Slow Death for PC games? (off topic)

[slobberinbear]

So I went into my friendly neighborhood Best Buy the other day. PC games had been shoved off into a corner. Over the years, the PC section has been shrinking -- what was once three rows of shelves has become one.

What's the reason behind this? Smaller publishers going out of business or insufficient market for marginal PC offerings? Better market for console games? Improved quality of consoles?

It was darned depressing. Basically you had your MMOs, your shooters, and a little bit of strategy. I am beginning to wonder if the golden age of PC gaming has passed us by. Instead of PC developers building a game for PCs and then translating it into console format, the trend may be the other way around (e.g., the Grand Theft Auto IV recent release on consoles).

 

[Napalm102]

What's the reason behind this? Smaller publishers going out of business or insufficient market for marginal PC offerings? Better market for console games? Improved quality of consoles?

Yep, all what you said above, plus it is easier to make games for consoles, cause you work with a single system. If you look at any PC game after launch, there is always some problems, like it works on one system, but not on other, one driver set works, the other doesn't, you also need to include options so that people can run the game on older PCs and so on.

Consoles are also easier to use, plug into TV and play, PC on other had....

It also probably harder to pirate games on consoles. Well I'm sure there are gazilion causes.

 

[Grimz101]

The way the current PC game publishers work is inefficent.. it will burn and out of the ashes will come a new system with, stardock, gpg and ironclad games

 

[attackdrone]

What's the reason behind this?

Best Buy launched a new "Mobile" department, meaning MP3 players are no longer tied to Cell Phones, but are now in the Gaming department. As such, room needed to be made for MP3 players. Software is one of the areas that has never been extremely full, so got crunched down. (In my store at least, we still have three full aisles of it).

 

[Bast]

Thank God, at least we'll always have Civilization and Europa Universalis series.

I'll never play console. It's beneath me.

 

[Zelig]

e.g., the Grand Theft Auto IV recent release on consoles.

GTA IV is coming to PC with a delay, same as GTA III, Vice City, and San Andreas. Only GTA1 and 2 were released on PC before or concurently with the console versions.

Honestly, I don't really care if games are developed for PC originally, as long as ports are good, games are still going to look better, and play better or equally on a PC as compared to any console.

 

[caketastydelish]

I am both a PC gamer and a console gamer.(although mainly console, infact the only PC game I play is pretty much Civilization!)

What I would like to see more than anything else, is not for PC gamers to "die" but for them to connect more with the console gamers. For example, I forget the name of the game, but there is one game for the PC and 360, where they play online with each other. I would like to see more of this kind of thing.

Imagine how great Civ 5 would be if it were for the consoles and the PC. And they PC+ console players could play each other! Imagine that! Wii, 360, PS3 and PC players playing agaisnt each other!

Don't get me wrong, there would be a few drawbacks to that. But I think the benefits outweigh them.

 

[Zelig]

What I would like to see more than anything else, is not for PC gamers to "die" but for them to connect more with the console gamers. For example, I forget the name of the game, but there is one game for the PC and 360, where they play online with each other. I would like to see more of this kind of thing.

This would be tricky to implement for some games. For FPS games, PC gamers would slaughter 360 players, unless aiming is heavily assisted for players using controllers, which feels unfair towards mouse players.

On the other hand, games like Guitar Hero have no excuse for not being compatible multiplayer between the PC and 360 versions.

 

[caketastydelish]

This would be tricky to implement for some games. For FPS games, PC gamers would slaughter 360 players, unless aiming is heavily assisted for players using controllers, which feels unfair towards mouse players.

On the other hand, games like Guitar Hero have no excuse for not being compatible multiplayer between the PC and 360 versions.

Not necceserily. For example, you can already use your 360 controller to play on the PC. More of that, between consoles and PC's. I'd like us to have PC controllers (joystick, keyboard+ mouse and such) on the consoles, and more controllers on the PC.

Right now, there is quite a difference between consoles and PC's. I'd like less of that.

 

[Solo4114]

I think several factors are influencing this.

EA is one of them. A single huge entity, gobbling up developers, is often NOT good for the industry.

