Console and PC Games: A Newbie's Questions

[Redundant]

OK , so firstly, I would like to inform everybody that I've never owned a console and have only played a few PC Games. *gasp *

Secondly, I have seen the PC game BF2142; it looks good and I would like to know if my computer can run it.

My dad got me a notebook PC for Christmas (even though I asked for parts...go figure) and it is a Toshiba P105-S6114. It has a 1.6ghz Core 2 Duo, 2GB of RAM and 128mb Intel Integrated Graphics (yuck ). If that one can't play any games then I may be able to use my mom's notebook PC which is a Sony SZ 180p/c. It has a 2.0ghz Core Duo, 2GB of RAM and a nVidia 128mb 7300 graphics card.How well will games play on either of these?

Also, the game Halo caught my eye and I was wondering how the PC version was. My friends and fellow peers say "ported games are crap." (but between us the majority of them are effin idiots.) So are they just dumb and biased or is this true?

Thanks for all the help!

[Durrthock]

The one with the 7300 should run It Im not shure though.

[luciusad2004]

On the matter of Halo for PC.

I own it and i will say that its the same game that is on the xbox. The campaign plays out EXACTLY the same. In fact its got some extra stuff as far as multiplayer features go.

for instance

The pc version features:

Online play (free online play at that)
a couple extra maps
a few new guns
and the ability to use the Banshee in multiplayer.

Halo for PC is a good game and i would definitly give it a thumbs up.

You might want to look up the system requirements though as im not sure if it will play on your laptops. I used to have a laptop with integrated graphics and halo wouldn't play at all.

[Dem Pyros]

First off, Halo for PC wasn't ported. It was actually made for both simultaneously.

Second off, the PC version of Halo is great. It has many more features, ONLINE PLAY (no, halo 1 doesn't have online play on the xbox) and it also has Halo:CE, with a vast modding community

Thirdly: Your laptop's graphics card won't be able to handle BF2142. Your CPU is decent, RAM is great, but your graphics card *might* make the game barely playable at 20fps with everything dead low.

[Reyer]

I just got a new PC and i have been downloading Game Demos like crazy


BF2142
Halo one
Half Life 2
Flight simulator X
World of Warcraft

thoes are the best ones to get. WoW is the biggest and might take a while to download

[Redundant]

First off, Halo for PC wasn't ported. It was actually made for both simultaneously.

Thirdly: Your laptop's graphics card won't be able to handle BF2142. Your CPU is decent, RAM is great, but your graphics card *might* make the game barely playable at 20fps with everything dead low.

Wow, I knew it was made by MS but thought it was for XBOX originally...
As for the graphics, I've seen BF(the WWII one) run on my school's cheap computers (Celerons and definitely has integrated graphics) so I'm a bit surprised. (Yes, the settings were probably low...)

I just got a new PC and i have been downloading Game Demos like crazy


BF2142
Halo one
Half Life 2
Flight simulator X
World of Warcraft

thoseare the best ones to get. WoW is the biggest and might take a while to download

Why did you download the demo for Halo 1? I thought they were on the third version... Sadly, downloading demos is almost impossible as I'm on dial-up but sometimes I can leech wireless.

For Halo, since most people play it on the XBOX, would I benefit from getting a gamepad such as the "Logitech Rumblepad 2" and would an XBOX one work on a PC?

Oh, and what is HL2 about? Is it another war game?

[Doomfest]

Half-Life 2 (HL2) is a science fiction first-person shooter computer game that is the sequel to Half-Life. It was developed by the Valve Software Corporation and was released on November 16, 2004, following a protracted five-year development cycle[1] during which the game's source code was leaked to the Internet.[2] The game garnered near unanimous positive reviews and received critical acclaim,[3][4][5] winning over 35 Game of the Year awards for 2004.[6] Originally available only for Windows-based personal computers, the game has since been ported onto the Xbox console, and is also due to be released for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in 2007.[7]

Taking place in and around the fictional City 17 sometime in the near future, Half-Life 2 follows the scientist Gordon Freeman. Dr. Freeman is thrust into a dystopian environment in which the aftermath of the Black Mesa Incident has come to bear fully upon human society. Freeman is forced to fight against increasingly unfavorable odds in order to survive. In his struggle, he is joined by various allies, including fellow Black Mesa colleagues, oppressed citizens of City 17, and the Vortigaunts.

The game uses the Source game engine, which includes a heavily modified version of the Havok physics engine.[8] Half-Life 2 has been critically acclaimed for advances in computer animation, sound, narration, computer graphics, artificial intelligence (AI) and physics. When sales figures were last announced, over four million copies of Half-Life 2 had been sold.[9] Exact numbers for digital delivery service Steam and retail have not been revealed, but in general, the former accounts for 25% of Valve's business and is significantly more profitable per unit.[10][11] Overall, the Half-Life franchise, including Counter-Strike and Day of Defeat, has seen over 15 million sales.[12]

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Half-Life_2
WARNING: Don't read past the first paragraph on the Wiki. It has mean spoilers.

[Redundant]

Thanks Doomfest. +rep

-Redundant

EDIT: I'm answered my own question about the controllers from Wikipedia:

The wired version of the controller can also be used as PC gamepad because it uses a USB connection, directly connected to the controller; the wireless controller cannot because it uses a wireless signal. A wireless receiver set to be released in 2007 will plug into the PC, allowing wireless Xbox 360 accessories to be used on the PC.

[Doomfest]

Anytime

[linoge]

here is something that might help : http://www.systemrequirementslab.com
but you have to go to that web page with the computer
u want to use hope it helps