I am primarly a console gamer. I have owned Nintendo and Sony consoles (with the added Sega Dreamcast from last Christmas), and I play them regularly. Not so much the computer. I have little games for it, and the times I spend alot of time playing on it is few and far between. But even then, the PC gamers and everyone in the community intrigue me. Sure, alot of multiplatform games that get PC releases are instead played on consoles, but there are just things that are...different about the PC that makes me want to get involved way more.  
 
I've been playing PC games recently. Morrowind, one game I bought on Steam, and another game I got a guest pass for from a friend. 
 
So far in Morrowind, I've started a few questlines, but I'm just soaking in the environments, just wandering around to see if there's something I haven't seen yet (there sure is alot, alright). But this playthrough I have been using mods. Mods are probably the biggest reason why I even consider playing games on the PC. More detailed textures, improved body meshes, the AWESOME Tamriel Rebuilt, as well as applications and programs that can't be made through the Construction Set. Makes the game feel new even though I've played it quite a few times a couple years back. 
 
That's not even the start of what gets me. Improving or adding bits to a game with mods from the community is awesome. But Total Conversion Mods. Games that change the original game itself to be something different. To think that people who play games would dedicate alot of time to create an entire game using an existing one as it's base. Something you would think the original developers would do for a sequel or new IP or something. 
 
Personally, I think those people are friggin' nuts, but I'm more than willing to give my support for those projects. It kinda makes me want to create a mod of my own. Get an idea of what developing a game, or part of it atleast, is like. 
 
Besides Morrowind, I've gotten back into Steam, and did something I should've done along time ago. Buy Torchlight. 
 
Heard alot of good things, nice word of mouth that went around, yet I didn't bother to check it out. I regret not doing it then, but I'm glad I do have it now. 
This game is actually the first Diablo styled game I've played. And I like it. 
 
I can see how grinding through dungeons can be fun when done right. When you are given countless amounts of loot that just tease you to keep going is really addicting. I've just been progressing through the main dungeon as well as the three side quest types (slay a monster, collect ember, go through special dungeon). And I still don't think it's over. I love how good your pet is, and sending it to town to sell loot is really sweet. Doesn't feel tiring at all, things feel nice and smooth so you can keep fighting your way through enemy hoards. It's just fun. I love it. And at 20 dollars, definetely a good price. 
 
Oh, and like Morrowind, it has mod support. This actually led more to my purchase than the actual gameplay (though the premise did sound interesting). From what I've heard, Torchlight has a pretty good mod community. Once I go through my character to the end of the main quest, and the other side missions, I'll probably check out the mods. I definetely want to see what people have created. 
 
Final game I played this past week was one that I got via Guest Pass. One of my friends on Steam gave me a guest pass for Team Fortress 2. It was very unexpected, and I had no idea you could actually do that. So I had 3 days to play the game, and I decided I would make the best of it. Installed it during school on Friday, got home, and started it up. 
 
Now something important to know before going on. I am not a big multiplayer guy. I consider playing with friends a treat as I don't invite them over every other night or vise versa to play a game, so I spend most of my time on single player campaigns. I've had some fun with multiplayer in games, but the popular shooters like Halo, Gears, or Modern Warfare. Partly because people would not go easy on me and help me learn some strategies, but that they were on consoles. And dual analog controls for shooters, do not do it for me. 
 
Now, TF2 is a first person shooter, and is entirely multiplayer. What did I think? For all I care, better than the above mentioned games combined. I freaking LOVED IT! 
 
First off, the title says it. TEAM Fortress 2. Team, implying you have to work together. I always prefered team based game modes over free for alls, because knowing there are people that AREN'T trying to kill you reassures me (and was my major turn off for Halo when everyone kept doing regular death match). 
Second, it's class based. I enjoy games that allow me to pick a character with different attributes, and seeing the scout in action, I decided he would be my go-to class. My playing style is one who prefers to be fast and use hit-and-run tactics. Low health comes at a disadvantage of course, but that's why they have a button dedicated to calling the medic, right? 
And third, I'm actually playing it on a platform that to me is just right. The PC. I take mouse over control stick for aiming any day, and digital movement doesn't bother me, seeing as everyone always has to keep moving anyway. That, and this is the first game I've actually played online on PC. Games like Battlefield 1942 or Nightfire, I just played against bots, which was fun, as it let me learn about the map and some strategies. 
 
