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[Chiggs]

Couldn't be more wrong.

No, I think I'm being far more honest than you are.

In terms of gaming software, the console market is larger. I'm more than willing to eat crow if someone can provide a link to a reputable article.

Edit:

Here's an article from NPD that discusses 2009 sales (PC vs Console)

http://www.npd.com/press/releases/press_100114.html

Console: 19.66 billion (includes hardware + software)

PC: 10.5 billion (just software).

You might have a point since the 19.66 includes hardware. Anything more recent?

 

[Secks4Food]

No, I think I'm being far more honest than you are.

In terms of gaming software, the console market is larger. I'm more than willing to eat crow if someone can provide a link to a reputable article.

Honesty has nothing to do with it.

I don't think it would even be possible to find a single comprehensive article to detail every PC game sale ever, but common sense should tell you that the PC has been around for years, consoles only get like 5 years a piece, so obviously the PC has more sales. Sales within a given time frame could be a valid argument, but like I said, good luck finding stats either way.

Fake Edit: NPD doesn't include downloadable sales so yeah good job.

 

[Chiggs]

Fake Edit: NPD doesn't include downloadable sales so yeah good job.

Why the attitude?

I said this:

You might have a point since the 19.66 includes hardware. Anything more recent?

 

[RiccochetJ]

This is really dependent on the person. Your friend is simply a bit of a performance nut. Someone could have spent $1000 3-4 years ago and it would still be running just about everything fine. There are a few exceptional PC games that do demand a bit of a premium: Crysis (at least on High/Very High), Metro 2033 (again, on High/Very High), and lately, The Witcher 2.

*snip*

But this yearly rebuild isn't the norm. I know people who've purchased every 360 revision but I know that's not the average case. If you built a ~$600-700 rig at the start of this gen, there's a good chance it's still capable of running nearly every PC exclusive released up to now at medium; every multiplat title should run at least as good as their console counterparts.

*snip*

Good points. It was my real life experience and I hope you understand that it has an effect on my perception of PC gaming. I've been to a LAN party of his and apparently all of the attendees other than myself feel the same as him. I've always said to him that I won't build a new rig until Diablo 3 comes out and even though my new rig will be more than enough to run it, I want to play BF 3 the way it's supposed to be played.

 

[Nex Superne]

So are you saying that console exclusive gamers are stupid?

I know that not all PC gamers are like you, so I say this specifically for you: fuck you, buddy.

Nope, it wasn't directed at a specific group of gamers at all. Mostly tongue-in-cheek.

Anyway, nicely done on an empty post, devoid of argument or viewpoint. It isn't even ad hominem: just an insult a second grader might consider and discard.

But don't try too hard, you might strain something!

 

[elrechazado]

Having 100% knowledge that I can buy any game and it'll run as best as it can on the platform without me having yo do anything at all, no drivers update, tweaking .ini files or anything. At most if a patch needs to be applied, let the game install that patch for me.

I've been gaming on a pc for 20+ years and have never edited an ini file. Ever.

 

[scy]

Good points. It was my real life experience and I hope you understand that it has an effect on my perception of PC gaming. I've been to a LAN party of his and apparently all of the attendees other than myself feel the same as him. I've always said to him that I won't build a new rig until Diablo 3 comes out and even though my new rig will be more than enough to run it, I want to play BF 3 the way it's supposed to be played.

Yeah and, really, personal examples/experiences are the most persuasive. It's just one I can't wrap my head around since, as mentioned, I have a friend who's purchased every 360 for no reason; I have a friend who's gone through multiple iPhones merely because "must have the newer one." It's something that's not really limited to PCs in general, just technology as a whole. There exists something better/newer and I must have it mentality.

Which is something consoles do have for them, usually, in that they're a buy it and forget about it sort of hardware purchase. Though, you can do the same for PCs. Just upgrade around whenever a new console generation hits and you're fine. There's mid-generation upgrades you can do but they're not really necessary.

