Answering Threads about PC gamers

This is a thread to answer all statements I see that keep appearing on the gamespot forums.

1. PC gamers are elitist.

Personally I feel when these threads come up that they are to subjective. Instead I will redirect the question to "PC gamers feel they are better then other gamers". Base on this restatement, we must look back on the PC itself. Unlike console gamers, PC gamers have been going strong for years longer. It is not that pc gamers feel that they are better as that they feel games must have a higher aptitude. What many console gamers enjoy, pc gamers demand more to it. PC gamers have already gone through the generic shooters, the bland stealth games, etc etc. When a game comes out, it is under a higher microscope in this respect then its console brethren. Now as is mentioned below, there will always be those on PC gamers that feel they are the Almighty Powerful Gamer because they have a system that has the greatest tech in comparison to console. In that sense they by rule have that right (not neccessarily a respectful approach to have regardless) as there system would be better technology wise.

2. PC's cost to much compared to console.

This type of thread seems to come up almost weekly on the board. I can understand peoples thoughts as they see high end pc components release at high price tags. I will grant you that if you want to be a High end gamer then yes you would spend alot on your system. That does not mean all PC systems have to cost nearly that much. As the game industry has not evolved with pc hardware lately, low and mid range systems can run even the newest games nicely. A good 500-600 dollar PC or even lower price can play many games with ease at up to 1650x1050 or less resolution (See my sig for a mid range price system). When people make these statements, please remember price point of your console system at release, all peripherals, price for online, extra price in games before comparing the prices A extra I have seen is that members like to add in the cost of monitors. Without even getting to much into that, please remember that even a console needs some type of screen to be used. Even if you want to argue that a new PC gamer would have to buy a monitor, you can also hook your computer to your tv. (Nominal 32 in hdtv only runs at 1366x768 ). Let us not forget that your PC is much more then a gaming platform. Its open to many other options and freedoms. Make it into a TV with a tivo, add blue ray player, burn dvd, cds, video editing etc etc. Just something else to consider. Just as a example, here is how my system has evolved:

When I first built my first computer it was a

• Pentium D 2.8 ghz
• Jetway motherboard (was on a ultra budget)
• 2 gigs ddr2 667 ram
• nvidia 8500 gt
• windows xp (free as I had it from my hp computer)
• Broadcom 650 watt psu (yes a junky name brand)
• 250 gb Western Digital hd
• lite-on dvd/cd burner player ......
• Coolmaster Centurion case
• Total Price 450 dollars in 2007. (everything bought through newegg shell shockers on sales outside xp)

Since then I have upgraded

• Gigabyte ep43 mobo
• e7400 @ 2.8 ghz (now oced to over 3.5ghz)
• Artic Cooler Freezer 7 heatsink
• 9600 gso then to a bfg gts 250 (both during sales. 9600 gso in 08 for $55 and gts 250 in 09 for $85)
• 2 gigs ddr2 1066 ram
• Friend gifted me his 19 inch hanngs lcd monitor when he upgraded his system.
• Total price for all of this was 310 dollars. But, I sold my pentium D, old mobo, old ram, old vid card for 200 dollars to friends ebay etc. etc. in the timeframes of slowly upgrading.
• Total after swap was 110 dollars.

So totally I have spend 560 dollars on my sytem in the last 4 years. I already had a logitech keyboard and mouse before the builds. I've since acquired windows 7 for 29 dollars through my university that i've installed but still use my nlited XP more. This is just my example of being a mid range gamer and the prices I spent.

Contextually, if we look globally, the price offset from getting a PC to a console is much different. While each are extremely high, many in other natons can feel its a better fit to have a PC then to divluge the same kind of money on a console which has high rate inflations.

