Why is the pc game market "DYING" Piracy or World of Warcraft?

In recent times it seems as if PC gamers haven't had alot of shine in the blockbuster/exclusives category. Albeit this fall is looking promising, I got a new rig in the spring of this year and all summer I've been waiting like an army wife for the calvary to come home yet, I'm still sad and alone. I got to finally play Mass Effect, good game, just seemed to lack in the bang/buck category. Game companies blame Piracy.

So this brings me to my real point, what is killing the PC game market? Is it piracy? Is it mmorpg/fpsonline/steam/starcraft?(sorry didn't mean to harp on blizzard twice, I actually like one of their franchises)My point is, somewhere around 250 million people worldwide play online video games.(consoles,online poker,adult online games, all online gaming "figured" in this stat.) In alot of cases when playing an online game that is highly addictive,(such as World of Warcraft) a person buys one game at retail price and then starts paying a monthly fee for that game. So, they then feel entitled to get their $15 worth out of said game.(which in reality is chump change compared to a full priced game.) Then when they might look into new games, they have to fight themselves in the "but I already pay a monthly fee for X game, and I'm not ready to cancel it." department. In the time it took my buddy to get to Lvl 70 on one said game, (and get all the pixelated junk his heart could desire before realising it was pointless.) I had spent somewhere around $500 playing new and unique games. He had spent $30 on a boxed game and then sent $15 a month to the same company, WHILE SPENDING NO OTHER MONEY ON GAMING! I actually have another buddy who used to be exclusively an xbox/halo master, throwing down $150-$200 a month on new games for his console, he started playing World of Warcraft a month after Halo 3 came out and he hasn't bought a new xbox 360 game since. So basically online games where people spend way too much time on one game, end up inbreeding the PC game market as a whole.

My point is how in the h-e-double hockey sticks can game developers blame Piracy THAT much when a majority of PC gamers are what they call "niche gamers" meaning they play one one or two or their favorite games for tons of time on end, without ever caring a whole lot to catch up to new generations of gaming. (can anyone say Counter-Strike?) I mean Piracy spreads alot of games to people who would probably never played the game if not for having a chance to try it for free. I'm not saying piracy is a good thing for the industry, just that it can't be the be all end all reason for waning sales.

This part is just a crazy idea I came up with. Microsoft/Sony/Nintendo have game consoles, they also are a part of creating games for their consoles. So If we are shelling out anywhere between $200-600 on a video card, why are the video card manufacturers not getting into game creation to keep gaming alive, I mean if PC gaming dies, then all they have left is the console market and they can no longer charge outrageous prices for the spanking new video cards. Does this not make sense?

I would like to rant about my opinions more, but I think this is enough to chew on for now...

PC Gaming is not dead, nor is it growing. It's stagnant (some may argue it's growing, which it slightly is). It's not because of piracy. There are three major factors:

1. DRM.

2. Lack of public knowledge of PC hardware.

3. Lack of games worth purchasing.

When publishers compare PC sales to console sales, they get the false illusion of the PC market shrinking. It is shrinking RETAIL, but GROWING in digital sales. NPD does not count digital distribution sales, so we don't know if PC sales are truly above console sales.

Then there's also the fact that the PC is the biggest gaming platform in the world, excluding the US. The general population in the US does not want to use their brain and figure out why their 5 year old PC doesn't run Crysis.

Stardock has the best business model for PC gaming right now, especially with Sins of a Solar Empire. They don't use DRM, they provide free updates, and don't treat the customers like criminals (Unlike UBI, Epic, and Crytek).

Its hardly dieing. We should be overjoyed that we have any exclusives at all that are leagues above any console exclusive. We get ports of every game eventually, and we do have some exclusives.

Which would you rather have? A preset piece of hardware that you arent allowed to change or customize, forcing you to settle with less intuitive controls and uncustomizable graphics...Or a piece of hardware that you are allowed to customize and tweak, games with customizable controls and graphics...Its up to you.

PC gaming isnt dieing, sure, piracy isnt helping, but we're still going strong.

I have no idea what Starcraft has to do with any of this........ besides for maybe hurting RTS sales a bit. but hell, if no one can make a better RTS than SC for over 10 yrs than more power to em. (I myself stay away from non-SC, esp non-Blizzard RTS's)

But you are right for the most part. Most ppl who play pirated games wouldn't have bought a lot of those games anyway, so they can't claim that as a loss as the money was never there to be earned.

And youre absolutely correct about the MMO's. Biggest waste of life possible imho. (South Park: Make love not Warcraft, anyone?)

Cant blame blizzard - theyve made billions of dollars and established themselves better than anyone else in the industry due to WoW. Now they don't have to worry about takeover by crap companies like EA and are free to make their own decisions in regards to development as well as publishing.

I personally think that if game prices were reduced, sales would go up quite a bit. Who wouldn't be pissed off paying $50 or more for a 4-6 hr singleplayer campaign?

In the end, hackers will always be steps ahead of any DRM scheme and pirated games will always be around for as long as PC games are around. This is how it's always been. And MMO will always be around as long as there are ppl with no lives.

