Are Consoles Holding Back PC Gaming?

[AlphaWolf]

You have to add a bigger HDD and loose the consoles warranty in the process to accomodate several games.

Not really true at all. Certainly not for xbox.

Yes, PC parts have 1-5 years warranty and within atleast one year the store has to handle the exchange for a working part.

Emphasis on the 1. About the only thing you'll get with more than 1 year is a hard drive or some video cards. And while the store is compelled to exchange for a working part, they are not compelled to do so quickly, they can take up to 90 days to identify if the part is eligible for replacement if they like and then half the time they don't have an exact replacement so you'll wind up with something else. Xbox repairs are pretty pain free compared to getting an etailer to do a warranty exchange.

 

[Silent_Buddha]

You can install games on the hard drive. If you take care of a DVD it will last a lifetime.

Sure if you own an X360. If you own a PS3 or Wii you don't have an option to install all games to the HDD.

Maybe, as long as they make the replacement part. It isn't always as simple as replacing a drive (do dvd drives ever actually fail? the cd drive in my 386 still works fine). And hopefully there isn't an issue with the drivers screwing up something.

The point still remains however, that if you were so inclined you can replace any and all defective parts in a PC without having to return it CPU, memory, PSU, HDD, DVD/BRD, whatever.

Emphasis on the 1. About the only thing you'll get with more than 1 year is a hard drive or some video cards. And while the store is compelled to exchange for a working part, they are not compelled to do so quickly, they can take up to 90 days to identify if the part is eligible for replacement if they like and then half the time they don't have an exact replacement so you'll wind up with something else. Xbox repairs are pretty pain free compared to getting an etailer to do a warranty exchange.

Sure and if any retailers actually did that you might have a point. The only time there is ever a delay is if the part is out of stock.

Regards,
SB

 

[AlphaWolf]

The point still remains however, that if you were so inclined you can replace any and all defective parts in a PC without having to return it CPU, memory, PSU, HDD, DVD/BRD, whatever.

For 99% of consumers this is meaningless. While I'm capable of building and maintaining my own gaming PC and have done so in the past, I don't want to be bothered. Most people simply aren't capable.

Sure and if any retailers actually did that you might have a point. The only time there is ever a delay is if the part is out of stock.

Yes its never happened, I've only imagined it.

/sarcasm

 

[swaaye]

Well you kinda got your wish, the end user did go away

I don't think anyone left simply because PCs are too hard to use. I think the PC advantage has vanished because the consoles now can run almost anything, because gaming is clearly more associated with consoles than a PC and because consoles are associated with comfortable, relaxing living room social fun.

There are only a few genres left that consoles can't really do well, namely MMOs, simulators and complex strategy games. Also, for whatever reason, some of those just don't sell on consoles. The PC-centric genres don't have the pop culture appeal to sell zillions like the rest that have gone multiplatform.

So the PC will be niche with its few non-hip specialty genres, and have sloppy seconds of what used to be its forte, but I don't see how it could have gone down any other way.

It would have to be incredibly high volume to compensate, and the volume simply isn't there. Starting low with pricing doesn't always work either because if for example all PC games started new at $30, then people would still wait to buy them because they would expect them to hit $15 on sale soon.

There will always be impulse buyers, impatient buyers and peer pressure. For example, when Deus Ex 3 comes out, I will buy it on day 1.

 

[green.pixel]

big budget games

Big budget games have a problem that big budget Hollywood blockbusters have and it is called lowest common denominator, in order to ensure larger sales base to recoup the investment, which then leads to less mainstream games having higher production values and more generic me-too gameplay.


There is a reason why Avatar is... what it is. if we go into the deep reasons why, we'll have to talk about sociology, mass psychology and the consumer society.


Stalker gamesr/Deus Ex/Vampire Bloodlines are to CoD/Halo/whatever "blockbuster" you can come up with.what Baraka, Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqats, Naqoyqatsi are to Avatar/Transformers/other films for "no brain no pain" people. As simple as that.

 

[function]

Big budget games have a problem that big budget Hollywood blockbusters have and it is called lowest common denominator.

There is a reason why Avatar is... like that. if we go into the deep reasons why, we'll have to talk about sociology, mass psychology and the consumer society.


