Slashdot Mirror
Is The Xbox The Cause Of The PC Gamer's Downfall?
Thanks to GamerDad for its editorial discussing whether the Xbox has grabbed much of the development effort and talent from the PC gaming scene, with the author arguing: "From what I've been able to gather, there just isn't much interest in PC games unless as an afterthought to a console release. Deus Ex 2 and Thief III are superb examples of this mindset." He continues of the Xbox: "Its introduction has clearly robbed a lot of the resources that used to be dedicated to making PC entertainment. This is fine if you're willing to buy an Xbox and support Microsoft directly that way. It's not fine if you're a PC gamer that wants what the PC can offer specifically, and not some watered down version of what you've come to expect from a company." Do you agree?
First of all, pc games are not dead. Second, their reduced popularity is certainly due to the rise in all consoles. With a game cube costing a 100 bucks, consoles are competing well. Anyways, nethack is alive and well.....
When the XBox came out, I figured that it would be killed by the PC, not the other way around.
Microsoft might not be too popular around here, but they sure aren't stupid or lacking in business sense, either way.
Rob
Once the computer was the console (spectrum etc) then nintendo took the platforms, sony took the arcade racers, xbox has some of the half racing sims, things like colin mcrae, toca race driver 2. I was nuts on Rainbow Six 3 on XBox then i saw it on the PC blew me away totally, much bigger game, much more beautiful and the planning is awsome. In short its a dumbed down game on the XBox. Similarly you aren't ever going to see something like Grand Prix Legends or EF2000 a console for a very long time.
I think PC is where the hardcore ultra-realistic things happen, as well as the ultra innovative (see Gish slashdot article a bit ago) because you don't need a super expensive development kit.
i do.
Is that it's essentially PC hardware. Heck, it uses the DirectX API. So what's my problem? Why not port games to PC since it's almost exactly the same. Answer: MS pays developers to develop for X-Box exclusively (think Halo).
While I wouldn't mind buying a PC X-Box kit (I'm not calling it an emulator since it wouldn't be emulating anything), I feel stupid maintaining two x86 PCs just because his Billness decided that's the way it should be. (Everyone talks about the extra X-box features, but really the feature set is dumbed down PC interface).
-- Political fascism requires a Fuhrer.
This is nothing new consoles vs PC, they always swap positions every few years. As for it being XBOX thsi time? No, more likely it was Sony's PS1 or PS2, MS was a little late to the game.
Sure I'm supporting Microsoft by buying an X-box, however, it means that I don't have to have a separate windows partition to play the few games that I do play.
Hopefully the next round of pc-gaming will come about on a Non-MS Platform -grin-
Ok, I've said it before and I'll say it again. The cause of the PC Games downfall is well known.
Because of the differences in controls and displays some game genres are better on the PC and some game genres are better on consoles. Anything with lots of information on the screen like a Civilization or a Master of Orion, RTS games like Warcraft 3 and first person shooters are all PC genres. Games like platformers, fighting games and such are all console genres. A big screen and a gamepad are perfect for these. Some games work well on either, like puzzle games.
The reason that PC gaming is going down the tubes is that there is no innovation in the genres which are good to play on the PC. FPS and RTS are pretty much stuck in a rut. Each new game is the same as all the others. Sure there are better graphics and sound, but eye candy does not a hit game make. Think about it, there are only 2, TWO pc games coming out that people are anticipating. Doom3 and HL2. The reason they are anticipated is because they promise innovation is a dormant genre. But look over in the console arena, what do you see? What's that? Nintendo with its GBA hookups and FF:CC? XboX Live? I see new things there! It's not the same old game its always been.
Sure, there are more reasons than one why the PC is going downhill as a gaming platform. All the cheapass commodity games stocking up at Wal-Mart are no help. But then again, you see the same sorts of things coming out for the PS2 and GBA. The primary reason for PC gaming being in a rut is the lack of innovation in PC genres and the extensive innovation in console genres.
Some people I tell this to try to argue that there is PC innovation and I'm wrong. If this is you then consider this. Why is Counter-Strike the most popular online game ever after all these years? When it came out it was revolutionary. Real weapons, team based objective gameplay that wasn't CTF. And staying dead until the next round. This did not exist then. And since CS came out, no game has made such great leaps into making new gameplay as to unseat CS. Nothing. If one of them did, then CS wouldn't still be the most popular game. Tribes 2 and NS both came close, but they both suffered the same 2 problems. 1) Gameplay too complex to jump right in. 2) The devs killed the game off unintentionally.
So until HL2 and Doom3 come out my video game money is still going to Nintendo.
The GeekNights podcast is going strong. Listen!
Apart from the fact that Microsoft are the only ones who can afford to make the XBox at its current specs, I've always considered that its just a PC made for games, like any other.
I don't see the differentiation, I guess, between an "XBox" game and a "PC" game. Aren't they using the same API's, the same fundamental OS, the same principles of development?
Why the differentiation, really, when under the covers, XBox == Microsofts Gaming PC?
Another thing I don't understand, though I think we'll probably see something on this subject within the next 6 months, is why Game Studio's don't just release their own, little, purpose-built PC system for each of their games? Its not like building cheap hardware that works is hard, any more
; -- the corruption of government starts with its secrets. a truly free people keep no secrets. --
Since this latest generation of consoles came out, I have a GameCube that collects large amount of dust, and my friend's Xbox would be collecting dust if I was still borrowing it from him. One reason I simply hate consoles is controllers are usually much to annoying to mess with, keyboard and mouse is usually better for any game in my perspective, but GREATLY excelling in the first person shooter genre. Another reason consoles are not preferred by me is the lack of options most games have: Sensitivity, complete customization of controls, etc. Playing a first person shooter where you turn around at 1/3rd of the rate that you can on the PC by twitching your mouse just slightly gets on my nerves. It makes games basically "If he comes up behind you you're dead." Anyway, enough rambling and I'm sleep deprived so if none of this makes sense don't kill me.
the Political Inquirer
There can be absolutely no doubt whatsoever that the X-Box has been pretty successful at muscling into the PC games market. Halo, Deus Ex 2, KOTOR and Thief 3 would all have been PC exclusives in the past. What I can't make my mind up over is whether this is a good thing.
At first glance, the arguments for it being a bad thing are pretty damned strong. Deus Ex 2 was clearly crippled by the limitations imposed by console hardware. Halo is also widely believed to be "not the game it could have been", had it not been transformed into a console-first game. Console games have a reputation (among PC gamers) for being shallow button-mashing fests.
However, if you look at the issue with more of an open mind, there are some more positive aspects to this. KOTOR rocked... I've played it through twice and I can't see any way in which having the X-Box release harmed the game. Having an X-Box release no doubt increases the sales of these games dramatically, increasing the incentive for developers.
As I grow older, I find I care less and less about the factors that used to tie me to PC gaming. It's nice to be able to just stick the disk in the drive and play a game... no install procedure, no driver updates, no worrying over whether I need an upgrade. The issue of playing fpses on a console controller no longer really bothers me. A lot of my PC-fps playing friends say "that must suck, because you can't... like... turn around instantly". This kind of misses the point that a decent console fps will be engineered so that you don't need to and, in multiplayer, you're playing against people on a level playing field.
