The Return of the King: Why PC Gaming is Making a Comeback
The Return of the King: Why PC Gaming is Making a Comeback
Posted 01/23/2012 at 1:09pm
| by Gordon Mah Ung
51
Comments
Print
With 64-player maps, exquisite textures, amazing physics, and tessellation that consoles can only dream of, PC gaming is undergoing a renaissance
Wasn’t it just four years ago that the pundits and game media gathered in wake, made a few pithy quips about graphics and soundcard drivers, and poured their 40‑ouncers over the grave of PC gaming? Well guess what, baby—PC gaming ain’t dead by a long shot. In fact, there’s a strong argument that PC gaming is not only alive and well, it’s thriving and poised to dominate consoles.
Don’t believe us? Battlefield 3, one of the most anticipated launches of the year, only offers 64-player goodness to those on the PC, and tweaks the frak out of PC-only graphics that make game consoles look like peddlers of VGA output in a 1080p world. Smash a window in Batman: Arkham City on a PC with PhysX support, and you’re rewarded with glass particles flying everywhere—just as if you threw a thug through a plate glass window in real life. Do that on a console, and you’re rewarded with a pathetic tinkle.
Let’s not even talk about The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, which has enhanced textures and graphics on the PC that its developer, Bethesda, says will “melt your face.” And hell, we haven’t even gotten to the PC-only titles of Star Wars: The Old Republic, Dota 2, and Diablo III, or the free-to-play phenomenon and MMOs.
So are we seeing a resurgence of PC gaming, or are we just fooling ourselves? To find out, read our report on whether “real” gaming has returned. Then read our reviews of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim and Batman: Arkham City, two of the latest games to celebrate what PCs uniquely offer; and finally, take a gander at our list of the 10 best free PC games online. If we are fooling ourselves about a PC gaming comeback, we’re having a kick-ass time of it.
Is PC Gaming Back With a Vengeance?
Here's how several of our industry sources see it
If we were litigators arguing the case of PC gaming vs. console gaming in front of the Supreme Court of Gamers, we wouldn’t have to make much of an argument. Better graphics. More advanced physics. Higher resolutions. Superior controllers. Superior gameplay. We rest our case.
Yet none of those arguments were worth a damn just five years ago when it seemed that every game developer was bailing on the PC in favor of consoles. The PC was lucky to get even a crappy port. And special enhancements for that $400 videocard or super-cool soundcard? Are you kidding? Indeed, even the most die-hard PC gamer will have to admit that things looked pretty bleak back then. So why should anyone believe that the complicated and infamously cantankerous PC gaming platform is truly making a comeback?
Dan Stapleton, editor-in-chief at GameSpy.com, says PC gaming is indeed on the upswing, and he thinks there’s even proof in the numbers.
“If we’re talking about raw numbers, how about 30 million active Steam accounts, 15 million League of Legends accounts, more than 10 million World of Warcraft players, and 4 million Minecraft sales?” Stapleton says. “Those are huge numbers, and each is representative of the things that are really driving modern PC gaming: aggressive digital distribution, free-to-play gaming, MMOs, and unfettered indie developers.”
Stapleton says the performance gulf between the PC and console is so big right now that he suspects console players are envious.
“You can’t look at the visual difference between Skyrim, Batman: Arkham City, or Battlefield 3 running on a console next to the PC and not be at least a little jealous,” Stapleton says. “We’re also getting amazing deals from Steam sales, and entire genres like real-time strategy that just don’t work well on consoles. I don’t want to paint all console gamers with one brush, but PC gaming is pretty compelling right now.”
It's All In How You Count It
That sentiment is certainly echoed by the PC Gaming Alliance. Formed in 2008, when PC gaming’s light was at its dimmest, the PCGA obviously has a bias, as it is chartered with pushing all things PC gaming, but the Alliance has some persuasive points.
“Two gaming platforms have died in the last 10 years: Xbox 1 and Game Cube,” says Matt Ployhar, current president of the PCGA. “PC gaming is alive and well; unfortunately, that message just wasn’t getting reported.”