And as far as I'm concerned, I ended up getting into matches much faster just by selecting a server than simply hitting a matchmaking button and wait for it to pick someone up. And the earlier mention of mods did end up making it's way into the game during matches when I played on specific servers. Not game changing, but neat little touches. One server I played on had quake sound effects and voice overs for when someone got a multikill or was dominating a player. I played for like two hours straight on that server, with starting near the end of a previous round, and then one whole 100 minute round. Yep, that long. I even got people on my friends list to join. In the end it was a stale mate, but the carnage was just overwhelmingly awesome. And that was only yesterday. 
 
But, sadly, my guest pass expired last night/early morning, so now it'll be a while until I get my hands on the game again. I'm gonna by the Orange Box in the future, as TF2 comes with that, and thankfully there are some good single player games that come with that, like Half Life 2 and Portal. 
 
I'm still surprised I actually had as much fun as I did on TF2. I normally don't bother with multiplayer in games, let alone want to keep playing. Seeing as I have the ability to play with people online through the PC, with well coordinated people, it kinda changes my opinion on multiplayer. I'm good with online so long as it's PC, as that's really the only way you can do multiplayer with other people. I don't need to play online on a console that can be easily be played by four people in the same room on one system. 
 
It's been eventful this past week in the PC realm. I revisted a favorite RPG, discovered a new type of game, and had the most fun in my life with multiplayer since I last played Goldeneye. And the community is great. Haven't experienced any horror stories of someone being anal during a game. The servers had their rules, no mic spamming or griefing, any of that stuff, and everyone obeyed them. And did I mention I had fun? 
 
Have a good week everyone. Oh, and Happy Presidents Day.

I am primarly a console gamer. I have owned Nintendo and Sony consoles (with the added Sega Dreamcast from last Christmas), and I play them regularly. Not so much the computer. I have little games for it, and the times I spend alot of time playing on it is few and far between. But even then, the PC gamers and everyone in the community intrigue me. Sure, alot of multiplatform games that get PC releases are instead played on consoles, but there are just things that are...different about the PC that makes me want to get involved way more.  
 
I've been playing PC games recently. Morrowind, one game I bought on Steam, and another game I got a guest pass for from a friend. 
 
So far in Morrowind, I've started a few questlines, but I'm just soaking in the environments, just wandering around to see if there's something I haven't seen yet (there sure is alot, alright). But this playthrough I have been using mods. Mods are probably the biggest reason why I even consider playing games on the PC. More detailed textures, improved body meshes, the AWESOME Tamriel Rebuilt, as well as applications and programs that can't be made through the Construction Set. Makes the game feel new even though I've played it quite a few times a couple years back. 
 
That's not even the start of what gets me. Improving or adding bits to a game with mods from the community is awesome. But Total Conversion Mods. Games that change the original game itself to be something different. To think that people who play games would dedicate alot of time to create an entire game using an existing one as it's base. Something you would think the original developers would do for a sequel or new IP or something. 
 
Personally, I think those people are friggin' nuts, but I'm more than willing to give my support for those projects. It kinda makes me want to create a mod of my own. Get an idea of what developing a game, or part of it atleast, is like. 
 
Besides Morrowind, I've gotten back into Steam, and did something I should've done along time ago. Buy Torchlight. 
 
Heard alot of good things, nice word of mouth that went around, yet I didn't bother to check it out. I regret not doing it then, but I'm glad I do have it now. 
This game is actually the first Diablo styled game I've played. And I like it. 
 
