble with, just the most recent one.

[SalmonGod]

The point is, it generally isn't such a hassle on the console.

Yes, it's much less hassle, when it is actually possible.  My point was, it's always guaranteed to be possible on the PC, even if it's a hassle.  Personally, I've never had too much trouble with any PC game that wasn't at least about the same age as two console generations, in which case if it were a console game I would just be completely shit out of luck, unless it happened to be a playstation game.

Plus, PC is PC.  I don't need to buy 3 different PCs to have all my bases covered regarding what PC games I'll be able to play.  There's no risk of bullshit happening where, for instance, I was all excited about FF7 coming out for the N64... and then all of a sudden it's exclusive to the Playstation... and I have to buy a Playstation if I want to play that game...  If it's a PC game, it's a PC game... period.

[Haschel]

Your first point is valid, some game consoles don't support backwards compatibility and you are shit out of luck. Old consoles usually end up being dirt cheap along with their games though, so it's not like there aren't alternatives. And yeah, I can't think of any games that flat out don't work on a new PC, but there are games that are very much on the border of it, and honestly it'd be easier to just get it on a console if the choice is there.

I'm not quite sure what you're trying to say with the second part, though. There IS still bullshit with having to buy a new PC for the latest game; in fact it's worse than any console. You're also still fully affected by exclusive titles; but this has never been a unique situation and PC is very much included in this issue. PC is not better in that regard in any way.

[SalmonGod]

Old consoles usually end up being dirt cheap along with their games though, so it's not like there aren't alternatives.

The same can be said of PCs?

There IS still bullshit with having to buy a new PC for the latest game

Only if you have to have all the latest shiny features.  Otherwise, PC hardware has only slightly less lifespan than a console generation.  Plus, this is another way PC has more options.  It is advancing constantly, rather than in several year increments, and you have the option of keeping up with that advancement... and if you don't it's generally not a big deal.  The vast majority of PC games aren't like Crysis. 

It's not nearly as expensive as it's made out to be either.  My General Rule:  Video card upgrade every two years.  CPU/Ram/Motherboard upgrade every 4 years.  Other stuff as necessary, which is very rarely.  Generally, no single component should cost more than $200 for something that may not be cutting edge, but is just a couple small notches beneath that.  It's no more expensive than keeping up with two separate lines of very expensive consoles (most people seem to have Wii + PS3 or XBox) plus their games, which are generally much more expensive than PC with much less replay value.

You're also still fully affected by exclusive titles

Depends on how you look at it.  If you're looking at PC as one of four major gaming platforms, then sure... this is kind of true.  You can't play games that are exclusive to a console, at least not until it gets ported to an emulator. 

However, I was looking at this as PC vs console.  There is a legitimate divide there, considering there are certain common features that define something as a console system, and there are three major examples of them that are completely separate and incompatible with each other.  Then there is PC, which covers a huge range of devices... but they're all PC.  The example I noted regarding FF7... that kind of thing does not happen on PC.  The closest problem we have is shitty console ports.

[Haschel]

Hmm. I'm having trouble seeing the argument from your perspective, so I'll just have to agree to disagree.