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Nvidia has finally revealed its new series of graphics cards, GeForce RTX 3000, powered by the Ampere architecture. The three models that have been recently announced are RTX 3090, 3080 and 3070.
All three cards will be released in September and October 2020. Meanwhile, Sony’s next-generation console, the PlayStation 5 (PS5), is expected to launch in November 2020.
With that, the same question should be on the minds of every Southeast Asian player: Which of the two is more worth buying, a gaming PC or a PS5?
Even if neither has yet to be published, the answer to that question can be easily answered by weighing the pros and cons of a PC and a console. This is mainly because the important elements of either option do not change significantly with each generation.
By listing the top factors for both platforms, I’ll try to help you make a decision on whether you should save for a PS5 or a PC.
Let’s start with the most important factor:
PRICE
So far, Sony has not revealed the official price of the PS5. So, I’ll take the estimates made by Paul Tassi of Forbes and Takashi Mochizuki of Bloomberg.
Paul believes that the next-gen consoles (PS5 and Xbox One X) will sell for at least $ 500. Takashi, on the other hand, claims that the cost of making a PS5 unit is around $ 450. But both believe that Sony should sell it for $ 470 to make a profit with a margin similar to what they made with the Playstation 4 (PS4).
We must also take into account the existence of the digital-only version of the PS5 that does not have an optical disc drive. It will have to be sold at a cheaper price compared to the regular PS5.
If the regular PS5 version sells for around $ 470, the digital version will likely sell for around $ 400. I’ll use these estimates for the sake of this article.
Again, I want to reiterate that all of these prices are estimates and not the actual price.
Fortunately, for a gaming PC, we don’t need to guess or estimate because official prices for the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 and RTX 3070 graphics cards have been announced.
However, it must be said that Nvidia has only announced the retail price of the Founders Edition, and not the price of the models that will be sold by partner companies such as EVGA, ASUS, Zotac and more.
The Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 Founders Edition card will launch on September 24 and will be sold at 699 dollars. Then the RTX 3070 card will be released in October and will be sold in 499 USD.
Does this mean that we can compare a gaming PC using an RTX 3070 to a PS5? Not necessarily!
We have to remember that every time a new technology is released to the world, the previous version of that technology will go down in price. This is why Nvidia GeForce RTX 2000 graphics cards like RTX 2080, 2070, and 2060 will be cheaper, especially if they are second-hand.
The RTX 2060 is sufficient for playing Triple-A games at 1080p and 120FPS settings. Right now the price for a new RTX 2060 unit is around 360 dollars And there is a good chance that it will drop to less than $ 300.
You would need at least an RTX 2070 Super card for a 4K 60FPS gaming experience. This card is priced at approximately US $ 499 per new unit. I guess it will fall around 400 dollars because I think the RTX 3070 will sell for at least $ 550 when it hits Southeast Asia.
The PS5 has been announced as 4K compatible. So it is much fairer to compare it to a PC that at least uses an RTX 2070 Super card.
There is no denying that the price of a gaming PC with an RTX 2070 Super (even if you buy a used unit) will still be more expensive than a PS5.
I’m sure this is not that surprising. Time and time again, consoles have been cheaper than gaming PCs and the same conclusion can be reached here.
A PS5 is much more likely to be cheaper compared to a gaming PC that has roughly the same capabilities.
GAME EXPERIENCE
One issue that makes PC users less like gaming on consoles is the compromises made on consoles to run high-end games. Almost all console games of this generation (PS4 and Xbox One) are played at 30 FPS and use dynamic resolutions.
Dynamic resolutions mean that the resolution will automatically drop when something visually expensive happens during gameplay. This technique is used to make sure there is a constant 30 FPS when gaming.
This is not a big problem for many console gamers because they are already used to gaming at 30FPS. However, the difference can be irritating for players who are used to playing at 60FPS or higher.
Sony has not released any statement confirming the PS5’s ability to play games at 4K and 60FPS resolution, but Spider-Man: Miles Morales is a game that has been confirmed to have a 4K / 60FPS performance mode.
Spider-Man: Miles Morales uses the same engine that was used for PS4 Marvel Spider-Man, so it’s not a big surprise.
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart, on the other hand, is definitely a next-gen game because it uses a new engine and ray-tracing technology.
According to Insomniac Games, the game will have two settings: 4K 30FPS and 60FPS with a lower resolution (probably 1440p). This shows that the PS5 still needs to sacrifice a few things in order to run at 60 FPS.
