Console Games Have Helped Save The PC

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Spoken like a true console gamer. :rolleyes:

Before the release of the last generation of consoles, the PC as a mainstream gaming platform was in serious trouble. Many publishers and developers were abandoning it to seek the safety - and money - of a booming console market. Most dedicated PC games were playing to a niche audience, and those that weren't would see their sales plundered by piracy.
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IMHO I believe that digital distribution saved it, if it really need saving. Personally for me it was due to all of the fun I have had over the years tinkering, modding, overclocking, and customizing.
 
PC gaming has never been in trouble. The publishers and devs who jumped ship to the console market were replaced by new publishers and devs. In a $20+ billion dollar a year industry, new opportunities are going to pop up every day. Kotaku is a joke.
 
ugh

i will say it again

"PC are not dieing. Consoles are just becoming PC's,..."
- MrGuv

And this generation has killed consoles as we knew them...they are minITX computers with controllers now.

Sales plunder by piracy.. ya, okay.. ..
 
I agree with the others that PC gaming has not been in trouble ... it has simply changed as the years have gone by ... there is also a certain arrogance when console gamers think of themselves as mainstream ... except for the Wii both of the other consoles are niche products targeted at hardcore gamers (just like the PC can be) ... the difference is that the PC can be truly mainstream and attract the non-hardcore gamers more than the consoles can ...

one could also take the other point of view on this and say, "now that the console has adopted the digital download and x86 hardware from the PC world that it is the PC that saved the console", and not the other way around ;)
 
I really do believe Steam had a massive impact on the PC's supposed 'revival', if it even needed one in the first place.

Fucking Kotaku should just stick to reporting about Japanese anime and console games.
 
He has a narrow view of the PC gaming side. I do think that having an Xbox 360 controller alongside the keyboard and mouse is nice now that I've gotten used to controllers.

I think he misses the fact that consoles have given people a gaming consumption device with a narrow (although now somewhat expanding) focus. Traditionally, you've run a console to simply pop in the game and play. Now, there are a handful of updates to fix bugs, something the consoles have adopted from the PC side of things.

I think both PC and console have benefitted from digital distribution. Steam, Origin, UPlay, etc. for gaming as well as services like Netflix.

What I think is happening more between the console and PC is adoption of strong points, mostly the console borrowing ideas from the PC.

The traditional PC set may be on the decline, but the PC platform itself is alive and well, having some evolving offspring in the console.
 
MrGuvernment said:
And this generation has killed consoles as we knew them...they are minITX computers with controllers now.
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Can't argue with that. I can't even BS my way to a decent argument. :D

PC gaming is dying. PC's are dying. Blah blah blah. We've heard it all before from non-PC gamers. Those that are and were playing PC games never saw anything wrong, other than some shitty console ports. But, we also had some of the best, exclusive PC games. I see that the PC saved console gaming, really. Digital downloads, PC hardware in a box, etc..
 
Spoiler Alert! It's a Kotaku article. These kotaku guys are console dick riders to the fullest.:rolleyes:
 
MikeTrike said:
I'm not going to say that article is misguided... But...
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I'll say it for you. Way misguided. Some folks are fine with plug and play, just as some folks are fine with a home theater in a box speaker setup. That doesn't mean HTIBs saved the home theater speaker setup....

I think both platforms have their place. I use my PS3 pretty much solely for sports games, and do all my shooting on my PC. I suspect other gamers are the same.
 
Any Kotaku article should be instantly considered cannon fodder for the trolls.
 
His best point is on anti-piracy.

But misses the boat in most other areas. I agree with the poster above who said consoles are becoming PCs. That's pretty much it, except they are becoming shitty PCs, with albeit standardized, with shitty monitors (i.e. TVs).

But I'd ask anyone who was gaming on the PC in 199X-2005 to think about the type of games they played, and the number of games they owned, then compare that to how they play in 2013.
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In the 1990s, I played all kinds of different games (all of them on a PC). Then in late 1999 I discovered Everquest. I stopped playing all kinds of games and started spending 98% of my time playing one game. That continued in 2004 when World of Warcraft came out. That continues to this day with Planetside 2. None of these games are even available on a console.

I don't know what point this guy is trying to make, but I play far fewer games now than I did in the 90s. I think, but I'm not sure, that its the opposite of what he thought I would say (because he didn't actually make his point).

I spend far less money now on games than I used to as well, because I play one game that doesn't have an "ending" (MMOs) and stick with it long term. $15 a month subscription is far less than I used to spend, and I feel like I get far more value out of it than the games I used to buy. I think this is also opposite of his intended conclusion.

In short, the author got just about everything wrong. The gaming options I like simply aren't available on consoles. They don't exist. PC never even got sick to me, let alone ever were on their deathbed or needed saving. Millions of MMO players in scores of games agree. He's just too out of touch to see it.
 
