Thats what I was about to say. If you buy a PC that can run PS360 ports, you are set for a few years until this generation is over. The only things that will change, is PC exclusive that are graphically way better then what usually releases like Crysis.

Yes, new hardware gets outdated fast. But the old NVidia GeForce 8800 can still run every games that came out this generation if you have a decent processor. And the price of PC hardware is getting pretty affordable since you can get the same graphic power of a PS360 for about 400$ + you got emulation, mods and everything PC has to offer.

Halo 3 ~

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ouZOrqhbYlo

vs (for example one freeware game)

Warsow

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtJKrIngTIs&eurl

( Its totally free! :P , http://www.warsow.net/ )

Owned?

PC gaming is stressful. Therefore I prefer consoles. Plus console gaming has the advantage that its games are usually optimized for the control scheme and hardware, then there are the myriad of exclusives.

There remain, however, many games that I will only ever want to play on my PC. The thought of playing something like Civilization on a console makes me want to throw up.

Oooo, this game looks interesting and funny. *downloading at this very moment*

PC

That was quite impressive. Also all of that with an engine that is over a decade old. That is another reason why I prefer PC gaming. There are good games that you can buy,  but there are tons of free games that are quite fun.

Yeah but PC's have better backwards compatibility support and arguablly better lifecycle support via emulation and other approaches - heck I could play Elite or most older console classics on my PC if I wanted (okay, a little effort to set it up required).

I notice many speaking about exclusives - isn't that somewhat redundant?  The only way I can make the comparison is to imagine you could have all games on each - i.e. a level playing field.  Exclusives aren't about hardware but business decisions.  For example Halo 3 would clearly be better on a PC in exactly the same way Halo was better on PC.

I'm also amazed people are talking about controllers - a PC can support any controller you want.

I repeat (because I'm in that kind of mood) the advantage of consoles has nothing to do with the gameplay experience itself, but lower cost, ease of use and size/design to sit under a TV.  Any game on a console could be played on a PC and with better resolutions, etc.  Any control method used on a console could be used on a PC.  Technically, the PC is clearly superior from a pure gaming perspective becuse it equals and in fact in some cases excells the gameplay experience of a console - the only downside is the box is bigger, the cost is more and it's more complex to set up.

Yeah, halo 3 owns that game 100-0.

The point being that consoles will have more experiences catering to that particular controller: it's why I find the standardization of hardware changing this generation to be so delightful. The DS and the Wii are largely fonts of experience that are not found on the PC at all.

Moot point but PC can't play most Wii exclusives legally.