Depends. Everyone has a PC, at least everyone who has a console. The moment a game releases, they may not be able to play it on their PC, but they can definitely upgrade the system later on for cheap.

For eg.: If someone wants to play Mass effect 1 now, they won't necessarily go and buy a 360 because chances are if they invested that much on their PC to upgrade it, they would definitely be able to play all the newer games as well.

Which is why console exclusives are never equal to true exclusives and shouldn't be considered as equals. But console exclusives do matter if you are more interested in console gaming or in the true exclusives of a particular system.

In my opinion, most of you are choosing the "right" answer.  You're opting for the games that YOU want to play.  Exclusives are good but if it's an exclusive you don't want to play, what's the point?  If all you ever wanted was Madden, does it really matter which way you go? 

Saw this site: http://factsvsfanboys.com/ and it REALLY made the 360 look like shit.  The facts were accurate, but goddam!  It totally omits a huge portion of the 360 library.  Just because a game wasn't exclusive, it was like it never even existed.  Personally, I think it's more important to get the games I want to play.  Next up is considering the entire potential of a console (or PC)--INCLUDING exclusives.  Just supporting a device because it has Crazy JRPG 3 when I don't even like the Crazy JRPG series--it just doesn't feel right.

Blatant falsehood. Computer parts are not legos. Every piece cannot go wherever it feels like all willy nilly. A system from 7 years ago would serve plenty fine as an internet machine, but not amount of upgrading could ever get it to play Crysis 2 well. The parts simply didn't exist at the time which means you have to build a whole new system. Gaming PC is not the same as just a PC. Gaming PCs will set you back an amount comparable to a console if you esnt to play the latest games.

And this matters because? Does a game existing on another platform harm the game in some manner? Would Heavy Rain be a worse game if it magically could be played by the 360, Wii, phones, or toasters?

This. If you want to play Forza and Halo, get an xbox and if you want to play LBP and Unchrted get a ps3. Just do not claim games like Fable 3 and Dc Universe as exclusives though. As for comparing their library quality, you can and should count games unavailable on a certain rival platform such as Fable 3 and Dc Universe. Comparing Library quality and exclusives should not be mistaken as the same.

I am not sure where you think upgrading is that expensive, I just upgraded my RAM for 50 dollars.

You don't have to upgrade everything. An old internet machine won't be able to run firefox properly (I know this because I have one), so it would be some time before such a person gets a new PC anyway.

On my second point, you took it the wrong way. What I meant was the equality in attracting a gamer, that is the worth in a console's library. Is red dead redemption an exclusive because its not on the PC?

Is extraction an exclusive because its not on the 360? Is okami a wii exclusive because its not on the PS3/360?

No. There are multiple systems and multiple ways of playing games, nowadays all you need is a pre-order of Homefront to get a new gaming system (onlive).

First or last option for me really, if the game is multiplat, all the merrier, but I usually get a system for the C, I wanted to play Halo 3, no matter how disappointing it was, and I got it. The multiplatform games that came as a result are just a bonus.

Well I bought 360 mainly because of Halo and Gears franchise but also because I had the first one also(loyalty)

Then I bought a ps3 mainly because of the Blu-Ray and some exclusives(havent played it really but thats now gonna change)

So every person has a different reason, except for casuals who I think just pick up a console because they saw a commercial with a game they wanted, not doing any research to see if the opposing console has the same but superior version also!

I am trying to find a non-jerk way to say something. Forgive the bluntness but you really have no idea what you ae talkng about here. After a certain point you have to just start over from scratch because the latest CPUs and video cards as of of late it seems won't work with your old ass set-up. Replacing that means pretty much replacing everything potentially including RAM even though it is a lot more universal than other parts.

"On my second point, you took it the wrong way. What I meant was the equality in attracting a gamer, that is the worth in a console's library. Is red dead redemption an exclusive because its not on the PC?

Is extraction an exclusive because its not on the 360? Is okami a wii exclusive because its not on the PS3/360?

No. There are multiple systems and multiple ways of playing games, nowadays all you need is a pre-order of Homefront to get a new gaming system (onlive)."

No I think you took my point the wrong way. The question was not rhetorical. Exclusivity is meaningless when playing a game. FFVI has been on countless systems, but I still love replaying it as much as when it was exclusive to the SNES. A game existing multiple places does nothing to diminish its value, and as such contributes to the value of the system it is on. My 360 is fun to play even though I own maybe 2 exclusives. I still like owning the system, and it was still the best choice for me at the time I bought it.

The first point can be avoided by sacrificing RAM and video card early on to reduce the costs, and get a comparitively good CPU. Later on as you need you can go on upgrading your video card and RAM without changing anything else.

But you are right of course, some people will have problems. Which is why I did point out that console exclusives are important as well.

The third point I didn't mean the value of a game. I meant the value that it gives exclusively to a system.

After a few years you're going to have to replace your motherboard, whihch means you're going to have to replace everything, in order to have a usable GPU and  CPU.