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Computer Gaming dead?
The Cabl3 Guy
Elite Ranger
in Zocalo v2.0
Several people I've been talking to, particulary people in EB have said that computer gaming just sucks now. It doesn't gross nearly as much as any of the consoles & won't fade away but the hot games will be console only?
Now personally 99% of my gaming is done with a PC. Last console I owned was an N64, my brother had a dreamcast but he fucked it up. I know though that alot of my favorites I can't play, GT 4, GTA SA(yet), Res Evil quite a few. But alot of good memories come from my pc days Dark Forces! TIE Fighter (I went threw 3 joysticks) along with Sim City 2k & up. Who can forget the CS FRAG FEST!
Yeah I don't know though PC may not be cutting edge anymore. I may just give in...
Now personally 99% of my gaming is done with a PC. Last console I owned was an N64, my brother had a dreamcast but he fucked it up. I know though that alot of my favorites I can't play, GT 4, GTA SA(yet), Res Evil quite a few. But alot of good memories come from my pc days Dark Forces! TIE Fighter (I went threw 3 joysticks) along with Sim City 2k & up. Who can forget the CS FRAG FEST!
Yeah I don't know though PC may not be cutting edge anymore. I may just give in...
Comments
Another problem is that gaming is heading more and more towards a short attention span idea of games, and consoles are more ideally suited to this than PCs.
Finally, there is the fact that consoles are just flat out cheaper to own and don't require purchasing new parts every year just to play the latest games. The PS2 has been around since early 2000, and it's still good enough for casual gamers.
If they teamed up with Nintendo to do that, oh man, that would be awesome.
Give a console a hard drive, let people surf the net on it, and word process, maybe use game editing/mission building tools, and there wouldn't be too much of a need for $2000 computers for playing games and the occasional all nighter with MS Word.
Sure, you'd need a pc to use photoshop or Avid and all that sort of thing, but then, how much could those possibly have to cost for home users if it's not going to be a gaming machine as well.
I'd imagine developers would be happy working with only 2 or 3 hardware configurations every 4 or 5 years or so, which would cost the consumer probably around the current price of a 6800 Ultra.
[B]The problem, I think, is the extreme upgrade cycle of the PC. When people make modern 3D games for the PC they need to worry about annoying little things like getting it as fast as possible on a dozen different chipsets, not to mention the huge variances in hardware and software configurations. DirectX and OpenGL have standardised things, but only to a certain degree. All this adds up to make PC games a pain to develop and get stable. Meanwhile, developers who focus on one, two or three consoles have just one, two or three platforms to aim for and can tweak their games to the extreme on their platform to get the most out of it.
[/B][/QUOTE]
Not to mention there hasn't been a groundbreakin envelope pushing PC game in quite a while, I used to be the worlds biggest gamer, of course this was really in PC games infancy, i was a gamer starting in the early 80's, When that first graphical game came out, it was fantastic, all the old Sierra Quest games, we'd almost salivate at the computer store waiting for them to come out, Then the Wing Commander games, and X-Wing, and The 7th Guest, and Myst, and Doom and its ilk, those were all groundbreaking, they took what past games had done, built on them, and moved forward
Now, its all the same repetitive games over and over, packaged up i a shinier box. the industry seems stagnant, its all FPS's and Online RPG's when was the last really good Space Combat Sim? Freelancer/Starlancer? i think not. Wing Commander Prophecy? Umm no.. the last really enjoyable Space Combat Sim i can remmeber, was X-Wing Alliance, and that was almost 6 years ago now.
Until someone comes up with a bold new PC gaming concept, i do consider PC gaming to be dead or dying for all intents and purposes.
[i]Hint: I elaborated a lot on this for those who are interested. If you don't want to read all this, read the next paragraph and the last paragraph to get the gist.[/i]
I highly doubt computer-based gaming will die. However, the trend seems to indicate that it'll be pushed out of the mainstream over a period of several years. Most likely this will involve initial release on console systems, and successful titles will move on to the PC market, which will be an ancillary market. Think of it as silver screen vs. DVD release.
As was noted earlier, the main driving force is cost, and it's on the part of both the consumer and the publisher/developer. Consumers interested in gaming can buy a relatively cheap console system and play the mainstream games without having to upgrade as frequently as they might on the PC (though this is much less of a factor now than five years ago.)
Publishers and developers are the ones that are really steering the market now. Many games out there still don't reach the break even point. The games industry has all the monetary/IP problems of the recording industry combined with all the bad habits of software development firms. The enormous possible combinations of hardware and software out there is such a burden for testing that many publishers are simply throwing out computer publishing and focusing on consoles.
What does this mean for the industry? Well, instead of devoting time to hardware testing, developers can concentrate more on play testing and debugging to eliminate any problems the game might have--and they have to be more careful, because right now patching console games isn't nearly as easy as it is on the PC. The increased focus on quality is a [i]very[/i] good thing for an industry that historically has prioritized release dates ahead of a complete product.
