Is it too late, Sony? PS3 vs. PC
About three years ago, I’d be saying that PC gaming is ultimately not worth my time. But here I am, actually thinking about selling my PS3, getting a new video card, a BluRay player with Netflix and going strictly PC gaming.
Why? Because of Steam. Steam has become a bit of an addiction for me. I look forward to their weekend, mid-week and sometimes week-long sales. Let’s not forget their big market of games that’s less than $20. Additionally, this almost month-long outage of the PSN has really put the dust on my PS3 as I play online games on my PC. Since then, I’ve further fallen in love with Steam, and I’d probably still be on my PS3 had it not been for Valve’s gaming hub service.
But now, the PSN is (as I’m writing this) on it’s way back into the online world. With this slow, eventual rollout, is it going to change my perception? Or am I still potentially lost to the PC world?
See, I have a bit of an OCD with gaming – I can only really contribute to one thing … I can’t balance between multiple systems, which is why I no longer have a Wii and don’t want a 360. Maybe it’s a lack of time … or maybe it’s an investment thing – but if I’m playing on one system, I feel like I should be playing on the other.
What does PC gaming have to offer? Well, the best thing is the idea that with Steam, all your games are tied to your account. You won’t lose them, documentation is online and you can easily play with your friends. It also acts like a portal (heh) to the bigger publishing companies like EA and Activision. I really like the idea of launching a gaming hub and being able to play any game I want with a mere click of the button. No physical media, easily join a game with a friend – and I’m right at a computer if I need to multi-task.
Sony’s bad reputation. Sony’s reputation is damaged for me. Throughout their time with the PS3, they’ve had bad luck – with BluRay pirating, the ApocalyPS3 and now the “It only Does Offline” scenario … Sony just does not seem to know how to protect their stuff, or they seem to half-ass it everything they do (they REALLY should have figured out that Leap Year bug). So, should I continue to invest in a company that may drop the ball again in the next six months? Or, heaven forbid, the PSN gets attacked again after nearly a month of downtime?
What does console gaming have to offer? Well, console gaming’s big benefit is the lack of having to toy around with video settings to get a nice smooth animation – it just works. Any game you put in – will work pretty smoothly. I also think console gaming is favored over PC gaming due to modding/cheating restrictions. PC gaming also has poor controller support – and I don’t care what anyone says … as controller is more comfortable than a WASD keyboard setup. Finally, consoles don’t require upgrades. You could quite possibly be upgrading your PC numerous times over the years. With a console, it’s ultimately a one-time purchase and you’re good until the next console comes out
Trophies/Achievements. I know this part sounds bad – but I love this aspect of gaming. Sony enforces it. Microsoft enforces it. Valve does not. With Steam, it’s entirely up to the discretion of the game company. It’s nice that game companies can bypass achievements if they’d like to, but I won’t lie and say that’s not something I look for in games. It offers me a reason to play the game again once I’ve cleared it. If I finish a single-player game, that’s essentially it – unless there’s a reason for me to go back … such as achievements.
So, what do you people think? In a rare occurrence, I’m asking feedback for people who read this blog to let me know what their console of choice is and why. Should I sell my PS3, controllers and games and go all PC gaming? Or am I just being tricked by this whole PSN debacle?
Things don’t look pretty for you, Sony
Look out for the PSN intruder! He’s climbing in your windows, snatching your information up, try’na rape ‘um …
I kid, I kid. I’m hilarious. Honestly, though, 2011 has been a terrible year for Sony’s online network. Sony has been hit with a tsunami of bad press and has probably permanently damaged the trust of many of their PSN subscribers.
I’ll even admit that I’ve been battling a PS3 vs Steam battle in my head, but ultimately I think the PS3 will win, because it’s hooked up to my bigger TV and when I try to hook up my PC, the text is all jarbled (any assistance about this in the comments would be greatly appreciated.) Plus, I’ve invested years in it with trophies, purchases and games, so completely abandoning it sounds like a stupid choice. However, the fact that the PSN has been down for half a month and we got information that our personal data may have been compromised a week after the attack makes me wonder exactly how smart Sony is with their online network.
Of course, both Sony and [in my opinion] the hacker, Geohot are to blame for this. Sony’s crybaby fest about how all PS3′s shouldn’t be modded sparked this. In my opinion, once you buy the hardware, what you do with it is up to you – if you break the ToS, then so be it. You did it on your own accord. However, the elitist hacker Geohot opened the floodgates for Sony. On top of a massive fight between the two, Anonymous attacked Sony’s sites with DDoS attacks, pulling down most of the sites but not the PSN. And in my opinion, this attack is at the hands of some of the remaining Anonymous users who didn’t want to back down once they realized they were ultimately hurting the people they were “supporting.” And we have news reports that say that Anonymous was and was not part of this attack. And the thing about Anonymous is that there is no figurehead, no leader. It’s a band of … you got it … anonymous people all working together. So while it’s very possible that when Anonymous backed off like they said they would; it’s also possible that a band of people from that attack stuck around and plotted to do something even more drastic.
In the end though, this whole debacle would have been avoided if Geohot kept his discoveries personal AND Sony didn’t have a crybaby fest over the whole OtherOS thing.
But is Sony really to blame? Sure, and no.
And are the hackers really to blame? Sure, and no.
