It also helps that consoles are becoming more and more PC-esque and expensive. Consoles were a good alternative because they were cheaper, had exclusive titles, and had the ability to couch game, and usually were just “pop disc in and play”. They were also pretty stand-alone devices. My biggest issue with PC gaming prior to really this generation was I cannot stand M+KB, I like sitting back in a chair with a controller. But now, peripherals are more able to operate on multiple platforms, games do cross-platform releases, cross play is more prolific (and cross-saves as of late), and it’s easier to switch now and not “lose” your friends. Plus, the cost of consoles anymore are much closer to equivalent PCs now.
Console positives are dwindling, or at least becoming neutral to PC.
No, but I didn’t want the headache of multiple peripherals, and when you’re 15, it’s hard to convince a parent to spring for more expensive options out of convenience lol. There were options, but even still, some games didn’t come with native controller support (I built my 1st PC in college in…2013? for ESO, and the controller support was through a mod, and it barely worked at the best of times).
Theyve just gotten so similar in their function, it’s increasingly hard to justify a console anymore. Microsoft basically forgoing exclusives now only strengthens it