A theory I have on why PC gaming is dying.

A computer represents work for ME. Thats one of the main reasons I don't game on my rig, eventhough it has proper specs. After spending 8 hours in front of a computer, i have no desire to play on one. Thats what my 360 (and to a lesser extent, my PS3 is for).lhughey

[QUOTE="SilverChimera"][QUOTE="haberman13"]

Agreed, but the OP makes a good point as to why PC games are dying (or becoming produced for idiots)

haberman13

Right, but they are being homogenized and dumbed down.

Compare PC games 10 years ago to todays console ported schwag.

I do compare them, and there's still just as much PC exclusive stuff coming out as there ever was. Formally PC only titles have shifted over to multi platform releases, but for every Battlefield 3 there is a Red Orchestra 2, for every Rage there is a STALKER.

I think people like you are ignorant of the enormous mid-budget scene that exists on the PC right now, because no body is ramming it down your throat. You don't see it, because you're not looking for it, but I can assure you, with titles like Killing Floor, Cryostasis, Amnesia, Red Orchestra, STALKER, The Witcher 2, ARMA 2, Diablo 3, Paradox's grand strategy games, Total War, Football Manager, Starcraft, Civilization, the countless MMO's etc the amount of games coming out is incredible. And that's not including the low budget gems like VVVVVV, Machinarium etc or the massive amount of enhanced console ports we receive.

The only thing that would kill PC gaming is if someone could control and centralize it. That can't happen, and it won't happen. PC gaming will be around forever, and it will always be king, leading the way in innovation and flexability.

http://au.pc.ign.com/articles/092/092316p1.html

That's an IGN article from March, 2001. The title? Is PC gaming dying?

Will people never learn?

[QUOTE="SilverChimera"]Don't people realize that PC gaming doesn't die? Console gaming dies each generation and must be renewed by new hardware. SteJo6sic6

That's definitely true but even with an older PC, you can still play tons of games and play them online because people still play them. No one plays Halo 2 on the Xbox anymore, while people still play Halo 1 online on the PC.

Waits for "PC gaming happily dying since" post.

It's a hypothesis not a theory.

Your entire rant seems to say that PC gamers are more superior and companies are catering to the inferior console players.

Sometimes even 30!?!?!

My god, do people live that long?

Another reason PC gaming can't die is because nobody owns the PC. Nintendo owns the Wii, Sony owns the PS3, MS owns the 360, but who owns the PC? Nobody because it is opensource. So if someone wanted to "kill" a platform the consoles would be a much easier target since they are owned by a company.

I think everyone has already pointed out that this is full of fail but I just think there is too much to be missed by ignoring what is going on at steam etc. I got The Witcher for $5 and it runs great on my old lap top. These kinds of deals and these kinds of games just blow everything the console offers away. I do still enjoy Fable and Uncharted but PC exclusives top them by far. Many ports come out looking almost a gen ahead of the console versions like Metro 2033(IMO even DMC4). The truth is PC can also do everything else it does far better than any console. It's more than just a game system and it always beats everything else in every way. Where did this idea that PC gaming is dying come from anyways?

____________________________________________________________________

Everybody above this line got trolled.

OP, 2/10 is the best I can do, try harder next time.

Honestly why do people constantly say this stuff? If PC gaming was dieing there wouldn't be anymore games being created for it. I mean come on enough is enough.

I read your OP, but let me ask you this; which company doesn't release games on PC anymore? I don't mean developers who never developed for PC in the past or developers that do the console-to-PC ports as you mentioned. Who stopped because of piracy?

-

One issue I see with why some people think it's dying is because a gaming PC is being viewed as a console rather that what it really is. The platform is open, not unified through a particular online service. There is not a large company driving and controlling the PC platform like Sony, Microsoft, and Nintendo do with their consoles. Advertisements are not seen for PC gaming because no one sees money in return considering all the custom built PCs that exist. A PC isn't defined by generations either. You will not see a PC2 in the future whereas the current consoles will eventually die and be replaced with new ones. A PC isn't a console; it cannot be treated like one.