Stalker gamesr/Deus Ex/Vampire Bloodlines are to CoD/Halo/whatever "blockbuster" you can come up with.what Baraka, Koyaanisqatsi, Powaqqats, Naqoyqatsi are to Avatar/Transformers/other films for "no brain no pain" people. As simple as that.

Damn, enjoying Halo means I'm a no brain person. I should have known that only no brain people could enjoy superb game balance and fun co-op gaming.

I guess playing Deus Ex, with its mind expanding Matrix looking characters, failed to boost my intellect to the level where I could masturbate over myself for also playing Stalker.

Game snobbery is fun!

 

[Neb]

Sure and if any retailers actually did that you might have a point. The only time there is ever a delay is if the part is out of stock.

Regards,
SB

This, also IIRC if it takes more than 30 days you have the right to file a complaint where I live. But never ever with faulty parts bought for computers in 7 different stores, for my own and other persons computers has it taken more than 10 work days to get it exchanged.

 

[green.pixel]

Damn, enjoying Halo means I'm a no brain person. I should have known that only no brain people could enjoy superb game balance and fun co-op gaming.

I guess playing Deus Ex, with its mind expanding Matrix looking characters, failed to boost my intellect to the level where I could masturbate over myself for also playing Stalker.

Game snobbery is fun!

Maybe I sounded too harsh, sorry, that's why I put it under " ". I certainly didn't want to imply that people who play those games are stupid.


But it is true that big budget games tend to have that "one size fits all" downside. If you can't see that, well I don't know then. $20M+ budget game can't be made with a small audience in mind. That's why we see so many first/third person shooters these days.

 

[Neb]

Not really true at all. Certainly not for xbox.

Well some time ago you only had 20-60GB legal options then 80GB. I assume bigger sized HDDs are now available but some years ago it was not true and neither was the install option.

Emphasis on the 1. About the only thing you'll get with more than 1 year is a hard drive or some video cards.

Depends if you buy cheap quality or moderate to good quality. I always stayed at the moderate to good range and mobo has 3 years, PSU has 5 years, GPU has 1 year, CPU has 3 years, RAM has "lifetime warranty", HDD has 3 years, soundcard 1 year, Blu-ray player 1 year.

 

[Sigfried1977]

Damn, enjoying Halo means I'm a no brain person. I should have known that only no brain people could enjoy superb game balance and fun co-op gaming.

I guess playing Deus Ex, with its mind expanding Matrix looking characters, failed to boost my intellect to the level where I could masturbate over myself for also playing Stalker.

Game snobbery is fun!

It just means you shouldn't expect anything particularly mentally challenging or risk involving from a game with a 20 Million dollar budget. Same with movies.

I love Avatar, by the way, and I also like games like Uncharted, but I've also seen or played less pretty versions of them many times before (which is also why Limbo was the only game at this year's E3 that really tickled my fancy)

What's holding back gaming in general is this:

 

[function]

Maybe I sounded too harsh, sorry, that's why I put it under " ". I certainly didn't want to imply that people who play those games are stupid.


But it is true that big budget games tend to have that "one size fits all" downside. If you can't see that, well I don't know then. $20M+ budget game can't be made with a small audience in mind. That's why we see so many first/third person shooters these days.

Yeah, I agree with that.

What's holding back gaming in general is this:

 

[Scott_Arm]

I really hate the PC gaming snobbery. I was a PC gamer for a long long time, starting on Commodore64 I played all kinds of tactical games, strategy games, shooters and RPGs. Games like X-Com, Thief, Ultima, SSI gold box rpgs, Masters of Orion, Civilization, Heroes of Might and Magic, Populous, Syndicate, Deus Ex, System Shock ... You name it, I played it. But I'm not for one second going to pretend that those games are somehow more "intelligent" than playing Halo. All games are time wasters. All of them. None of them require an incredibly amount of intelligence. Some games just require more time than others. That's it. I hated Halo CE. I really really did. But I'm not going to act like I was playing some type of "refined" gaming instead.