I don't think the current X-Box is going to make much more progress against the PC gaming market. I suspect (although I may be wrong) that titles like Farcry are, at last, pushing PC games beyond the technical capabilities of the current consoles. However, when the next-gen consoles arrive, PC gaming could be in very deep trouble indeed.
When was the last great Ultima game made? Long before the Xbox was conceived. The last Ultima game was turned to crap because of Ultima Online.
What about Falcon 3.0? Released approximately 6 years ago and, while a great sim, was extremely buggy and eventually had to depend on fan-created patches.
The article also ignores the dearth of junk games (Deer Hunter), over-hyped games (Daikatana), and vaporware games (Duke Nuke'em) that have turned some folks away from PC gaming.
Let's also not forget Peter Molyneaux's 'Fable' for the Xbox which will contain those moral choices that the article was lamenting was missing in today's games.
If anything, developers are moving over to consoles because it is easier and cheaper to develop for a closed system console instead of PC systems with a myriad of configurations that need to be developed for and patched.
Irregardless, a great game is a great game no matter the system it is running on. And the games we grew up with will always be better than the games we play today as adults.
And it will get "worse" for PC gamers. What are the big advantages of a PC game over a console? Display resolution, processing power, input devices. Well for the first two - HDTV isn't far off and next gen consoles will run rings around all but the highest-end PC's. As for input - check how many people are playing FFxi on their PS2 with USB keyboards.
So, yeah. Consoles will be the main focus of the big game publishers and devs.
But I do see a silver lining. Smaller game companies and homebrew games will get more play time as PC gamers tire of ports of console games. I also believe that game publishers will promote open-sourceing of games on the PC and encourage mod communities to attempt the sucesses of half-life.
Just wait till some crappy band steals your nic.
Translation: better for the genres I prefer.
Which is fine. But would you play Mario Sunshine or Wind Waker and think "Boy, I wish I could control this with a mouse and arrow keys"?
Name one other title that has been "exclusive" to the Xbox and not the PC. Even Halo eventually made its way to the PC.
As far as interfaces go, dumbed down does not always equal bad. In fact, unless you're coding in assembly and using nothing but pure unix command line, you've dumbed down as well.
Not to mention sports stuff like SSX, Tony Hawk's, Pro Evo soccer.
I flogged my PC because I got bored with FPS, but actually I quite like how different the likes of Halo and Timesplitters 2 are with a joypad, it makes aiming more difficult, which helps the gameplay as you don't get people with unrealistically godlike aiming accuracy.
When the way to keep up with your hobby is to spend your time and money upgrading Windows, downloading new drivers, rebooting constantly, buying new sticks of RAM, buying new video cards, replacing HDs, watching games install, dealing with Windows security, rebooting some more, dealing with games that don't work and can't be returned, OR buy 1 game console w/ memory card and 1 game disc for it, and play...
You begin to see that it's just the matter that PC gaming is expensive in time and money. When you stop using your PC for gaming, you'll find it'll take a good 4 years before your computer is "too slow" and you upgrade for a fraction of the cost. Plus your computer's suddenly a lot more reliable because you can use an OS which has fewer games but more stability, like Mac OS X or a Linux flavour.
I'll put it another way: my swiss army knife isn't as good at some things as a butcher knife, and if cutting meat was something I'd want to do a lot, a butcher knife would be the way to go for me. A console's just a better, more concentrated way to game!
--
Internet Explorer (n): Another bug -- that is, a feature that can't be turned off -- in Windows.
One reason I know many people play console games over PC games is the price. For consoles you never have to buy expensive upgrades(only recently any upgrades at all, i.e. PS2 hard drive), so that saves a lot of money. Ease of use is another big point in the console world.
But many people are forgetting about several titles coming out that people are excited about: EQ2 and WoW. The niche genre of MMORPG's will always dominate the PC. Even though FFXI came out for the PS2, it is still bigger on the PC.
XBox is not destroying the PC gaming industry, its game selection is. There is a far wider variety of recent quality games on the XBox than on any other console, or the PC. This is what I believe to be causing this 'downfall.'
Look, I play both consoles and PC games. I lean more to the PC because I'm more into RTS and Strategy games and consoles are just not there yet. However, the reason why I don't give up on consoles is that they just work! I bought KOTOR about 3 weeks ago and it made me upgrade to DirectX 9. Everything worked at first but when I booted my comptuer up the next day all all my video and sound card settings were screwed up. It took me at least an hour to figure out how to get my box back to normal. (had to update a driver and download some game patches, etc). All I want to do is play a damn game. I don't want to screw around with having to update my system everytime I want to play a new game. I will continue to play PC games because in my opinion they offer a better gameing experience as a whole. I will continue to play cosole games because they have the best "out of box experience".
-Dipster
When I want to sit down and play a game for five minutes and stop, I turn on my Xbox and play some SSX or Sega Soccer Slam.
When I want a game that immerses me, I open my laptop and play NwN for hours and hours.
There are exceptions to this on Xbox, like Morrowind (also on PC) and the upcoming Fable; and vice versa on PC, with Flash games and the venerable Solitare. But I think for the most part, they offer different experiences, and can and will continue to co-exist...
honnold.org - sometimes-rock band, all the time awesome forum
Nice rationalization. Let's get one thing straight: even if you only run Windows in order to play games, and even if you use a pirate copy of Windows, you're still directly supporting Microsoft.
Why? Because you're helping to keep the Windows share of the games market artificially high, which ensures that game development happens for Windows first and other platforms rarely (Mac) or never (Linux). This, in turn, means that anyone who wants to play computer games goes out and buys a PC with Windows, and any developer who wants to sell games buys Microsoft development tools.
Buy a PS2, a Gamecube, a Mac or a Linux (only) system, and play your games on those. Until then, you're a Microsoft whore, whether you're playing on a PC or an Xbox.
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
Xbox is my console of choice. However I have to complain about the lack of RPGs for the system, especially online capable ones. While Sony is gettings games like Final Fantasy XI and EverQuest, Xbox has released two that I am barely interested in; Morrowind and KotOR. Both of which are not online capable. I mean hell, Xbox has a NIC built right in! Make use of it!
With True Fantasy Online recently canceled and Fable looking further and further away, I'm starting to look at Playstation more and more as a serious alternative to Xbox just to play my Final Fantasy series.
Sneaking with a keyboard is actually easier than with an analog stick. The reason is that with an analog stick, if you push the thing too far you're suddently no longer sneaking and very likely messed up the mission. Not everybody can hold an analog stick at exactly the position that lets you sneak with maximum speed. On the keyboard you hold a button and are restricted to the maximum sneak speed. Sure, you can do that on a console as well but that kinda defeats the purpose of the analog stick, no?
Fighting games are easier on the PC, in my experience. The keyboard is the most precise directional input, since you have separate keys for each direction which you hit with different fingers. No accidentally pressing diagonal or something. Also, the keyboard resembles the controls in an arcade much closer than a joypad, since you're pushing buttons with different fingers instead of using your thumb for all of them and there must be a reason people want to play fighing games on arcade sticks.
