I have been out of the video game world for a while (let's just say the original Wii is my current system).
I am thinking about buying a system, but need advice on what console (xBox1, xbox360, PS3, PS4) to purchase?
I don't need this thing to be the hub of my entertainment center (Netflix, sharing with other users) etc. I just want a solid platform for the video games.
Along those lines, a motorcycle racing game is paramount. MotoGP seems to be the consensus choice. Anyone recommend a version? The net seems to have MANY varying opinions of what year is the best.
I will NEED Laguna Seca as one of the tracks, so I would assume the most current version (MotoGP 15) will not have LS because MotoGP last raced there in 2013. Am I right to assume MOtoGp 14 will have LS as the video game is based on the priot season? I have had zero luck trying to find a track listing for any year.
In MotoGP™15 you can race on all 18 official tracks from the 2015 championship. Losail International Circuit Circuit of the Americas Termas de Río Hondo Circuito de Jerez Le Mans Autodromo del Mugello Barcelona-Catalunya TT Assen Sachsenring Indianapolis Motor Speedway Automotodrom Brno Silverstone Circuit Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli MotorLand Aragón Twin Ring Motegi Phillip Island Sepang International Circuit Comunitat Valenciana - Ricardo Tormo
In the MotoGP 2014 page I found that the PC version at least has Laguna Seca for an additional $2.99 on top of the $29.99 for the main game.
I checked xbox.com, the Laguna Seca DLC is $1.99 there, I assume it is similar priced on the PlayStation store.
If online play with friends isn't in the equation than imo the PS4 is the better system.
Smaller form factor No power brick faster game install better graphics
If you do plan on gaming online with friends then I'd recommend going with whichever system they all have as both the PS4 and XB1 are close in most aspects.
I bought the PS4 a few months ago when my PS3 died. The graphics and all blow me away. I have Last of Us, GTAV, Assassins Creed, and Alien Isolation. I may buy Drive Club soon, but motorcycle racing games have a hard capturing the essence of racing/riding a motorcycle, to me anyway. Plus, the controls are usually wonky.
I'm not a hardcore gamer, but I've had every version of the Playstation released. I really like the interface of the PS4.
Thanks guys. I got my first taste of an xbox 360 last night. Holy shit there are alot of buttons on the controller. I played a tuner street racing game based in LA (only because it showed a Ducati on the cover, but I found out I have to accumulate money to buy the bike.) It blew me away to be honest. Quite amazing.
I'm like Thumper...not a hard core gamer. I will be into the motorsports and sports games. I can't keep up with the shooter games. Those remind me of the CGI action movies these days--mass chaos only someone with ADHD can get into.
So far PS4 looks like the small consensus. Anyone out there game on their PC? Drawbacks versus a gaming console? That's a possibility, although it's a desktop in a back room of the house and I would like to view/play the games on my 70" in the living room....
Not to muddy the water for you, but the Alienware console looks more in line with what you are looking for. It plays PC games and it is rumored that it has the capability to emulate PS3 and Xbox games.
I have all the consoles including the 360, xbox one, ps3, and ps4. (You name it, I probably have it, including an Ouya and old stuff like an Odyssey.) Out of those main 4, I pick the Xbox One. That said, I do most of my gaming on PC, so if a game has a PC version I end up playing that.
PCs have significant advantages over consoles. PCs can produce vastly superior graphics, let you use virtually any type of controller you want, even allow you to change what button does what. Also, PC games are usually cheaper, and sites like Steam often have huge sales where you can get every game from a developer for like $50. You are not restricted on input options, so if you want to play with a mouse that is fine, and a USB Xbox controller is plug and play for most games. A wide selection of Wheels and joysticks and other things work great too, unlike the consoles where you are stuck with one or two crappy overpriced versions due to licensing requirements. Also, all the consoles except PS3 now require monthly subscriptions to Xbox Live or PlayStation Plus to play online, while it is free on PC.
Consoles main advantage is Plug and Play. Typically, all you need to do is pop in a disk and enjoy. No device is perfect, but it is more likely to work the first time on a console, you are more likely to encounter some kind of an issue on a PC version of the game, especially if you have an unusual hardware setup. You don't even need a beefy computer these days, I enjoy many games on a crappy $200 Asus Windows 8 netbook/tablet, but most titles I have to keep the settings low to be playable.
Virtually everything can do streaming these days, so you can keep your console in one part the house and play from the other. It is really nice if someone is using your main TV for Netflix and you still want to get a race or two in.
Out of all the consoles, the Xbox One is your best bet. Yea, it has like 5 less horsepower than the Ps4 but that is only noticeable if you look at performance scores, the game developers use the same textures on both platforms. Xbox one has Kinect, which makes using the console significantly more convenient with things like automatic logging in and voice commands.
The Xbox One recently added backwards compatibility, you can pop in a 360 disk or download the game from the store and enjoy the older game with perks of the newer console like video recording. It is only supported by a handful of titles right now, but it is quickly growing (licensing red tape).
Also, we are at the point where more games are coming out for the newer generation than the older one, so while the older generation presently has a larger library and a lower entry cost, this will likely be the last year that many new titles will be released for them, there will be significantly less next year and the year after.
Well, after some great insight here I decided to get a laptop that will hopefully do double duty as a general home PC as well as the ability to run some games on the big TV via HDMI.
My only concern is it has an Nvidia 2GB video card...hoping it has the HP to run the games.
AM I right to assume the high intensity games take more video processing power then lets say sports and/or motorsports games?
Fresno, I think that will really depend on the graphics demands of the particular game more than the genre. Number of polygons for processing, etc...If the game feels laggy at all, you could adjust the detail down a little.
Get yourself one of those cooling pads that sits under the laptop, keep it on a hard surface with plenty of space to get up through the bottom vents.
I've got a high end laptop with a powerful video card in it as well... the aluminum case HEATS UP when gaming... and if it gets too hot, it will slow itself down to save your hardware.
The only game I've found so far that I can't run at fully maxed out settings is Star Citizen.
Steam is a digital distribution platform for PC games and some other related software. Think of it along the lines of iTunes store and Google Play.
Steam is from Valve Software, the company that is best known for the Half Life series of games. It has been around for a little over a decade. Steam is famous for having large sales (biggest ones around xmas and late June), in these sales many titles are 75% off or greater, and you can even get bundles of games (like entire Tomb Raider collection) for like a dollar per game.
As result of these steep discounts, I have over 1600 games in my collection. MotoGP 2014 for example was $6.99 instead of its normal $29.99 back during the last winter holiday sale.
Everything downloads right to your hard drive and installs with one click. Everything automatically updates too which is nice. In the event you are having an issue with a game, there is a forum link you can check on, odds are someone else had the same issue.