Is PC Gaming a profitable business?

2008-02-02 15:19:49

#1

ELITE-UK: Scratching my back; +170|6491|SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND

Im seeing more and more pc game exclusives moving onto the consoles because they will get the sales there, most games now are just not making it and only a select few are at least getting some sales.

So is PC gaming a profitable business and should i worry about the future of this platform?

2008-02-02 15:22:34

#2

DanishHonor: Member; +8|6016|Denmark

ELITE-UK wrote:
should i worry about the future of this platform?

Not at all.

2008-02-02 15:28:56

#3

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6215|Winland

One word: Customization.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-02-02 15:29:34

#4

jord: Member; +2,382|6695|The North, beyond the wall.

One word: Simplicity.

2008-02-02 15:43:03

#5

b.branscombe: Member; +5|6218

jord wrote:
One word: Simplicity.

Truth. Honestly, the only thing keeping me playing PC games (I don't have a PS3/360) is the mouse and keyboard, which I find vastly superior for FPS games. I just can't stand shooters using a controller.

If Sony or Microsoft would release a system that used and input device similar to a mouse and keyboard (at least as an option), I'd buy it in a second. Computers provide lots of little hassles to someone who isn't an expert with them.

2008-02-02 15:45:54

#6

naightknifar: Served and Out; +642|6579|Southampton, UK

One word: DESU

In all seriousness 4chan>you PC Gaming has always been more profitable and a much wider enjoyed genre.
It just took those assholes ages to realize.

2008-02-02 15:49:45

#7

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6215|Winland

jord wrote:
One word: Simplicity.

Two words: No upgrades.

(Oh god, here we go...)

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-02-02 15:55:53

#8

jord: Member; +2,382|6695|The North, beyond the wall.

Freezer7Pro wrote:
jord wrote:
One word: Simplicity.
Two words: No upgrades.

(Oh god, here we go...)

Okay cut the 2 words shit now before it gets too boring.

PC's can be upgraded, so what? Consoles don't need to be, you get the game and it's guaranteed to work on your console. No nonsense, that's one hell of an appeal for me.

2008-02-02 16:03:02

#9

DanishHonor: Member; +8|6016|Denmark

BTW. Can you use your mouse and keyboard on a random console?

Cool if you can...

2008-02-02 16:04:00

#10

CrazeD: Member; +368|6690|Maine

Yeah, but your 360 or PS3 is exactly like every other 360 or PS3. There is no uniqueness at all, and if you try to be unique (read: mod) you get banned from internet play. How boring...

With my PC, I can tear it apart and add something different whenever I want and not care. I can tweak to increase performance. I can overclock. I can do more than just play games. Those are the reasons that PC's will always be > consoles in my opinion.

2008-02-02 16:07:19

#11

Jenspm: penis; +1,716|6750|St. Andrews / Oslo

consoles:
+ all games work (no more "is my PC good enough?", and games like crysis that don't work )
+ Put in game -> Play
+ More friend-friendly (playing XBox 360 together > playing together on 1 PC.)
- Not upgradable
- Console Specific games (ie - no GT5 for XBox 360)

PC:
+ Customizable, upgradable
+ Mouse + Keyboard
+ More games
- Fucking software issues
- Lag
- Some games just don't work (easy to patch...)

https://static.bf2s.com/files/user/26774/flickricon.png

2008-02-02 16:13:05

#12

jord: Member; +2,382|6695|The North, beyond the wall.

CrazeD wrote:
Yeah, but your 360 or PS3 is exactly like every other 360 or PS3. There is no uniqueness at all, and if you try to be unique (read: mod) you get banned from internet play. How boring...

With my PC, I can tear it apart and add something different whenever I want and not care. I can tweak to increase performance. I can overclock. I can do more than just play games. Those are the reasons that PC's will always be > consoles in my opinion.

Yes but you're probably a tech expert, for most people messing about putting parts in updating drivers or whatever is just a hassle. I consider myself a casual gamer, I don't play for hours on end and don't have the time/effort/money to mess about with my computer. I buy a game and want to play it. Simple really.

2008-02-02 16:19:31

#13

RoosterCantrell: Goodbye :); +399|6497|Somewhere else

jord wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
jord wrote:
One word: Simplicity.
Two words: No upgrades.

