happypamama Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 Why might I want a Wii, xBox, or other system for games over a laptop that hooks to the tv? Strictly for games, not for Netflix or anything else. What do the console systems do that a computer can't? Enlighten me; I know zero about game consoles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 Consoles have games not available for a standard computer. Some games are available for both. it really depends on what someone wants to do with everything. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMS83 Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 Laptops can't handle anywhere near the graphics demands a console can. Unless you're just wanting to play Minecraft on a bigger screen. It really depends on what games you want to play, how sensitive you are to graphics quality and framerate, and your budget. There are gaming laptops, too. I'll ask DH soon and get back to you about consoles vs. laptop, standard desktop, and gaming desktop. Xbox vs. PS4 is going to be a game preference decision. Not all games are made for both consoles. As far as I know, there's more games that aren't release for both than are. What are you wanting to play? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EMS83 Posted January 19, 2016 Share Posted January 19, 2016 DH said that dollar for dollar, a console will do the best job playing games because that's what they were made for and that's pretty much all they do. Just for a comparison: my $600 laptop can't handle much of anything at all. It can't even handle Minecraft. It's three years old. My husband's $600 tower can handle more stuff (like Minecraft, World of Warcraft-mostly), but graphics-intensive games overheat it (he attributes some of this to a possible manufacturing error). It's a year or so old. The $500(ish) PS4 can handle all the games the computers can't. To get a computer that could handle games the same way as the PS4, it would cost about $2,000. A gaming laptop would cost more than a gaming tower, because it's harder to fit the hardware into the smaller space. I was wrong about the games between Xbox and Playstation. There are more shared titles than exclusive ones. There's no shared titles between the Wii consoles and any other console (Nintendo makes the Wii consoles, and all their own games, afaik). Microsoft puts out Xbox and Sony does Playstation. Also, if the TV isn't HD, the picture from the consoles will look bad. Although, there's a huge difference between what I notice, and what DH notices. He notices and is bothered by things being "off" with the picture in games or movies either one. I'm oblivious. :coolgleamA: I hope that's helpful and not confusing! Good luck! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted January 20, 2016 Author Share Posted January 20, 2016 (edited) What are you wanting to play? No idea! LOL! Not just Minecraft on a bigger screen. My kids have mentioned playing games on Wiis and such at friends' houses, and we're starting to consider whether we want something like that here or not. They have some of the LEGO video games on our computers, and those run just fine, but it sounds like overall, a console system would do a better job with games for the price. We do have an HDTV that's only a year old. All of these posts gave me exactly what I needed to know -- thanks!! That gives me a better starting point for looking into which console would be the best option for us. Edited January 20, 2016 by happypamama Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeacefulChaos Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 (edited) Why might I want a Wii, xBox, or other system for games over a laptop that hooks to the tv? Strictly for games, not for Netflix or anything else. What do the console systems do that a computer can't? Enlighten me; I know zero about game consoles. Besides playing games?? I guess I'm kind of confused lol. Game systems and computers are totally different, as far as usage goes. :blink: ETA: Okay, went back and read the other replies, and saw your followup, OP. We don't use our computer for gaming at all, but we have several game systems - Wii, Nintendo 3DS (and 2DS, which is the same thing, just can't do 3D, for Pink), PS2, PS3, PS4. We're Sony fans overall, though we don't mind Nintendo. Not Microsoft fans - no xbox. :p We've never been interested in their titles, anyway. So a *lot* of the 'kid' games are pretty big on Nintendo consoles. There are, of course, those on all consoles, but when I think of our Wii, we have all the Lego games, Zelda game(s? Or there may just be one, Idk, I don't do Zelda), Super Smash Bros, etc. That said, our kids like Kingdom Hearts (we all do), which is PlayStation, as far as their main titles go. KH3 is hopefully going to come out this year, but DH keeps up on those things more than I do. Also, they have Disney Infinity for the PS4, which is DEFINITELY a kid game lol, and comes for every system. So it's really just what you want. We run a lot through our PS3/PS4, too. I know you don't care about Netflix and stuff, but we do use it on those. I think the kids use it on the Wii, too, though the graphics aren't as good, but that's on the small TV in my room, so they don't really care anyway. The small tv is where all the older systems are lol. :D Edited January 20, 2016 by PeacefulChaos 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theelfqueen Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 I run all my cable, Netflix and whatnot through my Xbox One and smart tv. It runs on voice commands and we have a kinect for kinesthetic play. (Dance Games, Lightsabers battles, workout games, etc) but we're gamers all around. We've been with Xbox since the original console. We had PS1 at one point and a wii for several years but we've always preferred the download able Content and support of the Microsoft platform (plus game offerings were a better fit). Now we have our old Xbox 360 upstairs and the Xbox One downstairs (which makes us sound crazy but if it helps those are our only two televisions lol) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 (edited) If your kids like Wii games, then you really need to get a Wii U. One cannot duplicate Mario on a PC without bootlegging copies of games. The nice thing about Nintendo is the controllers. No one has been able to duplicate the weight and ease of use. In addition, Nintendo has catered to a more "G" rated gaming system while Playstation and Xbox have fewer games which are family friendly. The other nice thing about the Wii U is the large controller has the screen also so one can run to the bathroom real quick without stopping game play. (Eew). Bottom line, if your children like games on friend's Wii, then you need to get a Wii U. Personally, it is my favorite gaming system, although I play a ton of Xbox and Playstation also. If you just want a computer that plays games (but, not Nintendo ones like Mario), then check out Alienware. DD15 is a Twitch broadcaster who uses that computer for most streaming, although she uses her Wii U to stream the Nintendo games via capture software. HTH Edited January 20, 2016 by Minniewannabe 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theelfqueen Posted January 20, 2016 Share Posted January 20, 2016 However the wiiu versions of multi platform games are often simplified due to lower processing power ... see Disney Infinity toy box limitations on the U for an example. My kids do Mario, Zelda, KH etc on their DSES :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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