I think it's just cause consoles are more mainstream. PC gaming has always been here and will always be. It's not dying at all. More of it's just never been too mainstream. Though, there are more PC gamers than all the console gamers combined.

PC gaming is not dying. It lost quality however in some very important things in comparison to the golden age.

Difficulty , complexity, storytelling, customization...

The fact that parallel development and releases are not a good thing for the PC is not helping at all, when the size of dev teams is known and the general polices of most companies are becoming more and more mass production and asset creation instead of innovation and pushing boundaries.

Streamlining the amazing word used for reduced complexity and depth .

Every time it comes from a game dev it sounds offending.

Every time a console gamer gets used as excuse for it it makes me wonder.

Whenever it's embraced as improvement it makes me wonder even more.

It's easier to streamline than to create a proper introduction and tutorial.

The idea that PC games are not released is not true, they are however more or less depending on the company`s skill and will, mildly to decent upscaled ports. There are exceptions but it's getting more and more obvious.

Most companies don't release PC games anymore, or they release console-to-PC ports. They claim this is because of piracy, but I believe that may not be entirely true. Perhaps it's because the companies know that they can't get away with the **** that is in modern console games with PC gamers. Most PC gamers are in their late teens and 20s (sometimes even 30s), so they remember the golden age of PC gaming (90s). Look at how poorly received current generation PC games have been received. Sure, a couple games have been well received, such as Minecraft and StarCraft II. But even StarCraft II was heavily criticized for it's dumbed down multiplayer, lack of chat rooms, Nazi-esque map marketplace, micro-transactions, region-locking, Battle.net 2.0, and lack of LAN support. Console games (primarily) don't use dedicated servers or modding, whereas PC games do allow that. But with all of these console-to-PC ports, we get games that suck to begin with on PC without the features that PC games used to have in the 90s and early 00s. In other words, PC gamers realize that MW2 for PC (and MW2 in general) is garbage, so they don't buy it.

Plus a lot of games are created for the lowest-common-denominator now, as in that they release games so that people who aren't fans of the genre/franchise enjoy the game more so than people who are actually fans of the genre, and thus the genre becomes more of an shooter game, and less of what the genre is supposed to be (i.e. tactical shooters, survival horror, stealth, dungeon crawlers). PC gamers are typically more mature than your 12 year old prepubescent boy on Xbox Live, and thus they are smarter and teenagers/adults, not 12 year old kids who don't know any better and think that MW2 is the greatest game ever (and of course, they are entitled to their own opinion). Whereas PC gamers see that gaming has gotten worse over the course of the last decade, instead of getting better. Now games are made almost entirely for graphics whores, instead of people who enjoy the story, characters, gameplay, atmosphere, lore, and people who actually use their brain (not big arrows pointing to where you're supposed to go or do). They often call these games which are anti-niche and released for the lowest-common-denominator "streamlining", because apparently streamlining means that you have to turn everything into a shooter game for 12-year-olds instead of the niche genre it's supposed to be. What are your thoughts on this theory?

DarkestDestiny

Yes, PC gamers have nothing at all. http://store.steampowered.com/ I know those arent new games and some arent exclusives but that doesnt matter. This is why PC gaming rocks.

Don't people realize that PC gaming doesn't die? Console gaming dies each generation and must be renewed by new hardware. SilverChimera

@SilverChimera

You bring up a good point, which makes me think more and more I should switch over to PC gaming after this gen. Yet, I really don't like to build my own PCs, so I think I lack the knowledge to game on PC (plus a decent internet connection).

[QUOTE="lhughey"]A computer represents work for ME. Thats one of the main reasons I don't game on my rig, eventhough it has proper specs. After spending 8 hours in front of a computer, i have no desire to play on one. Thats what my 360 (and to a lesser extent, my PS3 is for).Birdy09

PC sucks compared to consoles thats why its dying.HailCaesarHail

Is this the reason due Steam is trampling both Xbox Live and PS Network in users and sales?