(Oh god, here we go...)
Okay cut the 2 words shit now before it gets too boring.

PC's can be upgraded, so what? Consoles don't need to be, you get the game and it's guaranteed to work on your console. No nonsense, that's one hell of an appeal for me.

Consoles dont need to be?

PSX PS2 PS3

XBOX, XBOX 360.

ok, while they aren't upgrades, they are whole new systems, and now the systems are getting really damn expensive. The lifespan of a computer seems to be longer than consoles, and cheaper upgrades (as opposed to whole new system) is better IMO. I am not up to speed on PS3 or 360s but computers seem to have a much larger span of capabilites.

Also, as these consoles become more and more advanced, they are becoming PC's anyway.

Playstation, XBox, will someday be another name in the Dell, HP, Compaq catagory.

2008-02-02 16:22:45

#14

trippy982: Member; +34|6415

Good thing about the PC is that you can always play old games (at least for now depending if you have Vista or not). For example, I sometimes I want to play the original GTA game, Worms 2, Rogue Spear, etc... and I can do that no problem. Heck I can even play ROMs from old consoles. But with XBox and PS3, if I wanted to play something old like ninetendo games or SNES, I can't unless I have the original consoles. However, I do see the trend changing in that consoles become a little more like waterdowned PCs capable of having an OS and being programmable to the users.

PC games will be profitable for a long time. Don't forget, the gaming industry at this point is more profitable than the movie business. This wasn't the case 3 years ago. The trend points that gaming will continue to be more and more profitable. What will make PC games more profitable than console games and more appealing to the makers of games is in-game advertisement. Advertisement in the game pulled from the Internet and based on your browser's cookies and general browsing habits will thrive in PC games. This can't really be done in consoles since no one really surf the web on consoles. In-game advertisement brings marketing to a whole new level that makers of PC games can take advantage of that console games can't. Heck with enough revenue from marketing through in-line game marketing, PC version of games can be free while the console version has a retail price....

Last edited by trippy982 (2008-02-02 16:24:56)

2008-02-02 16:23:09

#15

lavadisk: I am a cat ¦ 3; +369|6847|Denver colorado

naightknifar wrote:
One word: DESU

In all seriousness 4chan>you PC Gaming has always been more profitable and a much wider enjoyed genre.
It just took those assholes ages to realize.

4chan died a while ago. Stop mindlessly following them and act normal.

2008-02-02 16:26:42

#16

Catbox: forgiveness; +505|6734

PC games are dying because of piracy and hackers... and EA...

It's a profitable business for the big companies... as a modder I have learned that the pay is not that great at a big game company...lot's of hours
lot's of stress and low pay...

If you develop a new game(you need lots of money and very dedicated devs) and then get bought out by a big company...then you can make some good money...

Love is the answer

2008-02-02 21:48:05

#17

jaymz9350: Member; +54|6595

jord wrote:
Freezer7Pro wrote:
jord wrote:
One word: Simplicity.
Two words: No upgrades.

(Oh god, here we go...)
Okay cut the 2 words shit now before it gets too boring.

PC's can be upgraded, so what? Consoles don't need to be, you get the game and it's guaranteed to work on your console. No nonsense, that's one hell of an appeal for me.

yeah but in 2 years when your Consoles graphics look out dated the PC's won't. This is the major downside (besides no KB mouse for shooters) I have with consoles. PC graphics are always improving in a steady upward movement while console take steps whenever they release a new one. Plus with the ability to mod PC games (which mods are usually free) you can double if not more the life of a game with added content.

2008-02-02 22:14:24

#18

Turquoise: O Canada; +1,596|6422|North Carolina

One word: piracy.

It's much harder to pirate console games. This is why they move to the consoles a lot. There may come a time when almost all games will be released for consoles and very few will be available for PCs.

It sucks, but it's kind of inevitable.

2008-02-02 22:19:46

#19

NeXuS: Shock it till ya know it; +375|6359|Atlanta, Georgia

Build a computer for porn.

2008-02-02 22:20:47

#20

lavadisk: I am a cat ¦ 3; +369|6847|Denver colorado

NeXuS4909 wrote:
Build a computer for porn.

and build a tent and say the world is dry.

