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Can PC Gaming be Saved from Extiction?
shiz3
Member Posts: 20
Apparently there is going to be an announcement this week at GDC about the creation of some PC Gaming Alliance (Nvidia, AMD, Microsoft, Intel, etc). Their one purpose is to save PC Gaming from extinction.
How do they plan on doing it? They want to standardise the PC and make it more like a console. By creating a PC that is not customizable, they can hope that PC game developers will start making games that will be run on the "pc console".
Is that really the answer to PC gaming?? Do we really need another console in the market?
source:
www.gamealmighty.com/story-individual/story/Will_the_PC_Gaming_Alliance_Save_the_Day/
Comments
PC gaming isn't going anywhere. But if I must answer, I would say the solution is to make good games, highly Moddable, and just to piss off all the torrent folks: A secure system in which it can't be torrented.
I think the fate of PC gaming lies in the hands of the developers. As long as they start creating more games that are accessible by the majority of PC games, pc gaming is going nowhere. As more and more developers try to push the envelope in graphics for power pc's, more people will start to shift to the uniformity of a console. So aside from the obvious threat of piracy (which is huge), game developers may be the pc gaming's downfall.
Life is a sexually transmitted disease and it is 100% fatal.
Though people will probably disagree, I think PC games could benefit from a better controller, not meaning just have controllers, leave the mouse and keyboard setup, but, console controllers do have pressure sensitive buttons and such. If someone made a good keyboard and mouse setup that can be used with more flexibility, then maybe you could play more types of games on the PC. Right now it is pretty much, MMOGs/RPGs, FPS, and RTS, the current mouse and keyboard can't really handle more than that comfortably. So if we had a better setup in that sense, then we could have more types of games on the PC... Maybe.
Don't you worry little buddy. You're dealing with a man of honor. However, honor requires a higher percentage of profit
My best guess is that PC gaming will be "consolized". Now when I say that, I don't mean that games on PC will play like console games, or PC games will eventually be nixed to make room for the consoles. What I mean is that with this new "alliance" there will, finally, be a set standard for graphics, and computers for the establishment of PC gaming.
I plan on writing a piece on this later. Should make for an interesting read.
Eternally mine,
Keebs
The MMO gaming blog I write for.
Keebs I completely agree.
I like PC gaming how it is and if they try to change it so you can't customize it then that takes out all the fun because we like the freedom we have witht he PC and i'm sooo sick of everyone trying to restrict everything like frigging Microsoft is trying to do and I hate it........
The day I stop gaming is the day they do this tbh.
No way its going to happen,their is way to much money involved.All those supplyers,sellers of parts,untell resources get so low they have too.But we are not their yet,but it does seem like we are going that way.Just a main board with differant variations of...like super high speed or average board,off location storage.I for one dont welcome the change,reminds me of the walmart mind set.
Trade in material assumptions for spiritual facts and make permanent progress.
Gotta squash the pirating first... And the only way to do that is to have all games require online key activation linked to accounts (like mmo's)...
I think standardization is JUST what the doctor ordered... When that happens more of the casual PS3 and Xbox 360 gamers dont have to feel overwhelmed or chated when in the market for a gaming pc.. They shouold make this pc console as mid grade (to keep costs down around 600-500 range with PS3) as all possible and give gamers the possibility to upgrade the graphics cards and thats it...
One bad year and they act like the world is gonna implode. This was just a Console year and probably is the peak the current consoles will reach. With the system limitations in Consoles there is only so much you can do before you have to use a PC. Now with the average system specs in PCs being better then a console, we should start to see more games switching back.
Developers go where the money is, not where the specs are.
Developers go where the money is, not where the specs are.
Aint that the truth. Dont really blame them either.
LOL!!
If I had a dollar for every article over the past 15 years both in print and on the net that has predicted the imminent demise of PC gaming.... Id have my own Leir jet on 24 hour standby, piloted and crewed by the worlds best porn starlets who are incidentally excellent jet pilots in their spare time...
I reckon the Atari 2600 heralded the end of PC gaming rofl... and its gone all the way to PS3 and will keep going. While we keep gaming.
Le' Yawn...