 

[Secks4Food]

Why the attitude?

I said this:

Too much exposure to this thread I guess, I'm not even trying to be an asshole on purpose, it's just such a constant stream of pure ignorance like this thread can really boil the blood.

Still, when you just automatically think "no way can PC game sales compete with consoles" and then a 10 second google search yields evidence to the contrary, doesn't that make you think "gee, maybe I should actually bother to know what I'm talking about before I post make a statement"? I sure hope so.

 

[scy]

...and then a 10 second google search yields evidence to the contrary...

This applies to like ... 90% of the conflict in the topic, really.

 

[Mooreberg]

No, I think I'm being far more honest than you are.

In terms of gaming software, the console market is larger. I'm more than willing to eat crow if someone can provide a link to a reputable article.

Edit:

Here's an article from NPD that discusses 2009 sales (PC vs Console)

http://www.npd.com/press/releases/press_100114.html

Console: 19.66 billion (includes hardware + software)

PC: 10.5 billion (just software).

You might have a point since the 19.66 includes hardware. Anything more recent?

Yikes. Five of the top ten PC games in 2009 were not even released in 2009?

 

[cartman414]

really?

A couple of them are hard to follow.

Personally I find being able to switch from one game to another straight from the Steam frontend (or even the desktop) quicker than going over to the console and changing the game. Heck, it's also why I prefer custom firmware for PSP and flashcarts for NDS (for games I already have, mind you): quick loading, no need to change game media.

And interface, and for that matter, controls, are really a case-by-case basis. RTS, FPS, and other genres that require precise controls and or quick access to menus/macros/etc. and require/benefit from management from an overhead view are better served on PC and kb + m.

Yeah and, really, personal examples/experiences are the most persuasive. It's just one I can't wrap my head around since, as mentioned, I have a friend who's purchased every 360 for no reason; I have a friend who's gone through multiple iPhones merely because "must have the newer one." It's something that's not really limited to PCs in general, just technology as a whole. There exists something better/newer and I must have it mentality.

Which is something consoles do have for them, usually, in that they're a buy it and forget about it sort of hardware purchase. Though, you can do the same for PCs. Just upgrade around whenever a new console generation hits and you're fine. There's mid-generation upgrades you can do but they're not really necessary.

Agreed. 4-5 years sounds pretty okay for a computer lifecycle. Helps to keep up with the tech, so you know when the latest product line refreshes (CPUs, GPUs, SSDs, etc.) take place.

 

[Gully State]

No, I think I'm being far more honest than you are.

In terms of gaming software, the console market is larger. I'm more than willing to eat crow if someone can provide a link to a reputable article.

Edit:

Here's an article from NPD that discusses 2009 sales (PC vs Console)

http://www.npd.com/press/releases/press_100114.html

Console: 19.66 billion (includes hardware + software)

PC: 10.5 billion (just software).

You might have a point since the 19.66 includes hardware. Anything more recent?

Source 2010

PC gaming market is growing, bigger and more diverse.

 

[Vaporak]

No, I think I'm being far more honest than you are.

In terms of gaming software, the console market is larger. I'm more than willing to eat crow if someone can provide a link to a reputable article.

Edit:

Here's an article from NPD that discusses 2009 sales (PC vs Console)

http://www.npd.com/press/releases/press_100114.html

Console: 19.66 billion (includes hardware + software)

PC: 10.5 billion (just software).

You might have a point since the 19.66 includes hardware. Anything more recent?

Gully beat me to it, but ya, Consoles and handhelds all combined bring in less money than PC does, IN THE US, where PC gaming is relatively weaker than in other markets. PC game retail + DD is actually larger than PS3+360. What publishers like about the PS3+360 market isn't that it straight up has the sales, it's that it's a large and very homogenius market that's "easy" but expensive to make games for. That way they can invest in relatively few games that each hit a large target market.

 

[Cipherr]

Source 2010

PC gaming market is growing, bigger and more diverse.

