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culi

I haven't gamed in almost a decade but what an exciting time to be alive as a PC gamer:

- almost every classic console is easy to emulate

- most modern consoles are, less-legally, emulatable

- we have thorough archives of Flash games and ofc almost all non-flash web games are still functioning

- cross compatibility across OS's has never been better

And, best of all, almost all of this is achievable on Linux! You can also plug in almost any controller, VR headset, or monitor/projector. Remote gaming has also made incredible progress allowing gamers to access their expansive libraries while not even at home.

In fact, I can't think of a single thing a console can do that a PC can't

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> In fact, I can't think of a single thing a console can do that a PC can't

Play current Nintendo game cards (and run the eShop etc.) without headaches or workarounds of dubious legality?

Run your whole PSN library reliably, without headaches or workarounds?

Full game system (with decent 4K in the case of PS5) for the price of a GPU?

Work out of the box without messing with it?

Yes it's true. Emulators still have trouble getting around DRM and console-exclusives

But think about it this way. A PC can run PS3 games but a PS4 can't. A PC can run xbox 360 games but an xbox one can't.

I think all the console-exclusives out there are more than made up for by PCs being the ultimate backward-compatible gaming system

A launch model PS3 and a PS5 can play PS1/2/3/4/5 game discs, as well as PSN games, so that's pretty good.

Sadly the PSN store for PS3 is probably on its last legs though. Better download those games while it is still possible...

I wasn't aware there was that much backwards compatibility!

To be fair, PS1, PS2, and PS3 games can all be played on PCs as well. PS4 and PS5 emulators are pretty incomplete

> Run your whole PSN library reliably, without headaches or workarounds?

Can your ps5 run all ps1, ps2, ps3 and ps4 games?

> Full game system (with decent 4K in the case of PS5) for the price of a GPU?

Not with current gen AAA, but older titles - yes.

> Work out of the box without messing with it?

Absolutely, yes. SteamOS/Bazzite literally just works.

That single thing is great UX.

While I personally very much enjoy all of the things I can do on PC and Steam Deck, I can definitely understand why my wife - who's not as technically inclined - prefers the PS5.

> - most modern consoles are, less-legally, emulatable

wheres the PS4 or like, any xbox emulator?

It's just Nintendo that has modern, usable emulators for most of the games you'd want to play. xbox never got lucky for basically any of their consoles and Sony never got anything usable after PS3.

> wheres the PS4

- early days, but ShadPS4

> any xbox emulator

- OG XBox: xemu

- XBox 360: xenia

- XBox 1: early days but WinDurango and XWine1

none of these consoles are "usable"

I'm pretty into emulation. It's very misleading to claim that "modern consoles are emulatable" when no, only nintendo has emulators you can boot up, pick from a very large list of compatible games, and have a consistent experience that any sane person would want out of these.

Sony disappears after PS3 and xbox... well I guess xemu is Fine, but you're going to play for an hour and then come to the conclusion that you're better off hooking up the old console

Xenia's usable these days. Worse than RPCS3, but usable

Early days? Those consoles shipped 12 years ago.

I was gonna correct you and then I realized 2013 was indeed 12 years ago.

I guess in my original comment when I said "modern" I just mean not the classics. Other than the latest Xbox and Playstation models, emulators for those lineages are quite mature. Even the Nintendo Switch (2017) has multiple really great emulators.

The point is it's easier to list out which consoles don't have emulators than it is to list out consoles that do. Other than nintendo, there are pretty few console-exclusive games nowadays

> wheres the PS4 or like, any xbox emulator?

There are probably 10 exclusives combined on PS4 and Xbox, even less worth emulating. Everything else is already available on PC.

Consoles are just loss leaders for software now. Hot take: this is true of the Steam Deck and Machine as well. Yes you can play games from other vendors, but PC gamers are very loyal to Steam and many will never bother. I imagine at least half of steam deck users just use it like a console, not like a PC.

I don't see a reason not to be loyal to Steam. I probably spend just as much if not more than console gamers but in return I get so much more value.

It's pretty good as a consumer but they take a massive cut out for developers. I'm not crying about EA not getting its profit margins, but the cut Steam takes can really hurt indie devs.

I try to buy from itch.io whenever its an option.

> I'm not crying about EA not getting its profit margins, but the cut Steam takes can really hurt indie devs.

Indies actually lose more of their margin than EA does, because Steam reduces their 30% cut to 25% after $10m in sales and 20% after $50m in sales. Few indies are doing those numbers, so it's functionally a discount for AAA publishers to discourage them from leaving for their own launchers again (EA did leave back when it was a flat 30% rate for everyone).

It is a large cut but they also offer much more features than any other store not to mention exposure.

Steam is a good experience and a good price relative to consoles, but other PC gaming storefronts do undercut them. See: Epic free games, isthereanydeal.com (competitive marketplace for legitimate game code resellers, which you can register with Steam,) and the class action lawsuits from Wolfire Games for price fixing.

I guess to get their stores on the platform, Epic Games etc will need to create officially supported Linux stores.

Or endorse Heroic, which works better than their launcher anyhow, even on Windows

> Consoles are just loss leaders for software now.

Maybe software is just a link in the chain to subscriptions.

> almost every classic console is easy to emulate

Yes, but unless you have a library from back in the day classic console games are hard to find and/or expensive. Try finding a copy of Biker Mice From Mars, for example.

My friend,

https://www.google.com/search?q=Biker+Mice+From+Mars+rom

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