Also, mouselook helps against the shoddy camera systems most third person games use. Generally I have more problems with the camera in console games than in PC games. Super Mario Sunshine, for example, has a really bad camera system (yes, I'm aware there are worse, but Sunshine's is bad enough). You can correct it with the c-stick, but that helps little if you're busy doing something else (like running over a small path of timed blocks). On the other hand, I never had problems with the camera in Quake 3's or UT2003/04's third person modes or the games Oni and Max Payne.
Justice is the sheep getting arrested while an impartial judge declares the vote void.
Until it has a mouse, they'l have a tough time really cracking the FPS gamers - you can play with (BTW, I have an XBox, PLaystation 2 and a gaming PC - I play xbox & PC mostly) the little joysticks but as the Unreal people found, you'll get your ass handed to you against people with a mouse. Past that, of course it's affect the PC market - how can you fight with M$ pouring money in and/or buying off the game companies. Don't know how much impact it would be if they didn't do that. I do LOVE having my games on my 65" ..but the damn thing needs a mouse. I may LOOK at thief, True Streets, etc on the XBox but I PLAY them on my PC.
This is a little OT, but I really liked the sneaking system used in the PC version of Splinter Cell (at least, Pandora Tomorrow, I didn't play the original) You use the scroll wheel to set your movement speed, and then WASD to move around. Worked pretty slick.
Ita erat quando hic adveni.
If this is what it takes to keep adventure games alive I'll be the first one to bury my PC in the back yard. Piracy is so bad on PC the only compelling reason anyone has to buy a legitimate copy is to get an online multiplayer code. Single player experiences like adventure games have no contingency plan against piracy like MMORPGs and FPSs do.
Rest in Peace PC. Long Live the Console!
here.
-
While i wait for GTA San Andreas (for PC), i am afraid it wil be a less impressive game, because it have to run in inferior PS2 hardware first...
Yeah, it's true that MS gaming division isn't making them money, but their bread-and-butter, MS-Office and MS-Windows make so much dough that they pay the losses of every losing division and still rake in over a billion dollars without even mentioning their other profitable divisions. I don't think MS has anything to worry about, except maybe the PC drying up as a gaming market. I have my doubts about that, as well, because graphics technology continues to be pushed on the PC side, which eventually influences consoles. Consoles have the plus of standardized hardware, so it's easier to write for them, but you don't get "cutting edge" graphics, except maybe on the console's release.
:(
MS has hurt PC gaming, by buying many PC developers and moving them exclusively to XBox dev (then porting to PC with a different developer later). The FASA (Mechwarrior) and Bungie (Halo) teams are prime examples. Basically, they've moved the PC game to play second fiddle to the XBox game, but adding all the missing features later. In many ways this works out good for MS, because the XBox is basically a standardized PC, which means many less configuration problems and simplified debugging (meaning shorter release schedule and thus less investment), so they can shovel the cost of PC hardware debugging to a third party developer. Unfortunately, it also means late releases on the PC and controls that either don't work, or are so dumbed down the game is either too easy or too hard
I agree with you as big compagny are thinking about the console market first before the pc one. But dev/test/debug seems to be shorter on console due to unique hardware specification (nothing like the nightmare on PC:proc+OS+VGA+soundcard+CD drive). Of course the consoles are less extendable but that make them more stable against an implementation. plus the cost of upgrading a PC is too much in the current race for global domination that oppose ATI and NVidia. But I know that console are slow when compared to our typical gaming pc, but given the usability of a console against a PC hardware nightmare , a pc wouldn't stand a chance. Why the title, because currently mac gaming is growing again, and the fact the mac are more easy to use and are more stable because apple hold their hardware specification tight, the might gain more and more share of personal gaming computer (no kidding it may happen one day). For High end gamer, pc is the platform of choice, but do we need horsepower for compelling games, I think not. NB: I do give microsoft money for their xbox but I now use it to read my divx in the living room.
[DISCLAIMER]I don't play a lot of games.[/DISCLAIMER]
But could the downfall of PC games have anything to do with the upgrade cycle? People still think of computers as expensive, complex, and evil devices. This drastically reduces their desire to upgrade. Relatively few people buy computers primarily for gaming. Rather they want to use internet applications (web, email, chat, p2p) and office applications (word processing, spreadsheets, accounting). All of the latest versions of this stuff run fine on a 3-4 year old PC and with longhorn and the next Office still at least 2 years away, there's no indication that this will change anytime soon. Traditionally, for sale computer games have a lot of high powered graphics that require cutting edge systems. Well, people don't have the same impotus to upgrade that they once did, hence the market has probably shrunk.
Also, it seems to me that improvements in graphics aren't as important as they once were, even in graphically intense games such as first person shooters. Things like reflections or fire effects don't affect gameplay as much as early improvements did. It's all garnish. Since high end graphics were a driving motivation in the PC games market, the diminishing gains of graphics technology has probably affected PCs. Now, today's console's look almost as good, if not better than, most of today's pcs.
I bought an XBox because I was tired of upgrading my computer and fiddeling with drivers all the damn time. When I built my computer, I bought the best hardware available. A year later, I couldn't play any of the latest games without turning down the quality and expecting some choppyness. A year and a half later I need to buy a new video card, and that makes my CPU the bottleneck, so a new CPU is necessary, and that means a new MB which supports different RAM, and so on and so on.
Finally I said, "screw it." and bought an XBox, where the games all work well and I can concerntrate on actually playing the game rather than making the games playable.
-troy
The reason is exactly what many people point to as being the cause of it's supposed death. Two quick reasons. The first is portability. Consoles have finally reached a point where the price point and power can match that of low cost PCs. A game on a high end console can look an awful lot like the PC. Splinter Cell on the Xbox is almost the same as the PC. I see the next generation of consoles being able to port their games over the PC much easier than ever before. The second is that 2005 will have a gap for console users. The PC will have several new graphic engines out featuring several new games. Consoles have a bit of a lag waiting for the new hardware to show up. PC games will be able to take advantage of the gamer and be able to really "wow" them.
What you are seeing is the beginning of the PC and console merging into one unit. Microsoft holds a huge advantage in this area having the dominant OS. Already there are rumors of a Xbox Next PC which combines the next generation Xbox with a PC. Isn't this the logical evolution of gaming? Within five years, it's more likely that consoles will merge into PCs, rather than PC gaming dying off. The gaming community could see exclusive titles for the Sony Playstation PC or the Nintendo GamePC, but with universal PC titles being able to play on all of them.
Let me see if I have this figured out.
Buy an Xbox to play games and support MS directly is bad.
Buy a PC with a Windows OS to play games and support MS directly is good.
You can tell a great deal about the character of a man by observing those who hate him.
