PC Gaming vs Next Gen Consoles, Which One Is Better?

Let’s go back to 2005 and 2006, when the Xbox 360 and PS3 were released. They had a tremendous influence on the console market and significantly helped Sony and Microsoft grow. For PC gamers, though, both of the consoles weren’t worth it. They didn’t provide the performance PC Gamers were looking for. Some years later, the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One made their debut, which once again did not impress PC Gamers. The difference wasn’t day and night anymore, but still, there weren’t a lot of convincing reasons why one would bother buying a console.

Things began to change when PlayStation 4 Pro and Xbox One X were announced. Both featured an excellent price point of just $399.99 and $499.99. They had substantial influence, but it didn’t last long because better Hardware from Intel, AMD, and Nvidia kept releasing.

With the Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 announcements, It is safe to assume that day and night difference does not exist anymore. Both Consoles are featuring excellent specifications, and when you look at the price, It truly makes you wonder if this is the year you should get a console Instead of a PC.

Now If by any means you are stuck in that position, I can assure you that you have come to the right place. In this article, we’ll go through various comparisons that will help us In our buying decision.

Specifications and Prices

One of the critical elements of PC and Console comparison starts with prices. Now I know you have heard countless times that PC Gaming is budget king and stuff like that. But don’t let that distract you from the fact that Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 are featuring custom SSD’s, which are significantly faster, advanced, and something you cannot get for your PC. Comparing the specifications of consoles with PC isn’t easy because the hardware on both platforms is different.

For CPU, the Xbox Series X Features 8 Core AMD Ryzen Zen 2 architecture, clocked at 3.8 GHz. Similarly, the PS5 has AMD Ryzen Zen 8 Cores with 16 threads clocked at 3.5 GHz. Now both of these processors aren’t available on PC. However, If you compare the specs with existing ones, the best result you could get is AMD Ryzen 3700X, clocked at 4.4 GHz featuring 8 Cores and 16 Threads. Right now, as of September 2020, The AMD Ryzen 7 3700x Is priced at $294.99. This ultimately kills the price comparison at first because you can actually get a mid-tier Xbox Series S for this price. Anyhow, let’s continue with the rest of the specifications and see what cost we altogether end up with.

For Graphics Card, The Xbox Series X Features 1.825 GHz AMD RDNA 2 consisting of 3328 Cores. PS5, on the other hand, will have similar RDNA 2 architecture Graphics Card, featuring 10.28 TFLOPs, 36 CUs at 2.23 GHz. Series X has 12 TFLOPS and 52 CUs.

In the current available Graphics Card market, the RTX 2080 Super will be the most suitable GPU for comparison. RTX 3080 is also good, considering its same price and nearly twice the performance of RTX 2080. However, looking at availability, there is no chance you can get one. Both cards can compete with next-gen console GPUs, but at the same time, they cost $699+. Once again, the comparison ends simply because the price of GPU is higher than that of the entire PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X.

Looking at the CPU and GPU, we clearly show that the Hardware in the next-gen Console is significantly better for value. If you consider the 1TB Custom SSD, 4K Blu-ray, Ram, and all those other features. the PC won’t stand a chance. That is to say; If you want to meet the Console Specifications on PC, you will probably end up paying twice or thrice the price of Xbox Series X or PlayStation 5.

Note that we haven’t counted the price of free Controllers that come with Xbox and PlayStation. Other than this, you will also need a motherboard, case, power supply, and many other features to build a proper PC. I completely forgot that Xbox Series X also features Dolby Vision HDR, so good luck finding that.

The Xbox Series X Price is $499.99, while the PlayStation 5 Disc is the same, and Digital Edition goes for $399.99. There is also Xbox Series S, which goes for $299.99, and probably requires its own topic.

For Pricing and Value for Money, Next-Gen Consoles are probably better choices.

Games and Exclusives

In the past, the only reason I think PlayStation 4 and Xbox One did so well were because of exclusives. Yes, many people love to play games like FIFA on Consoles, and there is a different vibe. But at the end of the day, exclusives had the most significant influence on all buyers.