You toss digital distro into that and wow. Who woulda thunk

 

[Gully State]

Gully beat me to it, but ya, Consoles and handhelds all combined bring in less money than PC does, IN THE US, where PC gaming is relatively weaker than in other markets. PC game retail + DD is actually larger than PS3+360. What publishers like about the PS3+360 market isn't that it straight up has the sales, it's that it's a large and very homogenius market that's "easy" but expensive to make games for. That way they can invest in relatively few games that each hit a large target market.

Not to mention that PC gaming market with the exception of boxed retail sales grew whereas the console market had an earnings decline.

 

[Brofist]

Yikes. Five of the top ten PC games in 2009 were not even released in 2009?

WoW

 

[njean777]

Mkb for me I really can not stand sitting and using the combination for more then an hour. Also my friends mainly play on ps3. I have a gaming rig and it's mostly used for civ or the random pc game I think looks cool. The witcher 2 looks really good. I may pick that up eventually.

 

[Trent Strong]

 

[BobTheFork]

Multiple $500 video cards in one computer needed to run games.

 

[kokujin]

With PCs you get back whatever you put in, with consoles it's low input low return.

Multiple $500 video cards in one computer needed to run games.

You don't need multiple cards to run games, a single $100 dollar card will run games at high resolutions and look much better and give better performance than consoles.

 

[DR3AM]

1. expensive
2. all my friends play on xbox live
3. easy to setup and use
4. i can borrow a game from a friend and the other way around
5. voice chat
6. large tv

 

[Izayoi]

Multiple $500 video cards in one computer needed to run games.

That is not true at all. Even a bargain bin video card can outperform consoles at this point.

 

[Wallach]

Multiple $500 video cards in one computer needed to run games.

How else are we going to power our $5,000 dollar monitor setups?

 

[CoffeeJanitor]

Some posters in this thread really need to start using programs like RadeonPro/Nvidia Inspector before bitching about enabling options like anti-aliasing, texture filtering, vsync, etc.

This is a step-by-step guide to what everyone should be doing:


1. install game. buy on Steam and download it, OR for retail games add the .exe to your Steam list - this entire process is less intrusive than when a console game is installing because you can actually still the use the PC while it's working. time = 15mins, at most

[optional step] - for retail games, remove disk check by cracking the .exe. find one online. time = 5 mins Googling, if that

2. set up game profile in RadeonPro/Nvidia Inspector. point it towards the .exe (yes, even Steam games too) and enable options like AA, AF, triple buffer vsync etc. it's a case of ticking boxes people. for older games, you can even force RadeonPro to run them with a single core. tweaking time = 2 mins (15 seconds if you just mirror another game's profile)

3. in game, choose resolution and your other settings eg graphics options, controls etc. you have already set up AA, vsync etc in RadeonPro/Nvidia Inspector so they don't need to be touched. time = 2mins

4. plug in controller if needed, launch game from Steam

5. bitch to Backloggery about having too many games to play because PC gaming is awesome


total time = under 25 mins, or in other words about the same time you would spend installing on a PS3 or 360. even less time needed if you multi-task some of the above. it's not rocket science, and if you can't use a simple tick-box GUI with explicit instructions and explanations as to what each setting does, lord have mercy.

I don't know what to say to this other than: you're missing the point. A lot of people don't want to do any of that shit; they just want to put the game in and go. That would look complicated as hell to the average person (or average GAFfer for that matter).

Also: Cool graph on sales above.

 

[kokujin]

1. expensive
5. voice chat
6. large tv

It's not that expensive, take the price you spent on your last PC and a few hundred dollar you have a gaming rig.It's a PC and a gaming platform.PC games have had voice chat for god knows how long, consoles just got voice chat the other day.You can also play on your TV real easy, my card came with a mini HDMI cord, you just plug and play.

 

[Cipherr]

This has clearly run its course, needs a lock. We are all just spinning our wheels now.

