The PC vs console war has been going on for years. PC gamers consider their platform to be superior as games do give a lot of advantages while played on PC. Whereas according to console players, playing a game on a console is better as it is a cheaper option, and games are mostly optimized to run on the same hardware available on the console.
Overwatch is a famous competitive multiplayer game released on both PC and consoles by Blizzard Entertainment. Although the game might look awfully similar on both platforms, there are a great number of differences when one tries the game on both of them.
Competitive games are mostly played on PC as it gives you the option of truly unlocking your frame rates. However, overwatch has done a great job on the console port. The game runs incredibly well on a controller for an FPS game.
Playing Overwatch on PC vs Console
Although overwatch runs great on both PC and console, some people might want to know which one’s the better platform. The gameplay is actually a lot different in consoles compared to PC. Here are some of the main differences between these two platforms while playing overwatch:
- Balancing
Balancing is an important aspect of a multiplayer game, especially if it’s competitive. The surprising part about Overwatch is that the Xbox/PS4 versions are balanced entirely different compared to PC. This is pretty necessary as you need to play the game with a controller on the console port, whereas the PC version is played with a keyboard and a mouse.
There are a few characters with auto-aiming turrets. Dealing with them is a lot harder in consoles due to the lower accuracy with a controller. In answer to this, Blizzard nerfed the turret’s damage to a lot less compared to what it is on the PC.
- Aim Assist
Like a few other games, overwatch has a great aim assist on consoles. The reticle automatically slows down when a player’s aim is near to the enemy. This makes overwatch plenty of easier to play on a console. Players can also modify this “smoothing” by going through the settings of the game. Although, the reticle does not miraculously aim at the enemy by itself, having the option of slowing down near an enemy does help a lot.
On the other hand, PC players do not need any kind of aim assist as playing it with a keyboard and mouse grants greater accuracy and precision.
- Communication
Overwatch is a team-based multiplayer game that relies on the player communicating with his team. The console version falls shorts when it comes to communication as most of the players don’t own a separate microphone. Although higher ranks will feature players using a mic quite often, players having a lower rank don’t seem to use the feature much.
Here, PC players take the bread as most of the players take full advantage of communication. Even players placed in bronze communicate with their teammates and callout compared to the PS4/Xbox version.
- Gameplay Optimization
Overwatch runs at a solid 60 frames per second on a console. The game is locked on 60 FPS, and can’t be increased. Most gamers like to push the game to its limits when playing a competitive game like overwatch. All of the pro players run the game on a 144-240Hz screen with unlocked frames. While 60 FPS is pretty smooth and the player won’t feel any lag at all, some players would still go for more as it will make the game run buttery smooth.
PC is the obvious winner here as players can play on a 240Hz screen, which gives them the ability to play the game with up to 240 frames per second! PC players will also have the option to completely customize their optimization and graphical settings.
Conclusion
Comparing overwatch in PC vs console, there can be dozens of more reasons why gamers prefer one over the other. Although the PC version does give you a lot more benefits, especially if you are playing the game competitively. This does not mean the console version is bad. Even with all the added benefits on a PC, some players still prefer to play the game on consoles due to personal preference.