Skyrim: Play on my PC or XBox?

[Shez]

Hey all

I can't begin to describe how pumped I am for Skyrim. That being said, I have a conundrum. Ideally, I would like to play Skyrim on the PC as it's my preferred platform BUT I don't want to tarnish the experience if my rig isn't capable of handling the graphics. I'm not going for ultra settings here. If my PC can produce Xbox level graphics then I'll go PC if not, I'll probably go XBox. Thoughts?

Here's my rig.

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz LGA 775
EVGA 8800 GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3
4GB DDR2 Memory

Thoughts on whether the required hardware is the same as what the XboX will acheive?

 

[Eldd]

You will have to consider the game on a console is at 720p; now depending on your PC resolution you intend to play the game at, it will make the difference. Since the game isn't having some high requirements, you could be able to run it at a bit higher resolution than 720p on your PC, but you might need to turn down some of the eye candy.

 

[AntiZig]

it's a questionable assumption with respect to how much more eye candy there will be available on a PC with respect to console version. It is a console port after all...

 

[jay2tall]

Sometimes I evaluate a game based on what type of game it is and where I will be playing it. Hours in an office chair.... or hours on the couch. Sometimes that nice comfortable La-Z-Boy couch is awfully tempting. FPS games is PC for me all the way. Not sure how a 8800GTS 640MB will actually push it. A console might actually be equal or better.

 

[Shez]

Thanks for the responses so far. My only concern is that I've never played a game like Oblivion on a console. Shooters and action games sure. But games like Oblivion and Fallout 3 etc... I just have this nagging suspicion that I won't get as much out of the game on a console. Maybe that's crazy.

Oh and I'd hope to be playing at 1650x1050 which is the native resolution for my monitor.

 

[NoUserBar]

Well if you're talking mods, you won't get as much out of the console as a PC. But for just the start there won't be much, if any, mods available. (other than easy to make cheat configures)
So for maybe about 1 or 2 years playing on the console would be just as good, untill really good mods start coming out.

Easy to finish the game before then, maybe you could replay it later on a better comp with the mods to make it a new experience?

 

[Shez]

NoUerBar - mods are a compelling reason to get it on PC (at any point) but I'm more concerned about this first go around. I never tried Oblivion on console, maybe if I had I would feel better about Skyrim on the XBox.

So the consensus is that I won't be getting better graphics on the PC. Possibly higher resolution but also likely lower details etc.

Has anyone played a game like Oblivion on PC and console? Feedback on what that was like?

 

[NoUserBar]

Um, never mind? I think I misunderstood this whole thread!


I thought you said you haven't played the computer version before. But was it you haven't played the console (ps3) version before..?

If thats the case then Ifail this thread lol

heres this anyway:

My stats:
Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 3800+, x86 Family 15 Model 43 Stepping 1
Processor Count: 2
RAM: 958 Mb
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce 6150 LE , 256 Mb
Motherboard: ASUSTek Computer INC., NAGAMI2, 2.00, MB-1234567890
dusty to boot

loool

I'm playing Oblivion and I can only play it well at low settings. Still fun though. Works and looks best for me in windowed mode 640 480.

Mods really change the way Oblivion looks, making faces look better, different balanced races etc. I'm sure you can look those up though..

Using the console on the PC can be fun, you can turn off ai if you choose LOL. Kill a glitching bandit that is currently inside a rock (wtf?? that was a weird moment). Forcing weather can be fun too.

Also it's easier for casual gamers. I didn't bother trying for "perfect level ups" like I did in Morrowind, I just used the console to fill it up to the full +5 per level-up if it was under that amount.

There are all sorts of little tweaks to learn about the PC versions of Oblivion. Such as not placing any extraneous files in the data folder as it might cause it to crash/overload if over 400 objects etc. Read that in a forums. (put all my mods in a folder above the install for easy access)

I can unfortunately only provide feedback on the PC version >>

Skyrim is a whole different ballpark regardless though...
I hope that means it doesn't have the ticks and bugs Oblivion did. You couldn't atl-tab out of Oblivion with out memory hanging in some weird bug. Didn't effect me too much though.

Sigh, I'm sure it'll have it's own share of bugs/ticks to be discovered..

 

[jaguarskx]

I recommend playing on the PC. I have to mention that I am biased since I don't really play console games other than Halo 1 way back when on the Xbox against 3 other people and boxing on the Wii. I actually liked boxing, I was get a pretty good workout since I was really trying to throw punches over at a friend's place.

Anywaste....

As mentioned above, the console version will simply be 720p stretched to fit a 1080p HDTV. If your HD 6750 is too weak to play at native resolution, then drop it down to 1366x768 then stretch it to fit the screen. Plus you can always upgrade the video card later if you wish.

The best thing about Bethesda's games are community mods that can add content to the game, tweak gameplay, possible high resolution texture pack... the possibilities are only limited by the modder's imagination. Adds a lot of replay value.

The specs of your PC is much more power than an Xbox 360. However, the architecture of the 360 has basically not changed and game developers have had many years to figure out how to best optimize the coding to make the game run as best as possible. PCs on the other hand is a complete mess when it comes to specs. You got different CPU architecture, motherboard sub-systems, RAM timings, GPU architectures... Variations in PCs (and laptops) are nearly limitless.

