The death of PC gaming

[Checkmate]

Considering that the modern consoles are just gaming PCs without an operating system and a keyboard, you're completely barmy.

Give me a real PC any day. At least then I can use it for gaming and other things. Not just a fancy paperweight near my TV when I'm not playing a game. Getting a game controller for one is easy as pie to boot, though I'd rather have a keyboard in practically every instance.

 

[Teiwaz]

Probably not, I encountered the same problem in 1998-1999, it seemed every new game that came out that I really, really really wanted to play had minimum requirements above my current system.

My solution was to get an N64 (a loved Goldeneye), and adored Ocarina of Time. My N64 still works bty, I dig it out from under a pile of Linux User magazines occasionally for a bash. I think I only ever bought ten games for it. Next purchase was a Dreamcast, a good console, if a little noisey. I was saddened that Sega chose to leave the console market, and more so that they've chosen to produce mostly sports titles of late and not more of the likes of Shenmue. After that came a PS2 and an Xbox and lately an Xbox360 (I've not been lured to the PS3 by any of its exclusive titles).

Since the PS3 and Xbox 360 came out I've seen a lot less exclusives than there used to be. I'm not sure if this is significant or not, as far as I remember it was similar back in the day of the Commodore64 and ZX-Spectrum (yes, I've been gaming that long). I gave up gaming on the Pc in 1998, too much money upgrading every other year, but recently the console situation has gotten similar, shoddy manufacturing or poor heat management meaning I had to replace the console due to faults, more money outlay in the much the same way I had to fork out to upgrade the PC when I was PC gaming.

The way things are going, I see a lot more browser based games (they are after all a LOT more popular than the titles I've seen mentioned in posts in this discussion). I was in a job recently upgrading and sorting out PCs in a training centre, and EVERYBODY there was playing that farm game on facebook during break.

Add to that Nintendos Wii efforts bringing the same simple 'family' games into mainstream, I'd guess at some point the larger game developer and publishers will sooner or later be streaming development time into this market to reap some of this revenue (which lets face it will far outstrip the core gamer market). This may very well affect the production of the more traditional games, and that mainly is how I see 'The Death of PC Gaming', swallowed up by mainstream mediocrity, like TV has been (I personally haven't watched TV in two years, I only have one for the Console(s).

 

[Robert Maxwell]

The console hardware failures are certainly a major deterrent for me. I don't find it acceptable to spend hundreds of dollars on a piece of equipment only to have it die abruptly within a couple years.

 

[Reverend]

Personally, I find it's much cheaper all round if you're willing to stay a year or two behind the times. Though I do make the odd exception, most of the PC games I've bought over the last few years were at least a year old and all of them for under a tenner, at least a third of what they were brand new. This habit also has the added bonus of avoiding the lemons since by the time I get around to it, all the reviews are in and both they hype and counter-hyper have died down.

That's just with PC games. With the consoles I still ""only have a PS2 and a Gamecube (both bought second hand and still going strong) with no intention on upgrading anytime soon. I still haven't completed Windwaker, Oricana of Time and have just barely begun playing with the Metroid Primes.

For a while I did consider getting a PS3 as I really wanted to play MGS4 and the idea of a bluray player was attractive, but the reports of hardware failure, coupled with the apparent lack of backwards compatibility kept me away and now it seams a little late.

 

[Lindley]

Yeah, I'm constantly a few years behind as well. But that comes standard with a Mac upbringing.

 

[Brandonv]

itisnotlogical, what kind of graphics card does your computer have? Even a brand new computer is not necessarily enough to play modern games, because most desktops come with underpowered graphics chips. This is why many PC gamers start building their own PC's.

I don't think PC gaming is dying so much as it is changing. There does seem to be a lot less high-budget PC exclusives than there where 10 years ago, but there are other areas where PC gaming is strong. For example, indie games seem to be getting much more popular now that they have distribution platforms such as Steam to give them more visibility. There are also certain types of games that I could not imagine playing on a console, such as Galactic Civilizations and Sins of a Solar Empire.

I also think that developers are getting better at making cross-platform games. For example, I think that Mass Effect 2 and Dragon Age are examples of ports done right.

 

[Gryffindorian]

The only PC games I still care to play are City of Heroes/City of Villains and The Sims 2. I suppose when DC Universe On-line is released, I'll spend more time playing.

 

[Capt. Vulcan]

Yeah, I'm constantly a few years behind as well. But that comes standard with a Mac upbringing.

Hey don't feel bad, even though you have to use last season's hardware, you get to pay next seasons prices! Win/Win!

 

[Lindley]

I think it's actually the other way around.....usually the hardware I'm using far outclasses the games I'm trying to run on it.

 

[Rincewiend]

Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 X2 Dual Core Processor 5000+ (2 CPUs), ~2.6GHz
Memory: 3070MB RAM
Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GT

And i can run Mass Effect 2 or Bioshock 2 with all bells and whistles at 1680x1050...
The CPU is about 5 years old, the card 3...