Certain types of games play better on one system over the other. Take RTS games. Trying to manipulate multiple units like in Warcraft3 would be extremely hard with a gamepad. Compound that with low resolutions on consoles and it becomes apparant why RTS favor PCs. Same goes with a FPS. You can get away with a slower style of FPS on the console (Halo), but no game like Quake3 or UT2004 is going to play well on a console. The controls just aren't there. The good FPS games allow for different movement speeds based mostly on the skill of the player. This is seen in Quake3 with "strafe jumping" and UT2003/4 with double jumping. Those types of physics just cannot exist on a console. Take the PC port of Halo. It worked well on the console but the port is just a bland and boring PC game compared to what exists. Consoles are great for third person games and fighting games, but I just don't see them taking over all of gaming anytime soon. Maybe if HD TVs become standard and consoles start coming with a keyboard and mouse that will change.
"Its introduction has clearly robbed a lot of the resources that used to be dedicated to making PC entertainment. This is fine if you're willing to buy an Xbox and support Microsoft directly that way. It's not fine if you're a PC gamer that wants what the PC can offer specifically, and not some watered down version of what you've come to expect from a company." Do you agree?
Yes. I want bolt on components. end of story
Besides the typical genre specific advantage the PC has over consoles, the PC holds two other distinct advantages:
1. Fan mods - this alone can make a PC game last 2+ years. If the game industry taps into this through some type of digital distribution (aka the method BioWare is considering for NWN) and provide content cheap ($5-20), standard PC games could provide nice sources of continuous income.
2. Patches - I realize this is a positive and a negative when you accept the fact that most games come out of the gate with bugs, but as games get more and more complex, what recourse do console gamers have? KotOR had some fairly troublesome bugs pop up in the XBox version. What if some of them had been serious show-stoppers? Is the complexity of story that is provided in KotOR the limit to which developers can realistically provide? Is open ended/multi-path gaming a true console possibility? Based on current play-testing records, I have to wonder if games can continue to expand on the console beyond the complexity of todays games (graphically, obviously yes), or will new stories have to be told using the relatively linear methods currently used?
I never heard much regarding Morrowind on the XBox, but did that turn out okay? It seemed to fall off the discussion boards quickly, but I do still see it discussed for the PC occassionally.
I don't own an Xbox. So it's their loss if they want to put all their eggs in one basket. There are plenty of game developers who will still support the PC.
Get enough of them hooked on the SDL+OpenGL combo and we may even see more games for Linux/*BSD/MacOS, since they can just write their games once and they will run on every modern platform with little or no extra work.
The sky is falling! The sky is falling!
It seems that every month some writer decides to pontificate on the immenent demise of the PC for gaming...it still hasn't happened and I don't see it happening anytime soon.
Why? Show me a good flight sim on any console. Crimson Skies? I think not...it is an arcade game. Show me a good military strategy game (real-time or turn-based) on a console. Anyone try to play Red Alert on the Playstation? It was terrible. For every First-person Shooter on a console (Halo) there are 15 on the PC. The gamepad cannot compete with the mouse/keyboard for quick, intuitive gameplay.
In my opinion, Thief III and Deus Ex 2 are exceptions since neither is a true FPS, they are both about stealth and role-playing as much as they are action.
The future will be decided if/when Doom III and Half-Life 2 hit the PC and consoles this fall. I think you will see the hard core play on the PC while the casual/young gamers tend towards the console.
Consoles will always rule the sports games and platform games, as well as action button masing games and fighting games. But I think there will always be a place for the PC in gaming.
Was that night on the marge of Lake LaBarge I cremated Sam McGee...
This is a non story. Games makers are driven by market forces. If games makers are focussing on making X-box games to make more money, good for them. You don't like this? Sorry.
;)
How much money do you pay for a good PC game? $40-60. How much does it cost to make one? A lot more. Why can you get it for $40-60, because lots of other people are buying it as well, so you benefit from your collective purchasing power.
The market will grow and shrink based on how much people are spending on games. If there are a tonne of people out there who want to buy PC games, people will make games for them to compete for their dollars. If many of those people switch to console, surprise, there will be less PC and more console games made.
I think it's best to go with the flow. Buy games you enjoy, If they're console games, buy a console. If they're PC buy a PC (someone earlier identified how having a console + linux box is a killer combo of great games without the need for dual boot or a windows layer).
If you want to really whine, try being a mac gamer
---
I support spreading santorum
What are the advantages of a PC? Well, there's a storage device, better internet support, and generally better graphics. Anybody who's going to be gaming is guaranteed to at least have a keyboard and mouse, which is far from the norm on a console.
Since the Xbox has many of the qualities of a PC at a fraction of the price, it's certainly feasable that it isn't helping PC gaming. It's got a hard drive built in. The graphics, while still not as good as those on a PC, are good enough for most people. Internet support might even be better with the Xbox because everything is standardized over Xbox Live. What's left? A keyboard and mouse? That's a pretty marginal advantage, especially when many of the current consoles already have keyboard and mouse capabilities. The next round of consoles will probably be even better in that aspect.
On the other hand, as people have already said, the PC is contributing to its own demise without the Xbox's help. Using a PC for gaming is frustrating at times. You need a lot of hard drive space and a good video card to play the newest games. This upgrade cycle is much faster than most people are comfortable with, and it's expensive. Then there's the annoyance of installing everything and getting it to work right. Don't forget the complete lack of genres. I'm a FPS and RTS fan, but even I would like to see more games on the PC that go in different directions.
Basically, I don't think that the Xbox is the biggest problem facing PC gaming. It might even be contributing somewhat, since it's easy to port Xbox games over to the PC. PC gaming isn't going to die anytime soon, but unfortunately it doesn't look like it'll have a spectacularly amazing future either.
I wish I could control this with a mouse and arrow keys
... yes. Why? Because I map out my keyboard so that every function/move is a finger flex away in the order I find most useful. Console games would need to allow for this of course (which I don't know of any that do) but if they did, I would take full advantage of it. I'm not saying it's for everybody but I would really make use of a keyboard/mouse option.
Personally
Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws-Plato
This writer seems to have misguided his disappointment with big-money-controlled game publishing. The Golden Age of Gaming he remembers so well has largely been gone for more than a decade.
It didn't disappear when console-centric ports started showing up. It disappeared when big publishers started making big money, started becoming risk-averse, and started pushing the glitz envelope to sell the same-old-game.
With the consoles getting an increasing share of publisher attention, PC Gaming is going to be forced to adapt to its strong suit: independent games, innovation, and user modifications.
If you ask me, this is a Good Thing and is going to usher in a new golden age of gaming: One where the PC market returns to its small-team, innovative roots, as the me-too game-publishing sticks to the console arena.
// "Can't clowns and pirates just -try- to get along?"
With a bit of practice, it's not that hard to sneak with an analog stick on a gamepad. In my experience, developers are usually pretty generous when setting thresholds between walking, jogging, running, etc. And there are some games that give you a sneak button (Eternal Darkness comes to mind).
I think there's definately cases where the developer chooses to make a game for Xbox instead of PC. But, there's also cases where a game destined for Xbox also becomes a game for PC, so PC also sometimes benefits directly from Xbox - at least in game numbers.
Similarily, a publisher/developer may have chosen to fund a Playstation game over either an Xbox or PC game, but instead finds it more worthwhile to go with a game for both Xbox and PC instead of only Playstation (or indeed, instead of not at all). So again both Xbox and PC benefit from each other. By game numbers.
