I’m still undecided, and I’d say reading some opinions would help me.
PC. the wealth of cheap games that are available on PC alone makes it the more viable option… Especially if you hit steam on sale, or use isthereanydeal.com
especially if you aim for 1080p instead of 4k for gaming. 4k gaming comes with such a ridiculous and absurb price premium that you could probably build 2-3 1080p gaming rigs for the same price… or buy shittons of games.
Pc.
- more utility than just games. Code, write, etc.
- a backlog of games going back like 40 years
- will still be usable and with new content for years. A PC today will probably be able to play some hot new indie games in 15 years.
- no subscription fee for online play, generally
- more free games
- many games are cheaper
- broader range of input choices
- emulators and the high seas, if that’s your thing
Edit, days later: and mods! Mods are huge.
you also can sail the high seas
Kids get consoles, adults get PC’s. Unless you want to be locked into an ecosystem for the rest of your life.
If “you can’t afford it” buy a second hand one you can afford and learn to be happy with past generation games which are often better anyway.
The PC is more money up front, but drastically cheaper over the lifetime of the product. It’s also more versatile, and capable of upgrading along with almost infinite backwards compatibility for older titles.
Consoles will be a couple of hundred (or thousand, depending on the PC you chose) cheaper, but you are forced to buy games within its ecosystem, usually at full retail price - a library of 10 AAA games will cost $600 on console, where you can get the same library on Steam for half or less of than that by simply keeping an eye on sales. The console won’t be upgradeable. You cannot easily pirate games, and there’s no such thing as DRM free gaming. And backwards compatibility is janky or simply removed for most consoles.
The only place consoles really win out is in live social gaming - it’s a lot easier to get a group of friends to play PS5 on the couch than it is to get them to play PC on the couch. Aside from that, though, it’s sort of like comparing a tricycle to a Harley… yeah, they’re both bikes, but the differences become real clear once you get out on the road.
