Consoles might be stagnating, but the gap to PC gaming is only growing wider

[Redaktion]

Halfway through the ninth generation of consoles, it's probably safe to say that much of the gaming audience is unimpressed. Yet the release valve for console gamers that is mainstream PC gaming is growing further and further out of reach - and it's not just about price.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Consoles-might-be-stagnating-but-the-gap-to-PC-gaming-is-only-growing-wider.910085.0.html

[dirigent]

wth is this article 😂

[A]

You only need to worry about that stuff if you are trying to micro optimize. For anyone who comes from a console to pc gaming, most of that has little relevance. Only if you go more hard core trying to wring out performance to the max do these things matter

If anything, pc gaming is way easier than it has ever been. The reason is simple, because many top end games are aiming for 4k+ resolutions with all kinds of antialiasing and etc. This means that pcs these days can run way more games at mid/low settings and last longer. Even APUs are becoming viable for gaming, which is kind of what killed the low end low profile gpus.

[Bizarro_NikoB]

You only need to worry about that stuff if you are trying to micro optimize. For anyone who comes from a console to pc gaming, most of that has little relevance. Only if you go more hard core trying to wring out performance to the max do these things matter

If anything, pc gaming is way easier than it has ever been. The reason is simple, because many top end games are aiming for 4k+ resolutions with all kinds of antialiasing and etc. This means that pcs these days can run way more games at mid/low settings and last longer. Even APUs are becoming viable for gaming, which is kind of what killed the low end low profile gpus.

This is the answer right here!

[bilbaobab]

I think there are 2 things that matter:

1. Price - ps5pro and consoles in general nowadays are too expensive for what they can offer. They can't compete with PC, but if they were 200-300$, who would care to play on medium with upscaling, still looks good. But gone are the times of PS4 glory, which had good balance of price/quality.

2. convenience - consoles you just turn on and play. Smooth. Almost no settings. But nowadays you can do it with PC too. It's easy to play using Steam. You can even connect the controller and play the same as on console. The remaining problem is Windows. Windows updates, drivers updates, especially windows bg processes which make pc unpredictable/unstable. And viruses/malware etc.. Nothing that you have to deal with on console. If you use PC just for games, than it should be fine.


Incredible bonus of PC? You don't have to pay stupid subscription to be able to play online games. Subs are the worst anticonsumerism thing ever... Pay for internet. Pay for game. And pay mlre to be able to use it. BS!

[bilbaobab]

I am really happy linux gaming support is on the rise thanks to Valve. That's probably the best thing that could happen to gaming scene. That is what is going to kill consoles for good (as a matter of fact I don't think consoles will ever completely disappear, but something radical will have to change to keep them interesting).
Another thing, more and more console exclusives are "ported" for PC. More nails into the consoles cofin..

[Max Power]

Perhaps the one partial saving grace here is that iGPUs really are starting to get close in on performance to dGPUs. I think it's quite likely that one CPU generation from now we will be at performance parity. This opens up a world of possibilities for entry-level gamers from all sorts of popular, high-volume device form factors like mini-PCs. I can see high-end Mini PCs released in say early 2026 matching graphics performance of entry-level dGPU-equipped full-size PCs.

[Skeptic]

iGPUs really are starting to get close in on performance to dGPUs

Having fast enough igpus was never the problem, it's always been the pricing of them. The only reason why they're more attractive now then ever before is there literally zero competition in mobile laptop dgpu segment. It's literally all Nvidia, with absurd pricing in many parts of the world. Talking about stuff like higher end laptops with 8 GB vram RTX 4050s costing close to 2000 in EU, for example.

[GeorgeS]

You only need to worry about that stuff if you are trying to micro optimize. For anyone who comes from a console to pc gaming, most of that has little relevance. Only if you go more hard core trying to wring out performance to the max do these things matter

If anything, pc gaming is way easier than it has ever been. The reason is simple, because many top end games are aiming for 4k+ resolutions with all kinds of antialiasing and etc. This means that pcs these days can run way more games at mid/low settings and last longer. Even APUs are becoming viable for gaming, which is kind of what killed the low end low profile gpus.

This is the answer right here!

With modern APU's being able to 'run' AAA games IMHO the only arguments for 'Console' systems these days are multiple player/controller split screen games and maybe cost.

While a user has always been able to do more with a PC then merely play games, with 'low end' PC's having 'gaming chops' the decision on which to purchase may not be as clear as it might of been.