They're nervous that Microsoft can't hamstring DirectX anymore because of SteamOS. I have no doubt Microsoft will updating DirectX on the PC to keep SteamOS one step behind, but they wouldn't do it otherwise.
 
Articles like this happen when you don't ever peak outside your bubble.

In this article's case, it's a console-players bubble who has very limited experience or exposure to PC Gaming.
 
Steam (slash digital distribution) is what saved PC gaming. The combination of easy access and frequent sales were enough to convince people to pay for what they pirated before. And the fact that you can get a game that was $40 three months ago for $5 during a one day sale means a lot of people are buying games they never would have before, boosting the bottom lines of numerous developers and publishers. And best of all from the publisher's standpoint is that those games don't go back into any sort of "used PC game" market. They're locked to one account. That is why I believe the major publishers will be moving to an exclusively digital model before the EOL of the next console generation. They'll start by offering the digital version slightly cheaper or with some exclusive DLC package and before you know it discs will be a thing of the past.
 
I should add if the PC are allowed to outshine consoles by more than brute force on the same features, the PS4/XB1 pissing contest become meaningless and Console will start to be in trouble especially by the folks who want the best on the block.
 
Are the comments, on the actual article, exploding with hate or fanboyism? (can't check the page at work).
 
LiNKiN said:
IMHO I believe that digital distribution saved it, if it really need saving. Personally for me it was due to all of the fun I have had over the years tinkering, modding, overclocking, and customizing.
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Yes--how boring and limiting sealed "devices" are when compared to the PC! The great strength of the PC is its open-ended character: it's capable of so much more than factory-sealed devices.

You've been on this site long enough not to fall into this "digital" marketing BS (which began with Microsoft's xBone initial marketing scam)...;) Everything is digital--when you buy a disk the files on it are 100% digital. When you download a game it runs the exact same files you get on the disk, etc. I certainly agree with you, though, that the Internet in general has been a terrific contributor to the PC market.

It's often forgotten just how much the rise of the Internet spurred PC sales beginning around 1995--it was a huge boom that has only slowed a little since the start of the world-wide economic downturn in 2008. While some people are going the portable device route because they have less money to spend, desktop components and boxes have never been as inexpensive as they are now. Or as powerful. Or built with such quality of standards. When the dust settles at the end of the day, the PC, as usual, reigns.
 
Add Luke (article writer) to the stupid pile. Reading the comments about the article, many state that Luke doesn't know what he's talking about.
 
I started PC gaming in 1990 and has seen nothing but a steady growth since.
 
please no more news from kotaku as a source. let's not get them ad revenue from linking their articles.
 
Save PC gaming after it had ruined it. Majority of PC games today suck because so many developers jumped on the console money train. As a result we got crappy console ports.

And exactly how are consoles saving PC gaming? Cause for a brief moment, consoles would have caught up to PCs in hardware. After 1 year, PC's would have surpassed them massively again.
 
When you can actually write the majority of software that a console runs on the actual console itself, then talk. Until then, PC/Mac/Linux or whatever workstation things are being developed on are not just saving consoles; they're the console life blood. Way to bash on your creator. Oh also, console hardware is now just very dumbed-down PC hardware if they haven't noticed yet.

Sure, even if consoles may have pretty good hardware at release, but 8-10 years down the road? Still the same sad, aging hardware. You know what this is like? A console guy that sprinted 100m and thought he won, but the race is 100Km and the PC is ready to run that 100Km easily.
 
MrGoodbar said:
When you can actually write the majority of software that a console runs on the actual console itself, then talk. Until then, PC/Mac/Linux or whatever workstation things are being developed on are not just saving consoles; they're the console life blood. Way to bash on your creator. Oh also, console hardware is now just very dumbed-down PC hardware if they haven't noticed yet.

Sure, even if consoles may have pretty good hardware at release, but 8-10 years down the road? Still the same sad, aging hardware. You know what this is like? A console guy that sprinted 100m and thought he won, but the race is 100Km and the PC is ready to run that 100Km easily.
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You had to play the race card :rolleyes:
 
Ashbringer said:
Save PC gaming after it had ruined it. Majority of PC games today suck because so many developers jumped on the console money train. As a result we got crappy console ports.
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What vast majority of sucky PC games are you referring to? My steam library is filled with incredible PC games that rarely suffer from enjoyment breaking flaws due to a crappy port from a console.

Finally, you make jumping on the "money train" seem like betrayal. I work damn hard for a living and if I was a developer/publisher who wants to get paid for the damn hard work I put in, my first priority would be to put my time and resources "where the money is".
 