What really bothers me though, is when games are made for Xbox and then badly ported over to PC - especially where they could have been really good PC games. Invisible War is a good example, it reeks of a nasty port with tiny areas between loads, dumbed down for a shorter attention span and even performance seems shoddy for what it is.
Secondly, a title for both Xbox and PC is liable to be more bland and mundane than one for only PC, and maybe even if it was exclusive to consoles. The more niche they try to fill with one title, the less they fill it well. Always be concerned when the same people are making both console and PC versions of a game, doubly so when theyre doing it at the same time.
Mind you, while everyone is fingering Xbox, dont forget about people who dont pay for their games. Even if 10% more of the downloaded/copied games that would otherwise have been paid for*, actually were paid for, there would be more PC games - wether or not there would be even more Xbox games on top. Moreover, maybe the ones we have would be less bland and more willing to take risks.
* acknowledging a big proportion of pirated games wouldnt have been bought anyway.
PC games will always rule in the graphics department. Consoles just don't get it done in this department. We just sit farther back and think they look as good.
I'm not sure what fighting games you play (indeed I can't really think of any that have come out on the PC for a while), but the keyboard has always been terrible for anything since Way of the Exploding Fist, when moves weren't mapped to directions but combinations of buttons. Quite how you think using a keyboard is easier to pull off a special move like in any modern fighter dating since Street Fighter II is beyond me, notwithstanding the minimum six different attack buttons, you've got to worry about getting to 8 directional buttons. My hands just don't work that way. In terms of precision, joypads have digital inputs too, still easier to use than a keyboard, but don't allow for the dynamics of analogue input, different walk speeds, move strengths etc. Proper arcade sticks are of course preferable to recreate the arcade feel, but joypads are clearly a closer relative than a keyboard; ultimately being a scaled down handheld version of them. Also bear in mind that all joypads since the SNES have at least two shoulder buttons, so you're not mapping everything to your thumbs.
In terms of third person cameras, the one in Quake 3 is not a serious part of the game - there's no mechanic for aiming in the 3rd person, they're more of an irrelevant demo hack. Same goes for UT2k3/4. You just don't see that many 3rd person camera games on the PC because you've only got one analogue input method, the mouse.
The quality of the cameras on consoles is besides the point, there are as many good examples as there are bad examples, but they're used more because it's a different method than has been enabled by the inclusion of two seperate analogue directional input methods. It is used more in adventure style games where seeing the character perform certain tasks is part of the cinematic atmosphere. Just look at the Dreamcast with it's single analogue input, and noticeable lack of 3rd person 3D games for proof, you're pretty much stuck with a view locked behind the character until some form of cutscene frees it up.
Ultimately the mouse is more accurate for looking, but it's fairly trivial to modify the game mechanics such that it doesn't matter, very moderate auto-aim, or wider attack damage for example. It really doesn't affect the gameplay at all. IME the only people that really complain about joypads in FPS are those who've spent more time than is healthy with the keyboard/mouse combo, possibly the need to unlearn before they can relearn, or maybe simple annoyance that proficiency with the mouse really doesn't map immediately to proficiency with the analogue stick puts them off. Suddenly that FPS that was a piece of cake is frustratingly hard. The only other mechanic it suits better is point and click. Although opinions on control methods are subjective, I think you'll find the masses prefer a joypad for most genres out there, and this is shown by how much broader and numerous console titles are.
The final nail in the coffin for the mouse/keyboard is the singular lack of multiplayer support, without multiple units. LAN parties are fun and all that, but not really practical or convenient, and generally unfair, due to such varied levels of horsepower allowing greater framerates, or more highly detailed levels etc.
You will see keyboards plugged into PS2's, but only for communication. The Xbox will supposedly never see a keyboard, and what do you think the chances of Nintendo ever supporting one? It's not like consoles are incapable of supporting a keyboard at all, it's just that there is no demand for it.
But that's the kicker - when it was initially released. Wasn't that back at DX8.0, or does the XBox have DX8.1 hardware?
And it hasn't changed, since.
Meanwhile, the PC has been through DX9.0c, IIRC. No, every PC isn't at that capability, MY PCs aren't at that capability. But the leading edge is. So some of the new games will have multiple render-paths, and give leading hardware better graphics. (nothing about gameplay, here) The multiple renderpaths are the curse of games programming on PCs, compared to consoles. But it also gives programmers a chance to flex their muscles on new stuff, too. It also adds to the value of PC gaming.
For that matter, DoomIII, presumably this summer, will be DX9 on PCs, and presumably DX8 or DX8.1 on the XBox.
The living have better things to do than to continue hating the dead.
In the next few years, we'll see how this plays out from a strategic point of view.
As things like OpenOffice mature, Linux becomes more ready for the desktop. But there's always been that, "Where are the games?" argument the Linux has had a hard time matching. Now that Microsoft is deprecating PC games in favor the the XBox, they're also chiseling away at the "Where are the games?" argument against Linux on the desktop.
The living have better things to do than to continue hating the dead.
Personally, I'm a little offended that Thief III was mentioned as a victim of the X-Box. It is still a darn good game despite being a dual-port.
Deus Ex: II sucked. It was HORRIBLE. Not only did it perform horribly, but the gameplay was scaled back A LOT. It didn't deserve the "Deus Ex" title; it was something else, something horribly WRONG. It DESERVES to be an example of dual-porting. But Thief III deserves more respect.
Performance:
Thief III ran slow, but faster than Deus Ex II. This is coming from someone with a P4 2.4 w/ Radeon 9800XT. But it ran fast enough to enjoy it (Thief is usually a slowpaced game). However, that performance in a SHOOTER would suck (which Thief III is not).
Gameplay:
The gameplay felt exactly like Thief I and II. Sneaking around, black jacking people, taking stuff, etc. It was great. The AI was "alright" (better than Deus Ex II, but could have been better). The funny conversations you overhear, the shadows (it was the first game I played where shadows actually MATTERED).
Complainst:
Map sizes. As in Deus Ex II, the maps were shrunk to fit the XBox requirements. But they were complex enough that the size didn't bother you (you could still get "lost" if you weren't paying attention).
Conclusion:
The game was fun, despite it's performance and map sizes.
(This is a discussion about the publishers, not the manufacturer (Micro$oft).)
Would you rather sell a game for $50 on the XBox and be limited to a single console (you could develop across multiple consoles if you really wanted too) or try to sell it for $50 for the PC (while competing with piracy)?
I can see where they might choose the XBox or the PS2, because it takes a lot more effort to pirate these games. PC games get pirated a lot more because they are so easy to download and install. Apply your crack and go!
For the XBox (or PS2 too, I guess), you would have to either install Linux (which will cause some XBox features to stop working) or modify the hardware. Most people would not dare to do the soldering themselves (I wouldn't) and unless you are going to trust a stranger from the internet, most people don't know who to go to for this.
