Getting back to the PC

[Theory?]

I've decided that since I can't afford a 360 JUST YET, and the Wii doesn't come out for another 2 weeks, I've decided to look into some PC games to spice up my life.

I was in the middle of Half Life over the summer, but I got tired of dying in this one spot so I turned on god mode, and now I can't remember how to turn it off.

I want a different game anyways. Something that takes advantage of my awesome system. Something compelling with solid action, good story, good music, everything.

What are the hands-down, BEST PC games on the market today?

[kurisu7885]

There's Painkiller. The story isn't that isn't the best, but the game sure is fun.

[V-22 Osprey]

You have to reenable console mode to turn the cheats off.

Anyway, is there a specific genre you're looking for?

[Theory?]

Um...not MMO.

Or Sports.

[V-22 Osprey]

OK, off the top of my head...

F.E.A.R., Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, Quake 4 (well, the music is forgettable, the story isn't very good, and it's not one of the best pc games on the market... but Peter Stomare plays a pendantic combat engineer and you get to shoot shiny robots!), Vampire - The Masquerade: Bloodlines and Splinter Cell: Chaos Theory.

[Theory?]

Not GTA either...

[Thefremen]

Not GTA either...

FEAR is epic but for the love of pete if you can't get through HL2, you HAVE to play it on easy mode. Company of Heroes is the best RTS ever created and also crushes weak systems.

FEAR though, that is an excellent choice because it is so freaking amazingly awesome, and also eats 3ghz cpus with mid-range video cards for lunch.

[Theory?]

FEAR is epic but for the love of pete if you can't get through HL2, you HAVE to play it on easy mode. Company of Heroes is the best RTS ever created and also crushes weak systems.

FEAR though, that is an excellent choice because it is so freaking amazingly awesome, and also eats 3ghz cpus with mid-range video cards for lunch.

My system is strong.

And Half Life, not HL2. I never played the first one.

[Hannah]

Sims 2. It's incredibly addictive, but ever so much fun :D

You might also want to check out Oblivion and BF2 or BF2142 -- I haven't played the latter, but I've heard it's good.

[Theory?]

I think I'm gonna rock F.E.A.R. first. I may save Oblivion for when I can afford a 360. BF2 was the one I was looking at. Can anyone vouche for which if the two is better? I know they're both different, but still...

[V-22 Osprey]

I don't think BF2 has any parts where you can kill a clone soldier with one swinging scropion kick, then pull out two pistols and demolish a whole squadron. In slow motion.

[Thefremen]

BF2=King of Multiplayer
FEAR=King of Single Player

If you want something that pushes your system, FEAR. BF2 looks ****ing awesome but it doesn't come close to FEAR.

Whatever you do, don't buy BF2142. It will rape your mother and kill your brother.

[Theory?]

****!!!!!

I remembered why I stopped playing on my PC. My speakers are professional audio monitors running out of a pro-audio interface. Games tend to conflic with this setup and I get akward audio glitches. I need a new pair of speakers to come out of my Creative Sound Card (which is not being used right now) so I can play games. There goes one more thing for the shopping list.

[Ack]

He's right about that FEAR bit...it's excellent in single player. However, multiplayer has some serious issues, I hear.

Personally, I've been playing a lot of Dawn of War: Dark Crusade lately. It's a well-done RTS with plenty of playable armies, and fits into a universe I was familiar with already. All in all, good times.

Also, there's a mod out for BF2, called the Project Reality Mini Mod. I know a few guys who play it, and they love it. But it changes the game considerably, and it's not something you can really goof off with, they expect you to play the game seriously.

[nightwng2000]

Depending on your mood, here are a few ideas:

RPG:
NeverWinter Nights I & II
Oblivion

RTS:
Company of Heroes
Warcraft series
Warhammer series
Star Wars: Empires at War
Civilization IV
Heroes of Might and Magiv series
The Movies and expansion packs (you may be into designing your own movies in fact)

Action:
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Lego Star Wars I & II

FPS
Rainbow Six and Splinter Cell series'

Racing (I don't know if you count this as a sport or not)
Most of the recent Need For Speed series, except Carbon which is horrible

Driving Games
Simpsons Hit & Run (Hey, it ain't GTA :) )

From the "oh, look whats on the horizon" list:
Sims 3
http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/thesims3/index.html?tag=topten;_title;6

[ZippyDSMlee]

Oblivion runs better on the PC so many annoying loading zones to deal with on the 360.

unless your PC aint up to stuff....

[Thefremen]

Depending on your mood, here are a few ideas:

RPG:
NeverWinter Nights I & II
Oblivion

RTS:
Company of Heroes
Warcraft series
Warhammer series
Star Wars: Empires at War
Civilization IV
Heroes of Might and Magiv series
The Movies and expansion packs (you may be into designing your own movies in fact)

Action:
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
Lego Star Wars I & II

FPS
Rainbow Six and Splinter Cell series'

Racing (I don't know if you count this as a sport or not)
Most of the recent Need For Speed series, except Carbon which is horrible

Driving Games
Simpsons Hit & Run (Hey, it ain't GTA :) )

From the "oh, look whats on the horizon" list:
Sims 3
http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/thesims3/index.html?tag=topten;_title;6

Mood? Mood's a thing for cattle, or love-play, not fighting!

[V-22 Osprey]

You said it, Gurney!

[ZippyDSMlee]

I dunno sometimes I feel like bossing people around(RTS) or running around shooting stuff (FPS)or lruking around in shadows and doing "hidden" kills (FPS) or drive things around and blow things up (MECH/Vehichle FPS) or go around and poking things ................uummm...err..........(action RPGS) !!!

and sometimes I feel like sleeping because most games suck... *L*