what is it with PC and retail?

[Chibz]

The ever-shrinking PC game array in stores is actually now a source of a meta-game with my friends. "Find the PC Games!"

You simply have to find the PC-gaming section in an electronic gaming store. Then I record roughly how large it is. The current "loser" in size is Rogers. Their PC gaming array was (I kid you not) limited to Cataclysm.

 

[Oxford The Cat]

They don't sell in store, that's part of the reason.

PC gamers don't really buy at the store, I can't remember the last time I bought a game from a retail outlet, it's easly over 5 or 6 years - it's all done online or by Steam.


If they don't sell, why would retailers devote shelf space to them or bother stocking them?

PCs had a clear technological edge over consoles, so a lot of developers favored PCs.
......Now, though, consoles are basically specialized computers with most- if not all- of the functionality of their desktop counterparts.
......However, if I buy a computer (even if I build a top of the line rig from scratch), I may be replacing parts within months just to keep up with the curve (Crysis, anyone?) Nowadays, PC gaming is mostly the domain of MMOs and hardcore strategy games.

These statements are all absolute certifiable nonsense.

 

[Souplex]

Because most American PC gamers burst into flames when exposed to fresh air or natural light.

 

[Zipa]

2 words: Digital downloads.

Its been a looooong time since I last bought a PC game at a store. I have bouth dozens of PC games over the past couple of years, and almost all of them were bought from digital stores like STEAM, GoG and Impulse. Its easier, simpler, and WAY less expensive in my country where games cost a shitload (sometimes like 40-50% more, I shit you not) when you buy them in the stores.

I almost always buy my console games since you can't barrow or play other peoples console games if you buy them digitally, but when it comes to PC games: Digital all the way.

PC digital downloads only became so popular because of the retail stores basically telling the PC and its gamers and devs to go fourth and multiply. As a result people like steam have stepped up to the plate.


Steama and the others are a result of the retailers not wanting to stock PC titles because they are far too busy creaming the consoles not the cause.

The other issue is most PC gamers at one point will of run afoul of oppressive DRM (starforce disabling multiple disk drives and generally making PC game life miserable) and see Steam and impulse as a far better alternative since it doesn't start denying you the use of your own computer and doesn't assume you are a priate.

 

[JoshGod]

I have two game stores and a hmv which has a third of its shop filled with games in my town. One of the game stores has a small section of pc games. I suppose most pc games are bought online or downloaded.

 

[GotMalkAvian]

These statements are all absolute certifiable nonsense.

I'm not sure if that was sarcastic or not, so I'll defend myself...

PCs were the first gaming devices to use CD-Rom technology, as well as having greater memory and processing speeds. True, not all that power was dedicated to gaming like in a console, but there was still enough power to allow them greater capability than the consoles. As you can tell, I'm not talking about the last two years in gaming, here.

How are consoles today not almost computers? True, I won't be running Photoshop on my 360, but consoles today allow for instant messaging, internet access, and thanks to partnerships with services like facebook and netflix, consoles are offering some of the most popular applications used by PC users.

Have you bought or built a gaming rig lately? Sure, you can go some time without replacing bits or upgrading, but soon enough you won't be able to turn those graphics sliders up quite as high as you used to, and sure enough, a console the same age will still be top of the line. The bottom line is that a console offers cutting-edge technology out of the box with no need for tweaking and that console will remain top-of-the-line until the next generation comes along with the same out of the box accessibility.

Don't get me wrong, here; it hurts to type all of this. I used to be a pure PC gamer, and skipped several generations of consoles because I felt the best games were on PC. However, I've seen an increasing trend since the PS1 generation, and the market is dictating that consoles are the way to play games now.

 

[KiKiweaky]

Gamestop down the road from me have a pathetic selection of pc games..... one shelf and thats it

Dunno bout some of the other stores in the city as I dont go into town much, but gamestop really dont like us. The games they do get are generally ?10 cheaper than what you can buy on steam if your buying new titles so I still go there for new releases.

 

[Zipa]

These statements are all absolute certifiable nonsense.

I'm not sure if that was sarcastic or not, so I'll defend myself...

PCs were the first gaming devices to use CD-Rom technology, as well as having greater memory and processing speeds. True, not all that power was dedicated to gaming like in a console, but there was still enough power to allow them greater capability than the consoles. As you can tell, I'm not talking about the last two years in gaming, here.

How are consoles today not almost computers? True, I won't be running Photoshop on my 360, but consoles today allow for instant messaging, internet access, and thanks to partnerships with services like facebook and netflix, consoles are offering some of the most popular applications used by PC users.

Have you bought or built a gaming rig lately? Sure, you can go some time without replacing bits or upgrading, but soon enough you won't be able to turn those graphics sliders up quite as high as you used to, and sure enough, a console the same age will still be top of the line. The bottom line is that a console offers cutting-edge technology out of the box with no need for tweaking and that console will remain top-of-the-line until the next generation comes along with the same out of the box accessibility.

Don't get me wrong, here; it hurts to type all of this. I used to be a pure PC gamer, and skipped several generations of consoles because I felt the best games were on PC. However, I've seen an increasing trend since the PS1 generation, and the market is dictating that consoles are the way to play games now.

I built a new PC in May this year, none of the parts are yet obsolete or need changing. My previous PC worked very well even on modern games. The level at which tech is progressing is slowing down. Plus my PC still runs circles round any of the consoles in every single area. Its faster has better grapics and CPU processing has greater RAM and allows me to multitask while gaming easier than any console being as I have a keyboard and mouse.

 

[Woodsey]

I only buy PC games online now (unless I happen to see a really good deal in store - chances of which are not likely) so I can't say it bothers me all that much.