I love using the PC. It seems like a more competitive market. Most games allow you to play multiplayer without having to subscribe to a service. M$ has monopolized that on the XBox and they can get away with it. As long as the XBox stays publisher-friendly (at the cost of the consumer), don't be surprised to see more and more games coming out for the XBox (and more ways for them and M$ to take more of our money).
Let's go Hurricanes!!! 2006 Stanley Cup Champions!!!
PC gaming has another plus that hasn't been mentioned yet. That is, the muliplayer environment. Whereas with XBox Live! you will have to play with possibly some smacktardish stranger, or with a RL friend; with PC gaming, you can join a gaming community, and play on servers that have rules you like (finish objectives, no swearing, don't feed the pandas unless wearing a felt hat, whatever) and end up having IMHO, a MUCH better and more consistent multiplayer experience. As a consequence, you actually end up with a _community_ of people you enjoy playing with, not just a Russian Roulette style of multiplayer gaming where you _might_ play with someone you enjoy playing with.
It's the fight that Microsoft and every game publisher is fighting against along with the RIAA and MPAA... Intellectual Property Rights.
The problem with PC gaming is simple. Lack of effective copy protection. PC games are being developed for a platform that provides a means to crack, and distribute the owner's intellectual property in a short time period. Often times these titles are available via warez sites and newsgroups before they are even released in stores.
The fact simply is that developing on the PC platform is a losing battle for most game developers and regardless of how much muscle Microsoft has in pushing them towards developing on Xbox, the simple fact is that Xbox copy infringement is not even close to being as rampant as PC game pirating is.
If you guys want to bitch about how the PC is dying as a gaming platform, then do your part to breath life into it and support the developers who take the time to release a game on a platform that it can be experienced fully. Tell your friends too.
On the other hand, between Avalon, new security models, and possibly even its relational database file system (not sure about that), Longhorn might end up being a really big deal.
As a gamer--A console gamer and a PC gamer..I just don't see it. Both platforms have always had something different to offer, which has made it possible for both to really do quite well in the game industry--and that is the continuing trend. Deus Ex 2 and Theif 3 are two good examples of his point, but unfortunately for the author (but not for gamers) they're pretty much the only two good examples of such a point. Yes both of these games were co-developed for xbox--and yes, perhaps the PC version of the game suffered in part because of this sort of developement..but they're both excellent games regardless.
There's really not a lot of other titles to support such an argument; Halo? Nah, frankly the FPS scene on PC's is far from lacking..come on, we freaking got FARCRY this year and it's one of the best we've played EVER. Half Life 2, Doom 3 anyone? Yes, the Xbox has given gamers an alternative in many cases--but it's been regarded by the games core audiences as the lesser alternative. There are still plenty of games that are suited to being played on a PC and will continue to be developed for the PC--for years, and years to come.
Online is better (dedicated servers for xbox live--dream on!), the size and scope is better--in the end, there's just a lot of things a PC can do that a console--even the uber console xbox--can't.
So no..I believe that the PC markets in no danger..this generation or next.
g.
To me, PC gaming has been dead since companies like LucasArts and Sierra gave up on making adventure games like Monkey Island and Kings Quest to make first person shooters.
Having helped a friend with his X-Box modifications, I'm quite certain there are no-solder modchips on the market. This particular one simply required scraping off the insulation on a couple contact points. Much like installing your own PC hardware, it was quite daunting the first time. But once you've finished, you realize it really wasn't much effort afterall.
I believe the PS2 has similar chips that don't require soldering, but I can't be sure.
All that being said, it still requires a decent amount effort, not to mention cajones. The average person probably isn't going to bother, without someone to hold their hand.
--LordPixie
You will see keyboards plugged into PS2's, but only for communication. The Xbox will supposedly never see a keyboard, and what do you think the chances of Nintendo ever supporting one? It's not like consoles are incapable of supporting a keyboard at all, it's just that there is no demand for it.
Both the XBox and Gamecube do have keyboards for their Phantasy Star Online offerings for communication puproses.
Until Slashdot fixes the funny modifier, use insightful or interesting. The poster knows your intentions.
To put it blountly, I think consoles just plain suck. Sure, PC's are more expensive to upgrade and downloading updated drivers and game patches can be a real pain in the arse, but for me that is my PASSION. Give me a console where I can add more storage to (easily) and upgrade my graphics card to get more 3dmarks or overclock my CPU. FPS on a console? What a joke... That died for me right after I fired up Halo for the first time. Give me a game that I can get immersed in like SWG on a console, just won't happen. Just saw Full Spectrum Warrior at the local Ebgames, I thought "Wow, that game looks awesome!" Then I find out it is Xbox only. How pathetic, how can I take full advantage of a game like that on a console? I can't map keys or tailor the game to my liking like I can on a PC. Xbox = Re-built PC made by Microsoft to make more money. I am not against consoles at all, I have an Xbox running linux that serves my files beautifully. Just my 2 cents.. I think PC's are here to stay.
More market left for aspiring game devs.
Particularly in the graphics. The character models have visible gaps in them on my PC unless you turn the resolution down to cover it up.
Jon Acheson
All opinions expressed herein are my own, and not those of my employers, who are appalled.
Although the X-Box is very good on the hardware side, and currently rivals PC technology (well almost, maybe its a year behind). However, if you take into account technology is constantly improving. You want to keep up right? So you must improve your current stuff.
Comparison: PC - shutdown, take off case, remove old hardware, insert new hardware, reboot. Its easy to do, and you only require minimum technical knowledge to do so especially if you read the instruction manual.
X-Box (and other consoles for that matter) - Everything already inserted and ready (could be nice for technology idiots but some of us like that kind of stuff), you have to pay for a new console (a couple of hundred), more space taken up (lets face it, the X-Box is no lightweight) with the old console and the new one.
I'm just trying to highlight the differences between upgrading and the advantages of doing so on both PC and console. Personally, the PC will always be better than any console.
):
Ive been a gamer all my life, ive owned every console since NES so ive been a console gamer longer then PC. I like console gaming better, overall its more enjoyable to sit in front of my big tv with my suround sound in my recliner then it is to sit in front of my pc. But i do like pc games for their graphics and speed and i tend to buy both versions of games (xbox and pc)
That's one thing I realy can't stand about console games...the insanely low resolution. If I wanted to play my games at 512x384, I'd go back to my voodoo3 and P2 400MHz. ;) I always hear people say "well, (console here) runs better than the pc version". of course it does. look at the models, look at the environment, and look at the resolution.
I think the consoles have a HUGE advantage with their multiple controllers, they make gamming a social event. You can invite people over without being one of those nerds that carries their computer around to play games. Although, I'm sure there are console people out there who sit and play games by themselves all day.
But, we are lazy...so...in the end, the easiest will be the most popular.
What you say is very true and I'd probably be singing the same song if I was an enthusiastic console gamer.
But I'm not and whenever I'm asked, I'll keep preaching for PC.
You only have to worry about keeping your PC up-to-date if you're an enthusiastic PC Gamer who wants all the latest technology to play the latest game and beat his current High Score in 3D Benchmarks!!
On the other hand, some gamers are very comfortable with their PSX or even SNES. They dont care much about PS2 / XBOX because it their current hardware gives them exactly what they need.
