Choosing your gaming platform can be a tough decision. Many people tend to stick with consoles because that’s what they first learned to game on. However, a lot of gamers jump ship and head over to PC gaming once they mature and their tastes get an upgrade. There are plenty of reasons why they do this, which makes a lot of console gamers ask…
Should I switch to PC gaming? If you like access to millions of games at once, freedom to modify your games and system without penalty, insane graphics, upgradable parts, and endless variety, it’s time to switch to PC gaming.
That’s the super short answer, but there are a lot of points to be made. Let’s not waste any time; here’s why you might want to switch to PC gaming.
Table of Contents
PC Gaming is Affordable on Any Budget
One of the biggest advantages of PC gaming vs console gaming is that a new PC can fit into nearly any budget. While the costs of consoles are pretty even across the board (usually quite high for what you get), PC costs can be anywhere from $100 to several thousand. It’s all about what you want to spend.
If you just want a basic computer that can run a wide range of games, you can drop a cool hundred on a simple PC at a local shop or online. If, however, you want to build a custom monster rig that will blow your friends’ minds, you can slap down $4000 or more to get the absolute latest and greatest in gaming PC technology.
The beauty of PC gaming, as far as budget is concerned, is that there is always an option for everyone. In fact, who says you must buy new? You can get an incredibly high-end gaming PC used for a quarter of what the original owner spent to build it.
Part of the budget-friendly aspect has to do with upgrades, too. But there’s more to upgrades than just cost, so let’s give that a section of its own.
PC Gaming Is All About Upgrades and Customizations
Consoles come as they are. Your options are extremely limited. Your console is going to look and act like everyone else’s. Customization is mostly cosmetic or maybe just expanding the storage.
Yet, for the PC gamer, your imagination and your bank account are your only two limits. And even that bank account part isn’t that big of a deal.
See, you can buy a basic rig for a hundred bucks as we said a moment ago. But after a month or two, you can upgrade the graphics card or the RAM or the sound card. You can add more power with a new power supply, which gives your PC the ability to run a bigger and better graphics card or a sweet sound system with a subwoofer.
After a while, your cheapo basic PC has morphed into a massive gaming rig that can rival those used by esports celebrities. No joke: upgrading and customizing a PC is easy, affordable, and can go on indefinitely if you want it to. I’m still upgrading one of my PCs I built eight years ago for $400!
When console gamers want more power, better graphics, or more space, they have to buy a whole new console. Why? Because consoles are “throw away” gaming. They were never intended to last as long as PCs and so they can’t be upgraded or modified without voiding the warranty.
Consoles are “user-friendly” to the point that they are too simplified and too flimsy. They don’t take any knowledge to turn on or run, but you also aren’t allowed to upgrade, improve, or even repair them on your own.
PC Are Widely Available
Unless you happen to live in the backwoods somewhere without internet, phones, or electricity, chances are good that you can find a PC. Computers are everywhere that modern man lives. And if there isn’t a computer somewhere right now, there will be soon.
Consoles, on the other hand, are often location locked. That means that a specific console or console game might be available in Japan, for instance, but not the US. Or maybe there’s a shortage of the newest console craze in the outskirt areas where you live because everyone snatched them all up.
That’s not an accident! Console manufacturers purposefully make fewer consoles than they think they’ll need. It drives up demand and whips the mindless masses into a frenzy. This allows the manufacturers to increase the prices on the next wave of the exact same console a month later.
This is not true for PC gaming. The computer industry tends to price its offerings fairly because they know that if their customers aren’t happy with the pre-made PC, they’ll just go build their own. PC parts are everywhere. They are cheap when bought individually, and they are easy to resell when you want to upgrade later.
PC Gaming Has Fewer Game Publisher Restrictions
One of the most shocking benefits of PC gaming is that game publisher restrictions are almost non-existent. While it’s true that PC gamers might need to wait a few months for the PC port of a coveted console title, it will eventually happen.
There are only a few exceptions to this, too. Nearly every game ever made for consoles eventually gets a port to PC. And not that we’re saying you should pirate games, but there is a huge community of PC gamers working tirelessly to port and remaster old console games that publishers have dumped.
At this point, however, nearly every new game worth playing already has a PC release date and older games have been officially ported. Some games only ever come out on PC and never officially get released on consoles at all! When this happens, console gamers are out of luck. There hasn’t been much success with player porting from PC to console, but it’s super easy to go from console to PC.
Why? Because consoles are just simple, dumbed down PCs! They’re not smart enough machines to handle the incredible graphics, sounds, and features of full PC games.
Fewer Paywalls
There are far fewer paywalls to battle when switching from console to PC gaming. There are many reasons for this, which we won’t get too far into. Suffice it to say that console gamers get strapped with excessive fees compared to PC gamers.
Game publishers know that console gamers are trapped. There is no other way for these gamers to enjoy the games they bought, so publishers and console manufacturers team up to squeeze every last penny from you. It comes in the form of micro-transactions, season passes, and online permission fees, just to name a few.
PC gamers do have a few paywalls now and then, but for the most part, once they buy a game and install it, there’s nothing else to pay for. We can get DLC packs if we want to, but it’s not required. We can choose to pay extra for micro-transactions, but it’s not required. PC gamers can play their games offline, while may console games now require internet access.
For multiplayer console games, you usually have to pay for the console’s online multiplayer service. Not true for PCs. If the game manufacturer didn’t include or hasn’t updated the multiplayer platform, it’s just a matter of time before the PC gaming fan base will make one.