I can see how grinding through dungeons can be fun when done right. When you are given countless amounts of loot that just tease you to keep going is really addicting. I've just been progressing through the main dungeon as well as the three side quest types (slay a monster, collect ember, go through special dungeon). And I still don't think it's over. I love how good your pet is, and sending it to town to sell loot is really sweet. Doesn't feel tiring at all, things feel nice and smooth so you can keep fighting your way through enemy hoards. It's just fun. I love it. And at 20 dollars, definetely a good price. 
 
Oh, and like Morrowind, it has mod support. This actually led more to my purchase than the actual gameplay (though the premise did sound interesting). From what I've heard, Torchlight has a pretty good mod community. Once I go through my character to the end of the main quest, and the other side missions, I'll probably check out the mods. I definetely want to see what people have created. 
 
Final game I played this past week was one that I got via Guest Pass. One of my friends on Steam gave me a guest pass for Team Fortress 2. It was very unexpected, and I had no idea you could actually do that. So I had 3 days to play the game, and I decided I would make the best of it. Installed it during school on Friday, got home, and started it up. 
 
Now something important to know before going on. I am not a big multiplayer guy. I consider playing with friends a treat as I don't invite them over every other night or vise versa to play a game, so I spend most of my time on single player campaigns. I've had some fun with multiplayer in games, but the popular shooters like Halo, Gears, or Modern Warfare. Partly because people would not go easy on me and help me learn some strategies, but that they were on consoles. And dual analog controls for shooters, do not do it for me. 
 
Now, TF2 is a first person shooter, and is entirely multiplayer. What did I think? For all I care, better than the above mentioned games combined. I freaking LOVED IT! 
 
First off, the title says it. TEAM Fortress 2. Team, implying you have to work together. I always prefered team based game modes over free for alls, because knowing there are people that AREN'T trying to kill you reassures me (and was my major turn off for Halo when everyone kept doing regular death match). 
Second, it's class based. I enjoy games that allow me to pick a character with different attributes, and seeing the scout in action, I decided he would be my go-to class. My playing style is one who prefers to be fast and use hit-and-run tactics. Low health comes at a disadvantage of course, but that's why they have a button dedicated to calling the medic, right? 
And third, I'm actually playing it on a platform that to me is just right. The PC. I take mouse over control stick for aiming any day, and digital movement doesn't bother me, seeing as everyone always has to keep moving anyway. That, and this is the first game I've actually played online on PC. Games like Battlefield 1942 or Nightfire, I just played against bots, which was fun, as it let me learn about the map and some strategies. 
 
And as far as I'm concerned, I ended up getting into matches much faster just by selecting a server than simply hitting a matchmaking button and wait for it to pick someone up. And the earlier mention of mods did end up making it's way into the game during matches when I played on specific servers. Not game changing, but neat little touches. One server I played on had quake sound effects and voice overs for when someone got a multikill or was dominating a player. I played for like two hours straight on that server, with starting near the end of a previous round, and then one whole 100 minute round. Yep, that long. I even got people on my friends list to join. In the end it was a stale mate, but the carnage was just overwhelmingly awesome. And that was only yesterday. 
 
But, sadly, my guest pass expired last night/early morning, so now it'll be a while until I get my hands on the game again. I'm gonna by the Orange Box in the future, as TF2 comes with that, and thankfully there are some good single player games that come with that, like Half Life 2 and Portal. 
 
I'm still surprised I actually had as much fun as I did on TF2. I normally don't bother with multiplayer in games, let alone want to keep playing. Seeing as I have the ability to play with people online through the PC, with well coordinated people, it kinda changes my opinion on multiplayer. I'm good with online so long as it's PC, as that's really the only way you can do multiplayer with other people. I don't need to play online on a console that can be easily be played by four people in the same room on one system. 
 
It's been eventful this past week in the PC realm. I revisted a favorite RPG, discovered a new type of game, and had the most fun in my life with multiplayer since I last played Goldeneye. And the community is great. Haven't experienced any horror stories of someone being anal during a game. The servers had their rules, no mic spamming or griefing, any of that stuff, and everyone obeyed them. And did I mention I had fun? 
 
