Does the PC need casual games to survive as a gaming platform? Probably not, but a new focus on the growing trend could help in the battle against gaming consoles.
Panelists from Nvidia, Intel, Microsoft, Electronic Arts, and Crytek at GeForce LAN 4 were naturally positive about the state of PC gaming at their panel, but that doesn't change the fact that PC gaming sales numbers are down, fallling $970 million in 2006 from 2001's $1.5 billion.
The classic PC gaming complaint is focused at the cost of a PC gaming rig versus a console. Top tier PC titles like Crysis have hardware requirements that are beyond the standard off-the-shelf store system's specs, where as console gaming's hottest titles only require a game purchase.
One solution to get PC gaming's numbers back up is to involve more owners off-the-shelf systems, and casual games could be the perfect vehicle. Panelist Randy Stude, director of Intel's gaming platform office, agrees: "Something needs to be done so a person buying a PC at Wal-Mart could be a PC gamer too."
Casual games will have more mass market appeal than current popular PC titles. It seems that many of the top titles are shooters or strategy games that aren't as easily approachable. Intel VP Dadi Perlmutter recently pointed out that these days PC games seem to involve killing on a mass scale. C|Net's News.com makes a really good point: people are buying PCs anyway, so why don't game developers focus on casual yet compelling games for those of us without an itchy trigger finger?
Our take is that the PC doesn't need casual gaming, but it could definitely help. These easier, more approachable games can be a sort of "gateway drug" for newcomers, and shorter development times and lower development costs could equal more money for PC game makers. It seems like a no brainer, doesn't it?
[Via News.com]
Contest:
12:58 PM on 11.19.2007
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i think there is a market for more games in the syle of 'you don't know jack', but trying to turn the pc into the wii is an exercise in futility.
It's the reason the Xbox exists really though, so when you're considering markets, you're sort of going the way of PC+Xbox vs. Sony vs. Nintendo. It was obvious since the PSX days that console gaming will be the major share of the market, and the PC will be there for the stuff consoles more or less can't do, or just ports from consoles (D3D10 that's in Vista right now is an example of that).
It'll really get to a point, I believe, where the consoles will try to emulate everything the PC's are about. PS3 is kinda trying with that lame Linux build, but that's neither here or there yet. However I do believe some generations down the line, a console will be able to do everytihng a PC does, and provide a stable hardware line for gaming as well.
The Pc is the first casual gaming platform by quite a large margin
just imagine the thousands of mini games available on the internet that a lot of people play, then take into account that any pc owner with a little knowledge has MAME or any other similar emulator that runs thousands of classic arcade games (almost any game available on the arcades or any console available till about de year 2000).
I remember seeing a quote a while back some where that went like, "saying PC gaming will die out because consoles are so cheap and easy is like saying hot rods will die out because there are Toyota Camrys." Building a PC and playing games on it is a hobby unto itself, and an admittedly expensive one at that.
My parents bought a mid range PC about a year ago. I spent $200 for 2GB of ram and a 7600GT and I can run most games on low to mid range settings, Orange Box on high. Also, the games are $50 cheaper and with a little work you can have total backwards compatibility.
Until someone makes a mass-market gaming PC with standardized hardware. That doesn't suck. We'll see.
I'm almost sure that at anytime an in global scale there's more people playing solitare or online poker that any other "casual" game available on any console.
Its been an awesome year for PC Gaming and I'd have to say its on an upswing at the moment.
Although, the Sims sold millions.
*shrug* Maybe I'm just retarded.
Alien Hominid a casual flash based game that was later turned into a Console game.
Perhaps the biggest Casual game "bejeweled" started as a pop up flash based game for PC.
So the question should NOT be "Does the PC need casual games to survive as a gaming platform?" But it should be "Can casual games flourish in the absence of a PC gaming platform?"
Answer to both: No.
If there's one gaming platform that will survive forever, its the PC. Do you see computers going anywhere anytime soon? As long as there are computers, there will be computer games. Period.
Casual gaming borned and still reigns on the pc platform, so does hardcore.
'nuff said.
There are so many web based games, free to download games, etc on the PC that I am shocked that these so called "panelists" could be so out of touch with reality that they actually believe this.
My girlfriend's mother plays casual games on her PC at home, ffs!
Some games are awfull ports of the console version... others are a evolution from the console version like Gears Of War. I dont get what they tried to do with the LIVE thing microsoft promotes in the games for windows. The nice thing about pc gaming is that we can play online for free... i think the LIVE service is a bad joke, they make you pay for nothing, they doesnt even host the games on microsoft services... so why are they charging?? because of the ability to have a friends list and to show my balls on the cam?
PC developers simply do not have a well-organized method for promoting these low-profile games, so most good casual games go unnoticed, even if they are free. Publishers that specialize in casual games, like PopCap, eGames, and Raptorsoft go a long way, and new services like Gametap should help. They can never really compete with the consoles in terms of an organized sales network, though. Despite being in the online arena for such a short time, the consoles have secured this market quite well.
Except for the Playstation Store. God, that place is so badly designed, I can't imagine anyone even finding something there, let along buying it.
when i go to talk to people about pc games all i say is 'i play games on my computer' and hope for a response, when people with consoles say 'i have a ps3' the reaction they get is 'wow can i come play with it?' , and to think that the ps3 is the price of the video card in my computer alone, no wonder its in the state its in...
what i would like to see is like, something which will let games be extremely scalable, and allow the game makers to focus on an approachable and fun game for the average players while having the flexibility for enthusiasts to boast their e-manhoods... and most importantly, for the technological aspect of this thing to exist at a level which will make it apply to all gaming on pc's (i.e. directx),thats the biggest disadvantage of pcs compared to consoles, the lowest common denominator...
while in the gameplay aspect, it should follow the trend of mutiplayer onilne games, but shift the focus so that the game should reward players for playing at all, not for being good at the game, while leaving enough headroom for a players' improving abilities to make being good rewarding in its own .... like, basically to stop punishing the poor players and rewarding the good players, and to do that it needs to be more of a 'game' , and less of a 'sport'
With something like DOA 4 or Virtua Fighter 5 for example, technically and online wise, it could work on PC, but the reliance on keyboard kills these kinds of games dead in the water. This is a real shame, keyboard and mouse is good for some games but bad for others. More pad support is sorely needed on PC.
Again this is why 360 etc will keep grabbing the market by the balls. Basic simplicity, variety and ease of use. On top of that there's more money to be made on consoles. This is why we see few games developed just for PC alone these days.