Despite contemporary gaming consoles sharing similar hardware designs to PCs, there’s one major reason why individuals pick sides between Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo. Performance specs and fea
Despite contemporary gaming consoles sharing similar hardware designs to PCs, there’s one major reason why individuals pick sides between Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo. Performance specs and feature-set aside, exclusives have been the defining choice for gamers without deep pockets to go multiplatform. Besides the hybrid form factor of the Nintendo Switch, the console is the only place to play the latest Zelda, Mario, Metroid, and Kirby games. Sony continuously sets the bar for their cinematic single-player titles on PlayStation consoles like Last of Us Part II and Ratchet and Clank that are developed on multi-million dollar budgets. Though the Japanese electronics manufacturer has recently dabbled in PC releases, newer releases like Gran Turismo 7 and Horizon Forbidden West can only be played on Sony’s latest console. Meanwhile, Microsoft has turned their Xbox brand into an ecosystem that stretches consoles, video game streaming, and PC. This means first-party releases like Halo Infinite and Forza Horizon 5 get Day-One releases across all of its platforms. This makes sense considering the best PC games are mainly a Windows-only affair (though the best Mac games have a lot to offer as well), and let’s not forget that the Xbox itset was named after the Microsoft Direct X API used by PC game developers. Games made exclusively for PCs still technically exist, and some of the best free games out there are PC exclusives, including many of the hottest esports titles. However, big tentpole AAA exclusives are definitely rarer than they’ve ever been. In 2020, we saw a slight resurgence of big budget PC exclusives like Microsoft Flight Simulator, which launched on PC a year before releasing on Xbox Series X| S consoles, and VR-only Half Life: Alyx. Since then, PC gamers haven’t enjoyed the excitement comes with a God of War: Ragnarok or Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2. It’s a shame considering how PC gaming has historically served as the foundation for many popular series still topping the charts today. EA’s John Madden Football was released first on Apple II (opens in new tab) in 1988 first before getting ported to other PC platforms and eventually making its 1990 debut on Sega Genesis consoles.
