Game Consoles (79 products)

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What makes a game console so good?

Of course, Ebuyer is undeniably a huge fan of PC gaming. We stock all sorts of gaming-grade PC hardware, from the latest and greatest CPUs and GPUs to pre-built gaming PCs, gaming keyboards and gaming mice.

However, we appreciate that PC gaming isn't suited for everyone. Despite PC gaming's growth over the years, the streamlined and curated experience of a game console makes them a worthwhile option for millions of games. Let's break down what makes a game console so good.

Game Consoles are Made For Gaming

While multi-gigabyte patches and updates might interfere from time-to-time, a game console gets you gaming as fast as possible. A game console is largely a plug-and-play device; plug in power and hook up the game console to a TV, and you're good to go.

A game console is considerably easier to use than a gaming PC. Many take it upon themselves to a build a gaming PC. This takes hours' worth of research and preparation to ensure everything's compatible, in addition to the time required to build, diagnose and repair the gaming PC itself. That's a lot of time which could've been spent gaming!

Conversely, you don't have to worry about that with a game console. Once you've passed the console's set up procedure, you can play games right away. A game console is extremely user-friendly, which lets you focus on the games, not on the hardware.

A game console can pull updates in the background without your knowing, keeping you up to date for the best gaming experience. Unlike a gaming PC, you won't have to perform manual updates, such as flashing your motherboard's BIOS or sourcing drivers for your components.

Once you're in-game, you won't have waste time fiddling or tweaking graphics options, either. At most, you might have to choose a preference for resolution or frame rate on a game console, but that's it. On a game console, you'll never encounter a confounding list of options such as 'anti-aliasing' and 'anisotropic filtering'. Expect a consistent level of graphics and performance on a game console.

Game Consoles are Exceptional Value

This leads us onto another advantage of a game console - their exceptional value. If you're looking for a purely gaming-focused device, you can't beat the price-to-performance ratio of a game console. You won't be able to build an equivalently specced gaming PC for anywhere near the same price as a game console - an entire console might cost as much as a graphics card! A game console comes bundled with a controller too, increasing their value even more.

For many gamers, the biggest advantage of a game console is that it'll last for a whole generations' worth of gaming, if not more! For instance, the PlayStation 4 first launched in 2013, but even years later you can still play newly released games on it. Not a lot of devices can claim such long-term support. Buy a game console now, and you can enjoy games for years to come, without requiring an upgrade. This contrasts against a gaming PC, which you might have to upgrade to keep pace with the latest releases.

Which game console should I buy?

PlayStation, Xbox or Nintendo? When you're trying to decide on which game console you should buy, we'd recommend not focusing too hard on the hardware and tech specs. Rather, think about the game you'll want to play, and pick based on that! Each game console manufacturer has a catalogue of first-party games exclusive to their machine.

Exclusives

Want to play Halo? This landmark franchise that helped define the popular first-person shooter genre on consoles is exclusive to Xbox consoles. For highly acclaimed and industry-leading experiences, look no further than a PlayStation console, with prestige games like The Last of Us, God of War and more. Mario, Zelda, Pokémon - these beloved landmark video games franchises found their adoring audience on Nintendo consoles and remain an integral part of enchanting Nintendo experience.

Multi-player

Furthermore, you'll want a game console that's the same as your mates' consoles for multi-player gaming. Broadly speaking, Xbox game consoles can only connect to other Xbox gamers, PlayStation with PlayStation and so on. Some games support cross-platform play, so Xbox gamers can play with PlayStation gamers, for instance. This varies on a game-by-game basis, however, it's not guaranteed. To be on the safe side, get the same console as your friend group.

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