Its all a matter of needs.
Personnally, gaming wise, I've made one spending this year, for an ATI Radeon 9700 Pro 128 meg, to replace my 4 years old Asus V6800 32 meg.
I figure that 4 year is pretty good for a video card.
And of course, let's keep apples and apples shall we ?
If you want to compare PC gaming with console gaming then compare what you spend precisely for your gaming in PC and what you spend for your gaming in console.
Yes, I did buy (I did!) windows XP, but that doesn't count, I wanted a more secure (?) and stable (?) OS. I didn't care about the enhanced perfs of XP for gaming.
Oh, yeah, I also upgraded to 2.4ghz HT, but I do a lot of multitasking and the 2.4 price's were down a lot.
Even if in the end it makes a spending of around say 1,500$ (hypothetically), you can't say I've spent all that on my gaming because there are much more things I do, like accounting, like development, like music listening, spreadsheets...etc.
If you want to compare the actual yearly cost of my PC vs Console, then you need to take the total spending and divide by the number of tasks you do with your PC.
Same for console....
There's a poster in this thread that same something very true; if its gaming you like (and only that) then buy a console.
But if gaming is not the only thing you like, then go for PC, it gives far more better options than console.
If you look like your passport photo, you're too ill to travel. - Will Kommen
Because these days, there are only two things I keep my Windows box for: Gaming, and Office (No.. OpenOffice unfortunately doesn't quite cut it yet.. why? Because I make heavy use of the revision tools to pass group work around. OpenOffice's implementation of these are painful to use and often don't seem to even work when it comes to style changes)
Kill the Windows PC gaming market and that's half my reason for Windows gone right there.
That Jesus Christ guy is getting some terrible lag... it took him 3 days to respawn! -NJ CoolBreeze
A better example for stating a game was crippled because of it's XBOX port would be stating that the characters has a low-poly count compared to other average PC games (or some other appropriate comment about an XBOX limitation.)
...That's the bottom line. We need our PC's. We don't need our consoles. So long as the platform remains, people will put it to use. That the PC enjoys a number of advantages over consoles makes this all the more obvious. Who knows? With Java+OpenGL making strides, and top-end graphics showing diminishing returns, we may see a whole new round of digital-interactive innovation on the PC.
Console controllers are generally laid out so that every button is either mapped directly to a finger, or a very short movement from a 'resting' position.
How is this different than what you just described?
--Jeremy
Jesus was a liberal
Basically, an X-Box modchip just allows the box to run a different BIOS. You can easily flash the modchip with a BIOS that runs Linux rather than the MS DashBoard. Also just as easy to allow unsigned code to run with the dashboard. As in...'play backed' up games. (No, not legal)
That particular modchip does not require soldering either. Basically, you just scrape the mainboard a bit, and metal spikes from the chip rest there, making the required electrical connection. The soldering mentioned in your link appears to be a way to install Linux without a modchip, and just using a few solder droplets.
--LordPixie
There's a link here that describes the soldering method in detail. No mod chip required, but it does take a good deal of effort. Basically you just flash the original X-Box BIOS, rather than circumventing it and running code on a modchip.
Despite the article's claims that this will not allow you to run games, I'm pertty certain that you could simply replace the original MS BIOS with a less-than-legal one that would play games...
--LordPixie
Updating and patching. Can be a big hassle, yes, but it's bound to become easier with the new Windows and better support from specific games and third party automated updaters. Some games update themselves already. Also, with most pacthes and updates I've insatlled, I've gotten new content, often beyond the simple new level or weapon. It's not unheard of for developers to tweak the game for better balance and playability after it's released, so patches aren't all evil.
XBox live. Why limit yourself to one specific gaming service that's dominated by MS when you can pick between whoever does it best? Sure, there are few contenders right now, but the possibility is there.
Price. Really, a decent gaming PC isn't that expensive and can run most new games just fine. Also, you get a whole computer, dammit. Gaming is blindly focused on the cutting edge, which is really looking into the future for all but enthusiasts. World of Warcraft seems to be able to prove that you don't need all the latest technical bells and whistles to makes a good game.
Games = art. Thus it must have independent developers to evolve properly and in interesting ways (the film industry is a good analouge here), and AFAIK they stick almost exclusively to computers.
Lack of innovation. This plauges the whole gaming industry, IMO. What's so new and exciting on consoles? Nothing. Nothing revolutionary has happened on any platform for a long time, and I expect it to continue that way. It'll be mostly evolution from here on, not revolution. Those days are past for everyone but the occassional genius. He or she could be one of the many professional developers, but few of them are free to do what they want, so the genius might as well be an indie developer.
It's not so much that the PC market is dwindling per se, such that the console market is GROWING AT A MASSIVE SCALE. In fact, it's already enormous. And it's not because the consoles are stealing gamers away from the PC, it's because the consoles are tapping into a demographic that would never even touch a PC. It has to do both with the types of games as well as the economics ($200 for a console vs. $1500 for a PC) and ergonomics (would you rather play NFL Street on your couch in front of the big screen tv, or at your desk in front of a 19" monitor?)
So, put yourself in microsoft's shoes 5 years ago. Consoles are booming, PC sales are flat, and you don't make any money from licensing. If you ask me, Microsoft did what they did because they had to. The writing is on the wall for PC gaming. Microsoft didn't kill it by making the Xbox. If anything, the PS2 is more to blame for the state of PC games.
Yes, Microsoft could have put their xbox marketing money (half a billion) into promoting PC gaming. But do you really think this would grow the market such that Microsoft would get that money back? Keep in mind that when you buy a PC game, Microsoft gets NOTHING. Microsoft only get's money when a gamer decides to purchase a copy of windows XP.
If microsoft had done all the things you mention, I propose that it would barely make a dent in the growth of the consoles. So why not try to take a piece of the console pie as well?
OK, so how many of you out there plan on getting Xbox SDKs? ...
Exactly. The computer will always be a place for gaming, because anybody can get their hands on development tools easily. There are exponentially more computer games than video games for this reason. Where do you think the creative talents learned how to make games? And what about modding (no, not mod chips)?
So PC gaming cannot die, because then all forms of electronic gaming will die from starvation of talent.
And if that were to happen, and if instead the console changes its MO to allow easier entry into making games, then what you have is a goddamn fucking computer! No matter what you say, many things, such as FPS and text input, will always be easier with a keyboard and mouse. And if you stick a keyboard and mouse on a console, then all you have is a fucking computer! And from here, matters proceed towards the locked-down, DRMed, proprietary hell we fear.
But I digress. Look at Counterstrike. It has, for better or for worse, been the most popular mod ever, done originally not by a company and not for profit. And how many mods are there for Halo, or how many do you think there will be for Halo 2? 0. It's whatever Microsoft puts in and no more.
I've been coaxed by my friends to play Halo a few times. A few observations:
1) Controllers and first person shooters still don't mix.
It doesn't matter how many buttons or analog sticks you can cram onto that specific hunk of plastic. I personally don't have the fine motor skills to aim with that thing. And yes, whoever came up with the idea of having the analog sticks be buttons is clever; but read #1.