[QUOTE="Birdy09"][QUOTE="lhughey"]A computer represents work for ME. Thats one of the main reasons I don't game on my rig, eventhough it has proper specs. After spending 8 hours in front of a computer, i have no desire to play on one. Thats what my 360 (and to a lesser extent, my PS3 is for).HuusAsking

[QUOTE="SilverChimera"]Don't people realize that PC gaming doesn't die? Console gaming dies each generation and must be renewed by new hardware. Vari3ty

@SilverChimera

You bring up a good point, which makes me think more and more I should switch over to PC gaming after this gen. Yet, I really don't like to build my own PCs, so I think I lack the knowledge to game on PC (plus a decent internet connection).

[QUOTE="Birdy09"][QUOTE="lhughey"]A computer represents work for ME. Thats one of the main reasons I don't game on my rig, eventhough it has proper specs. After spending 8 hours in front of a computer, i have no desire to play on one. Thats what my 360 (and to a lesser extent, my PS3 is for).HuusAsking

But more importantly for me, I code on a PC 40+ hours a week. I don't want to touch it outside of work. Like someone above said, a console is a toy in my eyes and invokes relaxation, even if i'm doing the same thing I'd be doing on a PC. It doesn't make complete sense, but everything in life doesn't.

Wow pc gaming is dying bececause some guy in the GS forums say so :lol:

Wow pc gaming is dying bececause some guy in the GS forums say so :lol:

pimpog

I know right. Why is it everytime i come into these forums, and by accident I always see PC gaming dying threads lol. I think PC gaming has always been dying since the PS1 era lol.

PC gaming has always been dying and always will be in the dying phaase I would have to take that into context. All this will do is break away from the shackles of multimillion dollar budget games. indie games will be around and maybe something will come along the way. Sides gaming has changed soo much to the point that if pc gaming does in fact dies does not mean the hardware sales will stop. After all PC's have a multi billion dollar hardware sales under its belt. And no this has nothing to do with gaming.

What people fail to realize is PC is what you want it to be. This isn't about piracy or complex configuration thata game publishers are ranting about. no no. They want to make sure you are shackled in to maximize profit. by today's hardware standard in PC's these day. Hardware in them are soo powerful that you can actually emulate consoles its already happening. By the time PS4 comes out i would bet PS3 emulators are in the works I am not surprised either.

Consoles are popular for gaming only because its simple well not sure about today's console now that they have hard drive upgrades network options downloadable content install feature and be surprised to have keyboard and mouse. But one thing will remain the same its nothing more than a shackle for publishers to lock you in. This is whats really is about They don't like the fact that PC's have a open architecture lol.

If you can play with legos you can build a PC.

Go on newegg, look at popular builds, buy one and snap it together. I did that 10 years ago, and now could build/troubleshoot a PC while beer-bonging vodka.

This is easy stuff, it only LOOKS complicated, when in reality its processor/motherboard/ram/harddrive/power supply.

If this thread had been made before Steam was widely known then it may have carried more weight. However, I agree with a lot of points you bring minus the whole comment about 13 year olds and what not...

Steam saved PC gaming IMO. It was a dying brand (though it never would have completely died) but now because of Steam and the fact that many people who wish to can use an xbox 360 controller... well PC gaming is growing :)

If this thread had been made before Steam was widely known then it may have carried more weight. However, I agree with a lot of points you bring minus the whole comment about 13 year olds and what not...

Steam saved PC gaming IMO. It was a dying brand (though it never would have completely died) but now because of Steam and the fact that many people who wish to can use an xbox 360 controller... well PC gaming is growing :)

commonfate

I disagree, when Steam came out it was a joke, because internet bandwidth sucked. PC gaming was never in trouble, and never will be.

Steam simply filled the DD pants, erase Steam from history and something else would have filled its shoes; and now there is competition galore.

It's one of the few constants in this universe, PC gaming is here to stay.

360 controller on PC is nice, but if it becomes standard because a bunch of no-talent hacks start buying PCs I'll throw a hissy!