This year, the exclusives discussion isn’t fascinating. In other words, there aren’t a lot of true exclusives because If you look at PlayStation. Everybody thought that games like Spider-Man MIles-Morales would strictly join PS5, and that is because Sony itself said so. A few weeks ago, when the PS5 showcase happened, Sony’s immediately announced that the majority of PS5 games were also coming to PS4. Among these were, Spider-Man: Miles Morales, Horizon Forbidden West, and Sackboy: A Big adventure. On the bright side, there are still some true PS5 exclusives, which Include Gran Turismo 7, God of War Ragnorak, Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, and many others. Xbox has had a different approach. They clarified at the very beginning that the majority of games would also be available on PC through Game Pass and Microsoft Store.

Now If you are a PC gamer that would like to upgrade to next-gen consoles. Here are a few things you should know.

• Nearly all Xbox Games Will Be Available on PC through Game Pass and Microsoft Store.
• The majority of PS5 Games will also be available on PS4. Therefore, If you already have a PS4, I won’t bother upgrading now.
• To play exclusive like God of War Ragnorak and Gran Turismo 7, you will need PS5.

Why You Should Buy Next-Gen Console

Now that we are done with specifications, prices, and games. Let’s finally look at some factors that might convince you to get either PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X.

• Next-Gen Consoles are better value for the money. For $499.99, and $399.99, you are getting equivalent specifications of a $1000+ PC.
• A lot of games are optimized. Therefore they run in much better settings.
• When Buying New Consoles, you can also play old gen games through backward compatibility.
• Get access to the latest updates and features.
• Better Resale value in the coming years.
• For Casual Games like NBA and FIFA, Console’s are better choices.
• Get Access to all Exclusives on Day 1.

Why You Should Not Buy Next-Gen Consoles

Now, If you are already using a PC, certain factors can dismantle your decision to buy any next-gen consoles.

• With Nvidia Ampere and Big Navi on their way, it’s probably a good time to save.
• The majority of Xbox Games will be available on Day 1 through Game Pass for PC.
• Console’s aren’t meant for multitasking, so If you are using a PC for other tasks. Better ignore.
• Sony has already confirmed they plan on bringing more first-party games to PC.
• Not a lot of convincing exclusives. The majority of them are remastered remakes, and there aren’t a lot of new games.
• PC might not be future proof right now, but you certainly get the ability to upgrade parts from time to time.
• On paper, Console does have substantial specifications, and pricing is excellent. But like every other console’s in the past, it takes Nvidia, AMD, and Intel one or two years at best to make them look bad.
• Expandable Storage for Console’s is exceptionally pricey.

Final Verdict

This year the rivalry between PC, Xbox, and Playstation has reached heights. Making a decision has never been this hard, and all the credit goes to those hardworking Industry people.

Suppose you are stuck in this loop of upgrading to either PC or Next-Gen Consoles. I have got a few personnel recommendations for you.

If you plan on playing casual games, strictly go Series X. You can also go for PS5 as well, but If I were you, I’ll get the Series X because I’d rather spend $9.99 a month and play from a range of games.

Further, If COVID has, unfortunately, hit your financials, and you aren’t ready to spare a lot of money. Then go with the PlayStation Digital Edition, priced at $399.99. This has the same features as its $100 expensive PlayStation 5 Disc Edition.

Similarly, If you have a lot of money and you really want to get the best Frames and Graphics. I’d recommend going with PC, and perhaps try to squeeze through the insane queue and get yourself an RTX 3080. In the same vein, If you like to stream and would love to do some photo editing, PC is understandably the primary choice.

For those who are already using either PS4 or Xbox One. I won’t really bother upgrading unless you are really bored with 30/60 FPS. The main reason why I wouldn’t upgrade is that the majority of games are already coming to both PS4 and Xbox One. Other than this, Xbox already has plans to release more consoles down the road, and who knows, maybe there is PlayStation 5 Pro in a not so distant future.