Hacker News Reader

Comment by dfxm12 | Hacker News Reader

I guess in the strictest dictionary definition, this is a console that could play games, but is a general purpose computing device really what we colloquially call a "game console"?

After all, we don't call our PCs game consoles...

View on HN

Eh, it's splitting hairs. Is the Pippin a game console? Is the CD-I? Is the OUYA? Is a PS2 still a game console if you boot Linux? Is a Gameboy with the Workboy keyboard still a game console?

All consoles are at the end of the day general-purpose computers. You're just arbitrarily locked out of using the machine you bought and paid for to run whatever you like.

Is your phone a game console?

It certainly could be. Pair a bluetooth controller and hook it up to HDMI, and play Retroarch to your heart's content.

If you set up your PC with a joystick and no keyboard/mouse...

I mean, hardware-wise, aren't most recent consoles general purpose computing devices, with game-optimized hardware controls anyway? For example, the Switch is a modified Nvidia tablet chip.

The Switch is a game console not because of the form factor or because of any particular piece of hardware. It's a game console because I can just take it out of the box, put a game cartridge in and start playing. It's not a BOM thing, it's a UX thing.

Exactly. There's more to a game console (or any computer) than its hardware. And further, a Switch is not a general purpose computer because the system, both hardware and software, is designed to be locked into certain uses.

The PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series _ are even closer to the average computer with x86 hardware.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com