Topic: PC Gaming

Well, seeing as I just got a gaming rig, I thought it would be nice to have a place to discuss all things related to PC gaming.

I've always been a multiconsole gamer but PC was the one platform I'd never ventured into... until now. That said I'm completely new to this, and would love to hear any recommendations, tips, tricks, what the first order of business should be for a new PC gamer, etc...

If it ain't Counter-Strike I don't know much about PC gaming Honestly, I reckon only a PC Half Life 3 exclusive would get me to build another gaming rig

Path of Exile is meant to be great, though.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/238960/

And the new Divinity is shaping up well but I expect that will come to console.

@kyleforrester87:
Ah, so you used to game on PC then eh? What made you stop...

I wasn't planning on it because I didn't want to deal with building one, but as chance would have it I was given one so here we are.

I've discovered 2 things: It's not nearly as complicated as I thought, but at the same time it's way more complicated than I thought

Settings and games couldn't be easier. But mapping controllers with Xpadder and setting profiles on a per game basis, and how to run hotkey scripts alongside it, learning STEAM controller and how to customize with profiles... which games work with which controllers, some partial support, some STEAM controller support, some you can map but it just doesn't work well without KB+M....

It's alot to absorb.

But the PC exclusives (Pillars of Eternity, Civilization 6) and finally having access to HD games I've been playing in standard def for so long... is nice. But I tell you what, I'm sticking with STEAM. Don't wanna deal with Origin and definitely don't want games split among several different clients.

edit
And ya, new Divinity is definitely on the radar. But I think any game that does come to current gen console I'd prefer it there. Ease of use, offline play (although that's rapidly changing, especially with Ubisoft and EA), and standard controller support across the board (not to mention PS4 Pro runs current games in 4K, so just as good if not better than my PC could do anyways) make consoles the prefered choice by far. That's why I'm holding off on Final Fantasy XIII trilogy... cause I heard it's getting remastered on consoles.

@JaxonH: I really enjoyed the process of building and maintaining computers, I built quite a few but the last time was around 2004-2005 and so much has changed since then :/

The problem for me was, given the options, I would ALWAYS be tweaking the settings, trying to get the most out of the hardware. It really stopped me from being able to relax and get absorbed by the game I was playing - always in the options or messing around downloading mods. It isn't so bad when your PC is cutting edge but once it drops behind a little you either pay to upgrade or spend time battling to find that perfect compromise between quality and performance. Which is fine, but I started getting busier around mid-2000's so my gaming became console only out of convinence. Would love a top of the range rig and a butler to keep it up to date, though!

I just got a gaming laptop nothing fancy but plays all the games that I want to play. People always say its easy to build a gaming comp I partially agree the actual bilding is not normally the problem its all the software and setting up afterwards that can be a nightmare. I still prefer gaming on PS4 but the scope of games on PC is better. I would say with some games on PC the commnity can be toxic unlike console where people tend to be more relaxed and helpful. I am talking about you Rust commnity you have ruined that game.

That's just it - you don't buy a PC you learn a crafting system.

For me, it works out like this: On the PC:

• Mouse and Keyboard are more accurate, but not necessarily better.
• I am 8" away from my monitor
• I use computer speakers on a desk which are sub-par
• Per above, its like learning a crafting system and you have to be aware of how good your machine is and if it can run stuff.
• You have to worry about malware and various other software and a slew of updates to keep on top of.

On a console:

• I'm 10 feet away from a 60" screen, a far healthier distance
• I'm on a comfy couch
• I have a full high quality stereo system with a 12" sub and surround sound.
• It just works with basically zero overhead or admin.
• Controllers are ergonomic.

The good thing about PC is you have a massive almost endless list of games to play¥.

I have a truly awful PC by todays (digital foundry) standards - but it still plays Elite Dangerous and Footy Manager. So constantly updating isn't essential as long as you buy a coherent setup which works well together and keep your expectations in check. My PC has outlasted my x360 and is now a family computer for my son to do his homework on and wife to browse the web. These are huge positives and why PC gaming will always be a part of my life. To play the latest blockbuster games my PC would probably crash out so anything younger than 4/5 years old I check the recommended specs.