Ployhar also says much of the problem came from analysts looking only at retail sales of PC gaming and not digital sales. The stats also failed to count microtransactions and MMO subscriptions—two huge growth areas. Another weakness of the numbers game, Ployhar says, is that PC gaming is largely gauged by North America and ignores a huge swath of PC gaming overseas. China alone, he says, now has eight of the top 10 PC gaming companies that are raking in cash. That’s not even counting the massive growth of casual gamers on Farmville, Facebook, or Bejeweled.
Another unfair tactic by analysts and press is to lump all consoles as one.
“That’s like saying Ford, GM, and Chrysler ganged up on Toyota,” he said. “Those games don’t play on each other’s platforms.” But on the PC, a game that will run on an HP will run on a Dell or on your self-built box. Ployhar says his estimates put the install base of PC gamers at roughly 30 million enthusiasts, another 220 million performance and mainstream gamers, and another 350 million casual gamers.
That dwarfs the roughly 185 million console players, Ployhar says.
If anything, he says, it’s console gaming that’s threatened with extinction if the expected shift away from closed, proprietary platforms in favor of more open architectures and streaming games actually occurs.
Case closed? Not quite. Jesse Divnich, vice president of analyst services with Electronic Entertainment Design and Research, doesn’t think it’s quite so cut‑and‑dried that PC gaming is undergoing another golden age. Yes, social and casual gaming, or browser-based gaming, has seen an explosion, but traditional client-based PC gaming is only seeing modest growth.
Even statistics that show the PC is overwhelmingly the gaming platform of choice in developing nations such as China and India are likely to be fleeting, Divnich believes. In the same way that video games started on personal computers in the U.S. but moved to early consoles, Divnich expects that scenario to unfold in the developing world.
Divnich also thinks it’s overly optimistic to count browser-based PC gaming in the same bucket as traditional PC gaming. Someone who plays Farmville, he says, isn’t going to automatically step into Battlefield 3. And the old problem with the PC, that you must know your system requirements just to spool up a game, is still a turn-off for mainstream gamers.
The Trouble With PCs
Not that consoles are without glitches. A lag problem with the PS3 version of Skyrim is so bad that gamers were ready to magic missile Bethesda. Yet Divnich says the key difference is that console players know it’s the fault of developers. On a PC, “You instantly think, ‘This must be something on my end.’ Then you have to go to a FAQ and forums. On a console if something doesn’t work, it’s not my fault.”
The PC hasn’t been trouble-free with launches, either. Batman: Arkham City has DX11 issues due to the driver. And driver problems were so bad during the launch of id Software’s game Rage this fall that it threw John Carmack into a nerd rage, in which he declared in an interview with Kotaku.com, “The driver issues at launch have been a real cluster!@#$." He goes on to say that the company does "not see the PC as the leading platform for games. That statement will enrage some people, but it is hard to characterize it otherwise; both console versions will have larger audiences than the PC version.”
Michael Pachter, a high-profile analyst with Wedbush securities, agrees with Carmack that despite the PC’s better specs, it will never be the primary platform for game developers because the massive number of console players and how much they spend is just too big to ignore. Despite that, Pachter says he’s mostly bullish on PC gaming right now and thinks there is indeed somewhat of a resurgence in PC gaming.
“I think the console experience was great in 2005 and 2006. And it’s the same today,” he says. “The PC gaming experience has continued to get better and better. Very few games come out on the console and PC that don’t have better graphics on the PC. Battlefield 3 is a good example.”
Pachter also thinks there is an upside for PC gaming from browser gamers, or casual gamers. “We’re getting new gamers through Facebook, who may or may not be 45-year-old housewives,” he says, “But if they are, they have 10-year-old kids, and little Johnny can probably play games, too.”
