I don't disagree, GFWL is, as it stands at the moment, rubbish... there are no benefits to developers or consumers adopting it.

In saying that, I think that's going to change quite substantially; it sounds like Microsoft are going to be heavily updating GFWL in the near future so it resembles XBLA - including all the matchmaking stuff. While it's not making me jump up and down for joy, it's a step in the right direction.

Another edge that console games have over PC games are the intensive requirements they have to meet before being released; Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo all have sets of technical requirements that all games released on their consoles must meet, and while this doesn't eliminate all bugs from the games, it certainly minimises them.

There is no equivalent on the PC platform, and games often come out months before they're ready - just so they meet the strict deadlines imposed on developers by their publishers. Even when releasing through online distribution services such as STEAM, there are no technical standards that a game is required to meet (ie not crashing).

Hopefully when Microsoft gets their new Games for Windows Live service up and running we may start to see a change.

"The advances are in software and peripherals. Why do you need a box for that?"

Because hardware restrictions bring out the best in programmers and artists; it's been the same for almost every console or fixed hardware computer ever sold. Initially it takes a while for to come to terms with the capabilities and limitations of a console's pipeline, but after a year or two the games that get produced really push the limits, and are better because of everyones inherent understanding of the system.

This simply doesn't happen with PC games in a market where processor speeds are pretty much doubling every six months. As a result we get behemoths like Crysis - show me a PC for under $2000 that can run that with the settings turned up.

Consoles put everyone playing the game on the same footing, and that is something you'll never get in the PC market.