As I've got older, bought my own home, have more space but I have a lot less time. I prefer playing games on my couch in front of the TV, that's personal preference but I cant sit hunched engrossed in a management game when I've been in work doing that all day!

So for me I prefer console gaming, and don't miss driver updates and beginner coding to get some games functioning!

Also when you buy a PC at retail I've tended to have a know it all IT geek telling me black is white like I've just fallen from the sky, you get thousands of these people in IT. I honestly think they believe some of the crap that comes out of their own mouths. When I make a big purchase, a holiday, car or PC I know what I want for the budget I set. I usually read up on what's available and the pitfalls to look out for. But most of these small time IT gurus are little more than the rubbish IT teacher in school in the 80s, one or two trick ponies with no real knowledge to back it up. That is the real pain of PC gaming as I don't want to invalidate warranties and have to put up with their bs.

@kyleforrester87 : Wow! I just read this and it's like I was reading something I'd written. I was a PC gamer from the early 90's until 2005 and went console only for exactly the same reasons. This is why the recent trend for more powerful consoles has got me worried. I hate thinking I'm not getting the best experience so I happily shelled out for a PS4 Pro.

@AlexStinton: Lol I know right..? I spent 45 minutes on Christmas morning trying out the resolution options on Last Guardian before settling on the one I was (kind of) happy with. I'm having the same problem with Tomb Raider now I'm in the Geo Thermal Valley and the framerate doesn't quite hold up in 4k mode.

Life eh?!

@kyleforrester87: Yeah, between this and all the bloody TV settings I've been tweaking on my 4K TV It's like the good old days again.

So, I've been playing games with the STEAM controller and can render my verdict now... A lot of people said it's trash, while others said it was the best controller ever conceived.

Well.... I say it's the best controller ever conceived (with a small caveat). Most PC games (well, many anyways) are now compatible with an Xbox One controller. And this is how I recommend playing. Buy a chatpad for easy keyboard access when you need to type something, and be sure to have Controller Companion app ($2 on STEAM) to make the controller function as a mouse for your PC. This combination of X1 controller with chatpad and mouse functionality can almost eliminate the need for mouse and keyboard entirely.

But what about those games that just aren't compatible with controllers? That's where STEAM controller shines. I'm playing Dragon Age Origins on STEAM. The PC game of all PC games. People said don't even bother trying to map it to a controller via a Xpadder, because this game simply doesnt work with controllers. Mouse and Keyboard is the only way to play it, people said. Well not only does STEAM controller work, it's absolutely immaculate! Seriously, I never imagined I'd be playing a keyboard/mouse only game with since incredible control using a controller.

STEAM controller offers the precision of a mouse (not quite as much as using a real mouse, but far far more than a joystick), yet the convenience of a controller. And is fully capable of mapping all of the dozens of keyboard commands to buttons. All of this is fully customizable (for example, left pad can be made a D-pad, Button Pad, Mouse, Mouse Joystick, Joystick Move, Joystick Camera, Scroll Wheel, Touch Menu, Mouse Region, Radial Menu). And each of those settings have settings within settings within settings. For touch menus, you can adjust on-screen vertical position, on-screen horizontal position, activate via touch or click, menu opacity and size, all buttons can be assigned to mode shift (a button you hold which changes the functionality of other buttons, usually done by holding in one of the paddle grips). The right tocuh pad, I've got assigned as a mouse, and clicking it in activates space bar (pause). Can set style of input (same as those listed above for left touchpad), sensitivity, rotation, acceleration, trackball mode and friction, friction vertical scale, haptics intensity, invert axis, mode shift, vertical scale sensitivity (ratio of vertical movement to horizontal- great for camera controls where you only care about left-right and not so much up-down), touch binding, trigger press mouse dampening, smoothing, double tap binding, double tap duration, double tap beep, edge spin radius, edge spin speed and minimum movement threshold. The customization is mind-boggling. There's settings for correcting the radial arc error when you swipe your thumb on the pad, to compensate and correct into a straight line swipe. Ya. Can label every single binding also, so that it says "JUMP" or "ZOOM OUT" or whatever, and there's community bindings for every single game accessible at any time in game just by pressing the STEAM button and selecting Config. That way you can try out people's bindings and find something that you like, then tweak it to perfection. And change on the fly any time you like while you play.