All PCs Have Built-In Backward Compatibility
One of the biggest frustrations for console gamers is the lack of backward compatibility. What that means is that any favorite games on your old original Xbox were totally useless on the Xbox One upon release. There have been some software upgrades done to the Xbox One to allow some of the older titles to be played, but not nearly enough.
PCs don’t have this issue. All old PC games can be run on all newer gaming PCs. Sometimes you need to do a little computer magic to get them to work, but it’s usually just a matter if running the game in a new mode or tweaking a file. There are tutorials for every game out there, so finding the process is super easy.
Plus, there are several trustworthy PC game sites that sell old games that have been officially remastered and fixed up for newer machines. The work has been done for you! Sites like GOG and Steam have tons of older games available right now. More are being added every day.
That’s not even counting the player-created and run websites dedicated to specific old games. These diehard fans keep the old games updated and running for new machines. Mind you, they are not giving out or selling pirated copies. These fan sites only provide patches for games you already own, allowing them to run on newer and faster computers.
There is literally nothing like that for consoles, and there never will be. Once your favorite console game stops working on the newer consoles, it’s gone forever.
There’s Even Cross-Platform Support on PC
One of the coolest aspects of PC gaming with old games is that fans will often make cross-compatibility patches. They create emulators for a modern PC to run games made for systems such as the Commodore 64 or the Amiga. The emulators basically turn your blazing fast modern PC into a clunky old computer to run those classic 8-bit games without blowing a hole in the space-time continuum.
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Modding Communities
It used to be taboo for players to mess with video game code. Of course, that taboo never stopped them from doing it, and so game creators stopped trying to prevent it. In fact, many publishers now leave the backdoor open to allow gaming communities to mod these games to the moon and back.
Modding communities are where you can make, share, and find mods, patches, and additional content to extend and expand your PC games. They add completely new content, change the textures and colors, add sounds, new functionality, and pretty much anything you can think of. Yes, there are even adult mods to turn innocent-looking games into something that’ll make your pastor whip out his cross and shut his eyes.
Modding isn’t done in the deepest, darkest reaches of the internet anymore. Publishers allow and sometimes encourage players to make their own content. Companies such as Bethesda even make “Creation Kits” that make modding that much easier for players.
While some console players have tried to mod their games with varying degrees of success, it is still not smiled upon. Console manufacturers and console game companies don’t want you to have the freedom to change their games. They don’t want you to add content or make things better. They only want you to spend more money to get their version of DLC, upgrades, and new content.
What Will My Friends Think if I Switch to PC Gaming?
Who cares? If you’re that concerned about what your friends will think, you’re probably not mature enough for PC gaming anyway. We don’t say that to be snarky. Consoles were originally meant for children. To this day, they’re still mainly for kids, though some now come with some more mature content and designs.
PCs, on the other hand, were originally meant for adults. To this day, they’re still very mature and “grown-up” machines. They are complex, powerful, and can do a whole hell of a lot more than consoles ever can. They are full computers with a huge array of features and uses, while consoles are trimmed down and basic computers with one purpose.
If your friends flip out because you’re switching to PC gaming, maybe you’re just more mature than they are! Heck, maybe they’re just jealous.
Mind you, this is not to say that adults can’t enjoy consoles. There are a handful of mature games on consoles, and there’s no shame in adults enjoying games meant for kids anyway. But there comes a time when every adult needs to cut the cord, so to speak, and peek into the very mature world of PC gaming. You’re missing out on a ton of fun if you don’t.
Where Do I Start with PC Gaming?
So, we’ve convinced you to switch to PC gaming? That’s pretty sweet! We’re not going to leave you hanging though. Here’s a quick guide to get you started on your new adventure.
Here’s a couple of pre-made gaming PCs to whet your appetite. Just remember that you can go for a higher end, lower end, or somewhere in between. You can get new, used, or refurbished. Anything you get can also be upgraded at any time, one part at a time or all at once. You have complete and absolute freedom with PC gaming, so don’t be afraid to just pick one and go!
Top Choice for PC Gaming
It’s not the most expensive gaming PC, but it’s proof that an impressive rig doesn’t have to come with a huge price tag.
It comes with an Intel Core i7-9700K processor with eight cores.
The 500GB SSD is lightning fast and ready to hold every game you can imagine.
With the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 in the house, you won’t suffer screen tears, lag, or stutters.
The liquid cooling in this machine will keep all those expensive parts at optimum running temperatures while running even the most extreme games.
For the awesome factor, this PC comes with customizable lighting to match your mood, your game, or your decor.
It also comes with 1x LED backlit USB gaming keyboard, 1x LED USB gaming mouse, and 1x AC power cord. You’ll need to get a monitor to go along with this, but everything else is included in this package.
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Affordable Power Gaming PC
This ominous-looking beast is set to kick any game’s butt with the flick of the switch.
Along with its cool lighting and sinister appearance, it comes with a screaming 3.1GHz quad-core and the deliciously sexy NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti graphics card.
Even though it comes with 8GB of DDR4 RAM, it can easily be upgraded when your budget allows.
The 1TB hard drive can hold a ton of games at once on a tried and true piece of technology.
This one also comes with a gaming mouse and keyboard. As with our other top pick, you’ll still need to choose a monitor.
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Conclusion
Switching to PC gaming doesn’t have to be confusing, complicated, or expensive.
You get more bang for your buck with a PC compared to consoles, can upgrade and customize at any time, and have access to millions of games at any time. You cannot beat PC gaming when compared to consoles, so why not give it a try?
Choose one of our top picks, build your own, or get a pre-owned PC and take it for a trial run before you jump in with both feet.
Image Credit: gamebuildpc.com / imgur.com
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