As an avid gamer, there are times when one platform is dominant and the other just has exclusives to offer. That's often the stance I have on todays games, where I find playing them on my X360 to be the far superior experience (in visual display, playability and badge collecting) to the PS3 with it's own unique brands of games. Sure PS3 has most of the same games, and a few of their own high level IP's like Uncharted and Heavy Rain, but in my reality they're not enough of a difference maker to really sway someone to make a Platform hop.
Now of course, none of this applies to PC gaming.
It's definitely a strange sensation knowing that with a controller you can play games on your PC exactly like you do on console, and with a keyboard and mouse, you can play shooters more accurately. Honestly, if I could get all my Games for Windows to update achievements to my Live account, I'd probably play on my PC more exclusively. Notice that is Games for Windows not Games for Windows Live, which for some reason unknown to me, is not the same service.
PC gaming is really where things get interesting (re:complex).
Most people don't want to mix it up with the Hardware to play games on PC. Consoles definitely win in the aspect of a one stop shop for developement companies as consoles all have identical hardware specs to same model. However games for PC can be a run on a large array of machines with different amounts of RAM or vastly different video cards that all need to be supported. None of this is news to you, but it is obvious that there could be alot of problems in configuration and optimization that might be the fault of the end user rather than the developer, and some gamers don't want that risk.
The other side is also true though. Gamers that take on that optimization risk and suceed tend to be the ones that also shine in mutliplayer gamers or MMO's. It could be a result of their tenacity, or it could just be that they are better. Either way you tend to find these communities of individuals are where the games that casual gamers develop.
Take First Person Shooters for example, console only players are quick to claim superiority on FPS titles, when in reality PC gamers own that field. Battlefield, Crysis, Team Fortress 2, Counter-Strike all PC games, All offspring of DOOM and Wolfenstein, all better on the system they were built for. It's evident every time they're in comparison, like for example the Battlefield: Bad Company 2:Vietnam bonus map that was supposed to be unlocked after x number of combat actions were completed. PC gamers unlocked it so far in advance of console players that the developers just opened the map for consoles and called it a Holiday gift.
So that's the tear. Playing a mixed platform game on console is great when all your friend are there, or you're badge collecting, but attempting to compare it visually or developmentally or community-wise is it's own debate, ultimately ending with the answer of having to either play the game where it shines, or play it where it was actually meant to be played.
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