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"MMOs, for people that like think chatting is like a skill or something, rotflol"
http://purepwnage.com
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"Far away across the field, the tolling of the iron bell, calls the faithful to their knees. To hear the softly spoken magic spell" Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon
US PC Game Software Sales
1998 - $1.8 billion
1999 - $1.9 billion
2000 - $1.78 billion (84.9 million units)
2001 - $1.75 billion (83.6 million units)
2002 - $1.4 billion (61.5 million units)
2003 - $1.2 billion (52.8 million units)
2004 - $1.1 billion (47 million units)
2005 - $953 million (38 million units)
2006 - $970 million
yeah no doubt but its still a fair chink of change at $970mil and I doubt many companies are gonna ignore a market of that size.
Id be more inclined toward the beleif that there will be some sort of merger between consoles and PC's not disimilar to the OP's post information.
People are not gonna work on a console and and they may game less on PC;s Ideally youd think a machine that could do both well would be the answer.
Will it be technically a PC or a console though ? Who knows.
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"MMOs, for people that like think chatting is like a skill or something, rotflol"
http://purepwnage.com
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"Far away across the field, the tolling of the iron bell, calls the faithful to their knees. To hear the softly spoken magic spell" Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon
Digital distribution are not counted in those sales numbers.
NPD: PC Sales Decline Not Worrying
www.gamedaily.com/articles/news/npd-pc-sales-decline-not-worrying/19192/
In the future there won't be any 'PCs' or 'Consoles' at the rate we're going it will become one complete package, it's customizability in terms of hardware could be zilch or like it is now with PC's.
It will be slick like a console and have the options of a PC, it will be a centre of entertainment / work in the household, gaming, music, movies, anything. It will be simple to use and the options endless.
And like a TV or fridge everyone will have one, you'll probably have to upgrade it every few years... and like everything else people will always be wanting to keep up with the Jones'.
O_o o_O
in the last year all of the games i bought were distributed online. the year before all but maybe 10% was online sales.
the market isn't decreasing, the stats just show a change in distrubution method.
as PC gaming is my preferred platform i was a little worried about those figures, then someone pointed out that they don't include online distributed sales.in the last year all of the games i bought were distributed online. the year before all but maybe 10% was online sales.
the market isn't decreasing, the stats just show a change in distrubution method.
I think we really need to stop using "don't include online distributed sales" arguement. I find it very hard to believe that the vast majority of people prefer to download a game, paying with their credit card as opposed to simply going to the shop to pick up the game. While I'm sure the amount of digital downloads are increasing, I seriously doubt they make up for even half of the games sold.
There is a reason why even developers keep making negative comments about PC sales.
I think we really need to stop using "don't include online distributed sales" arguement. I find it very hard to believe that the vast majority of people prefer to download a game, paying with their credit card as opposed to simply going to the shop to pick up the game. While I'm sure the amount of digital downloads are increasing, I seriously doubt they make up for even half of the games sold.
There is a reason why even developers keep making negative comments about PC sales.
with distrubution systems like steam comming online, i think a lot of gamers are switching over. Then if you look at the difference in payment schemes, like MMORPG monthly subscription fees you get another masked sale structure.i think development of the standalone box model of pc games is being hit, and does need look at if that model of sales is going to survive. episodic expansion with online options and also monthly fees really are making an impact. Also why would i buy the orange box from a shop when it is 30% more expensive at the store in comparison to the online download.
also, just consider WoW, how many gamers are spending their money on a PC game that is not part of those sales figures.
US PC Game Online Sales
2005 - $344 million
Now those numbers have probably tripled.
Nothing could be farther from the vested intrests of Nvidia, one of the people in this alliance.Keebs I completely agree.
They make their profits from convincing people to upgrade.
Microsoft went a long way to creating a unified set of drivers to work with all PC's. They "consolized it" with a program called Direct X.
Except even Microsoft succumbed to the need to sell people upgrades, and de-unified their driver by restricting Direct X 10 to Vista.
PC gaming will become more attractive as the new consoles become old consoles, after the shelves are saturated with new console titles. Just as they did after the last gen consoles released.
Essentially, there will always be a premium market. You make a bigger mark up on premium goods, and there are always people willing to pay more.
PC games currently make up 1/8 of the video game sales in the U.S., the rest being split between 3 consoles and 2 hand helds. It is a disproportionately small element of the Video game market in the U.S.
Worldwide of course the breakdown is not the same with PC games holding a significanlty greater proportion of the market everywhere else except Japan.
