I hope that the rest of the country never follows California's lead in seeming to need to pass legislation simply to combat perceived stupidity. I lived in that state for 5 years and could not believe the Cattle-Herding mentality that politicians there have. It would appear that every glitch in the social system requires a law to fix it. Social discourse is reduced to the screams of the extremists. The state will take care of you - trust it with your life.
I have to say that the split screen multiplayer offered by so many console titles drives me nuts. I am fortunate enough to have 6 PCs in my house, all networked together. My friends and I have a blast with Counter Strike, Halo, UT2004, and MechWarrior 4, just to name a few. My PC multiplayer experience is at least 10 times better than any I have ever had on a console. That being said, I have to concede that multiplayer Baldur's Gate on the Xbox is pretty cool. However, that was a pc franchise first;-)
The main difference, IMHO between console games and PC games is the amount of brainpower needed to play each one. I am willing to shell out the cash, the time, and the effort to play games on PC because very few titles on any console platform offer much intellectual stimulation. I have no interest in "twitch" games in which you have to jump from one platform to another or some other mindless task easily accomplished by a red bull swigging juvenile. I want to be challenged mentally, so I play on the PC.
I have to disagree. While it is true that my local EB has less shelf space devoted to games these days, it seems that quality titles are appearing with greater and greater frequency. There are many quality franchises, Warcraft, Unreal Tournament, Doom, Half-Life, Age of Empires, Grand Theft Auto, and Baldur's Gate just to name a few. Plus, there are fantastic new games coming out all of the time. Far Cry, Rise of Nations, Freedom Force, Ghost Master, and many others all bode very well for a sustainable PC gaming realm for many years to come. Innovation in PC gmes is alive and well, and thriving with each burst of new technology.
I also disagree with the assertion that modding is detrimental to game companies. After all, if you have spent the last couple of years playing Half Life mods and are now eagerly anticipating Half Life 2, then Valve has done there job very well.
As far as console games being better thought out than PC counterparts, my experience has largely been that the best thought out console games are those that were PC games first, with the exception of some of the Final Fantacy and Metal Gear Solid titles, and a few others. Consoles are having the effect of infusing those companies smart enough to port their PC games with large amounts of capital with which to make even better PC games.
Network and Internet-based gaming is going to be the wave that we surf into the future. MMORPGs are evolving at a rapid pace, and deathmatching has a huge amount of popularity. Far from preventing people from purchasing, these trends are causing people to rush out and best the next great thing on a regular basis. PC game budgets may be skyrocketing, but so are revenues. With the emerging model of web-based distribution that Valve is pioneering with Steam, PC games are poised to be easier to buy and play than ever.
I am 33 years old. I am not sure whether that makes me a young adult or an older one, but I still love my PC games and continually find console games (my son has an Xbox and PS) to be lacking in intellectual stimulation. I consider PC gaming to be a hobby of mine. Cracking open a case to upgrade my video card isn't a chore, it is a giddy time of wonder for me. I eagerly load old games to see what they look like compared to past experience.
Bottom line - I don't see the end of PC-based gaming anywhere on the horizon. The future looks pretty golden from here.
Slashdot Mirror
I hope that the rest of the country never follows California's lead in seeming to need to pass legislation simply to combat perceived stupidity. I lived in that state for 5 years and could not believe the Cattle-Herding mentality that politicians there have. It would appear that every glitch in the social system requires a law to fix it. Social discourse is reduced to the screams of the extremists. The state will take care of you - trust it with your life.
I have to say that the split screen multiplayer offered by so many console titles drives me nuts. I am fortunate enough to have 6 PCs in my house, all networked together. My friends and I have a blast with Counter Strike, Halo, UT2004, and MechWarrior 4, just to name a few. My PC multiplayer experience is at least 10 times better than any I have ever had on a console. That being said, I have to concede that multiplayer Baldur's Gate on the Xbox is pretty cool. However, that was a pc franchise first ;-)
The main difference, IMHO between console games and PC games is the amount of brainpower needed to play each one. I am willing to shell out the cash, the time, and the effort to play games on PC because very few titles on any console platform offer much intellectual stimulation. I have no interest in "twitch" games in which you have to jump from one platform to another or some other mindless task easily accomplished by a red bull swigging juvenile. I want to be challenged mentally, so I play on the PC.
I have to disagree. While it is true that my local EB has less shelf space devoted to games these days, it seems that quality titles are appearing with greater and greater frequency. There are many quality franchises, Warcraft, Unreal Tournament, Doom, Half-Life, Age of Empires, Grand Theft Auto, and Baldur's Gate just to name a few. Plus, there are fantastic new games coming out all of the time. Far Cry, Rise of Nations, Freedom Force, Ghost Master, and many others all bode very well for a sustainable PC gaming realm for many years to come. Innovation in PC gmes is alive and well, and thriving with each burst of new technology.
I also disagree with the assertion that modding is detrimental to game companies. After all, if you have spent the last couple of years playing Half Life mods and are now eagerly anticipating Half Life 2, then Valve has done there job very well.
As far as console games being better thought out than PC counterparts, my experience has largely been that the best thought out console games are those that were PC games first, with the exception of some of the Final Fantacy and Metal Gear Solid titles, and a few others. Consoles are having the effect of infusing those companies smart enough to port their PC games with large amounts of capital with which to make even better PC games.
Network and Internet-based gaming is going to be the wave that we surf into the future. MMORPGs are evolving at a rapid pace, and deathmatching has a huge amount of popularity. Far from preventing people from purchasing, these trends are causing people to rush out and best the next great thing on a regular basis. PC game budgets may be skyrocketing, but so are revenues. With the emerging model of web-based distribution that Valve is pioneering with Steam, PC games are poised to be easier to buy and play than ever.
I am 33 years old. I am not sure whether that makes me a young adult or an older one, but I still love my PC games and continually find console games (my son has an Xbox and PS) to be lacking in intellectual stimulation. I consider PC gaming to be a hobby of mine. Cracking open a case to upgrade my video card isn't a chore, it is a giddy time of wonder for me. I eagerly load old games to see what they look like compared to past experience.
Bottom line - I don't see the end of PC-based gaming anywhere on the horizon. The future looks pretty golden from here.