To be honest I did mention that I was looking at a mid-high end card, not high end, something along the lines of the GTX460 (which is relatively inexpensive compared to the other major cards out there!) I agree the DS would be great fun to play… but you can’t compare a console to a PC; we’re talking completely different levels of engagement/interactivity! Obviously consoles would come out on top! Also, I wouldn’t say PC gaming is dead… not at anytime soon! There has been less emphasis placed on advertising PC games in recent times (here in Australia at least… don’t know about there though?) but heaps of people still play PC games and they still make PC equivalents of a lot of the games! It also gets rid of specificity in games in terms of the console… by that I mean if you like halo you need an Xbox and if you like mario you need a Nintendo… where as a PC can emulate both of them with great graphics as well! Plus, when you look at this in a broader perspective… a good video card means better video quality, game quality, smoother processing with the latest operating systems (Windows 7 --> Aero) and much more as the newer GPUs take a lot of the strain off the main CPU! So the way I see it, there’s plenty of reason to buy a decent video card!
…the chances are you have a better video card than I do at present… I’m almost certain!
I have a Radeon 9200 that I don’t even know how I got. This thing is really, really bad. But the most recent thing I use it for is Warcraft 3 so it’s alright. I doubt I’d be able to run Starcraft 2, but that doesn’t even bother me
FFXIV is shaping into quite the little mess, isn’t it?
A barebones MMO launch may have flown even as late as a few years ago. Now, however, you’ve had enough successful ones running long enough to be full-to-bursting with content, and when combined with the monthly fee, you have to REALLY put up or shut up when launching a new one. So far, I’ve played Guild Wars, World of Warcraft, City of Heroes/Villains, Star Trek Online, Maple Story, LOTR:O, Final Fantasy XI, and a few other free ones. And the ones that really stick to my mind are those that A) did something different enough to stand out, and B) had enough to actually do, period.
FFXIV has none of that. A release this unfinished is simply inexcusable in this day and age.
And yes, the graphics are pretty, but that’s another issue. A MMO doesn’t have to look ugly, but it also can’t be ridiculously demanding on system requirements. You already have an uphill battle against WoW; don’t lock yourself out of a good chunk of the market as well.
Well I guess my PC’s video card isn’t that old but still relatively the same level of performance, I have a Sapphire HD2400 PRO not that great but does the basic stuff! But you would need more than an AGP card to run the latest OS’s nice and smoothly! (the whole GUI and all!) But that’s beside the point… what I’m tying to say is that PCs are still valued for gaming as well.
