this plus a decent widescreen LCD (20-22" monitors capable of at least 720p or 1080i are like $300) is basically what drako said would happen like five years ago, at the least.

My gaming skills are sketchy at best but they are abysmal when using a joypad. I just can't get the hang of it. Maybe I've not given it a chance to be honest.

I just recently bought a 60" Sony from a friend who wanted to upgrade to the 70" and this thing is sweet. I've not hooked up my PS2 to it yet but I'll bet it looks pretty decent compared to what it was hooked up to before. After the holidays I may set it up and see what happens.

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I don't know for sure if this device behaves like those did but I doubt it would be any different. And for whatever reason, despite the fact that the xbox 360 has fully function USB 2.0 ports, it doesn't support HID's very well. I think you can use a keyboard to type messages on xbox live, and you can read the contents from a usb drive but I haven't seen any function mouse support, you can't write to usb drives, and the only web cam that works is the MS branded unit. So unless they're willing to open up their software limitations and let the hardware function fully, they won't be able to supplant PC games. Although with a hard drive and internet connection available, they managed to bring a prominent PC game feature to the 360: buggy initial releases and weeks of waiting for patches. Playing ranbow 6 vegas online for the first few weeks the game was out was ridiculous. It would lock up the system every hour to two on average, often at random. Or sometimes not: in coop story mode with respawns turned on, if two teammates were to die at the exact same time (like from a grenade), it would freeze when they respawned (which they did at the exact same position).

And with the disparity in the average ages of online players, I doubt PC and console gaming will completely converge. Especially with the 'achievement' system in xbox 360 games or the poor implementation of unlockable content and the scarcity of dedicated and/or well-run servers in the console universe. If it does happen, I guarantee it won't be in this generation. And I highly doubt it'll be on a microsoft system, since they're unwilling to give up their windows sales. And since PC's have to be powerful enough to play videos and multimedia, they'll likely be powerful enough to keep playing games, and therefore will still have them available. I think a widespread adoption of table PC's would do more to disrupt PC gaming than anything on a console, because tablet generally not very powerful but still capable of most web browsing and productivity apps.

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quote:

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Originally posted by burble:
i always laugh at people buying $60 component cables to hook up a PS3 to an HDTV.

it's going to look like piss no matter what.

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You're joking, right? If not, you're damn retarded. HDMI > * in terms of quality, and cheap cables don't cut it. The PS3 outputs 1080p for BluRay movies and delivers whatever the game gives, if the TV accepts that signal. Using shitty cables will give you shitty picture.

Sure, the console experience has drawn closer toward the PC experience, but c'mon guys. Think back to why we label ourselves PC gaming... PC games have always been the innovative creations that consoles are finally catching up to. PCs enable us to come across games that will never see life on a console because its not created by a major development company. PCs allows us to purchase next-gen games without leaving our homes. PCs don't have backwards compatibility issues. That PS3 you bought for $600 will be rendered useless as soon as the cocksuckers at Sony create its replacement that you must own for a measly $1000 (oh yeah, don't think you won't see a console that costs a grand in our future, hell... We we're shocked by PS2's $299, then 360s $399, and labatomized by PS3's $599. Or how bout when the fan breaks in your 360 you can either use your replacement plan that you purchased in the store, use the system in short intervals (HA), send it back to MS for repair for half the consoles price (plus shipping), or buy a new one. Oh shit my exhaust fan broke in my PC Case, lemme go pick up a new one at Best Buy for $10 bucks.

Oh, how bout I don't need to pay a service fee to play on-line on my PC (Xbox live, and soon the PS3 [if you think it'll remain free, you're dead wrong.. Sony is going to be sooo screwed by their BS3 that it'll only make sense to re-coup money thru their online service. watch when everyone gripes and they say "With the price of the PS3 and the amazing value it provides, we feel that users will have no issues with paying for its on-line service. BTW, all Blu-Ray movies and games with on-line features require an activated account or they won't play."]).

Oh, how can I forget about the "extras" you can purchase on XBox live. Ya know, the stuff that's already on the disk that you paid $60 for in the first place. Yeah, if I don't get that extra content for free on the PC version already, you bet your ass someone will find a way to hack it up. Which means they won't even bother trying that shit with a PC gamer..

Which brings me to my final point.... Modding. Now I know MS is providing a way for developers to get involved with writing up their own games for Live with an SDK, but that shit ain't going to be free. Not to mention it'll be censored. For example, you can get Rocket Arena for Quake6 on Xbox if you spend $10 bucks. Or you can get it for free on the PC. (That's if the game developers allow that because they'll get screwed out of money if they do) Or lets just think of the simple shit. There's no flashlight mod for Doom3 on XBox, but there is for PC.

Yeah, so don't get me wrong. I like the direction the consoles are going (except for the paying for unlockables on Live where scumbags like EA are really dicking people over), but they'll never provide a value of gaming that perfectly equals a PC. It'll just never happen.

Oh, yeah, just 1 more thing to end my rants. MMOs. I'm sorry, but a MMO just will never work right on a console. So many things to backup my claim, I'll just list them off quickly.

1) Game created strictly for the consoles hardware. What happens if the game becomes popular and there's so many things going on on screen that the console actually starts upchucking? Sorry, no RAM or Video Card upgrade there..

2) Lag in itself. We see how some MMOs battle lag. A console will make it harder. Not only do you have to battle the lag of the Internet, but you'll have to battle the lag of the service (eg. Live). Hell, lets say WoW was to hit 360. When WoW gets bogged down, it only affects the WoW worlds on a PC. But if it gets bogged down on Live, it could cause issues throughout the whole Live service regardless of what game you're playing.

3) Who would pay a subscription fee for Live then another subscription fee for the MMO?

4) If you don't already own a keyboard/mouse that works with the console, you'll need to buy one for the MMO. I'm not even saying for the purpose of communicatings, I'm talking about just to play the game. How the fuck can you play an MMO limited to at max 10 buttons and 2 analog sticks. That can't even cover basic operations of the game, let alone extra shit like hotkeys, bindings, bot activator lol.

5) Once again, censorship. I know WoW has many hidden references for geeks (NPCs named after gaming characters, Missions that reflect a movie/game). You won't see the NPC that provide magic mushrooms named "Luigi Mario" in the Sony version.

quote:

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Originally posted by Snaggles:
You take one of those $299 computer and spend an extra couple hundred and you have something that would hand the PS3 or the 360 its ass back to it...

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quote:

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Originally posted by Snaggles:
attempt to say something funny

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quote:

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Originally posted by Snaggles:
Hey dipshit

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Thats more like it.