Okay, let's get something out of the way. Yes, a lot of the console games I'm going to talk about are available on some sort of 3rd party emulator, but 🐼the article is entirely focused on legal ports of the game. I know that there will be tons of people point and saying this game or that can, in fact, be played on PC, but now we're clear on the point of this piece. Many players like to celebrate when their platform of choice sees the release of a fantastic exclusive that's only available for those who𒀰 own said platform. It's a way to uplift your console of choice and helps showcase why it's the best and most worthwhile platform to adopt.
That being said, in reality, it's unfortunate that many people are left out of the experience and are forced to either buy a second console or just let the game pass them by. Throughout the years we've seen games lose exclusivity and ultimately make their way to other platforms. Some of these games include Mass Effect, Final Fantasy, and more. Not all games are given this treatment however and some are simply stranded to a single platform or console manufacturer until the end of time. Let's now take a look at 15 console masterpi🎶eces that PC will never have. We'll also take a l𓃲ook at 15 PC exclusives missing on consoles. Maybe in due time some of these games don't belong on this list.
30 Missing On Consoles: Frostpunk 🐎
Frostpunk is an interesting combination of genres and it just so happened to work out. It's a city-building survival game that released in 2018, and within its first 3 days sold over 250,000 copies. Frostpunk didn't o⛎nly sell well, it reviewed be♈tter than expected.
Critics enjoyed the blending of gen༺res and its visu𝓰al design, as well as strategy-based gameplay, were what set it near the top of its pack.
Usually, city-building games are seen as a genre that never makes the leap to consoles. With the recent port of City: Skylines to mཧultꩵiple console platforms it seems that anything is possible.
29 🐻 🐬 Masterpiece Not On PC: Metroid Prime
Nintendo fans across the world are currently salivating at the prospect of a new Metroid Prime 4 t💃railer. The game's been announced, but the only information known is the title. Heck, no one even knows who's developing the game. It will be an entry in a surprisingly loved and cherished sub-franchise. No one thought a 3rd person Metroid game would work, let alone developed by Retro Studios. It turned out to be the start of a trilogy Nintendo diehards fell in love with. The chances of getting the trilogy on the Nintendo Switch are slim, what makes you think it would ever come to the PC?
28 🐓 Missing On🧸 Consoles: Magic: The Gathering Arena
Check this list in 6 months and this game will probably be on consoles, but for the time being its beta is only available on PC. Magic the Gathering used to release an annual video game version of their massively popular trading card game, but with the success of Hearthstone, they decided to take a living card game approach. MTG: Arena is simply Magic the Gathering with all of Hearthstones bells, whistlꦓes, and hopefully qualities. You can almost guarantee a mobile release, but Wizards of the Coast may end up sticking to just those two platforms. Let's all hope not.
27 Masterpiece Not On PC: Uncharte🉐d 𝓡2
Now, technically any of the Uncharted games could have ended up on this list considering they're all PlayStation exclusives developed by Naughty Dog. Uncharted 2 makes the list since it's often regarded as the best in the series by a fair amount of fans, though it's a very contentious argument between all 4 mainline entries. Thankfully for PC players, they're not entirely without an Uncharted-like experience on their platform. Though the two franchises have many differences, the rebooted Tomb Raider entries definitely scratch that Indiana Jones itch if๊ y🌜ou don't own a PlayStation console.
26 ꦺ Missing On Console: Eve Online ♔
One of the only other games that can hold a candle to World of Warcraft in terms of longevity and relevance in the MMO world is Eve Online. For as big a game as Eve Online is, your chances of a random person naming or recognizing it a𓆉re surprisingly low.
Eve Online has a very hardcore audience of players and is known for some of the craziest online events.
If you're not familiar, one look at the game will show you exactly why it will never come to consoles. The systems in plac🉐e are hard enough to get familiar with on mouse 🤡and keyboard, let alone a controller.
25 ♕ Masterpiece Not♏ On PC: Red Dead Redemption
Rockstar is notorious for not having the best relationship with PC players despite the obsessive modding community their games always seem to muster up. Red Dead Redemption has never managed to make its way over to PC despite its sequel's happening in 2018. Western games aren't necessarily a genre of game that every publisher is attacking, so it's real shame PC players haven't had the chance to experience arguably the best Western video game ever released. Here's hoping Red Dead Redemption 2 makes it's way over to PC sooner than later.
24 Missing On Console: Company O🍎f Heroes ꧑
Company of Heroes was what would have happened if Starcraft and Call of Duty had a mixed video game child. It's considered one of the greatest military real-time strategy games of all-time. Many consider it to be the gold standard when it comes authentic military real-time strategy games. This will be mentioned with every RTS game in this list, but controls for RTS games originally designed for PC have an impossible task of translating over to a console controller. Don't look for a surprise Company of Heroes remake/rerelease to makeꦜ its way over to consoles.
23 Masterpiece Not On PCꦉ: Super Mario 64
Super Mario 64 is a game that has become synonymous with the illegal ROM community on PC. Though there are plenty of ways to illegally play Super Mario 64 on PC, it isn't the most authentic way to experience one of the most important games of all-time. Super Mario 64 was responsible in many ways for the push of video games from 2D to 3D. It showcased what was possible when developers took the risk and dipped their toes in uncharted waters. Super Mario 64 thankfully received a spiritual sequel in Super Mario Odyssey on the Nintendo Switch in 2017.
22 🀅 Missing On Console: DOTA 2
A genre of game that has as hard of a time translating over to consoles as much as real-time strategy games are the multiplayer online battle arena genre. Defense of the Ancients 2, most commonly referred to as DOTA 2, is the sequel to the game that birthed the MOBA genre, DOTA. Though it's not talked about as much as League of Legends, it's also extremely profitable and boasts a diehard audience full of millions of players. Though Smite has successfully brought MOBAs to consoles, DOTA 2 is a little more involved, features the classic PC RPG perspective, and doesn't seem like a fღit for them in the slightest.
21 🐷 Masterpiece Not On PC: Legend Of Zelda: Majora's Mask 🐭
The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask released only 2 years after the highly-lauded The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time꧂, thanks in large part to running on the same exact engine as its predecessor. The time travel aspects, as well as the impending doom really gives the player a true sense of urgency. It's amazing that Nintendo managed to release not only arguably the two best Legend of Zelda games ever, but really two of the best games ever made and released them within two years of each other. It's simply a game that every gamer must play no matter what.