2008-02-03 03:35:34

#21

Freezer7Pro: I don't come here a lot anymore.; +1,447|6215|Winland

Ok, taking a heavy part on computers side:

Upgradable - You don't have to buy a new system every 2 years.
Backwards compatible - NES on a PS3? I don't think so.
Overclockable - Lots of extra performance for free.
Multitasking - You can do more than play one game at a time.
Keyboard and mouse - ...
More than a gaming machine - You can surf the web, be on IM clients, program things, manage your files, download stuff and so on.
Storage - You can have all your games fast accessable on your hard drive, without having to load from a slow optical medium.
Customoization - You can make your PC look nicer, run faster and operate cooler a lot easier than on consoles, and without getting banned.
"Consoles don't need to be" - Please run a PS3 game on a PS2 for me, jord. Go ahead.
Mobility - Gaming laptops are better than carrying around your PS3 all over.

Etcetera, etcetera.

The idea of any hi-fi system is to reproduce the source material as faithfully as possible, and to deliberately add distortion to everything you hear (due to amplifier deficiencies) because it sounds 'nice' is simply not high fidelity. If that is what you want to hear then there is no problem with that, but by adding so much additional material (by way of harmonics and intermodulation) you have a tailored sound system, not a hi-fi. - Rod Elliot, ESP

2008-02-03 03:37:41

#22

Mitch92uK: aka [DBS]Mitch92uK; +192|6253|United Kingdom

Freezer7Pro wrote:
Ok, taking a heavy part on computers side:

Upgradable - You don't have to buy a new system every 2 years.

Well ..... cost is a downside for pc gaming imo, being 15 and earning pretty much fuck all atm

2008-02-03 03:39:39

#23

xGj: Official lame Crysis fanboy.; +84|6389|Netherlands tbh

Jenspm wrote:
consoles:
+ all games work (no more "is my PC good enough?", and games like crysis that don't work )
+ Put in game -> Play
+ More friend-friendly (playing XBox 360 together > playing together on 1 PC.)
- Not upgradable
- Console Specific games (ie - no GT5 for XBox 360)

PC:
+ Customizable, upgradable
+ Mouse + Keyboard
+ More games
- Fucking software issues
- Lag
- Some games just don't work (easy to patch...)

Console's can have lag too, and bugs in games.
But I have a few reasons to keep gaming on the pc, first of all, communities. You won't find forums and clans so easily on console's online systems. I also do a lot of other things with my pc, and the fact that I'm a PC enthusiast (meaning I like hardware and such) makes me not play on a console. Sure with friends it's a lot of fun (I own an old xbox too), but it just doesnt cut it for me.

2008-02-03 03:42:17

#24

Little BaBy JESUS: m8; +394|6166|'straya

Well lets see... everyone has a computer for internetz... work etc. so why not just have a decent one so u can play computer games instead of buying a new console?

Personally i think the Wii is kinda cool because it goes for a different audience... where as theres nothing u can do on a ps3/xbox 360 that u cant do on a PC

2008-02-03 04:30:14

#25

naightknifar: Served and Out; +642|6579|Southampton, UK

lavadisk wrote:
NeXuS4909 wrote:
Build a computer for porn.
and build a tent and say the world is dry.

lavadisk wrote:
naightknifar wrote:
One word: DESU

In all seriousness 4chan>you PC Gaming has always been more profitable and a much wider enjoyed genre.
It just took those assholes ages to realize.
4chan died a while ago. Stop mindlessly following them and act normal.

Says the one who flames everyone and has the Email your reply back ASAP scrolling sig.
We both posted our thoughts - You just flamed. GTFO or shut up.

BF2S Forums Is PC Gaming a profitable business?

ELITE-UK wrote:

jord wrote:

jord wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

jord wrote:

CrazeD wrote:

jord wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

jord wrote:

naightknifar wrote:

jord wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

jord wrote:

NeXuS4909 wrote:

Freezer7Pro wrote:

Jenspm wrote:

lavadisk wrote:

NeXuS4909 wrote:

lavadisk wrote:

naightknifar wrote:

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