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Comment by voidUpdate | Hacker News Reader

People want the convenience. Generally , a console "just works", whereas a PC is more likely to need some messing about to get working optimally. Console devs have one target hardware that they can target, whereas PC games could be run on a huge variety of hardware

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Valve has essentially fixed this in most aspects. My Steam Deck is as much of a "just works" experience as the switch. In fact I think it just works even easier because it automatically syncs my saves between my gaming desktop and it so I have the same saves when I travel.

Windows is a clusterfuck, but PC is larger than Windows. Anti cheat is a problem left to solve, but I think this is just a matter of time.

Valve fixed it by making a console that plays PC games, rather than making a PC

But that's not the same. I'm heavy PC user but I only play games on a console. The reason is simple: zero friction.

I play games when I'm tired, so if I have to wait a minute for a Steam update (which happened a month ago on the rare day I wanted to play on my PC), I simply give up and go watch TV.

Console games need to update too. I don't know how the steam machine handles it, but steam downloads updates for my games in the background, so if it goes to sleep instead of doing a full power off, it might be able to keep games updated while you're not playing too

Yeah, but at least the XBOX sits in a low power mode that does updates and keeps the spot you were in your game saved. It's really transparent. I'm not saying Steam can't do that but it's not in the same league yet.

I don’t think anyone has the steam machine to test this stuff yet but I can’t see any reason it can’t do exactly the same thing.

Steam does exactly that for me, thought when I'm casually using my computer, not when my computer has gone to sleep. But since Valve controls the whole steam machine ecosystem, I'd imagine it would be possible for the steam machine to do the same sleep-updates as xbox

Except they don't _need_ to update, it's just a manifestation of the the very PC-ification we're talking about. You used to pop the game in, press the on button, and be playing. At some point someone figured out that if PC gamers were willing ot put up with unfinished games being shipped, so would console gamers, and it was downhill from there.

Well yes, but if we are assuming that console games need to update, pc games would also need to update

It "just works", unless it's time for a patch for that game. Which 98% of the time.

Games update on consoles too. I’ve never been unable to play a game on my steamdeck because of an update. It just manages them automatically in the background.

They do now, because they realised people will put up with that crap when they looked at PC gamers. They didn't used to.

Every time I've been at someone's house with a new (ie post 2005) game console, there's some problem with launching the game. Except for Nintendo, kinda, well even then getting controllers to pair is like herding cats.

And Sony by eliminating physical media, forces a whole set of online inconveniences onto gamers..

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