Does It Matter Where You Play Your Games?

For many years now, a war has been raged against hundreds, if not thousands of people on the Earth. All hidden from what you would normally see walking through the streets, hearing people talk. No, this is something you easily will find on forums, articles, podcasts and even on videos. This is none other than the infamous “Console Wars” that keeps appearing from every consumer, journalist and just gamers all around the world. Yet this all really started way back in the 80’s and through the 90’s for when consoles were just being introduced to homes of families.

Over the years the war has changed since newer consoles have been made and bringing other platforms into the warzone, making it to what I will call the “Platform Wars”, in which now everybody that are arguing, will try their damn hardest to find out exactly which one is the superior master race of them all.

“Praise the Lord and savior Gabe Newell”

What is fascinating, is that the idea of a certain platform (or console if you want in some cases go into specifics) being the perfect place to play your games on has made me ponder many times on a simple question,

Today we see games being developed for different platforms, making it almost an impossible choice as to where you want to buy and play the newest game you’ve just bought. Not only that, but you also now have to think about it if the game comes with multiplayer, DLC (Downloadable Content) expansions and even just the longevity itself.
From a marketing perspective, it’s easy to understand that they just want the money from the consumers, but buying the game and talking about it on which platform you played it on can also help them thinking as to where the most popularity exist. I for one have no problem being able to play on different platforms for a game to try it out, exactly what companies like IGN, Gamespot etc. does when videos of graphical differences come out on Youtube, comparing which one does it better. Yet there are some who will stand their ground and not listen to reason, with only their eyes gazing towards the one platform that is the best for them.

This not only goes to just specific platforms like PC, Playstation or Xbox but also for the Mobile Gaming area, in here you have the smartphone competing with the tablet. However, now that smartphones and tablets are in the same categories as laptops with the components being just as good if not better. Just taking a look through the app store you will begin to see that older games have come out in an HQ version, that has more vibrant colours, updated sounds and mechanics for touch controls. This makes it more accessible to a bigger audience, with the chance of being more successful than before.

So how come I keep pointing at this? Well it’s to show that while the technology keeps evolving and getting better with each year we pass, which also makes each platform better to experience. The war will continue to rage against each other and it’s not slowing down on bit.
Stop me if you’ve hear these words before…”PC Master race, PS4 is better than Xbox, Xbox has better backwards compatibility than others” etc. etc. For some reason we as gamers have a certain view on what makes a good game, but not really what makes a good platform. Here there seems to be more emotion involved than logic and though through logic speaking, it’s clear with today’s technology that many will point to PC always being the best to go with, but I want to stop a moment and rather look at why instead of the what. Why is it always only one specific platform that should be the perfect one to play on?

I own a Playstation 2, 3, 4 and PSP 1000. Does that make me a person who only wants games on the PS? No absolutely not, I’m looking forward to getting an Xbox, Switch and even the older consoles because I want to enjoy the games made exclusively on there, plus whenever I visit a friend who has one, we always enjoy playing together a good game on a good platform. At the moment, I also own a Nintendo 3DS XL, Gameboy SP and a PC which is fantastic for when I want to play different games.
On the go, there’s nothing better than to play on a 3DS, PSP, smartphone or tablet and when I’m home, then there’s nothing better than to play on a PS or PC because they each give an experience that can’t be put into words.

 

 

Which brings me to my argument, that even though you might only enjoy playing on a PC, there’s also something about sitting with a handheld or a controller in hand. Now that can be argued that you can use a controller on PC or an emulator for a handheld game, but I once again will only say that it’s the “emotion” that guides you and not logic which is why I really don’t care for what is the best, only why it such a joy to play on them.

 

 

Today e-sport is one of the biggest events in the video game industry. In an article back in 2016 by Intel, wrote on how Mobile Games are the future of e-sports with games such as Vainglory (MOBA) and Clash Royale (RTS). It’s a positive thought, since mobile games essentially is easy on the go, offering built-in simplicity that eliminates the need for mouse and keyboard or controllers. In some way I believe that not only can it bring people to try out a game on a different platform, but they might even begin to want to play more than on one device all the time.

Vainglory Tournament

Should all games then be made for all platforms? No, not all. That is why we get exclusive games or in-game deals for a platform it has been developed for. Each game made should always see what technology is available to best be utilized for its mechanics, a game like Rocket League will have some difficulties being “playable” on a mobile device but works perfect on other platforms. Just as there exist games like Pokémon GO or Swapperoo could be played on other platforms, but won’t give the same “experience” as on a smartphone or tablet.

However, one thing that must be pointed out and understood is that games are developed on a PC and while you can use Microsoft Touch Develop to develop on a mobile device as well. It’s easier to do it on a PC with more workspace and better utilities to use.

Developers on the other hand can have a different perspective than we do, we are all gamers, but they do also develop those games we buy and enjoy at home. There was an article on Statista in which it short went into what a survery of 4500 game developers thought was the most important gaming platform that they are developing games for. This survey was done back in March of 2017, so many more games have come out since then but at the time it will still hold up for what I’m talking about in this article.

You will find more statistics at Statista

The way I see this “Platform Wars” should be dealt with is a rather easy choice. If you choose to stick with a certain platform, in this case being a PC, Xbox or PS4 then we know it’s relatively normal to just upgrade your inventory of components whenever the PC needs to be in the race for games with higher graphical fidelity. Yet for the consoles themselves, you need to buy a newer version like you would with a newer smartphone or tablet. When Sony revealed the Playstation 4 Pro to the world, it was nothing more than an upgraded PS4 with better technology as goes the same with Xbox One X. Truth be told, the companies do make a ton of cash from just doing the same that Apple and other mobile companies does, yet it could benefit more from being able to have a specific deal with a company like AMD or Intel where you can buy certain versions of components that controls the machine and that way upgrade like you would a PC. There are flaws in this idea but it’s at least better than keeping buying the next version of a console as if you got a new patch update but can’t play the newer games unless you get it.

Does it matter where you play your games? Absolutely not, you as a gamer are entitled to play on what you like, where ever you like it. Just accept that all are here to co-exist for gamers around the world such as you and me, to enjoy good games on good platforms.

“Good Times Spent With Friends” – Console Jumblo

Nevertheless, what do you guys think? Do you agree or disagree with my viewpoint? Write it down in the comments below.
Stay Cozy and have a nice day!