I'd say I pursue both.

My DS doesn't get much attention while I'm at home, but it's the one system I can rely on when I'm out and about with a lot of time to kill. When my wife had surgery, and I sat by her bedside while she slept, Puzzle Quest kept me company. While waiting in dentist/doctor's offices, FFIII helped pass the time. My wife had to escort a patient to another state, and picked up Thrillville and Mario Party DS, which I've been meaning to check out.

My Wii is my only home console. While I wouldn't consider myself a Nintendo fanboi, they make cheap systems, have a decent number of entertaining games, and my wife plays on it. So, we tend to buy their systems (we actually have two DS's... his and hers I guess). Still, I don't tend to play it often unless my wife is around, but when we're together it can log hours of play in a single night. There are occasions I get the itch for some Rogue Leader/Rebel Strike, but they're not exceedingly often.

However, I'll admit that when I'm really in the mood to game, my PC is still first choice. It was a hand-me-down from Robear, and while it's pretty much a low-end system at this point, it still gets the job done. I have a large backlog of very old games that my last computer wouldn't run, so it'll be a while before I really need it to do more anyway. Not to mention, it runs WoW and Sins of a Solar Empire, the two games I spend most of my time on at the moment, so no real need to upgrade soon.

What you call "getting burned" with upgrades, some of us actually REALLY enjoy. There's nothing quite like putting a new piece of hardware into your system, or going with a totally fresh build. Sure, it's expensive, but that's why you only do incremental upgrades, and try to get into what look like the new standards fairly early (early enough to be usable, and last for several years so upgrades are entirely possible, but not so early that you end up with a revision of the hardware that is too outdated to handle the new stuff)

PC Vs. Console gaming comes down to one point: how you like to game. Neither one can be touted as "better" (especially now, considering most consoles are just PCs anyway). Do you prefer to play your FPSes on the PC, but really would rather get your RPG fix in front of the TV? Do you need a portable console to kill time away from home? Or do you want ALL of these simply because you like the games?

It's a pointless argument, really. Only those who have not yet developed the mental capacity for objective assessment continue to say that one is better than the other.

I would feel like I was missing an important part of my gaming hobby were I to find myself lacking either a PC or my array of consoles/handhelds. They serve different purposes for me, and my gaming lust cannot be satisfied with a partial solution.

I do own a Wii, recently a 360 and a DS, and while I enjoy them, I still play on the PC the vast majority of the time. While I think the problems with PC gaming are sometimes exaggerated, I understand why so many people don't want to do it. But every generation I wonder if I should just go console only and every time I find myself using the PC way more than the other consoles combined. I do see that changing in the near future though. As PC becomes more focused on "casual" and MMO titles, and the console starts carrying more and more exclusive or console-focused titles in the RPG, FPS and strategy arenas, I see the PC being more of my "niche genre" machine in a few more years.

And yes, I agree with nsmike. There's no reason to for a vs. debate, including between individual consoles. The PC provides a completely different experience, and as a result, you can't make may objective statements about it because most of the pros can be seen as cons depending on what you enjoy and vice versa.

PC gaming is more fun to me.
That's all I need to know for now.

Nice.

PC vs Console = apples to Oranges

I like PC because I like mods, I like community interaction, plus I don't own a console. I have ALMOST purchased a seXBOX 360 (when my DVD player broke), but I don't see myself purchasing one this year.. maybe next generation.

As far as issue with PC upgrades and driver issue, I think it is WAY over blown. I have had my computer with the same setup for over year and a half (maybe two) This was the first full upgrade in over 6 years (new everything). Currently it runs all my games at my monitors native resolution (1280x1024), at high rates. I can even play Crysis with a drop and resolution (1024x768) and medium settings... which by the way look better than any console shooter out there.

I am looking to upgrade this year with a new video card (looking for gt for the 10 series from Nvidia)

Consoles just don't scream fun to me, its even worse when people talk LAN party with consoles.. sorry I'm not dragging my TV to someone's house, it was bad enough that I dragged around a 17" CRT to my LAN parties when I was kid! I can not even image dragging my 42" plasma with me.

I also predict that PC's and Consoles will merge in the near future, or consoles will get so much like PC's that they will go through the exact thing PC's are going through now... which is release now patch later development.

Anyhow thats my 2 cents!

Yeah I swear we just tossed this around 30 other times in the past year or so.

My ideal platform isn't even out there and that would be a pcgaming console.

Pay $600 or $700 or more and get a pcgaming console with a 4 or 5 yr lifecycle. Everyone has the same machine. The controls are mouse/keyboard although gamepad or wheels etc can also be used. The price is higher because pcgaming needs more memory and you want a little more power for that crowd. Also hard drive can be upgraded. It's an open platform. It uses Steam for its online system.

We should load up Shadowrun and settle this once and for all. Do we have enough players with Shadowrun on the PC to field a team?

That's just playing dirty.

I want a nice clean debate!

Seriously, do we need this thread? I kind of think GWJ is above this kind of nonsense. Sure, I have an opinion on this as well, but I think I'll just let my spending habits speak for themselves.

Is it politically correct to console a gamer that missed playing a game that failed to come out on his format of choice?

People just want good games, a wise man once said.

Appreciate the effort, but thread locked.