3. There are no PC games.

I guess this statement comes from what people see and hear about on tv or from friends. Its a bit confusing to me to even see. Throughout the history of pc games, mainstream has never played a part in pushing pc new games. The PC gamers themselves push games. I guess now with console gaming getting pushing so heavily by the entertainment industry, people assume there are nothing for PC. Instead of arguing anything, i'll point my answer to this link: http://adrianwerner.wordpress.com/games-of-2010/ (Its missing Shatter, booster trooper, & Beat Hazard)

4. PC Gaming is dead.

This is another way to subjective and awkward statement I've seen. Outside the answer I gave above, PC gamers community last years longer on games then on console. While older systems on consoles die off (xbox ps2 etc) the pc games even at that generation are still going strong with a good community. Let us not forget how multiplatform still come to PC. This one has been one I really don't understand. I think people look in there game stores and don't see many box PC games so they conclude that its dead? Maybe they think there is no exclusivity to the platform or that games have low scores? Infact, this link my put a end to such statements. http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=0AriQpIFbPoEacGM1b0xxcGVucFQ3OFc4N3BNZmd2QkE&gid=0

5. PC gamers and DLC.

This has seemed to peak its head as of late. Either people call Pc gamers hypocrites when they see players buy DLC or they trash talk pc gamers for "whining". Let me approach it like this. DLC is not necessarily the problem. The problem is that what is made into DLC is what is usually made by modders after a release of modding tools. What many Pc users find fault is being told that a company will not release any mod tools and that they plan on releasing DLC instead. Outside of that, many companies provide what is considered DLC on consoles for free on PC. This is really what causes problems for PC gamers.

6. PC gamers whine on $59.99 game price.

Let me say this, I have no problem paying what is considered a console price for a game but only if the game is not a port over and is really made for the PC. When developers such as ubisoft or ativision release a game at this price and either fail to provide a good working PC game or take away features then its a eye sore to the pc gamers. Why would a pc gamer want to pay what is considered higher price for a game that has less features or is a very bad port over? Let us not forget that console games have that higher tag because of paying royalties to actually produce a game on a certain platform. On pc, they are simply jumping the price out of greed as those small fees are gone. Let us not forget that those charges even exist when you buy games soley online. Many times companies release games through the online developers at a 10% discount on release but this has not been the case on these high price games as of yet.

7. PC gamers are full of pirates.

PC has been known for piracy for a long time now but too many times things are taking way out of context in this regard. When reports claim that a game has been pirated X amount of times while only showing sales of physical software sales of PC games then ideology of the masses are flawed. Piracy is a far reaching problem that expands far beyond the reach of the PC but principly, PC gaming is the only system who regularly gets condoned for it. Is piracy bad? Well offcourse and it will always be a problem on the PC but do not forget how much of a problem it has been on other platforms throughout the year too. We as a gamer nation are to cynical in the regard to always point out numbers and facts on piracy but many of them are base on pure speculation or reports without factual creditability. This has also seemed to be the main fuel from many game developers when they point too bad sales on the PC platform even when subjects such as, high release price, bad porting, dlc paying, lack of mod tools, bugs, lack of features compared to console, and others could also be used as a major problem. A good statement that has been made multiple times is that, "Good Pc games sale well regardless if the game gets pirated." Just something to think about as gamers before raising countless threads on this issue without looking over the whole scope of a certain game.

PC gamers are branded elitist solely because we often mention our superior hardware. In a sense, we are elitist; but no more than the console gamers with their "OMG, HALO/GoW (either ;) )/MGS" obsession.

The PC just doesn't have the PR guys that the 360 or PS3 does. It's also an everyday tool. It lacks that social element, so you don't hear "Want to come around and play on my PC?" - there's a perception that's become entrenched since the only people who challenge it are the users themselves (and thus open to being biased or called fanboys) rather than a huge press machine.

Ah well, their loss...

Yes, we are the elite, the cream of the crop, the best of the best, , the pick of the litter, the finest, the privileged, the upper crust.

With every game purchase we recieve a complimentary toilet paper roll made of thin layers of pure gold.

:P Just kidding of course, we're gamers like any other.

except we have better RTS games...

