"PC Gaming is dead!" goes in about 5 year cycles.

Here's my previous reply:

"What do you call a Console with internet, a hard drive and a keyboard?"

Here's my new reply:

"What do you call a tablet/phone with a LCD, internet, a hard drive and a keyboard?"

It's like opening your eyes and claiming "The world recently got brighter !".
Surreal, cute, annoying when repetitive.

Skyrim = console was lead and PC took a backseat...:/..awful UI and textures...

Well actually you still call it phone, they even have a little stand so you can connect your keyboard and external drive to it and you don't have to hold it up :D

but... but... there's still awesome pc games coming out in these few years that you can't get on console... actually great website is http://www.pcgamingfan.com

Has some brilliant lists.

That doesn't necessarily mean it was dying. I'd say it's more a sign that significantly lower prices via digital distribution services like Steam and GamersGate were starting to make their presence felt.

pc skyrim has enhanced graphics and textures that will melt faces compared to the console version?

Not to mention tytanis mod, Midas magic and phendarix magic, Daggercraft ETC.

I meant the vanillla version though, because that's what Bethesda was talking about when they said that.
Doesn't vanilla pc Skyrim use the same textures for the console version? I always thought they were the same

I sometimes compare Bethesda Howard to Australia Howard - they both hype you up in anticipation for something, then completely screw you over.

That said, skyrim was great, but overhyped. Once again, PC Modders were left to fix a broken product and polish it.

That is an absolutely fucking dreadful article. It reads more like a fanboy piece spouting off random, incoherent snippets of information from unreliable sources - the PC Gaming Alliance and Michael Pachter of all things - than a realistic exposition of how the PC gaming situation is faring.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a staunch defender of PC gaming, and I know that PC gaming will always claw itself back from the brink no matter what, be it in the form of indie games or alternative distribution concepts. But I also realise that there are very clear and present dangers such as DRM that pose a risk to PC gaming and that hardware - no matter how great - doesn't make the blindest bit of difference.

Good games, great stability and platform neutrality make PC great, not 64-player online.

If two architectures are clearly competing with popularity, then it makes sense to put them against each other. Mac computers would clearly qualify, but are they eating PC game sales? I have no idea how many games Mac gets annually anyway, I know some PC games get Mac versions as well. Ever since Marathon games, I don't recall publishers opting to release a game for Mac but not PC, while many still may opt to release a game to e.g. a PC and not consoles, at least initially.

Tablet and smartphone games probably compete the most with handheld consoles, not PC (nor "big" console) games. Nintendo has already complained how the cheap games for smartphones are eating up their handheld console market. People play more and more on their Iphones instead of their Nintendo DS.


As for comparing consoles vs PC... I think it is a bit unfair to compare the sales of PC games (which is one platform to release games for) to all consoles combined, which are several platforms. Most people don't own all three consoles (XBox360, PS3 and Wii), but only one of them. Success of e.g. a PS3 game does not guarantee success for Wii games, for example.

That said, I feel PC and console gaming are, and always have, been somewhat different experiences. They are not exactly the same, simply because most consoles are in the living room, while PCs are not. While there is certainly lots of overlapping, the different setup and controls favour completely different genres. Party games, offline multiplayer games (e.g. sports and beat'em ups), and "interactive movies" are clearly much better suited for the living room in the big screen, while for a deep strategy game or RPG most would probably rather play it in peace so that they can concentrate on it. PC gaming is a more personal experience, for games to be played alone.

Hence, even the same person might play both on consoles and PC, but completely different games. Single people living alone don't necessarily have to make such choices, of course. Or, then you have to limit your "deep" gaming time to when all others are sleeping, and use only headphones in the living room. :)

I wasn't serious about that. I was being sarcastic. That article is all about spin. Take the Microtransaction games for example. Those are not at all competing with consoles, yet that article insists on using them to beef up PC. A lot of that stuff works on pretty much anything with a good browser anyway, so if you look at it that way the article is even cheating the figures. I love PC, but im sick of these types of articles. I used to buy into them, but after 15 years of reading them it really starts to get old. They used to talk about how PC was on the verge of killing off consoles. Then they said it was only a matter of time till PC regains its throne. All if it is nothing more that wishful thinking though.

But that's all criticism for the article. I don't think the actual PC vs Console debate is even relevant at this point. I mostly agree with your last two paragraphs on this. I do sort of disagree with your RPG point. I think those play better on a couch in a living room*. Much more relaxing that way. Easier to loose yourself in a game when your relaxed. But yea, for the most part PC and Consoles get different games from each other to suit the different target audiences of the platforms. You can argue that the cross platform games are better on PC and such, but its only a small portion of what Consoles or PCs get exclusively. Its dumb to make a platform decision on just those games. Stick with what fits your tastes best. My tastes are quite broad, so I have a PC, and all 3 consoles. I generally buy one console right away, but then wait for the others to go through a few price drops before I get them. That way I can actually afford it.

*I like how HDTV's are just glorified PC monitors now.

PC NEVER stopped playing games. That's just boring and dumb....