Ever since gaming came into existence, there have been two forms of console wars. The first and more commonly known as the console war is the internal struggle between the various brands. Right now, this will be waged by Sony and Microsoft with the PS5 and Xbox Series X while Nintendo is doing its thing with the Switch (and soon the Switch 2).
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But there is also a second form of console war in which consoles collectively fight against the most famous entity of PC gaming. Console gaming is highly competitive when played amongst friends, but it is definitely the realm of more casual players who demand a more casual time, while PC gaming is where the graphics are cranked up to the max and things get pretty exciting whether you have cooling fans or not.
However, former executive Shawn Layden, speaking to the podcast PlayerDriven (and spotted by PC Gamer), said that the difference is much bigger than we think. Only some players who have a keen eye for miniscale settings (e.g., a PC player) will be able to notice it. And he believes it is through this link that gaming finds its next evolution.
Console and gaming PCs are all pretty much the same
Obviously, this casual/hardcore divide is not entirely representative. Many PC players play passive sim games to relax, and many console players engage in tough competitive games with good margins. But in general the PC gives you the opportunity to fine-tune everything to your needs perhaps even build your equipment from scratch whereas consoles can be plugged in and played. And Layden believes a fundamental change is needed in the industry to make consoles even bigger.
He says he wants the games industry to reach the same audience as television. So how do you get there? For one thing I don't think you can get there with just three producers.
Leyden proposes removing the idea of a PlayStation game or Xbox game and replacing it with just a game' that can be played on any machine that supports it such as a DVD or Blu-ray Disc. We will find a really great game format OS if the players agree to come together and then license it. Do it the same way we do with Blu-ray, as we do with compact discs and let people compete on content.
He claims that PCs inspire this ideology. The architecture of the current versions [of consoles] and high-end PCs are now so close they are all pretty similar he says. And any changes or improvements to that are as we say in the studio, only a dog can hear this Like We will have 20 per cent more ray tracing Right?
While many PC gamers will be quick to tell you that the difference is far more noticeable than Layden suggests there is also the issue that many big games are exclusives, funded by console manufacturers with the explicit purpose of selling consoles. And while Xbox is moving away from this model, PlayStation and Nintendo are not. Still, the end of all versions of the console war sounds like a happy future, even if it's not entirely realistic.
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