Alan Wake: Microsoft preparing to leave PC gamers behind (again)

[Richard]

Despite being announced as a PC title and claiming to use DX10 effects it now seems Alan Wake will lag the XBOX 360's release.

When a user of Remedy's own forums posted a question entitled "Can we get a straight answer about the PC version?" and several others chimed in, Remedy's Markus posted the following:

Hey all,

I'm a PC gamer at heart (have a Core i7, Radeon 4890, 5.1 audio setup at home) so I do appreciate your concerns.

Unfortunately all I can say at this point is that we're focusing all our efforts on the 360 version and will be making comments in regards to the PC at a later in time.

I think all reasonable PC gamers understand that MS's focus should be on the platform they get royalties on but MS should at the very least stop with the hypocrisy of being involved in the PC Gaming Alliance and their incipient (after 3 years) G4W initiative/framework.

If Remedy's focusing on the 360 version I think we can all expect a lag of at least 6 months, if not more (Gears of War). I want to believe Markus' answer does hint that a PC version is coming... eventually. The opposite would be far too insulting.

EDIT: It appears that a PC version is actually at risk! The mind boggles!

 

[Neb]

Yes it is cryptic with focus towards no PC release as he says "..in regards to the PC at a later in time." instead of "PC version". However if delayed release then how about DX11 support?

EDIT: However would be quite a stupid move since they have shown the game on PC and showcased their physics etc. Probably just timed exclusive.

 

[obonicus]

It's probably a delayed release, but MGS has been remarkably adamant about sticking to their 'no PC plans' statements, lately, with Fable and GeoW2. But still, I've heard that Remedy might have the PC publishing rights if MS does nothing with them.

 

[joker454]

If Remedy's focusing on the 360 version I think we can all expect a lag of at least 6 months, if not more (Gears of War). I want to believe Markus' answer does hint that a PC version is coming... eventually. The opposite would be far too insulting.

I'm a PC fan as well, but being in the biz I've seen first hand the severe damage that PC piracy has caused. As bad as people think it is on forums, it's actually 10x worse. Believe me the numbers are very scary, I can't emphasize enough at how serious the problem is. At this point many are simply too scared to release the PC version simultaneously with the console version. They may publicly wrap up their reasons with a whole bunch of excuses, but at this point simultaneous PC+Console releases are just too dangerous.

 

[obonicus]

I'm a PC fan as well, but being in the biz I've seen first hand the severe damage that PC piracy has caused. As bad as people think it is on forums, it's actually 10x worse. Believe me the numbers are very scary, I can't emphasize enough at how serious the problem is. At this point many are simply too scared to release the PC version simultaneously with the console version. They may publicly wrap up their reasons with a whole bunch of excuses, but at this point simultaneous PC+Console releases are just too dangerous.

In this case I think it also might be a question of pushing Alan Wake as a reason to own a 360. But what you're talking about is the real damage of piracy -- people will argue 'til they're blue in the face that piracy isn't a real problem in terms of actual lost revenue, but if publishers are afraid to bring their games to PC, the damage is done.

 

[Jack_Tripper]

I tend to agree - MS needs a new "360-only next-gen" title under their belt. I'd be willing to bet the current push to get the game to that console is just that - a push to get an "exclusive" title to the console. Kinda sucks though - new pC - nothing pretty to play

:*(

Jack

 

[swaaye]

If there's more profit to be had on the console side of the fence, business isn't going to hang around on the losing side. There's no complex mystery there at all. Obviously Microsoft wants to control you more too and the 360 is the best place they can have you for that.

On the other hand, Mass Effect was like this too. I'm patient and will happily wait for the PC version. We don't even know if Alan Wake is going to be any good anyway...

 

[Mobius1aic]

I got the answer........hehe............OpenGL and Linux/Mac OS rebellion! If such a revolution happened, MS would be so pissed. But the piracy thing I think is a bit sensationalized, the ability to prevent it is there (harder penalties for the crime, better work at stopping it). Russian developers and publisher 1C as well as the Russian Government has done a pretty good job of slapping it in the face, and you know what? PC gaming is very popular there, especially since people see the usefulness of a computer as a tool, an educational machine, as well as an entertainment device. Part of the piracy problem is not just the pirating itself but the fear that it's created and developers have allowed it to permiatte their brains so deeply that they are beginning to just abandon PC development altogether.

And also what if part of the piracy issue is the lack of playable demos for PC releases? I think that might be part of the issue, and next I think popular culture needs a boost in morality, not constantly romanticizing the idea of high stakes theft and the idea of being a pirate. Everyone just needs a change in mentality.

 

[swaaye]

I have a hard time seeing the happy-freeness and super-dooper fractured Linux world becoming a commercial games treasure trove. And I'm not sure how many Mac people care about games really.

Frankly I think PC gaming really is a lost cause outside of MMOs and other games that lock you into online content. The culture is pretty heavily about torrents unless the game has the "added value" of 5,000 locked-online grind hours. At least most people I run into seem to want to torrent-and-try before buying. If it's not a commercial lost cause, it's still definitely not as lucrative as console gaming.

I think it evolved from LAN sessions honestly. If you want to LAN up, almost without exception everybody needs a purchased copy of the game (usually $40-50). So everyone wants to crack one guy's copy because they aren't prepared to invest that money into a game that may not be their thing. It becomes a warez learning convention that's fun and rewarding for all (except the company that wants your money). The cracking mentality then slipped into every other game release. I even see PC gamers ignore legit demos in favor of just pirating the full version.