Pachter said the latest growth in traditional PC gaming can also be explained by rock-bottom prices for very powerful hardware. “My first PC in the 1980s was $3,500, and I remember spending $2,000 in the last decade on a pretty cool gaming PC,” he says. “The idea that you can build yourself a rig [today] from scratch for $800 is pretty compelling.”
More like this
Warrior247
February 09, 2012 at 4:40pm
I’ve been gaming for decades and so called "PC Gaming" (what IS THAT anyway, could somebody define that please) has been THE most disappointing overall! PC gaming is dead, it's clinically dead, and has been for years! The heart stopped beating long ago, and the few faint blips that keep it from completely flatling are all from forces outside of it's control. Basically, it cannot function on its own and the few bodily functions it does still have, has nothing to do with gaming. The few fanboys still huddled by its bedside cry out in defiance of the truth to anybody who will listen, but nobody is listening, because nobody cares! Developers don’t care and neither do the gamers. Who’s to blame? Blame the PC! The PC itself is the problem. It’s expensive, huge, hot, heavy, hungry, and mostly has broken and stolen games! It’s not even cost effective to build your own as you’ll pay retail prices and tax on every single piece you own! Whenever somebody can do what you can do just as well, if not better, more efficiently, and cheaper… well, you’d be fired! To be brutally honest, the PC has been fired by the gaming industry at large and is only useful in contract work and temp services!
hmp_goose
January 26, 2012 at 10:32am
So now that Pundits (and Teh Media)† have figured out they had their facts FUBAR, the Wintel platform is having a "comeback"? I'm thinking it wasn't down 'n out in the first place …
Part of the problem in the reporting, here, is how both "DRM/used games/piracy" and "crappy ports" issues muddy the water: It would seem any attempt to boycott such damaged products are interpreted as a slight against the platform. Any platform.
It will be interesting†† to watch Pundits (and Teh Media)† work through the next wave of consoles (Now with Xtra DRM®™!) and how they won't be adopted at a rate of 100%.
†See the pattern?
††OhGodOhGod: We're all going to die.
bling581
January 25, 2012 at 10:12am
I find it comical that you see "PC gaming is dead", then articles like this saying just the opposite. Same thing for "PC's are dead". We all know neither are dying but I just find some humor in it all.
Badg3r1977
January 25, 2012 at 8:38am
Why do people insist that purchasing a PC is expensive; you should look at it as an investment. I custom-built my PC 3 years ago and its still playing games at 1680 X 1050 in high-detail. Its had no hardware upgrades and I anticipate it will last another year or two before I would need to upgrade; that’s assuming I don’t over-clock it. Currently, if you work out the cost of my rig per month; its costing me £47.20 a month. To be honest, that’s not a lot and If you stretch it out to my max estimate at 5 years it would have cost me 28.30 a month; which is far less than I used to spend in the Pub per week! In addition, my PC is not just used for gaming also see: development work (web, programming, graphic design, modeling, etc), media (TV, movies, streaming radio, MP3s, CDs, etc), social networking and a whole host of other things.
So don’t think of a PC as an expensive purchase; think of it as a 5 year investment.
Engelsstaub
January 24, 2012 at 3:18pm
I do both: I play some games on my PC and some on my X-Box. Problem solved.
Trooper_One
January 24, 2012 at 12:19pm
I've always thought we now live in an Golden Age of Gaming - especially true for the PC.
So many good games, so little time...
OccultAssassin
January 24, 2012 at 9:58am
The number one thing I love about the PC is that still in Win 7 pro I'm still rockin C&C, Tiberian Sun, and Red Alert yet the new ps3 can't do a lot of ps1 or any ps2 title which is BS. Backwards compatibility is one of my major reasons I consider the PC King in Gaming. By the way ever since the greedy bastards at EA fully took over Westwood C&C has turned into a shite sandwich.