 

[Teiwaz]

Personally, I find it's much cheaper all round if you're willing to stay a year or two behind the times. Though I do make the odd exception, most of the PC games I've bought over the last few years were at least a year old and all of them for under a tenner, at least a third of what they were brand new.

I buy nearly all my games second hand and with consoles you only have to wait a month or so for a game that might have been £30 - £40 to be available at £10-£20.

That's just with PC games. With the consoles I still ""only have a PS2 and a Gamecube (both bought second hand and still going strong) with no intention on upgrading anytime soon. I still haven't completed Windwaker, Oricana of Time and have just barely begun playing with the Metroid Primes.

My PS2 and Gamecube died on me. I'm on the lookout for replacements at the moment but there's only one store in town that sells second hand h/w and I'm waiting for one to come in. I've a lot of Ps2 games, and some absolute gems on the Gcube (I'm absoletely dieing to play Eternal Darkness again, and I never did complete Ocarina of time). I'm still ploughing through Majoras mask on my good ole N64 - no moving parts, I think thats why its got a longer lifespan than laserdisc jobs.

With solid-state memory down in price now you'd think one of the console manufacturers would think of a version to use it. The original reason given for abandoning cartridges was memory limitations, but with modern flash memory that no longer seems to be as much of an issue - it would sertainly solve some of the heat problems all the recent consoles seem to be having.

 

[ATimson]

My PS2 and Gamecube died on me. I'm on the lookout for replacements at the moment but there's only one store in town that sells second hand h/w and I'm waiting for one to come in. I've a lot of Ps2 games, and some absolute gems on the Gcube (I'm absoletely dieing to play Eternal Darkness again, and I never did complete Ocarina of time). I'm still ploughing through Majoras mask on my good ole N64 - no moving parts, I think thats why its got a longer lifespan than laserdisc jobs.

Well, for the GameCube you could always just buy a Wii.

With solid-state memory down in price now you'd think one of the console manufacturers would think of a version to use it. The original reason given for abandoning cartridges was memory limitations, but with modern flash memory that no longer seems to be as much of an issue - it would sertainly solve some of the heat problems all the recent consoles seem to be having.

And would lead to games costing an extra $10-20 each like N64 games did compared to PS1 games.

 

[Reverend]

I don't think it'll be long before there'll be an all download console with no discs or cartridges needed. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.

 

[ATimson]

I don't think it'll be long before there'll be an all download console with no discs or cartridges needed. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.

Depends on how it's handled. The Steam or Xbox method, where you can redownload stuff later? That's fine. The Nintendo method, where your stuff only works on the original console and you need to buy it again? Not so much for me.

 

[Teiwaz]

Well, for the GameCube you could always just buy a Wii.

I know, the backward compatibility is an option, I almost bought one a couple of times, but I take a look at the games available for it and think - there's not a lot there to justify even the cheapness of the wii.

And would lead to games costing an extra $10-20 each like N64 games did compared to PS1 games.

Are'nt Nintendo games always a bit more expensive than their competitors (maybe my infos out of date), but when it first came out the games for it were more expensive anyway.

Not that it matters I've never bought more than 10 games for each nintendo console I've owned. Didn't need to the ones I did get were the long adventure kind.

 

[ATimson]

Are'nt Nintendo games always a bit more expensive than their competitors (maybe my infos out of date), but when it first came out the games for it were more expensive anyway.

For GameCube, the prices for games were the same as for PS2/Xbox. For Wii, they are $10 cheaper.

For N64, the games were more expensive than for the PS1 - but as I said, that's because cartridges are a lot more expensive to make than CDs.

 

[Rincewiend]

I don't think it'll be long before there'll be an all download console with no discs or cartridges needed. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.

Wasen't The Phantom supposed to be like that?

 

[Jax]

I don't think it'll be long before there'll be an all download console with no discs or cartridges needed. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.

I doubt that will happen for a long long time or if ever because most people with a console still play it offline so you would be axing a big side of your customer base, whch is bad for $$$. Also not too mention HDD would need to be in the terabytes driving up a Console price, everyone would need to be on a super fast download broadband speed and I think basically axing game stores to buy discs from would not go down well.

Personally I like a disc and so do many if not the majority of gamers.

 

[Reverend]

I don't think it'll be long before there'll be an all download console with no discs or cartridges needed. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.

I doubt that will happen for a long long time or if ever because most people with a console still play it offline so you would be axing a big side of your customer base, whch is bad for $$$. Also not too mention HDD would need to be in the terabytes driving up a Console price, everyone would need to be on a super fast download broadband speed and I think basically axing game stores to buy discs from would not go down well.

Personally I like a disc and so do many if not the majority of gamers.

Oh so do I, believe me, but this does seam to be the way the market is heading. After all, a digital download service like Steam is much cheaper to run than a factory burning off and packaging discs. This means they can charge much less per title, which more than anything influences how a console sells. Yes, it'd require a broadband connection, but I dare say most people who own an xBox, Wii or PS already have that.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

I don't think it'll be long before there'll be an all download console with no discs or cartridges needed. I'm not sure if that's a good or a bad thing.

Wasen't The Phantom supposed to be like that?

Yup. Funny how that one managed to live up to its name in the end.