And it's not like videogames weren't derivative before. For every good game you had 100 cheap clones. It's always been that way. Doesn't matter if it was a turn based war game, an adventure game, an rpg, a platformer, a side-scrolling shooter

 

[green.pixel]

But I'm not for one second going to pretend that those games are somehow more "intelligent" than playing Halo

One thing is for sure, those games don't and can't have the pop culture appeal as Halo or CoD.


Remember how Halo was developed? Yeah, it must be a coincidence.

And it's not like videogames weren't derivative before. For every good game you had 100 cheap clones. It's always been that way. Doesn't matter if it was a turn based war game, an adventure game, an rpg, a platformer, a side-scrolling shooter

True. There was tens of Mega Man titles, eleven Ultima games etc.

 

[swaaye]

Well you know how it goes. One group of people loves their stats-based turn-based isometric game series which has the occasional "deep" philosophically-enlightened NPC conversation. Another group of people just want to shoot up their friends in today's hot shooter, with some beers, and have a blast. They don't understand each other. So, the easy thing to do is to gang up and hold hands together and feel they are somehow more successful as humans than the other group.

It's not like this stuff ends at video games.

 

[green.pixel]

So, the easy thing to do is to feel they are somehow more successful as humans than the other group. .

I am not saying that. Just that some genres are vastly more popular than the other, because they have mass market appeal. There is a reason why pop music is more popular than jazz or clasical music. It is more accesible. Same with say Blade Runner. It requires more from your average viewer to folow it vs. when he watches your typical Hollywood blockbuster. I'm not sure how cany anyone refute this.
And when you are investing tens of millions, you are going to stick with what's popular and what can help your bottom line.

Do you think that it is a coincidence that Stalker comes from Eastern European devs?

 

[Neb]

Well you know how it goes. One group of people loves their stats-based turn-based isometric game series which has the occasional "deep" philosophically-enlightened NPC conversation. Another group of people just want to shoot up their friends in today's hot shooter, with some beers, and have a blast. They don't understand each other. So, the easy thing to do is to gang up and hold hands together and feel they are somehow more successful as humans than the other group.

It's not like this stuff ends at video games.

Some want both in a fairly balanced ratio. All I say is 'Rainbow Six series' to what the problem is nowdays, end of story!


Also games like the named X-Com TFTD/UFO, R6: Rogue Spear, Arma 2 etc reuqires more from the player which is why some might not like those games. Everyone cannot be a commander.

 

[Lonbjerg]

Some want both in a fairly balanced ratio. All I say is 'Rainbow Six series' to what the problem is nowdays, end of story!


Also games like the named X-Com TFTD/UFO, R6: Rogue Spear, Arma 2 etc reuqires more from the player which is why some might not like those games. Everyone cannot be a commander.

I would scream if I had to play ARMA2 on the consoles...I use +50 of my keybaord + mouse to control that game...but then again if you think MW2 or BC2 is "real-like" than I can understand that games like ARMA2 would scare you off you tha A.I. headtaps you, while your are running blindy spray 'n pray CS style...

 

[Neb]

I would scream if I had to play ARMA2 on the consoles...I use +50 of my keybaord + mouse to control that game...but then again if you think MW2 or BC2 is "real-like" than I can understand that games like ARMA2 would scare you off you tha A.I. headtaps you, while your are running blindy spray 'n pray CS style...

Exactly and wh yI love such games becouse they are really stimulating for yoru senses.

 

[Lonbjerg]

Exactly and wh yI love such games becouse they are really stimulating for yoru senses.

I see what you did there

 

[Silent_Buddha]

Well you know how it goes. One group of people loves their stats-based turn-based isometric game series which has the occasional "deep" philosophically-enlightened NPC conversation. Another group of people just want to shoot up their friends in today's hot shooter, with some beers, and have a blast. They don't understand each other. So, the easy thing to do is to gang up and hold hands together and feel they are somehow more successful as humans than the other group.

It's not like this stuff ends at video games.

Bah, or you just all acknowledge that different people have different tastes.

Then you head down to the pub and...

One person has a Guinness, another has a Pabst, another had a Budweiser, another a Heinekin (I probably spelled that wrong), Samuel Adams, etc...

So at the end of the day. Games are like beer. Everyone has their own particular flavor they like.

BTW - there's a lot of beer snobbery also, so the analogy is quite apt.

Regards,
SB