Is it more expensive to be a pc gamer than console gamer?

I have never been a pc gamer nothing personal but I have been strictly a console gamer. I was thinking about gettign into it but from what a hear things like new video cards can cost as much as a xbox 360 or PS3 or both. I also hear you almost have to be bill gates to afford a computer which plays a newer game like Crysis, frankly i'm not willing to pay an arm and a leg but i;m looking for something new to try.Im just asking how much do you guys usually put into your computers only on new upgrades?Is it more expensive to be a pc gamer than console gamer?
1st, none of the PC parts except the 8800 GTx cost as much as a ''next-gen'' console.2nd, PC gaming only costs as much as you want it to cost.Is it more expensive to be a pc gamer than console gamer?
Like he said, it depends. You want a mad crazy gaming rig, be ready to spend some money. If you just want a decent rig, you wont spend that much.
I think so. When your hardware becomes too outdated to run a game, buying a brand new PC WITH a decent video card will cost more than the $600 PS3 (the most expensive console) and it probably won't be blue ray compatible either.
well, to answer you question though, yeah, you spend more on pc (that is if you want to have better graphics than on console)...the last 2 years and a half: 400 dollars on an ati 1900xtx, close to 300 dollars on a 8800 gts 320mb, and then just last week, 330 dollars on the 8800 gts512mb...Therefore, you get more bang for your buck on console, but if you are willing to spend more, pc has the best graphics...(nothing comes close to crysis...besides that particular game, the graphical leap isn't as big as some want you to believe though...) love my 360 too by the way...
while pcs cost more tahn consoles pc gaming is almost as coslty as console gaming
if you want to play the latest games then yes, if you want to play 2 year old games then no its cheaperpeople need to remember with pc games are cheaper, online is cheaper, accessories are cheaper. Hardware costs more though, and it does amount to more over time, I think the extra is more than justified.
In the short term the cost is a fair bit more but in the long term the percentage difference is not much.
? is $1.9 but because of cost differences, you can just about take ?to mean $ - or less than, even.It depends entirely on the gamer. My personal experience, though, is that it all balances out in the end.See, the PC has much higher hardware costs - you might be looking at spending ?500-?000 every five years on upgrading and eventually rebuilding a PC, while a console is like ?00 every five years. But that's if you want to stay on the speartip of technology. One could easily spend much, much less and still get a killer PC that can play all the finest the PC has to offer, and still compete visually with the consoles. I spent ?000 on bilding my PC in 2005 - a high end monster. In 2007, I bought an 8800gts 640 and bumped my ram up to 2GB and my hardware costs now over the space of three years are around ?350. Next year I'll probably need to swap out the motherboard and get a new CPU which will be around ?00 - but then I'm set until I need a 9800, which will probably be almost a year after they first come out.But then there are games. Firstly, PC games are (in the UK at least) almost half as expensive as console games. PC games typically run anywhere from ?8 to ?4, while console games tend to be ?5 and up - I've seen console games at almost ?0. Then there's the fact that most PC games have much, much more lifespan due to better multiplayer functionality, mods and greater single player depth. While console gamers are playing their serialised sports franchises they buy year in year out, we're playing CS and StarCraft - games we've been playing for nigh on a decade.And then there are MMOs. One can be a PC gamer and play MMOs exclusively. This can work out to be exceptionally cheap even by PC standards.Just to throw out some numbers - a PC gamer can easily make do with three to four games in an entire year. RTS games, moddable RPG games and multiplayer FPS games can have profoundly long lifespans. It is an if, but a PC gamer might find himself spending less than ?00 on three to four games, and that's all he needs in a year. While a console gamer - in my experience - needs many more games to maintain entertainment levels, assuming he is a hardcore gamer. We may very well be talking upwards of twelve games a year - at least one a month. That could very well be over ?50 spent on games. Over the course of five years, we may be talking upwards of ?500 during the abovementioned five year period, just on games. Versus perhaps ?00-?00 from a PC gamer.And then there's the fact that most console gamers aren't satisfied by just one console. How many buy a 360 for Halo, but just need a PS3 for MGS4? Quite a few. Throw in a second console and a second set of games, and costs can spiral out of constrol.The only way console gaming can be significantly cheaper than PC gaming is if you do not buy games. Renting - something which suits console gaming perfectly because so many of the games out on consoles are worth less than a weekend of your time - is just the only way to keep those absurdly high game costs from rivalling PC hardware costs.Anyway, the short answer is that console gaming can be cheaper than PC gaming, but it can also be more expensive. It depends on what the gamer wants from his gaming experience. In my own personal experience, console costs are slightly below, but roughly equal to PC gaming costs - and I say this as someone who stays on the technological speartip.
Not if you own an Xbox 360 and having to buy or repair a new one every couple of months. :P
Pc gaming is gonna cost more when Sony and MS could afford to sell their consoles for less than it cost to make them.
[QUOTE=''BeavermanA'']Pc gaming is gonna cost more when Sony and MS could afford to sell their consoles for less than it cost to make them. [/QUOTE] ....which only happens because the price of games covers the loss of profits from their consoles.
[QUOTE=''usule''] the last 2 years and a half: 400 dollars on an ati 1900xtx, close to 300 dollars on a 8800 gts 320mb, and then just last week, 330 dollars on the 8800 gts512mb... [/QUOTE]It is only expensive if you are going to waste your money like this guy has done. Upgrading from 320mb to 512mb won't give a spectacular perfroamce hit, even at higher resolutions. My pc: p4 3.2 HT, 1.5g ddr ram, 1650 pro agp is still going strong. I can still play modern games, including crysis- obviously though you have to compromise slightly on the graphics.
In my opinion PC gaming will always cost more than console gaming.Why? Because you only need to by 1 console and that will last you for years.But for the PC companies are constantly improving the quality of their gaming, which in turn will require you to upgrade your computer over the years.But than again it really depends on what type of games you prefer. If you like MMO's (eg, WoW) than PC is for you. Or if you like action games (eg Assasins Creed) than console is the way to go.
If you have a dicent procesor and a good motherboard the only thing you realy need to upgrade is your video card which can be around 150 pounds. But get graphics that are twice as beter then console and all the comforts of your computer. Many people moan about how anrelible and anoying computer gaming is, but that's the hole funn of it, when you spend cople of hours trying to make a particular game work perfictly on your computer, but when you get it to work you fire up the game and play whith a smile on your face. Where console gaming- buy the game, stick it in, start playing, boring. So anyway decide for your self whats beter valuy for your cash.
depends...with console gaming, you probably already have a tv so buying a console and renting games is the cheapest you can gobut depending on what you want, if you want the best that either side has to offer then you are going to pay for it and you can probably rack up thousands of dollars either way.
I paid ?00 for a E6750, 2 gig ram and a 8800gts 640mb, with monitor 1280x1024 (17''). This pc can run Crysis all on high on xp. Although this price is double the cost of a 360/ps3 in the uk, games are half the price. I save about ?0-?0 a game. Since buying this pc i have bought 10 games. A saving of atleast ?00 on software compared to console. I have already almost made up the price difference.
I would say that in the long run consoles are easier on the wallet.
like everyone said it depends on what rig you have, although I think its worth it.
If you want to play at high only than it is more expensive for pc gamers because you need to change your hardware every year