Is it Aprils Fool's today? "Epic Games Making PC its Primary Platform"

[greenhawk]

Lets not kid ourselves, piracy is rampant in the PC games industry, the sales of pc games that are non subscription are a joke compared to console game sales.

True, but then I suspect their are a crap load more PC's sitting around than consoles.

Though judging by the popularity and release rates of console games on those same pirating forums (sometimes weeks in advance), consoles are proberly catching up fast.

 

[blackened23]

No, he is saying that it does not hurt the company’s bottom line. They are not 'losing' millions in sales, they are just not getting paid for some people's enjoyment of the game. There is a big difference.

Right, and i'm saying that people use this as some sort of justification for games being stolen. That is not the case -- if you don't pay for it -- you're not entitled to try it out.

To say that companies bottom lines aren't hurt by piracy is naive. The problem is overstated on both sides, but lets face it - most console owners pay for their games not out of choice but because they feel they have to. That definitely isn't the case with the PC, if you just look at the numbers of people seeding torrents of new games its ridiculous.

Regardless of what side of the argument you fall on -- the PC gaming scene is shadow of its former self 10 years ago...and while piracy isn't the sole reason i- ts a part of it.

 

[ImpulsE69]

This is all wrong. Consoles are just as pirated as PC, some just more so than others.

A business does not lose cash it wouldn't have received anyway. This isn't saying that it is all this way, some people pirate to pirate, but numbers are grossly overstated.

The term Piracy is thrown around now as a basis for this or that like terrorism is used to take away freedoms. It's all tactics. If piracy was nearly like they claim, they would simply not be in the business. When a game can make more than a movie, trust me, pirating isn't hurting them at all.

What they don't accept is when their item is crap and sells badly. This is when it is the worst. Oh, it was the pirates. Lies. Even the pirates delete that shit. They are just mad because no one got suckered into buying their crap item.

It's been proven time and again, quality games sell. Sure there's pirates, always will be, but it's a much smaller subset if someone finds the value in the cost of said item.

This is why Steam has been somewhat beneficial. With the constant sales and the human urge to impulse buy who can't find worth in almost anything they advertise?

 

[lupi]

Right, and i'm saying that people use this as some sort of justification for games being stolen. That is not the case -- if you don't pay for it -- you're not entitled to try it out.

To say that companies bottom lines aren't hurt by piracy is naive. The problem is overstated on both sides, but lets face it - most console owners pay for their games not out of choice but because they feel they have to. That definitely isn't the case with the PC, if you just look at the numbers of people seeding torrents of new games its ridiculous.

Regardless of what side of the argument you fall on -- the PC gaming scene is shadow of its former self 10 years ago...and while piracy isn't the sole reason i- ts a part of it.

most console games don't pay for their games. they borrow from a friend or buy second hand, which gives the dev just as much money as if they had pirated it.

 

[Valkerrick]

It's not just that they turned their backs on PC gaming, it's the negative PC bashing comments about piracy they put out saying they basically went to consoles cause we wouldn't stop pirating their games. Which is a joke because what kind of cars did they drive when they were a PC only studio?

----

Thank you Paperfist. That was exactly the point I was trying to make.

 

[Fox5]

most console games don't pay for their games. they borrow from a friend or buy second hand, which gives the dev just as much money as if they had pirated it.

Most console gamers buy used, because games are too freaking expensive. It's why all the big name game companies are putting so much first-buy-only DLC into their games.

At least on the PC, there's no used market and no rental market.

 

[greenhawk]

At least on the PC, there's no used market and no rental market.

use to be, but online CD key registering killed that very fast.

 

[lupi]

use to be, but online CD key registering killed that very fast.

and i for one eagerly wait for the day when the console titles start coming out with that. my god what a glorious shitstorm those days will entail.

 

[blackened23]

You can debate the effects of piracy for days but that doesn't change the fact that PC gaming is a shadow of its former self. Most of the big budget games will go to the console, and i'll be honest I kinda miss not having a console since they a lot of games first that the PC doesn't. When Super SF4 came out I was really looking forward to a PC release, but it never did. Thankfully SSF4 AE did get a PC translation....This wasn't a problem back in the day because the PC had unique franchises that the consoles didn't - great series like ROTT, magic carpet, baldurs gate, etc, etc. So even if you didn't get the big franchises the PC still had a lot to offer - thats still the case but to a far lesser extent than 10 or so years ago......You could count on PC specific franchises that would never be released on consoles.