 

[Shez]

I think I've confused everyone

Here's the brass tacks. I basically just want to know if my current rig is capable of playing Skyrim at the graphical equivalent of my 360. If yes, then I'll definitely play it on PC if not, I'll probably go with the Xbox.

Hopefully that's more clear

 

[jaguarskx]

Graphically, it should look at least as good as on the Xbox. Because of the reasons I have already mentioned.

1. Your PC specs are more powerful than the Xbox spec.
2. Xbox games are rendered at 720p and then stretched to fill the screen. Therefore, if you are not getting the performance you want out of the HD EVGA 8800 GTS, then you can lower the game resolution to something like 1280x768 and then have the monitor stretch the lower resolution to fill the screen.

However, since the specs for the Xbox has basically not changed, you can expect the game to be better optimized for the Xbox than for the PC.

 

[Shez]

Damn... so, prettier on the PC but better play on the Xbox.

 

[jaguarskx]

No, not necessarily better play.

All I am saying since the coding is likely to be more efficient in for the Xbox (because of no spec variations), overall system requirements for the console is lower than it would be for the PC.

Your PC's specs is way above the Xbox's specs so you should not have to worry about performance being worse than on the Xbox.

 

[Gman450]

Yeah, and this is Bathesda we're talking about here.
Almost all of their games were buggy with glitches and sorts. Who knows if this one too would be a similar outcome.
But, I'd choose playing the game on PC too.

 

[jaguarskx]

Hopefully Skyrim will be different. The "bugginess" of their previous were most due to the GameBryo engine they were using; if I remember correctly.

This time around they are using a game engine they have developed in-house for Skyrim; I forgot the name of it.

 

[sakanuki]

NoUerBar - mods are a compelling reason to get it on PC (at any point) but I'm more concerned about this first go around. I never tried Oblivion on console, maybe if I had I would feel better about Skyrim on the XBox.

So the consensus is that I won't be getting better graphics on the PC. Possibly higher resolution but also likely lower details etc.

Has anyone played a game like Oblivion on PC and console? Feedback on what that was like?

I have played Oblivion on both PC and Xbox. The interface for the game is already clunky on the PC, but on the Xbox, it's really annnoying as they try to fit all the choices and options on the limited buttons of the console controller. It's certainly nice to play the console version on the couch, but a keyboard is the way to go if you want to avoid throwing things at the screen as you punch buttons and swing the direction controller to and fro just to choose a single spell!

 

[bwrlane]

Yes, with your specs, the game will be better on the PC. This is because your PC is more powerful than an xbox.

However, you will probably need to turn down some of the graphics settings and/or the resolution.

In my opinion, gameplay will be superior on the PC too. The reason for this is that the PC has more keys and therefore the various weapons and spells will be more accessible.

I have a PS3 rather than an xbox but would expect the tradeoffs vs the PC to be broadly similar. I have played Oblivion extensively on both the PS3 and the PC and found the PC to offer a slightly better experience.

In general these days, I'm finding I don't buy PS3 games these days. I only buy them for the PC because I'm getting increasingly intolerant of the poor quality graphics that the console offers vs the best available on the PC. I also tend to go for the games that make use of the PC's additional capabilities - eg hardware tessellation.

 

[PCgamer81]

I had rather play any game on PC even at the lowest settings than play it on console, and that's the truth. You can always upgrade.

With that said, I can almost guarentee that you can run Skyrim with your set-up on medium settings. And it will look better than on console. And it will play better, too.

And in worst case, you can always upgrade. I actually like it when I can't max a game, as that just gives me a reason to go shopping!

 

[shane frazier]

I would always suggest the pc over a console on these games. It is because there are mods on the internet that add hundreds if not thousands of times more gameplay and items to the game, as well as original solutions to random problems in game. The command console on the PC versions are also very nice because they allow you to edit otherwise untouchable game settings in-game. Some people might argue that you could just cheat through the game. This being said i don't care. I don't get a game to work my game. I get a game to play it. Besides even with insanely overpowered weapons you toss it on legendary difficulty and it's still a fair playing field because everything else is all buffed up too. just my 2 cents. Oh and i do hook my laptop to my hdmi tv via an hdmi cable, then use a pc console style controller for playing. This gives same if not better graphics than a console. I plan to get a new graphics card, external hardrive, and more ram for my computer so i can max out my graphics settings and play with hundreds of mods at once. It creates a whole new game entirely bigger than any other game you can find when you do this with elderscrolls or the fall out games.

Hey all

I can't begin to describe how pumped I am for Skyrim. That being said, I have a conundrum. Ideally, I would like to play Skyrim on the PC as it's my preferred platform BUT I don't want to tarnish the experience if my rig isn't capable of handling the graphics. I'm not going for ultra settings here. If my PC can produce Xbox level graphics then I'll go PC if not, I'll probably go XBox. Thoughts?

Here's my rig.

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz LGA 775
EVGA 8800 GTS 640MB 320-bit GDDR3
4GB DDR2 Memory

Thoughts on whether the required hardware is the same as what the XboX will acheive?

 

[manofchalk]

Threads been dead since late 2011, why resurrect it?