Are PC Games gonna die in a few years?
 

As time pass by I see consoles taking over the gaming world. It's true there are a bunch of big titles coming out on the PC(DOOM 3 , FAR CRY, HALF LIFE 2, SIMS 2), but look at the big publishers (Activision, EA, UBISOFT, EIDOS, LUCASARTS). As time passes by, more and more games are being published for the consoles rather than the PC. Even the games that are cross platform are published for the PC as an afterthought (Spider-man 2 abomination of a game, Grand Theft Auto 3/Vice City).

Yep, computer gaming is gonna go the way of the 8-track tape.

In 1991/1992 the big titles were delivered on the Megadrive/Genesis and on the Super Nintendo. But we got Quest For Glory, King's Quest, Dune 2... so who was gonna complain?
Same now, since I don't usually like console games, I'm not gonna worry about that one second. And btw I've been hearing that the Pc game scene has been dying since 1998, and hey we're still here. And now we got emulators :devil:

I sure hope not, but who knows.
The death of PC gaming would also mean the (real) death of adventure games as we know them, and that would really suck.
To tell you the truth, I don't have a very good opinion of consoles (I played on a PS2, and it didn't impress me at all). I mean, I see no real advantage of owning a console rather than a computer:
- the graphics cannot be and aren't better than on the PC (PS2 graphics sucks)
- the sound is the same
- gameplay is worse for keyboard/mouse game
- you can't upgrade
- it's not "that" portable(I'm talking about the "real game" consoles - PS2,Xbox), I'd rather have a laptop
- TV image - lower quality than a good monitor's image
- internet only in rudimentary form
- multiplayer games less challenging
and the list could go on & on & on...

The only advantage I can think of is that consoles are cheaper, but I think in the long run, the PC is more rewarding (you can do a lot more stuff such as use programs, internet). It's worthwhile because you don't have to buy a new one (like consoles), you can upgrade your video card and add more RAM.

I don't understand why some people prefer consoles or get excited every time a console game adds something new to console gaming, even though that something is old for PC gaming. I don't think a console title could ever be better than its PC version. Just look at Halo, it was a milestone for console gaming, its PC version, although much better than the console one, is mediocre compared to the PC titles.

The console supporters will probably say I have a problem with consoles, that I hate them. I don't, I just don't see anything good or revolutionary about them.

I do, however have an idea on why they're pushing us into console gaming rather than PC. The way I see it, it's just like MTV, they "force" you into a narrow way of thinking (because of the consoles' limited possibilities). In other words, they don't want you to learn something (like you could do with the computer - besides gaming), just to PLAY THEIR GAMES. They don't want you to fiddle with the computer(consoles can't be hacked), this way they can obtain control. :(

I also notice this tendency of every appliance to have its unique purpose. Stereos for music, DVD players for movies, consoles for games, even though it can all be done by a single machine: the PC. It seems like versatility is not an option. I mean, why buy one single device that serves all purposes when you can spend a lot more money on gadgets that are limited? [/sarcasm].

I'm sorry if this post is too long, I know a lot of you like consoles. But I think that they represent the biggest scam that large companies such as Activision, EA or Eidos have ever pulled on the gamers. :r

It's no longer about the games, it's just about the money.

[QUOTE=Sly Boots]
The only advantage I can think of is that consoles are cheaper, but I think in the long run, the PC is more rewarding (you can do a lot more stuff such as use programs, internet). It's worthwhile because you don't have to buy a new one (like consoles), you can upgrade your video card and add more RAM.

QUOTE]
Darn new NVIDEA video cards cost 500 bucks. I agree with you. PC in my opinion is a far superior medium to play games than consoles (especially in terms of Graphics). I think maybe SONY and Microsoft have something to do with the popularity of consoles??? #&#$&$# Microsoft pays every developer studio and publisher a lot of $$$$$$ to port the title to XBOX (Lucasarts Knight of the old republic 1 and 2, and DOOM 3 plus many more...)

as both an avid console and PC gamer i could argue for both sides and they both have their good/bad points.

The biggest advantage of consoles is that you don't have to upgrade them, You are guarunteed that a game will work in your system if you buy it.
How many times have you bought a new pc game only to find out you need to buy a new video card? (often the price of a brand new console) or ram or something else


now don't get me wrong, i'm not defending consoles over PC, i enjoy my gametime on the pc just as much as on my consoles...their are just definete advantages

I agree with you. I had to buy Geforce 4 to play POP sands of Time and now I have to get the Geforce 6800 for Doom 3. But you are paying for the quality of graphics.

I do see both your points about video cards, although if you bought a decent PC with decent components in the first place you shouldn't get this problem. When I buy a PC I always buy it with 3 years usage in mind. I have thrown everything at my 2 year old PC (with ATI Radeon 9800 card) and it hasn't flinched at even the most recent games. In fact I have never had to upgrade any computer in the past as long as I buy it with 3 years in mind.