But PC gaming isn't dying.

[QUOTE="commonfate"]

If this thread had been made before Steam was widely known then it may have carried more weight. However, I agree with a lot of points you bring minus the whole comment about 13 year olds and what not...

Steam saved PC gaming IMO. It was a dying brand (though it never would have completely died) but now because of Steam and the fact that many people who wish to can use an xbox 360 controller... well PC gaming is growing :)

haberman13

I disagree, when Steam came out it was a joke, because internet bandwidth sucked. PC gaming was never in trouble, and never will be.

Steam simply filled the DD pants, erase Steam from history and something else would have filled its shoes; and now there is competition galore.

It's one of the few constants in this universe, PC gaming is here to stay.

360 controller on PC is nice, but if it becomes standard because a bunch of no-talent hacks start buying PCs I'll throw a hissy!

Steam may have been a joke then, but the large userbase it has now and the amount of money you save through it is no joke :P

It seems this argument varies even between PC owners. I've heard some say PC gaming was never in any trouble (like you) and some say Steam saved it...

I guess it all comes down to opinion :P

[QUOTE="haberman13"]

[QUOTE="commonfate"]

If this thread had been made before Steam was widely known then it may have carried more weight. However, I agree with a lot of points you bring minus the whole comment about 13 year olds and what not...

Steam saved PC gaming IMO. It was a dying brand (though it never would have completely died) but now because of Steam and the fact that many people who wish to can use an xbox 360 controller... well PC gaming is growing :)

commonfate

I disagree, when Steam came out it was a joke, because internet bandwidth sucked. PC gaming was never in trouble, and never will be.

Steam simply filled the DD pants, erase Steam from history and something else would have filled its shoes; and now there is competition galore.

It's one of the few constants in this universe, PC gaming is here to stay.

360 controller on PC is nice, but if it becomes standard because a bunch of no-talent hacks start buying PCs I'll throw a hissy!

Steam may have been a joke then, but the large userbase it has now and the amount of money you save through it is no joke :P

It seems this argument varies even between PC owners. I've heard some say there was never any trouble (like you) and some say it saved it...

I guess it all comes down to opinion :P

Nah, there are facts out there, facts which I don't care to dig up.

In my experience the only thing PC has gone through over the last 5 years is adapting to the easier and less deep styles of console games being ported to PC.

We are used to simulators and crazily deep RPGs, all of a sudden we get Oblivion and ME2 for example. I know people like them, but they are definitely console influenced games that have been simplified from previous iterations.

Soon enough us PC gamers will be nubbed down to the console standard, then this line of complaining will end. (and Idiocracy can begin, but meh)

:oops:

PC sucks compared to consoles thats why its dying.HailCaesarHail

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!! So wrong...

In my experience the only thing PC has gone through over the last 5 years is adapting to the easier and less deep styles of console games being ported to PC.

haberman13

PC gamign is not dying so thread doesnt mean much.

Most companies don't release PC games anymore, or they release console-to-PC ports. They claim this is because of piracy, but I believe that may not be entirely true. Perhaps it's because the companies know that they can't get away with the **** that is in modern console games with PC gamers. Most PC gamers are in their late teens and 20s (sometimes even 30s), so they remember the golden age of PC gaming (90s). Look at how poorly received current generation PC games have been received. Sure, a couple games have been well received, such as Minecraft and StarCraft II. But even StarCraft II was heavily criticized for it's dumbed down multiplayer, lack of chat rooms, Nazi-esque map marketplace, micro-transactions, region-locking, Battle.net 2.0, and lack of LAN support. Console games (primarily) don't use dedicated servers or modding, whereas PC games do allow that. But with all of these console-to-PC ports, we get games that suck to begin with on PC without the features that PC games used to have in the 90s and early 00s. In other words, PC gamers realize that MW2 for PC (and MW2 in general) is garbage, so they don't buy it.

