PC Gaming on the Out?
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
PC gamers probably order online. Online teenagers and perverts go to game stores these days.
Need custom software developed? I do C# development and consulting all over the United States. A man said to the universe: "Sir I exist!" "However," replied the universe, "The fact has not created in me A sense of obligation." --Stephen Crane
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
Video game store? Don't think I've been in one of those this decade. Physical video game stores are surely sinking into oblivion. I'm not sure what's going to happen with PC gaming, although I'd be annoyed to have yet another freaking box in the living room just to play games.
Bar fomos edo pariyart gedeem, agreo eo dranem abal edyero eyrem kalm kareore
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
Richard Andrew x64 wrote:
What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
For crap games, yes. It's still strong for top notch games. Problem is that top notch games are really expensive to make and World of Warcraft is dominating like no game ever has. On the other hand, once you produce the artwork and so forth for a top game, making it run on XBox, PS3 and PC is a no-brainer. The only companies limiting their platforms are doing so because of exclusivity deals. (The online ordering mentioned above is a big factor. Go to www.steampowered.com if you want to see a pretty big sampling of how many games are available on PC. FEAR 2 is next on my list.)
Anyone who thinks he has a better idea of what's good for people than people do is a swine. - P.J. O'Rourke
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
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PC gamers probably order online. Online teenagers and perverts go to game stores these days.
Need custom software developed? I do C# development and consulting all over the United States. A man said to the universe: "Sir I exist!" "However," replied the universe, "The fact has not created in me A sense of obligation." --Stephen Crane
I'm no teenager but I've been to the game store the last two days... :doh:
Dave
BTW, in software, hope and pray is not a viable strategy. (Luc Pattyn)
Visual Basic is not used by normal people so we're not covering it here. (Uncyclopedia) -
I'm no teenager but I've been to the game store the last two days... :doh:
Dave
BTW, in software, hope and pray is not a viable strategy. (Luc Pattyn)
Visual Basic is not used by normal people so we're not covering it here. (Uncyclopedia)Pervert ...
Bar fomos edo pariyart gedeem, agreo eo dranem abal edyero eyrem kalm kareore
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
The days of buying PC games "off-the-shelf" are dying, not necessarily the games themselves. There's been a move to online stores that download the game content directly to you PC. For eaxample, Steam[^].
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Dave Kreskowiak Microsoft MVP Visual Developer - Visual Basic
2006, 2007, 2008 -
I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
Steam
// Steve McLenithan
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
From what I've seen, it appears that game-specific stores such as GameStop stock only a cursory selection of PC titles (if any at all) and fill their shelves with console games. Larger stores, such as Best-Buy and and the long-gone CompUSA, have a much better selection of PC games. I'm not sure why this is, but my guess would be a lame return policy that states you can only return a game for another copy of the same game once it's opened. Given the huge variety of hardware for Windows games, coupled with terrible copy-protection systems that will render games unplayable on some systems*, it's probably easier to simply not sell them in the first place. Personally, I hate playing games on a console for several reasons. I don't like hogging up the entire living room and TV, FPS games are a joke with a standard controller, and I've yet to find a console game with any real depth to it that made me want to pay it for more than an hour. PC games can provide an enormous depth of play, a simple "chat" interface via a keyboard that anyone can use without annoying people in the same room and being forced to listen to 12 year olds swearing and each player can have their own computer for LAN-play instead of split-screen. * In the last few years, I've had at least 2 games fail to work due to copy protection. Beyond Divinity and Rainbow Six Vegas 2, both of which failed to recognize the CD in the drive. A quick trip to GameCopyWorld sorted it out, but most casual buyers won't think to go there - and indeed, why should they?
The StartPage Randomizer - The Windows Cheerleader - Twitter
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From what I've seen, it appears that game-specific stores such as GameStop stock only a cursory selection of PC titles (if any at all) and fill their shelves with console games. Larger stores, such as Best-Buy and and the long-gone CompUSA, have a much better selection of PC games. I'm not sure why this is, but my guess would be a lame return policy that states you can only return a game for another copy of the same game once it's opened. Given the huge variety of hardware for Windows games, coupled with terrible copy-protection systems that will render games unplayable on some systems*, it's probably easier to simply not sell them in the first place. Personally, I hate playing games on a console for several reasons. I don't like hogging up the entire living room and TV, FPS games are a joke with a standard controller, and I've yet to find a console game with any real depth to it that made me want to pay it for more than an hour. PC games can provide an enormous depth of play, a simple "chat" interface via a keyboard that anyone can use without annoying people in the same room and being forced to listen to 12 year olds swearing and each player can have their own computer for LAN-play instead of split-screen. * In the last few years, I've had at least 2 games fail to work due to copy protection. Beyond Divinity and Rainbow Six Vegas 2, both of which failed to recognize the CD in the drive. A quick trip to GameCopyWorld sorted it out, but most casual buyers won't think to go there - and indeed, why should they?
The StartPage Randomizer - The Windows Cheerleader - Twitter
A word about copy protection: I can't play my favorite game, Command & Conquer, on my Vista-64 installation because their copy-protection rootkit only works on the 32-bit version. And they won't even make a 64-bit build of the rootkit, most likely because the 64-bit kernel doesn't allow patching.
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
As hubby and I buy/sell video games online, I have to say that the major stores we shop at have little or no PC games. I think you have your die-hard fans who will only support PC, but it gets smaller and smaller every 5-7 years.
Back in the blog beatch! http://CraptasticNation.blogspot.com/[^]
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
With the economy the way it is, kids are having to resort to actually playing with others. You know, outside; ball, tag, running, laughing, falling down. Perhaps they'll live longer...