Homogenization of genres and games is another factor. Pretty much, these days PC gaming consists of about 3 genres: FPS games, MMOs/RPGs, and RTS. If you want to split RPGs and MMOs into two separate genres, knock yourself out, but I think they mostly are the same thing in terms of market share. Compare this to the mid-90s heyday of PC gaming when simulators (including flight, space combat, etc.), adventure games, action games (other than FPS), turn-based strategy, RPGs, the start of RTS and FPS gaming, etc. were all viable, well developed genres. The more games get the same, the harder it is for them to stand out.

Console infiltration of the market is making up a lot of the other problems. Why buy an action or fighting game on the PC? For that matter, why buy ANY game for the PC if it's also out for a console, unless the control scheme really makes a difference? I mean, KOTOR for the PC vs. KOTOR for the Xbox....why bother with driver errors, patches, etc.? The only things lacking for consoles are: (A) limited control schemes (which can be fixed if someone would make a console keyboard), and (B) modding communities.


Honestly, I think PC gaming should focus on the things it can do that consoles can't. Simulators, for example, would SUCK on a console. But it could rock on a PC. FPS games on a PC will GENERALLY operate better, but only if they actually cater to things like precision. Although the game has since become dull for me, Red Orchestra for the PC is a prime example. The inaccurate console controls would NOT work for a game like that. By contrast, any of the Battlefield games could be played with a console controller, considering how accuracy doesn't play as much of a role in the game.


Anyway, I think the PC industry can turn things around, but it needs to break out of it's "me too" slump where it keeps trying to recycle the same crap that's be done over and over again.

 

[Senethro]

PC gaming: Dying strong for over 20 years! May it die another 20!

 

[mystikmind2005]

I think it is all about controll.

Companies that make console games also controll the hardware, this is the big advantage for them. They can dramatically limit both hardware and software competition.

The limited hardware competition allows the actual console machines themselves to require much less recources to build and can be sold at much inflated prices for what they are compared to modern computers. It is kinda like an airline company finding a way to sell byplanes for 50% of the price of a jet when the byplane costs probably 5% of the cost to build a jet.

Now i personally have always refused to buy a console for the above reasons, however, in recent years PC game companies have started a trend that compels me to turn to consoles.... They have been eliminating the LAN multiplayer options using a single game copy. This means that if i want to play a multiplayer game with my wife at home, i have to buy the game twice!! This is of course an absolutely ludecrous idea so as far as i am concerned, PC game companies can all go broke and good riddance to them!!!!!

 

[warpus]

Now i personally have always refused to buy a console for the above reasons, however, in recent years PC game companies have started a trend that compels me to turn to consoles.... They have been eliminating the LAN multiplayer options using a single game copy. This means that if i want to play a multiplayer game with my wife at home, i have to buy the game twice!! This is of course an absolutely ludecrous idea so as far as i am concerned, PC game companies can all go broke and good riddance to them!!!!!!

Legally speaking, it's always been like that.

 

[Zelig]

Not necceserily. For example, you can already use your 360 controller to play on the PC. More of that, between consoles and PC's. I'd like us to have PC controllers (joystick, keyboard+ mouse and such) on the consoles, and more controllers on the PC.

Right now, there is quite a difference between consoles and PC's. I'd like less of that.

Yes, I've got a couple 360 controllers for my PC, but that doesn't help for FPS games. The mouse is inherently a better control system, and there's no way to keep the gameplay balanced for gamepad users while keeping it fair for mouse users.

The only things lacking for consoles are: (A) limited control schemes (which can be fixed if someone would make a console keyboard), and (B) modding communities.

And (C) better graphics.

Graphics wise, if an xbox 360 can push a game at 1280x720 at 30fps (the PS3 does no better), a high-end PC will be able to run the same game at 1920x1200 at 60fps with increased draw distance, texture size, anti-aliasing, etc.

 

[mystikmind2005]

Legally speaking, it's always been like that.

Not even half true.

I have some older games that have an install called a 'multiplayer spawn'. Less older games specify a requirement for x number of game disks per x number of players. Typically 3 players will be allowed for each game disk. This is all totally legall and directly specified as allowable by the developers.