With consoles, you can play splitscreen. It reduces the number of copies of the game that are needed for a party. And, you are in for some very complex stuff if you want to dupe games. It's also impossible to use Xbox Live with a modded machine AFAIK. Game demos are very easily accessible and are part of the experience. I think console gamers have a very different mentality about buying games because of the different options available and because there just isn't the same piracy culture.



I'm not even sure that this game is worth getting hyped about anyway. We know little about it really. When the reviews come we'll just have to see....

 

[Kaotik]

The sad part is, the industry isn't doing much to prevent that "torrent-and-try" mentality either, I mean, how many years it has been since they actually did proper demos, preferrably released in good time before the actual retail game

 

[Silent_Buddha]

Yup I unfortunately know some people that just won't buy a game even if it only costs 10 USD. They STILL pirate it. And nothing I can do can seem to convince them otherwise. Even at 10 USD they still try to blame it on publishers/devs/whatever ripping people off.

Sigh...

And then they have the nerve to complain that Dev's are selling out by moving to console. I mean WTF? It's people like them that are pushing devs to console. And they are just too freaking blind to see it.

It's sad when I know more people that pirate games than I do people that buy games... 10 years ago almost none of them would have been pirating since they wouldn't have had the slightest clue how to do it.

Now it's just too bloody easy. Click a button, wait a while, shiny new game... /bigger_sigh.

Disgusted,
SB

 

[Sxotty]

Yup I unfortunately know some people that just won't buy a game even if it only costs 10 USD. They STILL pirate it. And nothing I can do can seem to convince them otherwise. Even at 10 USD they still try to blame it on publishers/devs/whatever ripping people off.

I freely admit I don't pay more than $20/game except in exceptionally rare circumstancees and then never more than 40

 

[PhilB]

They may publicly wrap up their reasons with a whole bunch of excuses, but at this point simultaneous PC+Console releases are just too dangerous.

Very true - and not the first time it's happened this gen.

I'm severely disappointed but I understand the devs reasonings if they decide to delay the PC release - hell it's a chance just releasing a game on PC nowadays. Hopefully there could be an upside to this. Since they could be releasing it some months after, they could potentially add DX11 support which would be a nice bonus.

I just hope they're still releasing the PC version and have not ditched it entirely (I don't think it's the case but you never know...).

 

[Richard]

Let me guess, they'll release it 8-12 months later and when it fails miserably at retail they'll blame piracy/reviewers/the weather (see GTA4/GoW).

I can understand, say, a 3 month lag since sales usually drop sharply after the first month and they slow to a trickle a couple of months after that, but lengthier periods only serve to frustrate gamers and completely miss the hype wave for the game.

 

[aaronspink]

I'm a PC fan as well, but being in the biz I've seen first hand the severe damage that PC piracy has caused. As bad as people think it is on forums, it's actually 10x worse. Believe me the numbers are very scary, I can't emphasize enough at how serious the problem is. At this point many are simply too scared to release the PC version simultaneously with the console version. They may publicly wrap up their reasons with a whole bunch of excuses, but at this point simultaneous PC+Console releases are just too dangerous.

Piracy is just as bad on the xbox360. If BD-rom was cheapers, it would be just as bad on the PS3.

Piracy isn't an excuse. Never has been. The numbers that the so called watchdogs generate are highly inaccurate.

 

[aaronspink]

In this case I think it also might be a question of pushing Alan Wake as a reason to own a 360. But what you're talking about is the real damage of piracy -- people will argue 'til they're blue in the face that piracy isn't a real problem in terms of actual lost revenue, but if publishers are afraid to bring their games to PC, the damage is done.

$20 says a rip of Alan Wake is on torrents, etc, before it is officially available in retail for xbox360!

 

[obonicus]

Piracy is just as bad on the xbox360. If BD-rom was cheapers, it would be just as bad on the PS3.

Piracy isn't an excuse. Never has been. The numbers that the so called watchdogs generate are highly inaccurate.

$20 says a rip of Alan Wake is on torrents, etc, before it is officially available in retail for xbox360!

Thank you for proving my point. You're one of the people arguing 'til they're blue in the face that I referred to. Meanwhile, the publishers don't care what you have to say -- they're releasing their games half a year late anyway. Whether piracy is the same on the 360 (which doesn't get the same piracy complaints as the PC) is irrelevant if the end-result is more studios shifting their resources off the PC.

 

[Scott_Arm]

Remedy is probably under pressure to earn some revenue. How long has this game been in development? If they focus on 360, where they'll most definitely make the most money, they can probably get it out the door quicker. Sucks for PC gamers, but the development of this game seems to have been anything but smooth.

 

[swaaye]

$20 says a rip of Alan Wake is on torrents, etc, before it is officially available in retail for xbox360!

That is true but the catch is that it is a whole lot harder to get a 360 ready to run pirated games than it is a PC. It's a risky thing to do cuz you could make your machine into a brick, it's probably going to cost some $$, will definitely cost you time, and you can get banned from Xbox Live in the process.

How many hacked 360's do you know of? I don't anyone personally that modded one.

On a PC all you need to do usually is find a torrent and read a short readme. It's so damn easy that I think even my parents could figure it out.

 

[N00b]

Another possibility is that Microsoft wants to make this a showcase title for DX11. So they hold back the PC version until DX11 cards are more widespread. With Windows 7 and DX11 they have, for the first time in years, the opportunity to position the PC as a premium plattform for games.