But I'd ask anyone who was gaming on the PC in 199X-2005 to think about the type of games they played, and the number of games they owned, then compare that to how they play in 2013.
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hmmm lets see....
Half-life
Home World
Rainbow Six
C&C Tiberian Sun
Age of Empires
Wingcomander
Unreal
Quake 3
Need for Speed
Falcon 4.0

yea games where AWFUL then :rolleyes:
imo that was when some of the BEST PC games came out
 
Analysts can provide predictive information regarding how a particular game will do in the console realm, this same information is not available for digital sales. As a result, the PC market becomes this scary "I don't know" market for most business majors. This is what hurt the PC market most I believe.

As far as console games saving the PC market? That's a joke, and an incredibly arrogant one as consoles were always a niche hardware application of the computer, to think of them as a separate entity is narrow minded, and uninformed imo.

The benefits of consoles always lied within cost/portability/convenience. Now that the PC has transformed enough, those advantages no longer hold the same weight, and we see what we are currently seeing.
 
Last time I check the PS4 and xBone (Xbox One) are base on PC x86 architectures so for the new generation has killed old consoles architectures. Spoken like a true console gamer that no clue what so ever he should have said Like How PC architectures Helped Save The Consoles after the new upcoming consoles are nothing more then todays miniITX computers with controllers hahaha so get over it console fanboy:D.
 
Steam (slash digital distribution) is what saved PC gaming.
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Sorry guy, but I think you need to lay off the coolaid.

Steam has done more to give me problems then it ever did to improve my gaming experience.

1st, it has almost no effect on the gameplay itself except in one area, it fucks up my saved games when I lose connection to the Steam Cloud, so the one instance where you see an impact it's negative.

2nd, I never shop or purchase from steam, maybe you do, but I don't and it's ridiculous to assume that everyone is like you.

3rd, I have two steam accounts and I have titles spread between them and Steam won't allow me to merge the accounts. I have to switch back and forth between them sometimes to switch games, assholes.

4th, It's overhead, it's nothing but overhead.

If in some completely strange fashion Steam did save PC gaming, it would be from the developer, investor, production side. An argument that the PC gaming is doomed unless we can find a solution to X and Y kind of argument. But from where I sit, X and Y were part of an incorrect assessment to begin with and PC gaming was never in danger of dieing except in the minds of some corporate bean counters who didn't understand their customers to begin with and often still don't today.

Micro-transactions anyone?
 
lcpiper said:
Sorry guy, but I think you need to lay off the coolaid.

Steam has done more to give me problems then it ever did to improve my gaming experience.

1st, it has almost no effect on the gameplay itself except in one area, it fucks up my saved games when I lose connection to the Steam Cloud, so the one instance where you see an impact it's negative.

2nd, I never shop or purchase from steam, maybe you do, but I don't and it's ridiculous to assume that everyone is like you.

3rd, I have two steam accounts and I have titles spread between them and Steam won't allow me to merge the accounts. I have to switch back and forth between them sometimes to switch games, assholes.

4th, It's overhead, it's nothing but overhead.

If in some completely strange fashion Steam did save PC gaming, it would be from the developer, investor, production side. An argument that the PC gaming is doomed unless we can find a solution to X and Y kind of argument. But from where I sit, X and Y were part of an incorrect assessment to begin with and PC gaming was never in danger of dieing except in the minds of some corporate bean counters who didn't understand their customers to begin with and often still don't today.

Micro-transactions anyone?
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Why are you voluntarily being so disconnected with reality?
 
The benefits of consoles always lied within cost/portability/convenience.
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Not from the manufacturer's point of view. Their point of view was and always has been DRM and countering piracy. They offer cost/portability/convenience as the benefits for embracing their stove-piped world and abandoning the PC as an entertainment platform.
 
Elios said:
hmmm lets see....
Half-life
Home World
Rainbow Six
C&C Tiberian Sun
Age of Empires
Wingcomander
Unreal
Quake 3
Need for Speed
Falcon 4.0

yea games where AWFUL then :rolleyes:
imo that was when some of the BEST PC games came out
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Lemmings
Railroad Tycoon
Simcity
F-19 Stealth Fighter
M1 Tank Platoon
Masters of Orion
Diablo
Warcraft
Starcraft
Doom
Red Storm Rising
Harpoon
MS Flight Simulator


The early gaming era had far more variety than is what is out there today.

You might note that there are no Arcade style games on the list.
 
Why are you voluntarily being so disconnected with reality?
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Ummm, ok, I'll admit it, right over the top of my head here.

I can't tell if you are serious or just fucking with me. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, which is .... Fuck, I don't know ... doubt..... lost...... FUCK !
:D
 
lcpiper said:
Ummm, ok, I'll admit it, right over the top of my head here.

I can't tell if you are serious or just fucking with me. I'll give you the benefit of the doubt, which is .... Fuck, I don't know ... doubt..... lost...... FUCK !
:D
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2nd, I never shop or purchase from steam, maybe you do, but I don't and it's ridiculous to assume that everyone is like you.
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You can't honestly think you're some part of a majority. Everyone is like me, and that's why Steam is the most successful digital distribution platform on earth.
 
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