LatiosXT
January 24, 2012 at 9:28am
I hate to be cynical/pessimistic/etc., but with next gen consoles except the Wii U sporting next gen GPUs (albeit, the midrange ones), this cycle is just going to continue.
lillebusy
January 24, 2012 at 10:34am
The next generation of consoles will be popular and generate a lot of revenue, but I think the tide has turned on PC gaming becoming less popular. There was a real danger that piracy was going to kill PC gaming for a few years there.
lillebusy
January 24, 2012 at 8:23am
1) Piracy. PC games used to lose a large percentage of their revenue to piracy. With the recent popularity of Steam, game companies get a built in owner authentication and distribution system which makes both gamers and game companies happier. Gamers are buying more, stealing less, and buying games for longer time periods after release. With the increased revenues from game sales, making PC games becomes a better value proposition than it was a few years ago. The momentum for game companies switching resources to PC centric programming is still occurring because developing new titles takes years.
2) Social Integration. Social networking these days happens in places that are much easier to reach via PC than Console. This has two effects. The first is that people are spending more time than ever using PCs, making PC centric games a natural fit. The second is that games themselves are becoming more social and PCs are a better way to link gaming, facebook, twitter, etc. in a way that consoles will struggle with.
yawn
January 24, 2012 at 7:47am
yep, this is once again the end of a lifecycle of console hardware so no surprise the graphics on PC games look much better than consoles right now. it looks great with all the casual games numbers lumped in with hardcore PC gaming these days but once the next generation of consoles arrives with prices far below that needed for a high end PC setup and one that will last for at least another 5-7 years before needing to be upgraded (unlike the PC world) and its clear why most people will take the relative ease of console gaming over PC gaming, despite some of the tradeoffs.
i must say though, whats with the disdain for console controllers? most of my PC gaming friends use xbox 360 controllers to play games on their PCs because w-a-s-d just doesn't cut it unless you are playing a RTS or RPG?
lillebusy
January 24, 2012 at 8:55am
One of the points made in the article is that the price for a suitable gaming rig has tumbled. This means that companies such as Microsoft will struggle to provide a new gaming platform that is as good a value proposition vs. the PC as the last generation of consoles.
If an XBOX 360 is now 300 clams after five years of supplier and manufacturing optimization, surely a next generation machine will be 450-500 at release. The choice to lock yourself into 5-7 years of technology for $500 starts to look questionable if you can get a similar performing and upgradeable gaming PC for $800. This becomes doubly true when said PC can be used for all sorts of other tasks, similar to the way a ton of PS3s were sold when everyone wanted a blu-ray player for some reason.
In answer to your controller comment. A ton of gaming revenue right now comes from first person shooters, where console controls are at their weakest.
bling581
January 24, 2012 at 9:46am
Another plus is being able to buy a title from Steam during their holiday sales. The prices are just insanely low! The only way a console gamer can find a cheap title is buying used and I still don't think they would be as low as $3.
lillebusy
January 24, 2012 at 10:27am
This is exactly the kind of revenue stream to which I was referring. Similar to the 'long tail' that allowed Amazon to make a mint by offering older or unpopular books, Steam and related sites offer older PC games that can mean revenue streams for some PC games that are years old. I purchased an XCOM pack from Impulse last year for goodness sake!
bling581
January 25, 2012 at 10:10am
Actually, if you follow their holiday sales you can buy a lot of popular and new games for a huge discount. I couldn't believe that they had Batman Arkham City for 50% off this December! I thought I was saving $10 by pre-ordering it and my jaw dropped when I saw it on sale. I haven't touched it since it was released so I wish I had waited. There were many other new games on sale too such as Skyrim.
shommy2002
January 24, 2012 at 7:43am
"And hell, we haven’t even gotten to the PC-only titles of Star Wars: The Old Republic, Dota 2, and Diablo III, or the free-to-play phenomenon and MMOs."
Diablo III is not a PC exclusive. It has been confirmed to be
released on consoles.
