I have a mic somewhere.  I'll find it eventually.

immortaldanmx


Digital distribution is not tracked, and until it is you cant say PC games are doing well. Look at Crysis. The flagship PC FPS of the year, destroyed sales wise by CoD, Halo, and even Gears.

PC gaming is becoming obsolete because of developers. Games arent made on PC then ported, theyre made for consoles then ported. Every year the majority of Publishers cut PC releases and opt for console versions as the lead, if not the exclusive, version. With consoles catching up to PCs and the high cost of maintaining a high-end gaming PC its only a matter of time before PC gaming is dead.

And your 300 million is an inflated joke. That must include non-gamers who play online games for free (pogo, flash games, etc). If there were really 300 million PC gamers Epic wouldnt be making comments about going console only, and PC sales wouldnt be piss poor. Also, Steam accounts dont translate into sales.

Yes, digital distribution is not tracked. But for something to have a 200% year over year growth you can't merely dismiss it as having no impact either. I have not gone out to a retail outlet and bought a PC game in over a year now. Nearly all the PC gamers I know are the same. As a result, these purchases are not listed by analyst groups. Instead, all I do is just open Steam (or another service), buy and download. Took about 15 minutes for Left 4 Dead to download at 4MB/s and for me to start playing. Even if you only take 10% of Steam's userbase as people who buy online, that's 1.6 million potential game sales there, just on one service alone.

Consumers have wanted digital distribution for a long time now, and they're finally getting it. 300 million is not my number, it's data collated by analysts Gartner Group. Even when you discount the casual/free gaming base, the number would most likely still dwarf console bases. What's needed is an effective method to reach that user base.

I'm not saying PC gaming has no problems. Piracy is a problem and does have a negative impact. But up until now, nobody has actually done a proper analysis of it. The PCGA is currently doing an in depth study of the effects that it has on revenue. It should help to answer questions as to how many pirates are actually lost customers. How many are cheapskates that would not have bought the game anyway? How many are customers lashing out at invasive DRM (ala Spore)? How many are people who want convenience? It should yield interesting results.

PC gaming has an image problem as a result of piracy, as can be seen by developers like Epic bailing out. Crysis did not have as many sales as CoD4, Gears, etc, but it hardly sold poorly (over 1 million copies sold if I remember correctly). Even in the console world, only a few percent of games actually make it to that number.

What PC gaming needs is some cohesion. Platforms like Steam are just what the PC gaming industry needs. It currently has around 500 titles available on it ranging from indie arcade games to new high profile releases. It allows the user to download games easily and quickly, and gives the developer a way to protect their IP without resorting to super invasive DRM. As a result, many developers and gamers are jumping all over it. The small developers are winning out the most, because they can reach a large audience without the need for investing in distribution/DRM.

PC gaming is not dead. The doomsday criers just don't see that it's changing.

Pc gaming will never die, people have been talking about the death of pc since the dawn of console gaming. 

I think the PS3 pad is one of those Marmite things. Except for it's not "love it or hate it" but "sort of think it's all right or hate it".

I hear what you're saying there AgentGhost, you master of semantics you. To be honest, I only called it a "hoverbike" to avoid confusing any Halo non-initiates who might somehow stumble upon these pages.

Anyway, how's about a review or four? :)

http://games.kikizo.com/reviews/xbox360/lips-p1.asp
http://games.kikizo.com/reviews/xbox360/need-for-speed-undercover-p1.asp
http://games.kikizo.com/reviews/xbox360/banjo-kazooie-nuts-and-bolts-p1.asp
http://games.kikizo.com/reviews/xbox360/crash-bandicoot-mind-over-mutant-p1.asp

Edwin


I think the PS3 pad is one of those Marmite things. Except for it's not "love it or hate it" but "sort of think it's all right or hate it".

I hear what you're saying there AgentGhost, you master of semantics you. To be honest, I only referred to the bugger as a "hoverbike" to avoid confusing any Halo non-initiates who might somehow stumble upon these pages.

Anyway, how's about a review or four? :)

http://games.kikizo.com/reviews/xbox360/lips-p1.asp
http://games.kikizo.com/reviews/xbox360/need-for-speed-undercover-p1.asp
http://games.kikizo.com/reviews/xbox360/banjo-kazooie-nuts-and-bolts-p1.asp
http://games.kikizo.com/media2008/crash-bandicoot-mind-over-mutant-review/crash-bandicoot-mind-over-mutant-review-130.jpg

Your Crash Bandicoot link is only to the Jpg advertising the review.

It's refreshing to see someone rate Need for Speed as the mediocre piece of shit it has become.

And Ive just realized what your activity in these forums really is. Youre here to lure us on to the main site. I know what you are....

/cackles insidiously

Fixxored.

Considering the thread title I'd only assume that would be his main reason...Either way I like the direct communication with a staff member especially frequent one. Get as many fine details as you can.

It sounded like they didn't let you play Halo Wars.  It's only 3 months away from the expected release date.  Did it look like it was on schedule?  And do you know when are you guys doing a review?

"Only" three months to release? Gosh, how the days must fly for you :) They haven't announced half the features yet (details of multiplayer, community support, etc), let alone got round to distributing review code.

I did get to play the game, but I think the article is a bit deceptive in that regard. Might have worked better had we published the interview and hands-on impressions separately, but there just wasn't the time :( The missions we played were of release quality save for some frame-rate dips - I'd say the core game is pretty much nailed down.

I think the PS3 pad is one of those Marmite things.

What in sam-hell's a puma?

..I mean... Marmite.

Marmite is like a spread that you put on sandwiches/toast. Equivalent to the Australian Vegemite. It's made from yeast extract I think. It's one of those things you have to be grown up on, in order to like it.

It's some Australian thing.  I think it's illegal in America.  I only know what it is because some popular Youtube user (an Australian girl) made a few videos that leaves me to believe they make the stuff from crack.

Agent Ghost


It's some Australian thing.  I think it's illegal in America.  I only know what it is because some popular Youtube user (an Australian girl) made a few videos that leaves me to believe they make the stuff from crack.

thehill88?

Who else?  I'm not subscribed to her or anything, but anyone who has seen 11,000 Youtube videos has seen her Vegemite video.  if you search vegemite in the Youtube search bar, you'll find it.

Youtube is different from what was two years ago.  Back then the way the site worked it made it easy for popular users to get really popular.  She was one of those mega popular users.  Even though i liked the old design better the site is more fair, there are far more users with 20,000+ subscribers now.

Agent Ghost


Who else?  I'm not subscribed to her or anything, but anyone who has seen 11,000 Youtube videos has seen her Vegemite video.

Yeah, but i doubt many people here will know who she is.

Yeah, but i doubt many people here will know who she is.

She's not significant enough for it to matter, her popularity is a total fluke coupled with the fact that she's a teenage girl.  She only has recognition because she started early.  Nevertheless, for those interested, i present you the TheHill88:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kt_2gJmdezM

Useless.

what the hell did you just link to agent? my head hurts. 

Teenage attention whore, this is why I hate youtube.

Youtube has a lot of mainstream trash but underneath that thick crust is a river of talent.  You just have to dig deep enough.

Well then, after youre finished with your military grade excavating lasers can we give them a shot?