Three main criteria will help determine which is better: PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One or Nintendo Switch.
- Budget
One of the main criteria for choosing a gaming platform is the amount of money you are willing to spend on the hobby.
If your budget is limited, you’re better off with a PC. What’s more, digital PC game stores like Steam or GOG often have sales with huge discounts – up to 90%. On consoles, such generosity is rare.
On the other hand, if you are ready to splurge or do not plan to buy more than 6-8 games a year, it is better to take some console: Nintendo Switch, Xbox One or PlayStation 4. They are easier to control, more stable and intuitive than PCs. You can plug them into your TV, turn them on, and never touch them again until the next generation comes along. With PCs, there are usually more problems: from incompatibility or defective components to software bugs or trivial Windows updates at inopportune moments.
The most expensive options for gaming platforms are the more powerful versions of consoles (Xbox One X and PlayStation 4 Pro) and the higher end gaming PCs. The most powerful console on the market, the Xbox One X, will cost about 40 thousand rubles. PlayStation 4 Pro costs about 30 thousand, and top gaming PCs – from 70 thousand rubles.
Xbox or Playstation: choose a gaming platform
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The advantages of these options are that they support the 4K format, and also pull games on high and ultra settings. Which means that the graphics on them are just fine. And expensive PCs also allow you to enjoy very smooth gameplay at 60 frames per second or higher. Consoles rarely play games at more than 30 frames per second.
- Available Games
Another important parameter when choosing a platform is games. Most projects are available on Xbox One, PlayStation 4 and PC. Also there are games that are released only on specific platforms: for example, the action game about the gods of Norse mythology God of War can be played only on PlayStation 4, and the fantasy shooter Halo 5 – only on Xbox One. In addition, some games are released only for consoles (as a gangster western Red Dead Redemption 2), and others are released on certain consoles and PC (mainly the projects released by Microsoft, like Forza Horizon 4 race).
Xbox or Playstation: compare game availability
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PC exclusives are mostly strategies and games of different genres from independent developers. For example, fantastic strategies Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak and Wahrammer 40000: Dawn of War 3 came out only on PC. As well as the multiplayer shooter World War 3 or the tactical action Insurgency.
Games available only on PlayStation 4 are usually third-person action games with an emphasis on story and gameplay. Over the five years of the console’s existence, Sony has accumulated many such projects. These include, for example, Marvel’s Spider-Man, the post-apocalyptic action game The Last of Us and the Indiana Jones-inspired adventure game Uncharted 4. All of these projects are different thought-out gameplay, a fascinating story and well-described characters.
Xbox or Playstation: game exclusivity
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Xbox One exclusives include the shooter series Gears of War and Halo, the racing franchise Forza, third-person action games Quantum Break and Sunset Overdrive. However, almost all of the new games for Xbox are also available on PC, such as Forza Horizon 4 and Quantum Break.
Exclusively on Switch are mostly Nintendo games: Super Mario Odyssey, Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Super Smash Bros. and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe. These games differ from each other in genres, characters and plots, but they have one thing in common: the amazing attention to detail in gameplay by Nintendo. The company tries to make each game as fun and entertaining as possible by following the philosophy “a game should bring fun and surprise”. And almost all the projects from this studio are rated 3+ or 6+ – perfect if you want to play together with your child.
Game platforms: age category games
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- Additional features
Each major platform has additional features that may prove crucial in your choice.
Xbox or Playstation: more gaming platform features
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Of the platforms we reviewed, 4K is supported by the PC, Xbox One S (an improved revision of the base Xbox One), Xbox One X and PlayStation 4 Pro. However, a comfortable game in this high resolution can provide only expensive PC, as well as the Xbox One X and PlayStation 4 Pro, because this format is very demanding to hardware. It should be noted that you should buy a platform for this technology only if your TV or monitor supports it. On Full HD screens, there will be no difference.
HDR is available on PC, Xbox One S, Xbox One X, PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 4 Pro. Playing with HDR turned on is an amazing experience that will make regular screens seem dull and dull. The key is to remember that your TV or monitor needs to support it in order for it to work.
Xbox or Playstation: 4K and HDR support
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Portability
The ability to play anywhere, anytime is usually reserved for a special subspecies of consoles like the PlayStation Vita and Nintendo 3DS. But thanks to the Nintendo Switch, it’s also found its way among stationary consoles. The Switch can be used either connected to a TV or on the go, thanks to the built-in screen. True, in this mode the console is a little less powerful, but most of the projects on it is still comfortable to play.
PlayStation 4 and Xbox One can not be called portable. But this feature can have a PC. Some companies produce mini-computers, designed specifically for gaming, for example, GPD Win 2. This is a small laptop with a built-in keyboard, gamepad and six-inch screen. It is not that productive, but is good at pulling undemanding games like Fortnite.
Xbox or Playstation: the ability to watch movies
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Watching movies and TV shows
The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One play Blu-ray discs, and they have Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Video apps. On the PC, all of that is available (though you need a special drive to read Blu-ray) and more, like iTunes.
The Nintendo Switch is poorly suited for video content consumption – only YouTube and Hulu are available on it so far. For some reason, the Japanese company is in no hurry to add support for other services.
Xbox or Playstation: versatility
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Multifunctionality
Consoles are designed primarily for games, and apart from that they can not do too much: play music, watch movies and TV shows.
If you want real multi-functionality, it’s better to take a PC – they are universal machines on which you can do everything. Write music, develop applications, create documents, access the Internet, edit images. It’s not without reason that computers are used in almost every sphere of human activity.