Pyrophorics05
January 24, 2012 at 7:34am
Don't need to read 4 pages of junk. PC gaming never left, yet Maximum PC continued to relay the idea that it was dying.
h e x e n
January 24, 2012 at 4:54am
In the last year, I've talked to quite a few converts who now prefer the PC master race over console trash. Over the weekend I got to show a friend BF3 on the PC with all the settings maxed and he couldn't stop talking about it.
The PC is the supreme and ultimate entertainment device for enthusiasts and hard core gamers. It's always been this way. There are far too many people who care about quality and demand more than the sub par performance consoles deliver, for PC gaming to die.
Wingzero_x
January 23, 2012 at 9:33pm
This article says that it's unfair that they lump all consoles together, but isn't also a stretch to say all PCs are able to run games made for the platform?
If that was the case, I doubt consoles would've ever took off, but when you compare the costs of buying a $300 dedicated gaming platform that plays perfectly fine on the TV to what you have to spend (in cash and time) to get the family Dell to do the same. It's not hard to see why PC gaming is niche.
Blues22475
January 24, 2012 at 7:19am
Which makes sense. I can understand why players would prefer console over pc, but now adays it's getting easier to buy machines that are actually built for gaming. Granted, it's more costly, but you're paying for the labor and software plus whatever markups are incurred. Though I feel experiences in some games are better on the PC than a console.
Personally, I used to be a console guy. I shifted to a PC because I am tired of having to buy a new console every couple of years. It also seems some games are more expensive on the consoles than they are on the PC.
PC gaming might take more work, but imo I think the results are well-worth it . Example: I have Fallout 3 along with my friend who has it on his ps3. I can tell some graphic differences between our systems (better draw distance and graphical differences on my side opposed to his some graphical framerate differences as well).
illusionslayer
January 24, 2012 at 5:37am
That's why you don't use the family dell.
That's like trying to be a serious gamer with a Wii.
chipmunkofdoom2
January 23, 2012 at 7:42pm
Lol at all the "PC gaming isn't dead" propaganda. I'm a PC gamer, don't get me wrong, but PC gaming is not doing that great. All this talk about how great PC gaming is doing seems a lot like a patient in a padded room with a straight jacket. He thinks he's somewhere else, he thinks that he is someone else, and he mutters his stories aloud as he rocks back and forth, just to help himself believe. Who are you really trying to convince with these articles, MaxPC? Me, a PC gamer? The console gamers? The industry? It sounds like you're really just trying to convince yourselves.
Here's the deal, plain and simple.. RPGs do better on PCs than consoles, as do MMOs. The same with micro-transaction based games, developers have done a fantastic job of getting people to pay money to play these games. These things almost have to exist on PC... that's just the way it works.. that does NOT mean PC gaming is alive and well. Big blockbuster titles that are actually worth buying and playing on the PC are non-existent. If they do exist, they're slapped with DRM and GFWL and are more trouble to install than they are worth playing. The most recent example I can think of is Arkham Asylum, my game always crashes at a certain point. I reinstalled every driver I can think of, even the game.. no dice. How am I supposed to buy games I can't even play? You have no idea how powerless that makes you feel (unless it's happened to you. Then you do). I find myself playing games from 2007 on up because none of the big budget games of late are even worth pirating anymore. Crappy games designed to waste your time are doing better than ever on PC.. if you call that the return of the king, I suppose you're right. PC gaming is seriously ill, and I have to agree with everyone saying that this small renascence we're experiencing now will be crushed by the next-gen consoles. Again, I'm a loyal PC gamer, but all it takes is a few brain cells to see the writing on the wall.
Ledoubleu
January 24, 2012 at 9:54am
I'd like to kindly disagree with the doom scenario. PC gamers have an even larger advantage that you may not have noticed or haven't looked at yet. The Indie community is huge and growing and thanks to that we have the most unique gaming experiences from developers and enthusiast from around the globe. Now I also have Xbox360 Kinect but nothing compares to the exciting cutting edge of the current and future Indie crop.
Ghok
January 23, 2012 at 9:46pm
The first issue I ever bought of PC Gamer was over a decade ago and featured an article about how PC Gaming was not dead.
