With the next generation of gaming consoles right around the corner, many fans have begun deciding whether they will spend the foreseeable future playing on the Xbox Series X or the PlayStation 5. While both of the companies' upcoming hardware have their advantages and disadvantages, the best option for gamers in 2020 might be to spend the money elsewhere.

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In recent years, PC gaming has become a more affordable and accessible avenue for dedicated gamers. With the prices of the PS5 and Xbox Series X still undetermined, buying or building a PC might give gamers far more advantages than the upcoming consoles, without costing significantly more. With that being said here are 10 reasons to switch to PC gaming in 2020.

10 Xbox GamePass Ultimate

xbox game pass updated logo banner

One of the recent staples of the Xbox brand is Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. This subscription allows gamers on an Xbox and PC to play any game in the back catalogue, which is over two-hundred titles, and grants access to new games released by the Xbox Game Studios on launch.

If you have been a fan of the Xbox ecosystem for the past two decades or are deciding to make the switch from PlayStation this year, buying a PC gives you all the advantages of the Xbox ecosystem, like Game Pass, while also giving you all the other advantages of PCs.

9 Keyboard and Controller

razer huntsman mini keyboard

Although many PC gamers have used keyboards for several decades now, home consoles have still not successfully incorporated them into their ecosystem. Instead, over the past few generations, Xbox and PlayStation have insisted fans buy all new controllers each time a new console comes out.

This meant shelling out hundreds of dollars extra, on top of the new consoles, so everyone in the household could play together. In addition to using a mouse and keyboard setup, PC gamers can use several different controllers.

8 Upgradable Hardware

nvidia

Roughly every eight years, Xbox and PlayStation have told fans that it is time to move to a new generation of hardware. What this has meant for console gamers is that it time to spend a significant amount of money to play the newest games.

For PC gamers, generations simply do not exist. While there is still a chance of not having powerful enough hardware to run certain games, PC games can upgrade their hardware as they like. Although it might add up to more money in total, the cost of having a powerful gaming PC can be spread out over several years, which is

7 Accessible Streaming

dr disrespect returns to youtube

Over the past few years, streaming gameplay on platforms like Twitch has become a staple of the industry. While there are ways to stream Xbox and PlayStation gameplay on a variety of platforms, most ways require additional hardware like a capture card and a computer.

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For PC gamers interested in Twitch streaming, however, the cost of entry is significantly lower. By downloading free streaming software, like OBS, and sharing the screen, PC gamers can go live on Twitch. It may not be the ideal way to stream games, but it is enough to start.

6 Crossplay

One thing that has defined the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 generation is crossplay. Unlike never before, gamers can now play some of the biggest games with their friends, despite which platform they all have. What this really means is that gamers no longer have to take into account which consoles their friends are getting.

With Crossplay becoming a new normal for the industry, why not buy the hardware that will allow the best gaming experience possible?

5 No Online Subscription

Over the past couple of console generations, online play has become the dominant way to enjoy multi-player games. With this, however, the big three companies, Nintendo, PlayStation, and Xbox, have all incorporated a service charge to be able to play online with friends.

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While the cost does go towards certain features like party chat and server maintenance, PC players are able to load up many of the same games with no extra cost to play.

4 More Games and Stores

steam valve

With digital purchases becoming a dominant way for gamers to buy games, Xbox, Playstation, and Nintendo have been able to sell their games directly to gamers. Although cutting out the middle man should in theory make it cheaper for gamers, usually, the extra money earned from digital purchases goes straight to the hardware companies because they are the only means of digital distribution on their respective consoles.

Unlike consoles, however, PC gamers have a variety of stores to choose from, which means each store is attempting to earn your money.

3 No Backwards Compatability Problems

xbox series x launch titles

When Xbox announced that the Xbox One would incorporate backwards compatibility, the gaming world positively erupted. Although this was a major step in the right direction for console gamers, this problem simply does not exist on PC.

Without generation cycles, stores like Steam have been able to allow current PC gamers to play older games, without having to plug in an older computer.

2 Accessible Game Mods

While some current generation games like Fallout 4 have incorporated mods on consoles, the vast majority of games that get modded on PC will never see any form of player-created modifications on consoles.

Although games should be played the way the developers intended, game modification is a fun way to expand a videogame's life. Unfortunately, many console gamers have not been able to experience the added fun of user creations

1 Additional Purposes

2020 has been an interesting year, to say the least. With many students transitioning to a form of online learning and many office personnel working from home, making one purchase instead of two is financially practical.

When the current generation of consoles become obsolete, purchasing a PC could be beneficial in many ways outside of gaming.

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