The first time I played a PC game on a PC of my own, I was amazed at how much better 3D graphics looked. It was then and there that I realized these consoles were different machines.
Graphics and tech do lag behind on a console and yes, it is laughable compared to a PC of now, but this is my point.
Consoles are different and I don't like the mixing of the races.
It's not really a mixing of races. The bottom line being this:
You got developers who were making exclusives for particular platforms last gen due to how widely different the architectures on each platform were. They fixed that issue by utilizing practically the same chipset for both consoles that just happen to be x86 architecture. This makes it extremely easy to make the game once and (for the case of UE4) click a button that says Xbox or PS4. Thing is, it's not just graphics that's a big deal, but it is part of it. Latency, framerate, fidelity, and most importantly experience all play keys in a game. Even you yourself said it'd be unfair due to rendering distances and framerate advantages. Other things to consider are the other techs in game that are being brought that require more horsepower. AI is a HUGE thing. How many people complain about retarded AI in games? Aha, this can be taken care of by compute shaders but wait, they're already being utilized to increase framerates to acceptable levels on the aging hardware. Oh but 7 CPU cores right? Nope, AI usually runs on one thread small scale soooo that's ruled out because Jaguar cores are slow. Gotta keep it where it can be. "Stop right there criminal scum!" "But but, I accidentally attacked a chicken" "Doesn't matter! Programmers can only put so much into my AI algorithm so now pay a fine". The final part really is graphics because when you have sites that compare Xbox, Playstation, and PC you have whiners because we get all the graphics. Then you got the ones that take the high road of "well I don't play for the graphics". Then why aren't you playing an SNES because we all know those games were so much better. On the flip side, you got devs that will showcase a game and get flack because they had to scale down the fidelity because the hardware couldn't handle it *cough* Ubisoft *cough*.
Back to 4k from before, that's the next big thing. 50" 4k screens can be had for less than 500 bucks now at Walmart. That's stupid cheap and I see a lot of rednecks walking out with 4k screens, but I also see a LOT of people complaining about there being no 4k content. Well if people start upgrading the boxes that connect to their shiny new TVs we'll start seeing content. Boom, perfect opportunity for new consoles. 4k media. So it's not just 4k games.
Sure, I have a badass PC, but I'm a
gamer. I play anything that plays games. That means I play consoles too. I see things from both sides, but the reality to the situation is if we're held back by consoles yet another gen all the cool tech we see coming out won't ever be implemented. I just bought a $548 Taken King PS4. You think I want to drop another $399 for a PS4 Pro just so I don't lag in Destiny? Hell no, but I will just to keep advancing and it'll make a difference in gameplay of all types. I ignore the slim refresh models always.