Both what Gordon and you are saying are not new things.
The Corrupted One
January 23, 2012 at 7:50pm
Have you ever tried playing an RTS on a console?
Hell, have you ever seen an RTS on a console.
Terrible, the controls aren't suited for it.
Griffin
January 23, 2012 at 7:16pm
PC gaming is only making a come back because the consoles are now so old, the graphics look terrible compared to what you get with a PC. Just wait till the new consoles come out, then we will be reading stories again about the demise of PC gaming... round and round we will go...
t.y.wan
January 23, 2012 at 6:06pm
I still think PC gaming stuck balls...
Every single large title for the FPS and RPG session (NOT THE STRATEGY) is fking console port... The developers have already given up.
I really hated consoles, all the stupid designs and sole function, non-upgradable, dies in couple of years and especially, the controller, why does it have to be so stupid...The extra "visuals" and "audio" just cannot satisfy my need for a game like CS1.6, pure adrenaline, fun, balance, and most importantly, LAG FREE. BFBC2? Dedicated servers with latency of P2P connection... COD? P2P with unbalanced as fk and horrible mechanics. Skyrim? WTF glitches galore... Just like Fallout3 / NV... Even now, they still didn't bother to fix the 10mm pistol + laser sight error bulls....
PC Gaming has potentials, but the developers are bunch of ds and constrict every good thing about PC... DRM? Cannot sell your old games? Cannot change out hardware? HORRIBLE stupid coding? Stupid P2P connection?
Now-a-days, I just watch youtube gaming videos with a commentator that I like... Playing and not getting annoyed just takes too much effort. Additionally, the "exclusives"? Gears, uncharted, infamous and Halo? I hate the controller and I just watch someone else to play it for me.
illusionslayer
January 24, 2012 at 5:44am
Do you mean large title as in development cost, your opinion, or player count?
Because if you're going by player count, as you should, you would realize that League of Legends, World of Warcraft, and Minecraft are all game that blow away anything consoles have to offer without being buggy, resources intensive, or a breeding ground for 12 year olds.
Also, you seem to forget that PC gaming now has Frostbite2, id Tech 5, and Unreal 4 with capabilities that consoles can't even begin to fathom.
LakeErieWater
January 23, 2012 at 5:37pm
PC games sales are climbing mainly because it's so flipping cheap to buy nowadays. I save a ton of money on games and I can put that money towards upgrading my PC's graphics capability or spend on other things that involve actually going outside :). I bought way too many games from sales near the holidays. I have a good 6-12 month backlog.
My Xbox 360 had been dormant for a while until I finally picked up a Kinect to give it new life.
szore
January 23, 2012 at 5:17pm
Give me the Glory Days of the PC flight sim ala Andy Hollis. What we need is a new proper Apache Longbow and F-15 flight sim. Alas, those days are gone... weep...
GaryIKILLYOU
January 23, 2012 at 7:11pm
http://lockon.co.uk/flaming_cliffs_2/
You're welcome.
Oh, and it integrates with the DCS series.
szore
January 24, 2012 at 3:30am
Yeah I bought Blackshark and lock on when it came out. I said a PROPER flight sim, one that is actually fun to fly. But thanks anyway. I know that sounds snotty but it wasn't meant that way... I just can't take all that Russian shit. Its Apache all the way or nothing for me, but I was impressed with the way the A-10's took out tanks. Seemed pretty efficient.
GaryIKILLYOU
January 24, 2012 at 3:38am
http://www.digitalcombatsimulator.com/en/series/warthog/
Personally, I love that Western aircraft aren't the focus. If you REALLY hate ruskie planes, then try FreeFalcon 5 or DCS:Warthog. It's free (obviously) and has a wonderful community.I'm going to assume you played LO when it came out, hated it, and never picked it up. You'd be surprised by how much it has expanded with FC1/FC2 and there are a TON of mods available.
szore
January 26, 2012 at 9:21am
Hmmm... Maybe I'll take a look. That was it with LockOn, wasn't very impressed.
kixofmyg0t
January 23, 2012 at 4:31pm
I don't think PC gaming is going anywhere. In fact I do agree that even better times are ahead for PC gamers.