For the majority of the gaming market, consoles are a good thing, too. It's the enthusiasts like the visitors of this site who will suffer. Console systems are locked tight from stem to stern. With increasingly powerful copy protection and code signing being put into use, hobbyists will be hard-pressed to develop their own games for these systems. Those with deep pockets and/or good industry contacts will be able to afford a development kit and machine. Good luck distributing them to your friends who don't have "illegally" modified machines without having your program signed by the powers that be.
What I think we'll see is computer games becoming much more avant garde, with mainstream games being released on the console and later ported to the PC (if the publisher feels it's profitable). These trends are already emerging as the indie games industry begins to take off and big-name titles are increasingly released first on console systems.
[B]What I think we'll see is computer games becoming much more avant garde, with mainstream games being released on the console and later ported to the PC (if the publisher feels it's profitable). These trends are already emerging as the indie games industry begins to take off and big-name titles are increasingly released first on console systems. [/B][/QUOTE]
I don't have a problem with this, i'd love to see games become more avant guard.
Plus you can just do more with a PC when you try. Look at Half Life 2 for example, I dont see a cheap xbox port coming out for that any time soon. And that game was pretty damned groundbreaking if you ask me.
While some companies look eyeingly at the consoles and think, gee thats easier to program for, other companies will continue to put out quality computer games for those of us who like to have the latest and greatest parts.
While I will admitt that right now, the current form is a little stagnant with MMOG's dominating the PC marketplace, there are upcoming games that are not mmo related that will be pc only titles and will be quite good.
Besides, its at least 6-8 months before any of the generation3 consoles come out, and during that time companies will be getting ready for them, but the eventual delays might cost them, so doing a pc game, might start to look good to them.
by the way, I cant imagine a good real flight sim on a console, like IL2 Stormivik and its sequels, the console is more suited to "stunt" flying like Crimson Skys.
Just becuase I hate MS doesn't mean they won't look out for their own pocket book ;)
--RC
and let's not forget something that the consoles totally lack: modifications to existing games and engines
[B]when was the last really good Space Combat Sim? Freelancer/Starlancer? i think not. Wing Commander Prophecy? Umm no.. the last really enjoyable Space Combat Sim i can remmeber, was X-Wing Alliance, and that was almost 6 years ago now.[/B][/QUOTE]How about Freespace 2?
And neither are consoles such "heaven" for game developers.
I bet you all remember original Max Payne... well, game's developers didn't keep it possible to port it to consoles at first because of limited resources of consoles. (and eventually it was other company which "clipped" game to get it to fit consoles)
And I bet getting Far Cry fitting to consoles requires some serious clipping.
[B]also, the trend is going for multiplayer and especially mmorpg type of games which are (so far) still favoured on the pc although consoles did a lot of catching up over the last years.
and let's not forget something that the consoles totally lack: modifications to existing games and engines [/B][/QUOTE]
Well Fable for XBOX was supposed to be major breakthrough for Console MMOs but it didn't deliver. Kinda glad it didn't I wouldn't be playing it anyway.
Gaming will always be driven by the programmers and artists. Those who are innovative and creative. Management will always drag it into the ground when it comes to shareholders...
... but maybe I'm just a bit cynical...
:p
PCs, meanwhile, allow pushing the envelope of realism to continue (of course, not everyone wants ultra-real games).
[B]... but maybe I'm just a bit cynical...:p [/B][/QUOTE]Welcome to club.
"The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it."
-George Bernard Shaw
yeah i think...mmmhmmm....
[URL=http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/starwarsrts/preview_6116584.html?q=1&tag=gs_hp_flashtop_story]Star Wars: Empire At War[/URL]
shhhhhh....don't jinx it.
[B]Now, its all the same repetitive games over and over, packaged up i a shinier box. the industry seems stagnant, its all FPS's and Online RPG's when was the last really good Space Combat Sim? Freelancer/Starlancer? i think not. Wing Commander Prophecy? Umm no.. the last really enjoyable Space Combat Sim i can remmeber, was X-Wing Alliance, and that was almost 6 years ago now. [/B][/QUOTE]
Independence War 2, and that is only 3 years ago (or less...)
It was excellent
[B]Independence War 2, and that is only 3 years ago (or less...)
It was excellent [/B][/QUOTE]
"Only 3 years ago" Dude, in computer game years, thats like older than dirt!
[B]hmmm i think we may have a good star wars game...
yeah i think...mmmhmmm....
[URL=http://www.gamespot.com/pc/strategy/starwarsrts/preview_6116584.html?q=1&tag=gs_hp_flashtop_story]Star Wars: Empire At War[/URL]
shhhhhh....don't jinx it. [/B][/QUOTE]
thats not a space combat sim, we've had good star wars games, KOTOR was great, in fact, im' playing it again now.
Ever play SW: Rebellion?
[B]Never said it was...
Ever play SW: Rebellion? [/B][/QUOTE]
Nope, can't say that i did,