PC Gaming in need of saving? Say it ain't so...

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I have made mention of the ailing state of PC Gaming before, but I had decided to drop the subject as my predictions weren't far from the coming reality.  But this week, an article popped up on Digg.com that I couldn't ignore.  Kristen Salvatore, of PC Gamer magazine (and also of the PC Gamer Podcast, where I catch her mostly) dropped an article at Games Radar (their new home, as it seems the PC Gamer Magazine couldn't maintain their own site) with the heading "How you can "save" PC gaming".

I was surprised to find this, as the company line from the Podcast is that PC Gaming is fine and that rumours of its death are greatly exaggerated.  In fact, as a PC Gamer, I have been taking heart from Kristen and the crew's optimism, and they do a good job of addressing the issues on the Podcast.  It is a good listen if you're interested in the industry and also the tech involved with PC Gaming.

But back to the article.  Kristen delivers a short three-part piece, nicely written, with a couple of swanky words to justify all the money spent on her education.  The piece starts by describing the popular version of the state of PC Gaming, and quite eloquently sums up the problems.

Then we see a nice explanation of the whole NPD problem, which seems to be the only measuring stick for PC Sales figures.  Maybe if we just trusted the figures set forward by the 2 or 3 companies making and selling PC Games, we would avoid the whole "low sales" problem.  But no, we have to keep them honest.  It turns out that the current NPD's don't actually count the sales of download-able games, or games distributed by means other than the mighty North American retail market.

Now Kristen gave us her 3 point plan to save PC Gaming, and as a regular listener to the PC Gamer Podcast, I have to say that I'm very well acquainted with said plan.  The reason for this is that the guys go over this every week!  I would like to take this plan to task.

The Cost of PC Gaming
PC Gaming costs more than console gaming because you can do more with a PC.  Also PC Gaming tends to be at the cutting edge of gaming in general, so just like owning a high performance sports car, you get much more performance for your buck.  This idea of buying a US$700 gaming computer and only having to spend a couple hundred dollars a year on upgrades is nice, but a little fantastical.  I'm not the only one who has gone to upgrade, only to find out that my motherboard doesn't have the right port, or won't support the new standard.  Then the selling of body parts begins.

This may be an area that needs to change before PC Gaming can get the console style status people think it needs.  Tim, a good friend of mine, feels this way and has put some thought into the idea of a modular PC case based on the popular ATX form factor.  This would turn the PC into a Lego set, where an upgrade could be done by replacing an external module, rather than having to open the case.

This could go some way to demystifying the upgrade process, and make PC Gaming more consumer friendly, and "consumer friendly" has worked well for Apple, so why not PC Gaming?

The Cursed "casual" games
The problem is that once you get a job, and/or responsibilities, you turn into a casual gamer.  This has happened to me, but I don't play casual games, and I don't want the PC to turn into a casual game platform.  So if someone is a casual gamer who plays casual games, buy them a Wii, or DS.  The chance that they will go from Peggle to Civ IV is a little slim, so they won't be spending the money to support the industry, so why pander to them?

Honesty the best policy
Piracy may be the crux of the matter, for if the money isn't flowing into the industry, games and innovation won't flow out.  Now, I'm guilty of a mis-spent youth, and in my family man years I have been working on going legit.  What that has meant, though, is getting less games, and scouring the bargain bins.  At AU$99 a game at release, I have been finding a lot of reasons to go without.

Add to that the odd upgrade cost, and my gaming heart is cursing my new "setting a good example to the children" stance.  But in the long run, if we want PC Gaming to be there when we have time again, we need to pay now.

My thoughts on the matter
In the end, we are seeing a shift in the gaming industry as a whole.  I have mentioned before that we are seeing, and going to continue to see, the developer's code where the money is.  So this will mean a swing away from the PC, but I believe that this doesn't mean a complete end to PC Gaming.  There will always be developers pushing the envelope when it comes to graphics and content, and as good as the consoles look, it is going to be a while before they can run Crysis.

Also, as we have seen, PC Games do make money, it just takes a little longer.  And that has always been the nature of the the beast, because PC Games (especially cutting edge titles) sometimes require upgrades and tweaks.  Us PC Gamers know that, and, to a degree, that is the point.  So we buy fewer games and are a little more choosy, we may find that we are going to have to settle for a title leading on the Xbox 360, then dropping a better version for the PC a couple of months later, Mass Effect comes to mind.

Bottom line is that PC Gaming is for the PC Gamers, the elite few million of us who are willing to jump through the hoops and pony up for the better graphics, and the better game-play.  We are aware that things are changing, but sucking up to the casual market is not going to get us Fallout 4.

Jason Remnant

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Comments

[Some Backup]

PC Gaming is what got me into gaming, I used to by that mag all the time. I have however followed the times and enjoy playing on the xbox more than the PC. If my PC was of a higher spec I would still game on it but with prices as they are on everything now a days spare money to upgrade is hard to come by.

More PC only games would be a good move for me.

[Your friend Tim]

Most families have a PC in their home now and the addition of a *$140 9600GT turns it into a gaming machine. The idea of the $1000 gaming PC "upgrade" is a total myth. After a one off investment of $1000 you can easily maintain your gaming PC for $200 per year - just don't buy prepackaged HP/Acer/Dell/Lenovo/etc.

**To build a PC right now that easily bests consoles... Vista HP, AMD X2 5200, AM2 mobo, 9600GT, 2GB RAM, 380W Antec Case, 250GB HDD, DVDRW, 19" DVI LCD, MS 500 K&M = $1000 for a complete gaming system **with monitor** that will beat a 360 or PS3.

Compare that to a $600 console every 5 years (after 1 year a PC will blitz it plus have higher res). If you wait then of course the step will be higher when you finally decide to take it. How confident are folks about their 360 or that blue laser in the PS3 making it through to the next console release anyway.

I don't understand people complaining about a lack of games either - I have about 10 games on the go at the moment because I usually don't play more than 12 hours a week. Half of those will probably never get finished.

* $=AUD
** Vista HP = $160, AMD X2 5200 = $90, AM2 mobo = $80, 9600GT = $140, 2GB RAM = $60, 380W Antec Case = $110, 250GB HDD = $70, DVDRW = $35, 19" DVI LCD = $225 and MS 500 K&M = $30
Rounding / item ~ $2. www.centrecom.com.au

[Jason]

Tim for us in the know you are completely in the right. But those who would compare a console to the PC are not in the know, and unfortunately there is a lot of them.

Thank you very much for the excellent comment, i know your a busy man.