FCWiki:ConsoleVsComputer
With the increase in both the number of fantasy consoles and people's awareness of them, some points of distinction begin to appear. Many discussions (some very spirited) have occurred around what criteria qualify something as a fantasy console, as well as what might distinguish a fantasy "console" versus a fantasy "computer".
Setting aside the basic fact that all video game consoles are computers by definition, distinction between the two lies in use: you play video games on a console, and generally interact with a computer using a keyboard and/or mouse. Given the first "fantasy console" to call itself such, PICO-8, actually includes a full development environment that uses keyboard and mouse and could be classified as a "fantasy computer," the issue of classifying them is potentially problematic.
To enable this wiki to sort projects into distinct categories, the following policy is implemented:
- If the project describes itself as a fantasy console or fantasy computer, then it will be taken at face value. See the PICO-8 example above for an example of this.
- If the project does not make an effort to assert itself either way, then it will be classified by the characteristics of games that can be made with it. If the primary method of interaction is a controller, then it FC will likely be classified as a fantasy console. If games can access the keyboard directly, without using something clearly demarcated as for developers (such as PICO-8's devkit keyboard and mouse support), then the FC will likely be labeled a fantasy computer. If games do not have access to a graphics mode (i.e; text mode only), then the FC will likely be labeled a fantasy computer as well.
The neutral term "FC" (eff-cee) is to be used where the distinction does not matter (such as the programming language categories).