 

[KalosCast]

No profit. Game sales make a terrible profit for retail outlets. Consoles make a good profit for retail outlets. People will buy a console for just one game. PC gamers generally don't buy computers from retail outlets at all, and if they do, a hot new game doesn't move PCs.

Gamestop doen the road from me have a pathetic selection of pc games..... one shelf and thats it

Dunno bout some of the other stores in the city as I dont go into town much, but gamestop really dont like us. The games they do get are generally ?10 cheaper than what you can buy on steam if your buying new titles so I still go there new releases.

The Gamestop near me has also gotten pathetic enough that I don't shop there anymore. They went from having their own wall section to having their own floor shelving unit thing, to having one side of the shelving unit, to having half of one side. They went from being my go-to source for finding older or more obscure games to not even reliably stocking mainstream titles.

 

[KiKiweaky]

snip

Ye it gradually got smaller over time, I didnt really notice it before as I wasnt the one buying games at the time. Now I have money I really notice it. I cant really blame them though its just so much easier to keep a large stock of games on a rack of servers than ship them out all over Europe.

 

[GotMalkAvian]

I built a new PC in May this year, none of the parts are yet obsolete or need changing. My previous PC worked very well even on modern games. The level at which tech is progressing is slowing down. Plus my PC still runs circles round any of the consoles in every single area. Its faster has better grapics and CPU processing has greater RAM and allows me to multitask while gaming easier than any console being as I have a keyboard and mouse.

Okay, yeah, you've definitely got me on the multitasking and the mouse/keyboard combo. There's no way I can argue with you there.

Congrats on building a series of lasting rigs. I'll admit that I've been out of the PC gaming loop for some time (my current computer can run WoW at decent settings, but Oblivion made it cry), and I've actually been thinking about trying to get a new desktop for Old Republic. Since it's just about tax return time here in the USA, I might put some of that money into a computer. Hopefully you're right about hardware advancement slowing down.

 

[BRMXJzjsoawk321]

-

 

[KiKiweaky]

snip

Hasnt slowed doen that much really, sure your computer will last bought mine about a year and a half ago and its still eating everything that comes its way. What I did see though was a the 1gb graphics card I bought is now about £250-350 (when I bought it it was sitting pretty at £450) and the latest one 1.5gb is now the top of the range at around £450.

I've had no trouble running anything yet, my current pc even play crysis smoothly so I should be good for another few years. I can always buy a second card of the same type and do a bit of SLI, or better yet buy an even more powerful graphics card =D

I was pretty lucky though as at the time sterling was really weak and I was paying in euro. The day before I bought the computer sterling went in value against the euro by 2 pence meaning the final cost to me was an extra ?50 haha.

 

[Therumancer]

Well, for those who remember PC gaming used to have a MUCH larger prescence in retail,

The issue being manyfold. For one there *are* more console gamers than PC gamers out there, like it or not. Then there are the issues with piracy and software returns, you can typically return or trade in a console game, but with a PC game this isn't generally possible. The nature of PC gaming nowadays ALSO means that used game sales aren't possible, and by selling console games they fuel their rather lucrative used game sales as well.

Then of course there is the issue that the gaming industry is pushing digital downloads, and are simply producing a lot less physical media. What's more people who buy physical copies of PC games are increasingly complaining that they have to put the games online for verification anyway, or that the disc in the box simply connects them to STEAM and gives them a code or whatever (Dawn Of War II, Mount and Blade Warband, Left 4 Dead 2, and others have all had this complaint made). Gamers not being a very assertive bunch of course go to buy their games digitally and save themselves the trouble, as opposed to not buying games at all. Pretty much giving the game industry what it's trying to force.

There are a lot of reasons for it, but yeah, PC gaming has a poor representation in retail, and really that isn't going to change unless people start demanding physical media with their wallets by simply not purchusing digital products.

-

Also, one final point, the advent of MMOs massively changed the gaming landscape, especially World Of Warcraft. Generally speaking the amount of content present in your typical MMO is pretty similar to the amount of content in a single player RPG, it's just online and developed with multiplayer capability, the subscriptions involved (even considering server costs) allow for a much higher rate of profit. While there are people still developing single player games, almost everyone has gone towards the online/multiplayer thing irregardless of genere because of the possible profits. Even a failed MMO can typically out perform a successful single player game, since the company is getting that initial software sale before anything else.

Likewise, the long term investment people put into MMOs means that those people are occupied with them and not buying other games. Single player experiences largely becoming the domain of console gamers as a result. One of the big defenses made by people paying subscriptions for games like "World of Warcraft" is that $15 a month spent there is less money than they would spend to keep themselves occupied for the same time by buying other games. There is a lot of truth like that and when you multiply it by millions of people... well, you can see why PC gaming has taken a hit. Especially when you consider that you aren't even seeing that many MMOs developed because of the dominance of "World Of Warcraft". You hear people talk about how Blizzard killed PC gaming, and there is some truth to that, because of how much of the market plays WoW exclusively and doesn't buy other PC games, and how WoW dominated so totally that even other subscription-based MMOs are becoming unviable. Pretty much every MMO put up against WoW has died, or gone free to play (scrabbling with cash shops, because they aren't of comparible quality to justify a subscription fee), because all hype (and lies) aside nobody has been willing to risk developing at the same level... until now, unless EA is lying (like a lot of companies have) "Old Republic Online" is the first game to be genuinely developed with the time and money to compete with what WoW currently is (and I suspect it might succeed largely due to the fact that WoW is a *really* old game and, even with the Cataclysm update it's age shows).

 

[Vault101]

[quote/]

What is your internet plan? All of my friends have at least a one or two hundred gigs per month.[/quote]

do all your freinds happen to be american too? I have 6gb a month (australia) though I hope to get better internet in the future