Weekend Question: If you could only play console games, which console would you choose?

[PCG Jody]

I ask the PCG staff a regular Weekend Question and post the answers on the site. If you'd like to throw in an answer here, I'll squeeze the best into the finished article!

This week the question is: If you could only play console games, which console would you choose?

It seems like an appropriate time for this question. If PC gaming somehow just went away, and you had to choose a single console to take up instead, which one becomes your mainstay?

 

[McStabStab]

When I'm out of town for work (doesn't happen much these days) I pack the Nintendo Switch for my gaming entertainment. I can sit on the plane and enjoy Resident Evil 4 or get in a few rounds of Tetris 99 before shutting off the lights in my hotel room. When I get home I can toss it in the dock and play Mario Party or Overcooked with my friends. Plus they're porting more and more games over every week including Divinity: Original Sin 2 and soon to be Disco Elysium.

 

[drunkpunk]

Since the only two consoles that ever interest me are the Xbox and Playstation, my response will pretty much only reflect those two options.

Sony has a lot of exclusives, but from what I can see and from what I've played they tend to be more "cinematic" than anything that offers real depth of gameplay. I also don't like supporting companies that pay for exclusive content, so that would be another strike for Sony. I do prefer the PS4 controller to the Xbox controller, but typically the PS controllers are also too small for me to use comfortably for extended periods of time.

Then again, I do tend to prefer the dashboard of the Playstation a lot more than the Xbox. I have not been a fan of the Xbox UI for quite some time. Comparing the current generation consoles, I also do tend to get better performance out of my PS4 than I did my Xbox One, and framerate is a really big thing for me, so that is a strike against the Xbox. But really, these are the only two things I can think of to go against the Xbox in my own preference.

So I think it would end up being the Xbox. Their games are generally more my style and more in line with PC games, which I guess is kind of a given since they've put a renewed focus on the PC market.

 

[Zloth]

Should I survive such a calamity with any sort of bank account intact then I guess I would get the big, new XBox.

 

[Rensje]

Should I survive such a calamity with any sort of bank account intact then I guess I would get the big, new XBox.

I think this would have to be my answer. I was going to answer Switch at first, but if I'm being honest that's just become my Zelda machine over the years. I don't really play anything else on it. Sure, it's great that you can take your indie games on the go, but I don't really play too many of those and some of the ones I do play are also available on Google Play and the App Store. Triple-A ports on Switch are.. not great. They're fun as curiosities for Digital Foundry to dissect, but they're not really that great to play and look like vomit on a nice big 4K set.

Playstation 5 is probably going to have the better exclusive games again, just like they did this gen, but I hate what the console looks like on the outside and I'm sorry, but that's relevant too. I don't want that over-designed, cheap looking hunk of space-age plastic in my home theater. Xbox Series X, on the other hand, is lovely and understated looking, like a subtle desktop PC with a beefy graphics card in it. It would look right at home under my TV and there's no denying that it'll be the most capable of the new boxes and the best value. The Xbox All Access program is an excellent deal and will give you a whole host of games to play without you having to buy a single game outright. It's not available here in the Netherlands but we'll gloss over that.

If I had to choose right now, Xbox Series X is the one I would have. Until a 4K-capable Zelda machine comes out, anyway.

 

[spvtnik1]

My brain says go with the new XBox Series X.

But in a desert island type scenario my heart says the Dreamcast, because then at least I could carry Chao around with me.

 

[FreezerBurn]

I love my switch, but with the new consoles coming out I would have to say the PlayStation 5. Mainly for the controller. This new controller is not intuitive and has more feedback for the user. Also I feel that Microsoft kinda shot themselves in the foot with making their first party games available for PC... not that I'm complaining at all.

 

[Brian Boru]

Yeah, the best XBox.

I've never had a console, so I'd choose between the 2 choices which have been becoming more PC-like in the last couple of gens. I wouldn't complain if someone handed me a PS, but XBox is probably closer to a PC experience.