It has been getting harder and harder to find such allowances in newer games. so my point is that the game companies can kiss my --- and go broke if that is their attitude.

 

[Ellye]

Thank God, at least we'll always have Civilization and Europa Universalis series.

That's almost everything I need for the rest of my life. No matter how long it might be.
----

But the thing about PC Gaming nowdays, in my opinion, is mainly the current MMORPG-Craze.
A huge percentage of PC Gamers seem to be playing almost only MMORPGs (so most gaming companies are developing this kind of game), and those are not always sold at stores - since you usually only pay monthly bills and, in some cases, the serial key.

 

[Roland Johansen]

The main reason for game companies to create games is to make money. 90% of the games played on a PC are pirated games and thus a lot of potential revenue is lost. It's a lot harder to pirate games on a console, so it's financially more attractive to create games for consoles. It will generate far more sales, far more revenue.
The most attractive game market for the PC at the moment is the MMO game because it is far harder to pirate this type of game. And that's why lots of PC game developers are trying to create a MMO game.

I don't think the PC-gaming market is going to disappear. It costs more and more money to create the high quality graphics of the latest games. Due to these higher cost of creating games, it is becoming attractive to create multi-platform games. Games that run on PC's and on the three well known consoles are going to create more sales than games that just run on one of the consoles or just on PC's. The only worry for PC-gamers (like most of us here) is that since PC-game sales are just a small piece of the pie, the attention that the developers are going to give the PC-version of the game might be lower than the console version of the game.

 

[Kesshi]

Thank God, at least we'll always have Civilization and Europa Universalis series.

I'll never play console. It's beneath me.

Bast,

I'd be careful what you say. There have been a lot of really good games on Consoles. I bought my Playstation 1 primarily for the Final Fantasy series, and ended up buying FF7, FF8, FF9, FFtactics, FFAnthologies (of course) and Gran Turismo 2. I bought my Playstation 2 for the same reason. The games I've bought for that: Final Fantasy X, Final Fantasy X2, Spy Hunter, and Gran Turismo 4.

I bought the two consoles with the most games available and bought less than a dozen games. Why? Because that's all I wanted them for. I still play FF Tactics. I still play Gran Turismo 4. I still play Final Fantasy X and X2. And I use my PS2 as a DVD player and occasionally a CD player.

Just for reference, here are the games I currently play on my computer:

Ex WoW player (I'd still be playing, but Blizzard screwed my account and I refused to put up with low quality customer service; I quit even after they cleared my name.)
Final Fantasy XI
Team Fortress 2
Portal
Civilization IV (of course )
Baldur's Gate II
Starcraft
The Sam and Max series

While I don't have the largest collection of games, I am a gamer. Now those are only the games I own. I have friends of mine who have console games that I adore. The Wii is an incredible multiplayer console that is so awesome to play at parties. Every Wii game I've played has had some form of multiplayer activity. Even if player two is limited to drawing pretty pictures that get in the way of player one (like vulgar bodyparts) it's very amusing at a party full of inebriated drunkards.

To wrap things up, I highly suggest to you to not write off consoles just because they're consoles. I'm primarily a PC gamer, in fact I just bought a ~$1300 computer last week because I needed to upgrade to appease my gaming habit and while I do see consoles as inferior, it still doesn't make consoles something I'll never touch. Consoles have their place, and I believe that consoles are superior for your standard RPGs and side-by-side multiplayer games.

 

[Lord Ben]

Consoles are super easy to bring to someone's house and play also, I do stuff with a youth group and at almost every gathering people bring game systems and play. LAN parties require way more baggage to do that with.

 

[arstal]

Real Reasons

1) Copy Protection. People find consoles more convenient because it's easier to play the games that Copy Protection that makes pirated games more convenient to play. This is why Stardock stuff has does so well lately.

2) Profit Margins. Companies sell console games at a higher price, so they want to move to consoles

3) Move to Digital Distribution. PC games tend to be smarter/more affluent, and as such they are getting their games direct download.

PC gaming isn't dying, it's evolving. The dinosaurs are going extinct. I think even Take-Two isn't safe from this (if it survives the hostile takeover)

However, companies like Stardock and Paradox will carry the banner, and make profit, where the EA's cannot.