Have a good week everyone. Oh, and Happy Presidents Day.

  Well that was quite the post. Happy to hear you're enjoying the amazing wonders of PC games. I'm primarily PC gamer and I wish I could get more of my friends to at least try more PC games. Most of them are strictly console. 
 
Team Fortress 2 is the shit. The way that each class contributes in a different way towards the overall victory is satisfying. Not to mention the free updates the game keeps getting, adding more items and weapons for the classes. I just wish the damn Engineer update would come out. He's probably my most played class.
 
  You mentioned Morrowind. Have you played Oblivion on the PC yet? Like Morrowind, it has some sweet mods. If you ever play it you should download FCOM convergence. If you haven't heard of it, its a combination of like 4 or 5 big mods (and dozens of other small ones that can be enabled or disabled optionally)  that really improve the core game. Also, If you ever find Diablo 2 for cheap, it's still a great game with a pretty big community considering its age and it has some decent mods when you burn out on the main game. Even has a new patch coming within a few months (I hope).

Welcome.
 
Hope to see you in TF2. 
 
Half-life is a masterpiece, such as Portal and of course TF2 which is the best shooter online. I think The Orange box is one of the best buys you can have in gaming.

Yup. PC gaming is fan-fucking-tastic (if done right). Mods, better performance and keyboard and mouse configurations are the primary reasons why anyone sticks with PC gaming. It may not have the same accessibility nor simplicity of console gaming but when you know what to do it's really rewarding. With the PC, you can also polay a variety of games that you normally wouldn't get on consoles, strategy games like Supreme Commander, Company of Heroes,  Civilisation IV, Total War series and so fourth as well as some RPGs (Diablo series, Fallout, Neverwinter Nights) and some shooters (Crysis, STALKER, Unreal Tournament, etc). I could talk for hours but you get the idea.

"You mentioned Morrowind. Have you played Oblivion on the PC yet? Like Morrowind, it has some sweet mods. If you ever play it you should download FCOM convergence. If you haven't heard of it, its a combination of like 4 or 5 big mods (and dozens of other small ones that can be enabled or disabled optionally)  that really improve the core game. Also, If you ever find Diablo 2 for cheap, it's still a great game with a pretty big community considering its age and it has some decent mods when you burn out on the main game. Even has a new patch coming within a few months (I hope). "

You're using the Morrowind Graphics Extender and the Animated Grass mod, right? because those are great.

"You're using the Morrowind Graphics Extender and the Animated Grass mod, right? because those are great. "

My problem with the PC community si that they have no originally when it comes to insults everyone still thinks Noob is funny.... and they always think there amazing at everything.

Agree with you on everything and I'm glad to see you in our community. 
 
The one thing I will share with you is dislike of lonewolf-style gameplay. Yeah I liked CoD4 and MW2, even some CS:S every now and then. but the game I come back to with a passion is TF2, nothing can beat the quality of that game and the constant content coming on it. 
  
Oh and if you like Team based games, I would strongly recommend getting into the Bad Company 2 Beta. I've never played a Batlefield game before but I jumped into this and its incredibly fun. The game also makes sure to reward you lots for squad tactics and gameplay. 
 
@MrGetBonus said:

" Most of them are strictly console. "

" @Alaska_Gamer: 
Another cheap game with heavy mod support: Mount&Blade. And holy shit I just noticed they reworked the website. "

" @Bellum said:

" @Alaska_Gamer: 
Another cheap game with heavy mod support: Mount&Blade. And holy shit I just noticed they reworked the website. "

Saw that game when it was on sale on Steam, but like many other games, I didn't think to buy it. Was rather busy with Torchlight anyway, wouldn't want to have the thing just sitting around until I was done (which I'm far from). Gotta say, the environments make me think of Oblvion, except based way more on actual medievil times. And the horse combat sounds fun based on what I've read of it. "