Well then what if you plan to use a 1080p television screen or a 1440p monitor?
In that situation, I’m sure you won’t have to worry because you will definitely be able to play games with the highest resolution combined with the highest frame rate. 1080P 120FPS? I’m sure the PS5 can handle that easily.
Admittedly, it won’t use the full power of the PS5 in this situation, but 4K TVs aren’t exactly a cheap product and I think the gaming experience at 1080p resolution is satisfying enough already.
The power of a great gaming PC lies in its ability to play almost all video games at the highest graphics settings while keeping the frame rate high and smooth.
There is also the added benefit of being able to add modifications (mods) to PC games that can make gaming a much more interesting and entertaining experience. For example, you can put a new car of your choice in Grand Theft Auto (GTA) V or add renovation mods to any Total War game that totally changes the way you play.
There are many more examples of fun mods and many PC gamers never forget to mention mod as a great bonus for playing on a PC.
The experience of playing 4K 60FPS is much easier to achieve in video games when played on a gaming PC. However, to get a high-powered gaming PC like that, you would need to invest a lot of money.
I estimate that you would need to build a PC (using new components) that costs at least $ 1,200 to play at 4K 60FPS settings. If you get used parts, the price of that PC could drop by $ 250- $ 500.
For those who don’t mind gaming at 1080p 60FPS or 1080p 30FPS settings, they can build a PC for about $ 850 using new components.
If you can find good used parts, you can also build a 1080p 60FPS gaming PC priced at $ 700 or even less.
The verdict is that you should follow your own preferences. If you prioritize a smooth gaming experience and the added bonus of incredible customization above all else, putting some money into your own gaming PC is the right choice.
For those who are just there to play games and are not interested in all these details, choose a console, and not necessarily the PS5. The PS4 Pro is already a good enough option if you don’t already have it.
GAMES CATALOG
The last factor is the most important for some people; they don’t care if the PS5 or the PC is more powerful. The question is, which platform has the most enjoyable game selection?
Each platform has its exclusives that make them more popular in some way.
Basically, it is a requirement for Spider-Man fans to buy the PlayStation console due to Sony’s agreement with Disney regarding exclusive rights.
Sony has also released a ton of amazing original PlayStation titles like Ghost of Tsushima, God of War, Horizon Zero Dawn (which has been ported to PC), and many more.
There are also some cases where Sony acquired exclusive rights for a year for games like Final Fantasy VII Remake and Death Stranding. Sony will surely do the same with the PS5 in the future to make it more attractive in terms of exclusivity.
PS4 owners don’t have to worry about the games they have purchased either because the PS5 has been confirmed to be backward compatible with PS4 games.
However, on the PC side, exclusive games are based on genre rather than development studies. The clearest example of this is strategy games like Total War, Sid Meier’s Civilization and others.
Many simulation games are also more compatible with PC games. Some examples of popular games are Microsoft Flight Simulator, The Sims series, Cities: Skylines, Zoo Planet, and many more.
Another important factor to consider is the price of these games. In this age, PC games are sold almost entirely digitally. This makes most of the games sold on platforms like Steam and the Epic Games Store much cheaper compared to console games.
As an example, Wasteland 3, recently released, is selling for RM 265 on PlayStation Store Malaysia. On Steam, however, it only costs RM95.
If you’re a fan of collecting physical versions of games, then the PS5 and PS4 are hands down the best options for you.
PC gamers are spoiled too, in the sense that the Epic Games Store still offers free games every week, while Steam has sales every day. It is extremely easy for PC gamers to get a lot of games, new and old, for less than RM100.
As a person who owns both a gaming PC and a PS4, I wholeheartedly believe that a PC gamer will save more money when it comes to buying games.
In general, I have managed to write down all my opinions on this topic. There are still other aspects that I did not include, but the above three factors should be enough for you to make a decision.
It is true that acquiring a PC would add another great advantage in the fact that it can be used for work and various activities, including photo and video editing. But I feel like that point would have been clear to all of you by now, so I didn’t have to focus on it.
In conclusion, buy a PC if you can and get a machine that can play video games without problems and at the same time can do much more than that.
But, if you just want to play video games and don’t care about things like resolution, frame rate, and other details, buy a console.
This article first appeared on MyGameOn in bahasa melayu.