So basically we're screwed either way....consoles are still getting the best games and most of the big name PC titles are console ports....and the games we do get usually have stupid DRM protection or windows live. Bioshock 2 was a great game made unenjoyable on the PC because of copy protection. So i'm kind of bitter of the entire situation, the devs seem to think piracy is a problem and developers either A) say fuck the PC or B) implement draconian copy protection measures. C) only create console ports...or D) force you to be online 24/7 to play the game. So its a no win situation. We the PC gamers are screwed either way. And there's not much we can do since we're at their mercy.

 

[ImpulsE69]

I think you are forgetting that back in the day companies weren't spending millions to create craptacular games that are 6 hours long. It's not really just PC games that are a shadow of their former selves, console games aren't that great either. Sure there's some gems..but there's gems on both sides. Greed ruins everything. I think we're due for another videogame crash ala the ..umm...early 80's?

 

[WhipperSnapper]

It's because Epic turned their backs against the people who made them great. UT99 was a major hit back then. Then all they do is make a updated version in 03,04 and UT3. Since those weren't selling so good, they blamed piracy. Then go create a whole new IP for consoles (Gears of War) and say we love console players now. At least thats my opnion.:\

It's not merely that Epic turned its backs on PC gamers. The ire aimed at Epic is also the result of what they did to the Unreal Tournament series.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with it, the original Unreal Tournament, released in 1999 (aka UT99), was the greatest online multiplayer FPS of all time. It felt more like an athletic cybersport than a disposable game. It had legions of fans, numerous server-based communities, hundreds of clans, and there must have been over 10,000 custom maps and mods made for it.

Then Epic released UT 2003 which changed the movement style and the weapons and added an announcer voice (that supposedly sounded really ghey) and people hated it. They improved upon it a bit with UT 2004 which is a good game in its own right for the vehicles-based Onslaught game and the Invasion-RPG mod.

Where Epic really screwed up was with UT3. UT3 was released on both the PC and consoles. The feel of the UT3 game play itself wasn't too bad, but everything surrounding it was god-awful. Upon release it seemed like a buggy beta and the server browser barely functioned. It was also heavily consolized, having a horrific user interface and lacking a great many of the user interface features and build quality that UT players had taken for granted. As a result, UT3 totally failed compared to the previous games and never had decent online player counts. it was a stillborn abortion. It also had dark, grungy, Gear of Warrified looks that people didn't like. UT fans felt like they'd been sold out to the consoles.

If Epic is to redeem itself, then they need to produce a first-rate, highly polished UT99-2.

 

[wuliheron]

I think you are forgetting that back in the day companies weren't spending millions to create craptacular games that are 6 hours long. It's not really just PC games that are a shadow of their former selves, console games aren't that great either. Sure there's some gems..but there's gems on both sides. Greed ruins everything. I think we're due for another videogame crash ala the ..umm...early 80's?

Its not just greed, but appealing to the lowest common denominator. Walmart sells endless cheap crap and has put countless quality stores out of business because most people really do prefer cheap crap. Likewise, their "footlong" hot dogs are now 8 inches and their video games shorter because they almost never finish them otherwise.

 

[Arg Clin]

Its not just greed, but appealing to the lowest common denominator. Walmart sells endless cheap crap and has put countless quality stores out of business because most people really do prefer cheap crap. Likewise, their "footlong" hot dogs are now 8 inches and their video games shorter because they almost never finish them otherwise.

Exactly! Welcome to the joys and curse of videogames becomming mainstream.

Console market is very attrative because devs can sell a lot more junk games for a lot of money, than they can get away with in the PC market. PC games generally demand higher quality and value, and thus are less interesting. There's a lot of "console kiddies" out there who just wants the awesome button and some gore to be happy. Real content not needed - developing costs can be kept down and margins kept high. Makes perfect sense.