However....I don't care about having "TEH BESTESTY DX45! GRAFICK5!!!". I play games that are fun for me. I don't like dealing with DRM of any sort unless it's something I REALLY want to play. So the only new(ish) game I care about for PC is Star Craft 2. Oh and Battlefield 3 for the sole purpose of team killing.
Otherwise I'm perfectly happy playing Deus Ex, Skyrim, MW3, MGS(I have EVERY Metal Gear title...and I'm working on beating MGS4 for the 50th time), God of War, Soul Calibur 5(soon), Tekken 6, Super Street Fighter 4:AE, Ultimate Marvel Vs. Capcom 3, Crysis 1 and 2 as well as many others on PS3.
It's just a personal preference.
kixofmyg0t
January 23, 2012 at 7:31pm
Metal Gear Solid(series) is by far my favorite game of all time, hands down. I have every single Metal Gear title ever released for any system. I even have the Xbox versions though I don't have an Xbox.
iceman08
January 30, 2012 at 6:53am
haha very nice. I have to say that Hideo Kojima knew how to make the most of the console's capabilities in all his games
mattman059
January 23, 2012 at 11:06pm
Did you play the one on Gamecube?...it made me not buy MGS4 until recently :P
GuitarNinja27
January 23, 2012 at 3:57pm
Gordon, I really appreciate your writing, and you make a solid case. However, while reading this article, I couldn't help but get the same feeling that I do when playing yet another World War II game.
"Haven't we stormed this beach already?"
We get it, the end of PC gaming isn't nigh. Thanks anyway, though.
Baer
January 23, 2012 at 4:11pm
My nephew in college who is a huge SKYRIM fan was over with a few friends during the holidays. They have already played through SKYRIM a few times on their X-Box 360. I let them set up a game on my rig playing in surround at 5760 X 1200 across three 24" monitors with all settings (except AA) maxed. They were amazed and I could not get them off the computer all night.
Except for price there is no comparison.
I Jedi
January 23, 2012 at 3:01pm
The Renaissance was largely funded by rich families, like the Medici family, and the Roman Church looking to make a name for themselves. So, in effect, what you're saying is that the PC comeback is going to be funded by people who can afford to have a gaming PC. Llol? I'll pun aside, I'm just joking, I get the message. I, too, hope that the PC will make a tremendous comeback, as I am planning to dump $3000 into a new gaming rig once Nvidia get's off its ass with its next gen. cards.
Supall
January 23, 2012 at 1:48pm
I was in college between 2006 and 2010. When you're cash strapped and unable to buy a lot of the PC games, you tend not to care about the doomsayers. So in a way, I'm lucky I didn't have to argue with them too often. :-)
Danny Boy23
January 23, 2012 at 3:20pm
I was in college at the same time. It was just too expensive to upgrade a pc for gaming. I am looking forward to building something awesome soon!
carage
January 23, 2012 at 2:35pm
At least piracy on the PC is generally easy...
The same can't be said for certain consoles.
Connect with MaximumPC
Featured Content
We introduce Intel's latest class of tablet killers and review 4 of the first Ultra...
This month's issue
Feature
11 Hardware Hacks
Feature
Overclock Your CPU
How-To
Supercharge Your Smartphone
Build It
A Powerful $830 Rig
Most Commented Articles
Latest Max PC Tweets
- maximumpc: HUD-Sporting "Google Glasses" May Hit Streets This Year http://t.co/TDXjJowZ2 hours 42 min ago
- maximumpc: Nvidia Releases WHQL-Certified 295.73 GeForce Drivers http://t.co/NVMWruHO4 hours 15 min ago
- maximumpc: http://t.co/BVVfRA3B4 hours 16 min ago