PC gaming wont die though. Think about how many more PC's there are than all the consoles ever made combined and multiplied many times. Most avid PC gamers will gag at the thought of having to buy consoles just to play video games. PC's will never be replaced by consoles and there will always be a demand for games. As long as there is a market for it, ppl will produce. I really dont see where all this doomsday PC gaming is dead baloney is coming from to be honest.

There are far more important tings a gwan in the world to be worrying about stuff like this, man.

I kind of ranted a little too much and got off point. All I was really trying to say is that it pisses me off that they use Piracy as a copout. The PC gaming industry is more complex(more hardware to test, different platforming strategies etc.) and when compared to physical title sales they just don't see it as worth their time. So instead of admitting they don't want to go through the effort for the benefit of their gamers, they blame the gamers who want to try a full version of a game before buying it.

I remember back when I was a kid I knew someone with just about every game platform and I could actually try playing games at friends houses and such, now that I'm a grown PC game player, I don't have any friends with rigs as powerful as mine, so there's no real way for me to try out games or see how they will run on my rig without trying a pirated copy...

Like I said my real point is I wish the industry could work with the changing climate instead of resisting it.

Can we rename this forum PC & Mac hospice?fatshodan

Haha :P

She's been a fine source of entertainment for many years, that be certain. But when the 'ol girl finally goes, I just know we can move on LOL

I don't understand how WoW is killing PC gaming.

But piracy is a big problem on PC. Sure it's on consoles but not in the same magnitude. Like one poster said however, DRM is also a problem that fuels piracy. We all know this due to how bad Spore was heavily pirated due to its 'draconian' DRM.

Stardock's dealing with business is really the way the PC market should be. Don't treat you customers like criminals and you'll get great results. Sins of a Solar Empire is the prime example of this.

You cannot kill something that doesn't have any roots, but that doesn't mean you cannot hurt it.

The fact remains that the only way to get rid of all this negative publicity is to do something about piracy, the solution to that of course is any ones guess.

Quite frankly I am getting sick of hearing about piracy and just want to enjoy my damn games. Just for once, can we say FU to the law and burn down whatever building that freaking PB server is in? Come on the world would be a much better place if we sodded the damn legal loopholes and just took those people out, them plus everyone else who thinks it is funny to host a piracy service.

It wouldn't stop/prevent piracy, but taking down the big networks would certainly slow it down.

I know for me WoW did kill PC gaming, I only played WoW, I didnt buy a new computer game for almost 3 1/2 years! I finally broke my WoW addiction, and well picked up some easy non RPG games for my PC.

I would say that I am probably not the only person who quit buying other games because of WoW...

Just sayin

Guys it's a freaking MMO, you might as well argue any popular game is killing PC gaming; because while enjoying it they are not seeking other games.

It is dying becasue there are less and less games worth purchasing. It is all coming down multiplatform dumbdowned games aimed at "hard core" gamers. zhivago_x

The industry is to blame for that, the inescapable race to the bottom.

People demand increasingly more advanced technology from their games, whether it be graphics or game play, which of course increases development costs. In an effort to help cover these costs; companies seek broader and broader audiences to maximize sales.

Hence the increase in dumbed down games. Though I have to question what sort of world we live in when the Bioshock developers decided an inventory was beyond their target audience.

PC has had more AA and AAA releases than the PS3, 360, or Wii since the time of each of those consoles release.

I don't understand how WoW is killing PC gaming.

But piracy is a big problem on PC. Sure it's on consoles but not in the same magnitude. Like one poster said however, DRM is also a problem that fuels piracy. We all know this due to how bad Spore was heavily pirated due to its 'draconian' DRM.

Stardock's dealing with business is really the way the PC market should be. Don't treat you customers like criminals and you'll get great results. Sins of a Solar Empire is the prime example of this.

mo0ksi

Spore sold 1 million copies its first week... Hard to say if pirarcy or drm hurt it, id say the drm probably hurt it more though.

It's not dying, nor will it ever and if it does so goes consoles. Where do you think the tech. for consoles comes from?

A: PC

ATI and Nvidia put there graphics cards in these systems but their main currency comes from pc gamers, they can't afford to let their bread winner(PC) become extinct, same thing with amd and intel, w/o us they wouldn't be around.

Those who say pc gaming is dead or dying are retarded and don't even game on the pc so their argument is irrelevent, and they better pray their asses off, because if pc gaming goes console gaming will be right behind.

It's not dying, nor will it ever and if it does so goes consoles. Where do you think the tech. for consoles comes from?

A: PC

ATI and Nvidia put there graphics cards in these systems but their main currency comes from pc gamers, they can't afford to let their bread winner(PC) become extinct, same thing with amd and intel, w/o us they wouldn't be around.

Those who say pc gaming is dead or dying are retarded and don't even game on the pc so their argument is irrelevent, and they better pray their asses off, because if pc gaming goes console gaming will be right behind.

Precyse

In my earlier post I said dying. let me rephrase that. It is changing. Not necessariliy for the better. Complex and inteligent games are becoming a rarity and some of PC strongest genres (RTS and FPS) are being adjusted so they can be served to the console audience as well. On the other hand, I think Square is shifting thier focus to the PC.