2) Whoever decided the default sensitivity must die.I expect to be able to 180 in less than a second.
3) Whither variety?
There are 6.5 useful weapons (the assault rifle only sucks somewhat). There are 4 or 5 decent maps. There are several gameplay types and some basic parameter editing. One model.
People were saying the sameme thing with the orginal Nintendo came out in the mid 80's. PC games at the time were junk and the consoles had ALL the action. Not to mention you also had Sega and the Turbo Graphics 16. Which would you rather play, Police Quest or Bubble Bobble? Course a few years later it flipped back around with "Escape from Castle Wolfenstien 3D".
While I don't think that PC gaming is dead (I don't think it ever will be), but I believe that MMORPGs and the death of the single player game have contributed to the fall of PC gaming. Devs no longer work on a great single player game like id is trying to do with Doom III. They put a simple single player campaign and then put in multiplayer. This isn't bad, however, the single player game is bad so if multiplayer isn't your thing too bad. Also, and this is the big one for me, MMORPGs and multiplayer focused games are hurting the advancement of AI. Devs no longer need to worry about good AI since players play against humans. And if current MMORPGs are any measuring stick then you cannot trust human users to give the player the experience you want.
In the past a game was considered a "hit" in PC gaming if it sells 100,000 units... whereas a hit on a game console is more like 2,000,000 units.
If you're a business person, which would you opt for?
Sure business people may not be developing games directly but they're the financiers and like it or not, the people with money have LOTS of say in this whole process.
C'est la vie.
People talk about PC's being a dead system for gaming all the time. How many CS servers are there? How many ppl play MMO's? Which platform are you gonna be able to play Doom3 and HL2 on first?
Oh boy the Xbox is getting PC developers to make some games. Big surprise seeing as how the Xbox is a PC wrapped up in black and green plastic.
What's gonna happen when Xbox2 hits w/ PPC architechture? It's fairly simple for the typical PC game studios to make a game for the Xbox b/c the tools are essentially the same.
Besides, Deus Ex II and Thief III aren't exactly games that have in record numbers and rewrote the book for their genre.
No sig for you!!
Yop, Linux on the desktop, really soon...
As soon as BSD is completly dead or Dukenukem Forever gets released.
As they say, really soon... yup yup
Pc games will also continue to rule in the "what do you mean this won't work with my drivers" department as well. I for one will take the hit on graphics for better gameplay, cheaper systems ($200 vs $1000) a rental market, and software that actually works without needing 3 or 4 patches to get it operable.
I have always wondered how PC gamers can love their keyboards for movement control so much, UGGGh, I can't stand WASD for one minute. Mice on the other hand.
I'm one of those PS2 gamers with a keyboard (and mouse) attached to it. Mostly it gets used with the Linux kit. (Yes, I have one of those) but in games it's mostly for communication, except FFXI which seems to control best with a combination of joypad and keyboard.
For FPS's on the PS2 I use hybrid control, dual shock in the left hand for movement, mouse for aiming. A couple of FPS's on the PSone use the same scheme.
I have always believed tha for most genre's the Dual Shock is the best compromise in game control.
1 - X-Box is similar, but not yet structly portable in terms of code. The plan is to make Next Box and PC development easily trasnposable. This will be an excellent thing for developers and gamers both.
2 - X-Box development is still nigh impossible fomr a start-ups persepctive. You simply cannot get the dev kit as a start-up. PC development is the way into the marketplace.
3 - The more sophisticated PC Games get, the more expensive they are to make. A Triple A is 12-20 million $$ in dev costs. That is a HUGE gamble to take on a genre where barely 1 in 20 titles is successful. Think about it. As a console game you cover your bets and greatly reduce the chances of becoming the next Daikatana.
4 - MMORPGS, not the XBox, killed the PC RPG market. The glut of MMORPGS has killed development in a major category of PC development. This will sort itself out in 2 years with a massive die off. The market simply cannot support the number of MMORPGS in development. Several devs and publishers are going to lose BIG.
5 - It's a Mature Console Market: During a mature console market, the emphasis is always on maximizing software return on the platform while the PC beings to move seriously ahead and the tech gap becomes massive. Relax. Next year the generation AFTER Doom3 and HL2 will be on the horizon. 2 million polygon models - real time.
6- Next Gen is Coming: Games like Unreal 3 and Dragon Age are going to be making the consoles look like gameboys. No serious game will suggest otherwise. Relax. It's a product cycle.
.Robert
Long live the Xbox!
:oP
I'm sick of listening to PC gamers whine on & on about how they're loosing all of the best developers to console systems. Get a damn console! The games almost always look better & run smoother on the console anyway because the developer knows what system it'll be run on! Look at some of the games out there right now built specifically for the Xbox & you'll see what I mean. They water down the PC version to reach a wider market base & even with the absolute best system out there (from my experience anyway) you still get lag or horrible frame rates! Xbox Live! is a broadband only service with real-time chat guaranteed in every title!!! Who gives a crap who you're giving the money to as long as they're giving you quality over quantity. I have over 100 old NES games sitting in my closet & yeah they're fun to mess around with at times but for the most part I don't play them. Why? Because they quality was great back-in-the-day but by todays standards they blow!
Then there are those loosers who say FPS's just can't be done on a console, you need a mouse and keyboard. You've all been sitting a little too close to your monitors stuffing Cheeto's down your throat & drinking a Mountain Dew while hovering over that sticky ass keyboard & mouse you lover so much. The lot of you should be hog-tied with your mouse cords & beat to death with those damn keyboards!
Don't get me wrong, I love my computer. I spend more time in front of it then I do my Xbox but when it comes time to game, I shut down the think-tank & turn on the powerhouse. Computers are here to make the games, consoles are here to play them.
So quit crying. Buy an Xbox. If you can't convince yourself it's the smart thing to do then strap a steak around your neck & walk out into the woods after dark. If the Lord has any love for you you'll be taken by a Grizzly or something with sharp teeth & it'll be swift! The way natural selection should be. I don't know how you've survived this long. I'm impressed but now it's time to go...
Mallion
The only way they'll kill the PC market off permanently is if a company starts offering an updated counsel ever year or one that can be updated at the whim of the user. The other requirement is that that counsel would also have to have games that are compatible with PC's directly. (PC gamers can play with Counsel gamers in the same games at the same time.)
Of course if this ever happened the PC market really wouldn't go away it would just be rolled together with the counsel market.
Buy a refurb xbox from your local gamestop or whatever, get a modchip, a bigass hard drive and copy games from blockbuster.
"Sic Semper Tyrannosaurus Rex."
Is a dyed in the wool Nintendo fanboy with a vendetta against anything Xbox. Take everything in that article with a couple large bags of salt.
Lowly Nintendo? It's funny how people tend to bash Nintendo in praise of Sony on such a regular basis.
Nintendo makes just as many great games as Sony does, they just don't release 50 shelf fillers in between like Sony. Open your eyes.
Now you guys know how Mac people feel.
Actually, more games is why I switched from Mac to PC 3 computers ago.
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.