 

[IchigoSharingan]

1. expensive
2. all my friends play on xbox live
3. easy to setup and use
4. i can borrow a game from a friend and the other way around
5. voice chat
6. large tv

PC gaming had voice chat even when you were still in diapers.

 

[unomas]

1) Cheaper on consoles
2) Always preferred my couch to a chair
3) Grew up as a console gamer in the 80's
4) Prefer my 50 inch plasma to my 15" laptop.
5) Console exclusives
6) I will never be a PC gamer
7) Xbox 360/PS3 are much more than just gaming consoles now, and I prefer to have Netflix, ESPN, Hulu etc. etc. on my television and not on a pc sized screen.
8) Much more gamers to compete against on services like Live compared to PC's in the genres that I like.
9) There are just too many reasons why I prefer consoles to list them all.

 

[obonicus]

PC game retail + DD is actually larger than PS3+360.

No, I don't think it is. Look at that chart again. Retail and DD is smaller than game portals and social networks. And that's not even adding MMOs to the mix. Saying 'gaming on the PC brings in more money than gaming on consoles', while true, is misleading, as it includes things under the term 'gaming' that neogaf in general is quite disdainful towards.

What publishers like about the PS3+360 market isn't that it straight up has the sales, it's that it's a large and very homogenius market that's "easy" but expensive to make games for. That way they can invest in relatively few games that each hit a large target market.

Implicit in this is that PC gamers are more selective. There's no reason whatsoever to believe this beyond confirmation bias; Black Ops outsold everything not Warcraft last year. Publishers focus on consoles because, like it or not, the bulk of sales still comes from them. As this shifts to handhelds and social networking, so will the publisher bucks.

 

[IchigoSharingan]

Like it or not, PC gaming dominates gaming sales. Chop it up all you want. The proof is in the pudding.

 

[DR3AM]

most everybody has a headset on their xbox and its plug in and play, no special software,plus ALL games support it, on the pc, its not as easy.

 

[faceless007]

No, I don't think it is. Look at that chart again. Retail and DD is smaller than game portals and social networks. And that's not even adding MMOs to the mix. Saying 'gaming on the PC brings in more money than gaming on consoles', while true, is misleading, as it includes things under the term 'gaming' that neogaf in general is quite disdainful towards.

NeoGaf in general is disdainful towards Nintendo too, guess we shouldn't count their sales either.

Spoiler

Or maybe this board really isn't reflective of anything beyond a narrow demographic. Just because you don't like casual games doesn't mean they don't count.

 

[Freshmaker]

Like it or not, PC gaming dominates gaming sales. Chop it up all you want. The proof is in the pudding.

19 > 43?

 

[remz]

most everybody has a headset on their xbox and its plug in and play, no special software,plus ALL games support it, on the pc, its not as easy.

buy mic

press mic key

voice chat in game

 

[Dad Is A Zombie]

Add me to the list of guys that don't want to come home from work only to look at yet another monitor in their downtime. And have pay for a high end rig to do it? No thanks. Firing up the console now...

 

[obonicus]

Like it or not, PC gaming dominates gaming sales. Chop it up all you want. The proof is in the pudding.

No, gaming revenue. Not sales.

And cheerleading this fact means cheerleading facebook games and MMOs (both WoW and F2P ones no one on GAF plays). Which is fine, I suppose, though a bit surprising -- these types of games aren't incredibly popular on GAF.

More seriously, insisting that these games do better on PC than consoles is delusional (we have plenty of evidence to the contrary) and doesn't really help this discussion, as it just fosters the 'lol publishers are run by literal idiots' fallacy.

 

[IchigoSharingan]

19 > 43?

did you look at that chart?

casual games + dd + MMO + boxed + social gaming > console



I don't care if Farmville isn't popular on GAF, or WOW. They matter where it matters most: sales and with the satisfaction of the gamer. My cousin loves the shit out of Farmville and bought a PC just for it. All the more power to her. I ain't gonna judge!

