PC Gaming in the Early '90s

[JumpingRyle]

Well, it is a bit unfair to rule that a PC platformer from 1994 could not compare to a Genesis game from 1994 graphically, considering the library of PC platformers was terrible and most of them were low budget shareware titles.

[Kamahl]

I can't think of a single PC game with smooth parallax scrolling that ran adequately on a 386. It took a 486 to make the PC 100% better than the genesis.

[JumpingRyle]

I can't think of a single PC game with smooth parallax scrolling that ran adequately on a 386. It took a 486 to make the PC 100% better than the genesis.

And the first 486 chip came out in 1989, with the dx2 in 1992...

[Kamahl]

And the first 486 chip came out in 1989, with the dx2 in 1992...

And it cost 2 kidneys. Not many people were willing to die or murder to have a PC that could compete with a $200 thingy.

[JumpingRyle]

And it cost 2 kidneys. Not many people were willing to die or murder to have a PC that could compete with a $200 thingy.

Yeah, especially when it first came out. But the poster above said it wasn't until 1995 that a PC platformer could compare graphically with a Genesis platformer... By then the Pentium chip had been out for 2 years.

[JumpingRyle]

OK OK How about Jim Power on DOS in 1993?

[Kamahl]

There's no way that runs properly on anything less than a fast 386DX.

[JumpingRyle]

There's no way that runs properly on anything less than a fast 386DX.

?

Did anybody say otherwise? I'm confused.

[Kamahl]

?

Did anybody say otherwise? I'm confused.

Ok, let's be more specific then. Only by 1995 could an affordable PC compete with a Sega Genesis.
Of course you had games before that with better graphics, but the hardware required was insane. Jazz Jackrabbit needed 4 megs of ram and a 386DX and it couldn't even do parallax scrolling.

[JumpingRyle]

Ok, let's be more specific then. Only by 1995 could an affordable PC compete with a Sega Genesis.
Of course you had games before that with better graphics, but the hardware required was insane. Jazz Jackrabbit needed 4 megs of ram and a 386DX and it couldn't even do parallax scrolling.

OK... but we were talking about the capabilities of the platform.

Also, I feel sorry for anybody that still had a 386 in 1995. A good 486dx2 @ 66MHz system could be had for less than $1500 then.

[Kamahl]

Also, I feel sorry for anybody that still had a 386 in 1995. A good 486dx2 @ 66MHz system could be had for less than $1500 then.

We got our 486 in 1994 for something close to $2000, and that was without a soundcard (a friend gave us a soundblaster-16).

Not cheap. You could get an Amiga 500 for $800 or less in 1987! PCs were ridiculously expensive, how much did a Genesis cost in 1995? A bag of peanuts?

The best example of a game that could run on affordable hardware I can think of is Soccer Kid:



A 386SX can handle it at a decent framerate.

[JumpingRyle]

Sure, I agree that to run new games you needed a new, powerful PC. That's still true today. But when comparing PC to PS4, nobody says that you have to use a 5 year old "average" PC in your comparison. You use the high-end, current one. Because you are comparing the capabilities of the platform, not the "average".

Here's an ad from the June 29, 1993 edition of PC Mag:



A generic brand 486dx2, state of the art at the time, could be had for $1750 in 1993, and even cheaper if you built it yourself. While expensive, that's not so much more than a modern gaming PC would cost.

[Kamahl]

Ok, $1750 hardware in 1993 could compete with $88 hardware in 1993 (which wasn't sold at a cost back then).

[JumpingRyle]

Ok, $1750 hardware in 1993 could compete with $88 hardware in 1993 (which wasn't sold at a cost back then).

Yes. Are you new to PC vs console debates, by any chance?

[Kamahl]

Yes. Are you new to PC vs console debates, by any chance?

Not really, the difference is that with 500€ today I can get a better PC than an Xbox One.