If PC gaming somehow just went away

That's truly a horrible thought. I've spent too much time fuming over very shoddy PC ports, where "very shoddy" means almost no effort made to upgrade the UI/UX. Happily that seems to be getting better—eg Far Cry 3 was appalling, FC4 was merely bad, FC5 poor, and FCND fairly good.

What would be worse is no/very few mods.

 

[Rensje]

I love my switch, but with the new consoles coming out I would have to say the PlayStation 5. Mainly for the controller. This new controller is not intuitive and has more feedback for the user. Also I feel that Microsoft kinda shot themselves in the foot with making their first party games available for PC... not that I'm complaining at all.

They only shot themselves in the foot if you assume they're trying to sell more boxes than their competitor, and they're really not. What they are actually doing is getting people to adopt their ecosystem. Game Pass, Xbox Live, xCloud. To them, the consoles are just a means to enter that ecosystem, just like PCs and Android phones are. Xbox is about to become a subscription service rather than a console and on that front, they're winning by a landslide.

We don't know Sony's full plans yet, of course, but I think it was the right call on Microsoft's part to get ahead of the conversation. Sony has the more interesting hardware and the better lineup of games and yet I'm all about that Xbox right now, and I'm sure I can't be the only one.

 

[Yggdrasill]

With not having kids, I would definitely choose the PS5. With kids I would go for Nintendo's new one.
PS5 because I enjoy their exlcusive titles more, I have never been a big fan of Xbox, but as for why I can't even point my finger on it.

 

[Zloth]

Also I feel that Microsoft kinda shot themselves in the foot with making their first party games available for PC... not that I'm complaining at all.

But we're assuming the PC won't be there anymore.

 

[Astrowheel]

I'd go with Playstation. I love playing RPGs the most, and I usually like the controllers the best. There's a lot of series I want to continue playing too!

 

[bh3bh3]

Love to have Playstation since Suikoden series on PS is my favorite. It is like One Piece where heroes or characters come to be your ally. =)

 

[DXCHASE]

Playstation for the exclusive games but if they don't follow the financing model of the xbox s or x then this generation is going to be Xbox for me if i had to choose 1. If sony does something similar, i'm all sony.

 

[StingingVelvet]

I'm a PC only guy because I mostly love the FPS, Western RPG and stealth genres. I feel like those genres have always been more associated with Xbox, so I'd probably go for an Xbox Series X with backwards compatibility.

 

[swipe_]

Xbox, for sure. Backwards compatibility and it's where all of my friends play. No brainer!

Also it has the best controller IMO.

 

[Ashrain037]

At the moment definetely a xbox. Easy to access most of the contents and cheap.

 

[Alm]

I would go PlayStation. I love their exclusives like Wipeout and Gran Turismo.

 

[BionicNinjas]

I'm probably biased because I've written for a Playstation site for the past 20 years but I'd have to go with Sony's consoles. Their exclusives are right up my alley and I'm so very glad to see them finally coming to PC (though Horizon Zero Dawn's port was lackluster, at best).

 

[christine.weller@waldenu.]

Nintendo Switch all the way! Been gaming with nintendo since it came out and I feel like it's part of the family now! My parents would play Dr. Mario and now I've bested my kids (and hubby) in it! Circle of life and all!

 

[Frindis]

I would have dusted off my Atari 520ST and barricaded myself in my mancave, never to see mankind again. At least not until I needed a refill of Dr. Pepper and Pizza Hut "Cheesy Bites".

 

[LuckyFire]

I'd choose playstation because of their exclusive games. It sucks that they do this but if I had to choose I'd still take a playstation.

 

[dixtated]

Nintendo all the way

 

[Rykell7]

I love the versatility of the nintendo switch from travel size handheld gaming to large tv play ability from single player to multi-player, game cartridges to downloads and online play, and many game accessories and attachments. Its been great for the kids and the entire family.

 

[Probably_Human]

Playstation simply because I love RPG games and Playstation is essentially King of RPG.