It is important to note that although PC games only count for 1/8 of the sales in the U.S., they account for 1/5 of the profits.
They are disproportionately profitable. They offer a greater return for the initial investment.
In the U.S. (the poorest performing PC games Market), the industry is worth $3 billion a year.
There is no extinction in sight.
as PC gaming is my preferred platform i was a little worried about those figures, then someone pointed out that they don't include online distributed sales.in the last year all of the games i bought were distributed online. the year before all but maybe 10% was online sales.
the market isn't decreasing, the stats just show a change in distrubution method.
I think we really need to stop using "don't include online distributed sales" arguement. I find it very hard to believe that the vast majority of people prefer to download a game, paying with their credit card as opposed to simply going to the shop to pick up the game. While I'm sure the amount of digital downloads are increasing, I seriously doubt they make up for even half of the games sold.
There is a reason why even developers keep making negative comments about PC sales.
As a person with broadband, I have to say that digital downloads are the future. "Just going down the shops", takes over an hour of my time, and will cost me £10 in petrol and £5 in parking.
A total waste of resources.
However I usually buy online through a postal service, not digital downloads. As yet the digital download systems are too anti-piracy conscious and I don't find their products reliable enough to purchase, nor their refund systems user friendly enough in case of dispute. Not to mention that a good many of them have not even attempted to pass on the reduced cost of publishing to the customer.
I have to concur that while growing and even significant, the bulk of games sold come in boxes.
Your figures for PC gaming are nothing short of stupid. World of Warcraft alone took $1.5 billion in sales for 2006.
Try places like NPD or ESA for better estimation of sales figures. If you are going to listen to industry analysts, try listening to the same ones the big money in the industry listen to also.
You will see that PC gaming sales (boxes on shelves) have pretty much trebled since 1998 and are currently $3.2 billion for last year. (Plus whatever online sales/subscriptions are to be accounted for). While this growth does not mimic the growth of the video games console, particularly the PS2, it is a very serious growth industry nevertheless. There aren't many indusrties trebling their sales every 10 years.
PC gaming dieing, that's kinda impossible.
PC game minimal cost to produce - some hobby time, and whatever time/method you spend releasing it.
Console game minimal cost to produce - anywhere from $1,000 to $20,000 and you need to pass the closed room of approval test(a few times actually, once for the privledge of buying the dev kit and another for the games you release).
I find it amazing that by 2020 first world countries will be competing to get immigrants.
in the last year all of the games i bought were distributed online. the year before all but maybe 10% was online sales.
the market isn't decreasing, the stats just show a change in distrubution method.
I think we really need to stop using "don't include online distributed sales" arguement. I find it very hard to believe that the vast majority of people prefer to download a game, paying with their credit card as opposed to simply going to the shop to pick up the game. While I'm sure the amount of digital downloads are increasing, I seriously doubt they make up for even half of the games sold.
There is a reason why even developers keep making negative comments about PC sales.
As a person with broadband, I have to say that digital downloads are the future. "Just going down the shops", takes over an hour of my time, and will cost me £10 in petrol and £5 in parking.
A total waste of resources.
However I usually buy online through a postal service, not digital downloads. As yet the digital download systems are too anti-piracy conscious and I don't find their products reliable enough to purchase, nor their refund systems user friendly enough in case of dispute. Not to mention that a good many of them have not even attempted to pass on the reduced cost of publishing to the customer.
I have to concur that while growing and even significant, the bulk of games sold come in boxes.
Your figures for PC gaming are nothing short of stupid. World of Warcraft alone took $1.5 billion in sales for 2006.
Try places like NPD or ESA for better estimation of sales figures. If you are going to listen to industry analysts, try listening to the same ones the big money in the industry listen to also.
You will see that PC gaming sales (boxes on shelves) have pretty much trebled since 1998 and are currently $3.2 billion for last year. (Plus whatever online sales/subscriptions are to be accounted for). While this growth does not mimic the growth of the video games console, particularly the PS2, it is a very serious growth industry nevertheless. There aren't many indusrties trebling their sales every 10 years.
Feel free to post a link that backs up that WoW made 1.5 billion in sales in NA (sales, not subscribtions) in one year. Considering that Halo 3 made 125 million dollar on it's first day (in which it sold millions of copies), I find it a bit hard to believe that WoW made 1.5 billion dollar in sales in NA alone.