"A Journey of a Thousand Rest Stops Begins with a Single Movement"
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
Check out SteamPowered and their competitors like Direct2Drive and StarDock. The distribution model for PC games has shifted pretty much to an online system.
Sovereign ingredient for a happy marriage: Pay cash or do without. Interest charges not only eat up a household budget; awareness of debt eats up domestic felicity. --Lazarus Long Avoid the crowd. Do your own thinking independently. Be the chess player, not the chess piece. --?
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With the economy the way it is, kids are having to resort to actually playing with others. You know, outside; ball, tag, running, laughing, falling down. Perhaps they'll live longer...
"A Journey of a Thousand Rest Stops Begins with a Single Movement"
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G-d forbid they find the cardboard box of a washing machine!
Back in the blog beatch! http://CraptasticNation.blogspot.com/[^]
:laugh: I've spent many a fine, sunny day defending my domain from a cardboard box. Just last week, in fact... :-D
"A Journey of a Thousand Rest Stops Begins with a Single Movement"
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
I can't see that developers will ever stop creating games for PCs. Consoles have their advantages, but so does PCs.
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With the economy the way it is, kids are having to resort to actually playing with others. You know, outside; ball, tag, running, laughing, falling down. Perhaps they'll live longer...
"A Journey of a Thousand Rest Stops Begins with a Single Movement"
I think its a matter of personal choice...some people want to get rid of all the fuss related to installations,security issues, and constant demand for hardware updates. No matter what VGA card you buy you'll still have to upgrade in two years or so,whereas PS2 lives on;) I am not big on console games at all, and I for one like the fuss behind installation and security stuff,changing my VGA and PC components are like pi**ing my ride:P. I like PC games more cause the experience is less of an event and is more involving. It also feels more convenient to use my laptop or PC whenever I have the time rather than set up a whole living room for it.I don't think PC games are dying,but consoles got more power than before so they've taken a bigger market share,PC gamers are techies by nature(mostly) so they would download online:)
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I took a look in the video game store in my local shopping mall today. The store was stocked 95% with games for XBox and Playstation, and had only two small shelving units to hold PC games. Furthermore, the PC games they had were all old, and marked down for quick sale. What's becoming of the PC gaming market? Is it really sinking into oblivion?
I went off PC games mostly because my PC that I used for it had a horrible slow death during my last year at uni when I gamed on PC most (BF2), since then a lot of my uni and old buddies from back home now have xboxs, so it's mostly COD4, Halo 3 and my copy of Halo Wars arrived today, w00t! :-D On that note, with games like Halo Wars built from the ground up, with the controls purpose built and working very well, it can't help now they've shown RTS on console is very do-able.
He who makes a beast out of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man
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I went off PC games mostly because my PC that I used for it had a horrible slow death during my last year at uni when I gamed on PC most (BF2), since then a lot of my uni and old buddies from back home now have xboxs, so it's mostly COD4, Halo 3 and my copy of Halo Wars arrived today, w00t! :-D On that note, with games like Halo Wars built from the ground up, with the controls purpose built and working very well, it can't help now they've shown RTS on console is very do-able.
He who makes a beast out of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man
what we mustn't forget is a PC is a multi-purpose machine whereas most gaming consoles are designed for one purpose: gaming. sure you can put your music and videos on your PS3 and whatever, but the core reason the system is bought is for its gaming capabilities. personally I believe graphics are killing and making the games. you're getting games that are pushing the limits in terms of graphics (requiring you to get that GTX 280 :sigh: ), and are pushing into a more submersive storyline. of course, you also get the games with a pathetic storyline not worthy of the poop you fling at it, that have the unholiest of awesome graphics, explosions, limbs flying everywhere, etc,etc,etc. The only "console" I have is my PSP. it's easy to go anywhere and play, has good enough graphics, can be hooked up to a TV if you really want, and a few good titles. I used to loath consoles simply because their controls were retarded. now I loath them because of all the unique titles that come out ;P console gaming is picking up, but PC gaming is never going to quit pushing the limits of the latest hardware, and is not going to die any time soon.
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what we mustn't forget is a PC is a multi-purpose machine whereas most gaming consoles are designed for one purpose: gaming. sure you can put your music and videos on your PS3 and whatever, but the core reason the system is bought is for its gaming capabilities. personally I believe graphics are killing and making the games. you're getting games that are pushing the limits in terms of graphics (requiring you to get that GTX 280 :sigh: ), and are pushing into a more submersive storyline. of course, you also get the games with a pathetic storyline not worthy of the poop you fling at it, that have the unholiest of awesome graphics, explosions, limbs flying everywhere, etc,etc,etc. The only "console" I have is my PSP. it's easy to go anywhere and play, has good enough graphics, can be hooked up to a TV if you really want, and a few good titles. I used to loath consoles simply because their controls were retarded. now I loath them because of all the unique titles that come out ;P console gaming is picking up, but PC gaming is never going to quit pushing the limits of the latest hardware, and is not going to die any time soon.
twinscythe12332 wrote:
I believe graphics are killing and making the games. you're getting games that are pushing the limits in terms of graphics
QFT. PC people tend to make the argument of paying £300 for a new console every 5 years or so, gfx/ram upgrades easily match that cost over the same period. Going back to Halo Wars again on this point (sorry lol) the graphics were not the focus, although it's visually pleasing (not amazing) the gameplay/controls and story were key in it's development. In fact the controls were already set before they'd decided on what game it would be :) I had a original PSP-1000 for about 2 months before I got bored with it, traded for a DS which I've had much more fun with.
He who makes a beast out of himself gets rid of the pain of being a man