Plus a lot of games are created for the lowest-common-denominator now, as in that they release games so that people who aren't fans of the genre/franchise enjoy the game more so than people who are actually fans of the genre, and thus the genre becomes more of an shooter game, and less of what the genre is supposed to be (i.e. tactical shooters, survival horror, stealth, dungeon crawlers). PC gamers are typically more mature than your 12 year old prepubescent boy on Xbox Live, and thus they are smarter and teenagers/adults, not 12 year old kids who don't know any better and think that MW2 is the greatest game ever (and of course, they are entitled to their own opinion). Whereas PC gamers see that gaming has gotten worse over the course of the last decade, instead of getting better. Now games are made almost entirely for graphics whores, instead of people who enjoy the story, characters, gameplay, atmosphere, lore, and people who actually use their brain (not big arrows pointing to where you're supposed to go or do). They often call these games which are anti-niche and released for the lowest-common-denominator "streamlining", because apparently streamlining means that you have to turn everything into a shooter game for 12-year-olds instead of the niche genre it's supposed to be. What are your thoughts on this theory?

DarkestDestiny

Disagree. Even as early as 15 years ago, consoles always had a younger audience, and was always the lowest common denominator. Nothing you mentioned has changed since then, except for the fact that the PC was more popular then than now. The major difference is in the progression of hardware. Back then, you can buy a PC off the market, and you can run any game. Now, you need some 'know how' to get a PC which can run say...Crysis, Metro 2033 or Stalker. The less than straight forward process of purchasing a PC has alienated a huge demographic of gamers who just want to play games whithout having to screen through benchmark tests and hardware reviews. This group of people have shifted over to the console demographic as a result. Despite all of this, the PC hardware industry continues to move at light speed, and only the most tech savvy people can keep up. What we finally have, is a huge knowledge gap in the gaming industry, and this gap continues to widen.

In short, being a PC gamer requires you to know about graphics cards, CPUs and teraflops. In so doing, you'll end up having to know about Anti-Aliasing, Anisotropic Filtering, Tessellation, DirectX etc. etc. You can see why a lot people are discouraged by this, and more people will hop over to the console side until AMD/ATI releases a workable Fusion processor, or anything equivalent by a competitor. The fact that Intel (despite their failed Larrabee), IBM, ATI & AMD started dedicating their resources to a multi-purpose processor is a testament to what i have said - that all of them realize that the unintuitive nature of PC hardware is a major obstacle for the PC market.

PC gaming is dying because it's a lot easier to ask your mom to get a Xbox/Playstation/Nintendo than it is to ask her to buy a bunch of parts off newegg and setup a computer for you :P

And I don't really think it's dying anyways, PC still gets tons of games and you can actually usually find a bigger online community for most games. Unlike consoles where all the online games go dead once every new CoD/Halo game comes out :D

[QUOTE="Wasdie"]

[QUOTE="DarkestDestiny"] 95% of the time when someone buys a PC, it's not for gaming. It's for work or personal use.DarkestDestiny

So? Gaming sales include all game purchases on the platform.

I guess I mean to say PC gaming sales. Not just PC sales in general.

Your totally ignoring what he is saying... It doesnt matter, PC gaming sales are still more than any console game sales. Whether or not all PC's sold are used for gaming is totally IRRELEVANT!!!

Automatic self fail becuase pc gaming isnt dying at all and most likely never will.

It's dying because of piracy.XenogearsMaster

Pc Gaming died during the Ps2 era.. PC Gaming is dieing because of piracy... Pc Gaming is died because it has no exclusives.. PC Gaming is died because of the Ps3 and 360..... Atleast 12 years I can recall people saying PC gaming of dying yet:

It's dying because of piracy.XenogearsMaster

When will people learn...

I'll just say numbers disagree with you. Big time.

[QUOTE="XenogearsMaster"]It's dying because of piracy.jedikevin2

Pc Gaming died during the Ps2 era.. PC Gaming is dieing because of piracy... Pc Gaming is died because it has no exclusives.. PC Gaming is died because of the Ps3 and 360..... Atleast 12 years I can recall of folks saying PC gaming of dying yet: