Hey guys,

I had an idea this morning after reading an argument about Skyrim graphics on the Xbox vs the PC.

What if consoles had detachable counterparts that allowed you to upgrade their graphics cards,RAM and power supply similar to the way you can upgrade hard drive size.

A good comparison of this vision would be the http://www.bmwblog.com/wp-content/uploads/bmw-pccase.jpg case which encapsulates each piece of the computer in its own casing.

These cases would be detachable and would allow for simple upgrades to the console in order to push out higher quality games later in the consoles life cycle.

How effective do you think this idea would be? How do you think it'd positively and negatively effect PC gaming?

-Mike

Horrible idea. The reason consoles work as well as they do is because the games can be extremely optimized. Introducing multiple designs will make the games run worse. Games would also have to be written for the weakest link, and as such would negate the advantages of modularity.

It pretty much negates every advantage of a console over a PC.

Never will work...

Sega failed doing so
:P

It would defeat much of the appeal of consoles, which is that you buy one box and everything works on that box.

People who are willing to spend money on the best graphics and performance will already be using PCs. It's not very hard to plug stuff into a PC, once you spend a little time learning about the parts.

Ouch.

I didn't want to elaborate too much because I wanted people to read it but basically the idea is 3 or 4 years down a console's life cycle, Microsoft Sony or Nintendo would release a "kit" which would increase the graphical power of the console.

This could possibly increase longevity of a console so we don't necessarily have to dish out another 500 - 600 on a next generation console. You'd just have to plug the pieces in like lego..Which is much easier than calibrating RAM voltage, installing new GPU drivers, and all of that.

I understand what you're saying about having too many of these pieces on the market and having to work by the lowest denominator, though.

This. The whole point of a console is that the game just works.

So the idea is to extend console life with one or two easy-to-install upgrades? Hell, I'm all for that.

I'd prefer a new console rather than attaching bits of hardware onto my old one.

This would mean less money for Nintendo most likely (they sell their consoles at a gain). And, this is going to sound dikeish, but this isn't a revolutionary idea by any stretch of the imagination. I contemplated it years ago and I assume MS and Sony have both considered it by now too. If it was a good idea it would be in the current consoles or is being implemented in the next gen ones.

Nintendo did it with the N64. It had a RAM expansion pack. Majora's Mask required it (my brother, he is a major Nintendo nerd).

No offense taken.

Try not to think of this discussion as a "do i have a good idea?" thread but more of a "what if" situation as was the thread's original intention.

The reasons why this wouldn't work have already been quite explored and stated in the thread already. I will chime in with my own opinion being: why would we even need such a thing?

One of the reasons I like consoles is that they impose very strict, very specific limitations on developers. I feel that these limitations allow more creativity within the constraints than if there were no limitations at all. On top of that I don't believe graphics are going in the right direction nor do I believe they should be the primary focus of better hardware. Take Crysis for example. Crysis is not by any means a bad game, however it's only real claim to fame is that it pushed graphics. I feel that the PC as a platform is best represented in games like the original Deus Ex, the newer Dwarf Fortress, and the multitude of indie games like Basion and World of Goo (yes I know that's multiplat so sue me), not games like Crysis and Battlefield 3.

In the same way I feel that the console platform is best represented in games that do so much with so little, and focus more on gameplay than they do shiny pretty. God of War, Shadow of the Colossus, Demon's Souls, Wind Waker, Beyond Good and Evil, Psychonauts...

If wanting to be able to swap out your console GPU for a new model so you can have more shiny-pretty is the focus then I think you need to get priorities straight. Developers too.

Nintendo tried something similar with the N64 Expansion Pack. The expansion pack didn't sell well until they made certain games (i.e. Perfect Dark) require it in order to play. Modular parts might extend the console's life a bit, but are extremely unlikely to catch on.