The issues that hold the PC as a gaming platform are a bit more numerous than piracy and MMO's.

We are a part of the problem. For years we have demanded better and better graphics. The developers made the mistake of listening and have been hell bent on giving us those high end graphics. As a result phrases like "full of bugs", "the game is unstable", and "crashes alot" are part of the norm. The graphics push also has lead to a lot of people passing on PC version because they don't think their computers can handle it and don't want to deal with a sea of arcane techo-babble in order to upgrade.

Yes, piracy is an issue. There is no point in talking about it here. There are plenty of other thread that are full of people arguing for and against piracy. Very little of it is constructive ideas on how address piracy other than DRM.

Adverising is a problem. Very little is focused on the PC version of any game.

Bad demos are another issue. Most demos are nothing more than a single level with an installer thats been slapped together and thrown out the door. They rarely show you how to play, never tell you whats going on, always ruin part of the main game, and sometimes even need a patch. Most don't seem to care enough to put any real effort into a demo. This is very self-defeating since demos are the first contact we have with gameplay. They leave me with a "meh" vibe about the game. I can't remember the last time a demo left me wanting more.

The funny thing is that the gaming industry pulls in more money then ever right now, its a bigger earner then hollywood. Companys goes were they see themself making more money, and i bet those calculation today points towards the consoles, not because of piracy, developing a game for consoles are easier, you know exactly what the buyers will get in terms of how a game will look and feel because all hardware are the same on consoles = bigger market. Besides that i do think that console owners, who probably own PC's aswell ( like me, and probably you ), do spend more money on console games, parents buying games to their kids, theres no need to understand an operating system or how to configure graphic settings or any of that on consoles, just pop in the game and press start.

The gaming industry is afraid of having bad products, it takes years today to develop a game, years of salarys to programmers, graphic artists and all people involved, thats alot of money. And i do ( subjectivly ) belive that PC gamers are more fastidious about what they are getting, you cant get away with a bad game on the PC market, while on consoles all it takes is a flashy box and parents that will be willing to pay for whatever their kids points at.

World of warcraft is not a problem for PC gamers, WoW just shows how succesfull a game can be on PC, and in terms of piracy i dont think WoW has any problem in that regard at all. It ought to be an insentive for game developers that WoW have been as succesfull. But then again if you feel you cant take on the WoW beast in terms of producing a better game, you probably have an easier time getting away with a console title.

There still is and allways will be a market for PC games, if one company stops developing titles for it, somebody else will just grab those market shares and earn more.

Succesfull console titles will be ported to PC's, you can still milk the cow there, if its a crappy port people wont buy it so they better get things right.

Myself i buy games after carefull consideration, i try not to play FPS games on consoles, i like a mouse in my hand aiming, cant beat that, but otherwise i buy titles that i belive are worth the money not depending if its a console or a PC game.

Then there's also the fact that the PC is the biggest gaming platform in the world, excluding the US. The general population in the US does not want to use their brain and figure out why their 5 year old PC doesn't run Crysis.

PunishedOne

it's true....i bet half the people on the good ol' US of A use computers from the early 2000's and try to play heavy-duty games. I see pow wows of people recycling old computers more than ever, i thought one was an Apple 2...or maybe they just got rid of it becaue it was collecting dust.

I think the people who say its not dying i think are in denial about it as i was before but i feel that it is.

WE might as well let it and then wait a while for it to come back again for it to be better than ever.

I hope a solution comes up which is good both for cosumers and developers. PC games piracy has increased staggeringly with time. Console games are by the far less pirated but if PC games arent released then console game piracy is likely to explode. So I hope a clever solution comes up. There are loyal PC games fan too who dont want to get caught up in the middle.

That hacking teams who release such pirated copies can be asked to release those six or seven months after the game release. Yea it sound crazy.

Also games prices are some times too high in certain regions of the world. So decreasing cost can help too.

How about this four step process:

1. Video card manufacturers give a cut to game developers.

2. Game developers greatly decrease the price of PC games.

3. Customers stop pirating and start buying PC games.

4. Customers start learning more about their PCs and update their video cards.

Bringing the whole thing in full circle again. Just an idea, but it could work.

I think Blizzard-Activision-Blizzard's biggest fault is not doing enough advocacy for our platform. They are now the 800-lb. gorilla of PC gaming, but do nothing. Their attitude seems to be, if it doesn't affect WoW, why worry?

agin there is as much pircay on console as there is on the pc

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/world/2004-05-27-chinese-game-piracy_x.htm

http://www.forbes.com/2005/07/18/videogame-piracy-worldwide-cx_ld_0718piracy.html

I think that the piracy being the problem is an scapegoat Maybe devloping for the pc is no longer needed i'd be happier with the truthful answer than the piracy bull we are given i don't belive its piracy.

Piracy has gone on for ages on every system so it can't be piracy thats driving pc gaming to a slow death not piracy i would want one person to own up and admit it isn't piracy.