The more or less unchangeable console environment forces developers to fix their shit for everyone all at once.

Unchangeable? Except for the PS4 Pro and the Scorpio…

This is part of the reason I posed the question.

My biggest regret about our Xbox 1 (aside from the Master Chief Collection) is the size of the console. It doesn't fit in my entertainment setup, so awkwardly implemented right now and it discourages me from using it. This is a shame, because there are games I want to play on it, games I have on hand. But I don't. Halo 5 is a blast.

Seems petty, but it is what it is. I would LOVE to have the slim model, but I'm not paying more money to buy the console that they SHOULD have launched with.

Now, there is the PS4 Pro and Scorpio on the horizon.

It is apparent, that current consoles are even more PC like these days. For good and bad.

And I agree with DEEP in his line of thinking on his last post- or I did. The main reason I never bothered with PC gaming is because I valued my TIME more than money. I just pop the game into the console, and play. Now updates are more prevalent. Constant connectivity is a must. Day 1 patches are the norm. Blah blah.

My laptop is speced for gaming, but I purchased it for modeling and design hobby work that I do. I'm SUPER excited for Halo Wars 2. I bought the edition that allows me to play on PC and xbox. Installed on both and ready to go! After playing the demo on my laptop, I must admit it is quite attractive. I started thinking about Destiny on PC after that. But that has the benefit of being in Microsoft's environment where my progress is synced between both devices seamlessly. Bungie doesn't (yet?) offer that. I wonder if they could.... if they would, rather.

I know this cycle, that I will NOT be an early adopter for Destiny 2. Or a console again for that matter. Still, I cannot deny the appeal of being able to play on both seamlessly. That would make Destiny very attractive again to me.

I guess we'll see!

PS4 pro, XB1 S and Scorpion are still basically stable platforms. All games will have to work on them and the consumer is not responsible for anything except consumption. Developers, both hardware and software are responsible for everything. You can't buy that kind of insurance for PC gaming.

it runs decently on a Mac

AND

it has cross-platform saves.

I've flirted with the idea of building a gaming rig, but I still harbor the wish to have on my tombstone "Happily never owned a PC."

You would probably have to boot into windows with boot camp.

I'd be shocked otherwise.

Does fairness and an equal playing field trump personal preference or even accessibility?

Using M&K is such a huge advantage that being permitted to use it practically forces you to do so. The "personal preference" thing can be twisted right around; if your personal preference is gamepad, having a gamepad-only infrastructure is critical. If you stage an athletic racing event on the road where participants are allowed to go on foot or use a bicycle, it would be a bicycle race.

Designing a single gunplay model to be challenging and feel good for both M&K and gamepad is also a serious issue.

I think that in a twitch shooter keyboard and mouse will always be superior to a controller, but I also know that Destiny is not really a twitch shooter. The real difference is look speed. A mouse user can just move the mouse more quickly to make a fast turn, whereas a controller player has to adjust the fidelity of their entire looking stick if they want the extreme turns to be faster. This one difference is hugely significant. The mouse is a finer control and offers superior aiming. Also, mice and keyboards don't vibrate (though I know MLG players turn off controller vibration anyway). And of course keyboard players always move at full speed (blessing or curse, depending).

Anyway, yeah, I think it's unfair to put mice and keyboards in the same playspace as controllers when it comes to FPS games as I feel that mice and keyboards are superior input methods in a head to head competition (though I prefer a controller, I recognize it is not as fine an instrument).

It's not as simple as "anyone can just plug in a keyboard and mouse". In order for them to work, you need to buy a $125 adapter, or a specially-designed keyboard and mouse which also cost over $120. So it's pretty difficult to say that it's something anyone can do.

On top of that, the advantage that you get in twitch shooters is real and undeniable (the highest-tier players in Overwatch's competitive mode are almost exclusively keyboard and mouse players). I have a friend who bought the adapter, and he's gone from average to having gold skins on a number of guns.

So it's essentially cheating to go out of your way to pay money for something that will give you an advantage over other players who play the game as intended... That said, the official Playstation site advertises a mouse and keyboard that lets you do this, so who knows...