PC gaming – is the PS4 Pro making it seem more attractive?

A reader explains why he decided to invest in a gaming PC instead of the PS4 Pro, and why he’d advise others to do the same.

After reading a recent comment about people planning a switch to the PC, I too also made the same switch. It happened back when the PS4 Pro was in its earliest stages and I had just finished Uncharted 4. I thought Uncharted 4 was fantastic both graphically and gameplay-wise. I thought finally the PlayStation was showing its worth and Naughty Dog had found the secret to making this underpowered console work. A bit like Mario Kart and Smash Bros. on the Wii U, which looks better than most games despite being on a console that is underpowered.



I was then extremely unhappy as a day one purchaser of the PlayStation 4 to see a more powerful version of the console, I thought it was going to last a longer as the upper echelon of console gaming.

‘The graphics only look 10% better’, they would say.


I fought for the PlayStation 4, telling people it was only the beginning and it would look a lot better once the developers have time with the consoles. I felt cheated and duped, as I always assumed 4K gaming was the original target for these consoles but unachievable without extra revenue first. So the millions (and millions) of people who fell for the #4TheGamers were tricked with a less powerful console to line the coffers of the executives until they had precedent to make what was their original concept. VR included.

I used to be a PC gamer way back, but the upgrades and a few console exclusives (Halo 3 and Metal Gear Solid 4) made console gaming a much more attractive and cheaper solution. Now with all the talk of mobile phone style upgrades every two to three years, it is more than possible to build a computer for £400 to £500 and spend the £350 every two years on a new GPU or CPU upgrade. For those prices you can get a reasonable computer that will play games at similar, if not better, graphics than the current consoles, and it’s completely upgradable.

My current £400 build is as follows:

AMD A10-7870K 3.9GHz quad-core processor

GeForce GTX960 4GB graphics card

16GB RAM

It runs games fantastic on medium, some on high, and Metal Gear Solid V on ultra 1080p, 60fps. I have just finished Just Cause 3, which I run at medium settings but still looked and run better than the console version. And with Steam sales being sometimes outrageously good it adds an extra saving if you’re ready for the digital age. I got Just Cause 3 and Rise Of The Tomb Raider for £16 in a bundle this summer.

And finally, for those who are worried about settings and other fiddling. GeForce experience and AMD gaming evolved have optimisation programs that have people testing all games with all combinations of hardware and find the best setting for your system.

I’m not saying this solution is perfect for everybody and I certainly will not chastise anyone who buys the Pro or Scorpio. But for anyone on the edge about going PC it is a lot easier than it used to be. There are plenty of YouTube videos and shops available to help you build your budget rig.



By reader Anthony Daniels

The reader’s feature does not necessary represent the views of GameCentral or Metro.

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