Personally I feel when these threads come up that they are to subjective. Instead I will redirect the question to "PC gamers feel they are better then other gamers".jedikevin2

PCs don't necessarily cost more. For example, my mid range computer through its upgrades and selling of parts cost less then someone who ordered a ps3 on release + peripherals on release. On 360 its even more considering the live price aspect. I guess I will have have to go deeper into that.jedikevin2

I wrote a blog on PC Gaming recently (the one linked in my sig) where I only touched on pricing very briefly, but the point I wanted to make was that the "cost" of PC gaming is only an issue if you're actually low on money. If you're a grown-up with a steady job and some disposable income, putting money aside towards a hardware upgrade every 12 months or so shouldn't be very difficult for you, if know how to manage your budget and balance it every month. It's just like saving up for anything else.ChiliDragon

This thread is proof of #1 being true, and not in the way you explained it.Renevent42

I'm always saving money, and the bigger the chunk that comes out of my savings, the bigger the chunk (not percentage-wise, mind). It doesn't matter how "affordable" it is relatively.Jandurin

Taking into account of some users, I have updated the original thread. Hopefully it will take out that confusion of elitism and mid range gamer pricing.

Digging this thread. Definitly touching on all the points I see in many online forums on pc gamers.

[QUOTE="ChiliDragon"]I wrote a blog on PC Gaming recently (the one linked in my sig) where I only touched on pricing very briefly, but the point I wanted to make was that the "cost" of PC gaming is only an issue if you're actually low on money. If you're a grown-up with a steady job and some disposable income, putting money aside towards a hardware upgrade every 12 months or so shouldn't be very difficult for you, if know how to manage your budget and balance it every month. It's just like saving up for anything else.Jandurin

So true.. So true w4rrior. What about those first prices of HDMI cables. Those things were crazy expensive for the systems when they came out.

This does not belong to this forum.RichardStallman

What many Pc users find fault is being told that a company will not release any mod tools and that they plan on releasing DLC instead.

jedikevin2

Woo. Good thread. Should be stickied somewhere. Like that adrian werner link. Tactical intervention, Naumachi : Space warfare, and natural selection 2 looks awesome.

I feel more elite to console gamers simply because pc gaming takes more thinking to play (so little casual gamers) and the keyboard and mouse = more skills.

1. You have to admit that certain PC gamers SEEM to exhibit a certain amount of arrogance, especially concerning those genres that are considered best on (or only on) PC.I exhibit arrogance and I think its justified by the way consolites act.

2. PCs do cost more than consoles. Why would you want to put together a cheap PC if you're going through the trouble? If you're buying a pre-made PC, then the cost skyrockets for a good setup. Over time consolites spend more money than PC gamers because of royalties, just about all console dlc costs money, and they fork out a few thousand for a new TV so they are able to experience there next gen graphics (even though its year behind PC).

6. 60 dollars is too much for games. Even 50 is. This is a recent determination of mine. *shrug*
this depends on where you live in the world, console games here usually cost 70$ while new PC games cost 50.

Jandurin

[QUOTE="RichardStallman"]This does not belong to this forum.ChiliDragon

1. You have to admit that certain PC gamers SEEM to exhibit a certain amount of arrogance, especially concerning those genres that are considered best on (or only on) PC.Jandurin

5. I hate DLC that costs money and effects multiplayer play, no matter where it comes from or what it is >_>

6. 60 dollars is too much for games. Even 50 is. This is a recent determination of mine. *shrug*

[QUOTE="ChiliDragon"][QUOTE="RichardStallman"]This does not belong to this forum.RichardStallman

PCs are better simply because they're cheaper than consoles here

PCs are better simply because they're cheaper than consoles here

Lox_Cropek

Added more information to the original post that addressed more threads on pc gamers.

ah..nevermind

Oh I think I accidentally deleted it. Its more of a correlation of others thoughts on it which I added to the original post or what people pmed me on the matter. My bad in the deletion of the last paragraph dakan45 as you got a false context to what the thread was originally about. jedikevin2