What saves us (PC gamers) is that the console market eventually becomes saturated. Although the volume of junk it can suck up is massive there's always a limit. Then devs will have to turn back to the PC market, bite the bullet and make some quality games at lower margins.

 

[wuliheron]

What saves us (PC gamers) is that the console market eventually becomes saturated. Although the volume of junk it can suck up is massive there's always a limit. Then devs will have to turn back to the PC market, bite the bullet and make some quality games at lower margins.

Yeah, its no different from the rest of the entertainment industry. For every AAA game, movie, or TV show there are endless pieces of crap produced and the ratio of crap to quality changes over time. Thankfully at least the technology keeps improving so people at least demand better looking crap.

 

[Stuxnet]

Epic... oh how the mighty have fallen.

I honestly don't care that they've shifted gears (ahem) between console and PC a number of times. After all, they're a business and the purpose of a business is to maximize profits. Fair enough, I get that.

What I don't get is the smugness they've displayed over the years to various segments of their customer base. Again, they're a business: insulting your customers/fans to their faces is pretty fucking foolish.

Enjoy the backlash, fuckfaces.

 

[wuliheron]

Epic... oh how the mighty have fallen.

I honestly don't care that they've shifted gears (ahem) between console and PC a number of times. After all, they're a business and the purpose of a business is to maximize profits. Fair enough, I get that.

What I don't get is the smugness they've displayed over the years to various segments of their customer base. Again, they're a business: insulting your customers/fans to their faces is pretty fucking foolish.

Enjoy the backlash, fuckfaces.

Right, insulting pirates is insulting their fans, ergo, hurting their business.

 

[Stuxnet]

Right, insulting pirates is insulting their fans, ergo, hurting their business.

Where did I insinuate that insulting pirates = insulting their fans? Epic's general approach to their fans has always been smug, and that's clearly what I was referring to. Before they jumped on the console bandwagon, they routinely mocked console gamers. Then when they abandoned the PC ship, they engaged in mocking PC gamers. That's what I was referring to.

Back under your bridge, troll.

 

[evident]

epic is dead to me after what they did with UT series.

 

[badb0y]

Right, insulting pirates is insulting their fans, ergo, hurting their business.

They didn't insult pirates, they insulted their fans. There reasoning behind not releasing GoW 2 on PC was because in their opinion if your smart enough to change your video card then your probably a pirate.

 

[wuliheron]

Where did I insinuate that insulting pirates = insulting their fans? Epic's general approach to their fans has always been smug, and that's clearly what I was referring to. Before they jumped on the console bandwagon, they routinely mocked console gamers. Then when they abandoned the PC ship, they engaged in mocking PC gamers. That's what I was referring to.

Back under your bridge, troll.

They mock the platform, not the fans. There is a difference, like calling someone a "troll" instead of claiming PC is superior to consoles.

 

[skipsneeky2]

Loved Bioshock and UT3 as those were the first games i ever played besides BF2.

Keep in mind most of you might have been gaming prior to 2006 unlike me so my taste is different from yours.

But i do hope Epic can pull thru with some nice games that are pc exclusive.

After buying that pos Crysis 2 that was such a port from console we had a press enter button...yeah my hate for consoles is pretty bad.

BF3 is gonna kick more ass in pc without a doubt cause unlike those console gamers,we have 64 player support.

Tired of watered down crappy graphics and press enter buttons in ported games,give us pc exclusives!

 

[digitard]

If they release Bulletstorm with a normal MP modes (I just want to leash some guy running by and steal his flag!) I'll forgive them. Well, no, I won't. I will say "wow Bulletstorm has replayability now!"

I loved that game, but haven't loaded it up since I beat the SP campaign.

 

[blackened23]

Gamesradar reports that blizzard is recruiting talent to port their games to consoles

So, it begins.

 

[SunnyD]

Funny. It seems like a lot of companies as of recent are trying to "rediscover their roots". Just look at HP.

 

[PowerYoga]

Gamesradar reports that blizzard is recruiting talent to port their games to consoles

So, it begins.

I can only hope that blizzard will still be developing for the pc market first.