 

[remz]

Add me to the list of guys that don't want to come home from work only to look at yet another monitor in their downtime. And have pay for a high end rig to do it? No thanks. Firing up the console now...

monitor... TV screen, what's the difference?

 

[Freshmaker]

did you look at that chart?

casual games + dd + MMO + boxed + social gaming > console

That only works if social gaming, DD and casual gaming are exclusive to the PC market. They aren't.

 

[Dad Is A Zombie]

monitor... TV screen, what's the difference?

One's in front of my couch the other at my desk. I've had enough of desks for one day.

 

[IchigoSharingan]

That only works if social gaming, DD and casual gaming are exclusive to the PC market. They aren't.

Social/casual gaming, I'd argue, is dominated by PC.

DD? Steam/D2D/Blizzard vs xbla/psn.

 

[obonicus]

NeoGaf in general is disdainful towards Nintendo too, guess we shouldn't count their sales either.

I don't think gaf is particularly disdainful towards Nintendo, actually, not that your strawman isn't already entirely without merit.

Or maybe this board really isn't reflective of anything beyond a narrow demographic. Just because you don't like casual games doesn't mean they don't count.

Of course they count, in the big picture. I even said that in the big picture, publisher money will move to the real growth areas within PC gaming. But this thread isn't really about the big picture, is it? It's intellectually dishonest to argue as if all along when people were saying PC gaming they meant facebook games as well. No, this thread (like most threads on neogaf -- and this isn't a bad thing) is about the sort of games neogaf cares for.

 

[akilshohen]

Keyboard and mouse, the potential of not being productive on the PC (This was back in college), couch being more comfortable the the PC chair, no joystick support

 

[Freshmaker]

Social/casual gaming, I'd argue, is dominated by PC.

It's dominated by anything that can run a web browser.

 

[IchigoSharingan]

Umm...if you were major into casual gaming, your best bet is still a PC. Even if it's just web-based, actually. There are treasure troves of casual gaming sites that require download for their particular portfolio of games. And if you wanna find PC gaming girls...that's your best bet too!

 

[Salacious Crumb]

PC sales versus the sales of 3 consoles seems a bit unfair to me.

 

[vocab]

most everybody has a headset on their xbox and its plug in and play, no special software,plus ALL games support it, on the pc, its not as easy.

zzzzz

Mumble,Vent,TS, STEAM VOICE, IN GAME VOICE, etc..................... Anyone who actually plays any good game has a mic.

No special software? Ya, it's called xbox live with a monthly fee.

 

[Freshmaker]

Umm...if you were major into casual gaming, your best bet is still a PC. Even if it's just web-based, actually. There are treasure troves of casual gaming sites that require download for their particular portfolio of games. And if you wanna find PC gaming girls...that's your best bet too!

Point is, that's Facebook's money. They're their own platform.

These aren't people buying graphics cards or that pay attention to PC gaming.

 

[Mooreberg]

A lot of that pie graph includes fucking awful Facebook games which aren't entirely relevant to the question the OP was asking. Microsoft moved a lot of non-MMO, non-garbage development to consoles. Would it be better if those games were still primarily PC focused? Sure it would, but that is not what happened. Until Microsoft get $10 from every PC game sold, it is unlikely to change. Valve has more incentive than anyone to keep things PC centric, and they are releasing everything day and date with consoles because that is where the market went.

 

[GillianSeed79]

This has clearly run its course, needs a lock. We are all just spinning our wheels now.

Can't we all get along? Seriously, though, I shall bring a stupid nitpick to this thread and a request for help. I have two cats. My one cat I think wants her own WoW account or something. I even crack my laptop or try to install a Steam update, she's Sammy Davis Junior doing an impression of Tom Hanks from Big on crack on my keyboard. I don't get it. It's like Asus used catnip to solder the parts of my machine together. Half of my Witcher 1 playthrough was the time I took to shoo her away. Short of calling the cat whisperer, I don't know what to do.