I have always been a PC gamer and never really got into consoles. Mostly because I have always needed a PC for School or work and while I was young I could not justify the cost of two systems. Now that I could I am so out of touch with that part of the gaming industry that I have not had much interest in it . I was just curious what are the strengths and weakness console gaming vs. PC gaming?

The last console I had was an NES but I have played a lot of ROMS and the biggest problem for me (aside from the fact that new consols confuse the hell out of me with movies and music and crap...its for GAMING!) is that in my very limited experience RPG and RTS and Strategy games are terrible with a console. Things may have changed but the consoles I've played seemed geared for a faster arcade-esk FPS vibe which is fine, but how do you play C&C with that, or even Fallout? I played a C&C port Sega ROM a few years ago and technically you could play it without a mouse but it was hard as hell. Also, most console games have "fixed save point" systems which I abhore because as much as I love games I am AWFUL at them and I would get nowhere if I couldn't save all of the time.

Some outstanding PS and XBOX or even GameCube console-exclusive titles do exist. I think it's about them. Pieces like Resident Evil 4, Shadow of the Colossus or Forza Motorsport. It's not not worth it buying a console, if you don't crave these exclusives. The communities also don't split as easily.

PC Gaming
Strengths:

- Can be used for more than just gaming

- Most precise control scheme

- Backwards compatibility basically from the early 90s up until today

- Access to many great console games from the Atari/NES/SNES/N64 eras via emulators

- A nearly endless wealth of user-made content and free games

Weaknesses:

- Less user-friendly and requires more troubleshooting and tweaking

- Generally more expensive

- Control scheme can be very hard to get used to

- The huge variety of hardware means compatibility with new games is not assured

"Console" gaming
Strengths:

- Easy to set up and play

- Comparatively little to troubleshoot or tweak

- Guaranteed compatibility with its own games

- Control scheme that is a little easier to get used to

Weaknesses:

- The games you have access to on a single console are comparatively limited

- Control scheme is less precise and there are less possible methods of input

- Non-gaming uses are more limited

- You have to own a PC anyway

tl;dr version
PCs are where you go when you want a lot of options, a lot of control, and a lot of content. Consoles require less fiddling and are generally easier to use.

That's my take on it, at least. I'm not anywhere near an expert.

If only not for those damn exclusives... So close.

The PC can do pretty much everything a console does, and much much more. The consoles are pretty much low-end PCs, so that's not too surprising.

Games exclusive to previous gen consoles/Wii? Emulators work well. Games exclusive to current gen consoles? Eh, there aren't a lot of the noteworthy ones anyways.

We seem to be fairly close to a new generation of consoles so now is probably the worst time to get one.

Consoles are in huge stagnation now. Until there is a new generation of consoles, PC is the king once again. There are much more interesting games on PC right now, mostly thanks to indies, and AAA titles work better and look better on PCs

PC wins.

There was even an interesting article on IGN I can't find right now, about why PC gaming ruled in 2012 and consoles are in severe defense.

Brown nose is 4...3...2...1...

On a console I can't hang out in here with you folks so what the hell good are they!?

I would say that the main reason to own a console is if you have friends who you want to invite over to play games with. I do most of my gaming on my PC, but sitting in front of the TV, playing bomberman while participating in the intake of alcoholic beverages is not to be underestimates as a way to spend an evening.

Consoles are a no-brainer for people who despise driver/system spec/compatibility issues. Set up, power on, insert disc and play.

The fact that I stick around on the good ol' PC is because most of my favorite genres/game series are on it. And I don't have the money to spend on additional money black holes.

This is a forum visited mainly by PC gamers, so you know what to expect when you post such a question.

In reality consoles and PCs are completely different things, and i think they compliment each other. There isn't a "better" system, it's like comparing oranges to apples. Consoles have gaming as the main function, PCs don't.

PCs are more flexible, you can do whatever you want with it, you can build you own rig, use mods, user created content and many other things. Of course this comes at a price, PCs are not as user-friendly as consoles, and there are compability issues not present on consoles (since the hardware is always the same).

Consoles have plenty of exclusive titles which will never be available on PC. There are just too many console-exclusive franchises to count. I could spend the whole day naming great exclusive games for this generation alone. PCs, on the other hand, don't really have as many good exclusive games. Most, if not all AAA titles for PC nowadays are multiplatform. Yes, there is emulation to a certain extent, but for consoles post-PS1 it's very far from being perfect. Also, if you don't own the both console and the game emulation is illegal anyway.

Want to play that game from the mid 90s on your PC? Good luck with that. It might not even install on your new Windows 7 PC. Want to play that old game from the mid 90s on your Saturn/N64/PS1? Just put the disc in and play.

PC gaming: install drivers, update drivers, update os, will this game run on my spec machine, get a new graphics card every 12 months, new processor , upgrade complete machine...aaaaah!

Console gaming: buy game. Put in machine. Play.

Not always. Shitty ports are everywhere. The fact is that console games still sell much, MUCH better than PC games. So, that's where the money goes. But yes, we need a new console generation to shake the market.