Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

PC Gaming On The Comeback Trail

Posted by Zonk on from the move-em-out-little-doggies dept.

The Chicago Tribune reports on efforts from the PC gaming sector to revive what many have considered to be a failing part of the industry. From the article: "Many [Gamespot] stores have demo kiosks for consoles such as the PlayStation 2 or Nintendo DS so gamers can try before they buy. Testing a PC game has been impossible. Not anymore. In a trial collaboration announced a few weeks ago, GameStop and Round Rock, Texas-based Dell have rolled out computer game kiosks in 25 GameStop stores. Customers can test a handful of the best PC games the same way they test-drive the latest PS2 release. The kiosks will be powered by Dell's revamped and supercharged XPS computers, coupled with 42-inch Dell high-definition plasma monitors."

5 of 75 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Say what? by FidelCatsro · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Every year we will have 5 PC gaming is dying story , 5 PC gaming is on a comeback stories , 5 Console gaming is dying stories and 5 Console gaming is on a comeback stories .
    Eventually we will realise that both will suffer ups and downs

    --
    The only things certain in war are Propaganda and Death. You can never be sure which is which though
  2. Nice! by Veloxi · · Score: 2, Interesting

    There's a local PC gaming store in Pasadena called Interact that does the PC try-it-before-you-buy-it thing and it's been pretty successful for them, so I hope it works for GameStop as well.

    --
    I Am A Gaming Whore
    1. Re:Nice! by CommiePuddin · · Score: 2, Interesting

      It makes me wonder if there is a market for these game stores to stock branded blank CD's, and images of the PC demos that can be burned in a matter of minutes while the customer is looking around the store.

      Someone has mentioned the aversion to clicking advertisements, or slow internet connections. For some small price (US$2.95 or so), plus the store's name all over the demo CD, would it actually drive sales of PC games? I say yes. Not only does the customer get to try out the game and find out if it will work on his/her rig, but they get a nice reminder of where to go to pick up the game if they decide they want to check out the whole thing.

      And it's not like the store needs to have screened CD's with the game's name on it, maybe write it in marker on a designated part of the CD. Screen the store's name (address, phone number, blood type) on the CD as a reminder of where to go buy the game when the customer finally makes the final purchase decision.

      Even better, return the CD, and get some sort of credit toward the final purchase (the $2.95 paid, perhaps).

      Then again, I've got a 41 minute wait to download F.E.A.R. from FilePlanet.

      --
      x = x + ++x; //It's golden.
  3. DeepFreeze by Sigma+7 · · Score: 2, Interesting
    Testing a PC game has been impossible.


    It is not "impossible" in the context of the article. My local Radio Shack (which was since rebranded to Circut City) installed games on a computer to show that it worked.

    Anyone can rig their own trial system for use in store: a PC with DeepFreeze installed immediatly takes care of the software portion - it may have a performance hit in extreme situations, but is fixed by a quick reset.

    The hardware will be a bit tricky, as you can't use some random $10 keyboard and mouse - they have to be a rugged keyboard and a rugged mouse (there's a rugged joystick available, but that's optional.)

    The remaining portion is the copy-protection in most games... Most computers have two IDE chains with two devices a-piece - that means you have three random games available per day, plus other things you can stuff on the computer.
  4. Re:A Good Thing, IMHO by drsquare · · Score: 3, Interesting

    TV really sucks for gaming, resolution wise.

    Who cares about resolution, other than geeks who fuss about framerates and things like that? TVs are generally bigger than computer monitors as well. Who wants to play games at the computer rather than in the living room anyway? Other than hardcore geeks I mean.

    Plus if you already have a PC and use it for gaming, you don't need to spend an extra $300-$700 on an Xbox.

    It'd probably cost more to upgrade a computer to play games than to get a console. Especially as every year the hardware requirements for the latest games go up. You can buy a console every few years, or get on the PC upgrade treadmill every 6 months...

    A new GeForce 6800 video card will render graphics better than any console, as well.

    And will cost more than most consoles. Again only an issue to hardcore geeks who want 700fps at 10000x40000 resolution. Most of us are interested in the game, not how fancy the light effect look in some grim, dark, derivative FPS.

    It's possible to strip XP though, (I stop all unnecessary services and actually kill/restart explorer before/after loading a game, and can get XP down to 60 or so MB RAM this way, which leaves over 400 for the game for me) or use Linux, and with X have the game set as the window manager itself.

    Well, that's easier and more user-friendly than just putting a CD in the console. In the time it takes to get Linux going you could probably COMPLETE most games.