Dragon Age Origins controls are just incredible. Hold Left trigger and the right touchpad controls the camera, with amazing precision. Touching the left pad shows numbers 1-9 on lower left hand of screen, and you just click over the number you want. This works for items assigned to the action bar (clicking on "3" activates the 3rd skill/item in the bar, for example), and it works for conversations where clicking number 2 selects the second line of dialog.

Holding the right grip (paddle) then changes the left touchpad from showing numbers to showing 9 panel menu of action shortcuts. Everything from Quick Save to Load, Inventory and Map, Tactics and Spells, Character and Skills and Journal. The 4 face buttons are each assigned to a character so you can switch characters on the fly. The R/L zooms camera in and out. If you click the right mouse pad, it pauses for quick access to tactics during combat. You're moving around, using the right pad to control camera and you just press it to instantly pause, then use as a mouse to select target and use left pad number menu to select which action you'd like to perform.

It's absolutely incredible! STEAM controller isn't ideal for every game, but even at worst it's still usable, at its best it's mindblowing. And what's nice is it works with practically every single game on STEAM, regardless of whether the game was built for controllers. In fact, that's where it shines brightest... specifically with games not designed for controllers.

So ya, I'd still recommend keeping an Xbox One controller with chatpad for some games, but a STEAM controller is an essential purchase for everything else. Between those two controllers, every single game is playable with a controller. In fact, I get excited now when I see the keyboard and mouse games... because I know they're gonna play better with a STEAM controller than they ever could with a normal controller.

So there's my verdict. It did take a bit to get used to it, but once I started getting the hang of it there's no going back. Highly, highly reccommended.

@JaxonH: Welcome to PC gaming! I built my first PC 15 years ago, and have turned it into a personal profitable business. Things I would recommend as a new PC gamer would be to get to know your hardware, as in what it's capable of, how your temps are inside your case at idle and during peak load, and if you have anything holding it back.
I would recommend MSI Afterburner for GPU monitoring, fan curve tweaking. CoreTemp for Cpu temp monitoring. Speedfan for tweaking fan speeds, if you don't have a fan controller.

I would also recommend going to control panel/power options and changing it to high performance, which will eliminate your cpu downclocking. Make sure you have the latest GPU drivers from nvidia or amd.

Don't be afraid to play with video settings in games, especially if it has a built in benchmark tool. It's a great opportunity to get familiar with what settings affect performance the most/least. Also, if you want to keep temps lower, turn on vsync whenever possible to lock your framerate in-game to your monitor's refresh rate.

I hope some of this helps!

@RedMageLanakyn:
I have MSI Afterburner but the way the fans are they have to run on auto.

I usually turn all settings on high then turn down MSAA if it seems to be suboptimal. My biggest issue has been getting all games to run. Being hooked up to a 3840x2160 4KTV, a lot of games (usually older ones like Neverwinter Nights 2, Baldurs Gate and all the old Valve games like Half Life and Portal) will give a black screen.

I solved it for most games by running in Vista compatible mode with high DPI scaling turned off, but sometimes I have to do something else which is always a hassle. Found out my Bluetooth dongle was causing some games to launch black screen, after reading it on a forum.

@JaxonH: If you get a black screen, you could try right clicking said game, going to set launch options and put in -windowed

@RedMageLanakyn:
Ya I tried that right away.

Didn't work unfortunately. I fixed all of them now. Some were cause of Bluetooth dongle, one was missing a file, 4 needed specific compatibility settings, another I had to dig in install to find configlauncher to set resolution.

Only remaining issues are Portal not running through STEAM (so I downloaded a DRM free version that runs fine outside of STEAM, crazy how my paid version won't run so I have to download to play), and Final Fantasy Type 0 HD only running in windowed mode, which is fine but it has white bar up top and I prefer full screen.

Lots of kinks to iron out with PC I'm learning.

_{Mentioning emulators, hacking, etc. -Tasuki-}

@JaxonH: Yeah there are some kinks, but it sounds like you've got the ability to troubleshoot and experiment, which will take care of most issues. If you run into anything that you can't fix, message me and I'll see if I can help!