As long as consoles do not support user created content (levels, mods, etc) in any significant way, there will always be PC Gaming.

The PC is the creative's gaming platform.

My god, I'd hate to see what Doom 3 looks like on an X-Box, compared to the PCs of today.

Don't you just hate these big money-making corporations?
Thinking about them reminds me of a line from one of my favourite movies, Glengarry Glen Ross:
"The rich get richer, that's the law of the land"

PC gaming won't die. We might be lucky and see more independently produced games instead of all those average games with big names, though. :)

If you consider what came out for the PC in 1998, it kind of has.

I know the answer for this one. No. PC's will continue to be one step ahead of the consoles in terms of technical achievements. The consoles keep getting more and more like a pc, and if they eventually turn into a PC in spirit, well... we're back to where we started right?

Not really. It will always be easier for people to just buy a console from a store and know that any game they buy for that console will always work on that console. I suppose it's possible that consoles might eventually become upgradable and stuff, but if that happens I'm sure that whichever console does that will just fade out of existance and the straightforward ones will win out. Despise consoles like the Xbox being more PC-ish in infrastructure, they still work just like a console from the user's perspective: buy one, plug in the game, play game.

I hope PC game don't die out because:
1. Playing some of my favourite strategy games on regular tv seriously hurt my eyes, with all those small text and all
2. what if I wanna develop games without having to pay tens of thousands of dollars for console development kits
3. I would never play games like Syberia in the living room, where other people can hear every line of its embarrassingly bad voice acting

People buy consoles because of the ease of use, accessability and comfort. They might well own a PC but not use it for gaming, not the least because it confuses them and is not as easy to play on a PC. (Installing, configuring, most likely some sort of technical problem that has to be fixed and other things)

PCs aren't going anywhere, really. The market is still strong; however, the focus of the PC market may well shift to something different than what we're used to today. Same goes for consoles.

I don't think PC Gaming will die, but PC Games certainly do sell less than console games. One reason for this is that console games are generally easier to play and it's cheaper to own a $200 console with $50 games than have a $1000 PC with $50 games that you have to update every few years to play the latest and greatest! :)

The PC is a better platform for some games (adventure, RTS, FPS) and the console is better for others (third-person action, RPGs, sports, fighting games, etc.).

On the same topic, I recently went to a presentation by a marketing guy from Atari Games who mentioned that RTS games make up 1/3 of PC sales while "Action" Games made up around 20 % of PC sales-- pretty interesting, IMHO.

It kinda has been dying since 1998? Well, if you ask people who are crazy for Half Life, Deus Ex, Counterstrike and stuff like that; I guess the answer will be that it got better since then.
Of course, if you look at it from an adventure gamers point, I guess it has been buried since then, that was the year of the 'last' great adventures.

But even so, I still have faith in underground developers and in this recent invasion of Czesch/Russian/German developers. But it could happen, the PC could go the way of the MAC and become a really expensive gaming platform (I'm talking games here) that gets two/three titles each month. Even so, if they were only good titles, I wouldn't complain.

I'd have to say yes, they will eventually but probably not in a few years.

tv's and computer monitors, cutting edge ones of today the difference in quality tips in favour of the tv. Because they're new though right now they're extremely expensive but eventually everyone will have one as the line disappears between what is a TV and what is a computer monitor.

Graphically a console game can be as good as its pc equivalent, if you compare a game designed for equal hardware at release time the differences are few and far between, but if you're dead set on comparing games designed for faster evolving pc hardware against already old console hardware then its a moot point.

How much better could pc games look and perform and how much fairer would multiplayer competition be if all the systems where the same? Is this what you mean by more challenging multiplayer Sly Boots? Who can afford the better video card this month? A developer can be sure they get the most out of the components rather than having to waste time trimming features in an attempt to run on such a broad range. Personally I find the idea that Halo on the PC is superior looking than Halo on the Xbox laughable. They ripped a heap of custom shader, lighting and texture effects out of the PC version, it looks crap no matter how much you increase the polygon count or resolution.

As for the argument that certain games play better on a PC, well thats just a matter of time also. Strategy games are few and far between on consoles right now, but they're a popular genre. Through console design and game design changes they will become as good or better. Kingdom Under Fire: Crusaders is looking good I must say, and Dynasty warriors if a little strategy light, isn't so bad. Have a look how beautifully KOTOR handles turn based battles with a console controller.

As for sound superiority, well I know more people who have their entertainment units hooked up to digital surround sound (with their consoles) than bother to set up digital surround sound around their computer. Audio can be an extremely good immersion element to any game.

These are all just opinions though, realistically the main driving force for consoles becoming the most prominent domain for gaming is the lower piracy rate. Have you ever tried to pirate a gamecube game?